Page 27 of Bear

Bear tilted his head at Boon. “How exactly you gettin’ revenge on him?”

“Figured you guys’d take care of him, given all the shit he did to get here.” Boon turned his gaze to me then. “I’m sorry about this, Olivia. I was going to get you out of there until I saw Bear and realized we’d run into the very person Leon wanted to destroy. I knew you’d be safe with Bear. Even if he suspected you to be a spy, he’d have protected you until he got all the facts. Letting this go down the way it did was the only way to get you away from Leon and your father.”

“What’s Leon got on her old man?” Bear asked.

“What hasn’t he got? Martin Calhoun is into every dirty deal in the northern hemisphere. He’s ripped off so many countries it’s a wonder he’s still alive. Not to mention the grooming and trafficking he’s done with underage girls.”

Boon nodded at me. “This was his first run at Olivia. Assuming she’d done what Leon wanted, she’d have been out and home in a couple of weeks at most. Calhoun was going to start using her to appease his various clients. He hadn’t done so before now because he needed her educated. She needed to be able to converse about any topic to better suit his needs. Leon threatened to expose him. To bring charges of human trafficking and running a pedophile ring. Last thing he wanted was to end up in prison. Rich or not, we all know how things go for pedophiles in prison.”

“So he sold out his daughter.” Bear didn’t word it as a question.

“That man would sell out his own mother if it suited him. Considering Olivia is his stepdaughter, he never batted an eye.”

I felt like I was going to shatter. I hadn’t loved my father. Not really. It was more the idea of having a father that appealed to me. But hearing this man laying it out so bluntly cut me to the bone.

“Liv, look at me.” Bear’s voice was pure command. I hesitated, but only because I wasn’t sure I could stand it if I saw anger in his face. Trust didn’t come easy, and I’d already lied to him. Hell of a way to start out a relationship. I was afraid he’d remember that and question himself.

“You know she’s lying, Bear. Anything she told you when you fucked her was bedroom play.” Black’s voice was nasal from when Bear had broken his nose, but he still sounded strong and confident. “She was pumping you for information she intended to pass on to me.”

Bear turned and made eye contact with Lemon. “Is this guy for real?”

Lemon’s eyes widened. “You’re asking me? He’s your buddy.”

“He’s a fuckin’ motherfucker,” Bear spat. “He has absolutely no idea what happened or was said between me and Liv.”

“Oh, hell no. He’s tryin’ to sow seeds of doubt.” Lemon moved closer to Black. “I’m not really sure what he’s trying to accomplish, though. Liv’s one of us.” She gave the man a wicked sneer. “We don’t turn our backs on family.”

“She’s just a little whore,” Black said with a chuckle. “She’s nothing to you.”

“She’s everything to me, Leon,” Bear said softly. “So yeah. I guess you know me just as well today as you did when I was under your command.”

“Fuck you, Bear. Just pull the fuckin’ trigger and get it over with.”

“I’m good with that.” Lemon pulled out a gun and fired at Mr. Black… but there wasn’t a report. Instead, two wires shot from the gun to Black’s chest, and his body stiffened and his face contorted in pain. He opened his mouth as if to scream, but nothing came out.

“Lemon,” Rocket sighed. “How many times have I told you not to carry a taser? You’re loud enough with that fucking pink bike you commandeered from Falcon. Carrying weapons makes you stick out even more.”

Lemon gave Rocket a blank, innocent look. “Is that really even possible?”

Rocket barked out a laugh. So did Boon and I. “Good point, baby.” Rocket chuckled. Then he turned to Boon. “So, what about you?”

“I came here originally to kill Leon. But when I got there, he’d already started the move with Olivia. It was when I realized how much a pawn she was, and knew I couldn’t leave her to fend for herself. So I sat back and watched until yesterday evening. I knew you were with Grim Road, Bear. I remembered what you’d told me. Working with Leon for the last few weeks also gave me time to study you guys and dig deeper into your reputation around the area.” He shrugged. “No one had a bad thing to say about Grim Road. Not only that, but then you turned out to be the first club member she was able to get close to in the right setting. Like I said before. Once I knew you were the man who had her, I knew she’d be safer with you than she would be with her father.”

“Olivia?” Bear pulled me into his arms. “You got any other questions for either of them?”

I shook my head, burying my face in Bear’s chest. “I just want to go home. Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea.”

“What? Confronting Leon here?”

“Yes.” The word was more of a sob. “I just want to go home with you and forget about all this.”

“Thank fuck,” Bear said, squeezing me to him tighter. “For a second there, I thought you meant you didn’t think being with me was a good idea.”

That shocked me, so I pulled back to cup his bearded face in my hands. “Bear, being with you is the best idea I’ve ever had.”

“Someone fucking shoot me,” Black snapped, disgust clear in his voice. “Pathetic!”

“You heard the man,” Lemon said. “Shoot him. Bear, take Liv to the truck. We’ll be there in a minute.”

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