But Savvy had been stubborn. Shit, she’d come to an underground fight, something that definitely went against her principles. I knew for a fact she’d never been to one of my fights because even if I couldn’t have seen her in the crowd, I’d have felt her.
“Boss?” Luke stopped in front of me. He owned Shield Security, the company we used for our rock band. He’d helped save my life six months earlier when I’d been in a car accident with him and Haven, my band mate Crisis’s wife. “All good?”
Luke was quiet, calm, and vigilant about his job and had become more than just security to all of us. He was a friend.
“Yeah.” And what I liked about Luke was he didn’t ask questions. I was pretty sure he knew about my past in Ireland before my father moved us here, but he never mentioned anything.
But shit with my father had resurfaced after the car accident, and my dad had contacted me when it was all over the media that I was in critical condition. And it sure as hell wasn’t to wish me well.
We hadn’t spoken since I was sixteen and the fuckin’ memories slammed into me when I’d heard his voice. I learned to live with the memories of Emmitt and my mother, because no matter how many shields I put up, they leaked through.
But him… the anger rose again like a raging bull being baited and stabbed.
“The guys are waiting for you in the limo,” Luke said.
I nodded, and we walked toward the back door Savvy had vanished through a couple of minutes ago. It was the right thing to do. Let her go. She was better to escape me now because next time, I might not be so willing.
Luke opened the door, and the cool summer air wafted into me. Fuck, it smelled like Savvy. Like that sweet scent of something flowery and exotic mixed with her coconut shampoo.
“You want a man on her?”
I knew the “her” he was referring to was Savvy, and I wanted to say hell yeah, but it was better I kept myself distant from her. If I put a man on her, shit would change. I’d want to know every-fuckin’-thing about her like why the hell she was looking for a job at a nightclub when the Savvy I remembered wouldn’t like to be put on display like that.
“No.” But just saying no was difficult.
I could ask Deck to look into her as he had more resources than Luke. Deck was a friend of mine and owned Vault’s Unyielding Riot, which according to the law was a security slash investigative company, but Deck and his men dealt with the most unsavory men in the world.
Sex trade, drugs, guns, you name it, Deck and his men had seen it. Most of his guys were ex-special forces or had training like special forces. My cousin Deaglan, who was based most of the time in Ireland, had done some work for Deck. Deaglan flirted with both sides of the law, meaning he also had ties to the unsavory.
I had to let her go. Attachments like her were dangerous.
My father reappearing had uprooted my past and everything I’d worked hard to eradicate from my life. Now I had a chance to hurt him, I didn’t want Savvy anywhere near that. Including Compass.
I stopped beside the limo, and Luke put his hand on the door before I could open it. “If she’s a security risk, I need to know.”
I snorted. “Savvy’s not a security risk. Unless you consider a girl who thinks everyone has good bits a risk.”
Luke’s brows knit. “Good bits?”
“Never mind. I’m pretty sure she won’t be around again.” She definitely didn’t like being told she couldn’t work at the club. There was that little quirk in her brows just like when I told her not to take the job at Logan’s fight. Stubborn yet so fuckin’ sweet. Lethal combination.
I opened the door while Luke walked around the limo to get in the driver side. I slid onto the leather seat beside Logan, and he passed me a beer. We clanged bottles then Ream and Crisis raised theirs, and we did the same.
I sat back as they chatted about the concert and the money raised for the Treasured Children’s Center.
These guys were my family, along with their significant others, Emily, Kat, and Haven. My uncle had been too, but he’d died a number of years ago. He was the one who got me released from juvie after the raid.
Seven days I spent there because my father refused to get me out.
I was sure he had some judge he golfed or played polo with bend the rules so I remained locked up in juvie. I sure as hell was the only one there from the raid. Although, few parents would refuse to bail their kid out for appearing at an underground fight.