Five days later, shit began to come undone.

O'Leary had reappeared, and he was cockier than ever. His arrival back in Monroe was confirmed when he turned up at Hamilton's. He had walked into the bar, taken a seat, and sat on one drink until close. He also brought Kay, known around Monroe as the woman to visit if you wanted a blow job or a quick fuck. She also had a posse of women who did the same as her. Throughout the night, he hadn't said a word to anyone but her, but he stared down Drew any chance he got.

The next day, he decided to visit Sass. Thankfully, Crazy John was there to pick up Sasha to go to lunch. He'd found her frozen to the spot behind the counter with her eyes locked on O'Leary, who was walking around her store. Again, O'Leary hadn't said a word; he'd just made it his mission to intimidate her. And it worked.

And now today, Drew called a sit down with him, and for some fucked up reason he agreed to meet.

I entered Hamilton's at 4:15. Glancing around the bar, I found no sign of O'Leary, but I clocked Carson working behind the bar. It was Friday afternoon, so the place was going to be buzzing in just a few hours. I was hoping to get this meeting over and done with as quick as possible so I could get back home to Sasha, who I knew would be worrying herself sick at the thought of what was going down.

As I made my way to the bar, I couldn't help but glance over to the booth where I'd been when I first saw Sasha all those years ago. I often wondered what may have been if I hadn't left town. But I refused to live in the past. I had her now. Every night since Sasha had surprised me in the shower, she'd been at my place. Coming home to her after work was indescribable. We'd spend our nights eating, talking, fucking, and sleeping. Then we'd wake up and repeat before we both left for the day. Mom was ecstatic, Dad was over the fucking moon, and I kid you not, Gigi was talking about wedding plans. One night when I was in the shower, Sasha answered my phone when Mom called. They talked for half an hour. I'd sat beside her as she giggled, made plans, and spoke softly to the woman who'd always been number one in my life. That was until Sasha took that spot, and I'm sure Mom didn't mind handing the position over to Sasha.

When I got to the bar, I took a seat, and Carson stepped up.

"What can I get you?" he asked, keeping up his act as other staff rushed around us.

"I'm here to see Drew," I announced, although he already knew why I was here.

He played along. "Does he know you're coming?"

"Drew's not in yet," Shelley revealed as she moved up beside Carson and started preparing a cocktail. "Andy, are you okay to do a double tonight?"

"Yeah, I can stick around," Carson agreed, continuing to live the life of Andy. Happy with his response, she popped a cherry in the tall glass, before rushing out behind the bar to deliver the drink.

"How do you think this shit is going to go down?" Carson asked in a hushed voice as he wiped down the bar in front of me.

"I don't think he'll talk. He never does. He likes dangling info just outside of reach, and then he strikes when you least expect it. The fact that he disappeared for a month doesn't sit well with me, and him reappearing makes no sense. This is the time he usually strikes, when things have settled, but he's making himself known and showing his face."

That's exactly what had happened in Salt Lake. We'd been working the case for just over a year when things went quiet. O'Leary had taken a vacation to the Bahamas and made it clear to all staff that he was not to be contacted. The appearance of drugs stopped, the grooming of women became non-existent, and it became a regular club again. Six weeks later, all hell broke loose, and Jacqueline took the brunt of it all. O'Leary was nowhere near Salt Lake, and the hotel in the Bahamas’ was O'Leary's alibi.

"Drew's arrived," Carson announced, focusing over my shoulder. He threw the rag he'd been using in the sink and moved to serve a woman that had stepped up to the bar. He, of course, put on his usual moves and had the woman eating out of the palm of his hand by the time I followed Drew into his office.

Tension rolled off Drew as he unloaded his pockets onto his desk. I took a moment to look around the office and halted on a photo of Sasha and Drew. I instantly recognized the girl in the photo as the girl who got my attention all those years ago. They were sitting on top of the bar, both smiling big. Drew had his arm around Sasha's shoulder, and she was wearing those damn shorts.

"I would have kicked your ass if I'd known you were checking out my sister back then," Drew said, stepping up beside me and looking at the photo holding my attention.

"Yeah, you probably should have."

He sighed. "She looks peaceful."

"I want that," I announced, narrowing in on Sasha.

He turned his head to me. "Want what?"

"That smile."

"You keep doing what you're doing, and she'll give it to you."

We were interrupted by a knock on the door, and we both tore our attention away from the photo.

It was show time.

I looked at Drew and dropped my voice. "You going to be able to control yourself?"

"Yeah," he responded, before disappearing out the door.

I gave Sasha's photo one last look, before crossing my arms over my chest and focusing on the door.

It didn't take long for them to appear.

"I didn't know we'd have company." O'Leary snickered when he entered Drew's office and found me waiting. "Should have realized you'd be sniffing around, Hunt. How's Sasha? She looked good when I saw her the other day."

I stared at him, wearing one of his expensive suits, as he took in Drew's office with a taunting smirk crossing his face. Tension bounced off the four walls, while he appeared cool, calm, and collected. It pissed me off. Him mentioning Sasha really pissed me off.

"Let's get to the point. What do you want from Sasha and me?" Drew asked, keeping his tone cool even though his body language revealed to me how on edge he was. "And don't say that you aren't involved. Clue me in."

The smirk on O'Leary's face didn't shift, it only intensified. He continued to stare down Drew, and the tension became thick. I'd be more than willing to act if needed. As soon as Drew mentioned wanting to organize this meet, I knew I'd be here. There was no way I was letting Drew get O'Leary in a room on his own. Drew was hotheaded, and he had every reason to be. The shit circling this place was as serious as could be and Hamilton's was Drew's livelihood. It was his family’s legacy, and his and Sasha's future. I would be exactly the same, so I could not judge the man for anything he may or may not do. First, I was here as Sasha's man, and to give her brother back-up if required. Second, I was here because of my job. I knew where my priorities lay.

"Do you have any idea how great it feels knowing I have the upper hand? That I know so much shit that you don't know," O'Leary revealed as his smirk transformed into an arrogant grin. "Fuck, it feels good."

And just like that, Drew started losing his cool. "What the fuck are you talking about?"

"I'm all about surprises, Drew, and surprises you will get." He took a menacing step toward Drew, and I braced. "I'll give you a hint. Shit's going to keep on happening. Maybe today, maybe next week, maybe next month, or even next year. Slowly, I'm going to take back what your family stole from mine, and I am going to enjoy every minute."

"My family stole nothing," Drew hissed, taking a step toward O'Leary until they stood toe-to-toe.

"Oh, my old friend, that is where you are so wrong."

"What could you possibly get out of bringing shit into this place? You've been coming here for years. You worked behind the bar, for fuck's sake. Do you realize your family spent as much time here as mine did?"

Something flashed in O'Leary's eyes at the mention of his family. "Yeah, that's one of the problems. We spent too much fucking time here."

I decided to step in. "How do you honestly think this is going to end? Monroe isn't Salt Lake City. It's not Chicago. It's a small mountain town where everybody knows everyone else. You honestly think you are going to bring your shit here and it's going to stick. You're more fucked in the head than I thought."

"Careful, Hunt," he said. "You do not want to piss me off."

"You're threatening me now?" I shot. "You pissed me off years ago, O'Leary. I'm going to make it my mission to bring you down, and I will not stop. And yes, you can take that as a fucking threat."

His eyes bounced between Drew and I before he declared, "This is going to be fun."

He turned around and headed for the door. As I thought, he didn't give anything.

"You're giving me nothing?" Drew spat in frustration. "Why the fuck did you even come here?"

He spun around and, with hatred flashing across his face, he focused on Drew. "I came because I wanted to tell you that I have a surprise coming for you and Sasha. After today, I cannot wait to find out how much you enjoy it."