Page 61 of Iron Will
“Thanks for the ride,” I murmur as I hand the helmet back to Rourke.
“You’re welcome.” He pauses a beat. “Am I gonna see you later?”
I bite my lip. “Do you want to see me later?”
Rourke stands up from the bike and pulls me against him. I feel the heat and length of him through the fabric of his jeans, and have to stifle a moan.
“I can barely get enough of you as it is, babe,” he murmurs. The heat of his breath against my skin makes me tremble. “I think you can tell how much I want to see you later.”
“Then yes,” I gasp, suddenly wishing like hell today was Saturday.
Rourke bends down and takes my mouth in a kiss that leaves me dizzy and panting. “Text me later.”
I watch in a daze as he drives off, engine roaring. I pull in a deep breath and let it out slowly, half-sigh, half-moan. “Sweet Jesus,” I whisper.
Turning, I start toward the glass front of the building entrance. As I push through the first set of doors, I glimpse a familiar figure, standing on the other side, arms crossed.
It’s Blake Barber.
And he does not look happy.
24
Rourke
After I drop Laney off at the hospital, I’m planning to head back to my place, but a text from Axel calls me back to the clubhouse.
“Hey, what’s up?” I ask him as I stride into his office. He’s staring at the wall, jaw tense, hands steepled in front of him. I sit down in the straight-backed chair across from him, the legs squeaking in protest as they slide against the floor.
“I got a call from Chaco’s right-hand man, Indio.”
I’m instantly alert. “How’s Chaco?”
“He’s okay. I mean, he ain’t okay, but he’ll live.” Axel’s forehead is furrowed.
“But?”
“But.” He blows out a breath. “It’s about what we already figured. The ambush was the Caballeros. One of the bodies they found was a guy they recognized as a member of that gang.”
“Fuck.”
“Fuck is right.” Axel runs a hand roughly through his hair. “Indio confirmed what Chaco said yesterday: They got enough product from a different source to get us our shipment today. But that’s just a temporary fix. The fact is, Dos Santos is on the verge of a full-blown turf war.”
“What do you think Angel’s gonna say?” I frown.
“Don’t know. I’m callin’ him later today.” Axel grimaces. “We got an agreement with Chaco. And Angel’s a man of his word. But if Los Caballeros has turned against the Dos Santos cartel, they just lost their only ally against Sinaloa.” He pauses a beat. “And we just lost our pipeline.”
My head starts to pound. This is big. It ain’t just the pipeline. It’s our livelihoods. And more than that, it’s about maintaining our hold on our territory. The Lords are going to have to make some tough decisions going forward.
“We got any other sources we could tap to fill the holes, for now?” I ask. “What about that club to the east of Angel’s chapter? The Death Devils? You think they got any connections we could use?”
Axel considers for a second, then nods. “Maybe.”
“Ain’t one of Angel’s men married to the daughter of their prez?”
“Huh. I don’t know about that. But I know Angel and the prez of the Death Devils are solid.” Axel sits up in his chair. “I’ll talk to Angel about it. Fuck I’m not looking forward to this conversation.”
“Angel ain’t gonna be pissed at our club. This ain’t about us. Fuck, we’re lucky we all got out alive.”