Where Savage went, Seychelle went, especially in this particular shit show. He detested that he was putting her in such a dangerous position. Worse, she was hurting. Not the physical pain she was enduring; he would get off on that. He’d hurt her feelings last night. He wasn’t certain just how, but he knew he had. He didn’t like that at all. And she knew something was very wrong just by the lack of other wives going on the run. He played with the idea of turning back. Taking her home.
His woman wasn’t oblivious. She’d heard about how “fun” the runs could be. Even though they’d said this one might be dangerous, they’d also told her it would be fun. Just the fact that Ice hadn’t brought Soleil or Reaper, Anya, meant something. She was already upset with him, and the lack of other women wasn’t helping his cause.
He reached for her hand and brought it to his thigh, pressing it deep into his muscle, half expecting her to pull away from him. She didn’t. She pressed the hand at his abdomen tighter into him and left her other hand trapped between his thigh and palm. He realized she needed comfort. He didn’t feel anger coming from her. He would know. More than anything, he felt that well of sadness in her. He’d much prefer the anger.
She didn’t ask him to stop, even when she grew physically uncomfortable. She didn’t try to communicate. Not once. Maestro called for a halt two hours later, and Savage knew he’d done it for Seychelle. She was so damn stubborn she wasn’t about to ask for any special favors, no matter how tough the ride was on her. Maestro had noticed she was walking slow when she made her way to the restroom, and he took pity on her.
“That is one tough woman,” Maestro said, glancing toward the restrooms.
The women’s rooms were only about twenty feet away from the main parking area, but Savage was uneasy with her out of his sight. He should have gone in with her, but she’d objected to him invading her privacy in the bathroom and held out her hand for the bottle of lotion. That shouldn’t matter to him, not when her safety was an issue. The others were pulling into the parking lot, but he didn’t like giving her any space at all—so why was he?
Because he didn’t want to face the fact that she knew things weren’t right and he couldn’t answer questions once again. He needed time to think. They were close to their destination now, and if he was going to take her home, he would have to turn around now.
“Yeah, she is,” he agreed.
“Czar briefed us on the Brandon Campbell–Ravard connection she put together and the possibility that Campbell is behind the hit on you. You think she’s right?” Maestro tipped his head back, studying Savage’s face through his shades.
Savage nodded slowly. “Yeah. I think it’s possible she’s onto something. I think it’s entirely possible Campbell’s been trying to start a war between the Diamondbacks and the Venomous club, and along come Seychelle and Torpedo Ink. She’s totally on his radar now. Her talent is huge, and he knows it. I’m in his way because he knows I’m her protection. He has to remove me. Torpedo Ink is a small club. He isn’t looking at it like we’re a threat as a club yet. Only me. If he’s been working on the Venomous club for a while, all he’s thinking about is removing any obstacles in his path and building his power base.”
“And this shit with Alena?”
“I think that Plank is trying to get something to blackmail our club with.” Savage shrugged. “I could be wrong, but he’s nervous, and the club president shouldn’t be showing his nerves to his club. Two separate things are going on.”
“We’re going to have to do a little cleaning,” Maestro continued. “Maybe a lot.” There was a hint of worry in his voice. “Just an observation, but your woman seems to be able to read more than you might want her to when she’s touching you.”
“Yeah.” Savage rubbed the back of his neck. There was an itch developing between his shoulder blades as if a target had been placed squarely on him. “I’m very aware. She thinks she understands what I do for the club. Talking about it and seeing it are two different things.”
Maestro took off his shades and lifted an eyebrow. “You expect me to believe that shit?”
Savage sighed. “I’m easing her into it. I’m hoping she never has to know the extent of what I do. She knows I’ve had to kill and that I ask the questions, just not how. I’ll shield her as best I can from that shit. I’m not easy as it is, Maestro, and I never will be. She’s got courage. This is just the beginning, and she’s getting thrown in when things are rough. I was hoping for time to ease her in, but we aren’t getting it.”
Maestro sighed. “Why didn’t you leave her behind?”
Savage scowled at him. “You know why. I have to bleed off some of the fucking rage or I’ll kill someone.”
“There’re going to be hundreds of willing women there, Savage. Any one of them will get on their knees for you. They always do.”
“You want to cheat your woman, Maestro, you do it. I’m not disrespecting mine.”
“Sparing her and disrespecting her aren’t the same. In any case, I don’t see that letting her have the upper hand in the relationship has done any of you any good. Your woman is in danger, and you have no idea how she’s going to behave on this trip. None. She’s a total wild card. All of them are. For all of her disagreeing with our lifestyle, the only one we can count on to obey when push comes to shove is Blythe, and that’s shocking.”
There was no getting around who he was. A fucking sadist who had to put whip marks on his woman to be aroused. To see tears on her face. To spank her ass until his handprints turned her bottom a deep hue. He glanced at Maestro. There was no getting around who Maestro was either. They were all products of their childhood. They’d tried to turn it around, tried to escape what they’d been shaped into, monsters some of them, but it was impossible, and in the end, they had to make peace with themselves or blow their fucking heads off.
“That’s because Blythe totally trusts Czar and puts her faith in his word,” Savage said. “That kind of trust requires time, Maestro. Keeping your fucking word, no matter what, including not cheating. You, of all people, know that trust is huge between a couple in our kind of relationship. This shit isn’t easy, and I’m not going to pretend to know what I’m doing. I feel like I’m walking through a minefield, but she’s worth it to me. I do know that she’s going to get hurt and she’s going to take on a lot of pain for me. I have to give her something back. I want to give her something back.”
“What you’re giving her by looking at her the way you do is a fucking target painted right between her eyes, Savage. I’m your brother. I stand with you, and I’ll protect that girl with my life, but I hope to hell you and Czar know what you’re doing this weekend.”
Savage hoped they did too. Czar needed Savage there, and Savage needed Seychelle. Czar was positive they needed Seychelle there as well. He’d all but decreed she be there. That was unusual, but Czar had that weird talent that no one questioned. If he said they’d need Seychelle, then Savage wasn’t going to argue—at least he hadn’t been. Now, things were different. He should have talked to Seychelle about what was coming. He’d intended to do just that the night before, but then the Diamondbacks showed up at the restaurant. After that, everything went south at home.