Bind (Manhattan Lux Book 1): Manhattan Lux (4 page)

L
unch ran long
. Wyatt understood. Jinx had questions. Lots and lots of questions. Angry questions mostly. But hey, he’d be pissed too if he’d just found out there was a fox in his henhouse. Or, wait, was that the right phrase for it?

Whatever, some kind of sneaky animal metaphor always seemed to apply in situations like these. Pick one.

Damn, his knee was aching like a motherfucker, and all his patience for this conversation was just about used up. He needed to get out of this cramped booth and stretch, and move all these civilians on to the next phase of the plan. Nobody ever caught the bad guy sipping plum wine and nom-ing on crispy beef.

“Listen, let’s wrap this up, if that’s alright. I’d like to squeeze a nap in before the club opens tonight.”

“You’re starting tonight?” Jinx asked.

“No time like the present. And you guys are genuinely in need of a new head of security. Seeing as the old one was fired last night.”

“Oh my God.” Jinx clamped a hand over her mouth, and right away Wyatt knew where her head had jumped. She thought she’d missed yet another traitor in her midst, that last night’s drama had been more of the same bad business as today’s.

Wyatt waved at her, trying to fan that idea out of her head.

“Jack,” she said, ignoring Wyatt’s flapping. “If you tell me Damon was yet another employee that was involved in all of this I’ll scream. And then I’ll fire myself for you.”

Well shit.

“No,” Jack said. “Turns out, he’s a horrible human being, but not our breach. Damon beat up his girlfriend two nights ago. There was a warrant out for him. Aiko spotted it.

Aiko nodded. “I’ve got alerts set up for that sort of thing.”

“As soon as she told me I got in touch with NYPD and he was picked up outside on his way home, so that we could avoid a scene and the press that goes with it.”

“You didn’t tell me,” Jinx said.

“I’m telling you now.”

“Fine.” Jinx sighed. “What do we do? What’s next?”

Wyatt stood up from the table and walked a few feet away, giving his legs a bit of a shake as he went, hoping he could just walk it off.
Ow.
Not likely.

“C’mon,” he grumbled. Stepping into the restaurant’s back hallway, he turned and held the door open just as Jinx followed him through.  “I told you guys. It’s nap time.”

Jinx mumbled something under her breath as she brushed past him.

“What was that?” Wyatt shot a hand out, stopping her with a quick pinch and pull on the fabric of her jacket.

“I said you’re a toddler,” she replied over her shoulder.

“Aw…now that’s just mean.”

“Hey, if the Huggies fit, man,” Aiko quipped as she joined them.

“I don’t wear pull-ups!” Wyatt called as they walked ahead of him, passing through the busy restaurant and out onto the street where Malcolm was waiting by Jack’s Bentley.

“Ladies I’m offended,” he said when he caught up with them. “I’m strictly an Underoos man. Batman. Twenty-four seven, three-sixty-five.”

“Ewwww.” Jinx looked up at him, shielding her eyes from the bright afternoon sun. “You should wash those things occasionally.”

Malcolm held the door open for her, and Jinx climbed inside the car, leaving Wyatt on the sidewalk biting back a smile.

She’s coming around,
he thought.
Calvert charm for the win.

“Hey,” he said, climbing in the car after her. “You’re right. Tonight…I’ll go commando.”

* * *

J
ack had taken
a taxi to an afternoon appointment, generously allowing Malcolm to drive Aiko, Jinx and Wyatt back to Calvert Tower. The building was host not only to Glow, but also several floors of luxury apartments that counted as some of the city’s most coveted living spaces. As employees of Calvert Inc, Jinx and Aiko shared one such apartment, a major perk of having a mogul for a boss. Apparently Wyatt was now a beneficiary of those perks as well, because Malcolm had informed them during the drive that Wyatt’s things had been moved from his tiny room at Bryce’s place to an apartment at Calvert Tower.

Aiko pushed the button for the fourth floor as the rest of them filed into the lobby elevator, and then turned to Wyatt and stood on tiptoes to reach up and muss his hair. “Poor wittle tyke,” she said. “You’re just pooped aren’t ya?”

“Knock it off.” Wyatt swatted her hand away.

“Well don’t worry, we’ll get you that nap real soon.”

The elevator door opened, and Aiko led them down the hallway towards the apartment the sisters shared.

“Did you hit the button for the wrong floor?” Jinx asked, wondering why on earth they were now walking toward her own apartment.

“He’s staying here,” Aiko said, and Jinx tensed up. “In the unit next to ours.”

The tension released. That made a little more sense, sort of. But—

“That unit’s empty?” Jinx asked.

“Yeah the tenant just moved to LA.” Aiko fished out a set of keys from her purse and handed them to Malcolm so that he could open the door. “Jack asked me to save it for Wyatt. I had it cleaned and furnished this week. So it’s all ready.”

Malcolm threw open the door to the apartment, and a rush of stale air whooshed over them. The interior was dark, barren of furniture, and freezing cold. Alone in the center of the hardwood floor sat a single khaki duffle bag.

“My stuff!” Wyatt exclaimed, heading for the bag.

“Well,” said Aiko. “This is quite the fuckup. Now I get to fire people.” She disappeared down a hallway and called back to them. “Thermostat appears to be busted. Thinks it’s a toasty 75 in here and…” her voice got louder as she returned, “it’s obviously not. Well no biggie. Grab your shit Wyatt, you’re staying with us.”

Shit. No, that’s not cool at all
.

“I don’t want to put y’all out,” Wyatt said, picking up his bag.

Jinx nodded. She totally agreed with that. The giant grinning toddler should go right back to Bryce’s. That was the obvious choice here.

“Nonsense.” Aiko waved him off, and ushered everyone towards the door. “You need to be here, remember? In the building? For the purposes of sneakery and investigation?”

“True.” He nodded. “Still, I feel bad. Maybe I can crash downstairs? Got a sofa in one of the offices?”

“That’s a great idea!” Jinx said. “There’s one in the break room, you can use that. And there’s a gym right next door to Glow. They’ve got showers—”

“No!” Aiko closed the apartment door, locked it, took Wyatt’s duffle from him, and headed down the hallway. “We’ve got a perfectly good spare room with its own full bath.”

“Aiko, he doesn’t mind,” Jinx protested.

“Don’t be stupid. He’s staying with us.” Aiko dropped Wyatt’s bag in front of apartment 401A and then headed for the bank of elevators with Malcolm.

“Where are
you
going?” Jinx chased after her sister. If Aiko thought Jinx was going to play hostess to this guy
alone
, she was crazy.

“Told ya,” said Aiko. “I’ve got people to fire.”

“You can’t leave me!” Jinx hissed. “Alone…with
him
!”

“What’s your problem?” Aiko eyed her sister with suspicion. “You’ve gone all weird, even for you.”

“I just don’t want to be alone with him. I don’t know him. And…”

Aiko tilted her head and smirked. “And you liiiiikkeee hiiiimmm,” she whispered. “You think he’s seeeexxyyy.”

“Do not,” Jinx protested. “He annoys me.”

“You love people who annoy you.”

Jinx winced, a dozen snarky comebacks flitting to mind. But this hallway was no place for a sister argument, especially one with witnesses.

“Shut up,” she said. “C’mon…it’s awkward. This morning I thought he was a criminal, and now from the way Jack and Bryce were talking it’s like he’s some kind of military hero, or something. I’ve got whiplash here. I don’t know what I’m supposed to think, or
do
for that matter.”

“Yeah, you definitely like him.” Aiko nodded.

“Say that again. I dare ya.” Jinx held up a fist, and Aiko laughed, put her arm around her sister’s shoulders, and walked her back to the apartment door where Wyatt stood, waiting, his eyebrows arched in puzzlement.

“Have a good nap, Wyatt,” said Aiko. “When you wake up, get Jinx to make you something to eat. She’s a great cook.”

“This is not a bed and breakfast.” Jinx shrugged Aiko’s arm off her shoulders.

“True,” Aiko said. “We don’t have mints or muffins, and our staff is barely housebroken.” With that, she leaned between Wyatt and Jinx and rapped her knuckles hard on the apartment door. A cacophony of howls, yowls, yips, and spazzy high-pitched barking erupted on the other side of the door. “Yep, that’s them now. Later guys.” Aiko walked back down the hallway and disappeared into a elevator with Malcolm.

Wyatt’s face was frozen in an open-mouthed contortion of what could only be described as unadulterated glee. “You have dogs?” he said, with awe.

“Yes. Four.”

“I
love
dogs.”

“Yeah well, sorry to break it to you but they may not reciprocate. Despite the lofty threats you hear them making now, they’re a bit skittish.” Jinx slipped her key in the deadbolt, turned, and then paused so that they could both listen to the sound of paws skittering a fast retreat. She threw open the door. “See,” she said, stepping into the foyer that opened into a large living/dining room combo. “Like cockroaches, they hide when they sense strangers.”

“Oh don’t worry about that,” Wyatt set his duffle bag on the floor and followed it, lowering quietly to his belly on a section of area rug just behind the sofa. He turned and spoke over his shoulder. “I’m like the puppy whisperer.”

“Whisper away,” she said, setting her purse and jacket on the kitchen counter. “I’m going to check on the guest room, make sure it’s ready for you.”

Wyatt nodded, held a finger to his lips, and turned his head to peer under the sofa, where one black paw was tentatively swiping from underneath.

Jinx strode down the hallway to the guest room, opened the door and flipped on the light. It was dust-free and tidy, if a bit stuffy. She knew the sheets were fresh, since she’d changed them last week. She walked into the bathroom. Also fine. Clean, with a small stack of fresh towels on a shelf next to the vanity. She caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror, noted the hard line of her eyebrows and the downslope of her lips, and stared.

“What’s wrong with you?” She mouthed at herself.

Ugh, she knew what was wrong. This morning her world had been in order. She’d been secure and in control, and she’d thought, for one glorious hour, that she’d caught the bastard who’d broken into her club. Turned out the bastard was a good guy, everybody liked him, and expected her to like him too.

Jinx left the bathroom, and walked through the bedroom, back to the hallway. She could hear him in the living room, the giant blond toddler, making soft conversation with her dogs, trying to coax them out.

See, that right there - he ‘loved dogs’. Jeez. Wyatt was affable, experienced, capable, and she hated admitting it, really kind of hot. And, he was super fucking likable, which made her all the more inclined
not to
.

Her sister would say it was because she is contrary and a brat by nature. Jinx would say it’s because she just can’t switch loyalties that easy. She’d had him in her ropes, a prisoner, the
enemy
, and now she was just supposed to flip a switch and get on board with Team Wyatt?

She rounded into the living room, and stopped short. Wyatt was still on the floor, three small dogs standing on top of him, wagging their asses off while they fought over licking rights to his face.

Evidently the dogs had jumped loyalties
easily
and were already Team Wyatt. Traitors.

“They’re rescues, aren’t they?” Wyatt said, gathering the dogs gently in his arms so that he could sit up and look at her. “I noticed they’ve all got some kind of issue.”

“Yeah, they are.”

“That’s awesome. I thought you said you had four?” Wyatt asked, looking around.

“I do.” Jinx scanned the room, looking for her last pup. She heard him before she saw him, the tell-tale squeak of wheels giving his location away. He was just behind her, so she stepped aside and let him make the trek on his own over to the group. “He doesn’t like help,” she said in case Wyatt thought her cruel. “He really wants to do it himself. So, I let him of course.”
Even though it kills me, every time,
she thought.

Creak, scoot, creak.

Her littlest guy, a Yorkshire Terrier with wheels where his hind legs should’ve been, made his way slowly and oh-so-eagerly across the hardwood floor to Wyatt. The other dogs left Wyatt’s lap, instinctively making way for their brother. Wyatt held his arms out and cheered words of encouragement as the dog headed toward him. If she’d had to make a judgement as to which of them was more excited about this meeting, Wyatt or the dog, she wouldn’t have been able to. Each grin was equally broad, goofy and completely, heart-stoppingly sweet.

Goddammit.

Jinx felt tears well in her eyes and quickly turned her head to hide it and stamp it down.
Shit
, that little guy always got her. When she turned back she saw he’d completed his journey and was now trying to lick the scruff off Wyatt’s jaw with his tongue.