One of the women piped up. “Oh yeah, Ratbag took Jade home ages ago. She said she had a stomachache.”
I swallowed hard. Ratbag must’ve taken her out the secret back way. While I was relieved that she was safe and that we’d avoided a bloodbath here tonight, I didn’t want her at home and so far away from me.
“Lexi, you’re coming home with me. Get your stuff. Let’s go.”
“OK. But only because I was ready to go anyway. I got a bit too much sun today, and I’m tired. But Harrison?”
He cocked his head. “Yeah?”
“I’m a grown woman. And I work here. It’s my job to be here. This is how I earn my rent. You have to respect that. OK?”
“Find another job, Lexi. You aren’t coming back here, sweetheart.” He turned to me. “Consider this Lexi’s resignation. She just quit her fucking bar job.”
Harrison placed his gun back into its holster and took her by the arm. “Jade’s in her room, reading, as you predicted. I’ll have a talk with her tomorrow about coming here. Neither you nor Jade will put a foot in this place again. Are we clear, little cousin?”
Lexi nodded. “Let me just get my stuff,” she said as she wriggled free of Harrison’s hand on her and went behind the bar to get her purse.
I saw Razor go after her. I had to distract Harrison.
“You said your sister is safely at home?” I quirked an eyebrow, keeping my voice as neutral as possible.
“Yeah. And she’s never coming here again. Of that, I will make one hundred percent certain.”
Watching the last of the cops filter out of the clubhouse, I smirked. “Well, you guys can stop snooping and watching us. We can take care of our own.”
“Yeah? Like the raid by the LA Demons? Getting him shot?” He nodded his head toward Cobra. “You think you’re safe? I’ve got news for you. You delve into criminal activities, you’re never safe. I’ll give my last breath to ensure that. Consider this a friendly warning. Next time I come here, I will rip this fucking place apart. Got that?”
My fists balled by my sides. Self-righteous prick. “I hope our paths don’t cross again anytime soon. I don’t know if I can reel it in enough not to punch your smug face and make you bleed,” I retorted. Fuck this shit.
Why the hell did Jade have to have a brother who was a fucking cop? Especially one out for vengeance? But that wasn’t going to stop me.
No, it only made me more determined to fight for her. Our worlds may have been colliding, but I knew what I wanted: Jade.
I wasn’t letting anything tear us apart. None of this bullshit was going to stand in my way because I had no other choice—Jade was the woman for me. I knew that now. I didn’t want to be in this world if it was without her.
So bring it on. I was ready to fight for my Princess till my last breath.
Fuck yeah.
Chapter 19 ~ Jade
“Sis. Would your planning to move out have anything to do with the Scorpio Stinger MC? And in particular a man named Ryder Knox?”
I sucked in a breath. Jesus. How did he know?
“Where did you get that idea?” I was trying to buy time. I had to find out how much my brother knew before I gave him an answer. Maybe he was just guessing. Growing up in a house with an attorney for a father and a cop for a brother had schooled me well in the art of interrogation. And now that I was a qualified lawyer myself, I used those tricks to my own advantage. Always answer a question with a question. It worked every time.
“I have my informants. Plus, I know you’ve been on the back of his bike. Dad told me about the night with Marcus. I must say, as much as I hate bikers, I kind of owe him one for saving you from that scumbag.” Harrison’s jaw and fists were clenched tightly. His protective instincts were in high gear. I had to use this to my advantage.
“Yeah, can you believe what Marcus did? So when Ryder appeared out of nowhere, it was like my savior arrived on a shiny metal horse. At the time, it was the best option.” I shrugged, trying to play it down. I didn't want Harrison sniffing around Ryder.
“OK, I get that. But you should’ve taken a taxi straight home. Not gone off for the night with a biker boy. After The Incident, I didn't think you’d ever do such a thing, Jade.” His voice was stern, and a deep frown furrowed his brow. I hated seeing him so glum.
“Harrison, that was a long time ago. We have to let go of those bad memories and move on with our lives. We can't let what happened ten years ago still cloud our lives and our future.”
He groaned as he sank back in the chair and closed his eyes. I knew his pain was still there, but he had to let the scab grow over it so that it could finally heal. Keeping the wound raw only meant it would never get any better.
I placed my hand on his arm, stroking gently. “The bikers who killed Amy and the others were all apprehended and served their sentences. They have done their time. But you, living like this—you’re the one still serving time.”
His eyes flew open and he sat forward, grabbing my wrist and twisting till it hurt.
“Don’t say that, Sis. I can't ever let it go. That would mean I’ve let Amy and her memory down.” He paused for a beat, clearly lost in his thoughts. Raw pain flickered in his eyes. He swallowed hard before he continued, his voice sadder than I'd heard it in a long time. “I never told you this, because you were too young: Amy was seven weeks pregnant. We were going to tell our parents a week later. I was going to marry her.”
“Oh God, Harrison, why haven’t you ever told me before? Now I understand your pain so much better. Her death was a terrible thing. But the baby—” I slapped my hand over my mouth. Finally I was getting why Harrison carried so much hatred toward bikers and MC clubs, and refused to let it go.
His shoulders slumped as he leaned forward, his head in his hands. “All of that was taken from me. By bikers with illegal guns. I can never let that go. I will hunt fuckers like them down, and stop that from happening to anyone else,” he ranted, his pain in his eyes.
“That’s noble of you, Harrison. I get where you’re coming from. But Amy—she would never have wanted you to suffer this much and for this long. She’d want you to be happy—even without her. That’s how much she loved you.”
He ran a hand through his hair, despair evident on his face. “There isn’t a day that passes that I don’t think about her, about what could’ve been . . . you’re probably right in saying that Amy would’ve wanted me to move on, but it’s not that simple.”
I rubbed slowly up and down his arm. “You’re not going to like what I’m going to say to you now. But just hear me out.” I took a deep breath. Giving my older brother advice wasn’t something I’d done before—especially about matters of the heart. But seeing him still hurting this badly, made my heart squeeze. “Maybe there is someone else out there for you. Someone who can bring you happiness.”
Waiting with bated breath for his reaction, my heart pounded in my ears. Had I gone too far?
Harrison shook his head. “I doubt I can even allow myself to love again. It’s just too painful. And if something ever happened to you, I don’t think I’d be able to cope with that. That’s why you have to promise me to stay away from the biker guy. It can't work out—you’re from two completely different worlds. I don’t want to see you get hurt, but even worse, if he so much as damages a hair on your head, I’ll be after him. And it won't be pretty.”
“You’re my big brother, and you care about me—I get that. But you can't stop me from seeing who I want to. I'm a big girl now. If I want to see Ryder . . .”