Ethan (Devil's Flame MC #9) - Romi Hart Page 0,53

and sadness in her face, but he kept his distance. There were too many people here, too much going on. Instead of giving into the urge, he glanced around at the scene, trying to take it all in. Details mattered, and he was bound to find a clue in the actions of some of the Silver Suns who were here. And then later, he would take Brett home and make her forget her worries, at least for a little while, before they both had to face the implications of this attack in the morning.

18

Brett was grateful to Ethan. He was the only reason she’d gotten any sleep. He’d coaxed her into bed, seduced her, and had her coming until she couldn’t move. She’d passed out, exhausted, and slept fairly soundly, only to face the nightmare of real life. She sat on the edge of the bed, her face in her hands, and she felt Ethan stirring behind her.

“I have to go down to the police station today,” she rasped, her throat dry and raspy from vocalizing her pleasure through the night.

“I have to talk to them, too,” he yawned. “I also have to call Corey. We need to find a place for your club to meet.”

Brett scoffed. “I wish that was the biggest problem.” She’d had high hopes of saving the Silver Suns, but at this point, it seemed hopeless.

“We’re working on everything else, too,” he said tentatively, as if he wanted to comfort her but could tell there was something bothering her beyond the obvious.

He was definitely learning to read her. Brett shook her head. “It won’t matter.” Turning to look over her shoulder at him, she told him, “There’s nothing left, Ethan. It’s not just the building, and it’s not just the underlying tension and potential for betrayal. There’s literally nothing to keep us going. We’re completely broke.”

Ethan blinked at her, looking shocked. “Broke?”

She nodded and fell back on the bed, hopelessness overwhelming her. “The bills were way behind. I used the money the club made on the run for Dylan to catch everything up. And handed out payment to the members. There’s literally pennies in the bank. I don’t know what the hell Martin was doing or what they’ve been into, but since Dennis told me to look at the ledgers, I did. And there’s nothing. That five thousand in the office was everything we have.”

“Jesus, I knew you were having financial trouble. I didn’t know it was that bad,” he said, obviously astounded.

Brett sighed. “Neither did I. And I haven’t had a chance to look back very far and figure out where it went.” The Silver Suns weren’t the most profitable club, but they’d held their own for a long time. She had a feeling all of this wrapped back around to Martin’s disappearance, their interaction with the Ravens, and the reason Martin had tried to double cross Dylan. “But I need to know. Because I’m starting to get a really bad picture of who Martin had become, and I don’t want to think of him that way.”

“I get that,” Ethan told her, stroking her hair. “Listen, we’re going to the police station to take care of business. Then, we’re going to get in touch with Tony. If he doesn’t have answers today, Corey’s going to fire his ass, and he’ll never work again, so he’s going to have something to tell us. And in the meantime, I’ll talk to Corey. We can’t do anything about the financial situation if your club can’t meet.”

Brett clenched her jaw. “I don’t want handouts, Ethan. You don’t understand. It’s more than pride here. It’s about proving I’m capable.”

“And if I’ve learned anything through all of this, it’s that sometimes proving you’re capable means asking for help,” he countered.

He was right, but Brett felt defeated. “I don’t know if there’s a way to fix this, no matter what, Ethan. I mean, until I figure out who’s with me and who’s against me, or who was involved in trying to screw Dylan over, I’m not willing to set up another business deal with him. So, we have no source of income right now.”

Ethan pulled her into his arms, and she didn’t struggle against him. “It’s all going to work out somehow,” he told her softly. “Maybe not the way you want it, but we’re going to figure it out. Just let me help you, okay? I’m here for you, and that means doing what I can to help, even if it