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GAGE
I didn’t lie when I told Letty on the night of the wedding that I’d be seeing her around, but I also didn’t confide that she wouldn’t be having any contact with me during those two years.
And now, after the long wait, I finally had permission to reappear in her life.
My right knee wouldn’t stop bouncing as I tapped my thigh, eager for church to end. Storm sent me a look as he noticed, and it distracted him. Shit. I crossed my arms over my chest and leaned back, stretching out my legs under the table in the center of the room. The club’s logo stretched across the surface, etched into the wood. The same emblem I wore on the back of my cut.
I prospected for this club in high school and patched in the summer after I graduated. The men gathered around this table were family. Not a soul related to me by blood. That didn’t matter in my world. We were brothers, bonded through our allegiance to the club and our way of life.
A concept my father would never understand. The only thing he recognized was dollar signs.
I focused on Storm’s words, refusing to steal a glance at my phone to check the time.
“Boomer, Wolf, get your asses to that meeting. We need eyes and ears on that shit. Don’t get seen and cock it up.”
They nodded, rising from the table to head out.
Blendcore Enterprises, my father’s company, merged corporations and sold goods and companies, whatever they could get their greedy hands on. Lately, that included weapons that supplied our enemies. We needed more intel and the only way to get it included spying on meetings between our rival club and the mediator from Blendcore.
“You sure that dancer from Show ‘N’ Tail got the info right?” Cash asked, flicking ash from his cigarette onto a tray. “Ain’t doubting your word, pres. Just lookin’ out.”
Storm grunted. “Yeah, she’s good for it. No love for the fuckers at Blendcore. They bought out the company that owned her apartment building and had her evicted.”
Damn. “Fuck,” I cursed, shaking my head. I hated hearing this shit. My father was ruthless, and his reputation was confirmed every time we learned something new.
“This ain’t on you, Blade,” Storm reminded me. “We’ve been over this shit.”
Yeah, I knew. “I still don’t like it.”
Cash gripped my shoulder, giving it a shake. “He’s his own man, just like you. Let it roll off.”
He was right. I nodded, giving Storm an anxious look.
“Church is dismissed. Get the fuck out of here,” Storm ordered. His gaze fixed on me as I stood. “Blade,” he growled.
“Yeah, pres?” I asked, anxious as fuck to get out the door.
“I know what these last two years cost you. It didn’t escape my notice.”
I dipped my chin, acknowledging his words.
“Not been easy for you, son, but things are about to change. Keep Letty safe. Whatever, however.”
Wow. I slapped my hand over my chest. “Thank you, pres.”
“You understand why I had to do it, right?”
His order. The one that kept me from the girl I loved for two fucking years. The agony of it burned in my gut.
“I see you, Blade. I fucking know it hurt, but she was sixteen. Fuckingsixteen, and you were almost nineteen. Had to keep you clear of that shit.”
“I know.” I hated it. I would have been with her the whole time. Would that have placed her in additional danger? I couldn’t say. My protection never wavered. From the moment I left that wedding, I kept an eye on Letty. If I wasn’t around, I asked another prospect. She never went without me or one of my guys. No one fucked with my girl.
“I hear you, pres.”
Cash sighed. “The shit with her mom and your dad, it had to stay clear from both of you. It was necessary.”
“Yeah.” They weren’t wrong, but I wish I could have explained before I walked away. I left Letty with vague comments and a promise she didn’t understand.
