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“You sure about that, boss? She’s undercover and still wearing Nicco’s ring.”
Celt gasped. “What the feck, Mason? I would not be toleratin’ my old lady wearing another man’s ring. You need to grow a pair, brother, and sort your business.”
Storm cautioned, “She wears a property cut only while she’s at the clubhouse, but that ring has to go, Mason.”
“It will once she doesn’t need to have a cover story—when Don Diavonte’s been dealt with then I’ll see about replacing it with a proper engagement ring,” I said, and Storm nodded in agreement.
Celt slid his bulky arm around my neck and walked off with me. “I’ve got just the thing to replace it with, brother.”
“Let me fucking go, you maniac. Your pits smell like something crawled up in there and died.” I fisted him in the ribs and he let me go, playfully pushing me to the side with his knee.
“God help me, I never knew your voice sounded so squeaky when you whined.”
“Fuck you, Celt.”
He stopped at the bar where Rob was sitting alone, nursing a beer. “Got a job for ye, prospect. Are ye up for it?”
Rob stood up quickly. “Yes, sir. Whatever you need, I’m here for it.”
“Park your hefty ass outside Aprilia’s room until we get back. If she leaves, I want ye to be her feckin’ shadow. Don’t let anything happen to her, got it?”
He did an about face and walked toward the stairs. “I’m on it, sir.”
I followed Celt out the front door. “Where are we off to, brother? I don’t like leaving my Rilia when I know she’s upset.”
“We’re going to find her something to cheer her up. Trust me on this, Mason. I wouldn’t lead ye astray.”
“I don’t reckon you would, brother.” Worry still niggled in my gut. Storm assigned me to watch over Aprilia, not Rob. Still, Celt was Storm’s cousin and the road captain of the Dark Slayers. If an officer told me to do something, I usually obeyed. Plus, Celt was a good man who treated his own wife and kids well. I had no reason to distrust him.
***
We got on our bikes, and I followed Celt down a long, winding country road. Eventually, we pulled up at a newish looking building that looked like a cross between a store and someone’s home. The windows had steel coverings that rolled down from the top like a pawn shop. Celt cut his motor and sat there. I pulled up beside him and cut my motor as well.
“Why aren’t you getting off your bike? Is something wrong?”
“No, we’re waiting for my friend.”
Jerking my chin toward the building, I asked, “What kind of place is this?”
“It’s where my friend Sterling lives. He’s a jeweler who’s made most of the rings our old ladies wear. It’s a bit of a Slayer tradition to get something special in the way of engagement rings.”
Shock rolled through my gut. “Holy shit, Aprilia and I are not ready to get engaged. When I talked about getting her a proper engagement ring, I meant sometime in the future not right now.”
He rolled his helmet between his hands. “Nonsense, brother. Anyone with eyes can see that you love that woman.”
“Look, Celt, I get what you’re trying do for me, but Aprilia would have to be bat shit crazy to accept a proposal from a guy she hardly knows. Putting her in a property cut is going to take all my skills of persuasion. Proposing to her is out of the question. She’s a very strong-willed woman.”
He grinned at me. “Those are the best kind, brother. Look, I’m gonna need you calm the feck down. This friend of mine custom makes the engagement rings, so you’re not going to take it home to her right this minute. What we’re gonna do is look them over and talk through ideas.”
Just then, a motorcycle came roaring up the road and stopped behind us. A man with long, stringy brown hair and dark blue eyes jumped off his bike. He was wearing jeans and a flannel shirt. He quickly hung his helmet on his handlebars and gestured for us to follow him into the building.
***
After spending an hour or so looking at the jewelry I finally found the perfect design, Sterling was going to customize it and I’d email him details of Aprilia’s ring size and the final gemstone choice. I’d also made another purchase that had set me back quite a bit, but my woman was worth it. Celt stayed behind to talk to his friend, and I went outside to put the bag in the storage compartment on my bike. By the time I was strapping on my helmet, Celt walked out, and we headed back to Griffinsford.
We made it back to the clubhouse to find the place in chaos. Thunder was at the bar talking to his old lady, Rosie.
“I don’t who the fuck it was, but he shot down three of our drones. We had a dozen men scouring the back of the property all the way to the river and couldn’t find a living soul. Storm put extra guards around the perimeter and wants the building locked down tight.”
