Page 167 of Romeo

Judge.

“What’s it to you?” he asked the club’s sergeant at arms.

“Musta missed the part where Maddie belongs to us. Not you. Unless we hear the answers we wanna hear and,” Judge circled his finger around the group, “we say she can.”

“Get that you wanna protect her…”

“From womanizers like you,” Shade said quietly.

Both Deacon and Ozzy snorted.

“Gonna tell you guys somethin’ I ain’t told anyone. Know I got a reputation. Know that reputation was true. But…” He pulled in a breath. “Ain’t been with any other woman since runnin’ into her.”

The silence was deafening until Shade asked, “Not even a sweet butt?”

“No.”

“She know that?”

“No.”

“You plannin’ on tellin’ her?”

That would probably be a good fucking idea.

Chapter Forty

Maddie fidgetedon a stool at the Fury’s private bar in The Barn.

Where she waited impatiently.

As soon as Shade and Romeo left the house, she hopped into her SUV and kept enough space between the two vehicles so they wouldn’t spot her tailing them.

Shade didn’t run any of this past her, but she knew exactly what he was doing.

Putting Romeo on the spot.

Making him put up or shut up.

Making him declare in front of the club officers whether he wanted to claim Maddie as his ol’ lady or not.

The only problem was, Shade never asked her if that was what she wanted and, truthfully, she was still torn.

If she was using her head and not her heart, she’d reject his ass. Especially after he butted into her business and screwed everything up.

Plus, he had never been a man to stick with one woman.She did not want to tie herself down with a cheater. Not now, not ever.

She wasn’t sure Romeo was even the type of man whocouldbe loyal. Maybe he’d start out that way, but eventually?

Was it worth the risk of heartburn and heartbreak?

Another issue was the most obvious one… He was a damn biker. Not only a biker but a president of an entire club! Did she even want to deal with that shit? In the past, she purposely avoided hooking up with bikers. And here she was, about to get claimed by one?

She sighed and dropped her head in her hands, trying to sort through her ping-ponging thoughts.

She would eventually want children. She had no idea where he stood on that subject. She had no idea if he’d even be a good father.

The “what ifs” were endless when it came to the man.