Page 90 of Protecting Her Secrets

“And these guys are Rigger, Lucky, Mustang, Golden, Dutch, and back there is Riot.” Rowan points to each club member. They all return some form of greeting, except for Riot. He barely gives me a glance from where he’s leaning against his bike, armsfolded. “This is Walker. His wife’s late father promised her to the acting club president, but he’s an abusive piece of shit. She ran, and now that she and Walker have reunited, she wants nothing to do with him.”

“Let me guess,” Lucky, who’s even bigger and taller than I am, speaks up. “He’s not taking the news well?”

“You could say that,” I say, standing straight. I don’t want these guys to think they’re here because I can’t fight for my woman. “A couple weeks ago, they tried to shoot her on the street but ended up hitting her friend. Not long after that, we found a piglet with a dagger through its head at the base of my property.”

“Shit. Her friend okay?” Rigger asks.

“Yeah. She took a round to her stomach, but she pulled through.”

“So what’s the plan?” Golden, who looks more like an actor playing the role of a biker, asks.

“The club has invaded downtown, not doing anything against the law, just being rude and intimidating the townsfolk, trying to smoke Skylar out,” I say.

“What do you expect us to do?” the creepy-looking one, Riot, speaks up.

“This isn’t the Wild, Wild West, and we aren’t looking for a showdown. We just want to make it clear we aren’t cowering to them and Skylar is no longer their concern,” Rowan says.

“The Broken Rebels aren’t gonna back down just because we’re here. From everything I’ve heard about them, the only language they speak is violence,” Rigger says. “And my girl will kill me if I’m the one who takes a round to my gut next.”

“They came in with faces covered and no cuts when they shot at Skylar, so I don’t think any of them want to go to prison.” I lean against my truck.

“I don’t mind knocking a few skulls,” the big one, Lucky, says. “It’s been a while since I’ve been in a good fight.”

“If it comes to that, just try to keep the shops and the locals out of it,” Rowan says, and I shoot him a look that says we’re dead meat if things get out of hand. Wilder might put us both behind bars.

“All right. Let’s do this.” Cyrus straddles his bike and starts it up.

Rowan hops in my truck, and I back out of the driveway. “I hope this doesn’t backfire.”

“Me too.”

On our way downtown, I give Wilder a heads-up. He has been keeping an eye on Klutch for me, making sure he stays far away from my house. To say he’s glad we’re taking matters into our own hands would be the biggest understatement of the year. He’s pissed, but until we face them, they won’t go away.

I lead the Sons to the parking lot of the grocery store. Presley steps outside, looking nervous as hell until she sees Rowan and me. She offers us a tight-lipped smile, then goes back inside the store.

“Damn.” Dutch appears at my side. “She single?”

I grin. “Yeah. Presley’s good people.”

“I’ll be stopping for a gallon of milk on the way home then.” He pulls a beanie over his head.

As we walk down the main drag, we attract the attention of the Broken Rebels, just as I thought we would. We draw them out of each store we pass. The Sons don’t even spare them a glance, looking cool and confident. It helps to know they don’t seem to be concerned, but I wasn’t worried anyway. Everyone has a price, and I just need to find Klutch’s so I can get him to go the fuck home.

According to Wilder, he’s at the bar with a couple of his buddies, so that’s our destination. We’re just about there whenI hear a car door open. It’s Wilder and Ridge. I was expecting Wilder, but Ridge being here surprises me. Not that I don’t think he could hold his own—he trains as much as Rowan and I do—but he’s a peacekeeper at heart.

“Why was Wilder the one to call and let me know what was going down?” he asks.

“Didn’t think you’d want to get involved,” I say.

“I wouldn’t for just anyone, but this is Skylar.”

I clap him on the shoulder. “Appreciate the support.”

Rigger sidles up to us, eyeing Wilder, who’s talking to Rowan. “Hey, we’re not looking for jail time over this.”

“Don’t worry about him. As long as no one dies or brings out weapons, he’ll be cool.”

Walking into the bar, I spot four Broken Rebels, including Klutch, playing pool on the two tables in the corner. Three more are sitting up at the bar, and two are in a booth, eating burgers. I know the second they see us because tension fills the air. Cyrus, Lucky, and Rigger join us inside while the others are outside, standing guard.

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