Argeneau Family 12. The Renegade Hunter(26)

It was a worrying thought and something Nicholas didn't intend to allow to happen. He sat thinking of ways to protect Jo as he watched the trio in the restaurant talk to the waitress, receive their orders, eat, and then get the check. When Bricker threw some money on the table and the trio stood to exit the restaurant, Nicholas sat up and started the van engine, preparing to follow. His priority had changed. If Ernie had set his sights on Jo, then Nicholas wasn't letting her out of his sight for a minute.



CHAPTER 6





"Thanks for the breakfast, guys. Have fun watching my building. I'm going to bed," Jo said cheerfully as Anders stopped the SUV in front of the large Victorian house that held her little one-bedroom apartment. The house had been split into five apartments years ago. Hers was small, and the building was run down, but it was also cheap and close to work and school, both of which were important considerations for a university student supporting herself.

"Yeah, sure, rub it in," Bricker said dryly, and she glanced up from undoing her seat belt to find he'd already slid out of the front seat and opened the back door for her. The man had lovely manners, she'd say that for him, but Jo had noticed that earlier in the summer. He, Decker, and Mortimer all had lovely manners. Even Anders, who was dry as dust and spoke little, had fine manners.

Jo accepted the hand Bricker offered and climbed out of the vehicle. As she stepped onto the sidewalk and straightened, she suggested, "You could always go back to the house and tell Mortimer you lost me."

"Oh yeah, like he'd believe that." Bricker laughed, slamming the back door closed.

Jo grinned and shrugged as she turned away. "Have fun then."

She half expected him to follow her to the house and open the front door for her, but when Jo got there he was still standing by the SUV, watching her. She opened the door and entered, smiling as the muffled sound of reggae music met her ears. J.J. was home. The guy was white as a lily but fancied himself a born-again Jamaican, sporting colorful Caribbean clothes and dreadlocks. He smoked pot too, the malodorous stench often seeping into the hallway, usually on a cloud of the air freshener he used to try to mask the smell. Jo often wondered what it was exactly he was studying at the university, but she hadn't yet gotten around to asking him. He was always so stoned it was hard to hold a conversation with the guy.

Shaking her head, Jo passed the door to his apartment and climbed the stairs to the second level where her apartment waited. While there were two two-bedroom apartments on the main floor, there were three one-bedroom apartments on the second, and hers was the middle apartment. She had to pass Gina's apartment to get there, and as usual the door was open, allowing a glimpse of bright yellow walls, lots of plants, and Gina herself in an overlarge T-shirt and little else, curled up on a chair in her living room, the inevitable book in hand. Gina was a psychology , major and today's book was abnormal psych. It was a course Jo herself had taken as an elective and quite enjoyed.

The sound of her footsteps as she reached the door brought Gina's head up. The blond smiled at the sight of her and called, "Yo!"

"Yo," Jo responded, pausing in her doorway. "How was the date last night? Did Dan finally try to get you into bed?"

"No." Gina closed her book with disgust, and uncurled to stand up and walk toward the door. "We had a lovely dinner, watched a great movie, and there were lots of kisses, what seemed like passionate kisses even, but that was it." She stopped to pick up Jo's spare keys from the hook. "We've been dating a year and a half for God's sake, what's his problem? I thought it was sweet and charming that he wasn't pressuring me at first, but now I'm starting to think there's something wrong with him… or me."

"Can't be you," Jo said with certainty, her gaze sliding over Gina's curvaceous figure. The woman was tall with legs that went on forever. She was also pretty. "You're gorgeous, Gina. It isn't you. Besides, most men would bang a Jabberwocky… or a hole in the wall if a Jabberwocky wasn't available."

"Then what's going on?" Gina cried with frustration. "He says he loves me, so why doesn't he want to make love to me? It's a natural expression of love, and vital to a healthy relationship."

Jo peered at her sympathetically and patted her arm as she suggested, "Maybe he's gay and in denial."

"Oh God," Gina breathed with horror. "Do you think so?"

Jo bit her lip. "Well, it could be erectile dysfunction or something else. But if that's the case, he should tell you rather than let you think there's something wrong with you."

"I don't know. He does like to shop and stuff, and guys usually hate that. Maybe he is gay," Gina said with mounting horror. "What do I do?"