She stood up and he handed her one at a time. She tucked them under her arms and took off across the room, happy to be mobile again. “Thank you,” she said, returning to his side. “Doc said it might take a few days to get better.”
“Sprains suck,” he commented. “Worse than a clean break sometimes. But this one isn’t too bad.”
“I need to grab my sandals from my car before we leave. I don’t think my stilettos are appropriate footwear for the park.”
“Why don’t you give me your keys? I’ll grab your shoes and park your car inside the gates.”
“Okay. My purse is in your bedroom.”
They walked down the hallway together and Tina went straight to the nightstand. She dug out her keys. “Here.” When she turned around, Vincent was standing inches away, his lips parted, clenching his hands.
His intense look made her nervous and she could feel her own heartbeat. “Did I say something wrong?” Their chat over breakfast had lightened her mood, giving her hope for a chance to reboot their friendship. But if he couldn’t control his feelings…
“No.” He forced a smile. “Maybe we need to avoid bedrooms.”
She snorted. “How about horizontal surfaces in general.”
Trying to hold in his laughter, Vincent snagged the keys from her hand. “Take a shower. I’ll be back soon.”
“Wait.”
Already at the doorway, he turned. “Yes?”
“Aren’t you going to wash my back?”
He blew out a frustrated breath. “You know you’re killing me, right?”
She let his words hang in the air before she responded. “I never pegged you for a prude.”
“Prude?”
“Yeah.”
He twirled her key ring around on his finger a few times. “You like to bait guys, don’t you?”
“Only you.” Though she meant it playfully, underneath it smacked of the truth. Maybe if she persisted, he’d give in and just throw her on the bed. Because as far as she was concerned, Vincent just became her newest conquest.
“Cut me some slack, woman. If I didn’t like you, I wouldn’t spend the day showing you my favorite place to unwind.”
She tilted her head, evaluating his body language and expression, trying to understand why he continued to deny his feelings, why he went hot then cold whenever she got too close. “It’s a fair start, Vincent Ramos.”
Chapter 4
Vincent snorted at Tina’s choice of vehicle—the girl was so petite she’d drown in a dewdrop, yet she owned an Escalade. He walked around to the driver’s side and stopped. Someone had keyed the word cunt on her door. He spit on the ground and shook his head; the idea of anyone harassing Tina pissed him off. Must have been her psycho client Kline Barnes. If the bastard thought he’d get away with it, the minute Vincent met him, he’d rip his fucking head off. On an angry growl, he stalked through the front doors of Valhalla and went straight to the security room.
With the building protected by a state-of-the-art surveillance system, Vincent intended to check every minute of footage from the three cameras located on the front.
“Up early.” Leonard greeted him with a fist bump.
“Do me a favor?” he asked. Leonard had been promoted to head of security last year. “Review the footage from last night after eleven p.m. Keep an eye out for a black Mercedes and anyone hanging around in the parking lot.”
“Might take a few hours.”
“No problem,” Vincent said.
He left the office and headed to the bar for coffee. Sheila handed him a cup.
“Good morning,” she said. “Beer distributors are scheduled for this afternoon and the cleaning crew just finished up. Anything else, boss?”
Although the Sons of Odin owned shares in the bar, Lang Anderson still held the majority stock. Vincent acted as manager. It was one of the reasons he stayed behind while the rest of the officers traveled to Austin. With Lang away too, it made sense for him to stay in Corpus. “Is the produce stocked?”
She nodded. “We’re good until next Monday.”
“Have the schedule worked out?”
She slid a clipboard down the counter. “Just requires your signature.”
Most of the staff had been employed for five or more years, so the club practically ran itself. But occasionally Vincent popped in to check on everything. He scanned the page, then signed it.
“Thanks for keeping up, Sheila. I’ll be on the road today—call my cell if you need anything.”
Vincent drained his mug, then went outside, considering whether he should tell Tina about her vehicle or just have one of the Prospects in the shop fix it while they were out. Bad news would ruin their day together. He climbed into the plush leather seat and started the engine. The air conditioning and radio came on full blast. He turned both down and drove through the compound gate, parking in a spot where Tina wouldn’t notice the damage to her door.