Since Colt got me and got me good, he smiled huge, moved into me, tossed an arm around my neck, and forced me out of my statue state to walk tucked into his side toward the bar.

“Holy crap, what’d Merry do to her?” Feb asked as we got close.

“Nothin’. I just called givin’ her away at her wedding,” Colt declared.

I wheezed.

Feb grinned.

Then she put in her two cents. “I think Ethan should do it.” She looked to her husband. “Merry’ll want you to stand up with him anyway, babe.”

Ethan giving me away.

How perfect would that be?

“Are you serious?” Ryan snapped. “Shit, how long you been seein’ Merrick?”

“My count, officially, they been together just over a week,” Colt shared helpfully.

“Are you serious?” Ryan repeated on another snap, his eyes aimed at me getting squinty. “A week? And you’re getting married? The dude’s a good guy, but are you crazy?”

I pulled my shit together and snapped back, “We’re not getting married. Colt’s just bein’ an asshole.”

Ryan looked somewhat relieved but mostly confused.

I felt Colt gearing up to say something else, so I pulled out of his hold and ordered, “Everyone, shut up about Merry.”

Colt didn’t shut up about Merry.

He declared, “I’m beginning to see how this whole Merry and Cher thing is gonna be fun.”

I shot him a look.

He burst out laughing.

I rolled my eyes.

Luckily, everyone else shut up about Merry.

And I finally got to work.

* * * * *

Garrett

Garrett stood, leaning back against the front of his truck, his eyes to the door of the bar, his phone his ear, wishing he had a goddamned cigarette.

Since he’d quit, he didn’t.

The bar wasn’t J&J’s. It was a bar in Clermont where Ryker liked to do business.

But he knew Ryker wasn’t there because he’d done a walkthrough of the inside and didn’t spot him. He’d also asked the bartender, who wouldn’t say shit on a normal occasion, but she said he hadn’t been around all day and Garrett believed her. And the biggest clue, his Harley wasn’t outside the bar.

Ryker was hardcore. Even in winter, if the roads were clear, the forecast was good, and Ryker had to go somewhere, he was ass to his bike.

Right then, no bike.

That meant no Ryker.

With not a small amount of annoyance, he listened to his phone ring.

It was late. Not too late, but late.

Still, Tanner would be up.

“Yo, brother,” he answered.

“Yo,” Garrett returned. “Need a few minutes.”

“You got ’em.”

“You know where Ryker is now?” Garrett asked.

“Nope,” Tanner answered.

“You two workin’ any jobs together?”

“Yep.”

Garrett drew in a breath and then asked the question he needed answered right or he’d be going apeshit on his brother-in-law.

“One of those jobs gotta do with a man called Jaden Cutler?”

“Nope. Never heard of him.”

Garrett relaxed. Slightly.

Jaden Cutler was Cher’s neighbor.

Then he asked about the owner of the GT. “How about Robert Paxton?”

“Never heard of him either.”

Good.

“Been lookin’ for Ryker for a coupla hours, big man,” Garrett told Tanner. “Called him twice. He’s not pickin’ up. He’s not at any of his known hangouts. Got any advice on where I can find him or what he might be doin’?”

“You wanna tell me why you’re lookin’ for him?” Tanner asked.

That was when Garrett gave him what he knew from what he’d run that day at the station about Cher’s neighbor and his bud in the GT, some of which Cher had confirmed that night.

“Jaden Cutler’s got a rap sheet about fifteen pages long. Assault. Theft. Possession with intent. His known associates read like a who’s who of the scum of Hendricks and Marion counties, but he’s new to the ’burg. He’s done community service. He’s also done six months for a B and E. Got off on a technicality on another arrest when an IMPD officer accidentally contaminated some evidence. Got off on yet another charge when a witness recanted their testimony. And he’s now livin’ two doors down from Cher and Ethan.”

“Fuckin’ shit,” Tanner clipped.

“Robert Paxton visited Cutler Friday night in his GT-R that probably costs as much as Cutler’s rental house,” Garrett continued. “Paxton’s rap sheet isn’t as long, but with what’s on it, it just means he’s smarter than Cutler about gettin’ caught. He’s not ’burg related at all, until now. All his activity has been in Marion County. Made a coupla calls to some of my boys in IMPD and both names are well-known in Indy. Both of them also got a known associate. A man someone we know knows real well: Carlito Gutierrez.”

“Fuckin’ shit,” Tanner bit out, and Garrett could tell he was on the move, probably to get out of hearing distance of Rocky.

“Ryker’s got somethin’ workin’ in regards to Cutler,” Garrett shared. “I know this because I walked into J&J’s tonight to hear Cher rippin’ into Ryan, who Ryker tagged to surveil Cutler’s place. Cher saw him doin’ it and lost her mind. Ryker’s also warned Cher to steer clear of Cutler, but she’s heard Cutler talkin’ about Carlito. She might be steerin’ clear, but, until tonight, she didn’t tell me Ryker gave her that warning and Cutler isn’t feelin’ like steerin’ clear of her. He’s asked her out.”

“Even if this is all a surprise, Garrett, gotta say none of it is actually a surprise. As stupid as Ryan is, he’s a genius at monitoring and surveillance. If Ryker’s got a job he wants done, he’s gonna go cheap and he’s gonna get the best he can for bottom dollar, which is part of why Ryan is so stupid, seein’ as the guy’s got the talent to charge a fuckuva lot more. And, brother, it’s ’burg lore that Ryker and Carlito got a beef.”

“It absolutely is,” Garrett agreed. “Problem with that is, no one knows how that beef started, which means no one knows why it’s so strong, it’s lasted for years. Those two give each other a wide berth, Tanner, and those two don’t give anyone a wide berth.”

“I’ll have a conversation with Ryker,” Tanner said.

“No, brother, I’ll have a conversation with Ryker.”

“Okay, Merry, give you that and set it up, but I’m gonna be there.”

He could do it, and to keep his shit sharp, he should.

“Set it up soon,” he agreed.

“On it.”

“Right,” Garrett muttered, pushing away from his truck to head to the driver’s side door. “Not findin’ Ryker, so gotta go have another chat with my woman.”

“Right. Later, man. I’ll call when I touch base with Ryker.”

“Thanks, Tanner. Later.”

They disconnected and Garrett swung up into the cab of his truck. He drove to J&J’s. He parked. And he hit the bar to see Feb still there but Colt gone, likely at home, looking after their boy. Ryan was also gone. Business had picked up, but on a Monday night, not by much.

Feb was clearing glasses at the pool area.

Cher was behind the bar.

Garrett kept his eyes to her as he walked the bar and watched her walk it too.

He got to the end and slid his ass on the stool next to Colt’s empty one.

“Beer or whisky, baby?” she asked quietly.

“Beer,” he answered.

She went to the fridge and nabbed a bottle of his favorite brew.

She uncapped it, set it in front of him, and leaned into her forearms on the bar.

“Find Ryker?” she asked.

“Nope.”

“That must be why you don’t have blood on your clothes.”

He grinned at her before he took a slug of the beer and lowered the bottle to the bar.

It was then he gave it to her.

“I don’t like this. I don’t like that guy. Seen him twice when I’ve been comin’ or goin’ to your place, and even before knowin’ he’s got business that links him to Carlito, didn’t like the feel of him. So, you got somethin’ you got two nights to chew on, Cherie. Either I start hangin’ at your pad a whole lot more, that bein’ me bein’ there when you and Ethan are there as much as I can be, including spending the night, or you and Ethan have a long-term sleepover at my condo.”