Page 27 of Forever my Love

While Nick talked to Hailey and Harper, he read the lengthy rap sheet on the man and memorized the black and white photo.

Fredrick Leeroy, forty-eight-year-old owner of Iron Works Strip Club outside of Atlanta, Georgia. Several arrests, including drug charges and aggravated assault, were listed.

Since Reece didn’t know if the image was an old one, he scanned the images of the guy’s many tattoos.

Skull and bones. Knives. Naked pinup girls.

One tattoo in particular had his blood boiling.

It simply said “Virgins” with a heart over it.

He turned the page over and slid it back to Nick before Hailey could see it.

When their food arrived, the four of them were in deep conversation, speculating as to what the man wanted from the sisters.

No one mentioned the physical abuse the sisters had endured and he knew it wasn’t the time or place to talk about it.

Somehow, the conversation turned to his boxing career. He was set to head out soon for a couple of big fights, one in Vegas and one after that in California. He had mentioned them to Hailey earlier and invited her to go with him to Vegas.

“Is that how you afforded your home?” Harper asked suddenly.

“Harper!” Hailey hissed, and kicked her sister under the table.

“What? I’m curious.” She turned back to Reece and waited for his answer.

Suddenly, he realized that if he failed to impress Harper, his chances of being with Hailey might be in jeopardy. He’d never been as nervous answering a question as he felt at that moment.

“My boxing career is taking off, but I still work for my dad’s company. I’ve been programming games since I was ten.”

“Right,” Harper said. “I’d forgotten your dad owns… Modarth?”

Reece and Nick both chuckled. “Modark,” they corrected at the same time.

Harper shrugged. “We didn’t play video games growing up.”

“Right.” Reece smiled and looked at Hailey as he mentally told himself to play the game with her soon.

After all, he’d let her in the part of his life that included boxing. If she didn’t like Modark, the biggest part of his life, well, he didn’t know what he’d do.