Chapter 2

2

FOX

R iding down the road like a bat out of hell, I thought about how my life had suddenly veered onto an unknown path. Maverick would be justified if he wanted to give me endless shit about falling for one of the daughters of Mac Mackenzie—the president of the Silver Saints MC. I'd certainly dished it out when my VP had brought home Mac's oldest daughter, Molly.

To be fair, the Silver Saints' reputation was as intimidating as my own club, The Iron Rogues. But everyone feared Mac. He could be a ruthless son of a bitch, though he'd never show that side of himself to his wife and kids, from everything I'd heard about the man.

So when Maverick basically stole Mac's daughter out from under him, I was fucking livid. We'd built a fragile bond with the Silver Saints, and I had been sure that he would blow it all to hell and start a war. But when it became clear that she was the love of his life, I'd been ready to stand behind him. When I took off an hour ago, I'd been pretty confident that the situation would be resolved with an even stronger alliance. At least, until Mac discovered that I was about to lay claim to his second-oldest club princess, Dahlia.

Despite the shit going down, literally in my front yard, I'd been momentarily stunned when the silver Mustang convertible pulled up and a curvy redhead exited the car. I hadn't been interested in women in a long time, so my swift and violent reaction to her was even more shocking.

She had pale skin with sexy-as-fuck freckles scattered everywhere that my tongue itched to trace. Piercing green eyes, high cheekbones, and full, bitable lips made my cock twitch. Then my eyes dropped to take in her hourglass figure with generous tits, round hips, and thick thighs…my mouth had watered, and my pants had grown overly tight.

She looked a lot like her sister, Molly, and going by her age, I assumed she was Dahlia.

Since we were in the middle of a fucking standoff with the man stalking Maverick's old lady, I hadn't had much time to appreciate the view. However, I'd known immediately, without a doubt, that this woman was mine.

Mav and I had seen Dahlia creeping up behind the insane man with the gun at the same time. Considering the gun was to his woman's head, I knew he would be in a dilemma about what to do next. He didn't have to make a choice, though. Dahlia belonged to me, and I would take care of her from now on.

After I got her safely behind her car, I made sure to keep her in place and out of the line of fire. Then when the motherfucker was dead, I stupidly left her alone when Blade called my name.

I whipped around at the sound of the Mustang's engine and scowled as I watched it hightail off the compound.

Without another thought, I ran to the garage and climbed onto my Harley, intent on chasing Dahlia down. Although I hadn't seen her yet, I'd overheard her conversation with Molly, when she stated her intention to hide out from her dad in Europe for a few months. That was definitely not happening.

A hurricane was headed up south, causing a fuck ton of rain as I headed out of Tennessee. It had shifted unexpectedly and was headed straight for Atlanta, so if I didn't catch her before she made it on the plane, I'd be stuck waiting out the storm—which would test my patience and probably result in dead bodies—before chasing her around another continent.

In order to avoid those outcomes, I had to make sure I was headed in the right direction. I had a hunch that Dahlia wouldn't use the closest airport if she was on the run. Before I left the compound, I sent a prospect to find one of our enforcers, Deviant. He was our resident computer expert…or as other people liked to call him, hacker. Not as good as Grey—a Silver Saint and a freak of nature—but he came close. I needed him to track down Dahlia's flight information.

Not more than ten minutes into my ride, I had gotten a text on my watch giving me the airport—I'd guessed right, thank fuck—the airline, and the flight number. I hadn't been far behind her, and traffic wasn't as much of an issue for motorcycles as it was for cars, so I did my best to beat her there, even with the rain slowing me down.

My father and Mav's had founded the Iron Rogues, and we'd grown up in the club. Though we'd both worked our way up from prospect, like any other member. Before that, we went our separate ways for a while but remained as close as brothers.

I hadn't always intended to take over for my dad as president. My mom died when I was a teenager, and since she'd always dreamed that I would go to college, I earned a degree in finance from Princeton University. Numbers made more sense to me than people, especially after growing up as the son of an MC prez.

After graduation, I went to work on Wall Street, following the most common path for someone with my IQ and degree. I was known for my skills, but I was also considered wily—which was how I eventually got the moniker "Fox." It didn't take long to put a few million dollars in the bank, at which point I admitted to myself that I was bored as fuck and went back home.

Once I patched, I earned the job as MC treasurer, using my skills to keep the club and its businesses flush. Eventually, Mav returned and patched as well, so when his dad retired and mine followed suit, we were voted into our current roles. It was always useful to throw people off guard when they realized I was wicked smart, a complete nerd, and a bit of a neat freak—Mav's words. But I'd been schooled on martial arts and weapons from a young age, so they would eventually see that I was as lethal and ruthless as any other member of the Iron Rogues.

I sure as fuck hoped my wiliness paid off today because I needed it to snag my woman.

When I drove into the parking lot at the Atlanta airport, I waited near the entrance so I could see Dahlia's car come in. Deviant had let me know she was about ten minutes behind me. While I waited, I called Mav, hoping he'd pick up since it had been several hours from when I left. I figured he would have spent that time in bed with his old lady, especially after almost losing her. But I called anyway.

"Only taking this call to say, what the fuck, Fox?" he growled when he picked up.

"You can give me shit when I get back," I grunted. "Just let me handle the situation with Dahlia first."

I heard a muffled voice in the background and assumed it was Molly, probably asking about her sister. "Want to tell me what the fuck that situation is before I'm forced to kick your ass to make my woman happy?"

"She's mine."

Maverick was silent, accepting my explanation without question. Nothing else needed to be said about that.

"What's the plan?" he asked after a beat.

"Gonna grab her when she arrives and head home. But I'm watching the forecast, and the storm's proving to be unpredictable. If we get delayed, you'll need to come up for air and run shit until I get back. Especially with the Cordell situation so unstable."

Our last job had gone sideways, and we were still dealing with the fallout. Including a crazy asshole who thought he was a key player when really, he was the boss's lap dog.

"Done. Should I tell Lex to make sure the safe house is stocked?"

Like most clubs, we had chapters in other locations, as well as safe houses maintained by prospects in strategic small towns. They also had generators and sat phones in case of an emergency. There was one just over the state line into Tennessee. "Hadn't thought of that option," I mused. "Yeah, have Lex get it ready, just in case."

I wasn't sure if it would be necessary, but taking Dahlia to a small, secluded place for the night—especially if she decided to be stubborn about this whole thing—held merit.

A silver car caught my eye as it approached the ticket machine. "Gotta go. Keep me updated." I hung up without waiting for a response.

Dahlia drove into the covered parking lot, and I watched her search for a spot, then stop a few rows back from the doors to the terminal. I hopped off my hog and jogged toward her, intercepting her a few feet from her car.

"Dahlia," I grunted.

She halted suddenly, her expression a mix of surprise and wariness as she shifted her small suitcase so it would be easily tossed away and turned her key out so it could be used as a weapon. Good girl.

"Relax, baby. I'm Fox. The Iron Rogues president."

Her shoulders lost their tension, but her brow furrowed as she cocked her head to the side and studied me curiously. "Um…yeah, I know. Are you going somewhere?" Then her eyes narrowed. "What are you doing here?"

My mouth twitched with the beginnings of a smile, and I winked at her. "I'm here for you, babe."

"P-pardon?" she stuttered, blinking rapidly.

"We need to have a talk."

Dahlia's lips curled down. "Um, okay, but it will have to wait. I have a plane to catch right now, so?—"

I shook my head and strode forward, quickly eating up the space between us until we were nearly toe-to-toe. "Now."

"But—"

Even though I'd hoped she would simply agree to leave with me, I knew it was unlikely, so I'd spent the ride coming up with a plan to make it happen. "If you're worried about your dad, I can take care of him," I assured her as my gaze dropped to her plump lips. I was dying to see them wrapped around my cock.

"Take care…" The alarm in her tone caught my attention. "You will ki?—"

"Fuck no!" I hurried to clarify. "Shouldn't have put it that way. I meant that I'll make sure you stay hidden from him if you come with me."

"Why would I do that?" she asked, her expression leery. Behind the hesitation, I caught a spark of interest and had to bite back a confident smile.

The moment I'd touched Dahlia earlier that day, I'd felt the electric current between us. When I set her down behind the car, her dilated pupils and flushed cheeks told me she'd felt it too. Some might have chalked it up to the adrenaline of the situation, but when my thumb had brushed over the pulse on her wrist, she'd shivered and licked her lips. It had taken a herculean effort on my part not to feast on her delectable mouth right that second.

I debated whether to be honest or go with the half-truth I'd thought up on the way here. Ultimately, I decided to save the part where I informed her that she was mine and I was keeping her for a time when I had her undivided attention…and it was a fuck of a lot harder for her to run away.

"I'm surprised you'd want to miss your sister's pregnancy. What if there are complications and she needs you?"

Dahlia's mouth fell open, and she gasped. "Molly is pregnant?" she squealed as she clapped her hands and bounced on her toes. If any other chick had done that, I would have rolled my eyes and kept my distance. But Dahlia was cute as fuck when she was giddy. I liked seeing her so carefree and happy, I wanted more of it.

"I didn't think you'd take the chance of missing the birth of your first niece or nephew," I drawled, driving my point home.

"I was only going to be gone for a few months," she objected.

"Unless you got stuck over there for some reason."

The comment caught her off guard, and she contemplated the point I'd made for a minute. "I suppose you're right. I don't want to take the chance, but…" Her gaze shifted over my shoulder toward the airport entrance. "My dad will probably keep me locked up in a tower until I turn thirty, so I'd miss everything anyway."

I rolled my eyes and crossed my arms over my chest, looking down into her gorgeous green pools. "Told you, babe. I'll take care of it."

Her expression was skeptical, and she raised an eyebrow, waiting for me to explain more.

"We'll leave your car here, and my man will make sure you're checked in for your flight. He'll even make the system think they scanned your boarding pass at the gate. We'll leave a trail that will eventually lead right back to the airport." If we let it go cold, Mac would lose his fucking mind and wreak havoc until his little girl was found. "It'll buy you a couple of weeks, at least. Then I'll help you figure out something else."

Dahlia chewed on that for a few seconds, then propped her hand on her hip and asked, "Why would you do this for me?"

Again, I swallowed the impulse to inform her that I take care of what's mine. "Mav's my brother." It was a simple explanation, and I knew it would be enough for Dahlia because she'd grown up in a world where oaths made people more loyal than blood.

I uncrossed my arms and held out my hand.

She bit her bottom lip, and I couldn't stop myself from pulling the plump pink flesh from between her teeth—though I didn't tell her that no one was allowed to bite that lip except me. The touch sent a spark of desire streaking from the spot where our skin met. I watched it flare in her pretty green eyes and smirked when she immediately slid her palm against mine.

Grabbing her suitcase with the other hand, I lifted my chin in the direction of my bike before leading her away from the terminal doors.

I was impressed with how light she'd packed and grateful because her backpack duffel fit into the large tail bag hanging off the back of my bike. The rain had made the spring air muggy, so I hated to make her wear the leathers I'd grabbed before I left the compound. But I would never fuck with her safety. It would be windy once we were on the road, and the protective wear would keep her drier.

Before I could hand her a helmet, she snatched it from my other saddle bag and began to put it on. Chuckling, I batted her hands away and adjusted it before buckling it beneath her chin. So damn adorable. Then I grasped her waist, lifted her, and settled her on my ride.

It was a good thing I'd contacted Mav about the safe house. By the time we reached it, the rains were torrential, and I could barely see where I was going. We crossed a bridge over a rapidly rising river—the only entrance to the town—and drove for a few more minutes until we reached a small, plain building. It was intentionally nondescript and easily forgettable.

I parked in a shed at the rear and helped Dahlia off the bike before grabbing her bag. Then we made a run for it.

We were soaked to the bone and would both need a hot shower to warm up so we wouldn't get sick. I intended to take full advantage of the opportunity to try to talk Dahlia into sharing the steamy water.

Conserving water and all that shit.