Page 75 of Riot

He snorts. “You’re telling me all the women you’ve fucked, and you’ve never accidentally slept with a married woman?”

I’ve done that and worse, but I keep that to myself. “Next time we have to meet with them, you ain’t comin’.”

He waves this off as he walks back towards the van. “I’m not scared of that bastard. And it was years ago. He should get over it. Besides, it ain’t like everyone is lining up to volunteer to do this shit.” He squeezes my shoulder as he passes me, and my skin crawls.

I watch as he climbs into the van, sitting beside Riley, more confused than ever.

King talks nonstop on the way back to the clubhouse, but I tune him out. I don’t know who the fuck to trust anymore, but my senses are still tingling over Blade. There’s something fucking wrong with that guy.

I don’t trust him at all.

We drop the van off, and I get my bike to head over to my brother’s place. There’s no way in fuck I can stay at the clubhouse tonight.

By the time I arrive and knock on the door, I’m on edge, and when Mace opens the door, his brows draw together. He doesn’t say a word as he steps aside to let me in, and only once the door is shut behind me does he ask, “You okay?”

“No.” I tear a hand through my hair and explain everything that happened tonight.

My brother huffs out a breath. “You believe that story about the wife?”

“I don’t believe a fuckin’ word that comes out his mouth.”

Mace leans back against the wall, his eyes locking on the ceiling. “We need to move quicker. The longer Crank’s in power, the worse things are going to get.”

“I know,” I agree, “but Rav ain’t ready for us to do anything yet. And we may have an ally if Dash was talkin’ truth.”

“That would help, but I don’t like all this shit hanging over us when Maylie’s pregnant. I want to bring my kid into the world without fearing something might happen to him.”

“Him?”

Mace grimaces. “Shit. Maylie’ll kill me. Don’t fuckin’ tell her you know.”

I grin. “You’re havin’ a boy?”

He smiles, the first I’ve seen in a long fucking time that ain’t directed at his old lady. “Yeah. It’s a boy.”

I grab his shoulder, squeezing it tight before I pull him into a hug. “I’m happy for you, Mace.”

I pull back, letting him see my sincerity.

“Thanks.” He pauses. “We’re good, ain’t we?”

Maybe I should hold onto my anger, but I know my brother, know what I am to him. “Yeah, Mace, we’re good.”

“You’re always welcome here, and not ‘cause I need you.”

“I know. You can skip the heart to heart.”

“There’re blankets and shit in the usual place. I’ll see you in the morning.”

“Yeah, night.”

The living room is dark, so I flick on the light as I step inside. Seren’s playmat is unrolled on the floor as if she was having tummy time before bed, and for the first time, I feel annoyed that I’m not here to see these things, to be a part of them.

I move to the sofa, sinking onto it so I can toe my boots off. It’s then I notice a huge bunch of flowers in a vase on the end table.

I smirk. My brother has game, I’ll give him that. I push up and move to the vase, finding the card tucked inside the flowers, and my happy mood fucking vanishes.

Ivy,

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