The room fell silent, each of us in awe at the brilliant mind that was our president. Rocky wasn’t surprised but everybody else looked at the man like he had some kind of superpower. “So, what’s the plan?” I was eager to make life difficult for Viper and his crew since he was determined to make life difficult and terrifying for Harper.
“What’s the rush?”
Shit. I realized my mistake and then I nodded, sharing with my brothers what happened yesterday. “That fucker had his arm around her throat with a gun to her head.” Just thinking about it pissed me off. “She’s family. Period.” She was a hell of a lot more than that but that was a conversation for another day.
“Is that all she is,” Hawk asked, his keen eyes didn’t miss a damn thing.
I nodded. “As far as you’re concerned, yeah.” My brows furrowed and I glared at all of my brothers, daring them to say anything else which, in hindsight, was a big fucking mistake.
Rocky was the first to chime in. “Seems like she’s more than that, sleeping at your house and probably in your bed. Spending time together and the history between you two.” He held up his hands as if he was just making conversation.
“Drop it, Rocky.”
“He’s right,” Maverick said with a grin. “Seems like you two have grown… close.”
“Does that change our plans?”
“No, though I’m guessing you and Sniper are gonna be having a conversation when he gets back. You can wave your balls goodbye then,” Diesel muttered. Determined to move forward with the current plan, he got back to the matter at hand, “Tonight we’re going to grab those drugs and gift them to our fellow MC brothers and then our trap is set.” He looked around with that stony expression he usually wore and gave a curt nod. “Everyone not already assigned to be someplace else, meet back here in eleven. Don’t be late.”
***
After our meeting I was desperate to get back home and check in with Harper, but she texted me saying she was back at my place and safe, so instead, I hung out at the clubhouse and prepped for the mission ahead. At eleven we met, gathered our arms and solidified the plan before we headed to the Blood Reapers warehouse that posed as a legitimate business. Slate had managed to hack the digital entry pad and in less than a minute we were inside the warehouse, filled with drugs and guns and other counterfeit goods that were so fucking tempting to take.
But Diesel urged restraint. “We’re here with a very specific mission tonight. If you have something else in mind, bring it to the table tomorrow.” He looked each of us in the eye to make sure we understood and then we moved into place, executing the plan.
The warehouse was gigantic, and we moved stealthily until we found what we were looking for. I laughed at the way it was laid out. “Thankfully we aren’t dealing with a criminal mastermind.” Hawk shook his head as we found the crate labeled with the Black Devils MC. “Let’s do this shit and get the hell out of here.”
We loaded up the waiting van that T-bone had driven to the warehouse until the Black Devils crate was empty. Slate had looped the footage so there wouldn’t be any trace we were ever here, so we moved quickly and got the hell out. Quickly.
“Time to go,” I grunted after thirty minutes of loading bricks.
Diesel nodded. “Now we split up. Me, Hawk, and Maverick will drop off the gift, the rest of you head in the other direction and make sure you’re seen. Make a big fucking deal out of it. Make it look good.”
It was a good night even if I didn’t get to fuck shit up. The Blood Reapers MC would pay one way or the other for threatening Harper, for making her feel scared and unsafe. This was their penance and if they wanted to fight about it, I was willing to do just that.
For now, all I wanted was to head home to see my woman.
Chapter 18
Harper
Gio had gotten home late last night—home, there was that word again—and he was up early, making breakfast when I walked into the kitchen. “Good morning.” His smile was wide and made it all the way up to his eyes despite the exhaustion behind them.
“Morning yourself,” I grumbled and sniffed the air. “Is that coffee I smell?”
He nodded. “Yep. I’m making breakfast. Hungry?”
“Starved.” He’d been oddly quiet about what he was up to last night but given the hour I suspected it had something to do with the Blood Reapers. I wanted to ask, badly, but I sucked down hot black coffee instead. “Why are you up so early?”
He shrugged his broad, bare shoulders. “Couldn’t sleep.”
That was my opening. “Everything okay?”
“Yeah, everything is fine. I think.” He piled a bunch of scrambled eggs, toast, and too many strips of bacon, on two plates and brought them to the table where he motioned for me to join him. “Do you have to go into work today?”
I frowned at his out of the blue question, but I shook my head. “No. I can get things done from here. Why?” My heart rate instantly kicked up and I sat up a little taller. “What’s going on?”
He shook his head and blew out a breath before he stabbed at his eggs. “Some shit went down, and I’d feel better if you were here or at the clubhouse.”