by Nina Levine
I gritted my teeth.
No fucking way was he walking out of here with her.
That would happen over my dead fucking body.
I found her eyes again, silently begging her to stay strong, but she didn’t need my encouragement. Lily was fucking strong, and she wasn’t showing an ounce of fear now. That had disappeared from her eyes. The only thing I saw there now was determination.
D’Amato continued talking, but Lily drew my attention from his voice when her eyes widened and she started shifting her eyes to the side and back, over and over. Like she was trying to give me some kind of signal. Problem was, I had no idea what the fuck she meant. I glanced to the right in the direction she kept moving her eyes, but the only thing there was the couch and above that, the mezzanine level, so that couldn’t be what she was trying to get across to me.
“Are you listening to me, King?” D’Amato barked. At the same time, he threw his arms up in the air, showing his frustration.
Lily took her moment. She turned to her right, spinning around to face D’Amato, and pushed him hard as best she could with bound hands. He stumbled back, but he didn’t fall. I rushed at them, trying like fuck to get Lily away from him. While I did that, Hyde bellowed, “To the right!” and the sound of gunfire filled my home.
I had no idea what was happening behind me; my only focus was Lily. Unable to get my aim on D’Amato without the likelihood of hitting Lily, I lunged for him rather than shooting him. Lily was in the fucking way, so she went down with us. Our guns went flying, but I didn’t need a fucking weapon. I would kill this motherfucker with my bare fucking hands.
Fists flew and legs kicked while D’Amato and I fought like hell to kill each other. Thank fuck Lily got out of harm’s way. I couldn’t see her, but I knew she wasn’t anywhere near him. I managed to get my hands around his neck, and I reefed him up to a standing position, his back to my chest. However, he then used all his force to ram me backwards against the brick wall, winding the fuck out of me. The loud crack of my head as it hit the wall filled my ears and slowed me down as pain radiated through my skull. It only slowed me for a moment, but it was enough for D’Amato to gain the upper hand.
Turning quickly, he faced me and wrapped both hands around my neck. Squeezing the fucking life out of me, he snarled, “Change of plans, I’ll kill you first, and then your little plaything.”
My gaze focused behind him, taking in what was happening there. D’Amato had brought his own men with him, and they had engaged my men in battle. If I was to save my life and Lily’s, I had to fucking do it now before he choked me, because I had no backup to rely on.
And then Lily’s voice cut through the battle sounds. “Change of plans, motherfucker. I’ll kill you, and then my man will kill yours.” My eyes landed on her as she put my gun to D’Amato’s head and pulled the trigger.
I wasted no time pushing him out of the way, ignoring the blood and shit that splattered over me as she shot him. Ripping the gun from her, I headed into the fucking fray and lost my fucking shit, shooting at every last fucking cunt who’d threatened my woman’s and my men’s lives.
A fucking hurricane of fury raged out of me as I took down anyone who came at me. That he had put Lily through this drew my demons to the surface. They wanted to dance, and I welcomed that with open fucking arms. So we fucking danced. And when we were done, the place was a mess of dead bodies and blood splatter that fucking sang to me. It was like a goddam orchestra of death and destruction playing in my head, dragging me closer and closer to the edge of no return where the music played twenty-four-fucking-seven.
I’d fought against following that music my whole life.
Had kept my distance.
But it fucking called today.
When my woman almost died because of me, it fucking called.
As the last man standing took my bullet, I looked for her.
I needed to touch her.
Needed to know she was okay.
“King.”
I turned to her voice, finding her standing where I’d left her near D’Amato’s body. She watched me with that same fierce look of determination she’d had before. So fucking strong.
I closed the distance between us and she moved into my arms. Wrapping hers around me tightly, she said, “I thought you were going to die,” right before her first tear fell.
I held her until she stopped crying. Hyde called Nitro who’d been out on a job all day, and asked him to organise a cleaning crew. The place would take fucking hours to clean, but that was the least of my worries. My only concern was Lily and getting her the fuck out of here.
“I’m taking Lily home,” I said to Hyde.
He nodded. “Yeah, brother. We’ll get this shit sorted. Don’t bother coming back.”
I cleaned us up and organised for Devil to drive us to her place. I sat in the back with her, not letting her out of my arms. The emotions coursing through me were unlike any I had ever experienced. For the first time in my life, I had felt fear. It was a foreign feeling to me, and not one I ever fucking wanted to feel again.
28
Lily
I’d always wondered if there would be a moment in my life that punched me in the gut and winded me so badly I would struggle to recover. I’d thought I had come close when I discovered Linc cheated on me. I then thought I’d come closer when we divorced. And then when Brynn had been shot, I knew I’d reached that moment. However, when that man had threatened King’s life today, I finally knew I’d found the moment that would wind me so badly I wouldn’t be able to breathe for a long time.
I’d wanted him to kill me instead.
It had been the most selfish moment of my life, because I never wanted to leave my children without a mother, but in that split second when I thought King would die with that man’s hands around his neck, I wanted to offer my life in exchange for King’s.
I hadn’t been able to breathe.
I hadn’t been able to think straight.
All I had wanted was to give my life for my man’s.
And then my brain had kicked into gear, and I’d done some straight talking and reminded myself I was a mother with responsibilities. I’d told myself to find a way to save both of us and then I’d done that.
I’d picked up King’s gun. I’d been completely focused on my goal. I’d killed a man. Something I never imagined doing.
That moment had winded me, and I was sure it was going to take a long time for me to breathe properly again.
Devil had driven us to my place, and King hadn’t let go of me until we were there safely. He’d told me to go inside while he went over some stuff with Devil. Brynn had gone out for the day with Jamie, so the house was quiet as I slowly made my way to my bedroom. My legs felt heavy, my heart, too. And my head was filled with a non-stop replay of that man’s gun pressed to my head. I felt the gun still now. Every time I saw it in my head, I felt it like it was still digging into my skin. It continued to make my heart race with fear. And as much as tears threatened, I refused to allow them. I refused to allow his actions today to make me run or hide away from the world. I was stronger than that.
I had just sat down on the edge of my bed when the front door slammed closed. I jumped at the noise in a way I didn’t usually jump, but I closed my eyes and breathed through it.
And then King stalked into the room, a rush of wild, angry energy that completely threw me.
Coming at me, his eyes ferocious, he roared, “Don’t you ever put yourself in harm’s way like you did today!”
My heart banged against my chest at his outburst, and I shot up off the bed. “What the hell, King? What’s gotten into you?”
“You!” he barked, jabbing his finger in the air at me. “You’ve fucking gotten into me. If you are ever in a situation like that again, Lily, you fucking run when you can. You do not fucking hang around and pick my fucking gun up and shoot someone. You get your ass out of there as fast as you can and you save your fucking life. You do not think abo
ut me.”
His anger bled into me. It combined with the adrenaline racing through me, and I slammed me hands against his chest and yelled, “I will never not think about you! And don’t you ask me not to. If your life is being threatened, I will do anything and everything I can to save you.”
He gripped one of my wrists, squeezing it tightly as he pulled me to him. If I thought his eyes looked ferocious before, I wasn’t sure what I’d call them now, because they blazed with more fire than I’d ever seen from him. “This is not something up for negotiation. You have never held a gun before. You have never shot a gun before. That situation could have turned out a whole lot fucking differently than it did today. You could have been killed. Do you fucking understand that?”
I glared at him. “Do you fucking understand that you could have died?”
His other hand snapped around my neck and his eyes bored into mine. “I live with that fucking understanding every day of my life. You do not. And I’ll be fucked if you’re going to start now.”
“So teach me how to use a gun. Teach me how to defend myself. Make me as fucking indestructible as you, King, but don’t you ever dare take away my ability or right to defend my man’s life. I won’t stand for it. I’m your woman, and I have your back just as much as you have mine.”
His nostrils flared as his fingers dug into my neck. “Fucking hell,” he rasped before his mouth crashed down on mine and he kissed me so savagely it hurt. But I wanted that pain. I needed it. And I gave it back to him just as savagely, and when we finally came apart, we were both breathless with desire.
We tore at each other’s clothes until we were both naked. His hands then came to my body with the same brutal energy his mouth had, and he wrestled me to the ground. When he had me pinned under him, his hands holding mine down, he thrust his dick inside me harder than he ever had and growled, “I cannot fucking lose you.”
He pulled out and slammed back in.
I put my legs around him while trying to struggle out of the hold he had on my hands. He kept pounding into me as I demanded, “Let me go. I need my hands on you.”
He didn’t let me go.
He bent his face to mine and bit my bottom lip before kissing me.
He then bossed, “Stop fucking arguing with me.”
“Stop fucking bossing me.”
“Jesus fuck,” he said, steam practically billowing from him. He thrust in hard again. “You’re gonna spend the rest of your life fucking challenging me, aren’t you?”
“Yes, because you’re gonna spend the rest of your life not listening to me.”
He tightened his hold on my hands even though his hold was already hard as hell. On another thrust, he ordered, “Tell me you won’t put yourself in danger.”
“Let me go first.”
“Fuck, Lily, fucking tell me and then I’ll think about it.”
“Fine, I’m not gonna put myself in danger, but that’s because you’re gonna show me how to use your gun.”
He stopped all movement and stared down at me. Shaking his head as he let my hands go, he said, “I fucking love you, woman, but you are gonna cause me no fucking end of headaches.”
I stilled, all previous thoughts whooshing out of my mind. Gripping his biceps, I said, “You cannot tell me you fucking love me while shaking your head at me, King. If you really mean it, you need to tell me while not shaking your head.”
He continued staring down at me, silently now. And then he angled his face so he could kiss me. This time it wasn’t as savage or as urgent. This time it felt like he had all the time in the world to devote to my mouth. I lost myself in this kiss. I never wanted it to end. When King took it upon himself to give a girl a kiss she would never forget, he outdid himself. And when he did finally let my lips go, I felt every ounce of his hesitation to do so. “I fucking love you, and I’ll show you how to use my gun, but I will do everything in my fucking power to ensure you never need to use it like you did today.”
All my fight disappeared as I smiled up at him. “I love you, too, baby,” I said softly.
“Fuck,” he muttered as he thrust in again. “You fucking kill me.”
He then spent the next two hours fucking me before wrapping me in his arms in bed and holding me close. We didn’t speak for a long time until I finally said, “I’ve listened to everything you’ve had to say about me not trying to protect you, and you need to know something. Your job is to worry and protect. My job is to nurture. And sometimes, part of nurturing is protecting. Just so you know.”
His lips twitched ever so slightly and then he kissed me before saying, “Are you good if I get back to the clubhouse and take care of some shit?” He watched me intently for my answer, almost like he wasn’t convinced leaving me was a good idea.
I nodded. “I’m made of some tough stuff, dude. Today was hard and it sucked and I’m not keen to ever have another day like it, but I’m okay. My kids and sister are going to be home soon, and I’m gonna spend the afternoon hugging them tightly and loving on them. And then you’re gonna come over tonight and love on me. So yeah, I’m good.”
He lifted a brow. “Dude?”
I grinned. “Yeah. Dude.”
He kissed me one last time before leaving the bed and dressing.
After he’d left, I thought about what I’d said to him. I did feel like I was made of tough stuff, but I was shaken by the events of the day. I wouldn’t make a huge song and dance about that, though. King had enough on his plate, and if I believed one thing, it was that while I would share my life with him, I would do what I could not to add to his worries. Life was never easy, but every hardship built a little more strength and a little more character. And I had the grit to weather any storm so long as I had him by my side. He could do the worrying. I would do the nurturing. And together we could protect and look out for each other.
29
King
“You want a beer, King?” Kree asked late Friday afternoon as the boys started rolling in after taking care of business for the day.
I shook my head. “I’m heading over to Lily’s soon.”
She smiled as she wiped the top of the bar. “She’s good for you.” At the lift of my brow, she said, “I saw you smile today. She’s good for you.”
Kick sat on the stool next to me, grinning as he overheard what Kree said. “I saw him smile yesterday, too.”
“Fucking hell,” I muttered. After Kree had moved on to take someone else’s order, I said to Kick, “You sort Brian out?”
“Yeah, I gave him that cash and took care of the repairs that needed doing around the place. And he said to tell you Ivy has found a job.”
“Good.”
Hyde joined us, a pissed off look on his face. “I just heard the news report on Gambarro. We should have moved sooner on him before they arrested the asshole.”
“Yeah, brother,” I agreed. “But we’ve waited this fucking long to get to him, we can be patient for a while longer.”
Hyde frowned. “What the fuck, King? Did you take some happy fucking pills or some shit today?”
I moved off my stool and grinned. “Think about it, Hyde. Gambarro fucked a lot of people off who are in prison because of him. Way I see it is that now he gets fucked over in there while they all take their turn with him, and then we can either have him taken care of inside or we can wait our turn and take care of him ourselves when he gets out. Either way, he’s gonna get a lot of what’s coming to him and we won’t have to work as hard to make that shit happen.”
The feds had arrested the motherfucker this morning. He’d been my first gift to Isabel Stark. I’d thought long and hard about whether to hand shit over to her so she knew where to look for her evidence, but in the end, I decided my club had been through enough. We were finally beginning to get back to normal business; I didn’t wanna put them through another hard battle. I’d let Gambarro go to prison and see where the dust settled. Patience might not have ever been a strength of mine, but a man could fucking change.
A text came through on my phone.
Lily: I think I’m about to take up smoking again.
Me: Why
Lily: Zara.
Me: Fuck
Lily: My thoughts exactly. She has a new boyfriend. God let me down.
I had no fucking idea what she meant about God letting her down, and I wasn’t about to get into it with her.
Me: I’m on my way
Lily: Hurry. And have a smoke on the way so you smell like cigarettes. You may save me from taking them up again.
Jesus, this woman.
“Lily,” Hannah was saying as I entered Lily’s kitchen an hour later, “do you have another dress I can borrow tomorrow?”
Lily had her ass in the air while she bent over searching the cupboard for a container. I settled against the counter, crossed my arms and enjoyed the view.
“Are you seeing the library dude again?” Lily asked while she rummaged. I could tell by the way her actions were becoming jerky that she was growing impatient trying to locate the container. Without waiting for her mother’s response, she muttered, “Ma, have you taken my red Tupperware container home? I could have sworn it was in here the other day.”
Hannah, who had her back to me, moved to another cupboard and opened it to search in there. “No,” she said, and then, catching sight of me, she stopped and hit me with a smile. “Hello, King. I didn’t see you standing there. Have you seen that red Tupperware container Lily always insists on using?”
Lily straightened and turned to me. Her eyes went wide and she pulled the face she used when her mother was driving her crazy. She then said to her mother in a snappy tone, “I don’t always use it, but it’s the best one I have.”
I jerked my chin at the cupboard next to the one where the glasses lived. “It’s in there.”