“But I would. Punish me for as long as you need, but don’t tell me we’re over. You’veneverbeen a liar. Don’t lie to me now.”
I couldn’t answer him because he was right. I wasn’t going to lie to him. Heat from his stare seeped into my nipples. “It’s been five minutes,” was all I could say. Anything else would leave me vulnerable. And I wasn’t strong enough to expose my weaknesses.
“I’m not leaving,” Cruz said and took a step back.
“Are you going to say something to Ryatt?”
His low gravelly chuckle reminded me of more things I missed about him. “I’ll talk to him,” he said. “I’m not going to talk to him about you. Not when it comes to us.” He didn’t touch me as we walked toward the club. “I’m not going to make the situation hard for you, but you have to understand, with his connection to Romeo, he’s eventually going to prospect for the club.”
“I know.” I missed this, too. His presence next to me. I still loved him, this bad boy biker who ran just a bit hot and lived on a dangerous edge. Maybe I’d always missbeing his. Maybe he did care about my feelings. “Thank you. For not starting anything.”
“You can’t keep us a secret,” he said, finally touching me by placing his hand on my lower back just above my ass. We traversed dancers, drinkers, and servers, making our way to the table. “Warn your new boyfriend. I’m not going away.”
I slid onto the stool next to Ryatt, just as Cruz took the spot next to Dozer directly across from me.
Ryatt’s gaze shifted between us. It wouldn’t be a leap for him to assume we’d been together.
He leaned in and whispered in my ear, “Are you okay?”
“I’ll tell you later.” I picked up my drink glass and realized it was empty. The wait at the bar would be long judging by the crowd. I searched the area for a server.
“Levi ordered AMF’s,” Romeo said. “Here she comes.”
Blue cocktails were set on the table. “Hey, Blade,” the server said. “Hammer said Kings are in the club and to watch your back.” She smiled. “And he said no trouble.”
“I already told you,” a seriously buzzed Levi said to Cruz. “No trouble.”
“You are trouble.” Romeo pulled her onto his lap.
Ryatt’s knee began to bounce beneath the table. His shoulders stiffened, and he lowered his gaze.
“Are you okay?”
A muscle ticked in his jaw, and he laced his fingers with mine. “I can’t be here.”
A knot formed low in my belly. “Because of Cruz?”
His gaze lifted to the man across from me. “I’ve got a little problem with the Kings. Actually, it’s a big fucking problem. It’s why I couldn’t meet you atVintage Brew. Wrong neighborhood for me.” He scanned the crowd. “I need to go.”
Washington Street Kings. Gang bangers. I didn’t have details, but I’d heard enough at the MC to know that the Kings had filled the void in the Washington Street neighborhood when the Crawlers were taken out.
I grabbed my jacket.
He snapped his hand over mine. “Stay here.” He shook his head as if arguing with his thoughts. “Fuck,” he muttered, his gaze tracking over everyone at our table.
“You’re scaring me,” I whispered.
“You can’t be seen with me.” He lowered his voice. “I can’t be seen with them.” His eyes spoke what his words couldn’t. He needed to get out of the club, away from me, and away from the Hellers.
“Your probation?”
A nervous smile twisted his lips, and he squeezed my hand. “I’ll explain later. If I leave, can you get home?”
There was only one other biker I would ride with. Ryatt would hate me on the back of Cruz’s bike as much as Cruz hated me riding with Ryatt. “I can go with Cruz.”
“I don’t want you to do anything you don’t want to do. I can call Kiss and see if she can pick you up.”
“Is my going with Cruz going to piss you off?” Because I had to be honest with him. Cruz was fighting to get back into my life. And fighting with Cruz was what I did best. I wanted to assuage Ryatt’s concerns. But I couldn’t tell him he had nothing to worry about, that it would only be a ride. Because I wouldn’t lie to him.
