King(5)
“He can be a little abrasive.”
Evie heard the humorous edge to his voice; it probably wasn’t the first time he had witnessed his boss pissing someone off. “No shit.”
“He grows on you.”
“I’ll take your word for it.” Evie went out the door and to her car, sliding in. She had begun looking forward to a vacation with Penni this morning after Shade had asked her to investigate King’s businesses; now, she wasn’t so sure. She had a feeling it wasn’t going to be as simple as she had thought it would be. He sure as fuck didn’t share his daughter’s sweet personality.
* * *
“I think you made her angry.”
King finished buttoning his shirt before giving Henry his attention. He lay back against the headboard of the bed. “I intended to. I wanted to see her reaction when I mentioned Shade.”
He reached into his nightstand, pulling out a thick sheathe of papers then laying them across his lap as he continued reading the facts Jackal had been able to gather on The Last Riders. He wondered how much of it Beth and Lily were aware of.
“It’s more of a sex club than a motorcycle club.” King’s hand tightened on one of the papers as he read.
Henry remained silent; his friend and bodyguard always knew when to keep his mouth shut, sensing his moods.
How could they become involved with such a group? He couldn’t imagine Lily participating in the club’s activities with her background, so he had to assume she was clueless.
“Lily and Beth both live in houses behind the club.”
“Beth went back and forth between the club and her home before her house was built,” King said. “Lily only moved into the clubhouse when the man Digger contracted to kill her botched up.”
“Yes.”
King continued reading. “Seems Evie is a little more than a nurse; she’s a nurse practioner in the club, she was the first woman who became a member.”
“So… she?”
“Participates in all the club’s activities. She’s over the women.” King lifted another paper, his face turning grimmer as he read. “We were right about Shade.”
“How bad?”
“He’s an assassin for the military. He also contracts out to other groups.” A whistle left his lips. “He commands a pretty hefty fee to perform. How sure is Jackal about some of these hits?”
“Jackal doesn’t make mistakes.”
“I wish he had this time.” King looked down at the paper in his hand. Lily’s husband was a lethal bastard. His hits had a varied background and some he had heard of, some he hadn’t. The ones he had were no loss; he would have killed them for free given the opportunity. It still made his gut clench that Lily was married to a man who could kill so effortlessly.
“Did you see his psych report? Jackal said he had to pay extra for that piece of information,” Henry noted.
King picked up the report. “Make sure he’s compensated.”
“Already taken care of.” Henry was efficient, managing to keep all his businesses under his watchful eyes.
King read Shade’s psych report. When he finished, he knew there was no way he could allow the man to remain married to Lily. He read through the remaining papers, finding out all the relevant information he needed to know about the remaining members.
“They’re a deadly group of men; each has his own particular skill.”
“It won’t be easy taking them on.”
“When have I ever been afraid of a challenge?” King eyed Henry.
“She won’t thank you for it. She’s in love with him.”
“There’s no way Shade’s in love with her. I’d be surprised if he even bled. The psychiatrist who did that psych doesn’t even think he’s fucking human.”
“According to women, he’s human.” King stared at his friend coldly, letting him know he didn’t appreciate his humor.
“He has to be hiding that from Lily. There is no way she would let him dominate her; she was too traumatized as a child.”
This time, Henry remained wisely silent.
King sighed, throwing the papers to his side.
“What are you going to do?”
“What in the fuck do you think I’m going to do?”
Chapter 3
Evie went back to the clubhouse. Once inside, she decided not to take her nap; instead she pitched in to help Bliss and Raci cook dinner.
“So, what was he like?” Bliss asked.
Evie didn’t have to ask whom she was referring to. “He’s younger than I thought he would be, and kind of sexy.” Both women stared at her. Evie grinned, raising her hands in the air. “Well, he is.”