An Echo in the Mafia (Echo Reid, Reid Family Book #1)

Part 27

"I said I need those reports yesterday." Luke said, pounding his fist on his desk. "So why the fuck is this tray still empty?"

Marco watched the two men seated across from Luke squirm. He almost felt sorry for them, Luke had been in a foul mood all week and every hour of every day, it grew more and more black. It was bad luck that they'd been the last ones to get here but that was still no excuse for them not completing the work.

"It'll be on your desk first thing tomorrow." One of the men said, trying to control his voice.

"If it's not, I'll be taking you ear instead." Luke growled. "Now get the fuck out of my office."

The two man scrambled to stand and practically flew out of the office, not bothering to close the door behind them. Marco reached over, pushing the door until it clicked, calm as could be and his eyes never leaving Luke.

"What?" Luke asked.

"Did I say something?" Marco replied.

"You don't have to. I can feel it." Luke said, sitting back in the chair and loosening his tie.

"You've been working late all week, just go home and rest." Marco said, noting that again it was after 8.

"Was that an order?" Luke asked and Marco sighed.

"No, it was just a comment. Calm down, I'm on your side, remember?" Marco said.

"It doesn't seem like it sometimes." Luke said, picking up his phone and then tossing it aside.

"She's not going to text you." Marco said. "I already told you to just give in and message her. She's too shy for that."

"I should text her? She's the one that wanted me out of her life, I'm doing what she asked." Luke said. "A man can only take so much."

"Things were going well, Luke. She just needed time and patience." Marco said but Luke shrugged.

"I honestly don't give a fuck anymore." Luke replied, running his hands through his hair.

"Right." Marco said with a nod, obviously not buying it. "Listen, why don't we go grab a drink?"

"Yeah, Okay. I could use the distraction." He said. "You buy."

They hit a bar not far from Luke's house- one of the regulars where everyone knew exactly who Luke was how he liked to be served. He hadn't been at the bar even a full minute when a waiter approached their table and a couple of girls were making themselves comfortable.

"Hey Luke, long time no see."

"Hello Grace." Luke said with a sigh. He wasn't in the mood to deal with Grace tonight. She was a beautiful woman, smartly dressed and usually able to make Luke forget all his concerns but for some reason, he just couldn't see anything past the fake smile.

"What are we drinking tonight?" Grace asked, turning to signal for the waiter.

"We already ordered out drinks." Marco said, reading Luke's body language.

"So buy me one..." She said, reaching out and placing a hand at Luke's lapel, smoothing it out.

Echo didn't know what to expect when she stepped into the bar. From the outside, it looked like some dead end, biker bar but as soon as she stepped in she was surprised to find polished fixtures and clean tables. It was actually as elegant as a hotel bar in the nice part of the city. She couldn't believe she was here, couldn't believe she'd jumped in her car, driven for two hours and then ended up here.

She was on her way to Luke's house when luck, or fate, stepped in and she spotted Luke and Marco entering this place. She'd almost turned around and gone home, actually sat in the parking lot for about 20 minutes, trying to decide what to do. She didn't belong here, she shouldn't be here and the more she realized what kind of town this was, the more out of place she felt. So what in the world had possessed her to come in? She couldn't explain it but what she needed now was to find Luke so she could get the hell out of there as soon as possible.