Page 55 of Viper

Bullet’s eyes sharpen at that, and Sniper looks at me curiously. “You talked to Eden about our request already?” Bullet asks quietly.

I nod. Keeping my voice low, I add, “She needs to think about it. If she’s caught, she’s got a possible legal battle or jail time, and she’s worked hard to get where she’s at, so she’s not sure she wants to put that on the line.”

Both men nod. “Understandable,” Sniper replies. “I’m hoping she will help, but at the same time, I know that if she doesn’t, it’s not the end of the world. We’ll manage without the extra intel.”

“She’s concerned we’ll resent her for it if she doesn’t help,” I confide.

“She’ll figure out soon enough we’re not like that,” Bullet interjects. “And if that doesn’t work, I’ll have Rose talk to her. That woman is great at getting people to get their heads out of their asses.”

We laugh at that, because it’s true. Rose has the uncanny ability to get people to see things from other perspectives, and she also has the ability to call you an idiot to your face, but in a way you don’t quite realize it until much later.

The sound of bikes approaching, has our laughter halting. Looks like King and Stone have arrived. When they make their way inside, they look around the room, before nodding at us and then heading to see their women. It’s then I notice that Sage is glaring angrily at King, while Syn is looking uncertain and a bit concerned. Uh-oh. Both men must notice from the slight changes in their expressions, but King quickly pastes a charming smile on his face as he faces his wife. “What’s with the face, Crazy? I know you missed me, but no need to be upset. I’m here now.”

Sage doesn’t look the least bit amused. “We’ll talk about it later,” she says tightly. “But just know if you were hoping for anything resembling last night, you’ll be waiting a long damn time, biker boy.”

King’s smile drops and he looks at her in confusion. Hell, I’m a little confused. Sage is normally laughing and enjoying herself, and even when she’s pissed at King, she isn’t that clear or concise about it. “What’s the matter, baby?” King asks, concern leaking into his tone.

Sage sighs. “Nothing. We’ll talk later. And no, I’m not discussing it with you right now, so if you haul me off, I’m going to have Syn sic the dogs on you. Got it?”

King looks like he wants to argue, but he must change his mind because instead, he leans down and gives her a kiss and then murmurs something in her ear. She relaxes slightly, but not enough for me to think he made it all better. I glance at Stone, who is watching Syn worriedly, but she just gives him a reassuring smile and tells him she’s fine. Yeah, something is up with those two, and when I look at Eden, I see her trying to hide a grin. Her gaze moves and catches mine, and she winks at me when I arch a brow at her in question. Clearly she’s fine.

King and Stone make their way over to us finally, though neither of them look all that pleased. “Women are fucking confusing,” King mutters as he reaches us.

“And yet we can’t live without them,” I chuckle.

King nods. “I see your woman is here. You finally get her to give your ugly ass a shot?”

I flip him off and he grins. “Yes, fucker,” I reply without any heat. “And I have a feeling she could give Sage a run for her money in the crazy department,” I add with a smug grin. King arches a brow. I recount the story I heard her tell at the restaurant, which makes the other men cringe, while King just shakes his head.

“I don’t think I want her hanging out with Crazy then,” he drawls. “She’ll be giving my woman bad ideas, and the last thing I want to do is wake up with a pair of scissors or a knife on my dick when I piss her off. You might want to start sleeping with one eye open.”

“Or at least hide everything sharp,” Stone adds with a shake of his head. “I just need to worry about Syn siccing the dogs on me, but thankfully she doesn’t believe in using that as a punishment. At least not with me.”

“Now she’ll just cut you off and leave you wishing she’d have sicced the dogs on you,” King scoffs. Stone flips him off.

“So what’s the deal with Dagger’s room?” Stone asks, changing the subject, and instantly sobering us.

Bullet recounts the information to them, and both King and Stone’s faces turn hard. When Bullet finishes, King says, “Of course that bastard would have figured we wouldn’t look under the floor or in the walls. We’ll get to work on that. We should be able to get that room torn down before the night is out. We going down to the studs?”

Bullet nods. “I’m not leaving anything to chance. The fucker is keeping secrets from the grave, and I’m about to turn up the fires in hell when we find it all and make him realize he’s not going to win.”

I have to agree. “I need to get Eden and Sadie back, but then I’ll come back and lend a hand,” I offer. I look over at Bullet. “You good to keep an eye on Archer for me?”

Bullet nods. “All good.”

“We’ll get started, and when you get back, come on up,” King says, before he and Stone head for the stairs.

I head toward the group of women, but stop in my tracks when I hear Sadie drawl, “Don’t listen to her, ladies. Eden is as nuts as they come. She’s being calm and quiet so she makes a good impression. You should see her when she’s had a few, or when someone really pisses her off. Mix those together though, and it’s a sight to see, let me tell you.”

“Oh, now, you can’t say that and leave us hanging,” Rose chids. “Spill, woman.”

I don’t approach, just stay where I am, shamelessly eavesdropping. Something tells me that I’m going to want to hear this.

“She exaggerates,” Eden sighs. “Look, it was one time and you constantly act like I’m out here kicking ass and taking names.”

“You get cranky when you don't get enough sleep, and then everyone else has to run and hide so they’re not in the line of fire,” Sadie taunts.

Eden flips her off. “There was this one time that Sadie and I went to the club a few years ago and this guy decided to get handsy and pushy. I told him to back off, but he was a bit too sloshed to really get what I was saying. Anyway, I was drinking and I guess he thought that since I wouldn’t give in the right way, he’d make it easy for him by trying to spike my drink.” Fury burns at this. This fucker did what? “Anyway, his mistake was thinking I was drunker than I was and that I wouldn’t see it. And keep in mind I was drinking, so I’m not normally this…violent.”

---