Is it worse that he was here and didn’t notice something was wrong, or that I didn’t come to the clubhouse once in that span of six days? Hell, it had been longer than that. I’m not even sure I was here this month at all before I was summoned.
“Was there anything over the recent months youdidnotice about the members or Harlow?” I decide to leave the question about our culpability in this for a later date and move forward with questions he might have the answer to.
“Nothing. Everything was business as usual. The boss kept shit tight, and I got fucking lazy.” Sabastian moves swiftly, leaning forward so his forearm is on the desk. Egan is faster, wrapping his talon-tipped fingers around the wolf’s neck. The shifter lifts his eyes to glance up at my fallen, but the rest of his body remains frozen.
The scent of blood fills the air right before I see rivulets of red liquid trailing down Sabastian’s neck. “Maybe no sudden movements,” I suggest to the road captain. It takes a long second before Egan releases his hold on the other man, and when he does, he doesn’t provide him much space for there to be a repeat incident.
“I failed him. I failed the club.” Sabastian pays no mind to the blood dripping down under the collar of his shirt or the five puncture wounds on his neck as he stares down at the ground.
I soften a little toward him. I can sympathize with how he feels. We all failed Harlow, whether this was by his own hand or not, which I don’t think it was. I’m guilty of thinking of him as invincible and assuming that he would always be around, and it’s clear I wasn’t the only one.
“I’m going to need you to pull your head out of your ass, Sab, and get your shit together. I need to figure out what the fuck happened here, whatwe allmissed, and I have a legion of idiots that might be headed this way because some fuckwit thought it was a good idea to tell the world I was holding trials to replace Harlow. If you’re not up for the job of road captain, tell me now, because I have other shit to do than hold your hand.”
The shifter’s heavy brows drop low, and his lips turn down in a more pronounced frown. “You’re considering keeping me?” he questions, as if it never crossed his mind that he would continue to hold his position.
“Should I not?” My voice is raised. I really want to find someone I can trust other than Modeus and Egan, who’s already deeply enmeshed into the club, but Sabastian isn’t making this easy.
“I just admitted I fucked up.” He pushes his hair back and leans away from the desk, falling against the back of the seat. Is he shocked I would give him another chance, or does he have a reason he wants me to drop him? I should have had Modeus join me, he might have been able to decipher the wolf’s emotions.
“If you fuck up again, I’ll kill you. Is that motivation enough to make sure it doesn’t happen again?” I don’t tell him that if I learn anything different than what he told me today, I will kill him too. It’s a given.
CHAPTER15
Modeus
It’sa battle not to watch the office door like it’s my job. Lore’s as safe as can be, even if I know she’s locked inside with the shifter. Egan is with her, and he would never let harm come to her.
It didn’t take me long to find Thana. She’s licking her wounds and trying like hell to become the leader of the prospects. You’d think she would be a pariah to the others, considering she lost her standing, but it’s proof the vampire knows how to work a room, and her drive for power is paramount.
With my task done, I join a few members at a table near the newcomers. “Modeus,” Amaretto greets as I sit down. I don’t know the vampire well, but we’ve spoken a few times, which I can’t say for many of the others at the table. I’m more than willing to admit my entire focus was always on Lore, and Harlow didn’t even make me work hard to get my cut. He knew my loyalty would always follow Lore and the club by association. I’m confident everyone at the table knows why I chose to sit here. I want to keep an eye on the demon and his crew, but I can make nice while I do it.
I offer a simple greeting in return. “Amaretto.”
“This is Gator, Brute, and Dom.” He points at the others seated around us as he introduces them.
“Are we going to get killed because you sat with us?” asks Brute, the only female in the group, eyeing me over the rim of her glass.
I’m adept at ignoring most emotions unless they are too strong to overlook, so her lack of feeling behind it surprises me when I try to get a read on her.
“She’s joking,” Dom says before I can answer her question, but I reply anyway.
“I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.” Brute’s eyebrows rise high on her forehead. I suppose my response surprised her too.
Amaretto lets out a nervous chuckle that tapers off when no one else joins him. Thankfully for all of us, the office door opens and the shifter exits, with Lore and Egan behind him.
Lore glances around quickly until her eyes land on me, then she redirects her steps as she heads toward me. I lean back in my chair to admire her. Her long hair is plaited down her back, and the way her tongue curls over her bottom lip, leaving a trail of moisture, has me rooted to my spot.
The moment she’s near enough, Lore reaches out and possessively strokes her finger up the side of my neck. Just the feel of her skin against mine is enough to have me craving the feel of so much more. In truth, I never escape my burning need for her, but moments like this make it nearly impossible to ignore.
“Are you up for a ride?” she questions, and I slowly rise from my seat, taking care not to dislodge her hand from my neck. I very much doubt she means the kind of ride I’m thinking about, but it still doesn’t stop the image of her above me, taking me balls deep, from forming in my mind.
“Always,” I murmur.
Lore glides her hand over my shoulder and down to my chest, where she pats my heart and says, “Something to look forward to later,” as if she’s reading the thoughts in my head.
Egan pushes into her space from behind, so she’s nearly sandwiched between us. With her pressed against me, I really have to work to stop my desire from consuming me. I lift my eyes, expecting to find Egan’s attention on Lore, but instead, the fallen is glaring at Malik.
It makes me wonder if they know each other or if Egan just doesn’t like him on principle. Hell, I bet the fallen doesn’t really like anyone besides Lore, so that’s not a stretch.
