Chapter 8 Envelope #2
“All that social media crap,” Desiree said. “I don’t even know how she managed to video herself while dancing. Do I need a tripod? Did someone help her? It sounds like she did it all herself.”
To the others, they probably believed Punc’s slow nod, but I knew better from way back when.
Once Alanis and I had decided to make milkshakes.
But Alanis was convinced that we could do it without the lid on the blender and not make a mess.
She inadvertently hit the high-speed button, and we made a humongous mess.
A chocolate milkshake soaking our shirts and dripping off the ceiling kind of mess.
Punc had stormed into the room and paled.
When Alanis begged him not to tell their parents, he did the same slow nod. Not only did he rat us out, but he didn’t even wait for them to come home before calling one of his parents to do it.
Watching him raise and lower his chin like that now, I wasn’t sure what to think.
“Is there a problem?” I asked in my most innocent voice.
His eyes cut to me, and he kept his expression neutral. “Nope. What day are you planning to do this?”
Lucy and Desiree exchanged glances, but I arched a brow at him. “Tomorrow. I’ve got a ride to and from Platinum’s… and from what they’ve said, I’ll be doing this during the day. I’ll be home before dinner is my guess.”
That earned me an actual nod. “I’m glad to hear you ladies thought this through, but no matter who takes you home, a brother definitely walks you outside.”
Yeah, that was the only thing that freaked me out. I wasn’t looking forward to revisiting that parking lot, but giving into that fear meant the attacker won twice. Not happening if I had anything to say about it.
“What are you doing here?” Heaven asked, her tone overly friendly but not quite flirty.
Punc smiled, but had his eyes on me. “I’m here to take Ava home.”
My brows drew together. “I thought—”
“She couldn’t make it, so you’re stuck with me,” Punc interrupted.
I felt all the dancers staring at me. Heaven’s eyes were narrowed.
Hmm…
Desiree held out her phone to me. “Since we got a plan, put your number in there. I’ll text you tomorrow before I leave.”
I entered my number, and aimed a remorseful look her way. “I don’t have my phone. I’m not sure where—”
“I gave it to your sister,” Punc said.
“Oh. Thank you.”
He smiled.
Desiree’s eyes widened at me.
Lucy patted the bed. “We’ll see you tomorrow. Get some rest when you get home. There’s nothing like sleeping in your own bed.”
Desiree stood. “If that ain’t the truth!” She turned back toward the dancers sitting on the couch. “Let’s go, girlfriends.”
Punc
He’d made Savannah feel awkward. As much as he hated that he’d done that to her, it made her downright adorable. Even after the women left, she stared down at her hospital gown.
He pulled his backpack off his shoulders. “Do you have clothes? Cat didn’t think you did, so she sent me with some.”
She shook her head. “No. That hadn’t crossed my mind. I’ll go get changed.”
A nurse came into the room with a wheelchair and paperwork. Her brow arched at the sight of his backpack and she gave Punc a sideways glance. “You aren’t taking her home on a motorcycle, are you?”
He smiled. “No, ma’am.”
“Good.”
Savannah came out of the bathroom and Punc swallowed. The healing bruises on her face drove home how lucky she was to be alive. The royal blue t-shirt she wore hugged her curves and brought out her brown eyes. Those eyes locked with his and she shot him a small smile.
He was losing a battle with himself. He’d been fighting his attraction to her since before the audition.
She had been the reason he’d left Dalton’s party so quickly.
Deep down he didn’t trust himself around her even then.
Now that he wanted to take things further, he’d have to keep the threat of the Devil Lancers away from her.
“Would you like me to push the chair or your boyfriend?” the nurse asked.
Savannah blushed. “Oh, he’s—”
“You handle it. I’m guessing you know the most direct route,” he interrupted.
Not only was it none of the nurse’s business, but he also wanted Savannah to be a little off-kilter.
The nurse nodded. “You’re right.”
They made their way downstairs in silence.
“You want to hurry ahead and pull the car around?” the nurse asked.
Punc shrugged a shoulder. “I parked at the front.” That earned him a glower. “Sorry, but I knew she’d be gettin’ out.”
Ten minutes later, they were in his Honda CR-V and speeding along I-10.
“Why… never mind,” Savannah said.
He kept his eyes pinned to the road. “Why what, Savannah?”
She huffed out a breath. “I don’t understand why you let the nurse think you were my boyfriend.”
He fought off a grin. “I figured it didn’t hurt anything since you won’t see that woman again.”
After a moment, she nodded. “All right. That’s good because Turk made it pretty clear, dancers don’t date customers or staff.”
“Did he?” Punc asked.
“Yeah, but you know that.”
His fingers drummed on the steering wheel. “I know how much they make it clear to the rest of us.”
He felt her eyes on him, but kept quiet.
She hesitated so long, he wondered if she was going to let it go. Then she asked, “Why do you sound so bitter? Do you wish you could pursue something with Heaven?”
He choked back a laugh. “No. Why would you think that?”
She scoffed. “Your bitter tone for one thing. The way Heaven flirted with you and looked at you in the hospital room for another.”
They had exited the Interstate. While they waited at a traffic light he speared Savannah with a look. “I don’t know what you’re talking about with Heaven. If she was flirting with me, I missed it.”
“Oh. Then why so bitter?”
Traffic moved and he faced forward to concentrate.
“Not bitter, but I want more than that taste we had on Wednesday night. Our timing is bad. Under other circumstances, I’d tell the brothers I don’t give a damn about the rules.
But, shit isn’t right at Platinum’s, and I don’t want to cause another problem for the club. ”
“Oh,” she said in a small voice.
“That doesn’t mean I’m staying away from you. Someone has to make sure you’re safe. Now, I walked in on the last bit of this ‘plan’ Desiree mentioned. Are you coming to the club tomorrow?”
She nodded. “Yep, in the afternoon.”
“Keep your guard up.”
From the corner of his eye, he caught her stare. “The police came by my room early this morning. They said it was a robbery gone wrong.”
He pressed his lips together. “Right. That doesn’t change the fact it’s better to be safe than sorry, and you and Cat are living alone in that house.”
“Are you saying I should be worried still?” she asked in a wary tone.
Part of this wasn’t her business, and yet, in his eyes, the attack made all of it her business.
Cutting the security monitors wasn’t a random act.
As hard as it was to believe that there was a rogue brother in the Riot MC, Punc thought Yak was right.
Somebody had targeted Punc a few weeks back, and then they attacked Ava…
the only reason it looked like a robbery gone wrong was because Yak and Turk interrupted it.
He pulled into Savannah’s driveway, put his CR-V in park, and looked at her. “I’m saying, the cops could be wrong. While you’ve been in the hospital, I’ve had a buddy watching the house at night since your sister was here alone.”
Savannah’s lips pursed and she looked to the side.
“I told her he’d be watching,” Punc added.
She looked to him. “I’m glad you did. She doesn’t need to worry about… why somebody is sitting outside our house, but your buddy is one more person I’m indebted to because of this.”
He leaned toward her. “You’re not indebted to my buddy.” After a beat, he gave her a smirk. “You might be indebted to me, though.”
“Punc, this is serious. I’m supposed to take care of Catalina, and I didn’t even think—”
Before she could work herself up any further, he grabbed her hand. It felt right and fit perfectly with his. “Your sister’s pretty smart, Savannah. That vicious dog you have will definitely protect her if me or Brian fall down on the job.”
Her brows furrowed. “We don’t have a dog.”
He shook his head. “I didn’t see it, but I heard it barking at me. She had to put the dog away when I came to tell her you were in the hospital last Sunday.”
Her eyes lit with understanding. “Oh, I bet she borrowed our neighbor’s dog.”
He leaned back. “See. That’s a smart move.”
Savannah laughed. “Right. Until someone busts inside, and Nome jumps on them to lick their fingers, not bite off their hand.”
His head shook reflexively. “I’ll ignore someone naming their dog after a garden gnome, but most people would be terrified of that bark.”
“He has a vicious bark, but Nome is short for metronome because of his tail wagging at such a fast rhythmic speed. I suggested calling him Metro, but nobody else liked that,” she shrugged.
“Let’s get you inside. Nobody rests well at a hospital. I’m staying on your couch. Don’t let your sister do anything crazy until we know for sure that the threat’s taken care of.”
They walked up the path to the front door. “You don’t need to worry about that, Punc. Me and Cat aren’t prone to doing anything crazy. We’re rather boring.”
“Right” he muttered, his skepticism clear.