Page 78 of The Keeper

“Hey,” I said firmly, sitting on the edge of the mattress and pulling her onto my lap. “Don’t go down that road. Two armed men caught you off guard. Having a gun might’ve made things a hell of a lot worse.”

She nodded, but I could see the wheels turning in her head. “Maybe, but I never want to feel that helpless again.”

I cupped her cheek, forcing her to meet my eyes. “I get it, believe me. How about this? We’ll look at some concealed carry options whenI get back, okay? Find something that you feel comfortable wearing every day.”

“Thank you,” she said, kissing me.

With the lead on the vehicle, I was confident we’d find and eliminate the remaining threat, but I also wanted her to feel she had a way to protect herself if she needed it.

If it helped ease her fears, I was willing to do whatever it took.

The familiar rumble of Carnage’s truck sent a rush of anticipation through me. We were one step closer to finding the fucker responsible for hurting Piper.

And once we did, God help him.

Because I sure as fuck wouldn’t.

TWENTY-FOUR

GHOST

Ivy & Piper’s Guide to Life Rule Number Twenty-Four:

Don’t take criticism from people you wouldn’t take advice from.

Istood outside the rental car company, watching planes take off in the distance. One after another, they disappeared into the darkness until they became indistinguishable from the faint stars in the night sky.

The ground beneath my boots vibrated with the low-frequency rumble of engines, creating a subtle thrumming sensation I felt in my bones. Then again, it might have been the aftermath of the rough sex still reverberating through my body. I shifted uncomfortably, wincing at the twinge in my ass.

Fuck, I definitely pulled something.

I took a slow lap around the building, trying to walk off the ache. Christ, I felt old, and I was only thirty-eight. Still, the memory of her thick ass rippling beneath my hands as she begged for more made every second of discomfort worth it. Despite the protest from my muscles, my cock revived at the image in my head, leaving me eager to get back home. I raked a hand over my face, desperately in need of a cold shower.

A gravelly voice cut through the noise from the planes. “You look like hammered shit.”

“Still better than looking old as shit,” I drawled as the club’s former president and one of my old man’s closest friends stepped out of the shadows like the motherfucking ghost of biker’s past.

Grey snorted and tapped a cigarette from his pack before passing it and his gold lighter to me. “Last I checked, I ain’t the one limpin’ around the parking lot. The fuck did you do?”

I lit up and took a long drag before admitting, “Might have pulled a muscle.”

“Pulled a muscle? Shit, son,” he said with a chuckle, smoke lazily drifting out from between his lips. The ember on his cigarette glowed bright in the darkness, illuminating the lines etched deep in his weathered face. “Maybe you need to hit the gym more so you can keep up with your Ol’ Lady.”

I flipped him off, but there was no real heat behind it.

We stood in silence for a few moments, the only sound the distant roar of jet engines and the soft crackle of burning tobacco. I could feel his eyes on me, studying me like I was some kind of puzzle he couldn’t quite figure out and knew what was coming next.

“So,” he finally said, flicking ash onto the pavement. “You talk to your brother lately?”

“Don’t ask questions you don’t want the answers to,” I ground out with a stream of smoke before letting my head fall back against the building.

Grey grunted before taking another drag. “There’s a sayin’ about assumptions and the assholes who make ‘em, kid.”

“There’s also one about minding your own damn business.”

He turned to face me, his blue eyes hard in the dim light. “Quit bein’ so goddamn hard-headed and sit down with Crow. Between you, me, and the fencepost, Wolverine ain’t no spring chicken, and this shit between y’all ain’t doin’ him any good.”

I exhaled slowly, watching the smoke curl into the night air. “Old man, you don’t know what the fuck you’re talking about.”

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