Total pages in book: 40
Estimated words: 37654 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 188(@200wpm)___ 151(@250wpm)___ 126(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 37654 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 188(@200wpm)___ 151(@250wpm)___ 126(@300wpm)
“Let me know when you have some more pups, Walker. I’d still like to have one. You’ve got the best dogs in the area.”
“Yeah. Sorry about that. They went through some stuff together, and I guess it bonded them.”
“I’d never take a protector away from a woman, Walker. No hard feelings at all.” He waved before heading back to his truck and leaving the compound entrance. And yeah, that statement felt like a shot aimed at me, even if it was congenial. He knew I was in the wrong just as much as everyone else would.
I stared at the clubhouse entrance where Blossom parked her scooter and gingerly stepped off next to the indoor scooter we’d gotten her. It was parked just outside the door for easy access. When she attempted to stand and nearly went down, Mars, the bastard, made a lunge from inside the door and caught her. He scooped her up and put her on the indoor scooter before moving the puppy -- blanket and all -- to the basket in front of her. She graced him with a smile and a wave before heading inside.
Yeah. I really needed to figure out something fast, or one of my brothers was going to talk her into throwing her lot in with him. It wasn’t just Mars sniffing around her either. Every single unattached male in the vicinity had been showing his merits to her. Just the other day, I’d caught Shooter teaching her how to shoot his sniper rifle. Given that no self-respecting sniper let anyone touch his gun told me how serious he was. I thought he might also be plotting my demise given the scowl he gave me every time he saw me. More than once, I’d noticed a red laser dot on my chest. Yeah. They were all hammering home their fucking points.
Making my way back to the clubhouse, I knew I had to find some way to connect with her again. Because she was done trying with me. She’d needed me at first, still in the mindset that I was her choice. Now, she was healing and probably realizing there were more badasses in the compound than she knew what to do with, and she basically had her pick of the litter. Why would she want me when she could have someone much easier? Someone with less emotional baggage? The only thing that gave me any hope at all was that she hadn’t shown any real interest in anyone else.
“Walker!”
Fuck. Mars, Stitches, and Morgue walked out to meet me. None of them looked happy.
“What is it? Got shit to do.”
“Yeah. We see that.” Mars frowned at me, crossing his arms over his chest. “Givin’ you notice, bro. Several of us have decided to go to church over Blossom. You ain’t makin’ an effort to lock her down, and she’s miserable. She ain’t livin’ one more second than she has to without smilin’ all fuckin’ day.”
“She’s mine, boys. I ain’t givin’ her up.”
“Just two weeks ago, you hurt her almost as badly as that bastard bodyguard did. She needed you then, but she’s pullin’ away now. Soon as Sting gives his OK, we’re movin’ in on her. She can pick from one of us, but she’s gonna be fuckin’ happy.” Surprisingly, it was Morgue who threw down the gauntlet. He’d come by his name for a reason. Because he’d sent more people to the morgue than all the members of Tzars combined.
“This isn’t healthy for her, Walker.” Stitches spoke softly because it was his way, but his scowl told how truly pissed he was. “You were entrusted with her care, but you’re not making any effort to bridge the rift you created.”
“You better fuckin’ start.” Morgue stabbed me in the chest with his finger, making his point loud and clear.
I sighed. “I hear you. I’m just not sure where to start.”
“Well, it damned sure wasn’t by trying to sell her damned dog. You know they’ve been inseparable since that night. What the fuck, Walker?”
“I’d already taken the guy’s money, Mars. What the fuck else was I supposed to do?”
“And you gave it back now. Right?”
“Yeah. So?”
“So, dumbshit, you shoulda told him there’d been a fuckin’ issue and give his money back in the first Goddamned place instead of trying to give him the damned mutt!” The normally easy-going Mars was livid.
“Yeah. Figured that one out.”
“Too late. Do you have any idea how distressed she is?” Stitches moved so he stood nose to nose with me. “You’re supposed to be taking care of her.” He shoved me back. Hard. Very much unlike Stitches. He was the one who patched us up. Not the one to fight outside of a life-or-death situation. “You’ve got one more day, Walker. Then we’re all goin’ to Sting. If we have to, we’ll disappear you, but Blossom is going to be happy. Hell, even that damned bitch, Dog, thinks the world of her. Before Blossom came along, the dog wouldn’t let anyone touch her but you. Now she’s firmly in Blossom’s corner. You’re fast losing yourself, Walker. Those fuckin’ dogs are your very identity. That should tell you something.”