Merlin blows out a breath. “Suppose it can’t get any worse.” He fixes his eyes on Charlotte’s face. “I kept my promise.”
“You did.” She gives him a tight nod. “Thank you.”
“Would you hate it if I said I’m thinking of sticking around? And that I’d like to see you and Carter more often?”
“Why?” She tilts her head, studying him. “Another MC sees value in Carter, and you need to figure out why?”
Ouch. Pride flows through me. My woman’s shrewd and not afraid to speak her mind.
Merlin blinks as if he hadn’t even realized that was the reason until Charlotte said it. “No. I’ve had a lot of time to think out on the road.”
Bullshit. I hadn’t bothered to tell Charlotte the shitty way Merlin had talked about Carter when he sat at the table with us. Don’t need to. She knows who her uncle is. Whatever epiphany he claims he had while he was out on the road is pure fabrication.
“I’d like to be closer to family.” His gaze shifts to me. “Your club going to let me settle down in Slater?”
Sure, make me look like a controlling asshole trying to keep him away from his niece. “Depends.”
“I’ll still be a nomad as far as my club’s concerned but that’ll be my home base. Nothing more.”
I shrug, not willing to commit until I’ve talked to my club.
Wrath slaps Merlin’s shoulder. “We’ll find you a room if you want to stay here tonight. We have a new clubhouse down in Empire but it’s a long ride after the night we’ve had.”
Merlin glances at the clubhouse. “Yeah, I’d appreciate that.”
“Good.” Wrath steers him away from us. “I’ll go over the rules of the house with you.”
Charlotte bites her lip as Wrath leads her uncle away. “Oh, Chuck’s going to love that,” she whispers.
“You think he was sincere?” I ask.
“Too soon to tell.” She shrugs. “He’s acted remorseful before. I’m sure right now he believes what he’s saying, but Chuck will always look out for Chuck first.”
“Smartest woman I know.” I curl my arm around her shoulders and try not to lean on her too hard. “Let’s see what’s happening inside.”
“Tell me whoever did this to you is in worse shape?” she asks, steering us toward the front door.
“Last I saw, he had a bullet between his eyes, so yeah.”
I swear she mutters good under her breath.
The front steps send a fresh wave of pain rolling from armpit to ankle. Charlotte turns her head. “Should we go in through the kitchen? Fewer steps.”
“No. We’re almost there. I’m fine.”
She holds the front door open and I hobble inside without further pain. Trinity stops us by the bar.
“Carter’s down in the champagne room with the doctor.” The corner of her mouth twitches. “Bianca’s with him. I helped Swan find a place for June. I’ll keep an eye on her.”
Trinity might as well be nominated SAA of the old ladies. Nothing gets by her when it comes to the club’s safety. “Thanks.”
She squints at me. “You all right?”
“I’ll live.”
She squeezes my shoulder quickly, then hugs Charlotte before hurrying down the hallway.
ROCK
As soon as I open the front door to our house, Hope rushes toward me. Doesn’t even question my wet hair or change of clothes.
She wraps her arms around my waist. No words need to be spoken.
Instant peace settles over me.
“Bad night?” she finally asks.
“One of the worst.”
She pulls away and stares up at me. Concern shines in her green eyes. “Is everyone okay?” The hint of fear in her voice stabs straight through me.
“A few small injuries. Doc’s coming up to take care of them.” I peer down at her. “Carla will be joining him, so don’t bother going to the clubhouse for now.”
She shrugs off my warning with a scowl. “She’s the least of my concerns. Is Carter okay?”
I give her a brief rundown of everyone’s injuries. “I have to go back to the clubhouse and keep an eye on things.”
“All right. I’ll see if Heidi will watch Grace and be over to check in on everyone.”
“You don’t have to do that.” I curve my arm around her waist and pull her close, pressing my lips to her forehead. “But I think having our first lady make an appearance wouldn’t be a bad thing,” I say, reversing my earlier warning.
“I appreciate you warning me about Carla,” Hope says, judging my mood shift correctly. “But the club’s more important than any run-in with your ex. I can handle her.”
“I know you can, baby doll.” I squeeze her tighter. “Still want to protect you from everything I can.”
“Are you hurt at all?”
I release her and hold up my right hand. “A few scrapes and bruises from a conversation with a reluctant party.”
She rolls her eyes, but takes my hand, carefully inspecting the cleanup I’d done and brushing her lips over my knuckles. “You need ice on this,” she murmurs against my skin.
“Your kisses are more healing than any ice.”
“You need your hands to twist the throttle, Mr. President.”
“Don’t I know it.” My lower back throbs, reminding me of other mishaps. “Got a sore ass from jumping off a porch and landing on the ground.”
Her lips pinch but she holds back the scolding I know she’s dying to give. “What about Teller? I know he doesn’t want to hear it but he still needs to be careful and not aggravate his back injury.”
Guilt prickles through my chest. “He was walking when I left him.”
The corner of her mouth twitches with dissatisfaction at my answer.
“We made use of the funeral home.”
She lifts an eyebrow. “How’d that go? Did the owner have questions?”
“No, he sent his daughter to do the dirty work of dealing with us.”
She flicks her gaze away. “Can she be trusted?”
“I think so. We brought Merlin’s girl home with us.” I give Hope the brief version of that fucked-up story.
“Trinity will assess her,” Hope says, shifting into shrewd lawyer mode. “I’ll talk to her too, get a feel for where her head is at.”
“Like Wrath said, not a whole lot she can do without any bodies.”
She slants an annoyed look at me. “Cases have been made on circumstantial evidence before. Plus, you guys brought her right to the funeral home.”
It’s Hope’s nature to examine every detail and find the weaknesses. She may not be working as a lawyer right now, but her clever mind never stops figuring out ways to protect the club.
“What did you do with their bikes?” she asks.
“Moved them into the woods and covered them.”
“Electronics?”
“Same.”
She stares ahead for a few beats, her mind in overdrive. “I want to look up who owns the property, so we can anticipate who might ask questions in the future. I don’t want us to be caught off guard one day.”