Page 30 of Echo

“Oh, my name is Nora,” she told me with another smile. I took another good look at her and was surprised to see that she was very young. Probably no older than eighteen.

“Well, Nora. You’re doubly right. Ash is a pain in the ass, and it’s unlikely you’ll talk me into going to the hospital.”

She sighed and shook her head.

“I promise to get checked out, though, okay?” I offered.

Ash and I would both be looked over by Razor or Flint, doctors who were patched members. But I wouldn’t be telling Nora about that.

She crooked up one corner of her mouth and gave me a small wave. “I’m going to give you the benefit of the doubt and believe you. It will help me sleep better at night.”

I laughed and turned away, only to see Ash glaring at me.

“What?”

“Nothing,” he said through gritted teeth.

Nora started to walk past him, and I watched in surprise when he gently grabbed her arm to stop her. “Only one you should be dreaming about tonight is me, baby girl.”

She stiffened and raised her chin to a stubborn angle. “Dream on,” she snapped.

“Oh, I will,” he murmured before releasing her.

He watched her walk away with a myriad of emotions playing out on his face. It was clear he felt something for her but was confused and wary of it. If I had to guess, I’d say it was because of their age difference. There were probably twelve to fifteen years between them.

But that was his problem to deal with for now.

I needed to get back to my girl.

Unfortunately, giving witness statements, explaining the con, and making sure the right people were alerted so that Jean would be investigated for everything took a fuck ton of time. We didn’t roll back up to the clubhouse until nearly nine in the morning.

Violet was standing with the girls in the lounge when I walked in. The second she saw me, she gasped and ran straight into my arms.

I captured her mouth in a long, drugging kiss before touching our foreheads together. “Fuck, I missed you.”

“So…um, it’s all done now?”

“Yep. Police are rounding up Jean’s ‘employees’ now, and they received an anonymous packet this morning with the names and details of every victim we uncovered.”

“That’s…that’s so great,” she said with a smile that didn’t reach her eyes.

What the hell was going on?

12

VIOLET

Ihad mixed feelings about the Hounds successfully taking down the con ring that Jeff was a part of. Obviously, I was happy for the people they’d taken advantage of because they’d get some form of repayment for the money they had lost. And that they couldn’t hurt anyone else.

But I was worried about what it meant for Brodie and me.

He had no reason to stay in my apartment now that everything was wrapped up.

Showing yet again just how in tune he was to my feelings, Brodie asked, “What’s wrong, baby?”

“I just…I kind of got used to having you live with me,” I mumbled, feeling a little silly that I was complaining about not living together when our relationship was so new. It wasn’t as though we still wouldn’t be able to see each other as often as we wanted, but it just wasn’t the same.

“And?” he drawled with a deep chuckle.

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