The man even made sure it was bulletproof for crying out loud.
“I need your help,” I said, bypassing any formalities once I was safely inside.
“Confess your sins, Demon,” she replied without missing a beat.
I snorted. “You better sit down, because this one’s a doozy.”
“Tell me what you did so I can start fixing it.” She was always there, ready to fix whatever problems arose, no matter what time of day or night.
“It’s doesn’t have anything to do with the book world. It’s personal.”
“Your problems are my problems. Spill.”
So, I did. I started telling her everything else that happened from the moment I found the letter at my mom’s house. I didn’t feel the need to repeat the parts about Bronze unless it was pertinent to the new information I was telling her, like him being my possible sister’s employer. Just as I finished, I heard the rumble of an engine approaching.
“Holy shit! A biker wearing the same cut as Bronze just pulled into the hotel parking lot. And he’s walking inside. I’m gonna go see what he’s doing.”
“No!!” Frankie shouted. “Have you learned nothing from the books you read?! You don’t fuck around with bikers. Especially you.”
“Too late. I already fucked one, and I’m following the other one. It might be his brother.”
“Sloane, they all call each other brother.”
I scoffed. “No, he said his biological brother is the president. And this dude kinda looks like Bronze.”
“Did you say ‘president’? Oh, I think I’m having chest pains. What in the hell is wrong with you?” she continued shouting at me while I stealthily crept into the hotel and tried to spy on the biker.
“Where did he go?” I whispered.
“He’s probably sneaking up behind you right this second to kidnap you and hold you prisoner in a cell underneath their clubhouse. I bet it’s where your long-lost sister is! Run away. Now!”
At her words, I whirled around to check behind me. “Shit, Frankie! That’s not funny.”
“It wasn’t supposed to be.”
I pinched the bridge of my nose and exhaled slowly. “Stop trying to scare me. If he’s here to see me, I want to know why.”
“I’m trying to save you, not scare you. Stop making my job harder and listen to the woman who is thinking clearly right now.” Her words fell on deaf ears. I couldn’t let it go, and deep down, she knew that as well as I did.
Thanks to Frankie freaking me out, I was hiding by the ice machine down the hall and peeking out every few seconds to see if I could spot him anywhere.
My heart started pounding in my chest when I saw him stepping out of the elevators. “Shit, Frankie! He’s walking toward the front desk.”
“Abort mission! Get out of there!”
“Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!” I whisper-shouted into the phone. “The man at the front desk just pointed me out. What do I do?”
“Listen to me! Run!”
“That’ll make me look guilty. I haven’t done anything wrong,” I argued.
“Excuse me,” a deep voice rumbled behind me.
Everything froze for a split second when I realized running away was no longer an option. I slowly turned around to face him. “Oh, I’m sorry. I must be in your way,” I said and stepped away from the ice machine.
“I’m actually looking for you.”
“Me?” I squeaked and cleared my throat.
“Act like you don’t know who he is. Pretend like you think he wants an autograph,” Frankie quietly insisted.
I plastered a fake smile on my face. “If you have a pen, I’ll be happy to sign something for you, but I don’t have any books or swag on hand to give you.”
“Too much. Stop talking,” Frankie coached in my ear.
“That’s not why I’m here,” he said and gave me a pointed look. “I’m here about Bronze.”
“I’m muting myself. Tell me you’ll call me back and put the phone in your pocket so I can still hear. Make it quick and get out of there.”
“Uh, let me call you back in a few minutes,” I said and slipped my phone into my back pocket. Turning to face the biker, I asked, “What about Bronze?”
He didn’t beat around the bush or sugarcoat anything. “I don’t know what it is you’re doing in Devil Springs, and I sure as shit don’t know what you’ve been doing with my brother, but you need to leave. Now. And don’t come back.”
“What?” I snapped and started getting angry. “Are you threatening me?”
He smirked. “No, sweetheart. I don’t have time to go around threatening every whore my brother fucks.”