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There was only one person in this world who could bring Johnston to heel, and her name was Aaliyah—his wife.
“Woman, don’t start with me. It’s barely eight o’clock,” he grumbled.
She arched a perfect eyebrow at him. “Guess you’ll be using your hand tonight,” she snipped before she left the room, tossing her red hair over her shoulder. I had to fight not to grin or laugh. Johnston had his hands full with her, that was for sure.
“Only person in the world who can get away with that shit,” he muttered, setting his coffee down. He looked at me. “You sure that’s the kind of shit you want to put up with for the rest of your life?”
I nodded. “Yeah, I’m sure. We good here?”
He stood to his feet and held his hand out to me. I clasped his hand in mine, firmly shaking it. “We’re good,” he told me. “Keep your ear pinned to the ground. Got a feeling we’re all about to face a shit storm.”
“Great,” I muttered.
Johnston snorted a laugh of agreement.
The bell above the door jingled as I stepped inside Books & Brews, announcing my arrival to the staff—and Sophia. While the rest of the members, aside from Halo, had ridden straight back to the clubhouse, I came here. Halo, not wanting me to ride alone with shit being in the air like it was, had come with me and was chilling outside on his bike while I came to warn Sophia about the men we found snooping on her cameras.
She looked up with a smile, getting ready to greet me. But when she saw it was just me, the smile fell from her face, replaced with a scowl. I just shoved my hands in my pockets, and for once, I didn’t smile despite her animosity toward me.
“You got a moment to talk?” I asked her.
She sighed, and the sound was filled with exasperation. “Chase, if this is another tactic to try to get me to go out with you—”
“It’s not,” I assured her. “It’s about your security. We can talk in your office or wherever, but this may be a conversation you don’t want out in the open.”
She frowned, worry filtering into her eyes, and I decided right then I didn’t like the look of her being unsure. She could scowl at me, be angry, even be happy at the sight of another customer—as long as he wasn’t male. But the frown, that little bit of confusion glimmering in her eyes, and that concern—it made her seem too vulnerable.
It left me feeling itchy and uncomfortable inside. And volatile. Real fucking volatile.
“We can talk in my office,” she finally said.
She set down the bookmarks she’d been holding and walked through a door behind the checkout counter. I followed her into a small office. Her brown desk was neat and organized, a small laptop open on top with a notepad and a pen next to it. Her phone was on the other side of the laptop connected to a charger. Bookshelves lined her walls filled with what looked to be personal collections.
“What is it, Chase?” she asked, dragging my eyes over to her and away from her office set-up. She crossed her arms over her chest. I recognized it for what it was—a defensive gesture.
Against me.
I was the last damn person she needed to worry about hurting her.
“Mark caught two men snooping around your building last night on the cameras.” She narrowed her eyes at me like she didn’t believe me. “They were covered head to toe—can’t identify them. Looked like they were making note of cameras and entrances.”
She scowled at me. “And I’m supposed to believe this? Why didn’t Scorpion or Mark come tell me?” she demanded. Stiff-armed, she pointed her finger at the door. “Get the fuck out of my office, Chase.”
She had to be fucking kidding me.
“Goddammit, Sophia, this isn’t a fucking game,” I growled, stepping closer to her. She grabbed a pair of scissors off her desk, ready to stab me with them. I barked out a humorless laugh, shaking my head, but I stopped in my steps. I didn’t care about being stabbed, but she was afraid of me.Me.
Fucking hell. “You know what? Be goddamn stubborn. But I’m telling the damn truth.”
With that, I turned on my heel, too tired and worried about her to argue with her. It was obvious she thought I was trying to plan some elaborate trap to get her to agree to a date. In reality, I just wanted hersafe. Even if I never got to have her as my woman in this lifetime, I would still do everything I could to protect her.
I stormed out of the shop and straddled my bike. Halo winced at the look on my face. “Want me to go talk to her?”
I shook my head. “No. We’ll put protection on her store and leave her be. Hopefully, having protection on the store will keep her safe.”
He nodded in agreement. Worry for me glimmered in his eyes, but I ignored it and revved my engine before tearing off through downtown, heading for the clubhouse.
TWO WEEKS LATER
