Page 56 of Priest

“They’re officers’ Old Ladies,” I tell her. “They’ve got it.”

Her smile strains. “Back in our old club, we always made the clubwhores—”

“This isn’t our old club.”

The words aren’t loud, but they carry.

The room shifts around us.

“I didn’t build Saints of Retribution to recreate Dead Man’s Hand,” I say. “Not the rules. Not the habits. Not the way women were treated like pieces men could move around.”

Sadie’s face pales a little.

I meet her eyes. “We do things different here. Better.”

Her shoulders sink a fraction, but I don’t let the softness of it pull me off course. “You either do things our way,” I add, “or you don’t do them at all.”

She nods quickly. “Yes. Of course. I understand.”

Around us, I feel it. The shift. Men relaxing. Approval flickering across faces that had been tight for weeks.

That realization hits harder than it should.

They didn’t like how much space she’d taken, and they didn’t come to me about it.

Why didn’t they?

I file that away. Another failure I’ll have to own.

I turn to Ink. “Let’s ride.”

He falls in beside me as we head out, quiet until we’re far enough away from Sadie that his mouth finally curves. “That was painful to witness.”

“You got a death wish today?”

“Apparently. Figured I’d try a new hobby.”

I grunt, but the edge in my chest eases by half an inch. Ink has always had that way about him, quiet until he decides to cut, then sharp enough to make a man check for blood.

We’re almost to the door when he glances over. “By the way.”

I look at him.

“That doctor,” he says. “Blue.”

My jaw tightens on instinct. “Yeah?”

Ink’s mouth tilts, amused. Not mocking. Appreciative. “Good luck with her.”

I snort. “That obvious?”

“She doesn’t bend,” he says simply. “Doesn’t posture. Doesn’t scare easy.” His eyes slide toward me, and the bastard’s enjoying this more than he should. “And she’s got you chasing instead of dictating.”

That earns him a look.

Ink shrugs. “I like her.”

I drag a hand down my face, already tired, already aware he’s right. “Brother, she’s gonna be the death of me.”