Provoke

Chapter Two

Mace

Well, that had been a nice way to wake up. Who was I kidding? Every day started like that—the only difference was that this time Leets had been an actual participant, instead of a figment of my imagination. Picturing her in that office with her legs spread, exploring herself, had been fucking hot.

We have to do that more often.

I climbed out of bed and yawned, kicking aside the piles of worn clothes that blocked my trail to the door. I was still waking up, and in desperate need of a shower. I glanced down and nodded.

Yep, definitely need a shower.

Yawning again, I staggered down to the bathroom and ran the shower. The feel of the water hitting my skin was like an instant wake-up. I quickly soaped my body and rinsed off the suds before turning off the taps.

I probably should’ve gotten up half an hour ago, but oh well. It wasn’t my fault I got distracted. Wait—yes it was. I reached into the cupboard for a towel. Fuck. Empty. Glancing around, I picked up the cleanest-looking one off the floor.

Yeah, I should probably do some washing soon. Or buy some new towels.

Wandering back down to the bedroom, I turned on the coffee pot on the way past. As I got dressed, I called Finn to let him know I was running late.

“Yeah, it’s me. I’ll be a few minutes late. Just start without me, okay?”

“Already on it. And you’re always late, man.”

That was true. One of the perks of owning your own business was being able to rock up late and leave early. I ran a business fixing bikes from the back of a mechanic in the western suburbs of Melbourne. It wasn’t much compared to Leeta’s achievements, but it kept me busy and I spent the day doing what I loved: being elbow-deep in grease and motor oil.

I drank my coffee and downed a bowl of cornflakes—not hurrying as much as I probably should have—and then grabbed my keys and helmet. Walking out to the garage through the internal door, I zipped up my jacket and threw my helmet on.

Jumping on the bike, I started her up and took off down the street.

#

“This guy has called twice.”

I took the slip of paper from Finn, recognizing the number instantly. No phone contact. What the fuck was this, then? My stomach tightened as I nodded, trying my best to appear indifferent. Finn narrowed his eyes at me suspiciously.

Finn was an old friend who also knew his way around a bike. He’d been working for me since I’d started up this business, and he knew me well enough to know something was up.

“Just a debt I need to pay,” I explained, my tone making it clear I didn’t want any more questions. Finn nodded and shrugged.

“Hey man, it’s cool. We all have debts we need to pay,” he said, clicking his tongue. I watched him as he walked off, chuckling to himself, wondering what the hell he was talking about. I shook it off and studied the number again.

I was pissed. These were their fucking rules, not mine.

I’d also made it clear that I didn’t want him calling me at work. If he needed me, then he had my mobile number. I loved Finn like a brother, but the guy couldn’t keep his trap shut. If he got even so much of a sniff of my business, all the guys would know within the space of an hour.

I screwed up the scrap of paper and shoved it in my pocket.

I’ll deal with this later.

#

“Hello?”

“Do you want to stop calling my work?” I growled. I kicked and empty bottle along the ground, checking back to the garage to make sure Finn wasn’t looking for me.

“Sorry,” he said, not sounding the least bit apologetic. “I guess I forgot.”

“Right. Sure. So did you want something?”

“Just wanted to check how you were going. The boss is happy with your work. You’re bringing in some big sales, apparently. Consider this your three-month evaluation.”

“It’s been four,” I muttered, rubbing the back of my neck.

“So we’re a little slow,” he replied. “Have a good night, Mace.”

I switched off my phone, trying to figure out what their game was. Were they trying to show me they could reach me anywhere? Because I already knew that.

Reaching into my back pocket, I grabbed my wallet and pulled out the half-smoked joint I’d stashed in there. I stared at the photo of Anna as I lit the joint, crouching down onto my knees.

Calm down. Just go back inside and act normal.

I snorted. Normal. Fuck, I hadn’t been acting normal for the past year.