Chapter 1
1
WIZARD
I n a stroke of luck, we didn’t need to burn one of the identities that Ace and I had prepped. Our club secretary had the perfect background to be Jean’s next target.
Ash had been born into a wealthy family, the only child of a Texas politician. I was pretty sure they’d only had a kid because it polled well with his constituents.
Amazingly, Ash hadn’t grown into a spiked douche or an empty suit like his dad. He’d aced school and earned scholarships that paid for his undergrad and law degrees. He’d worked for anything else he needed and never took a dime from his sorry excuse for parents.
When he became a public defender, I’d bet his parents were horrified, but they played the proud parents. Then Ash found his real family with the Hounds of Hellfire. Despite our code of honor, we didn’t always play on the right side of the law. We had our own brand of justice, and sometimes it put us in sticky situations. More often than not, Ash was the reason no one could nail us for any shady shit we were involved in.
Not surprisingly, he lost touch with the senator and his wife.
All of this put us in the perfect spot to carry out our plan. Ash was playing up his role as the senator’s son—we’d spread the news that he’d been a recluse during the years since he dropped out of the media. The story was backed by people whose word and reputation were irrefutable.
It was fucking hilarious when Ash’s parents called, suddenly wanting to reconnect. Clearly, they’d thought he was returning to society and wanted to take advantage of the situation or clean it up, depending on his motives. He promptly told them to go fuck themselves.
Ash had been against resurrecting his former self, but understanding what was at stake, he’d eventually agreed.
I’d secretly sighed in relief. My background wasn’t all that different from his although I’d been disowned by my shallow parents the first time I was arrested for hacking a government database.
Since I was only ten, they’d shipped me off to a boarding school in New York. I hadn’t seen them since.
The father of one of my friends was a member of the Hounds of Hellfire. Gage told me to get my act together…or at least, not get caught. Then he treated me like another son, loving me like a father should, including busting my ass when I did stupid shit.
Having grown up around the club, I’d known I would prospect since I was a teenager. But Gage wouldn’t hear of it until I’d finished college. By the time I was eighteen, I had my bachelor’s, so I was able to prospect as soon as I was old enough.
Federal agencies often hired me as a civilian contractor, which was how I met King. He lured me out to Georgia and was one of the only two people in this branch of the MC who knew my real background.
Luckily, Ash was a much better candidate for this job.
Getting him established and keeping the charade going without a hitch took a fuck ton of work. So it didn’t seem like a good time to begin something with Thea. I wanted to be able to devote all of my time to her. So I tried to keep from going insane by reading every one of her books…and setting up a little surveillance of my own.
Being a genius—particularly in my field—had its perks.
But after two weeks, I’d reached the limit of my patience. I decided it was time to take action.
Sometimes gritty, badass bikers were as gossipy as teenage girls. I didn’t want or need their interference or jokes. So I chose not to capitalize on her friendship with Violet and orchestrated my own “accidental” meeting with Thea instead.
I remembered she had an event in her calendar in a few days. A signing at a small bookstore.
Violet was on lockdown while we worked on taking down the group of conmen due to her involvement, which meant she wouldn’t be joining Thea. It was perfect.
My woman was even more incredible in person. She was exactly as I’d imagined her, except her eyes twinkled and her smile was fucking brilliant. Her fans were clearly enchanted by her, something I completely understood.
For most of the evening, I stood off to the side, just observing. At one point, our eyes met, and when I grinned, she blushed and stumbled over her words. It was adorable.
Near the end of the event, I stepped away to buy a few of her books, and when I returned, she glanced in my direction and blushed again.
Finally, the event began winding down, and as she stood to pack up, I swaggered over to the table.
“Hey there, gorgeous,” I greeted her with my most charming smile.
“Um, hello,” she replied softly. Her gaze dropped to my hands, and she raised her brow when she met my eyes again. “Did you want me to sign those?” The skepticism in her voice didn’t really surprise me.
I was a huge guy in jeans, motorcycle boots, a white T-shirt, and my cut. Plus, I had tattoos wrapping around part of my left arm and more ink peeking out from the V-neck of my shirt.
Not her typical reader.
“Absolutely,” I said with a wink, setting the books on the table.
She gave me a half smile and sat back down in her chair. “Do you want them made out to”—she glanced at the name stitched on my cut—“Wizard? Or just signed.”
“To Baylor,” I replied.
Her brow rose once more, and I chuckled, shaking my head. “Gets worse.”
“Oh?” Her green eyes sparked with amusement.
“Chadwick.”
“Pardon?”
I sighed. “Baylor Chadwick.”
Thea covered her mouth to hide her giggle.
“Can only assume that my parents were trying to give me thick skin.”
Smiling, she ducked her head and opened the first book. “To Baylor, it is.”
I watched her hand move gracefully over the page and thought about what it would feel like gliding over my skin. Or wrapped around my dick. Before I became noticeably aroused, I switched to a much more benign train of thought.
When Thea finished, she picked up a small tote bag with her logo on them and slipped the books inside before handing it to me.
“Thanks.”
She inclined her head and gave me a small smile. “You’re welcome. It was nice to meet you, Baylor.”
“Wouldn’t really call this a meeting, baby.”
Her brow puckered. “I don’t understand.”
“Meeting implies more than you signing my name.”
“Okay, I’ll bite.” It was my turn to raise my brow, but despite the pink in her cheeks, her sigh was clearly one of disappointment. “What is your idea of ‘meeting’ someone?”
“Well, to truly become acquainted, you’d have to let me take you out to dinner.”
Someone behind me sighed dreamily, and I fought the impulse to turn around and scare whoever it was away. To most people, I was very intimidating. My size and fierce scowl served me well in the right situations.
“I’m flattered,” Thea said softly, “but I don’t think it’s a good idea.”
The corners of my mouth turned down. “Why not?”
“I just…um…I don’t date.”
Her expression was stoic, but the flash of sadness in her eyes disturbed me. A bad experience? I hated the idea of someone hurting her, and I quelled the instinct to demand their name or names so I could hunt them down and kill them.
I was about to push a little harder when something told me it was the wrong tactic. For now, I’d slowly wear her down, then when the time was right, I’d move in fast and hard.
“How about this?” I suggested with a lopsided smile. “I’ll go for now. But I reserve the right to try to change your mind.”
Thea giggled. “Just how do you intend to do that? You don’t even know me.”
“That’s the point, isn’t it?” I teased.
“I suppose you have a point, but I still don’t see how you can convince me when you don’t even know how to contact me.”
I winked. “I have my ways, baby. Gonna sweep you off your feet eventually.”
Thea’s smile dimmed, and she muttered something under her breath. It sounded like, “That’s what they all say,” and my eyes narrowed.
“I don’t know who ‘all’ is, baby, but I’m the only man you’ll think of from now on.”
Bending forward, I put a hand under her chin and raised her face. My thumb brushed softly over her lips, and I was pleased to see the glint of heat in her eyes.
“Later, baby.”
I stared into her eyes for another moment, then reluctantly released her and ambled away.