“Do you think I don’t know that, Ciro?” Aspen sounded bored. “Tell me something I don’t already know. If you have nothing of value to offer, you’re just wasting our time.”
Eyebrows shot up around the table. My brothers nodded, showing respect for Aspen’s grit. She’d displayed vulnerability earlier when I’d grabbed her but powered through it, unwilling to let me win. She’d earned my respect.
Had she ever really lost it?
Ciro cleared his throat as if annoyed. “I see why that bastard wants you so much. It’s that iron will. I hear it through the phone. No wonder he had to handcuff you to the bed.”
“Enough!” Storm barked.
Aspen raised her hand to Prez. “Ciro, I will never go with Cass willingly. I’d rather die than be his prisoner again. I promise you, he can try, but I won’t go back with him.”
“So what? You’ll take your own life?” Ciro asked.
“If it means not being with Cass, yes.”
I nearly broke my neck, whipping my head toward her. “Are you out of your fucking mind?” I shouted, my face inches away from hers.
Ciro’s laughter filled the room. “I’d say so after being with that maniac.”
Aspen jutted out her chin, a fearless glint in her eyes. Holy shit, she meant it. She’d kill herself before going back with Campbell.
Not fucking happening.
My club would keep Aspen safe. I would protect her… as I would any woman from a demented son of a bitch like Casso Campbell. Not because it was Aspen… or so I told myself.
“I’ve heard enough. Let’s get back to business.” Storm redirected the call.
I couldn’t stop thinking about Aspen’s words. Would she really take her own life? I hadn’t wanted to think about what she might’ve gone through. My stomach roiled at how I brutally grabbed her wrist. Had she experienced so much worse from Campbell that it made her wish to be dead rather than be at his mercy?
Fuck. My chest felt like it would cave in.
“Did you hear me, Box?” Storm’s annoyed voice cut through my thoughts.
“What?”
Storm’s jaw twitched. “We can move her to one of my dad’s safe houses in South Dakota until we eliminate Campbell.”
“When do you want us to leave?” Lynx asked.
My heart jerked. “Who’s taking her?”
Storm narrowed his stormy gray eyes. “Lynx, Wolf, Jill, and Hollywood will go with her once we know Casso’s whereabouts.”
“Lynx? Absolutely not.” What the ever-loving fuck was I doing?
Storm rocked in his chair, then grabbed the mallet and slammed it on the table. “Meeting adjourned. Clear out so I can have a word with my enforcer in private.”
Fucking Lynx was on his feet first. “Come on, sweetheart. Let’s get you a drink.” He helped Aspen out of her chair. I wanted to clobber him. Break his perfect nose.
“What the fuck is going on with you, brother?” Storm glowered looking between Hero and me. It seemed the SAA needed to stay for this ass whipping Storm was about to give. “I’ve never seen you possessive over a woman.”
“She’s not just any woman, and you fucking know it,” I bit back like a rabid dog. “She’s not allowed to get cozy with any of the brothers because she isn’t fucking staying around! Once we’ve ensured her safety, I want her gone.”
Hero reclined in his chair, crossing his arms over his chest. “Christ Almighty.”
“What? If you have something to say, brother, fucking say it.” I had lost my cool.
“All right, motherfucker.” Hero leaned forward in his chair, eyes narrowed. “You’re acting like a man in love with a woman he can’t have but desperately wants. So much so, he’d kill for her. Kill anyone who touches her, like Lynx.”