Page 59

“I’ll be careful,” I promised. “And Rook has my back. Along with the rest of the MC.”

What I didn’t tell her was my take on the situation. Rex was loud and obnoxious, threatening her through text messages while he fell silent in all other areas was a bad sign. A really bad fucking sign, because it meant he was planning something big. He was out of money. Almost out of time. And soon enough, he’d be out of friends too. She didn’t need to know all that right now, there was enough on her shoulders.

I could carry this for her.

Tears pooled in her eyes but not even one drop fell. “I know, I’m just worried.” She kissed me softly, and I kissed her back because there was no version of me that wouldn’t.

I should’ve left it there. I didn’t. Hell, I couldn’t. I was so attuned to this woman I felt the things she didn’t say. “His texts have you rattled. I know.” I brushed her hair off her face. “Last night his guys came into one of our brothels and trashed the place. Beat up the girls and the johns both. It’s a fucking mess, but it was also just a warning. He’s rattling the cage, nothing more.”

“Okay.” She breathed it out slow and kissed me again, and this one was different. Long and hot and slow enough to burn all the way down to my bones, the kind of kiss that said everything she wasn’t ready to put into words yet. When she pulled back, she wore a smile that didn’t erase the worry from her eyes. “Be safe. Come back to me. I…” She stopped. Started over. “Just please. Come back to me.”

“I promise,” I told her and then I kissed her again, hot and hard. It wasn’t goodbye, but it was a don’t forget who makes you feel like this while I’m gone kind of kiss.

I got up and dressed without showering, because I wanted her scent on my skin while I worked. A man walking into the kind of day I had ahead could use the reminder of exactly what he was protecting. And what was waiting for him when he finally dragged his ass home.

Rook was already on his bike when I came out. The engine idled under his big body while his gaze scanned the area. He gave me a short nod when he spotted me and waited for me to get on my bike.

We had a list of stops to make around Redstone Creek. Lockdown wasn’t just about keeping everybody safe, it was about protecting our business interests. It was the quickest way to hurt an MC and to piss one off, fucking with our money. So, Rook and I worked our list with forensic precision, making sure every fucking dollar we had was counted and where it belonged.

We got to it before Rex could.

Rook didn’t say much on the ride, he rarely did when shit got serious like this, but I’d known him long enough to feel the tension humming under the surface. The air was thick with tension and anticipation, keeping everybody on edge, which was just the fuckin’ nature of lockdown.

We hit The Vow a little after noon.

It was a low brick structure just off the highway, with our MC colors on the door so that anybody who entered knew who they’d find inside, as well as what bullshit would—and would not—be tolerated. It was a place where other bikers came to relax without too many questions.

Rook froze half a foot ahead of me. “This shit don’t feel right.”

I agreed, looking around at all the things that were off. The bartender wasn’t behind the bar, and the waitress was nowhere to be seen, but more than that, three of Rex’s men stood around the place trying a little too hard to look casual.

“You’re a long way from home,” I said a little louder than was necessary, but I wanted to make sure they all fucking heard me.

The one with the scarred lip pushed off the pool table. “Not too far. We’re here about Vulture and Samson.”

So that was it. Payback. I should’ve figured Rex would let his dogs off the leash eventually, and these three had drawn the short straw of caring more about two dead assholes than about staying alive. “Then you came to die,” I said, and it kicked off.

The one with the scar came at me fast with a look of pure hatred in his eyes. Rook took the other two without a word, the way we’d done a hundred times before. No plan was needed, just instinct and years of friendship between us.

I didn’t have to look to know where he was, I was aware of his presence, solid and steady in the same room with me. Ready to have my back, if needed. That knowledge gave me exactly what I needed to beat the holy fuck out of the biker in front of me.

My fist landed on his jaw, loosening just enough that I knew I’d done serious damage already. When he bent forward, I took advantage and drove a knee into his midsection. That’s how we went on, trading blows and kicks and trash talk.

“Just stay down,” he taunted before producing a long blade with a sharp point. “That way we can get to the girl next.”

The girl. He was talking about my fucking woman. My wife. Red blurred the edges of my vision and I lunged forward, wrapping my hands around the scarred fucker’s throat. I squeezed tight, letting every ounce of rage I felt pour into his scrawny ass neck.

Then I felt it, the bite of his fucking blade slide across my upper arm, a hot line of pain accompanied by the warmth of my own spilled blood.

“Motherfucker!” I roared, squeezing his throat tighter even as I slammed my head into his. It pissed me off that he cut me because it made me think of Ivy and the promise I made to her just an hour ago. I promised I’d be careful and here I was already bleeding all over the fucking place.

He staggered back from the pain of the headbutt and dropped his knife because the struggle for air had to take precedence. “Stop!” he rasped out, scratching at my hands and forearms.

I shook my head. “You threatened my wife,” I growled. “There is no stopping. Not now.” I must’ve looked as crazed as I felt because for the first time, genuine fear flashed in his eyes. This was it for him, the last thing he’d ever see. The last words he’d ever speak.

“Rex…” he tried but I only squeezed tighter.

“Rex is gonna get what’s coming to him. You chose the wrong master to serve and now you’ll pay for it.” My thumbs pressed harder until eventually his arms went slack and the life left his eyes. I released him and he crumpled to the floor.