Which was going to be a problem when she helped us with the homeless outreach. I’d have to let the rest of the horny bastards know what was up, or I’d be busting faces the entire day. “And I don’t see a death wish on you, so you better keep your hands and eyes off her.”
“It’s like that, huh?” he asked. “I come and save the day and don’t even get to make a play on the hot chick?”
The idea of anyone making a play on Julia made my head want to explode. I crossed my arms and stared him down. “It’s exactly like that.”
He held his hands up in surrender. “All right, all right. I get it, man. Chill the fuck out and stop giving me the death glare. That shit makes me nervous.”
Giving Tap one last look, I turned my attention to Morse. “How you doing tracking that feed?”
Morse was the club’s communications guru. He had connections all over the city and could hack into more systems than I knew existed. And he was far too shy and quiet to ever check out Julia, and too smart to screw with me. He blew out a frustrated breath. “Whoever set this up is good. They know their shit. They’re bouncing the feed off towers all over the world. I can pin it down, but it’s gonna take some time.”
“All right. I’m gonna get Julia out of here before she starts climbing the walls. Pack this shit up and take it with you to the station. Let me know when you find something.”
“You got it, brother. Does she have a bag or something I can put the cameras in? I want to keep them separate from my shit.”
I went into the kitchen and opened drawers until I found gallon-sized baggies. Tossing one to Morse, I instructed him and Tap to let themselves out before heading for Julia’s room to see how she was coming along. I found her standing in her closet, her expression blank.
“Jules?” I asked, sliding in beside her and settling my hand on the small of her back. “You okay?”
She shook herself and reached out to grab a shirt. “I never thought…” She took a deep breath and slid the blouse from its hanger. “I greatly underestimated Wesley and overestimated myself. The worst part about this whole situation is that I know I’m missing something, but I can’t figure it out.”
“Talk through it,” I said. “Tell me what you have so far.”
“I knew walking away from him was too easy. After all the measures our parents had gone through to get us together, I expected resistance. Now I find out that he never left me alone, after all. He was watching me the whole time.” She shook her head and replaced the hanger. “And now he’s suddenly going through extremes to get me back.”
“Maybe he finally wised up and realized what he lost?” I suggested with a shrug.
She flashed me a grateful smile before shaking her head. “There has to be more to it than that. He set up the bitch squad’s betrayal. He wanted me to find out, or he would have never propositioned Laura. He wanted me to leave, I’m sure of it. And my parents… they acted so strangely about the entire split. It was as if they didn’t care, which is sonotmy mom. She controls every single detail, yet she let me run my own life for the past year. Now they want to repossess my freedom and force me back. Why now? What changed?”
The logic of people like Julia’s parents was well beyond me, but I fully understood why the shithead wanted her back. One look at her in that bridesmaid dress had practically driven me over the edge, and that was before I got a taste of her sweet pussy. She wasn’t the kind of girl you let walk out of your life. Not even if she was pointing a rifle at you. “I know things are shit between you and your parents, but have you tried talking to them about this? Maybe they can shed some light on what’s going on?”
“They’ll only tell me what Wesley wants me to know. Their interests are in keeping the relationship with him and his parents strong, and keeping the business profitable. It would benefit them if I went back to him. In fact, they’re going to cripple me unless I do.”
“Cripple you how?”
“Financially. I blew through my savings on the purchase of the bookstore and furnishing my apartment, and the payments of my trust fund come with several conditions. My marriage to Wesley being the most onerous. My parents have let our divorce slide for the past year, but Wesley informed me that if I don’t go back by the end of this weekend, they will cut me off immediately.”
“What are you gonna do?”
“I don’t know. I’ve made some good investments, and they’ll help me stay afloat for a while, but the bookstore is a drain. Without my trust fund payments… I’ll have to do the math to make sure, but I think I’ll only be able to keep it open five or six months. Maybe seven at the most.”
They were taking away her options to force her hand, and she wasn’t sure what she’d do. Fearing the answer, but needing clarification, I asked, “You’re not thinking about going back to him?”
Disgust contorted her face. “To that rabid cuntroach? No thank you.”
“Cuntroach?” I asked with a chuckle. Between the military and the motorcycle club, you’d think I’d heard all the insults known to man, but Julia’s vocabulary never ceased to impress me.
“Rabidcuntroach,” she corrected. “He lacks the balls of a cockroach, but he’s diseased and delusional and forgot he’s nothing but a pussy.”
“Sounds like we need to figure out what bit him, then.”
Her brows drew together as she studied me. “This isn’t your fight, Havoc. You have gone above and beyond the call of duty. Even when I doubted you and thought you were working with the enemy. Wesley is powerful. With our parents backing him, he’s virtually untouchable. There will be consequences for opposing him, and I don’t want you caught up in that. You’re a good guy, and you don’t deserve any of this.”
She looked so fragile and on edge I needed to touch her, to hold her together so she wouldn’t shatter. I reached out and cradled her face in my hand, our gazes still locked. “You’re a friend, Jules, and I don’t give that title away lightly. I have your back, and I told you, I fight dirty. I have no intention of letting this rabid cuntroach win.”
Her expression softened, and her shoulders relaxed. She dropped the blouse she’d been holding as my hand slid through her hair and I grabbed the back of her head, pulling her against me for a kiss. She didn’t resist, and before I knew it, I had her pressed against the closet wall with my hand up her skirt, pleased to find that she hadn’t replaced the panties I’d ripped off. Julia’s ability to make me lose control was staggering. I’d never met someone so irresistible. Yes, I’d have her back, but my motives were more selfish than I’d let on. I didn’t want to lose her—to lose this connection between us—and I’d fight any motherfucker to keep it. To keep her. I would fight as dirty as I needed to.
Julia’s greedy pussy squeezed around my fingers as I continued to kiss her gently. She still seemed so damn fragile that I wanted to comfort and protect her rather than fuck her senseless. The desire was new to me, but not unwelcome. Keeping my lips on hers, I scooped her up, cradling her in my arms, and took her to her bed. Lying her down, my kisses roamed down her neck to explore her body, but she stopped me, pulling my face back up to hers.
