So far, he found nothing but the usual shit—two tampons, a hair pin, car registration, proof of insurance, and the owner’s manual in the glove compartment. In the bag on her backseat, she had a folder with several monthly statements, a pair of yoga pants and a matching top and a romance novel with a dog-eared page. In the notebook also in her bag, he found a page with wish list of places she wanted to visit and another sheet where a guest list and a menu were written out. At the bottom was the question: should I give myself a birthday party?
Several times, Cash stopped himself from holding her clothes to his nose and sniffing her scent. He was so afraid he’d lose her, that he’d never get to tell her how much he missed her, as he’d told Stretch.
If she survived, Cash would give her as many parties as she wanted. Life was fucking short and fragile, destroyed in a goddamn minute.
“Finding anything, brother?”
Startled by the sound of Slipper’s voice, Cash raised his head, bumping it on the edge of the car. “Fuck!” Backing out and straightening, he glared at Slipper. “What?”
Slipper swigged from the bottle of cheap alcohol he held. “I said have you found something we could use.”
“No. Anything else?”
“Need some company?”
“Fuck no. Next.” As usual, the motherfucker reeked of alcohol and body odor.
“You walking around without a shirt for a reason?”
“It’s fucking hot, motherfucker. Moving along.”
By the twinkle in Slipper’s eyes, the fuckhead was baiting him about Stretch, hoping he slipped up.
Noticing Kendall heading their way from the direction of the pathway that led to the houses, Slipper whistled. “Look who the saints brought out. That’s a gorgeous bitch. I want to fuck her raw.”
“Who?” Cash asked in confusion.
“Kendall,” Slipper slurred, swaying on his feet.
A gorgeous bitch with the heart of a viper. He reminded himself she was also Johnnie’s old lady. He wouldn’t appreciate another motherfucker talking about her as Slipper was. He had no love for Kendall, but, as Johnnie’s woman, he’d protect her.
“Go the fuck home, asshole, and sleep off your alcohol. Stop talking about Kendall before you get your ass killed.”
“Fucking whore.”
Cash snorted and pulled Fee’s bag out, setting it on the trunk to continue searching through it. “Ever tell Johnnie that about his woman?”
“We all know she’s a slut. She fucked her way through life. Tried to give pussy to Outlaw. She still want to. I bet if that cunt got to fuck Outlaw in exchange for letting John Boy getting in Meggie’s pussy, she’d agree.”
“Shut the fuck up,” Cash warned. “If I kick your fucking ass on behalf of her, I’ll have to tell John Boy why and he wouldn’t be happy.”
“What’s it to you, brother? Why are you getting in a snit?”
“Outlaw would tell us she deserves our respect as Johnnie’s old lady.” For that reason, he’d be the first to defend her. For so many others, he’d be the first to kill her.
Slipper scowled. “Me and my boys on her guard detail sometimes. I can’t stand that assignment. She orders us around like we’re shit. The bitch thinks she’s better than us. I just told my boys we need to bring her down a peg or two. Remind her she’s nothing special. Club bitches come a dime a dozen. All their whores can be replaced at any time, but especially that uppity slut.”
Cash sucked in air to control his temper. The motherfucker was drunk.
Slipper drained his bottle. “Even before I dealt with that bitch myself, my boys wanted to fuck her. They saw her when Mort brought her out of the meatshack all trussed up before he threw her in the back of John Boy’s Navigator.”
“Go home, motherfucker,” Cash said again, offering a tight smile. “Sleep this shit off.”
“Can’t. I got to go somewhere with Outlaw.”
“You’ll fucking wipe out if you drive so fucked up.”
“Hey, Cash,” Kendall interrupted. Strands of her red hair plastered to her cheek and neck from the sweat generated by her brisk walk. “Slipper.”
Slipper focused on Kendall’s generous cleavage, displayed in a V-neck top, before glancing at her baby bump. She had a pair of endless legs that gave her a height advantage over the man and made her nearly as tall as Cash.
“Yo, Cash,” Outlaw said, walking up to their group. “I’m headin’ out. Slipper, you ready?”
Kendall cleared her throat, but Outlaw ignored her.
“Yo, fuckhead,” he snarled to Slipper, who had yet to raise his leer from Kendall’s tits. “My ass over fuckin’ here.”