“It always has been,” he told me.

He was right about that, and suddenly I realized this had been weighing on him, and Eddie, and it had been doing it heavily.

For seventeen years.

Which sucked.

He looked away and I saw his jaw tighten before he looked back at me.

“Eddie and me, both of us, when he got into that shit, we almost lost him, Ally. I was in the Army when he got dug in deep with Leon so I wasn’t around to get involved. Eddie was and did. Hank was and did. When I was around, I did. But there was no turning back for him, he was that angry. His mind f**ked, he made misguided decisions, not cluein’ into the fact that the man who was usin’ him was the man who deserved his anger. If he can hold anger that deep and extreme that it blinds him to the right path, you need to be prepared for what will come of this.”

“I am,” I assured him.

Lee studied me a moment and it felt like he was assessing the validity of my statement.

I would find he wasn’t when he admitted, “I’m not.”

“That right there,” I declared instantly. “That loyalty to Darius, loyalty that would make you, the strongest most fearless man I know, shy away from doing what’s right in order not to lose your friend, that’s what Liam needs to know is in his father.”

I muscle jumped in his jaw before he jerked up his chin.

Badass for You’re right.

I fought my smile.

Time to move on, though not to more pleasant things.

“I have a stalker,” I announced.

Immediately Lee straightened away from the jamb.

“What the f**k?” he whispered scarily.

“Not an old client or anyone affected by my work. An old neighbor. Don’t know him. Never met him. He was just around. And he takes pictures of me.”

“Are you shittin’ me?” he asked.

I wished I was.

I shook my head and said, “Ren clocked him and looked into it. Found the pictures at his pad. He’s not happy. As in Grade A, bona fide pissed. He’s protective of me and has made it clear he’s leading this charge, but he wants you invol—”

I stopped talking because Lee turned on his boot and stalked to the door.

Well, I guessed Ren was going to have an unexpected guest.

And that meant Dawn was going to come face to face with the man she’d wanted for her own (though she’d had no shot) who chewed her ass out and fired her.

I really wanted to go watch that, but with the way Lee moved, I figured I already missed it.

It then hit me that Dawn likely didn’t know that Lee knocked Indy up.

And she would hate hearing that news.

I also scratched it on my to-do list to inform her of that and with Lee’s meeting done (and entirely satisfactorily, in a big way), I had another item on my agenda while at that location.

Actually two. The first one, not so easy. The second one, talking Ren into ha**ng s*x on his desk; probably not hard.

So I had Torture Dawn Time.

Since I wanted to get to the second one, as well as ruin Dawn’s day, I hauled my ass across the office so I could see to the first one.

I hit the hall, moved across it and entered Ren’s office.

Dawn looked a little freaked, which made me smile and greet enthusiastically, “Hi, Dawn.”

She stopped looking freaked and glared at me for a nanosecond before her mask slipped into place.

“Hey, Ally,” she replied, sugar-sweet.

I stopped at her desk. “Did you see Lee?”

Her nostrils flared but she answered, still in her sweet voice, “Yes. He’s in with Ren.”

“Cool,” I stated. “Did he tell you the good news?”

“No,” she forced out, the sweet faltering.

“Indy’s expecting. How awesome is that?” I asked.

“Brilliant news.” She was now sounding strangled.

“So, let me see,” I said, lifting my hand and counting it off. “Jules had Max, but I figure they’re due to start trying again.” I leaned toward her and smiled huge. “Not that they aren’t trying—just that they aren’t trying, if you get what I mean.”

She stared at me, lips thin.

She got what I meant.

I added another finger. “Jet’s due in a few months. Indy’s knocked up. Ava and Luke got married a little over a week ago, and the way they go at it, who knows when she’s gonna have a baby on board. Mace and Stella aren’t married yet, but she’s a rock ‘n’ roll goddess. They could decide to start before they’re legal.” I dropped my hands. “All this happy, I’m beginning to feel maternal. Maybe I’ll talk to Ren about trying. Do you think it’s too soon for us?” I queried chattily.

“I wouldn’t know,” she replied coldly, sweet gone, pure Dawn all I could hear and see.

“No,” I shook my head, inwardly giggling my ass off. “I want him all to myself for a while.” I leaned into her again and dropped my voice, “Seeing as there’s so much to enjoy. You with me?”

Her head made a weird jerk that I decided to take as Yes.

“Anyway,” I started to move away. “Thanks for the chat.”

I hit the hall and Dawn said nothing.

I so could not wait to invite the girls over for Dawn Torture Sessions. My office was perfectly located for hitting Dawn with Rock Chick verbal drive-bys.

On this thought, I really hoped my next meeting would go well, and I’d already really been hoping it would.

There were a number of doors off the hall, the Zano offices way bigger than mine, and I had to guess which one was his.

But I knew he was in because I saw his Caddy in the parking garage.

I made my choice, tapped on a closed door, heard an impatient, “What?” and found I chose right.

I opened the door and stuck my head in. “Hey, Mr. Zano. Got a second?”

He’d looked up from his desk looking ornery when I’d opened the door, but the minute he saw me his face was wreathed in smiles.

“Ally,” he called, getting up and throwing his arms out. “A pleasant surprise. Of course I have a second for you.”

I entered, closed the door and turned back only to have Vito on me, hands firm on my biceps. I made a mental note that the old guy could move when he pulled me in, kissed one cheek, then the next, then pushed me back and jiggled me.

“And you don’t call me Mr. Zano. Uncle Vito!” he declared.

“Right,” I murmured.

He let me go with one hand and pulled me deeper in the office with the other. “Now, why do I have this pleasure?”