“I have to go back. I must help Eva.”
“And what are you going to do that the entire club isn’t gonna do? Think this through, Ivy. You’re one woman. The club is better off with us here. Then they don’t have to be concerned about protecting us as well. They will be better able to defend themselves properly if we stay away. After all, whatever this is… it’s leveled at us.”
She lets out a low growl throwing her hand in the air. “This is bullshit!” She turns, heading for the back door.
“Ivy, it’s for the best.”
“What would you know? You took me away from my sister, and now she could die. Dammit! I might never see her again. This is all your fault!” She scowls at me.
Those words hit like a sucker punch straight to the gut.
She heads for the door, I move to follow her out, but she puts her hand up in a stop signal. “Don’t you dare follow me. I don’t want to see you right now. Déjame solo!”
I’m glued to the spot as she walks out the door, slamming it in my face. Usually, I’d yell right back, tell her not to talk to me like that. Show her who the man is in this relationship, but she has me by the balls.
Why? Because she’s right.
This is my fault.
We are here not helping those back home because of me and my fucked-up family.
And because of that, Ivy might not get to say goodbye to hers.
Inhaling deeply, I turn, make my way back to the sofa and slump on it with an overexaggerated huff. She needs to cool off. Chasing after Ivy won’t accomplish anything right now. I have to let her come to me. And she will, once she realizes we’ve got to stay here to protect those back home.
This is the only way.
Having us at the clubhouse would be more of a distraction, and the boys don’t need that. They have enough to worry about protecting everyone else who’s there right now.
Reaching forward, I grab Ivy’s sugar cookie and shove it into my mouth. No time like the present to eat my feelings.
My cell starts vibrating on the table. I figure it’s Nycto again, and I need to waste some time before I go after Ivy, so I answer, “Yo!”
“What the fuck is Nycto doing that’s so important he’s not answering his damn phone?”
I furrow my brows at the voice on the other end. It takes a second, then I register—it’s Spark. He left a little while ago to battle bushfires, Australia put out the call, and he answered.
“Asshole’s probably occupied with Eva. How the hell are you? Wait, how did you get this number? It’s a burner phone.”
He grumbles under his breath, “Couldn’t get a hold of fucking Nycto, so I tried you. You rang out, so I called Whiskey. Then he gave me this number because I told him it was fucking important.”
Exhaling, I run my fingers through my hair. “There’s a fucking heap of shit going on at the moment, man. Nycto’s in damage control. I’m not surprised he’s AWOL.”
“Fuck. Now I feel even worse to have to tell you I ain’t coming back.”
My eyes widen in shock. “The fuck you talking about? You found a hot piece of Aussie ass or some shit?”
Spark lets out a laugh. “Somethin’ like that. Tell Nycto I found my Eva. I’ve already called Jameson, and he nixed me going nomad, so we’re setting up a chapter down here in South Australia. My brother, Falcon, is going to be the prez while I’ll be his VP. So, don’t lose my fucking number, brother, I might be hitting you up for advice with this shit.”
“Holy shit! Well, I’m happy for you, brother. Maybe I might have found my Eva, too. Fuck... I don’t know. Shit! This got fucking deep. We’re all turning into pussies.” I let out a small laugh. “Seriously, though, man, I’m happy you’ve found a home there. I sure will miss your broody ass, though.”
Spark chuckles. “I ain’t the broody one, fucker. And we got Evas popping up everywhere, huh? If you think you’ve found her, I’m sure you have. Don’t let her get away from you. No sense in being lonely when you know where the other half of your soul is…” He pauses, clearing his throat. “Okay, yeah, gettin’ way too deep here. Listen, if you or any of the others ever want to come Down Under for a