Total pages in book: 135
Estimated words: 130512 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 653(@200wpm)___ 522(@250wpm)___ 435(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 130512 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 653(@200wpm)___ 522(@250wpm)___ 435(@300wpm)
Nate was still glaring, but he gestured to me. “I’m with them. If I leave, I’ll be calling Monroe for backup.”
The biker’s gaze shifted to a whole new level of chilliness. “We have a fucking tentative peace with the New Kings crew. That’s your buddy’s crew, by the way. They may be all legit with their bounty-hunting business, but they’re still a crew—just like Shaw, just like Bren. If you want to blow that up, make it so we’re not friendly anymore, you do that. Let me remind you of where you are. This is our warehouse. Our territory. And the reason your friend here reached out to us is because we don’t give two fucks who you are, what family you come from, or if you’re famous or not. We eat, breathe, fuck, and live the biker world. Shove your attitude somewhere else, because I’ll let you know right now, my guys won’t stand for it. One of them will step up and shove it down your throat for you.” He paused a moment. “We good?”
Nate seethed beside me, a rattlesnake coiling up, ready to strike, but I knew he wouldn’t. “We’re here for some good old-fashioned fighting,” I assured Stripes. “That’s it.”
He was still eyeing Nate, but he spoke to me. “We’re a betting bunch. You want to throw in on that too?”
I took out some more money and handed it over. “On my brother and myself.” I gestured to Nate. “He won’t be fighting.”
The biker took the money. “Shocker.” He looked over and got a nod from the guy in my brother’s ear. “Looks like we’re ready to go.”
As soon as he was gone, Nate hissed, “Mason.”
I moved away. “I don’t want to hear it. You’re not seeing the big picture. Until you do, keep your mouth shut.”
Logan climbed into the ring, and I went to talk to him. They’d gotten him ready. His hands and feet were taped. He’d lost his shirt and now wore only a snug pair of shorts. He bounced up and down, swinging his arms to warm up. He gave me a crooked grin, a slightly maniacal look in his eyes. “Nate’s still having a hissy fit?”
I declined to answer. I rested a hand on one of the ropes and leaned in. “You ready for this? You’re okay with this?”
His eyes flared, his arms moved back and forth in front of him. “You kidding? This is my kind of candy store.” He winced a little. “I’m not sure how I’m going to explain this to Taylor, but…”
“Sam’s going to handle the girls.”
Logan stopped bouncing, stopped swinging his arms. “What do you mean?” He was suddenly all serious.
“I told her enough about tonight, asked if she’d run interference with Taylor and Quincey, if we need it.”
Logan’s eyes flicked to Nate before the corner of his mouth tugged up. “Don’t think she’ll need to worry about Quincey, but she’ll have to debrief Taylor before we get back because I don’t want my face to give her a heart attack.”
He turned toward the middle of the ring as two guys climbed inside.
“Hey.”
He looked back down to me, an eyebrow raised.
“This is for us tonight. You hear me?” I said gruffly. “When you’ve had your fill, you can tap out. You don’t have to win if—”
He snorted. “Get the fuck out of here. I’ve not had a decent fight in decades. I’m fucking salivating for this.”
“Yeah, but…” Nate was right. The rules said no permanent damage and no death, but these weren’t sanctioned fights. Shit could go sideways.
“Mase.” Logan stopped everything—the attitude, the unhinged look in his eyes. His voice and face were all Logan again, the brother who had been at my side when we walked into our dad’s office a week ago. “I know.”
Jesus Christ, I’d missed my brother. I hadn’t fully had him with me this last week, but he was here now. He was thinking clearly. I drew in some of the comfort I always felt when he was at my side and nodded to him before stepping back. “Got it.”
He held my eyes another moment before he blinked and the maniacal Logan was back. Maybe he needed to slip into his old role in order to deal with everything. I understood that.
Fuck. Maybe I should start doing the same.
The bell rang, and the fight was on.
17
MASON
The guy fighting Logan was big. He had a good twenty extra pounds of muscle on my brother, and I didn’t like the look on his face. He was looking at Logan as if he were about to steal candy from a child, then eat it in front of the kid.
He was going to enjoy this fight. Or so he thought.
The guy went in fast, with brute force.
Logan dodged him easily, not even moving, just ducking his head. There was no hint of anything light or unhinged or surface level with my brother right now. He was all serious, and he was all dark. It was as if all this had been festering inside of him—building, rising—and the second the guy charged him, Logan gave himself permission to peel back the layer he used to face the rest of the world. This was the real Logan. As the big guy turned and went at him again, delivering an uppercut, Logan stopped it. He fucking reached out, stopped it, and then he leaped and pounded down with his other fist. It was a pretty move, and once that happened, a different wave of energy entered the warehouse.