Page 97 of Dozer

Hana led her out of the room. Levi stopped and slammed a palm against my chest. “You’re a dick sometimes, you know that.”

Romeo softly chuckled at Levi’s show of protectiveness toward Pippa.

“Don’t laugh, pretty boy,” she said. “His fuck up is going to cost you both. A girl just loves being called a whore and a liar by her boyfriend.”

“What the fuck, Dozer? You called her a whore?” Vance shoved my chest, slamming my back against the wall. His forearm pinned my throat. I gagged on the pressure. Vance used to be a vicious fighter, but he’d grown soft away from the MC. And I’d honed my skills in the basement with Bullet.

Still, I took Vance’s wrath. I deserved it. I was the bastard who had called her a whore and a liar.

Romeo pulled on Vance’s arm. “Fuck. We have enough shit without you two going at each other. That shit is between Pip and Dozer. They’ll work it out. But the fucker who’s been following her is our business. She’s done dealing with him on her own.”

Vance eased back.

“No cops,” Blade said. “We deal with the piece of shit our way, and we keep it between us.”

“We take care of him the way we took care of the Crawlers,” I said.

Romeo nodded.

“I can find him for you.”

We all turned toward Gabriella.

“Tell me what you need, and I’ll get it for you. Driver’s license, address, credit card statements. I can tell you what kind of cereal he eats for breakfast.”

“You can get that?” Romeo asked. “You know what we’re going to do to him.”

Vance put his arm around her and kissed her temple. “Baby, you don’t have to do anything that’s going to jeopardize your relationship with Alex.”

“I won’t. Alex has connections.”

“Who is Alex?” I asked.

“Alex Ferraro, the man Gabi works for is wealthy and connected.”

We needed to keep this with the MC. We didn’t need the scrutiny when the professor disappeared.

Blade’s thoughts must have traveled in the same direction. “Vance, you and Gabi don’t want in on this.”

The implication hung like a dark cloud in the room. We would be on our own side of the law. One way or another, the guy was going to be out of her life.

I slipped out of the room, grabbed my cigarettes, and went to the patio.

“Can you give us a minute?” I asked Levi and Hana.

Pippa gave a slight nod to her head. Given the chance, I was pretty sure Hana would gut me with the knife she kept in her boot. A sad smile pulled on Levi’s mouth. She didn’t have to say anything.

I sat across from Pippa and clamped a cigarette between my lips.

“I was pissed,” I said to her.

Pippa

“You’re pissed because I should have told you,” I said. “Tell me what you would have done if you’d known?”

He took a long pull on his cigarette. Swirls of smoke curled around his face. “I’d have kept you safe.”

“I didn’t think I was in danger. I figured he had a lot more to lose than I did, and he’d eventually get the hint.”