Paid Justice (Croft Family Mob Series Book 3) Read online

  If he fell, then Vegas went too.

  He couldn’t let that happen. There were too many people barely hanging on as the city consumed them alive. Him and the team were all that stood between them and the corruption.

  No, Greyson had to stay at the top.

  As they stood there, Chris positioned his bulkier body in front of Greyson, and he saw him first.

  “Asshole at ten o’clock,” he said, repositioning himself to ensure they were both safe, and in view of the security cameras.

  One never knew what this asshole would pull.

  Until Emma got there, Chris knew his job was to make sure no one killed his friend.

  Yeah, his job wasn’t going to be an easy one.

  “Well, look at this here. Is that Greyson Croft, the mob man, congregating on the streets?” Thomas Christ asked. “It’s so unlike you to leave that big house of yours in the desert.”

  Greyson didn’t even flinch.

  Thomas Christ kept going. “I’m surprised you’re out in the sunlight, since you’re a vampire sucking this city dry of all its resources. What? Nothing illegal to do today?”

  Greyson knew the man was likely wearing a recorder. This was their old trick, and he wasn’t falling for it.

  In fact, he had a way to play the game.

  Finally, he spoke, “Is that the man who had a cop head to my property to try and frame me for drugs? Tsk Tsk. If you’re going to do something ILLEGAL, you should probably pick someone a little smarter than Heath Spencer. How’s lock up doing for him?” he asked.

  The man glared at him.

  “You can turn the recorder off,” Croft stated. “Your one trick ponies are getting boring.”

  He did just that.

  “Funny you should ask about him,” he said. “Someone tried to shank him in lockdown. You wouldn’t know anything about that, now would you?”

  Croft laughed. “If I didn’t shank him outside the cell, you can’t be suggesting I did it inside, now are you? What would that be, Chris?” he asked.

  “I’d say harassment, since I know our attorney sent his boss a little letter insisting he stop stalking you. It’s like he’s got a big old man crush on you, Grey. I think he thinks you’re sexy.”

  Thomas Christ turned red.

  Chris wasn’t done.

  “I think I know why he and Emma didn’t work,” he began. “I think he’d rather suck some…”

  He didn’t have to finish.

  Thomas Christ stepped toward him.

  Greyson pulled out his phone, and he made a call. Once she answered, he put it on speaker.

  “Delilah, here I am, standing in front of my business, and the police Captain, and I use that word loosely, is trying to intimidate and ask me questions about shanking some crooked detective. Can he do that?”

  Chris grinned as the man scowled.

  “Well, Greyson, I’m sure he realizes that after that bungled frame up, we have a cease and desist order against the harassment you and Emma have been getting from the police department. In it, I do believe, since I wrote it, that he’s not supposed to contact you without me there. Luckily for him, my office is right around the corner. I’ll be right there, and he can ask you plenty of things, but then I can ask him questions too.”

  Greyson hung up.

  “Yeah, my attorney said I can’t play with you,” he said. “You see, you wanted your detective to frame me, and that wasn’t going to work. So, you got caught.”

  Thomas Christ wasn’t one to give up. “Oh, I wasn’t coming here to see you, Mr. Croft. I was coming here to have a morning drink in ‘Aquarius’. You don’t own it, so…”

  Greyson smiled.

  Thomas Christ looked confused.

  “You’re right. I don’t own it, but if you step foot in there, then I’m going to share another little secret with the world.”

  The man crossed his arms. “What? That your wife is really good at riding dick? Does she still scream in bed?”

  Greyson wanted to kill him.

  He wanted to tear his face off and feed it to him, but that was exactly what Christ wanted.

  It wasn’t happening.

  “Yeah, she mentioned your tiny dick and how she had to over exaggerate because she was afraid for her life.”

  He lifted a brow.

  “Why you ask? Here’s why, Captain. I know you killed Gage Starling. We all know and you don’t want that coming out. There is NO statute of limitations on murder. You can still go to the chair for setting up a cop to die. Well, almost two cops.”

  Christ actually paled.

  “If I were you, my very crooked friend, you had better turn yourself in to the police. I have an official copy of the Philadelphia report that Commissioner Raye had hidden. Maybe they won’t give you the chair.”

  The man stopped smiling. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  He didn’t get to say more.

  There was the quick clicking of heels heading their way. He didn’t even have to look to know who the angry staccato belonged to.

  Delilah was there.

  Greyson waved at his attorney, who was dressed to kill. She didn’t look amused.

  “I see you’re still harassing my client. I guess I can call the judge…”

  “Oh, he’s going to leave, and he’s also going to realize that his recorder isn’t working, but mine is. You remember what I said, Captain Christ. Vegas is a rough town.”

  He headed away.

  Delilah watched him go.

  “What is going on?” she asked.

  “I have a legal document that I need protected,” Greyson offered. He pulled it out of his bag. “I have copies, but this is the original. It was stashed at the Philadelphia police department.”

  She took it from him.

  When she read it, she went wide-eyed.

  “Jesus! He is implicated in the murder of your wife’s brother? The Philadelphia police were working that case?”

  He nodded.

  “We can bury him.”

  “I want it held for now,” he said. “I haven’t told Emma. I’m going to later today. I need to be gentle. I just need the record to show that this was anonymously sent to you by some concerned citizen, and you’re going to validate and hold it. When the time comes, we’ll use it.”

  “When you tell Emma, please let her know I’m sorry. I lost my brother too. It sucks.”

  He patted her hand. Greyson was aware. Delilah’s brother had been a good soldier, and he’d gone down fighting demons most people couldn’t even understand.

  “I’ll tell her. Thank you for rushing here. I wouldn’t have been so dramatic, but I wanted to make the man turn tail. He’s the least of my issues now.”

  She got it.

  “I was about to get some coffee and take a break. I have court this week, and it’s an ugly one.”

  Well, coffee he could do. Dimitri was open early for the people leaving the casinos to head back to Greyson’s hotel.

  “We have coffee.”

  “Then I’ll follow you anywhere,” she said, looking around. “I need to caffeinate or I get mean.”

  Chris laughed. “We like you mean. It’s fun to watch.”

  She smiled at him. “You didn’t think that before, Captain Ford.”

  He got it.

  She was a frigging barracuda in the courtroom. Delilah had chewed up all of his detectives at least once.

  Now she wasn’t the enemy.

  Thank God.

  “We are about to meet a new client. The least I can do is buy you some coffee. I’m sorry we had to drag you here. The cops are…”

  “Assholes?” she asked. “Yeah, I’ve noticed. They’ve been staking out my place.”

  He didn’t like that.

  “What do you mean?”

  “When I headed out to work all last week, there was one of those beat down cop cars. I’ve got some detective tails.”

  That made him worry.

  “Where’s Heath?” Chri
s asked. He knew the man. If he was going to go after them, it would be Delilah first. She was the one that pushed for his incarceration.

  “He’s out on bail. The judge wouldn’t listen to me,” Delilah said. “I must suck at trying to prosecute,” she teased. “I didn’t do it justice.”

  Croft hoped Heath Spencer had enough common sense to stay far away from them.

  If not…

  Yeah, he’d make sure of it.

  Once they headed inside, they saw Detective Riley Henderson in a back area. He waved.

  “Speaking of cops, what’s his deal?” Delilah asked. “Is he your new BFF?” she asked.

  Greyson nodded.

  “He’s our inside man. If not for him, we don’t have ears inside that building. Raye and Christ have locked the place down. I can’t even buy a cop these days,” he said.

  Chris laughed. “Yeah, your life sucks.”

  Greyson was amused as he ordered them three coffees.

  “Yeah, I can’t lose him. Then what? Too many people think I killed Mace Bristol.”

  She shook her head. “They can think it all they want. We’ve proved you weren’t there. One more attempt, and you won’t have to buy a cop. You’ll own the LVPD.”

  Oh, he’d love that.

  “Anyway, is he on the up and up, or is that an act?” she said, referring to the detective at the back of the bar.

  “He’s the real deal. He wants to save the world one person at a time, and he knows his cop friends are dirty.”

  Well, that endeared him to her even more.

  She grinned. “That’s sneaky and very sexy of him. Maybe all cops aren’t assholes after all.”

  Greyson saw the look in her eyes.

  He was well aware what it meant.

  Delilah was one of those women who could get anything they wanted just by breathing. From the long black hair to the cat eyes, she could take a man apart, or curl up in his lap. It was hit or miss. She left him, Dimitri, and Chris alone, simply because he was a client. Delilah took her job very seriously, and she’d never risk that.

  Unfortunately, Riley wasn’t a client, and he was in danger. She was tracking him with her eyes, and her intent was crystal clear.

  “I think I’ll say hello,” she said, heading toward him.

  “That man is toast,” Chris said, taking a mug of coffee from the woman. “She’s going to play with him like a damn mouse.”

  Then he laughed.

  “Lucky him. I can only imagine.”

  Greyson laughed too.

  He didn’t doubt it.

  Before he could say anything, the new hostess had his attention.

  “Mr. Gideon is on his way in, Mr. Croft. He’ll be here shortly,” Marie offered. “He asked that you wait for him in the back, where it’s safe.”

  He could do that.

  He and Chris headed back.

  They knew Riley would get there eventually.

  Maybe.

  He saw her coming, and he swallowed his coffee. The woman was staring at him like he’d committed some sort of a sin. That one look freaked him out, but he stood his ground.

  Immediately, he stood for the lady.

  “Detective,” she purred, checking him out. She didn’t miss how he got up out of politeness.

  Seriously.

  He was as cute as hell.

  Here he was, wearing a suit and the gold shiny badge on his hip. It amused her. Normally, she had nothing but disdain for the cops of Vegas, but this man intrigued her.

  He was polite.

  He was genuine.

  He was a do-gooder.

  She wanted to see if he was the real deal. Certainly, men like this didn’t exist anymore. They were a dying breed.

  As for him being a good cop…that was shocking.

  If she had a dollar for every wrongfully accused person in Vegas, she’d be rich—richer.

  The fact that he was helping the Crofts save Vegas was a big plus in his column.

  She wanted to dislike him based on her past experience, but there was something about his blue eyes and dirty blonde hair that drew her in.

  He was incredibly handsome, if you went for the California beach boy look.

  Maybe that was her type.

  As of late, the men in Vegas were boring the hell out of her. Okay, men in general. They all wanted one thing from Delilah, and she was worth more than a quick lay.

  She was searching for something deeper, and had all but given up on the opposite sex.

  “Are you okay?” she asked, as she reached his table.

  Riley was having a hard time focusing.

  No, he wasn’t.

  “I’m meeting with the Crofts, so leave my ass attached to my body, Miss Viper. I’m not here to question them about anything.”

  She laughed and sat down.

  “I was just going to say hello.”

  He stared at her. “I need to check to see if my gun is loaded. I had a dream like this. You turned into a wildebeest and tried to eat me. It started like this, only you had a tail.”

  She snorted. “Well, at least you’re dreaming about me. That’s something.”

  Oh, he was always thinking about this woman.

  He didn’t know why, but she was forever coming up. He’d be in the office, and someone would say her name. He’d be in court, and there she was down the hall.

  Riley couldn’t help himself when it came to her. It had to be those heels.

  Jesus!

  He was an idiot.

  “If you’d like, I’ll stand back up and turn around so you can see I don’t have a tail.”

  That caught him off guard. Riley didn’t know if she was flirting or setting him up for some vicious attack. He’d seen her in action. Attorney Delilah Fleur was a mankiller—he suspected literally. She tore through cops at a record pace, leaving them at her feet as she laughed.

  You didn’t screw with her.

  She was mean.

  “Uh, I think I may still be dreaming. You haven’t told me to shut up yet.”

  “Shut up.”

  He laughed. “And now I know this is real. I would have preferred the dream. You usually get naked in them.”

  She stared at him. His honesty was…refreshing. There was something about him that intrigued her.

  So, she went for it.

  “Funny, in mine, so do you. In fact, you do a lot of things that might make you blush, Detective.”

  He stared at her.

  “I guess we should leave this conversation right there. Have a good day, Detective Henderson. Fight the good fight. I will see you around.”

  He didn’t know what to say.

  She’d rendered him speechless.

  Delilah dropped her card on the table. “If you find yourself all tied up, and need some help, give me a call.”

  He stared at her.

  Somehow, he didn’t think she meant legally.

  As she walked away, he watched her long legs, the line down the back of her black hosiery, and the way her skirt hugged her body.

  Damn it!

  She got him all hot and bothered like no woman he’d ever come across.

  At the door, she turned, winked, and disappeared out into the sunlight with her coffee.

  Riley was confused.

  He was also rock hard. It was clear he needed to find a hobby that didn’t involve flirting with women who would use him up and spit him out.

  He didn’t need that mess.

  Once he was able to focus, and his lower anatomy was in check, he grabbed his coffee and snuck into the back room.

  Riley couldn’t be seen there. He was stopping in before work, so he needed to stay low key. His new partner was keeping tabs. As far as he knew, he had a dentist appointment.

  Once in the room, both men began laughing and applauding him.

  “She let you live, huh?” Chris asked. “You’re in serious trouble if Delilah Fleur is tracking you. I suggest you lie down, let her do her worst, and thank the Gods she’s
picked you.”

  He laughed.

  Yeah, he was pretty much thinking the same thing.

  “What’s her deal? I don’t know if I should say a prayer or take a cold shower. Why the hell doesn’t she harass you two?”

  Greyson knew. “I think she likes you. The second she knew you were helping us…”

  He stopped him. “You can’t spread that around.”

  “Client confidentiality. She’s on our payroll. She is loyal to the Crofts and genuinely a good person.”

  “Money does that.”

  “Well, she’s loyal for a lot more reasons than money. We’ve been friends a long time. Delilah and I go way back,” Greyson offered.

  Riley took a seat. “Did you sleep with her and escape with your life? You may be the only man. I just keep picturing her putting her fangs in a man and then ripping his head off at the point of orgasm.”

  Chris laughed. “She is totally a praying mantis. All cops have that fantasy, and yet, we still want her to do it. She’s got a cauldron in that office of hers.”

  Yeah, that sounded about right.

  Greyson reassured them.

  “No, I’ve never been in Delilah’s claws. I served with her brother in the military. He was a good guy, and so is Delilah. When I came to Vegas, I couldn’t afford her retainer, but now we can.”

  “Is she on the up and up?”

  He laughed. “With her job or how she wants to jump you?” he asked.

  Riley was horrified.

  He flushed.

  “Again, do I run or take a shower?”

  Chris laughed. “Shower. Something tells me she’d make you forget your name, son.”

  Didn’t he know it?

  Women like that were hard to come by. In Vegas, pretty was nothing. You could walk down the street and run into fifty gorgeous showgirls.

  That just wasn’t his thing.

  Riley didn’t do one-night stands with women he didn’t like or trust. Relationships should matter. Sex should matter.

  “We need to get this show on the road. I have to be at the office soon.”

  “Emma is on her way in. She’ll be here…”

  He stopped midsentence.

  When he turned his head, Greyson saw her. Immediately, he was up and out of his seat. Emma rushed him, and he caught her.

  Greyson held his wife against his body.

  He’d missed her.

  All night, there’d been that empty feeling without her near. He’d gotten accustomed to his kitten sitting in his lap.