tell anyone, though. I’d never hear the fucking end of it.”
He’d said it jokingly, but she squeezed his hand. “I won’t. And thank you for telling me. It explains a lot.” Charlie sighed. “I gotta stop propositioning you, huh?” she asked, raising a brow.
They stared at one another and the heat rippled between them.
Being hit on by Charlie was the most action he’d gotten in years and he enjoyed it more than he should. Fuck if he could find the will to tell her to stop. “Forget I said anything, Robin. Sexually harass me all you like, but it isn’t leading to anything.”
Charlie giggled and some of the tension in the pit of his stomach eased. “You never know, you might fall in love again.”
“Yeah, maybe.” But Axel doubted it. He wouldn’t bring a good woman into this life.
They sat in friendly silence for a few more minutes before Axel started up the truck. “Okay, true confession time is over. What do you say we finish those clothes and rustle up an early breakfast in the diner?”
She grinned. “Let’s do it.”
He put the truck in gear and they took off.
Chapter Eight
Charlie watched from Hades’ parking lot as Axel hopped on his bike and took off down the highway. They’d finished their laundry and had coffee and donuts together. He’d been quiet most of the time.
Something was bothering Axel, and it was more than his lost love, Nancy.
Over the years, she’d observed her father getting ready for a big job plenty of times to read the signs. Axel must have a scary gig on the horizon. She felt it, even if he hadn’t voiced anything to her. She wondered what could’ve rattled the big, bad biker.
But why was she suddenly so curious?
For the most part, Charlie stayed in her own lane and didn’t get involved with other people. If she didn’t know any better, she’d say she was worried about Axel. The only human being she’d ever cared about was her father, and she hardly knew Axel, but he’d made an impression on her.
Although she couldn’t dwell on his problems. She had a big one of her own.
Charlie had to get Byron Beauregard to hire her. Beauregard needed a maid, and it would be a damn good cover. Rich people overlooked their hired help. With any luck, she’d get up close and personal with his vault on her first day at work.
She strolled downtown to scope out one of Beauregard’s Help Wanted signs. As she walked down the streets, she admired the collection of hell-themed shops: Perdition, Bloody Hell Tea Room, Inferno Firearms, Diablo Diamonds, to name a few. All of them featured blazing red signage. Despite the moniker, Hell was kinda quaint, and it appealed to her in a way she hadn’t expected.
There was nothing big or flashy or remotely corporate. It felt curiously homey. Eventually, she found a red and black Help Wanted sign, like the one Axel had described, along with a phone number and a couple lines about the maid position. Charlie pulled out her cell and thumbed in the number.
A woman answered on the third ring. “Beauregard residence.”
Charlie had prepared a spiel for the call. A grifter had to be creative enough to craft a story the mark would believe. “Hey there, this is Charlene Nash. I saw the sign on Main advertising for a maid.” Charlie used an excited, almost breathless tone.
“Thank you for inquiring about the opening. My name is Nettie Sinclair, the housekeeper.” Her voice crisp and cool. Charlie noticed she annunciated every single syllable. “Are you enquiring about the position, or did you just happen to notice the sign and called out of curiosity?”
Ouch.
Nettie must feel the need to establish her authority.Quickly, Charlie tried to glean anything else useful. She thought the woman sounded older. Maybe in her fifties? She had a Southern drawl as well, though it differed from Axel’s and Dani’s accents. Charlie had traveled around the country and discovered a few types of Southern accents. Nettie had an
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