Gio (Steel Demons MC #6)

Chapter 13

Harper

G io ordered me to stay at his house until he came back but hours have passed, and I’ve gone over the materials Nicole sent me—twice—and I’m ready to do more. Now. My rental car was likely at the clubhouse, which was where Gio was, and I couldn’t go there without him freaking out. That was the first thing I noticed when I got up this morning—that my car was missing. I wasn’t sure how I was gonna explain the bullet holes and dents on the side to the rental agency. I knew there was an auto repair shop at the clubhouse, so maybe that’s why Gio took it. And then there was the small matter of having nothing to wear other than the dress I wore to the gala last night. It took some time, but I put on Gio’s blue shirt over my dress and tied it at the waist, foregoing stockings in favor of a casual daytime look. Satisfied, or merely resigned to my appearance, I grabbed my laptop and pulled up a rideshare app and headed to the Regency to speak to Carl.

He wasn’t happy when I stepped into his office, as evidenced by the deep scowl he wore and the angry noise he let out when he spotted me. “What in the hell are you doing here?”

I smiled. “It’s good to see you too, Carl.” I didn’t care that he wasn’t happy to see me. The only thing I cared about was living and putting on these two events, not to mention kicking ass while I did it. “Good news or bad news?”

He tossed his pen across the desk and raked both hands through his thinning hair. “I don’t imagine there’s any good news.”

“Then you would be wrong. There are two more events booked here,” I shared the information with a smile while I told him about the fundraisers on the schedule.

“And you’re the one in charge of them, right?” His lips pursed into a thin line. “No offense but you’ve pissed off a lot of people.”

“Oh, bullshit,” I shook my head. “I’m damn good at my job Carl and that’s all I’m here to do. I told you and your friend that I didn’t hear a goddamn thing and still they came after me. Tell them to leave me the fuck alone because I didn’t hear shit and there won’t be any problems.”

“Don’t you think I told them that?” His voice grew louder, and his eyes went wide.

I smacked my palms on his deck and leaned forward to make sure there was no confusion. “I don’t know, Carl and you know what else? I don’t care. I’m here to do my job, not get involved in whatever illegal shit you have going on. And by the way, your buddies trashed my rental and I’m not paying for it. Figure it out.”

He nodded. “Submit the expense and I’ll take care of it. I didn’t mean to get you mixed up in this Harper, but now you are. Just go back to wherever you came from and have someone else do this.”

“I can’t do that. Tell them to back off and if they do that, nobody has anything to worry about.”

“I can’t tell them anything, Harper. We’re business partners but not like that. They’re worried you might talk to someone in law enforcement about this deal, which you don’t know anything about.”

“Exactly.” I folded my arms and lifted my chin high, showing off false bravado to cover the fear.

“You should get out of town, for your own sake. I didn’t tell them about your boyfriend but I’m sure they’ll figure it out.”

That was the same thing Gio said. “And if they leave me alone, they’ll be able to go about their business without any interference. That’s a promise.” I hoped.

Carl shook his head and scrubbed one hand, and the other, down his face. “It’s out of my hands, Harper. Sorry.”

“Yeah, you seem really sorry.” I rolled my eyes. “I want to live, and I want to do my job so that when I do make it back home, I have a big fat promotion waiting for me. I’m not trying to be a hero, okay?”

“It’s out of my hands. If you need anything for the events, let me know.”

I knew when I was being dismissed but I didn’t let it bother me the way it usually did. I had more important things to worry about, so I left his office and went in search of schematics for each ballroom inside the Regency. I had a guest list for the political fundraiser and that was my top priority. Ten days to plan an event, I must be crazy.

And I should’ve been paying attention to where I was going.

“Just who I was looking for.” The deep, masculine voice was menacing and when I looked up, I wasn’t surprised to find the infamous Viper glowering at me.

“You must have me confused with someone else.” I took a step back and attempted to go around him.

He stepped to the side and blocked my path. “No, it’s you.” He took a big step forward and before I knew what he was doing, one giant hand closed around my throat. “Listen to me, bitch. If you say anything to anyone about what you think you heard, I promise I will gut you like a fish and watch you bleed out. Slowly.”

My heart raced but I tried to breathe evenly, refusing to let this creep see my terror. “Nothing to tell.”

Anger sparked in his pale green eyes. “Who drove you home last night?” He squeezed tighter, constricting my airway. “Who killed my man?”

“Don’t. Know.” My hands went to his forearms when he squeezed tighter.

“Who, goddammit!” He eased off when I dug my nails into his arms.

“Nothing to tell and there was no home to take me to because you and your goons destroyed my rental.”

“Then maybe you should go back to wherever you came from,” he offered with a grimace and tightened his hold on me again.

“Or maybe you should do business in more private places.” I shoved at his chest, but he only held me tighter, lifting me until my feet no longer touched the floor.

“I won’t let anyone stand in the way of this deal. Especially not some snooty bitch like you.”

Snooty. Who in the hell was he calling snooty? I clawed at his forearms, but he didn’t let up and I moved my hands higher, scratching down his face until he released me with a roar of pain. “Asshole,” I grumbled and ran down the hall.

His heavy-booted footfalls sounded behind me and before I knew it, he was on me and spun me around. “Bitch!” He pulled his hand back and smacked me across the face. “Keep your fucking mouth shut and get the fuck out of my town.” He glared at me and then spit in my face before he turned and walked away.

I watched until he was out of sight, and then I ducked into the first empty room I found and called Gio.

“You’re not home,” he growled.

“I’m not,” I said in a shaky voice. “I’m at the Regency. Come get me, please. I need you Gio.”

There wasn’t even a pause before he spoke. “I’m on my way.”