The man she calls Commander steps into the room and closes the door. Ridley turns to me as I put the picture of Callum and me back in my bag. She nods, and I’m hoping that means she’ll keep my secret.
“Hello, I’m Julian Black.” He holds out his hand, and I shake it.
“Andrea Forbes, but you can call me Andi. I’ve seen you around over the years.” Before Lia and Striker got back together, Commander, or Julian as Lia calls him, would come around and help her out.
“I know who you are. You were an amazing racer. Lia was so proud of you. That was a messed-up accident.”
Julian takes the seat next to me and crosses his long legs. He’s quite handsome, but not like Callum. Part of me wishes I could tell Callum what is going on.
“It wasn’t an accident,” Ridley tells him.
“Well, fuck. Sorry,” he says, elongating the word.
“It’s okay. I have more choice words, but my grandmother would wash my mouth out with soap if I said them.” I try to make light of the situation. “I need to know if that is a real threat and if I should worry.” I point to the letter.
Julian leans forward, grabs the items off the desk, and looks through them.
“I’d like to say it’s nothing, but it isn’t. I think you should tell Striker to put a guy on you,” he says as a knock sounds on the door.
We all turn as Ridley says, “Enter.”
In walks Butcher.
“Hello, sorry to interrupt, but when I realized you were here and it was becoming more than a friendly visit, I thought I’d make myself known.” He walks over to the desk and, without asking, looks down at the pictures and letter. “Yep, I wondered. When I saw what happened at campus, I figured something was up.”
“Are you following me? Why?” I want to ask if Callum asked him too, but I doubt it because Butcher would tell Striker. I know it in my gut.
“Striker asked me to follow you. Said Amelia’s little sister deserved more than a prospect.”
My stomach rolls as I realize what this means.
“Oh my God.” I glance around, searching for something.
Ridley jumps up, grabs my arm, and guides me to the bathroom. I slam the door closed and dry heave into the toilet. My stomach is empty from earlier. Between the panic attack and now this, my nerves are shot.
When I finally get myself under control, I walk to the sink to splash water on my face and rinse my mouth.
Stepping out of the room, I find them all discussing me. I’m at a loss for what to say or do right now.
Butcher stands to his full height and walks toward me. He leans down and whispers in my ear.
“I’ll confront Cowboy later about why he hasn’t said anything to Striker, but I’m here for you, nothing else. I will protect you. Got it?”
My heart slams against my chest, and my eyes mist. I look up at him and nod. “I didn’t want to hide our relationship. It just happened.”
“It’s his place, not yours.”
“Okay.”
He walks me back to the chair, and Murtaugh lays his head on my lap. I listen as they talk around me.
“I’ll have Browser get us the Vegas file. In the meantime, I always want Nox on her.”
“Nope, that’s me. If you don’t want anyone else to know, then it’s me.”
“Okay, we can put Nox on Jude. If Striker questions it, we’ll just say it’s a baby gift. Just in case,” Ridley offers, and my heart pounds harder.
“You think Jude is in danger? I’ll figure something else out. I can go back home. I need to finish the next couple of months of classes, but then I’ll go home for the summer.”
