On the Sly : The Grange Complex Book 2
On the Sly: Chapter 21

Mack

Claire kicked open the door and charged through it holding her gun level, ready to shoot, stopping dead in her tracks as she cased the room for her target. Her eyes met mine, and her jaw dropped open. She froze, seeing me on the bed, naked, nestled between Ellie’s legs. I cursed loudly, shifted my position and picked up my boxers off the floor, covering my rapidly shrinking dick.

“Jesus fucking Christ, are you okay, Mack?” Claire asked, lowering the gun, shaking her head in disbelief. She looked over at Ellie, who was handcuffed to the bed, flushed red, looking mortified and probably equally as shocked as I was. I quickly covered her naked body and moved to release her, thinking of how I was going to get the hell out of this clusterfuck.

“For fuck’s sake, Claire, you couldn’t have chosen a worse moment to interrupt,” I snapped at her, wondering what the hell she had been thinking, storming into the room like that, taking the door out. Ellie was hiding behind the sheets with her mouth wide open, moving her gaze from me to Claire. This was bad; so bad that I had no idea how to react.

“What in God’s name is going on in here?” Claire asked, recovering her normal high-pitched voice. She was trying to come off that she wasn’t all right with this situation, and the truth was she was probably freaking out. The awkward silence grew heavy around us.

“No, I’m the one that’s going to ask any questions. What the hell are you doing here and how did you replace me in the first fucking place?”

“The boys at base put tracking on your phone. The SI told me that we needed something like that, just to feel safe. We discussed it—don’t tell me that you don’t remember,” she said, irritated, wiping the sweat beading on her forehead and shutting the busted door as best she could. “I thought that you were in trouble. Your phone was off and I started to worry when I didn’t hear from you.”

“Does base know about this?”

“No, I haven’t had a chance to speak to them yet. I got here as soon as I could, because, as I said, I thought you were in trouble.”

Now the hazy conversation about tracking apps from weeks ago slowly filtered into my conscious mind coming back to me. The superintendent wanted to make sure there were no screw-ups, so Claire came up with the idea of activating tracking devices on our phones, but as usual she overreacted. She didn’t need to follow me all the way here, walking in on me when I was fucking Ellie.

“Claire,” Ellie whimpered. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t want you to replace out like this…Mack and I—”

“Ellie, don’t talk for a moment,” I said, cutting her off sharply, knowing that whatever she was going to say wouldn’t mitigate the fact that Claire had caught us. I didn’t want to play this pathetic game anymore. Claire wasn’t my wife and I didn’t answer to her. My heart was fucking racing like a thoroughbred and I was still semi-hard from my session with Ellie.

Claire flopped down into a chair, looking like she could do with a stiff drink. This whole thing was so fucked up and I had no idea where to begin unravelling it. “I cannot believe you didn’t tell me that you were sleeping with her! I asked you if you liked her and you denied it, Tobias. You lied to my face,” she said, shaking her head.

Ellie hissed a breath, looking mortified. I wanted to comfort her, take her into my arms and let her know that she had nothing to worry about, but Claire was here and this was already very awkward.

“We met the night before you arrived at the complex. There was a party going on in one of the apartments. I didn’t say anything, because at the time this was supposed to be only one night,” I said, dragging my hand through my hair. “Soon one night turned into two and, before I knew it, I was losing control of the situation.”

Claire raised her left eyebrow, looking like she didn’t want to believe me. Since Charlotte’s death, she hadn’t seen me with any other women, so I understood her astonishment and disbelief.

“You should have called, Tobias. I was freaking out, thinking that someone had talked. You were supposed to brief me this morning,” Claire continued, while Ellie was latching onto every word. “Tobias, tell her what is going on. I don’t think you can keep lying about this any longer. It’s your fault that I barged in here.”

I clenched my fists, realising that she was right. The moment I started sleeping with Ellie I was no longer Mack McCune, but Tobias Stanley. Ellie kept staring at both of us, looking confused. She looked so fuckable right then. Hell, I needed to get a grip and stop thinking about shit like that.

“Mack? What are you two talking about and why does she keep calling you Tobias?”

Claire snorted, shaking her head. I wanted to snap at her that she wasn’t helping. I cursed loudly thinking that I should just get it over with. Ellie deserved to know the truth. I had been feeding her lie after lie, and nothing good could come of it.

“Claire isn’t my real wife, Ellie, and my real name isn’t Mack McCune,” I said.

Ellie shifted on the bed, swallowing hard, looking at me like I may have lost my fucking mind. “Is this some kind of a sick joke?”

“No, it’s not a joke. My real name is Tobias Stanley and I’m a police detective, so is Claire. We are currently assigned to investigate Adrian Lurkin, who, as you already know, is a dangerous drug smuggler,” I explained as slowly and calmly as I could, emphasising the words ‘drug smuggler’. Ellie looked stunned, her gaze shifting from me to Claire. I could tell she didn’t believe me.

Claire came to my aid. “He’s telling you the truth, Ellie. I wasn’t supposed to be here at all. Tobias was working with another partner, but a day before her arrival, she broke her leg, so they sent me instead. Our boss insisted that a married couple would be more believable.”

I started putting my clothes on, giving Ellie a bit of time to digest all she had been told so far. She was shaking her head, taking long cleansing breaths. Yeah, it was a lot to take in.

“That first night that we met, I was scheduled to leave in the morning,” I said, wanting to let her know I was certain at that time that it would be just one night, but things changed. She became something much more than a one-night stand. The moment I met her I transformed, shifting from a moody, miserable fuck to a real man. “Our boss wasn’t sure if Lurkin was going to move in after all. There had been some problems with his documents, but all of a sudden everything had been sorted out. Lurkin paid for the apartment outright, and we had a go ahead.”

Ellie brought the sheet up closer to her chin and I started to wonder what she was thinking. I understood that she must be confused. This whole story sounded unbelievable. She probably hated me right now, hated that she had gotten involved with me in the first place.

“Then you’re not actually married?” she asked, almost choking on that last word.

“We needed to act like we were,” Claire explained. “But in a real life, no, we are not married. We have a forged marriage certificate, a complete fake life, and we sleep in separate bedrooms. This whole thing had been set up in order to get closer to Lurkin. We shouldn’t even be telling you this, but I don’t think we can afford to lie about it any longer, due to the circumstances.”

“Oh my God! All this time…all this time I have been torturing myself over being with yet another married man. How could you, Mack…er, Tobias, whoever the hell you are?” she shouted, shaking her head in disbelief.

“I couldn’t say anything, Angel, not even when I realised that you lived next door. At the party we both wanted only one night. I thought that was it, that I would never see you again. I was supposed to be on a plane the next morning, but none of this worked out the way I planned,” I explained, hoping that she would understand, yet feeling like a total coward. “Then he finally moved in and I had to play along.”

“Jesus, Tobias, you’re unbelievable,” Claire said. “Get a grip. We need to plan what happens now. I understand why you didn’t want her involved, but we’re past that. I know that this is none of my business, but I think we have to keep this incident between ourselves.”

I recognised that haughty tone of voice. She was pissed, but Christ, I was falling apart here. Ellie wasn’t just some random woman; she was important, and I didn’t want to lose her.

“All this time I’ve been going out of my mind, thinking I was the worst person on the planet…fuck, Mack—I mean…what’s your name again?”

“Tobias.”

“Yes, Tobias. I’m so angry right now that I just want to scream. God,” she shouted, threw off her covers and started picking her clothes up off the floor, not caring for the world that she was pretty much naked. Claire smirked and I stood there watching as she tried to dress quickly. My hormones were raging and I wanted to finish what we started. Hearing her say my real name lit something in my chest. I felt so alive with her.

“Ellie, I owe you an—”

“Shut up, just shut the fuck up. I want exclusive access to the whole story and to the case,” she said, walking up to me, poking me in the chest with her small finger. Her eyes were on fire, her brow pulled down, her cheeks, ears and neck flushed. She was pissed. I’d seen her turned on and watched that fire burn, but I had never seen her like this. Her eyes changed to a whisky-amber from their usual hazel colour. She was seething anger from every pore and had every right to feel it. How could I object to her fury when it was deserved?

“Hold on—what story? What is she talking about, Tobias?” Claire asked, instantly alerted.

Ellie

Claire was staring at Mack, expecting answers. I didn’t want her to know that I went to the strip club and got the job there in order to get a story. This whole mad episode sounded unbelievable, like some poorly written soap opera. It was completely crazy but somehow thrilling—I would get my exclusive after all. I nearly had a heart attack when I saw her at the door a few minutes ago. My head was spinning, and on top of that, Claire saw me being fucked by Tobias. This was the most mortifying moment in my life.

That bastard hadn’t told Claire anything. He hadn’t said that I found out Adrian’s dirty secrets.

“Ellie, please, this isn’t the right—”

“Oh no, you’re not taking this away from me, not right now, not after all this.” I cut him off, angry that he was actually daring to question me. Okay, so I had a clear conscience. I wasn’t sleeping with a married man anymore, but I was fucking a police detective. A man that wasn’t even called Mack but freaking Tobias. When he finally shut up, I started going through my own story. I told Claire about my work on the paper, about that night in the club when I followed Adrian—she didn’t quite believe me when I mentioned that I was a decent pole dancer—finally getting to that part when I found out that Adrian was a drug smuggler.

“Shit, Tobias. This is huge; she probably knows more than we do,” Claire said, looking dumbfounded. Mack was working his jaw, glaring at me with frustration. I ignored the desire flaring inside me and blamed it on the elation of the story. We met, he gave me a few orgasms; we had some fun and I thought we had something real—but now I couldn’t quite believe that he wasn’t officially tied down in a loveless marriage, that he was a free agent. I wanted to shut up my stupid brain. I didn’t know anything about him. Maybe he was married to a real woman that was out there somewhere. Maybe he had a girlfriend or even kids. I knew Mack, I loved being with Mack, but I knew nothing of this Tobias.

“I think we all should take a deep breath and calm down. Ellie still can’t get involved in our operation. This whole thing is too dangerous, even you know—”

“Fuck you,” I shouted at him. He had crossed the line and I lost control. I was done with all his bullshit and his warnings. It was time to let him know where I stood. “We had sex, Ma—Tobias. That in no way entitles you to tell me what to do. Adrian fancies me and we can all use this to our advantage, to play him and replace more solid evidence. I’m telling you, I won’t be kept out of this, especially not after what I just heard in here.”

“Darling, calm down,” Claire said. “Tobias is stubborn and he’s probably worried about you, but I guess you’re right. This is a good idea. We need someone inside, someone that Adrian can trust.” At least she was talking with some sense. Mack was stuck up his own ass, but I was ready to put myself on the line for this, for my goal.

Phil could go to hell for all I cared. This was huge, even bigger than I expected.

“Claire, don’t get her involved. This is against the—”

“Oh come on. Don’t tell me that you care about rules. You’ve been sleeping with her since the beginning. The superintendent could demote your ass for this,” Claire argued.

I folded my arms over my chest, watching as Tobias’s face changed. He was so hot and on top of that he had a good name.

“I took a risk,” Tobias mumbled, clenching his fists. “This is too dangerous. I’ll report myself if I have to, but I’m not letting her do this.”

“Well, you have nothing to say, loverboy, because I’ve just agreed to be part of it,” I said, still not quite believing that he wanted to keep me out of it. This was a national story, something that could take my career to the next level. “Once you tell me what you need from me, I want full exclusivity assurances in writing. I can’t believe that this has been happening under my nose all this time and I didn’t figure it out. Unbelievable!”

“I think this could work,” Claire said. “Lurkin likes her. He was flirting with her during the evening in our apartment. Think about Johnny Hodges! She was close to him too.”

A cold shiver passed down my spine when I thought about my ex. Andrew was involved in this whole thing and he was making money by supplying and distributing drugs. There was a lot that I could share with them, but I wasn’t ready to tell them stuff about my personal life. The tiny voice in my head told me that if I wanted this story I had to forget about my wounded pride and tell them everything they needed to know.

“Ellie, please, don’t do this just because you’re angry with me. I couldn’t reveal the truth. You’re important to me. After so many weeks you must realise that.”

Hearing him say this, my heart raced. Claire sighed loudly and then said that she was going to give us a minute.

When she left us alone, the silence hung between us and for the first time I didn’t know what to say. He didn’t need to apologise. There was nothing he could say. We were done. I swallowed hard, feeling like my anger was fading away slowly. Yes, I had to admit it was a relief that he wasn’t married. This meant that we could have had a shot, a real shot, but I told myself that I wasn’t supposed to think about this stuff. Love existed only in fairy tales. Tobias wasn’t for me.

“No, Tobias. I’m already part of this whether you like it or not. Let’s forget about tonight. Call Claire and let’s discuss the details. I want this story and I’ll do anything to bury my ex, to ruin him.”