Chapter Three
Wilder
HE REACHED into his back pocket to pull out his wallet, his fingers running over the bills inside, wanting to take them all out but knowing it wouldn’t go over well.
He removed only a few tens, then put his wallet back, folding the bills and holding them toward Dash, immediately pulling them just out of the boy’s reach.
“What’s the deal?”
Dash rolled his eyes, but drawled, “Food first.”
Wilder let the boy snatch the money out of his hand, his lips quirking as he tried to hold back a smile. He wasn’t surprised to feel Alvis’s eyes on him. The boy was always watching, his brain working quietly as he remained in the background.
Alvis and Dash made a great team. He knew they’d be formidable if they weren’t living on the streets. As much as he wanted to offer them a home, he knew they weren’t in the right frame of mind to accept yet. He was slowly but surely chipping away at the boys’ defenses and earning their trust.
Alvis was the one he needed to convince.
He was the cautious one who kept the boys alive while Dash was immensely protective of the other boy.
It was like a stab to the heart when he realized their dynamic reminded him of himself and Jane.
It wasn’t that they’d been like these boys.
Jane certainly wasn’t quiet and never had been, but he’d been protective of her just the same.
She was the one who’d shown him what love and trust really meant.
Ironic that those were the things she’d now hurt him the most with.
Lost in his own misery, he didn’t notice Alvis approaching before he was barely within a few feet of him, the closest he’d ever been to the boy.
“There’s something wrong about you,” Alvis said, his voice low but firm.
Wilder froze, unsure how to take Alvis’s words. Did he think he was untrustworthy? If he’d fucked up so much that he lost what little trust he’d built with the boys, he would hate himself for it. Even more than he would hate Jane and Solo for their part in it.
“Yeah, you should take care of that,” Dash supplied, his crooked teeth filling Wilder’s vision as he smiled widely at him.
An exasperated sigh fell from his lips. “Thanks. I’ll take your suggestion into consideration.”
Dash sighed loudly, but he caught a twitch of Alvis’s lips. His heart sped up, the trepidation inside him quickly replaced by elation. If he could make Alvis even think about smiling, then perhaps he hadn’t fucked up as royally as he feared.
“I might have more work for you soon,” he said, trying not to hold his breath as he waited for their reactions.
Dash’s brown eyes lit up as expected, whereas Alvis’s stark blues narrowed, his expression unchanged from its carefully blank state.
“What kind of work?” Alvis asked, glaring at his friend in an attempt to curb his excitement.
“You know we’re opening a gym,” he started, pausing until they both nodded, “We could use some lookouts.”
Alvis pursed his lips, then cursed under his breath when Dash bounced excitedly next to him.
The two were quite the pair. Night and day, really.
Alvis, with his easily sunburned, pasty white skin, dark blond hair, and stoic personality, and Dash, with his brown skin, black unruly curls, and happy-go-lucky attitude.
He didn’t know what they’d been through and probably never would, but whatever it was, it had forged a bond between them that wasn’t likely to be broken by anything or anyone.
Then again, he’d thought the same about his and Jane’s bond.
“I’ll tell you more about it when we get closer to opening,” he said and reached for his helmet resting on the seat of his bike.
“We’ll listen,” Alvis said, giving Dash a look that had the other boy pressing his lips together, his excitement curbed, though he couldn’t entirely cease the slight bounce of his feet.
“Be good, boys,” he said before pulling his helmet over his head and swinging his leg over the seat of his bike, turning the key, and pushing up the kickstand.
Alvis gave him a tight nod, and then the boys dispersed before he could pull out onto the road. The drive to the gym wasn’t long, which was also one of the reasons he’d thought of the boys for some added security. He had a feeling they’d need it.
They might’ve landed quite a blow to the local gang when they took out a considerable amount of its men just a few weeks ago, but their operation had turned out to be much bigger than anticipated.
More men kept arriving, and Serrano had gone quiet.
Kaz had heard Serrano arguing with one of the gang members before executing him, and they weren’t sure what it meant.
Kian wasn’t saying much, either. He tried to keep an eye on him, especially after the kidnapping.
Not that Kian was outwardly showing any signs of being affected.
He was his sparkly, talkative self, unless Serrano was mentioned.
Wilder pulled into the gym’s parking lot.
It was just big enough for thirty spaces, most shaded by trees.
It was all pulled back from the road just enough to provide a bit of security.
The building itself was two stories and spacious enough to house both training machines and equipment as well as a boxing ring.
It was the latter that he was the most excited about.
He was looking forward to getting some of his brothers and sisters into that ring.
Despite being at least twice the size of Nicky, he had a feeling she’d find a way to wipe the floor with him. He couldn’t wait.
He drove to the smaller employee parking lot at the back and found a spot near the back entrance, parking next to his brothers and sisters’ bikes.
He pulled off his helmet and had a quick look around, a smile stretching his lips.
He had a good feeling about this place and what they could accomplish with it.
They were going to have self-defense classes, and if it helped just one person, he’d consider it a success.
He dismounted and hung his helmet from the handlebars. He wasn’t worried about theft with how many Kings were around. Most of the lowlifes around town weren’t stupid enough to get in their way.
He headed inside, making his way down a short hallway that housed the offices and employee kitchen. He continued down the hall and pushed through the door leading into the gym. He propped it open with the dumbbell left next to it for that very purpose.
There were quite a few people around, some helping set up all the new machines while others were finishing up the last few renovations.
They were nearly done thanks to Miles and his crew.
He and Mika had put their new construction company together in less than a week, including hiring their crew.
It had been incredible to see. Not so incredible to experience, though, because it kept Miles away from home for long hours every day, and Kaz was a sullen fucker when he was missing Miles.
He continued toward the front of the gym, where he suspected Kaz and Miles were, nodding as he passed a few of the others on the way. He was nearly at the door to the front room when he heard someone snap, “You’re an idiot.”
Recognizing Talon’s voice, he was already smiling before he stepped through the door and found him standing in front of Maddox, who was leaning back against the wall, a crutch in each hand.
That he was still using them meant Emma had likely threatened his balls.
Maddox had taken a bullet to the leg a few weeks ago, and it was healing up nicely.
When he didn’t go against Doc’s orders and moved around too much.
“At least I didn’t ride my bike here,” Maddox grumbled.
“The only thing you’re gonna do here is get in the way,” Talon said and crossed his arms.
Wilder shook his head, the smile on his lips remaining as he ran his gaze across the room.
He caught sight of Kaz, Miles, and Ezra as they crossed the room, heading toward Emma, who was standing with the two civilians she’d brought.
Emmett and Travis. He couldn’t find it in himself to give a shit about them.
All he knew was that they were both deaf and one was here to paint a mural.
Beyond that, he wasn’t interested despite the younger one’s dirty blonde hair and electric blue eyes, that sharp jaw, and pretty mouth.
He was cute in a boy-next-door kind of way, but Jane’s words from earlier were stuck in his head.
He didn’t fuck everything that moved, but it wasn’t far off.
He’d had a few situationships, but never a real relationship.
He’d never wanted one. Had never thought he needed it.
Now though?
He was well on his way to ending up alone, what with everyone else being paired up.
He didn’t mind being alone, though perhaps that was because he’d never truly felt like he was alone.
He’d always had his family, but now… He shook his head, straightening and drawing in a deep breath.
Now wasn’t the time to have a midlife crisis.