Pierce shoved both hands through his hair in obvious agitation. “I’m trying to make things right, Alena. The fucking video wasn’t my idea. Plank, my president, doubted my loyalty to the club. He said you were pulling me in too deep. The idiotic thing is, Plank has always used me to get information he wanted from other clubs by having me get close to a woman. He sent me after you. He wanted me to get information on your club. When you weren’t forthcoming, he thought it was because I wasn’t trying hard enough, not because you were loyal to your club.”
Alena sent him another quick look from her ice-blue eyes.
Pierce held up his hands in surrender. “I could lie to you, but I’m not. He did send me after you, but I found I wanted to be with you. It was the first time in my life I wanted to be with a woman. That never happened to me before.”
Savage could understand the mixture of anger and panic in Pierce’s voice. He’d felt the same when Seychelle had invaded his thoughts and become such an obsession.
“You weren’t in our club. I knew you weren’t ever going to leave your club. Plank was pissed I was getting zero information from you, and you were so elusive, never committing to me. I wanted to shake you half the time, Alena.”
“The video, Pierce.”
“Plank wanted me to get the video to prove my loyalty to the club. It was a shit move. I knew it when I asked for it, and I should have told him to shove it.”
Again, Alena’s blue eyes cut through Pierce, and then she pulled something that smelled delicious out of the oven. “He is your president. Very hard to do when your president makes it an order. Still, you could have warned me.”
She flashed him a little smile before turning her attention to the savory meat dish. Savage knew that smile. Alena was a wolf in sheep’s clothing. “If I had known you were going to give that video to all of your friends, it would have been unbelievably memorable and made you a sexual god.”
Pierce swore under his breath as he watched her fix several more plates and then pull out warm bread, put the loaves in baskets and send them to Delia. “Are you going to be able to take a break and go outside with me? Just give me ten minutes. It’s important.”
Alena glanced at the clock and then the stack of orders. She sighed. “You’re not getting a blow job, Pierce, not after Tawny’s filthy mouth has been all over you. You need to be scrubbed raw until you bleed, and I don’t know if that would work to get those germs off you. But you need to talk, I can give you five if it’s really that important.”
“I’ve got this,” Delia said, not looking at Pierce.
Pierce held the screen door for Alena, allowing her to precede him. Savage used the small back door they’d built into the kitchen alcoves for just such emergencies. Czar and Steele were already in place, patiently waiting, knowing Pierce would lure Alena outside. She had indicated she would go outside where his brothers waited, using herself as bait, to see what the Diamondbacks wanted with her.
Pierce took her elbow and rather than taking her close to where the other two men sitting on their Harleys waited, he steered her away from them, thankfully, close to where Savage was concealed in the shadows.
“Listen to me, Alena, since I only have five fucking minutes to convince you, I’m trying to save your life here. I know I screwed up. I’m serious about marrying you. At least let me tell everyone you’re mine. Stay away from the run. Stay home from this one and be visible all the time. Don’t be alone. I want you out in the open with people around you at all times. At night, stay with friends. Stay at Czar and Blythe’s. Be where people are.”
“Why?”
“I’ve already said too much. Enough that can get me fucking killed. Just do this for me. We can talk later, when you have more time.”
“I have no choice about the run, Pierce, but I’ll buddy up. I can promise you that. I’ll be very careful. Thanks for the warning.” Alena looked up at him for a long time. “I let you in, and that’s on me. I’m usually very cautious.”
“I’ve got a job I have to do for my club.”
She shrugged. “I get it. I have my own club. It’s just that you should have told me. I would have understood.” She gave him another half smile. “Be careful yourself, Pierce. I don’t want you getting in trouble because of me. Torpedo Ink will look after me.”
He opened his mouth as if he might say something else, shook his head and then leaned down as if he might kiss her. Alena turned her head, so his lips brushed her cheek. She stepped back. This time, Savage felt her pain, hurt, but not anger. He’d taken the anger away from her. She watched Pierce go to his bike and then ride off along with the others. They waited until they could hear the roar of the pipes on Highway 1 before Czar and Steele joined them and then Savage slung his arm around Alena.
“I’m sorry I forgot I told him about being called Torch, Czar. All of us were at the bar that night. It was when Plank’s brother-in-law grabbed Anya and tried to hold her as a shield. I don’t think anyone was paying much attention, me included. It was a shit night.”
“Doesn’t matter. He put it down to you being a chef. He refuses to see you any other way than a woman serving a man. I wonder why. He appears so much more intelligent than that.” Czar gave her a long look. “You’ve always been good at hiding in plain sight, Alena. You waited for him to see you, and he didn’t.”
“I gave him every opportunity.”
Savage hated that her voice choked with hurt. He wished he could take that for her too. He dealt in rage. Anger. “Alena, that makes you superior to him. You know that.” He brushed a kiss on top of her head. He was still going to kill the bastard one day, just not soon. They had to let whatever the Diamondbacks were going to do play out. In the meantime, all of them were guarding Alena. Surrounding her and keeping her safe.
“He had the balls to come to you and warn you,” Steele pointed out. “That was a big risk he took.”
“He did do that,” Alena said. “That was to make up for the video distribution, I’m sure. I’ve got to get back to work. Enjoy dinner and thanks for the backup.”
Savage trailed after his president and vice president, making his way from the kitchen, down the wide hall and through the dining room. He heard Seychelle’s laughter. He’d know it anywhere. Blythe and Breezy chimed in. The sound of another woman and a man’s laughter joined them. Czar paused for a moment in the archway, giving Savage just enough time to draw in a deep breath at the sight of Tony Ravard, another fucking Diamondback, staring at his woman as if he wanted to devour her.
Savage knew the older woman, Eden Ravard, seated at the table laughing with Seychelle. He’d never put it together that she was Tony Ravard’s mother. He swore silently to himself. He couldn’t shove a knife down Tony’s throat and drag him out of the restaurant with his mother looking on.
Tony Ravard was known as Shark, another SEAL and brother to Lion. He had two other brothers in the Diamondbacks. His other brothers were both in other chapters. They had also served in the navy, the SEAL program, returned, moved and then joined the Diamondbacks. It seemed it was a family tradition. Savage had been in their mother’s home more than once, and he’d never seen a single photograph that would indicate Eden’s sons were in the club.