He nodded to the well-loved, well-worn seat at the end of the bar.
“Even Grizz knows when it’s time to leave.”
An arm looped around me, pulling me in, just as another pair of hands slid to the small of my back. Bodie slipped forward, completing the circle. Marking their territory. Making metheirs.
I sighed, happily. It was like being wrapped in a blanket of safety and comfort.
“You in, Angel?”
My smile was so wide it could’ve cracked my face.
“With you boys? Anywhere,” I murmured softly. “Always.”
Their hands moved possessively, sending a warm rush of excitement and adrenaline through my entire body.
And then just as suddenly, that feeling was replaced with cold, dread horror…
… as Cole stepped through the front door, and into the bar.
~ 57 ~
BODIE
I saw him before the others, because I happened to be facing in that direction. Cole’s face still sported the yellowish bruises of having gotten his ass so thoroughly kicked. Likewise, his nose looked very different than before Grizz had done so much free work on it.
But it was his eyes that got me. Cole “The Hammer” Kane’s normal look of fierceness had been replaced with something else. Something foreign. Something I didn’t quite recognize, but didn’t have time to figure out.
And that’s because he was coming toward us… with long, deliberate strides.
My fists clenched reflexively, as I tapped Carter and Sawyer. With that, I shoved Hayden behind me, my rigid body steeling itself for the physical battle that would inevitably come.
“Easy there, tiger.”
The gravelly voice was unmistakable. I recognized it before my eyes shifted over Cole’s shoulder, to the entourage of men who entered The Refuge behind him.
“Otto…”
I mumbled the name out of surprise and shock. He must’ve liked putting me at a disadvantage, because the beady-eyed asshole was already grinning.
“We need a table,” he grunted casually. “Somewhere private.”
He placed a hand on Cole’s shoulder. Cole stopped instantly.
“And why the hell would—”
Then I saw him. Black suit, white tie. Suspenders. Fedora. He walked slowly into the bar, surrounded by other men on both sides.
And I knew.
“Marco.”
He saw me and smiled warmly. Probably because I’d finally remembered to call him by his first name.
“Bodie!” he cried, waddling over. He hugged me as tightly as he could, without causing himself physical pain. Over his shoulder, I watched as his enforcers bristled menacingly.
“Can we talk?”
Carter and Sawyer were standing exactly where I’d left them. I signaled that everything was going to be okay. Though I suspected they knew who this was, I had to make sure.
