Colorado 03 Lady Luck (38 page)

Walker sucked in breath and looked away. It
wasn’t the only reaction he exposed. He knew his body expanded
because he knew most of his muscles had tightened reflexively.

Another brother down. Fuck.

He forcibly released his muscles and looked
back.

“Been busy, Peña,” he noted.

“Told you, got an interest in Alexa Berry.”
When Walker’s eyes narrowed he corrected swiftly, “Walker.”

Walker made no comment.

Peña still wasn’t done. “You copped a plea.
Gave you a lotta time to think, I reckon. About what, I don’t know.
I could guess, five years of my life rotted away, I know what I
would be thinkin’. And, gotta say, Tyrell, wouldn’t normally give a
fuck what you do. Problem is, what you do won’t be what you do.
What you do will affect others and not just those who it needs to
affect. And that’s where I got a problem.”

“This is not your business,” Walker informed
him.

“
That’s where
you’re
wrong,” Peña shot back and Walker misread him,
partially.

“
My garage where she parks her Charger,
Peña. My bed she’s sleepin’ in. The bouquet of flowers I bought her
before I put my ring on her finger that she tore up and pressed the
petals between two squares of glass and she hung that shit
in
my
window in the kitchen so she
can see them when she does the dishes. This means I am not
wrong.”

He’d scored again, this hurt worse and Peña
didn’t hide it.

But he denied it. “You don’t get where I’m
comin’ from.”

“
I get you want a piece of my wife. What
you need to get is every inch of her is mine,” he leaned in,
“
Every
inch. You
don’t get a piece of her.” He leaned back. “No one does. No one but
me.”

“Like I said, you don’t get where I’m comin’
from.”

Fuck, but he wanted to be home with his
fucking wife.

Therefore, to get this done, he invited,
“Educate me.”

“
I got an interest in Alexa Berry Walker,
Tyrell, but I’m also a cop. You are not my brother. I do not know
you. I do not give a fuck about you. What I
do
give a fuck about is what’s goin’ on in your head.
And I also give a fuck about brothers goin’ down in two states in
two ways neither of them fuckin’ good for shit they did… not…
do.”

Now that,
that
surprised the fuck out of him.

He didn’t give it away. He did nothing but
stare.

Peña put his cards on the table. “So, the
reason I’m here is for Lexie. The reason I’m here is because, I
heard she was hitchin’ herself to you, I got interested and what I
found got me more interested and that more interested got me more
but in the end led to nothin’ but questions, questions without
answers. So now another reason why I’m here is because I’m lookin’
for answers. And last, the reason I’m here, right now in this
parking lot with you, is to warn you to remember what you got in
your garage and hangin’ in your kitchen window and mostly in your
bed. And it’s also to give you a head’s up that I’m in town, why
I’m in town and whatever the fuck you’re plannin’, so I don’t screw
you, you gotta know I am.”

And again, that surprised the fuck out of
him.

“You’re doin’ Lexie a favor,” he said
quietly.

“Yeah, it was just for Lexie until you
opened, Tyrell. I still don’t give a fuck about you but you made it
pretty fuckin’ clear you give a fuck about her and I spent years
watchin’ her be with a man who didn’t so, in a roundabout way, I’m
also doin’ it for you.”

Jesus.

“Peña,” he felt it necessary to warn, “you
do not know what you’re up against.”

“
Tyrell,” Peña fired back, “I know exactly
the filth I’m up against. You got your color, I got my own
so
I
know. And I figure, with
Jackson’s nosin’ around, he’s given you the head’s up so you know I
ain’t stupid and, I’ll confirm, I ain’t. I figure you aren’t either
but I’ll still remind you not to be and I’ll do it because of where
her Charger is, what bed she sleeps in and those petals she stares
at doin’ the dishes. I like my life so I don’t waste it so I won’t
waste it tryin’ to talk you out of whatever you’re gonna do. But
I’ll remind you to think of those three things you got that other
men would kill to have and I’ll advise you that someone like me can
get a fuckuva lot further in this mission than someone like
you.”

“You’re from Texas,” Walker reminded
him.

“A cop’s a cop, Tyrell, in Texas, in
California, in Colorado or on the moon,” Peña returned.

Walker stared at him. This wasn’t true.
Those boys pissed all over their patches, did it regularly so no
one could mistake the smell and, no matter you carried a badge or
not, they let in only who they wanted to let in.

Then again, what Tate said about this guy’s
tactics, he had balls, who knew what he could do?

Finally, he said, “No one calls me
Tyrell.”

Peña stared at him. Then he grinned.

Then his grin died and he asked quietly,
“How’s she doin’?”

“Ella, Bess and Honey just left after
spendin’ two weeks with us,” Walker answered.

“Jesus,” Peña muttered, “So she’s happy as
fuck but you’ve been in hell.”

Yeah, he made it his business to know
Lexie.

“Somethin’ like that,” he muttered back.

Peña hesitated. Then he pushed it.

“She make a beautiful bride?”

Fuck.

And fuck him. He gave it to the bastard.

“Magnificent.”

Peña nodded but he’d asked a question the
answer he already knew.

Walker was now officially done.

“They burn you, I don’t know you but more
importantly, Lex doesn’t.”

“I told you, I ain’t stupid.”

“And I’m tellin’ you, you stick your nose in
this, it blows back on my wife, ex-con versus cop or not, you got a
problem. Am I understood?”

Peña held his gaze. Then he didn’t grin. He
smiled.

Then he whispered, “Waited a long time to
see that woman with a man who gave a fuck. I see you haven’t missed
I wanted to be that man. What you don’t know is, the kind of
interest I have in Alexa Berry Walker, I don’t care who it is just
as long as he does.”

“Then we got somethin’ in common, ‘cept of
course, I’m that man,” Walker replied.

Peña nodded on another smile.

No hard feelings.

“Stay sharp,” Walker told him, turning and
folding into the Viper.

“Same to you,” Peña replied and Walker
slammed the door.

Then he fired up, pulled out of his spot,
glanced at Peña strolling back to his pickup and hoped to Christ
the man knew what he was doing.

Then he put her in first and headed the fuck
home.

* * * * *

Walker hit the top of the steps but he heard
the music before he hit the utility room. Mood music. Alicia Keyes.
Their wedding presents from Lexie’s family were definitely more for
Lexie than for Walker but the shopping expedition had one plus for
him. Lexie hit a record store and stocked up on decent music. And
it wasn’t just so her family would have the soundtrack to their
visit they enjoyed, it was for him.

Another way she gave.

He rounded the railing and dropped his
workout bag there, looking first to the kitchen.

Around this time of day, she’d be thinking
about food but mostly she knew his schedule and he knew she wanted
to be close when he arrived home so she could greet him, something
she always did, pressing into him and tipping her head back for a
kiss. This was whether he came back from the garage or the gym,
sweaty or not, his woman didn’t care.

And another way she gave.

She wasn’t in the kitchen so he looked to
the second place she usually was, thinking he liked their deck
furniture, it was the shit and it looked good. But it cost a
fucking whack. He didn’t mind the money, never did if it was nice
shit and looked good. But he minded it even less because she used
it all the time. When her family was there, they ate out on the
back deck. Before they came, his days off, he noticed she had her
breakfast and coffee out there and she did it like she did it all
the time so he knew she did it all the time. Other times, she’d
wander out there with her Kindle to read or her iPod to listen to
while she stared at the view. Colorado was new to her, she liked
it, she liked their view and she gave it her time, as much as she
could when she wasn’t giving that time to him.

So he turned his head to look at the deck
and froze solid.

This was because she was curled in the
loveseat, legs bent and fallen to the side, heels tucked close to
her ass, beer in hand resting on the side of her thigh, head thrown
back because she was laughing.

And stretched opposite her in that loveseat
was an enormous black man who was turned away from Walker, in
profile but Walker could see him smiling.

Lexie righted her head, caught sight of him,
her face grew bright and she aimed a shaft of her blinding light
right a him as she cried, “Ty! Look who’s here!”

Then, his fucking wife, total fucking goof,
like an excited teenager bolted up to her feet on the loveseat,
walked to the footstool and hopped down, running through the open
door to him as he forced himself unstuck and walked toward her.

In her excitement, she hit him on the fly,
her soft body colliding with his, her arms, even with one hand
holding a beer bottle, sliding around him, her feet bare
necessitating her bending her head way back to beam her smile at
him.

“Julius!” she declared elatedly yet
unnecessarily.

He looked down at her face then lifted his
head to see Julius had angled out of the loveseat and was grinning
at him as he sauntered into the house.

Such was their bond, anytime, anywhere, it
was safe to say he would be happy to see Julius Champion. Happier
by far to see him for the first time wearing faded jeans, a tee and
breathing free.

Except that time.

He tipped his head back down and muttered,
“Kiss, mama.”

Her smile went brighter, if that could
fucking be believed, she went up on her toes, he bent low and
touched his mouth to hers as her arms gave him a squeeze. When he
lifted his head, she let him go, took a step away and he turned to
Julius who had made it close and also had a beer in his hand. He
extended his other one and Walker took it.

“Walk,” he muttered as they gripped and
locked eyes, no shaking, no hug, the strength of the grip and the
communication through their eyes was all they needed.

“Champ,” Walker muttered back.

Julius grinned. Walker grinned back.

“Oh shit, I’m gonna cry,” Lexie announced
and the men let go and both looked to her to see she did look like
she was going to cry.

“Get a handle on it, Lex,” he murmured,
still grinning.

She nodded and visibly deep-breathed,
whispering, “Right. Right.”

Walker shook his head and looked to Julius
to see Julius was now smiling at Lexie.

“Okay!” she announced on a clap and Walker
looked back at her. “Time for dinner!” Her eyes came to him. “You
doing a shake, honey, or are you going to eat with me and
Julius?”

“Powder and water then I’ll eat with you,”
Walker answered.

“Excellent!” she approved, tossed a dazzling
smile to both of them, turned and headed to the kitchen.

Walker looked back at Julius. “Gonna hit the
shower, brother. Be right back.”

Julius jerked up his chin and replied, “I’ll
keep your woman company while you’re gone.”

Walker bet he would. He had three women,
each constant, each committed, each had been in his life for years
but that didn’t mean he wasn’t still recruiting. But Walker also
knew he’d try nothing with Lexie. That said, he was not a man who
wouldn’t take an opportunity to enjoy a beautiful woman even though
he knew it was look but don’t touch.

Walker headed to the stairs. Julius headed
to the kitchen.

He was nearly done in the shower when she
came in. He watched through the glass as she put the big, plastic
cup with the screw on lid filled with protein powder mixed with
water on the vanity. Her eyes came to him before she left then she
took herself four feet out of the way just to press her hand flat
to the glass and give him another smile.

No physical connection through that glass
but a connection, the kind of shit she did all the time. The smile
was brilliant; she was pleased as fuck for him his friend was
there. The protein drink delivered was yet another way she gave.
She did that all the time too, mix him a drink or blend him a shake
and it was sitting on the vanity by the time he got out if she
wasn’t in the shower with him.

She waited for it, he gave it to her,
jerking up his chin then, with no words, she headed back out.

After his shower he dressed in track pants
and a white tank, sucking back the drink as he headed to the
stairs. Rounding the railing on the second story landing to make it
to the mouth of the stairs down to the first level, his eyes hit
the office. Then, even wanting to get to his woman and Julius, his
feet moved him to the office door.

Lexie didn’t have a lot of shit. Most of her
furniture was still in her apartment in Dallas that Honey had moved
into. And she didn’t unpack everything when it arrived. Clothes,
shoes, jewelry, shit like that. A couple of frames of her girls on
the mantel downstairs. She’d printed, framed and put the photo of
them at The Rooster in their bedroom. But she’d set up her computer
in the office, added a few more frames from home, mounted an
unusual print that he liked at the back wall, put her stationary,
address book and other shit like that in the drawers of the
desk.