pushed him back. “What the hell are you doing?”
He stepped back and ran his fingers through his hair anxiously. “Sorry…I wasn’t thinking.”
“I laid down the rules before I agreed to this. Don’t cross me.” I had a taser in my bag and I wasn’t afraid to use it.
“I’m sorry…” He held up both hands. “I’m not myself lately.”
Since he was going through a hard time, I let it slide. “It’s okay. We all make mistakes.”
He opened his wallet and pulled out a wad of cash. “What if I made it worth your while?”
He did not just go there. “I’m not a prostitute, Roger.” I unlocked the door to the office and stepped inside.
“Shit, I’m sorry.” He shoved the wallet back into his pocket. “I just thought—”
“Good night, Roger.” I slammed the door and locked it. Once his face was out of my sight, I collapsed into the chair at my desk. I’d have to stay there for the rest of the night just in case he was lurking outside. He seemed down on his luck and too depressed to function, but I knew he was harmless. Even so, I never took chances—not with this kind of job.
CHAPTER TWO
Ash
I sat across from the banker in the office with glass doors. He was a typical suit who hated his job. His voice was always full of boredom, and his desk lacked any personality at all. It was a typical corporation, void of life.
“Just give me the loan,” I barked. “How are small businesses supposed to start up if you don’t give them a chance?” I wasn’t asking for a kidney transplant or something.
“I’m sorry.” He seemed bored out of his mind. “You don’t have the right credit.”
“My credit isn’t even that bad.”
He eyed his computer again. “Sir, you need to get it up and then we can talk again.”
Dammit, why did I buy that motorcycle? “Fine. I’ll just go somewhere else.”
“And they’re going to tell you the same thing.”
I wanted to growl but I managed not to. “How about some free ink? I’m the best in the business.”
He gave me a stoic expression. “Thanks for the offer, but no thanks.”
“Whatever.” I stood and didn’t bother shaking his hand. “I’ll just get the loan from someone else.”
“Good luck, sir.”
***
“How’d it go?” Sawyer asked across the table from me. He was eating a burger covered in BBQ sauce.
“How do you think it went?” I barely touched my food because I was so irritated. Normally, I ate anything I could get my hands on. But now every sensation in my body was numb.
“Sorry, man. Just get your credit up.”
“You say that like it’s so simple. It could take years for that to happen.”
He shook his head. “I told you not to buy that bike.”
I glared at him. “Now isn’t the time to say I told you so.”
He shrugged. “I’m just saying…”
I threw a fry at him. “Well, don’t.”
It bounced off his face and landed on the plate. “Are you five?”
“Sometimes.” I grabbed the fry and ate it.
“Dude, that just touched my face.”
“So?” I drank my soda and washed it down. “It’s food. Who cares?”
He rolled his eyes then wiped his fingers with a napkin. “Now what?”
“I don’t have a fucking clue. I don’t mind working at Ascension but I’m getting bored there. I want my own shop. I want to make my own rules.”
“Maybe you can do it out of your apartment until you get enough cash.”
“That’s not creepy…”
“It was just a suggestion, smart ass. It’s better than all your ideas.”
I didn’t have any ideas. “Maybe I should just go back in the army.”
He stopped eating. “Not funny, man.”
“It might piss off my parents enough that they’ll give me back the money they owe me.”
“They’re assholes,” Sawyer said. “They’re going to hold this over your head as long as possible.”
I had a feeling he was right.
“And you would really go through that again?” he asked incredulously. “Back to Afghanistan?”
“It wasn’t the worst thing in the world…” I’d seen a lot of things I wouldn’t share with anyone else. If people shuttered at violent movies, they wouldn’t be able to handle all the things I’d seen. Their stomachs couldn’t keep their lunch down.
“I don’t want you to go,” Sawyer said. “You came back this time but who knows if you’d come back again.”
It was a depressing thought. “Anyway, I’m seeing my parents tonight so I’ll bring it up again.”
“Good luck with that.”
“But I’ll keep playing the Lotto. I have a better chance of winning that than