“I’ve got to run,” I told her, “but I expect regular check-ins from you, Larissa. Now that I know you’ve got a man in your life, none of this a couple of times a week bullshit. Until I get the chance to meet him in person, I want to see your pretty face every day.”
Her boyfriend, Kace, nodded, seeming to easily understand where I was coming from. “You’ve got it.”
I didn’t like the fact that my girl was suddenly serious with a man I’d never met and knew nothing about. However, from the short time we’d spoken on this video call, I’d been impressed. I’d run a full check on him, but something told me I wouldn’t find anything.
Dax made a “hurry up” motion with his hand, and I glared at him.
I winked at my daughter. “Love you, sweetie.”
“I love you, too, Daddy,” Larissa said right before I ended the call.
“What is so fucking important that Mac needs me right this fucking second?” I grumbled as I tucked my phone into the pocket of my jeans. I shut down my computer and pushed my chair back from my desk.
Dax shrugged. “Dunno. They just said to get your ass in there pronto.” He squinted at me, and drawled, “Been embezzling?” Then he chuckled at his own stupid joke.
I rolled my eyes and flipped him the bird before I stalked into the hall. I was treasurer for the Silver Saints MC, and I was damn good at my job. Anything with numbers had always come easily to me, and I’d made the club a shit ton of cash from investments and other opportunities. Seeing as how the club gave me a cut of all the net profits and a salary, I had no need to steal.
When I reached Mac’s office, I wasn’t surprised to see Scout, our VP, lounging on a couch to my left. What I didn’t expect to see was Scout’s old lady, Cat, tucked into his side. I’d assumed this was about club business, but if she was present, it had to be something else.
Mac pointed at the chair in front of his desk. I dropped into the seat and waited silently, which wasn’t unusual for me because I wasn’t known for my conversational skills. Unless it was my brothers and their families, I much preferred numbers to people.
“Got a problem we need your help with,” Mac stated as he rubbed his graying beard. He lifted his chin in the general direction of Cat and Scout, and I turned my attention to them.
Cat sat forward and rested her elbows on her knees while Scout rubbed her back. I would never get used to the way my badass brothers turned into pussy cats for their women. Not that I would say anything and risk a broken face...or possibly a bullet.
“I got a call from an old friend yesterday,” Cat began as she ran a hand through her short brown hair. Scout scowled, and his chest rumbled with a low growl, making Cat roll her eyes. “Just a friend, you caveman,” she muttered, throwing him an equally dark scowl, which only made him grin. “Anyway. Growing up, I lived next door to a family with two kids. Their son was two years older than me, and his sister was a few years younger. We were friends, but after Huntley left for the military, I also stepped in for him and watched out for Harlowe. I kept in touch with them both, though I haven’t heard much from Huntley since he joined the SEALs. But out of the blue yesterday, I got a call from him. He needs a favor.”
I sat back in my chair and folded my arms over my chest. “And this involves me because…?”
Scout narrowed his eyes, warning me to watch how I spoke to Cat. I barely restrained myself from rolling my eyes. Poor whipped asshole.
“Huntley’s SEAL team was involved in a top secret mission recently. He couldn’t give me too many details because of security clearance crap, but his team’s identity was leaked. Apparently, one of the bad guys who should’ve never known who these guys were has been targeting their families.”
“He needs protection for his baby sister,” I surmised.
Cat nodded, but it was Mac who jumped in to talk. “Cat came to me and asked if we’d take in Harlowe until Huntley neutralizes the threat.”
I still didn’t understand what this had to do with me. It wasn’t like they were going to tell me to watch the kid. Babysitting wasn’t in my job description. Not that I wasn’t capable. Just because I spent a lot of time at my desk or repairing bikes, rather than on runs or acting as an enforcer, didn’t mean I wasn’t a lethal motherfucker.
“Things are heating up with the Burning Devils. Word is they’re up to their old shit. Changed their MO, though, and now they are boosting cargo from the clubs on their runs.”
Fucking hell. That’s exactly what Prez was about to order me to do.
“Got a big ass shipment headed out next week. With Bridgit so close to her due date, I can’t leave or commit to being Harlowe’s shadow. The position of Road Captain and Captain are still empty, so I gotta send Scout to make up those spots. And I’m beefing up security, so Dax is taking most of his guys.”
“I could help out on the run,” I suggested. I’d already done my time raising my baby girl, so I had no desire to take on the role of father again. Even temporarily.
Mac shook his head. “I only trust you, Scout, or Dax for this assignment, and I need them on the run.”
I glared at Mac but nodded in agreement.
“I haven’t seen her in a few years, but she was always a good kid,” Cat piped up. “She was shy and on the quiet side. It should be pretty easy to keep her safe.”
“Good,” I grunted. “When does the kid get here?”
“Tomorrow,” Scout answered.
“And how long am I stuck with her?”
Mac gave me a hard stare. “Until the job is fucking done, Link.”
1
Harlowe
Pulling to a stop at a red light in a town I’d never been to before—and hadn’t even known existed until yesterday—I glared down at the cell phone perched on my left thigh. My brother liked to tease me about how I always upgraded the day a new model was available, and it galled me to have left my top-of-the-line device behind to bring this piece of crap with me instead. But the burner couldn’t be traced back to me, and that was all that mattered at the moment.
After twisting the volume dial on the radio all the way down, I answered, “For the eleventy-billionth time, I’m fine. Nothing has changed in the past hour except I’m finally a few minutes away from my destination.”
“Thank fuck you’re almost there,” my brother muttered.
It was killing Huntley that he’d put me in the line of fire. I’d been trying to be patient with him being even more protective than usual, but my restraint was already wearing thin. “Once I get to the compound, you need to stop checking in on me so often. Focus on finding the betraying bastard instead.”
I didn’t know many details about what had gone down since they were classified, but I knew enough to figure some of it out myself. Huntley’s team had been deployed on a mission last month. He’d returned a few days after news reports of a military raid that had taken out someone high enough in a terrorist organization to have it splashed all over the media for weeks. I hadn’t thought much of the coincidence until Huntley had called me in the middle of the night and told me to get out of town because the identity of his unit had been compromised, and their families were at risk. His missions were top secret, so if word had gotten out, then someone in the military had betrayed his team.
“I’ll dial it back a bit once I know the Silver Saints have your back,” he promised.
The light turned green, and I shook my head as I pressed down on the accelerator. “I still can’t believe you’re sending me to a freaking motorcycle club for protection.”
“Which is exactly why it’s the safest place for you to go,” he grumbled. “Nobody would ever think to look for you there, and Cat assured me that Kyle and the rest of the guys will make sure nobody can get to you.”
I wasn’t too sure about hanging around an MC clubhouse for the foreseeable future, but I wasn’t going to complain. Not when Cat’s man had been willing to put himself out there on my behalf, and my brother needed to stop worrying about me so he could fo
cus on the problem. “This was definitely the right call. I can already see the gate to the compound, and they even have a guy manning it. On the off chance that someone thought to look for me here, the odds of them actually spotting me should be slim to none.”
“No matter how safe you feel while you’re there, keep your guard up,” he warned.
“I will,” I promised. “I’ll also remember everything you’ve taught me over the years.”
“You better,” he grunted. “Text me daily on this number using our code system, but don’t expect to get regular replies back.”
I didn’t need the reminder since I knew how spotty communication could be when he was deployed, but I wasn’t going to bust his balls over it, considering the situation. “Will do. Be safe, big brother.”
“You too, little sister,” he replied before hanging up.
Pulling up to the gate, I rolled down my window when the guy standing there walked up to the driver’s side of my car. “Hey, sweet thing. You lost?”
I almost snorted since anyone who knew me well would never use that as my nickname. I grew out of my shy and quiet stage toward the end of my high school years, and my friends were used to my sassy side. The Charger was definitely a sweet ride, though, and he was eyeing it more than me. “Nope, Cat should be expecting me.”
His gaze jerked back to my face. “You’re the friend Cat is expecting?”
I wasn’t sure why he was so surprised, but his reaction made me feel a little more nervous about staying with the Silver Saints as I nodded and answered, “Yeah.”
His eyes lit with humor as he grinned. “I never thought I’d be glad to be stuck on gate duty all day, but today’s my lucky day.”
“Huh?” My brow wrinkled in confusion.
“Don’t worry, sweet thing. I’m just looking forward to seeing Link’s reaction to you.”
His answer was as cryptic as everything else he’d said—including whatever he mumbled under his breath about me being a kid, considering he couldn’t be much older than me—but he didn’t give me a chance to ask what he meant before he turned around and walked back over to the gate. He entered a code into the keypad, and the gate swung open. I started to pull forward, but then I had to wait because he headed through it in front of me. Once he was safely inside, I rolled forward and heaved a sigh of relief when I spotted Cat standing in front of the large building to my left. It was great to see a familiar face.
As soon as I rolled to a stop and put the Charger into park, I flung my door open and jumped out. Cat rushed over and gave me a big hug. “Holy crap, Harlowe! I can’t believe how long it’s been since I’ve seen you.”
It’s been a couple of years since Cat and I had both been in our old hometown at the same time. “Yeah, we’ve got to make sure it doesn’t take another life-and-death situation before we see each other again.”
“Damn, I missed that snarky sense of humor of yours.” She slapped me on the shoulder before shoving me to the side to get to my car. “It’s great to see your dad’s Charger on the road. The last time I saw this car, it still needed a lot of work.”
“It turned out to be a very good thing that each time Huntley was deployed, I headed back home to work on this old thing.” I patted my hand against the top of the car. “Since it’s been hidden in the garage out back for years, and I couldn’t bring myself to transfer the registration and title over to me after Dad passed away, nobody can connect it back to me. And even if they do, there’s no GPS they can use to track it. So anyone who manages to figure out I went to my dad’s house first”—although it’d been almost two years, the place still felt as though it was still his and probably always would—“will have a hard time finding me from there. I left my cell behind and am using a burner instead, and I paid cash for everything along the way.”
Cat flashed me a grin. “It sounds as though you thought of everything.”
“I wish I could claim all the credit,” I said as I reached inside for the burner so I could send my brother a quick text to let him know I was inside the compound, safe and sound. After that was done, I popped the cheap device into my back pocket and added, “But Huntley gave me step-by-step instructions for what he wanted me to do.”
Cat glanced toward the building and laughed. “It’s a good thing that you’re used to him bossing you around since you’ll be surrounded by alpha males while you’re here.”
My attention shifted to the front door as some guy strode out of the clubhouse like a man on a mission. He was a good fifteen years older than me with short ash-blond hair and blue eyes that reminded me of the shade I’d picked out for the Charger. He had a chin strap that matched the color of his hair, though it was peppered with a little gray. He was tall and even under his leather vest, it was easy to see through his tight black T-shirt that he was ripped. The muscle definition in his arms made me want to see if he could do a push-up while I was on his back. That was probably just because I’d love to see those thighs in a pair of athletic shorts instead of those snug jeans. Or even better...nothing at all, which was totally out of character for me. I didn’t react to guys like this. Ever.
But I wasn’t going to second-guess my previously sleeping libido when it finally came raring to life, even if it was super bad timing. “Dang, Cat.” I fanned myself. “When I met Kyle and saw how hot he was, I figured you’d snagged the cute one out of the bunch. But it looks like he’s got some fierce competition, and I’ve only seen two other members of the MC so far.”
2
Link
“Yo. Nova called from the gate. Said the kid is here.”
I glanced up to see Rider, the club secretary, standing in my office door with a huge grin on his face. I pulled my glasses off and tossed them on the desk before glaring at him as I rose from my seat. “Get that shit-eating grin off your face before I wipe it off,” I growled. His smile only widened, and I grunted in annoyance as I stalked to the door. When I reached him, he jumped out of the way since it was clear I had every intention of plowing through him.
As I stomped through the clubhouse, I frowned at the number of eyes on me, most of them lit with amusement. That was when I realized Rider was still right behind me. I stopped suddenly, causing him to skid to a halt so he didn’t run into me. “Don’t you have shit to do?”
Rider shook his head. “Just want to say hi to the newbie. Like a welcome wagon.”
My eyes narrowed at his tone, but I didn’t have time for bullshit. I just wanted to get Cat’s friend to her room and tell her to stay put so I could get back to work. I practically ripped the front door off its hinges when I yanked it open. Then I slammed the hard surface in Rider’s face with a smirk. Spotting Cat standing with another woman in the parking area in front of our restoration garage, I stomped in their direction. I took half a second to admire the blue 1969 Dodge Charger parked near them. It looked fully restored, making me wonder why the owner had brought it to our shop. I didn’t have time to ponder it, though, and turned my attention to the woman standing with Cat.
Holy shit. She was fucking gorgeous. I was shocked when an electric current buzzed on my skin. My eyes scanned her body, lingering on the most perfect tits I’d ever seen. Taking in the rest of her thick, sexy curves made my mouth water and my hands tingle with the need to have them on her. She looked cute as hell in black shorts and a Rolling Stones T-shirt with wavy, honey-blond hair hanging to just past her shoulders. When her head turned in my direction, I also glimpsed pink streaks in her hair.
At my first full glimpse of her face, I realized she was at least several years younger than me, but I mentally shrugged. It couldn't be that big of a difference with a womanly body like that. She had puffy, pink lips that had my dick standing to attention at the thought of them wrapped around it. Her hazel eyes were surrounded by thick, blond lashes, and they were focused on me as I approached. The heat in them intensified the desire coursing through my body. When she lifted her hand and brushed some of her hair back, I breathed a sigh of relief when
I didn’t spot a ring on her finger. I kept my expression neutral, but inside, I was floored at my body’s reaction to her. I hadn’t felt attraction like this in...I couldn’t even remember when. I’d been so focused on my job and raising my girl that I hadn’t had time to think about women.
I didn’t know who this sexy angel was, but as soon as I got Cat’s friend taken care of, I was going to find out and introduce her to my bed.
As I neared them, my angel fanned her face and muttered something to Cat. I didn’t hear anything past her comment about Kyle being hot. Blood rushed to my head, causing a roaring sound that drowned out the rest while my gaze tinged with red. I didn’t understand my anger at first, then it hit me. Well, shit. I was fucking jealous.
“Link,” Catt greeted when I reached them. I raised my chin in silent greeting, unable to pull my eyes away from the gorgeous stranger. “This is Harlowe Reed.”
Everything in my body froze, and I could have sworn even the world stopped spinning for a couple of heartbeats.
Son of a bitch.
This was Harlowe Reed? The twenty-year-old kid I was assigned to babysit? Fuck. I’d been lusting after a girl only a year older than my daughter. I suddenly felt like a dirty old man, especially since my body didn’t seem to give a flying fuck about our age difference. I still wanted her. Bad. Which just pissed me the hell off.
The scowl on my face matched my mood, and normally, that would be enough to have people shaking in their boots. But Harlowe didn’t seem intimidated. She smiled and winked, throwing me for a loop. “You know, all that gruffness does is make you sexier.”
I barely managed to keep my jaw from dropping. Her attitude should have made me furious, but I was too busy concentrating on not dragging her into my arms and kissing the fuck out of her.
Silver Saints MC: Volume 1 Page 8