Tomorrow, when they went out on their date, he would tell her, lay it on the line, and pray like a man possessed that she didn’t toss his heart into the trash.
22
The next morning, after Jonas handed the monitor over to Wade so he could stake out Valdez, Jonas headed to a meeting with a friend. He’d decided the only way to get Cade back on the straight and narrow was to put the fear of God into him. Barring that, the fear of Granger Manet.
He and Granger had gone through basic training together, but when Jonas had moved on to the Special Forces, Granger had finished his four-year enlistment, then later went into police work. Now he was one of the most respected narcotics officers on the force, and one of the toughest.
As Jonas pulled into the parking lot of Raven’s Diner, he saw Granger’s hunter-green SUV parked near the front. Jonas shook his head. The man always showed up at least fifteen minutes early to a meeting.
Entering the restaurant, Jonas went straight to the counter where a broad-shouldered African American sat devouring a stack of pancakes.
“Eating enough to feed a small country as usual,” Jonas said as he took the empty seat on Granger’s right.
“A man needs to keep up his strength, doesn’t he?”
Jonas rolled his eyes. “Keep eating like that and you’ll be in the hospital.”
Granger snorted. “Like you’re the first asshole to tell me that line of crap.”
Jonas waved the waitress over and asked for a cup of coffee. After she left, he turned his attention to Granger. “Thanks for meeting me.”
“I knew if you were asking for a favor it must be serious,” he said around a mouthful of food. “So, spill.”
“A friend of mine, Ray Moseley, his son’s gotten himself into some trouble,” Jonas replied, getting right to the point.
“What kind of trouble?”
“Cade’s been messing around with drugs. If that isn’t bad enough, the kid’s decided he wants to go work for Valdez.”
Granger dropped his fork on the counter and glared at him. “You couldn’t have waited until I finished eating to bring up that asshole’s name?”
Jonas chuckled. “Sorry.”
“Yeah, you sound it,” he grumbled as he pushed his plate away. “Might as well tell me the rest.”
“Ray’s wife died last year. Since then, Cade is all Ray has left. He’s done his best, but Cade seems hell-bent on screwing up his life. It’s killing Ray.”
“Teenagers.” He shook his head in disgust. “Damn, I hope I never have kids.”
“Uh, you’d have to have a woman first, bud.”
“Screw you, I date,” he muttered.
“You’re married to the job and we both know it,” Jonas said as he finished off his coffee. The waitress came over and gave him a refill, and Jonas noticed the way the tall brunette shyly peeked over at Granger.
Granger shrugged and took a sip of his coffee. “The job is easier to figure out than women.”
“Not nearly as much fun, though.” He gestured to the waitress and bobbed his eyebrows.
Granger’s frown turned fierce. “I come here for the food, not the company. Speaking of which, get on with it, will you? I’d like to get to work sometime today.”
Jonas chuckled. “You’re all roses and sunshine, aren’t you?”
Granger slammed his hand down on the counter. “Do you want my help or not?”
Because Jonas knew that Granger was more bark than bite, he tweaked him a little more. “Now, now, you’re scaring the nice customers.”
“You’re running out of time, Phoenix,” he warned.