Page 73 of Protected

“No way. You promised me a night out on the town with dinner and dancing and that’s what I want.”

Parker frowned. He didn’t remember anything about them going dancing. Then again, considering how she’d been putting up with him the last few weeks, there wasn’t anything he wouldn’t do for her.

Two more days.

In two days, when Wolf was out of the picture, Parker could get his head back on straight. Right now, he had a one-track mind. He couldn’t seem to think of anything else but the fact that his father was going down.

“Oh, crap,” Chelsey grumbled. “I need to charge my phone before it dies. I’ll meet you in front of the restaurant in fifteen min…”

When she didn’t continue, Parker glanced at his phone screen. The call had dropped and he chuckled.

“Alrighty then.” He guessed she really did need to charge her phone.

The good thing was, it never took her long to get dressed, and she only lived five or ten minutes from the restaurant. Yet, Parker doubted she could get to him as quickly as she was thinking.

Instead of returning to his truck to wait, he moved further away from the busy entrance. No sense in sitting in his vehicle when it was a beautiful evening. The weather was gradually changing into autumn with warm days and cool nights. As the sun slowly started its descent, a gentle breeze made it comfortable enough to stand outside.

While he waited, he called Angelo. They’d been playing phone tag for most of the day, and he was looking forward to talking to his buddy.

“Hello,” Angelo answered.

“Hey, man. What’s going on? Are you in town?” Parker leaned against a thick wood pillar while keeping his attention on the parking lot for Chelsey.

“Nope, still in Miami. You know how much Zenobia loves the beaches, but I called to check on you. The big day is almost here. How you holding up?”

“Anxious,” Parker said on a nervous laugh.

Most of his Atlanta’s Finest team were being kept abreast of everything regarding Wolf, especially Angelo. He’d been instrumental in getting the DEA and a few others involved.

“I’m glad it’s almost over. I can’t wait to be rid of Wolf.”

“I hear you, but keep in mind, the best-laid plans don’t always work, especially with drug dealers. This I know,” Angelo said. His time working undercover for the DEA had left a black mark on his soul. “I can give you fifty horror stories about how bad raids went or how we’d have everything planned to a second and then, poof. One small twist of fate and months of planning flies out the window.”

Parker rubbed the back of his neck. “Yeah, I know you’re right.” Still, he was trying to think positive. He wanted a life where he wasn’t always looking over his shoulder. That could only happen if Wolf and the Kingz weren’t in the picture.

“However,” Angelo continued, “I think we have a good plan with some amazing people working together. It’ll happen, one way or another. You’ll get your freedom. In the meantime, I wanted to let you know that I made a decision about joining your security team in Miami. Count me in, bro.”

“Yes!”

Parker couldn’t stop the grin that spread across his face. Angelo would be the second person on his security team. Chelsey would be first. He had already told Rock that he’d asked Angelo to join him. Rock was cool with it and said he had a lot of respect for his brother-in-law, even though he’d never tell him.

“That’s awesome, man. I’m glad you’re in. So I guess Zen is okay with moving to Miami?”

Angelo snorted. “Are you kidding me? Why do you think we’re always here? She and her Mamita have been hinting around about us making this leap for some time now. So, yeah, they’re excited, but with all of my family in Atlanta, I hadn’t been ready to make a move this big until now.”

As they talked, Parker glanced around. Despite the number of people coming and going from the restaurant, he zoned in on two guys. Dressed in T-shirts and jeans, they were making their way from the parking lot.

What snagged his attention was how they moved, how they carried themselves in an arrogant type of way. He recognized the walk. Hell, he hadmasteredthe walk.

They also had their heads on a swivel as if they were up to something or expecting trouble.

More importantly, they kept glancing at him.

Okay…what’s going on here?Or was he being paranoid?

“Lo,” Parker said slowly, using the nickname that they sometimes called Angelo. He lowered his voice. “Umm, let me call you back.” He disconnected the call before giving his friend time to respond.

The guys, still glancing around as they moved in his direction, split up, coming toward him from different sides. That was, assuming he was their target. He still wasn’t sure since he was standing outside of a busy restaurant minding his own damn business.