By the time he’d finished the unexpected dressing down, Iona’s cheeks were burning. Had her judgment call been wrong? She didn’t see how she could have chosen a different path. Dutch had been working up to challenging Elias to a fight. She couldn’t allow the MC leader to issue the challenge, or Elias would have felt obligated to take him up on it and undone the surgeon’s work during the fight.
While others might view her as too strong, Iona only did what she thought needed to be done. She’d always been thatway. To do otherwise would have left her broken by her experiences in the child services system.
“In making yourself look strong, you made Elias look weak.”
Her mouth gaped. “Sir?”
Elias scowled at the phone. “Hold on, sir. That’s not true.”
“Should I ask Dutch to confirm that?”
“Sir, I know Dutch. You don’t. His attitude toward women belongs in the medieval era. What Iona did was the fastest way to bring him down a peg or two.”
“It was a risky move, Knight, and you know it.”
“That may be true, sir, but the move worked.”
“This time. The next time might not turn out as you planned. Understood?”
He rolled his eyes. “Yes, sir.”
“Iona.”
“Sir.”
“Stay focused. Men like Dutch strike back when you least expect it. Are you hearing me?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Report back to me in six hours.”
“Copy that, sir.”
“Maddox out.”
Was the boss right? Had she made Elias look weak in front of his cousin? That hadn’t been her intention. She slid her gaze in his direction. “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t.”
Iona flinched.
Elias turned toward her. “Don’t let him get under your skin. You did what I would have done if the circumstances had been reversed.”
“If you weren’t injured, you would have mopped the floor with him.”
“Instead, my girlfriend did it.” He grinned. “I think that’s about the most breathtaking thing I’ve ever seen. You were amazing, Iona. Dutch will think twice before taking on you or your teammates in a fight. I’m proud of you for what you did. You stood up for yourself, and you did it with grace and style. You didn’t have one hair out of place when you finished.”
“Are you sure my actions didn’t bother you?”
“Babe, I can take help when I need it. Today, I needed a hand. Tomorrow might be different. We watch each other’s backs. We’re protectors, Iona, and who better to protect than the people we love?” He captured her mouth in a sizzling kiss, then sat back. “Time for the second call.”
Hopefully, this one wouldn’t be as difficult to handle. Iona had a feeling her stomach would be in knots for a long while from the previous call.
Elias called Zane, who answered on the first ring. He frowned. “It’s Elias. You’re on speaker with Iona. Buddy, don’t you ever sleep?”
“You caught me as I was wrapping up a programming project. What do you need?”
“To give you an update and ask for one in return.”
