No one had ever said her name with such affection. It left her feeling not a little shaken. The last thing she needed was to be attracted to another bad influence.
Too late, honey . She was already hooked.
Chapter Five
Damien secured the lock and slouched against the closed door. It had been a long damned time since any woman had caught his eye, and he didnât want to acknowledge that the one woman who had was an accessory to a crime. His undercover work made dating pretty much impossible, and likewise, when you hung out with the scum of the earth on a daily basis, the dating pool wasnât exactly overrun with eligible women. Tabitha claimed that she didnât know any details about Joeyâs operation, but she knew enough. Sheâd dated the guy, for fuckâs sake. No way did she not know what her man had been into.
Still, her expression had been guileless, those big blue eyes of hers showing nothing but honesty. Her short, golden-blond hair looked as soft as corn silk, and in her wake, Damien had inhaled the sweet scent of her perfume. She reminded him of summer. Of the sun, and roses in full bloom. Though she didnât come across as the type of woman who took shit off of anyone, sheâd apparently taken it from her ex. Why else would she be helping him by allowing him to set up his distribution operation inside of her hotel? It mightâve been a good idea to have Gates do a background check on her after all. There was more to Tabitha Martin than met the eye, and Damien wanted to know what it was.
Fuck. It was tough to get into character and compartmentalize when his brain was buzzing with questions. His interest in Tabitha had nothing to do with the job. He had to stop thinking of her in those terms and see her through Damienâs eyes. She was a go-between and nothing more. A means to an end. Period. It was time to focus and get his head in the game.
He hoisted the heavy suitcase up onto the bed and unzipped it. Lifting the flap, he took a moment to examine the contents. Joey had gotten himself in deep, for sure. Filled to the brim with Stardust, the cache of narcotics was large enough to put Joey Cavello away for the rest of his life. Jesus. A twinge of guilt pulled at Damienâs chest; the knowledge that this shit would soon be out on the streets unsettled him. But the prize was Lightfoot. He had to see the bigger picture. Boise PD would get their chance at Cavello. Just not quite yet.
Damien had refused to wear a wire and he hadnât thought it wise to bug the room, either. At least not yet. Thatâs not to say he was completely alone. Gates had men staged close to the hotel who were responsible for monitoring the comings and goings of Cavelloâs clientele and to act as backup if shit went sideways. A small consolation, he supposed. Then again, if shit did go sideways, heâd probably be dead before his backup arrived. Callihan was right about it being some cowboy shit. Maybe his recklessness was an indicator that he just didnât give a shit anymore.
He replaced the SIM card in his burner phone and cataloged the contents of the suitcase, snapping pictures of the drugs, the room, anything and everything that could be used as evidence. He might be using Cavelloâs operation to get to Lightfoot, but that didnât mean he couldnât help build a case against the asshole in the meantime. After he finished, he tucked the tiny memory card into his boot. Even if Joeyâs crew showed up to further vet him, they werenât going to bother digging around in his shoes.
The next hour was spent dividing Joeyâs cache into distributable portions. Fifteen different dealers would be stopping by, as well as a few preferred customers who didnât deal but bought enough product to get âplatinum levelâ treatment. Those platinum customers got a discount on their purchases because they didnât have to go through a dealer to buy. Theyâd earned
Too late, honey . She was already hooked.
Chapter Five
Damien secured the lock and slouched against the closed door. It had been a long damned time since any woman had caught his eye, and he didnât want to acknowledge that the one woman who had was an accessory to a crime. His undercover work made dating pretty much impossible, and likewise, when you hung out with the scum of the earth on a daily basis, the dating pool wasnât exactly overrun with eligible women. Tabitha claimed that she didnât know any details about Joeyâs operation, but she knew enough. Sheâd dated the guy, for fuckâs sake. No way did she not know what her man had been into.
Still, her expression had been guileless, those big blue eyes of hers showing nothing but honesty. Her short, golden-blond hair looked as soft as corn silk, and in her wake, Damien had inhaled the sweet scent of her perfume. She reminded him of summer. Of the sun, and roses in full bloom. Though she didnât come across as the type of woman who took shit off of anyone, sheâd apparently taken it from her ex. Why else would she be helping him by allowing him to set up his distribution operation inside of her hotel? It mightâve been a good idea to have Gates do a background check on her after all. There was more to Tabitha Martin than met the eye, and Damien wanted to know what it was.
Fuck. It was tough to get into character and compartmentalize when his brain was buzzing with questions. His interest in Tabitha had nothing to do with the job. He had to stop thinking of her in those terms and see her through Damienâs eyes. She was a go-between and nothing more. A means to an end. Period. It was time to focus and get his head in the game.
He hoisted the heavy suitcase up onto the bed and unzipped it. Lifting the flap, he took a moment to examine the contents. Joey had gotten himself in deep, for sure. Filled to the brim with Stardust, the cache of narcotics was large enough to put Joey Cavello away for the rest of his life. Jesus. A twinge of guilt pulled at Damienâs chest; the knowledge that this shit would soon be out on the streets unsettled him. But the prize was Lightfoot. He had to see the bigger picture. Boise PD would get their chance at Cavello. Just not quite yet.
Damien had refused to wear a wire and he hadnât thought it wise to bug the room, either. At least not yet. Thatâs not to say he was completely alone. Gates had men staged close to the hotel who were responsible for monitoring the comings and goings of Cavelloâs clientele and to act as backup if shit went sideways. A small consolation, he supposed. Then again, if shit did go sideways, heâd probably be dead before his backup arrived. Callihan was right about it being some cowboy shit. Maybe his recklessness was an indicator that he just didnât give a shit anymore.
He replaced the SIM card in his burner phone and cataloged the contents of the suitcase, snapping pictures of the drugs, the room, anything and everything that could be used as evidence. He might be using Cavelloâs operation to get to Lightfoot, but that didnât mean he couldnât help build a case against the asshole in the meantime. After he finished, he tucked the tiny memory card into his boot. Even if Joeyâs crew showed up to further vet him, they werenât going to bother digging around in his shoes.
The next hour was spent dividing Joeyâs cache into distributable portions. Fifteen different dealers would be stopping by, as well as a few preferred customers who didnât deal but bought enough product to get âplatinum levelâ treatment. Those platinum customers got a discount on their purchases because they didnât have to go through a dealer to buy. Theyâd earned
Similar Books
