Killer(16)

Taking a seat beside him, Murphy nodded his head. “You over your shit yet?”

“I’m getting there.”

“I saw your woman. Is she okay?”

“She’s not my woman.”

Murphy sent him a look. “She’s your woman, Killer. I’ve seen the way Kelsey looks at you. What she did was wrong, but I know you. You can’t just give up. Tate’s bitching at me. I’ll sort her out, but she’s all over the place at the moment. She’ll see reason soon enough.”

“I don’t give a fuck about Tate. Kelsey is my concern, and she’s married.” He sounded out the last word to make Murphy understand.

“I’m not fucking thick, and so what? Tate told me the truth about her marriage. She’s not really married in the heart, and the rest can be handled in time. A divorce will work that out. Tate’s helping her out. Kelsey doesn’t want to stay married to the man.”

Murphy’s son gurgled, swinging his little fists around.

“Is Tate with her?”

“Yeah, Sandy is bandaging her up now. They’re in Tiny’s office.” Murphy made kissing noises at his boy.

“Where’s Tiny?”

“He took Eva and the kids on a trip to Vegas. Alex is sorting out some kind of deal, and they’re accompanying him so Eva can see her father.” Murphy lifted the cup of coffee to his lips. “Are you here to talk about club business or just to keep yourself from rushing to your woman?”

“It has been a long time since we caught up,” Killer said.

“I know. We’re a busy lot nowadays.”

The scars on Murphy’s face reminded Killer of the danger they’d been in a year ago. No one knew how Murphy had gotten out of danger.

“How did you do it?” Killer asked, pointing to his face.

Leaning down, Murphy released his son from the bouncy chair and held him close. “How did I do what?”

“You know what I’m asking.”

“How did I escape an exploding bike and get myself to safety?”

Killer nodded.

“I’d already gotten off my bike before it exploded. When it did, I was turned toward it, and the explosion shoved me down to the ground.” He stopped to kiss Simon, his son’s, cheek. “They were firing bullets on the ground around me. I stayed still, but I think I passed out at some point. The pain was excruciating. I hurt everywhere. You can never tell Tate this. She doesn’t know what happened, and she never will.”

“Okay, I’m not going to go telling anyone.”

“I couldn’t move to start off with. The bikes were on the ground, and I couldn’t get away. None of them stayed around to see if we were dead. I saw Time and Gunn were dead.” Murphy stopped to take a sip of his drink. “Seeing their lifeless bodies will stay with me forever.”

Killer couldn’t think about Time. The other man, a part of The Lions, had been good through and through. Time’s death cut him deeply.

“Someone came down the road. I heard the sound of an approaching car. They stopped, and I was able to raise my hand. The woman helped me out of the debris and into her car. She drove me to the nearest hospital and stayed with me until it was time for me to leave. I couldn’t get to a phone. I was passed out. The doctors said I was suffering from shock and what I’d been through.”

“Did the woman fall in love with you or something?” Killer asked.

“No, she was a married woman. She just helped me out. Tate comes across as a bitch, and she is a bitch to a lot of people.”

Killer smirked. “She’s a bitch through and through.”

“She’s not. I hurt Tate, and she changed. I love her. She’s strong, but deep in her heart I see the real her.” Murphy smiled, a secretive smile. “When we’re alone, I know without a shadow of a doubt how she feels about me. I’ve got that, Killer. Tate doesn’t hold her love back. The scars mean nothing to her.” He pointed to the side of his face. “She loves me, and I held her when she cried about what could have happened. I couldn’t bear for her to know how close I was to actually dying. If that woman hadn’t come down when she did, I’d be dead.”

Turning toward Tiny’s office, Killer knew part of what Murphy was talking about. If anything happened to his woman, he’d be dead inside. He loved Kelsey, and he fucked up completely. His brothers could say all they wanted about Kelsey being at fault, but it didn’t change his own feelings toward what he did. The woman he’d been with meant nothing to him.

Lash walked up, glaring at him. “What the fuck is she doing here?”