A frown appears on his face, and he sighs. “What do you want from Ky, Layne?” He pronounces my name louder than necessary, and a couple of minutes later, I know exactly why.
Paxton exits the clubhouse annex bar. Without hesitation, he steps toward me and drags me back to the fence by my arm.
I push hard against his chest. “Let go of me.”
“You gotta go,” Kyler’s little brother says to me. Well, little… “If anyone sees you here…”
I roll my eyes. “Not here for the MC, I’m here for Kyler,” I exclaim.
“Exactly the reason you gotta go. I told him to leave you the fuck alone,” he all but tells me in a flat, bored tone, which makes me wonder why he’s making a fuss about this.
I punch him in the chest, but he doesn’t even flinch, so I punch him in the jaw. He lets me go with a growl and I run away from him as fast as I can. I run up the iron staircase which leads to the apartment. Hopefully Ky still lives there.
I bang my flat hand against the wooden door. “Ky, open up. I need to talk to you.” Footsteps resound on the stairs behind me, and it’s clear I don’t have a lot of time. “Come on, Kyler.” My gut tightens as I slam my fists against the door. Please. Quick, quick, quick. Why doesn’t he open the fucking door? Doesn’t he live here anymore after all?
Paxton’s arms close around my waist. “Time to go, Layne.” He swivels me toward the stairs and at that moment the door flies open.
“What’s going on here?” Kyler stands in the doorway with a towel around his hips and wet hair. His gaze falls on me. “Layne?”
Relief washes over me, and I breathe out a sigh. “I need to talk to you.” With a pleading look, I look at him.
“She’s gotta go. If she’s seen…” Paxton grounds out the words. He’s put me down, but his grip on my arm is firm, I’ll probably feel it tomorrow.
“When you go on a rampage like this, she surely gets seen by all the wrong people.” Kyler roars with a force I’ve never seen him use. His vice president’s voice. “She’s already here. Let her in and I’ll make sure she disappears.”
“Kyler,” Pax starts, but Kyler pulls me into his apartment by my upper arm and slams the door behind us. Another muffled “damn” sounds.
With a thud, I land on the chair Kyler pushes me onto, and I rub my arm furiously.
“Fuck, Layne. You can’t just come barging in like that.” He rubs his face with his palms. “If you’re seen… Pax is right. This isn’t safe.”
“Fuck you, Ky. Everyone here knows me. Every member, every woman around here. And if you’re honest with me, you’ll never have to see me again.” Squinting, I blow a dislodged strand of hair out of my face and put my left over my right leg.
Apparently, he’s rather annoyed to see me. Well, that feeling is mutual, because, frankly, his behavior is getting on my nerves.
He raises a finger at me, and walks to the bedroom. Immediately I get up, and chase after him. I stop a few feet in front of the open door. It looks the same as I remember, gray walls and all. He turns to the bed and drops his towel. My eyesgo wide, my mouth dropping open. That ass is as muscular as it was when I was in love with him. Holy shit.
Every reason that had driven me here fades into the background. He pulls a pair of boxer briefs out of a drawer and puts them on. He turns to me again.
“I can’t tell you everything. If I do, Rebel and you will have a target on your backs.” Slowly, he sits down on the edge of his bed. “It’s complicated, and honestly, I don’t know how everything fits together either.” With a sigh, he leans forward and rests his elbows on his knees.
“Why do you know about it?” I walk further into his bedroom. Not that I really have any idea what I’m going to do except sit down next to him. It’s also the easiest way to keep my gaze from wandering to areas other than his face. Even though I know fully well what’s in those black boxer briefs.
“Because it was a fucking gang murder. The Knights got the job and…” He stops talking.
“The Knights?”
“Damn it, Layne. Don’t put your nose where it doesn’t belong. I’m trying to keep yousafe.” He throws his arms in the air and growls.
I snort. “Then why did you come and ask what I knew? That doesn’t come across as if you’re trying to protect me.” I cross my arms as my gaze slides eagerly over his muscular chest.
“I was just checking to see what you already knew, if you could be a target already.” His fingers fold around the edge of the bed, squeezing so hard his knuckles turn white. “You and Rebel are still safe, but the more you dig, Layne, the slimmer that chance gets.”
“What do you care?” I cock my head and squint at him. I need answers. “Why was my husband murdered? Why must my daughter grow up without a father?” The questions burned my mind. “And why, why is that man following me?”
He gives me a pointed look. “What? Guy? What guy?”
I roll my eyes, the heat rising in my chest as I try to appear unaffected by his words. “Some biker with a bandana and sunglasses. Although he was in a silver-gray sedan this morning.” I shrug to keep up appearances.Please, tell me you know who it is, if not, that means that guy does have something to do with Connor. And right now, I’m scared to death he really was a target. That it wasn’t a mistake, like he suggested himself.
