It just kept ringing and we both stared at it as it seemed to wriggle on the table surface with each accompanying vibration.
“Wait. It says ‘Lenore’!” I released Henley and grabbed the phone, swiping the button and tapping the speaker.
“Lenore?”
“Girl, you can stop fearing that fucker. It’s dealt with.”
Wait, what? Henley and I exchanged a stunned look, and he tapped something on his phone as we waited for her to elaborate.
“Say again, Lenore?” Henley asked warily, as the door clicked open upstairs, and heavy footfalls announced the arrival of the three bikers.
“What’s going on?” Harley asked, and Lenore chuckled on the other end of the phone.
“Aw you’ve got a houseful? Check this out.” A popup on the screen requested a change to a video call so I accepted it, and her face filled the screen. She grinned widely, looking every bit the savage I knew her to be, while also being breathtakingly beautiful.
“Uh hi, I said, moving closer to Henley, so he could see her, and so could the three bikers standing behind us.
“I see the gang’s all there,” she said chirpily, as someone muttered in the background, and there was laughter. She clearly wasn’t alone either.
She suddenly turned the phone, and our view went from her face, to an awkwardly shifting plateau of grey concrete, and finally settling on a face. Sean. Oh god. My fingers trembled, and the phone nearly slipped from them, so Henley wrapped his around mine and shared his strength with me.
“He’s… he’s there?”
The guys behind us were chuckling, and then I heard Grease speaking.
“We can go off high alert, man. He’s already been taken.”
“Is that those biker guys, Lenore, love? Let us see.” She groaned and spun the phone back around and two bearded guys appeared on the screen.
“Those fuckers!” Rocket roared, “I’ve got a bone to pick with you!”
The men laughed, and one of them faked a grimace. “You can keep your bone to yourself, bruv, but you’re welcome. I see you’re home, so clearly we helped.”
I had no idea what was going on, or who they were, and Henley was now turned in the seat, murmuring with Harley, who disappeared off with his phone to his ear.
“Why do you have Sean?” I blurted, and the bearded guys sobered.
“Lenore went rogue, love, but we’re always up for beating a prick up.”
“Um, I’m doing it, boss.”
They looked off screen to argue with Lenore, and I glanced at Henley. This was the weirdest, most unexpected situation, and I had no idea how to proceed from here. He shrugged, offering me a tiny grin.
“Yay?” He added two thumbs up, looking adorable in his bemused attempt at relief or humour, or whatever the hell he was going for.
Chapter Nineteen
On the one hand,I was so fucking relieved that the asshole was already squirrelled away somewhere, and not likely to show up and upset Glory, but on the other, I was shitting it, because I could hear the words before she even uttered them. I knew her that well.
“I need to see him,” she declared, and those bearded bastards exchanged a look, before the phone flipped around again to show Lenore. She looked concerned, but maybe also a little resigned, because she’d seen it coming too.
“No, don’t worry. You don’t need to do anything, honestly. I’ve… we’ve… got this. He’ll never be seen again, and you can go on with your life.”
“Lenore.”
“Seriously, you don’t need to see what’s about to happen to him. He’s toast.”
She practically winced at the look on Glory’s face, and I was proud as hell that she was fighting her corner, but I wished like fuck it didn’t mean this. Not this. Literally anything but this.
