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I could do it though. What she doesn’t know is that I’m currently building my financial empire so I can retire early and enjoy life. I own an apartment in Greece, where I like to vacation in the summer and fall, and a small house in Key West that I rent out. I have a growing stock portfolio and despite the hefty amount I used to buy in to Shadow Security, I’m debt-free.

To be fair, I made some decent money in endorsements as Rage the Cage. Enough to buy the place in Greece and start investing. Then the house in Key West all but fell into my lap but I paid it off in two years and now it brings in rental income. I live modestly, so my focus is on making money and spending time with my friends.

There’s a part of me that’s a little envious of what Grim found with Allora. I worry about the circumstances under which they met—her being sex trafficked—but they’re both in therapy. I know he’s going to propose soon, because I helped him pick out the ring, but he’s playing the timing by ear. Meanwhile, we don’t spend nearly the same amount of time together.

I wouldn’t say I’m jealous but it’s impossible not to notice that he’s not always available anymore.

And loneliness isn’t a good enough reason to get involved with someone.

Except I want Luna. Badly. More than I’ve ever wanted any woman in the past. It’s like I have to have her. Having an excuse to touch her tonight was almost more than I could stand but now that I’ve had a taste, I need more. I just have to figure out how to make her want me the way I want her.

“She okay?” Mark asks when he sees me.

“Yeah. I think her ankle is sprained but it doesn’t look too bad. She’s going to cover surveillance for us, so we can keep our eye on the building and the blind spots.”

“Great.” He looks around. “I’ve doublechecked—everything is locked up tight for the night. But I still feel like if someone really wanted to get in, they could jimmy the delivery entrance.”

I nod. “Dan’s working on that, but honestly, no one has any reason to come here tonight. If anything, they’ll be circling the hospital.”

“Yeah.” His expression is somber. “I’m worried. We got those two threats last week and it’s hard to tell if they’re serious or not.”

Daniil gets threats every so often. He’s royalty. He’s mostly unbothered by it, it’s just now, while Courtney is so vulnerable, that he amped up security.

“Rage?” Luna’s voice in my earpiece startles me.

“What’s up, Luna?” I ask quietly.

“There’s movement by the front gate.”

The section of the property that headquarters is located on has an unmanned gate. With cameras. So we can always see anyone who drives up.

“Vehicle or person?” I ask, moving toward the surveillance room so I can see for myself.

“Vehicle. It looks like…a motorcycle.”

I relax a little because I can only think of one group of people who would arrive at this time of night on motorcycles. Still, we have to stay cautious.

“Can you tell who it is?”

“No.”

I sit down and enlarge the video screen.

And immediately recognize the leather.

As I suspected, it’s one of the Renegade Demons.

Allora’s father’s motorcycle club.

We’re on good terms but why are any of them here at eleven o’clock on a Friday night?

“You want me to handle it?” Mark asks.

“No, I’ll go.” I have a somewhat more intimate relationship with them after what happened to Grim at the hands of Allora’s kidnappers. They nearly killed him to get to her, and when it turned out that the person spearheading the kidnapping was a member of the club, Grim, Allora, and I were part of the group who decided his fate.

“It’s Metal,” I say, more to myself than the others. He’s a good guy who loves cars and heavy metal music. Allora likes him more than anyone else in the club, including her father, which says a lot.

I step outside as he pulls up.