Chapter Thirty-Six
“You think this will work?” Op asked, reclining in his seat.
I scratched at my beard. “Don’t know for sure, but we’re running out of options here. Can’t lose her now.”
Op nodded, totally understanding how I felt. He would do anything to protect Chelsea and keep her safe. The stakes were high, but I knew I had my brothers at my side. Being in Troy had been good, but they were extended family. It was these men who I’d spent so many years of my life with, riding the ups and downs of club life like a rollercoaster. One that I would never get off.
Op excused my brothers but remained seated. I stayed until everyone but Blizzard had filed out. “How’s shit going with Sugar?” I asked, knowing that in just the week I’d been gone, shit had hit the fan within our family.
“Almost killed Wrench,” he said simply.
“Noticed he wasn’t around today.”
Op scoffed. “Scared that if I see him, I won’t let him leave alive.”
I nodded, scared for my brother, but understanding Op’s frustration. “It’s a whole clusterfuck, isn’t it?”
“If they would just tell me what the hell is going on, then I could help. But both of them keep saying it’s being dealt with, that it’s nothing to do with the club.” He clenched his fists.
“Least you know Harlyn is safe here,” I told him. “Whatever mess they’re in, she isn’t going to be involved.”
“Doesn’t change the fact that one of my men is keeping shit from me. And the mother of my child is lying out her ass,” he snapped, breathing heavily.
Blizzard stepped in then, knowing his best friend was getting worked up, and an angry Optimus isn’t something any of us needed right now. “Let’s just concentrate on one problem at a time. We figure out this crap with Hadley, then we work on Wrench and Sugar.”
“And in between, we somehow figure out what to do about Slider.” I sighed, a dark chuckle rising up in my throat. “Tell me, when did we start fighting so many damn battles? Lately, it seems like we’re being hit with one thing after another.”
Blizzard and Op both looked at each other. “Women.”
I stood in the doorway of my bedroom. Hadley was curled up in the center of the bed, her blankets wrapped around her like she was a burrito.
I smiled, shutting the door softly behind me before I padded across the floor to the bed.
“Wondered how long you were gonna stand there watching me like a stalker,” she said quietly, rolling over to face me.
I chuckled. “You think you’re so stealthy, I knew you weren’t asleep.”
She frowned, looking cute as fuck with the blankets pulled up to her chin. “You did?”
I stripped my shirt off and worked on my pants. “Your breathing is different when you’re sleeping.”
She snuggled deeper into the blankets.
“You gonna share the bed, and those blankets?” I asked.
“No,” she answered with a sweet smile.
I tugged at them, wrenching them from her grip and pulling them back to reveal her naked body. I quirked an eyebrow. “Well, what’s this?”
She rolled her eyes. “Just get in, I’m cold.”
I dropped my jeans to the floor, leaving me completely naked before climbing in with her and pulling the covers back over the both of us. Her body automatically curled into mine, her head going to my chest and my arm wrapping around her body, holding her against me. There was always so much sexual tension between us, but right now all I felt was comfort.
“Did you get everything sorted?” she asked, her voice soft and melodic.
“I hope so,” I told her. “Simon is unpredictable. So we just have to hope that we’ve read him right.”
There was silence for a few minutes, just the sound of her breathing easing my body.