He swallows, hard. “Marko will kill me.”
“So will we,” Decker says in a deep, dark tone.
For a moment, I feel a little bad for the guy. He really has no options that benefit him here, but he also came to our house to kidnap me, or “have fun” as he put it. When he said that, I thought he meant rape, which sent a shiver down my spine, but then he mentioned that Marko said I’m to be untouched.
I don’t know, but the leader of the FC seems a little unhinged. I have no idea how we are going to stop him, unless we get him put behind bars.
That is the only legal option, anyway.
Decker turns around and looks at me, then pulls me to the side so Ryder can’t hear. “Cara, what would you like to do? This is about you, and you should have your say.”
“I think we need to get Marko locked up,” I say. “That’s the only way this is going to end. Well, that, or he dies.”
Decker’s eyes widen at my bloodthirsty comment. “I agree. What do we do with this guy, though?”
Felix reappears and takes Clover aside. I’m curious what they are talking about, but Decker’s question pulls me back to Ryder.
“I know Felix will want to take him in. Can he charge him with breaking and entering?”
Decker shakes his head. “We won’t be able to show the security footage because that would show Atlas grabbing him and dragging him inside.”
“Felix just went to check the security footage of the car they came here in—Ryder’s driving without a license plate and a car of that description was reported stolen. Felix will take him in for that and he won’t have to mention the breaking and entering,” Clover says.
“Perfect,” Decker agrees, cupping my cheek with his palm. “How are you holding up?”
“I’m fine, I just want this over with to be honest,” I admit, leaning into his hand.
“You and me both.”
Decker, Clover and Atlas come over and we all huddle into a group to decide Ryder’s fate. “Who votes to lock him up?” I ask.
Everyone agrees.
“I think it’s the best option. Hurting him might backfire,” Atlas says, nodding. “And Marko’s mental health is clearly hanging on by a thread.”
“All right, I’ll take him in,” Felix agrees. “But we need a proper plan. Marko has a shitload of minions that he can keep sending here. Sure, we could lock them all up but it’s going to be a long process.”
“I agree,” I say, sharing a look with Clo. “We need a solid plan.”
Felix arrests Ryder and takes him into the station. Decker goes to check the perimeter, while we order in some food for us all. Clover calls me over, and we sit down with Atlas.
“So I’ve been picking Atlas’s brain, and I think I’ve come up with a plan,” she announces, drumming her fingers on her knee. She puts her hand up. “Before you ask, no, it’s not a great plan, and Decker and Felix are going to hate it.”
“Why do you say that?” I ask, my tone wary.
Atlas smirks. “Because the two of you are going to be bait.”
* * *
“I can’t just sit around and let them come after my best friend!” Clover yells at Felix, hands on her hips.
The second we told Decker and Felix about Clover’s plan, it started a huge fight, and both of them have said that there is no way in hell that they are going to put us in harm’s way.
“This plan isn’t going to happen,” Decker says from beside me, and not for the first time. “We will come up with a better plan, one that doesn’t use the two of you as bait. What kind of men do you think we are?”
“We aren’t just sitting around,” Felix says, shaking his head. “Clo, you aren’t doing this.”
I have to admit that Clover’s plan is pretty damn risky. She wants us to let ourselves get caught by the FC, have a tracker and a microphone on us, then to let Felix and his police team come rescue us. They would arrest Marko and whoever else is there at the time. It would take all of the FC down, and it would be enough to lock them away for a long time.
“Tell me another way then,” she says, hands in the air all dramatically. “Tell me a faster way we can get these guys behind bars where they belong. Tell me. I’ll wait.”
Felix opens his mouth, then closes it. “Decker and I can—”
“They don’t want you two, they aren’t going to take you in,” she cuts him off. “They want Cara! And if I’m there, I’m sure they will take me, too.”
“And if they don’t?” he fires back. “You’re going to let Cara go in there by herself? What do you think could happen to her?”
“I’m betting that she won’t be going alone, but if she does, Cara is a lot stronger than you all give her credit for. She may be a teacher, but she’s just as badass as the rest of us. And she won’t be in there long before we come and save her. And you heard Ryder—there was a callout for her to remain untouched.”
“Nope,” Decker says, shaking his head. He turns to me. “I might not be your official man yet, or whatever, but no fucking way in hell am I allowing this to happen. I’m not sending the woman I could potentially marry one day into a fucking gang member’s house. It’s just not happening.”
We all go silent.
“What did you just say?” I whisper, not sure that I heard him correctly.
He scrubs his hand down his face. “I’m just saying. You could be the one. Fuck, it’s the opposite of the plan and it hasn’t even been that long—”
I cut off his rant with a deep kiss, straddling him. I ignore Clover clearing her throat and Felix chuckling.
I pull back and look into those green eyes. “That was cute, Decker.”
I know it sounds crazy, and there was that whole thing with the timing. But I don’t want to miss out on this wonderful man just because society tells me I need to be alone for a certain amount of time before diving into something new.
He sighs, lip twitching. “Well then.”
We rest our foreheads against each other, just enjoying the moment.
Decker smiles, and it hits me right in the chest.
“Guess we better keep you safe,” he whispers, kissing me again.
Yeah, I guess we better.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Decker
I’ve never mentioned the word marry to a woman before. But I did mean it.