“As soon as I know more, I’ll let you know.”
“Who else is in on it?” I ask.
“Me, you, and Cash right now. Anyone else we should trust?” Tate asks me, and I think carefully about who might be disgruntled around here.
“Maybe Mickey, Maverick, or Atlas, but other than that, I’m not sure they wouldn’t tell Prez.”
Tate nods, and I take it for the dismissal it is. So much for a simple patch ceremony. Shit just got ten times more complicated.
When I leave the body shop, I don’t go back to the tumultuous laughter from the clubhouse. Instead, I make my way over to Lily’s tree. When I see she’s not there, I climb the Prez’s roof. He’d probably shoot me in the ass and leave me in the grass if he caught me doing this, but I don’t care. I need to see her.
The slope of the roof is easy enough to climb up, and I spot her window right away. She’s wearing latex gloves and pouring a concoction into some sort of mold. I knock lightly on the glass, startling her as she turns around. Her face starts off confused but quickly turns to elation when she sees that it’s me.
She takes off the gloves and walks over, pushing up the window for me.
“Hey, darlin’,” I say, expecting a warm greeting.
“Where have you been?” she asks.
“Had to spend a few days in Panama Beach,” I tell her. She doesn’t offer for me to come into her room, and I don’t push my luck. “You know, I wanted to get back as soon as possible. Nothin’ changed from the last time we spoke.”
“Maybe for you. Did you know I went on a date two nights ago?”
“You did what now?” I ask, my temper rising.
“Kurt set me up on a blind date.”
“And how did this date go?” I ask dryly, trying to temper down my need to kill somebody.
“Terrible, I hated it. If we want to be together, we need to come up with a plan sooner rather than later,” she stresses. I can see the panic in her eyes.
“I’m workin’ on somethin’, darlin’,” I tell her.
“Care to share?” I grin at her and shake my head.
“As soon as I have more news, you’ll be the first to know.”
“I didn’t want to go on the date,” she says, and I believe her. “I have a feeling he’s going to make me go on another one soon. Lately, it seems like he wants me gone as soon as possible.”
My brows furrow, and I tilt my head at her in confusion.
She sighs and reaches out to touch my wrist. She seems more content once we have some physical form of contact. “I don’t think he wants to risk me going into heat and being here. The sooner I’m packed up, the sooner he has one less problem on his hands.”
“You’re not a fuckin’ problem,” I correct her. She smiles softly at me and shakes her head.
“I don’t know what to do, Axel. I’m scared.”
I push my way into her window, and she steps back to give me space. “Hey,” I say, cupping her face. “I’m goin’ to fix this. I’m figurin’ it all out. We’ll run away if we have to,” I vow.
“You’d do that? You’d leave the club behind for me? Axel, we hardly even know each other,” she says. Sure, she’s using logic because she’s smart and perfect, but I don’t give a fuck.
“When you know, you know. I know I can’t be your everything, Lily. But I want you to be mine.”
“Are you sure I’m really worth all this trouble?” she questions. “What if you go through all of this and we find out we aren’t compatible, or you resent me for needing a pack, or what if I ruin it all?”
“You won’t. I’m gonna take care of everything. I’m gonna take care of you.”
“I can’t let you risk anything with the club. I like it here. I want to stay,” she pleads.
