Chapter 29 Solana
SOLANA
“Anyone ever tell you you’re a big baby?”
Silver scowls at me from where he’s sitting on the edge of the couch, resembling a grumpy bear who got poked one too many times. I press the cold compress gently against his right eye—swollen and already turning a lovely shade of purple after the brawl at the Steel Saloon—and he winces.
“Maybe it’s because I’m fine,” he grumbles, easily catching my wrist in his hand. “I don’t need you fussing over me. It’s not my first black eye, and it won’t be my last.”
I click my tongue, pulling my wrist free and adjusting the compress. “I don’t understand why you were all brawling in the first place. Why can’t you just use your words like adults?”
Silver cocks a brow at me, a hint of dark amusement flickering in his one good eye. “All this coming from the girl who stabbed a guy?”
I narrow my eyes at him. Then pour some extra iodine on a cotton round and apply it to the gash along his jaw.
He hisses sharply, jerking back. “Fuck, Solana—”
“Oops,” I say in my sweetest voice. “Sorry.”
He stares at me for a beat before chuckling. He grabs me by the waist and wrenches me close, crushing his mouth to mine in a hard, bruising kiss. His split lip must sting like hell, but he doesn’t seem to care.
When he pulls back slightly, his eyes are flashing with carnal heat.
“Yeah, I bet oops. More like payback.” His hand slides up my spine, pressing me tighter against him. “But damn if it isn’t sexy how you’ve got that little spark, baby.”
My cheeks flush, but I refuse to let him distract me. “I think it’s sexy when you don’t let drunk assholes like Tom Cutler get the best of you.”
“I hadn’t planned on using my fists instead of my words,” he admits. “But I’ve had enough. Years of this shit building up... something had to give.”
I sigh, setting down the cotton round and the bottle of iodine on the coffee table. The first aid supplies are scattered across the top of it—bandages, antiseptic, the cold compress that’s already starting to warm.
We’ve been at this for fifteen minutes, and Silver looks like he went ten rounds with a grizzly bear.
He tilts my chin up, drawing my gaze back toward his. “Listen to me. This is serious. It’s not some pissing contest between alpha males anymore. Tom’s taken it to a whole other level.”
“What do you mean?”
“Tom basically admitted to everything. He’s been behind a lot of what’s been going on. He’s been tailing us. He was the one who exposed us to Rachel—fed her information, maybe even told her to check your journal.”
The blood drains from my face. “What?”
“But worst of all...” Silver pauses, like the words taste bitter on his tongue. “He’s working with Wheels. With the Road Rebels.”
An unplanned gasp sputters out of me as I stare at Silver in shock and confusion.
It feels like the floor has dropped out from under me. Tom Cutler—the president of the Steel Kings, Silver’s oldest friend, Mason and Logan’s father—has been working with one of the club’s worst enemies?
“Why?” I croak. “Why would he do that? The Steel Kings is his club. You’re his best friend. I don’t understand…”
He lets out a heavy sigh, briefly closing his eyes as if he’s suddenly pained by a migraine.
“Because Tom’s gotten it into his head that I’m responsible for him ending up behind bars.
Nothing I’ve said can convince him otherwise.
So he’s joined forces with Nathaniel Rollins to basically destroy the club himself. Burn it all down out of spite.”
I stare at him, my mind reeling.
All this time, I thought the threats were coming from outside—from the Penas or even the Road Rebels. Initially, from Kel and his friends who seemed determined to make my life a living hell.
But the real enemy was inside the club all along. Sitting at the head of the table at events. Wearing the president’s patch.
“Do the rest of the guys know this?” I ask.
“Not yet.” Silver absentmindedly rubs his bruised knuckles. “In between all the brawling, there weren’t many words being exchanged.”
I reach out and take his hand, stilling his restless movements.
“Silver, you have to call an emergency club meeting. Brief all the men who haven’t turned coat about what’s going on.
My uncle and brother have been siding with Tom.
But… but they’d never turn on the Kings if they knew what he was really up to.
If Tom’s defected from the club, everybody needs to know about it. ”
Not for the first time, it dawns on me how exhausting it must be to be a man like Silver.
As he sits by me on the couch, it’s obvious he’s exhausted.
His good eye is glassy with fatigue while the other is swollen and bruised.
His posture and ragged breaths tell me he needs to relax and take it easy.
He’s worn the crown for so long. But he still stares at me like he cherishes my input. Even when most men would probably dismiss me.
“Yeah,” he admits with another deep breath. “I know.”
“First thing tomorrow,” I say firmly. “You regroup. You make plans. You take back your club.”
Silver leans forward and drops a kiss on my lips as his response. This one is softer and tender. His hand cups my cheek like I’m his most valuable possession.
I certainly feel like I am.
“I’m sorry,” he murmurs against my mouth.
A frown comes to my face. “For what?”
“For ruining your birthday.” He pulls back, guilt shadowing his features. “I never planned for it to be complicated by club bullshit. You deserved better than walking into that mess.”
“Silver…” I whisper, softening as I peer at him.
This gruff and battle-worn man is apologizing because my birthday party got interrupted by a brawl he never would’ve wanted to take place in the first place. Because he thinks I deserved an evening better than the chaos that follows him everywhere.
I nuzzle my nose against his affectionately. “It doesn’t matter. I never cared about my stupid birthday. I care more about you.”
“But I care about it. Which means I’m gonna spoil you in other ways.”
He doesn’t give me a chance to even ask what he means. He scoops me up in his strong arms and lays me flush against the couch cushions. I yelp in surprise, but the sound dissolves into a breathy laugh as he settles between my thighs, his eyes dark with intent.
“Silver, what are you—”
“Shhhh.” His hands slide up my legs, fingers hooking into the waistband of my panties. “Let me take care of you, baby.”
He drags the thin fabric down my hips, tossing it aside. Then he pries my thighs apart, settling himself between them. His breath is warm against my most sensitive skin, earning shivers of anticipation out of me.
When his mouth finally meets my pussy, I stop thinking altogether.
Silver works me over with his skillful tongue, swirling it in motions that get me off just right. He knows exactly what I like—the pressure, the motion, the licks and flicks.
His fingers join his mouth, sliding inside me and pushing me closer to orgasm.
He’s relentless. Ungodly. Every flick of his tongue, every stroke of his fingers, takes me higher ’til I’m gasping and then coming. I cry out his name as pleasure crashes through me at full force.
He laps away as if my juices are his reward. Knowing how obsessive he is as far as I’m concerned, I’d believe it if he said it.
He lifts his head when it’s over, his gaze smug and lips gleaming with evidence of me.
“Happy birthday, baby.”
The next morning feels different.
I lay in bed beside Silver, watching the pale winter light creep through the curtains and listening to the birds chirp from the trees outside his house.
I’m officially twenty-one now, but it’s more than that. It feels like we’re entering a whole new phase in this conflict against Tom and everything else that’s been going on. As if the ground has shifted under us and nothing will ever be the same again.
I can sense it in my heart.
Silver’s still asleep beside me, his chest rising and falling in slow breaths. His face is more relaxed than it ever is during waking hours. The hard lines have softened, and the tension has eased from his jaw. Even with the bruises and the swollen eye, he looks almost peaceful.
I watch him for a long moment, my thoughts drifting.
Things are scary right now. Tom’s betrayal has cracked the club wide open, and there are enemies circling from every direction. Silver’s got a target on his back, and by extension, so do I.
But I want to stick by him anyway.
He’s done the same for me. When I was broken and hurting and had nowhere else to turn, Silver was there. He protected me and believed in me. He made me feel like I was worth fighting for for the first time in my life.
I’m done being overlooked. Done hiding away and shrinking myself to make other people comfortable. I want to be Silver’s old lady, and I don’t give a fuck what anybody thinks about it.
They might say being with him is a mistake, but he’s the only thing that’s ever felt right.
Silver stirs beside me, his next breath sounding thick, almost like a snore. His good eye cracks open, bleary and unfocused, and I smile down at him.
“Morning, sleepyhead,” I murmur, leaning down to press a soft kiss to his bruised jaw.
He grunts, reaching up to rub a hand over his face. “What time is it?”
“Time to get moving.” I slide out of bed, already reaching for my clothes. “I’ll fix the coffee.”
An hour later, we’re dressed and heading to the Steel Saloon.
The morning air is crisp and cold, our breath fogging in front of us as we climb into Silver’s truck. Neither of us says much on the drive over.
There’s too much weighing on our minds. But Silver keeps one hand on my thigh the whole way, his thumb tracing absent patterns on my jeans.
A couple cars and bikes are already parked in the club lot when we pull up. The sight sends a flutter of nerves through my stomach.
This is it. The beginning of whatever comes next.
We enter the saloon to find others gathered. Mace is standing near the bar, his arms crossed and his expression grim. Cash and Ozzie are nearby, talking in low voices.
The old ladies are here too, Sydney, Zoe, and Korine clustered together at one of the tables, their faces tense with worry.
Silver squeezes my hand once, then releases it. “I’ll be back.”
He heads over to the men, and I make my way to the ladies, sliding into a chair beside Korine.
“What’s going on?”
“Apparently Tom reached out to Logan late last night,” Sydney answers. “He’s requested a one-on-one meeting. But he wanted it to be only him and Silver with Logan mediating. To hash things out.”
My brows knit together. “Why Logan? Because he’s the older son?”
“He and Tom have always been closer,” Sydney says, shrugging. “He and Mace have always had issues. Even though it was Tom’s poor strategizing that almost got Logan killed years ago... it seems like he’s still his favorite son.”
Zoe scoffs, rolling her eyes. “Ozzie’s been talking to Logan about his father’s return. He wants basically nothing to do with him. He doesn’t want Tom anywhere near Teysha or Chloe.”
“I’m not sure I blame him,” I murmur under my breath.
We sit together for the next hour while the men have their meeting in the office. The door stays firmly closed, muffled voices occasionally rising and falling behind it. I try to follow the conversation around me, but my mind keeps drifting.
“So when’s opening night for the play?” Korine asks, nudging my arm.
I blink, pulling myself back to the present. “Um. Next month. We’re still in rehearsals.”
“You nervous?” Zoe asks.
“A little.” I manage a small smile. “But I’ve got bigger things to worry about right now.”
“It’s going to be okay,” Sydney says. “Silver knows what he’s doing.”
I nod, but the knot in my stomach doesn’t loosen.
Finally, the office door opens.
The men stride out, Silver in the front. His expression is unreadable, but I can see the tension in his shoulders and the tightness around his eyes. I’m on my feet before I even realize I’ve moved.
“What’s happened?” I ask.
Silver meets my gaze. “I’ve agreed to the meeting with Tom.
Logan’s going to mediate. We’ve got to figure out what happens with the club.
Tom’s still the official president, but the club’s divided down the line.
Some men on his side. Others on mine. We need to settle this before it tears everything apart. ”
“Let me go with you.”
He shakes his head, reaching out to cup my cheek. “It’ll be alright. Mace is gonna drive with me.”
“Promise me you’ll be careful,” Sydney says, stepping toward Mace.
He pulls her into his arms, pressing a kiss to her forehead. “No need to worry, Syd.”
Silver leans down and kisses me too. “Stay put. Other guys like Tito are here to hold down the fort. I’ll be back soon.”
His lips linger on mine for a moment longer, then he’s turning away. He walks out of the saloon, Mace at his side.
I watch him go, my heart lodged somewhere in my throat, hoping with everything I have that it’s all going to somehow be okay…