Chapter 14
MAREN
By late afternoon the next day, I was already chafing under the lockdown Lucas had imposed, which was ridiculous, considering it hadn’t even been twenty-four hours. But the strain in the clubhouse made the walls feel smaller with every minute that passed.
Lucas and I were on one of the black leather couches in the lounge area, but neither of us was really watching the muted TV in front of us. A couple of brothers were at the bar, talking in low voices. Ink strode past with a tight jaw. Someone shut a door upstairs harder than necessary.
Something was brewing, and even though I didn’t know exactly what was happening, I felt the pressure of it.
Lucas sat beside me, his thigh pressed against mine, and his arm resting along the back of the couch. He’d been glued to my side all day, and the only time his eyes didn’t look cold was when he looked at me.
Feeling the tension rolling off him in waves, I glanced up. “Is everything okay? You’ve been acting weird all morning. Everyone has.”
“Nothing for you to worry about.” He twirled a lock of my hair around a finger. “You’re safe here.”
I sighed, frustrated with how little information he was sharing with me.
“I know. And I get that things are weird with those guys trying to snatch me and everything, but I can’t shake the feeling there’s more going on.
And that it’s really bad. Something had to have changed for you to put me on lockdown. ”
“I already told you everything you need to know.” His thumb stroked the back of my knee, gentle in a way that contradicted the hard edge in his voice.
That was the same answer he’d given me when I asked before. It was just as unhelpful now as it was then.
I shifted toward him. “Lucas.”
A muscle jumped in his jaw. “I can’t, baby.”
He was sitting right next to me, but he wasn’t really here with me. The walls around him felt like they were high and thick, shutting me out. The distance in his eyes didn’t match the warmth of his body next to mine.
I stared down at the patch on the front of his vest, where his road name was stitched. Kevlar.
If he wouldn’t give me the details of what was happening, maybe he’d share this piece of himself with me. “How did you get your road name?”
Lifting my hand, he brushed a kiss against my knuckles before pressing my palm against his chest. “Earned it overseas while I was a SEAL, and it stuck.”
Quirking a brow, I nudged him with my hip. “C’mon, there has to be more to the story than that.”
“Not too much.” His broad chest rose and fell with a deep breath. “A guy on my team said that no matter how bad a situation got, I was always the one who still moved forward. Functioning when everyone else was breaking down. Shielding them from whatever was thrown at us.”
After that explanation, the name made perfect sense to me. It was exactly what Lucas was doing for me now.
Something dangerous enough to put the clubhouse on edge was happening, and he’d put me on lockdown to make sure he stood between me and that threat. Whatever it was.
But it was hard not to feel like I’d become one more thing he had to guard. And a part of me wondered if the only reason I was here with him was that I needed guarding.
“Connor told me it’s because once something is behind him, it stays safe.”
Stella’s voice broke through my spiraling thoughts. Tilting my head up, I tried to smile at her, but the understanding gleam in her eyes let me know I hadn’t done a great job at masking my misgiving.
Stella crossed the lounge to stand in front of us, her hands on her hips. Her narrowed eyes were on Lucas. “If this involves her safety, she deserves the full truth.”
The shift in the air was instant. Even the brothers at the bar went quiet.
Heat rushed to my cheeks, mortification and gratitude tangling together. Someone was saying the thing I couldn’t force past my own lips, causing even more tension.
Lucas braced beside me. “This is different. She didn’t grow up like you.”
I blinked, wondering what he meant by that. Stella cut me a subtle look and gave me the tiniest shake of her head. Reminding me not to get sidetracked. Not now.
Her focus swung back to Lucas with the kind of stare only the president’s wife could get away with. Especially when he was at her back, after following her across the room and resting a hand on her hip as he took in the situation.
Lucas’s nostrils flared on a deep exhale. “King—”
But King only lifted one broad shoulder in a shrug. “Nope.”
“You gotta be kidding me.” Lucas’s eyes narrowed. “This is club business.”
“I’m not stupid enough to interfere when my wife is riled up.” King pinned Lucas with an unapologetic look. “Especially when I don’t disagree.”
Lucas leaned forward. “Seriously?”
“The rules are different when one of our women is at risk.” King shrugged. “If you’re looking for my permission to share more of this shit with her, you have it.”
Stella lifted her chin, delivering her final blow. “If you want her trust, you gotta give yours to her too.”
Something in Lucas’s eyes flickered. My breath caught at the depth of emotion in them when he met my gaze. He looked like a man who knew he wanted to give the woman beside him more than just his protection.
Then he nodded and stood, holding a hand out to me. He didn’t say a word as he led me to his room, but the tension rolling off him made my stomach tighten. Whatever Stella had pushed him into sharing was a big deal.
When we reached his door, I bit my lower lip while he unlocked it to guide me inside. As it shut behind us, I turned toward him, but his expression was unreadable.
“Lucas?”
“Sit with me, baby.” Interlacing our fingers, he tugged me over to the chair, sitting down and guiding me onto his lap. “If we’re gonna talk about what’s going on, I want you close.”
My breath caught. “Okay.”
I shifted until I found a comfortable spot, and he tightened his arms around me. “I hate the idea of letting darkness touch you, Maren. You are so bright, full of trust and sweetness. I don’t want to tarnish that with harsher parts of my life.”
“But being in the dark about what’s happening is scary.”
His expression turned fierce. “I don’t want you to worry because we won’t let anything happen to you. I will keep you safe, and so will every brother in my club.”
“I know.” I wrapped my arms around his neck but continued to watch him expectantly.
“I’m sorry, baby.” He brushed his lips against my temple. “Not used to sharing club business with anyone but my brothers. What I told you already was more than I’ve ever shared with anyone not wearing a Hounds cut.”
My brows drew together. “But I don’t understand what could be so bad that you didn’t just say it then. I mean…I’ve already been kidnapped. It doesn’t get much worse than that.”
“I wish to fuck it didn’t, baby. But it does.” His fingers dug into my hip. “When they couldn’t take you quietly, they put a hit out on you.”
It felt like the world shifted beneath me, but Lucas was my anchor, holding me tight. “Someone wants me dead.”
Saying it aloud felt unreal.
Lucas’s chest expanded, and his lips flattened. “That’s why the compound is on edge. Why no one will give you space. You’re a target until we take the men after you off the board.”
A tremor ran through me at the idea of someone wanting to end my life because I’d accidentally seen something I shouldn’t have. I didn’t even know what I saw, hadn’t even said a word about it to anyone.
It all seemed so unbelievable. And unfair.
I pressed my hand to my stomach as guilt swelled. “I don’t want to be a burden. Or for anyone to get hurt because of me.”
“Baby, no.” Lucas cupped my jaw in both hands, forcing my eyes to stay locked on his. “None of this is your fault. I can’t tell you why, but the Hounds would’ve been in this even if I’d never met you.”
That made me feel a little better. “Oh.”
“You’re not a guest of the Hounds while we watch over you. Or a problem.” His thumb brushed my cheek. “You’re mine.”
The words cut through all the noise in my head. And then he kissed me, putting action behind them. One whose meaning was unmistakable—Lucas wasn’t letting me go.