Slash (Spartan Watchmen MC #6)

Chapter 1

NICOLE

N icole Hartman's hands trembled as she shoved another outfit into the duffle bag, her mind still reeling from Savannah's phone call twenty minutes ago.

Pack some stuff and go with them. Two men she'd never met were coming to her house in the middle of the night, and she was supposed to trust them with her daughter's life.

But it was Savannah asking. Sweet, protective Savannah who'd never steered her wrong, who'd held her hand through their mother's death and Nicole's messy divorce. If her sister said these men were safe, then Nicole would have to believe it.

Even if every instinct screamed at her to run in the opposite direction.

"Mommy?" Kayleigh's sleepy voice drifted from the doorway.

Nicole's heart clenched as she turned to see her four-year-old daughter rubbing her eyes, holding on tightly to her lovie, a worn out stuffed elephant.

"What are you doing?" Even in the dim light, she looked so small, so innocent.

Too young to understand the danger they were in.

"We're going on an adventure to see Aunt Savannah," Nicole managed, forcing brightness into her voice that she didn't feel. "Remember how I told you she lives far away now with her new friends?"

Kayleigh perked up immediately. "The scary motorcycle people?"

Nicole's stomach twisted. How did she explain that yes, they were going to stay with dangerous men on motorcycles, and somehow that was supposed to make them safer?

The words cut deep, because she’d asked herself the same thing the moment Savannah’s call came in. Two men. Coming in full biker leather. Names like something out of a nightmare: Slash and Blade.

They were supposed to be the good guys.

But Nicole had lived long enough to know good and bad weren’t so simple. Life was far from black and white. Somedays, all she could see were shades of gray.

She crouched down in front of her daughter and cupped her cheek. “They’re not scary, baby. They’re… different. But they’re coming here to help us. Okay?”

Kayleigh frowned but nodded, clutching her lovie tighter.

"That's right, baby. But we need to pack quickly, okay? Can you help Mommy pick out your favorite books and toys? Only what can fit in your backpack, okay?"

“Okay mommy.”

As Kayleigh scampered back to her room, Nicole caught sight of herself in the dresser mirror.

Dark circles shadowed her brown eyes, and she'd lost weight she couldn't afford to lose. At twenty-six, she looked older, worn down by a year of constantly looking over her shoulder. How could she have made such a horrible mistake? She’d once prided herself on being a good judge of character.

Her bitter laugh filled her room. Not anymore.

She could never again boast of that quality.

She'd tried so hard to build a normal life for them here. A quiet apartment in a safe neighborhood, a steady job at the local library and away from any attention, a routine that kept them both grounded. But normal was a luxury a woman like her couldn't afford.

Women whose ex-boyfriends were apparently connected to dangerous criminals.

The sound of a motorcycle rumbling in the distance made her freeze. Too early. They were supposed to have more time. They closed the distance between the two towns a good thirty minutes before she was expecting.

She went to the living room window and peered through the blinds. One massive bike turned into her complex, followed by a dark blue pickup truck, their headlights cutting through the early morning darkness.

Her mouth went dry.

One of them had to be Slash. The man Savannah had mentioned in passing, always with a strange mix of respect and wariness in her voice.

Nicole had pieced together bits of information over the months.

Slash was a special forces veteran as were all of the club members, scarred, the kind of man who handled problems that couldn't be solved with words.

The vehicles stopped in front of her building, engines rumbling like caged beasts.

The motorcycle mixed with the diesel roar of the truck.

The driver of the truck stepped out, his movements fluid despite his size.

Even in the poor light, Nicole could see he was huge, easily at least six-foot-three, with shoulders that seemed to span forever beneath his leather cut.

When he turned toward her building, she caught a glimpse of his face in the security light.

Jesus.

A jagged scar ran from his left temple down to his jaw, turning what might have been a handsome face into something that belonged in her worst nightmares.

His dark hair was cropped military-short, and when he looked up at her building, his eyes swept the area with the calculated precision of a predator.

She was supposed to go with these men? And bring her daughter?

The second man was smaller but no less dangerous-looking, with cold eyes and an aura of controlled violence that made Nicole's skin crawl. Blade, she presumed.

A knock thundered through the house. Heavy. Unmistakable.

Her pulse spiked, even though she was expecting it. He was here.

Slash.

"Nicole?" The voice was deep, gravelly, with just a hint of Southern accent. "I'm Slash. Savannah sent us."

Nicole's heart hammered against her ribs. Through the peephole, she could see him standing back from the door, hands visible, clearly trying to appear less threatening. It didn't work. Everything about him screamed danger. No, not scary. Darn right terrifying.

But Kayleigh was depending on her to be brave.

Nicole unlocked the door, keeping the security chain engaged. Through the gap, she met eyes the color of storm clouds; hard, assessing, but not cruel. Not the eyes of a man who would hurt a woman and child.

She hoped.

"You're really Savannah's friends?" she asked, hating how small her voice sounded.

"We are," he confirmed. His gaze shifted past her, probably cataloging the apartment, looking for threats. "She sent us here to get you. There’s been an issue with another club, and blackmail that needs handling. We’re going to take you with us until it’s all straightened out."

Nicole's breath caught. There was something in the way he said 'handling' that made her think problems didn't tend to survive Slash's attention.

"But, my ex," she said quietly. "My daughter’s father. He's... he won't leave us alone. He won’t be okay with me just leaving like this."

Something shifted in Slash's expression, confusion replaced with a cold fury that was there and gone so quickly she might have imagined it. "He’s hurt you."

It wasn't a question, but Nicole nodded anyway. "That's why..." She gestured helplessly. “I don’t know if I could… if I should…I don’t want to make him angry. He’s powerful…”

"You're coming with us," Slash commanded. "Where we can keep you both safe."

Safe.

The word sounded foreign, like something that belonged to other people. Nicole had almost forgotten what it felt like to not be afraid.

"Mommy, are these the motorcycle people?" Kayleigh's voice came from behind her, and Nicole spun around to find her daughter standing in the hallway, Mr. Peanuts tucked under one arm and her backpack slung over her shoulders.

When Nicole turned back to the door, Slash's entire demeanor had changed. The predator was still there, but muted, controlled. His voice gentled in a way that shouldn't have been possible from someone who looked like him.

"Hey there, little one," he said through the gap in the door. "You must be Kayleigh. Your Aunt Savannah told me all about you."

Kayleigh beamed, any fear Nicole might have expected completely absent. "Are you really as scary as you look?"

Nicole's face flamed. "Kayleigh!"

But Slash chuckled, the sound rusty as if he didn't do it often. "Probably scarier. But not to little girls who mind their mommies and pack their favorite elephants for adventures."

"His name is Mr. Peanuts," Kayleigh informed him seriously. "And I packed my coloring books too."

"Smart girl," Slash approved. "We've got a long ride ahead of us. If it’s okay with your mommy, we’ll even stop somewhere for snacks once we are on the road for a bit."

Something in Nicole's chest loosened at the easy way he spoke to her daughter. This wasn't a man who would hurt children. Whatever else he might be capable of, she could trust him with Kayleigh.

She closed the door long enough to remove the security chain, then opened it fully.

Slash filled the doorway, even bigger than she'd realized.

The scar was more prominent up close, a raised line of tissue that spoke of violence and pain.

But his eyes, when they met hers, held a gentleness that surprised her.

"Ready?" he asked.

Nicole looked around her small apartment. The home she'd worked so hard to create, the sanctuary she'd thought would keep them safe. All of it, meaningless if her ex found them. So far, she’d been lucky. But, her luck always seemed to run out.

Nicole swallowed. “Mostly.”

“Finish quickly.” He stood there half in the doorway, arms crossed, not fully coming inside, scanning her porch like he expected trouble to come storming out of the bushes. “We roll in ten.”

Her hackles rose at the command in his voice. “Excuse me?” She wasn’t used to men telling her what to do, especially strangers.

His head turned slowly, eyes locking with hers.

“Listen,” he said, voice low. “You’re in danger.

The men threatening your sister and my club are violent men without morals.

If you are in danger, your little girl is in danger.

And they won’t care that she is a child.

So right now, what you feel about me doesn’t matter.

What matters is getting you both out of this house alive. ”

The retort on her tongue died. Because beneath the harshness, she knew he was right.

“Fine,” she whispered.

Slash’s gaze lingered on her for one long moment. “Hurry up.” He paused for a second and looking at Kayleigh, he said, “please.”