“Just give them a chance, Tank. You came back here for a reason, right? Let Ember and her club help you,” she insisted. Maybe that was the only reason he’d even considered coming back. Maybe Ember and her club could protect Lillith, and that was all that he really cared about. He learned a long time ago that he was expendable, but Lillith didn’t deserve to be caught up in his mess. Maybe letting Ember’s club get involved would give him what he needed—freedom from his past, but that didn’t mean he trusted them completely.
“What do you have to lose?” she whispered, taking his hand into her own.
“Everything,” he breathed. That was the truth, too. He had been running for so long, he had forgotten what his life used to look like. If he kept running, he’d never have a life again, but if he stopped, he’d lose everything. “This isn’t a joke, Lillith.”
“I know,” she said quietly. “I can see that.”
“What are you going to do?” she asked. Tank’s gaze shifted down the street and then back to her.
“I’m leaving,” he said. There it was—the truth, simple and final.
“When?” she asked, stone-faced.
“Soon.” Not soon enough.
“Right,” she murmured. Tank took a step back, and then another, giving himself some distance and putting the wall back where it belonged.
“You’ll be safer if I’m not here,” he said. It sounded like an excuse, even to him.
“Maybe,” she said.
Tank frowned. “That’s it?” he asked. “No argument?” Maybe he expected too much—especially from a woman he had just met.
Lillith shrugged. “Would it change your mind if I asked you to stay?” Tank stood there, not sure how to answer her question. “Didn’t think so,” she said. She wasn’t going to beg him or chase him down. She wasn’t trying to hold him back, and for some reason, that made leaving harder to do.
“Stay inside,” he said again, softer this time.
“I will,” she promised. Neither of them moved. Maybe neither of them was ready for this to be the end of something that never actually started. “Goodnight, Tank.”
“Night, Lillith.” He turned and walked away. Tank didn’t look back, because if he did, he wasn’t sure he’d be able to keep going.
LILLITH
It had been one month since Tank took off. One month of worrying about a man she barely knew, and one month of hoping like hell that he was okay and she’d see him again someday. One month was exactly how long it took for something that felt like everything to turn into nothing.
Tank was gone, and Lillith told herself she shouldn’t be surprised since men like him didn’t stay in one place for very long. He had warned her. Hell, he practically beat it into her head with every look, every word, and every step he took away from her. It still didn’t make it hurt any less.
“Hey, you planning on sanding that same spot all day, or are you gonna help the rest of us?” Ember called from across the room. Lillith blinked, realizing she’d been staring at the same patch of wood for who knew how long. She shook her head and dragged the sander across the beam again, watching the dust kick up into the air.
“Sorry,” she muttered. “I guess that I zoned out.”
“No shit,” Josie said, laughing. “You’ve been in your own little world all morning.” If only they knew. Lillith forced a smallsmile and set the sander down, wiping her hands on her jeans as she glanced around the old church.
It didn’t look like the same place anymore. Where there had once been dust and decay, there were now fresh beams, clean floors, and actual progress. The Royal Harlots had thrown themselves into rebuilding the place like it meant something—like it was theirs. And maybe that was what pulled Lillith in. They had something. They had each other and a purpose. The club was loud, chaotic, and a little unhinged. But somehow, it worked.
“You good?” Ember asked, stepping up beside her.
Lillith nodded automatically. “Yeah.” Ember just stared at her. Lillith sighed. “Okay, no. Not really.”
“Tank?” Ember asked, blunt as ever.
Lillith huffed out a humorless laugh. “Who else?”
“I figured,” Ember said. Silence stretched between them for a second. “You knew he was gonna leave,” Ember said, not unkindly.
“Yeah,” Lillith whispered. “I just didn’t think it’d be that easy for him.” That was the part that got her—how easy it seemed for him to just walk away when she knew that he felt the same connection that she had.
Ember nudged her shoulder. “Guys like him aren’t easy to be with. If he left, it’s because he thought he had to.”
