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She saw no other escape.
I’ve watched my dad live with that guilt. I knew it was something he’d hold with him forever, no matter how happy he was now with Zoey or how much work he’d done with the club to make sure it never happened again. He constantly lived with this nagging voice in the back of his mind that he didn’t do enough to protect her.
He regretted not fighting harder.
And I always told myself I’d never make the same mistake.
Things with Cassie and me moved so much faster than I could’ve ever anticipated, but I knew fighting for her wasn’t a mistake. And I was going to continue to do it because while right now, my focus was making sure she was safe, I saw a future with her past this.
She was beautiful, smart, and witty. And when she talked about her passion, it embodied her.
I knew hard work, and I could see it in her. I knew she was going to work for what she wanted, and whether I was with her or not, I knew one day she’d make it. Only, I wanted to be with her when she did.
“For a long time, I thought you were going to take over when I stepped down. You looked after Rip when I was still enlisted, you did everything asked of you and never expected special treatment for being my kid, and you were confident and determined. Born to be in charge,” Dad continued, strumming his fingers on the table. “But when you went to college, and I saw you begin to build that company, I realized then it wasn’t the club you were gonna run.”
He wasn’t wrong.
When I was younger, I felt like the presidency was the path I was meant to take.
Like the choice had been made for me since I was born.
“Okay, so tell me why we’re having this conversation now?” I questioned, wondering why the hell he saved this shit for right at this damn moment.
“Because before you go rushing into getting this guy who’s trying to hurt Cassie, we need to remember you aren’t just a club member. You’re the face of a billion-dollar company, one you built from the fucking ground up.”
I was already shaking my head even before he could finish. “Are you saying I leave all this crap because it would be bad for business?” I sat forward in my chair. “Are you even fucking listening to yourself?”
I knew I’d fucked him off within seconds because he slowly got to his feet, bracing his hands on the desk between us and leaning in. “I’d do whatever I fucking had to, to protect Zoey. Kill for her. Die for her. That what you want to hear?” he growled, his narrowed glare holding my body frozen. I didn’t dare fucking speak or argue. This was where I listened and shut my fucking mouth. “But you want to know what the hell I’d do before I died for her? I would do whatever the fuck I had to, to live for her. To make sure I was still around for years to come, to make sure she didn’t have to go through the fucking pain of watching me go to prison or be lowered into the ground unless it was goddamn necessary.”
I’d always been firm in my belief that I’d never let the fact I was running a company stop me from standing up for my family. It was the reason I took no bullshit from Barlowe’s son-in-law and the reason I wasn’t afraid to be seen around town at fight night, wearing my club colors, though I knew the next day there’d be pictures plastered on the web questioning whether my company was really a cover for a criminal enterprise.
I did it anyway, never wanting to feel like I should hide who I was or where my loyalties lie. But the other side of this was that I’d also lost my fair share of contracts and investors because of it.
It was a balance I’d been trying to find for a while now.
It was also one of the reasons I was looking at moving to Boston permanently so I could focus more on that side of me, the part even Dad recognized was where I was meant to be. It was what I loved, what I felt passionate about.
While the club was in my blood, construction and architecture fueled my soul.
Was I willing to give it all up if it meant standing up for someone I cared for? Yes.
But like my dad pointed out, that wasn’t the first step.
It was a last resort.
“I’d never tell you to not do whatever you had to, to protect her. You know I would back you. The club will back you… any one of those men out there would do what needs to be done,” Dad continued when I couldn’t find an answer or objection, probably because I knew he was right. “But what I’m asking is you be smart with this. Don’t rush in all hot-headed.”
There was a reason my father ran this club and a reason why so many people respected him.
This kind of shit was one of those reasons.
“So, what’s the plan?” I questioned, getting to my feet and pacing. “We try to deter him first? See if I can force him to leave her alone with a littlepersuasion.”
Dad nodded. “While you’re here and the club is around to keep an eye on her, push his buttons and see if you can force him to back off. You’ll both need to be back in Boston soon, so we need to try and sort this shit before then.”
I cleared my throat and nodded, walking toward the door. Pulling it open, I paused for a second and looked back. “Thanks for talking me straight.”
He scoffed. “Turns out maybe I was wrong when I thought Rip was the only one of you two who swung first and questioned later. I guess you just needed the right motivation for your stupid to come out.”
