AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He turned to me, pointing a warning finger my way. “Everyone better act normal tonight. I love Amber,” he shifted his gaze to Luke, “and Gia’s now your assistant, but the information shared here stays in this room for now. I need Amber to focus on work tonight. Jade,” he pointed to his ear, “keep that in.”
Chance was in an uncharacteristic silence, his mind most definitely plagued by flashbacks of a not-too-distant past. We all were feeling the weight of those memories. Countless nights, I had sat awake, worrying over the safety of everyone I loved.
Luke led me out of the office and around the corner to his own. He closed the door behind us and pulled me closer, our bodies pressing together as he kissed me.
“I love you,” he whispered against my lips.
“I love you too,” I replied.
He trailed his hands up and down my arms, a comforting gesture that caused a flutter in my chest.
“Just a heads up,” he said, breaking away from our embrace. “Ian has some guys here tonight who are connected to the other business. They’re positioned around the club, inside and out. But don’t worry, they have nothing to do with our shit.”
I nodded, rolling my eyes at the constant presence of danger in our lives. “For some reason, that actually makes me feel a little safer.”
He smirked. “I know. We’ll have more security than customers at this rate.” But then his expression turned serious as he glared at the ceiling behind me.
“You’re thinking about the tattoo again.”
“I hope he shows up tonight so I can cut that fucking thing out of him.” Luke’s frustration was clear. “No man should be wearing her name on them who isn’t me.”
“So, I’m guessing you’re okay with her calling you dad?”
Rolling his tongue over his bottom lip, he smiled proudly. “More than okay.” He took my hands in his. “If she wants me to be that for her, I’ll step up and be that man in her life.”
“You already have done that,” I reminded him.
And he had. Luke always went above and beyond to make sure our well-being was put first. But suddenly, his face tensed with worry, a familiar emotion that often crept into his features when he thought about her.
“What?” I asked, my heart pounding in my chest.
His eyes were fixed on mine, filled with worry and uncertainty. “I know we have no plans to split up, but if we ever do?—”
I reached out, placing a hand on his chest. “Stop right there,” I said firmly. “I know what you’re about to say, and I’ll never take her from you if that happens. She’s yours.”
KNOCK. KNOCK. KNOCK.
Exhaling, Luke replied before I could, “Come in!”
The door pushed open, and Tyler stepped inside, holding a folder in his hands. He closed the door behind him and cleared his throat. “I think you both need to finish looking at this before we continue.”
Without waiting for a response, he handed the folder over to me, my fingers brushing against his as I took it from him. My heart raced as I flipped it open, my eyes watering in anger as they landed on my ex’s face once again. Tyler leaned back against the wall, his arms folded across his chest.
Luke’s hand rested protectively on the small of my back, but I could sense the tension radiating from him as we both took in the photo of my ex’s new neck tattoo. I flinched at the sight, but Luke remained silent, his jaw clenched tightly as he held me close.
“So,” Tyler finally spoke as I thumbed through the bank documents and security footage, “I thought you might like to know your brother helped us a lot and he was telling us the truth.”
Tearing my gaze from the documents, I snapped it closed, handing it back to him. “Of course, he was.”
He shrugged his shoulder. “You know Ian needed proof, and it was more about getting whatever info we could get than it was about trusting him.”
“It was both and we all know it.”
“There’s something else I found.” He opened the folder again, fanning through the pages once more. Taking out a sheet of paper, he handed it to me.
“Okay?”
“Look closer.” He pointed to a travel mug in Dante’s hand as he was taking a sip inside his car before the next few photos showed him stepping out.
