I transfer one of the bags to my other hand and rub my forehead. “Why, exactly, did you say that?”
“Because it’s true. The fact she’s even here is odd, so tell me what’s really going on.”
I don’t keep secrets, but this isn’t mine to tell, and if Eleanor finds out I spilled her life to someone she doesn’t trust, she’ll hang my balls like an ornament in that fancy-ass car of hers.
“I can’t.”
He rises to his feet and tilts his head. “Meaning there is something going on.”
I might not be willing to tell him, but I also won’t lie. I’ve already told enough by letting William believe she’s mine. I consider that manifesting though.
“Remember Honor?”
A ghost of a smile crosses his lips. He met Honor in a bar when he decided her ass was too nice to pass up. She greeted him with a mean left hook before Fox carried her out over his shoulder. “Of course.”
“Eleanor is a friend of hers, and she’s in trouble. I am helping her as a favor.” Now that’s the real lie. I would help her regardless of our mutual connections. She has an intangible command over me, and I’m not going to ignore the universe when it gives me some very clear signs telling me that woman is meant to be mine. The term “soulmates” seems too hokey for my tastes, but the outcome is the same.
“What kind of trouble?”
“The worst.”
“What can I do?”
I don’t have to share the details for him to at least be aware of the danger stalking Eleanor. “William thinks we are dating.”
“Makes sense. It affords her the protection of the club.”
Mark might come across like a brainless idiot, but he’s one of the most intelligent men I’ve ever met. He acts this way so no one expects anything from him. “I trust you’ll keep that to yourself.”
He clasps my shoulder, his eyes conveying the seriousness of the moment. “Always, but a word of advice?”
“Okay...”
“Try not to see her as a way to make up for your past mistakes. That shit will get you killed, and if I think that’s even a possibility, I will always act in your interests, not hers.”
My heart twists. It’s nothing less than I expected, and I would say the exact same thing to him, but I still worry what that means for Eleanor. She’s too much of a flight risk.
“You asked what you can do.”
“Tell me.”
“Change the door code every morning and night and put it in the group chat. Check the cameras are working twice daily as well. Make sure C knows the town’s surveillance must be working and to report to me if there are any outages.”
Mark cracks his knuckles. “You’re expecting trouble?”
“I think it’s prudent to be cautious with the men on her tail.” I’m skirting the truth of the situation, but he needs to know the threat is real.
He smirks. “Let them come.”
I shake my head as he puts his code in and holds the door open for me. “Let’s hope they don’t. It’ll be a Fortune 500 bloodbath we don’t need. These aren’t nobodies who stick to the shadows. If you spill their blood, people will notice.”
He blinks. “Now I’m more curious. How bad can they be if they are silver-spooned assholes?”
“They are the worst of the worst. They believe themselves untouchable. Do not engage. I’m not expecting her to be traced here.” Given how adept she is at covering her tracks and the years she has spent hiding, I doubt this will break her streak. Eleanor doesn’t make those kinds of mistakes, and she isn’t cocky with her safety. She’s careful.
“Got it. Last question.”
I sigh. Mark likes to think of himself as the agony aunt of the MC, but he’s not. He’s just nosy. “Yeah?”
