Page 10 of Bear

“You don’t like him?”

“I like him plenty. It’s whole relationship thing. Though since my sister, Millie, let herself get caught up with man, I see it isn’t always a situation where woman doesn’t have control. Millie and Shadow have very balanced relationship.” Her smile broadened as she spoke about the couple. “He is good man. Lets Millie be herself without trying to stifle her.”

“Is Piston that way with you?”

She shrugged. “Mostly. Sometimes he forgets I’ve killed more people than he has and tries to shelter me.” Venus shook her head, amusement dancing in those creepy pink eyes of hers. I also thought the casual statement she’d just dropped had been anything but casual. She’d intended it as a warning. “Those times are strangely amusing to me.” She folded each article of clothing as she talked, placing them neatly back inside the bag. “Shall we go?”

I took a breath and nodded.

Venus extended her arm for me to go ahead of her.

Chapter Five

Bear

Once Venus opened the door for Olivia to enter the main room of the house, my gaze zeroed in on her. Venus gave a curt nod in my direction. I narrowed my eyes at her before glancing back to Olivia.

“You let her keep phone?” Venus pulled the device from her back pocket and tossed it to me.

“Didn’t search her,” I said as I easily snagged the phone out of the air. “Didn’t want her to feel threatened, and it didn’t really matter. This place isn’t secret and if we stayed here very long, I’m sure they’d find us with or without her help.”

“Fine. We ready to move?”

“Da.” Venus turned to Olivia. “You will ride with me and Piston. Apple is anxious to see you.” Venus actually gave Olivia a friendly, if small, smile.

Olivia opened her mouth to say something but shut it before she did and nodded crisply. “Very well.” Then she preceded Venus outside.

I followed, meeting Crush behind the Bronco Piston and Venus had brought. Crush’s bike was a classic Harley Softail. The younger man had bought it off Red at Salvation’s Bane, and I was pretty sure he wanted to make love to that bike.

Crush stepped forward and shook my hand. “I’ve got Byte working on this from the command center.” That’s how we referred to his and Byte’s office. We were joking. Crush wasn’t. “I’ll take her phone off-site and take it apart. Inside and out. Any data on that phone I’ll extract.”

“Good. And Crush? Let me know the second you find something.”

Crush gave me a steady look. “You know I gotta tell Rocket or Lemon first, but you’ll be right behind them.” This is what I liked about Crush. He and Byte were both like this. He absolutely would not lie. No matter what. At least, if he ever had, I’d never caught him. Both men always let you know where you stood with them and where they stood with you. There was no sugar coating, no false promises.

“Just do what you can.” There was no use pushing Crush. He’d do what he felt was right. For him to call me ahead of Rocket would be against his personal code.

“I will. I’ll also have Knox send someone for your bike.”

“Thanks, man. Tell him not to send Falcon. Bastard’s had his eyes on my bike since Lemon painted his.”

“Probably wondering if he could get away with painting yours pink so he could paint his black again.” One corner of his lips curled upward.

I snorted. “Yeah. Likely.”

Crush pocketed the phone, then started his bike and took off.

Venus held open the door to the back seat of the Bronco while Piston stood with his arms on the open door and top of the vehicle, his foot propped on the running board on the driver’s side. He kept watch, scanning the surroundings intently, looking for a threat.

I climbed in the back seat on the driver’s side so that Olivia was sandwiched between me and Venus. She glanced at me nervously before swallowing and fumbling with the middle seat belt. I could feel her trembling where my shoulder and thigh pressed against her.

“One last time, Liv,” I growled next to her ear. “What’s goin’ on?”

She didn’t respond, just clenched her teeth and pursed her lips. One tear escaped and trickled down her cheek, but she didn’t acknowledge it.

I sighed and straightened in my seat. “You will, Liv. Eventually, you will.” I didn’t raise my voice or even look at her, but I could feel her stiffen. I wanted her scared, but it nearly gutted me to do it deliberately. I could very well be pushing her away from me when I wanted to do anything but. It was as much for her safety as the club’s.

If I was honest, it might be more for her than Grim. And I didn’t mean that she’d be in danger from Grim. It was Leon Black. The bastard would stop at nothing to find me. I was the one blemish on an otherwise perfectly stellar career for him. He’d managed to deflect the blame to someone else, but the stain still followed him behind closed doors since it’d happened.

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