Page 94 of Protector

The truth was that, despite my best efforts, I was going to condemn my son to the life of an outlaw.

Just another promise I’d failed to keep.

Chapter Nineteen

Grey: 2010

Slim met me in the hallway and slipped the room key into my hand with a wry grin. “Do I even want to know what he did this time?”

I ground my teeth together and shook my head. “I’m sure David could tell you a thing or two about the shit he’s pulled lately.”

He tugged at the collar of his dress shirt with another chuckle. “Well, if David wasn’t tryin’ to bow out of his own reception to run off and fuck his new bride, I might just do that. As it is, I’m liable to end up with a black eye.”

“Fuck. I shouldn’t have asked you to leave—”

“Oh, you absofuckinlutely should’ve. I’m wearin’ linen pants and a shirt that’s been stranglin’ my muscles all goddamn day. Is Celia still with Lou? If so, meet us up in our room later. I got plans.” He rubbed his hands together with a grin, and I took a step back.

“Ain’t doin’ a fuckin’ orgy with you, Slim. No matter how much you love participating in ‘em at the club.”

He clapped me on the shoulder. “Good to see that the drive down didn’t fuck up your sense of humor.” Before turning to walk toward the elevators, he added, “Oh, and I’ll be sure to let everyone downstairs know that you’re lookin’ for some swingers action. We’ll get you fixed right up, Pres.”

“Yeah, fuck you,” I called before entering the room.

I’d come to Galveston to watch Slim’s boy tie the knot, but after watching the drunken spectacle that was Mikey’s best man speech, I realized taking a weekend off had been nothing more than a pipe dream.

He was more of a liability to me now than he was the morning Comedian and I showed up on his doorstep to let him know I was alive.

As Comedian had dragged him out of bed, I realized that the scrawny kid who’d been scared of his own shadow and couldn’t surf to save his life was long gone. In his place was a bulked-up man-child who sank his dick into anything with a cunt. And if he wasn’t doing that, he was buried in a bottle of tequila.

Just like his old man had been.

It seemed like the longer I stared, the more of myself I saw in him, and I wondered how long I’d be able to keep my secret.

When we confronted him with the surveillance footage and photographs I’d taken, he’d agreed to help us, but it seemed as if the majority of our time since had been spent covering his ass.

Quickly moving around the empty hotel room, I retrieved the weapons Mikey had stashed in the closet and nightstand. The last thing I needed was to walk out with a bullet in me. He’d taken off toward the beach with a redhead, but I knew I only had as long as it took him to fuck her before he was back.

Unable to resist, I opened the door of the fully-stocked minibar and my mouth flooded with saliva, as if nine years of sobriety had just been for laughs. I cracked my neck and focused on each inhale and exhale before dropping into the overstuffed chair beside the bed and lighting up a cigar with the trembling fingers.

Initially, I’d bought them to help Celia confront the demons of her past, but found that they kept me calm when I was close to losing control.

And right now, I wanted a drink… badly.

I straightened at the sound of a keycard being swiped against the door and took another puff to clear my head as the overhead light was flipped on.

“Holy fuck, Grey! Who let you in here?” Mikey kept his eyes on me as he moved into the room, no doubt going for guns that were no longer there.

He glanced at the nightstand and then back at me.

“Don’t bother, kid. I already got that one.” He nodded slowly before looking toward the closet. “’Fraid I got that one too. I came here to talk some sense into you—if that’s even possible anymore. Have you fuckin’ seen yourself? You’re gettin’ sloppy.”

Ignoring me, he went straight for the minibar, and I clenched my molars as everything in me fought to join him.

After draining the small bottle of liquor, he squared his shoulders and faced me with a grin, reminding me so much of myself that it hurt.

“You think I’m getting sloppy? Then start doing your own fucking dirty work. Oh, yeah, you think you’re a big guy running an empire from underground. You know what me and the rest of the goddamn world think? That you’re a fucking pussy. You’ll hide behind the club walls and let the world think you’re dead so that you get off scot-free and the club’s left holding the smoking gun. You wanna talk about me? Well, guess what, motherfucker? I wanna talk about you. Where the fuck do you get off?”

Something inside of me snapped, and I was on him before he’d even finished spouting off the bullshit he believed was the truth. Using his lapels as handles, I shoved him into the wall, wondering how Wolverine had dealt with this and not sent me to the Reaper.

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