Page 15

CHAPTER 15

L aw pulled a chair out for her at the conference table in the main room, right next to Zane. That’s what she had thought until he sat down and pulled her onto his lap. She wanted to object, but it wouldn’t have made any difference.

Her eyes shot to Zane. What in the holy smokestacks was he going to think? He would think she was crazy, or worse, weird. What boy would want to see his older sister in the lap of another man? Especially since this was the first time he’d seen her in four years.

Zane glanced back and forth between Law and her. She held her breath as her brother pieced together the clues. She shut her eyes, not wanting to witness the hurt and anger she’d caused him.

“You need me to get a chair for Lovie, old man?”

Dear lord! Had her brother lost his mind? Her eyes flew open to take her brother in. Her reckless disregard for his feelings must have caused Zane to have a psychotic episode. Why else would he challenge Law like that?

Confusion halted her in her tracks. Zane sat there, smirking like any normal teenager when he gave someone he cared about a hard time.

Holy cannoli! Her brother was teasing Law. Apparently poking the beast ran in the family.

This was it. She wasn’t even going to get to talk to her brother one last time before her Viking killed him. She grabbed Law’s leg and squeezed the stiff muscles. “Law, he’s had a tough time—” She broke off when Law returned her gesture by squeezing her backside.

“I don’t know. Seems like the seat she’s got works just fine, kid. Now, you wanna tell your sister you’re okay with where she’s sitting before she claws my leg off?”

Hold on. What was happening here? Who was this man whose lap she occupied, and what had he done with her Viking Daddy?

A glance back at Zane revealed him grinning like a loon. Wait. He was happy with her sitting in Law’s lap? Now it was her turn to look back and forth between them. Law must have made quite the impression on Zane since he’d been in Darling. Oh, she still wanted to talk to him. But now they’d be discussing a completely different topic than she’d thought.

Law rested his hand on her shoulder and, with a gentle touch, rubbed his thumb over the hickey he’d given her. Pulling her back to rest against his chest, he spoke softly, quiet words only she could hear. “I told you, fairy cat. I won’t let anything hurt you. It may take a while, but you’ll get used to the idea.”

It sounded too good to be true, but she was willing to give it a try. Now, all she had to deal with were the other men at the table. They seemed surprised and cautious about her being with Law. He’d mentioned that it had been a long time since he’d had a Little. Maybe they just needed to get used to seeing him with a Little girl. She hoped so.

It likely appeared as if Law was putting on a show by having her sit on his lap. She understood. For most men, having her there would be a power play. Most men would think her compliance proved her weak, as if she’d do anything they ordered because she had no backbone. It would be all about them.

That wasn’t it with Law, though. With him, it wasn’t so much a want as a need. Something in him needed to stay connected to her, and the more obvious the connection, the better. Especially when they weren’t alone. It was another of those things she didn’t know how she knew. She just knew.

What shocked her more was that she needed it, too. She wanted everyone to know she was his, at least for now, and he was hers. No one else better sit on his lap. She’d have to shank a girl if they tried.

First, she’d have to make sure she knew what shank meant. She heard it on a lot of the TV shows she watched, like Orange Is the New Black and Good Girls . She just knew it was bad and effective.

She didn’t have to worry about what other men might do or say around her. No one would bother her with Law nearby. He would protect her. Protection had been her duty throughout her life. She’d protected Zane as best she could and herself. It was exhausting. Worrying about how to prevent bad things from happening consumed all her time.

Now, Law would take care of her and her brother. Her immediate problem was her nipples tightening. If he didn’t stop running his thumb over her side, he was going to have to visit her in the local insane asylum because his touch was driving her crazy.

Not in a bad way. She’d love his touch if they weren’t sitting at a table with seven other men, plus her brother. She didn’t want any of them to witness what his hand was making her want to do.

Geez! One trip to the little girls’ room with Law, and she was a wanton woman. To be honest, it had started the first time she’d laid eyes on him. That was way before he was her Daddy.

Her heart fluttered. She had a Daddy!

After all the years of wanting and wishing, not to mention reading all those Daddy books, now she had a Daddy. At twenty-seven, she’d given up.

Add to that her being five feet eight inches tall, carrying at least fifteen extra pounds… yeah, she’d thought books were all she’d ever have.

But now, she had Law. And even if it didn’t last past their conversation with Zane, at least she knew what it was really like to have a Daddy. And not just any Daddy, either. She had her very own Viking Daddy.

Law had told her the names of everyone sitting at the table. “All right, let’s get this party started… wait, hold on.”

They watched with expressions varying from irritation to amusement as the Musketiaras staged their hourly protest.

Once they were finished, Deke let out a groan. “You know their protest is going in the next edition of The Daily Nugget, don’t you? And not tucked inside. No, brother, that shit is Grade A front page material.”

After a round of boisterous laughter from the girls quieted, Connor glared at Hutch. “You just had to provide them with the tequila they wanted.”

“Fuck no.” Hutch shook his head and grinned. “I gave them non-alcoholic tequila in a Jose Cuervo bottle.”

Breezy slurred a warning at the table. “You… you guys’re gonna wish you’d gi—” A hiccup caught her unaware. “’Scuse me. Um… wha’ was I sayin’? Oh yeah. You’re gonna wish... you’d giben in to… to our demans.”

“Then what the hell is that about?” Gage pointed at Breezy and the others.

Hutch grinned. “That’s all them, my friend. Personality plus an extremely vivid imagination.”

After a stunned silence, the men all looked down at their laps, their shoulders shaking with silent laughter. All except Law, who howled. Lovelyn, making a stand for Little’s everywhere, glared at him.

Reid snarled. “Shut up, man. Do you want them camping out in the warehouse forever?”

Law bit his lip and gave a muffled, “Sorry, bossman. Hutch, I gotta hand it to you, brother. That was genius.”

Hutch shrugged. “You aren’t Georgia’s Daddy without learning a few tricks. Now, Lovie, you’re sworn to secrecy, little girl. What’s shared at the table, stays at the table.”

Zane laughed and jumped to his feet. “I knew it!”

Law put his hand over her knee to make sure the chair didn’t hit her. “Watch it, kid.” Nodding, Zane adjusted his chair and retook his seat.

Lovie put her hands on her hips. “You know, you could just end it by changing the bedtime to nine thirty.”

Law shifted her higher on his thighs. “Stand down, little fairy cat. We’ve already decided to do that.”

That seemed like a lot of trouble to her. “This was a corporate decision. You couldn’t each decide what’s best for your own Little?”

Reid shook his head. “Yeah, no. That ain’t the way it works. If one gets a concession like that, they all want it. We need to establish rules that work for everyone. Now, let’s get to the reason we’re here.” Reid lost his grin and turned his attention to Zane. “Gage told me you think your dad had something to do with your sister’s kidnapping. Is that right?”

Zane’s shoulders slumped. Lovie itched to hug him and tell him everything would be okay. He probably would see it as babying in front of the other men, though. He wanted to be treated like an adult, which was a good thing. She didn’t need to throw water on that fire inside him.

When he finally glanced at her, it took all she could do not to gasp. The sorrow filling his eyes made her long to punch Phillip Thorne right in the dick. Her hand reached his shoulder before she could stop it. “It’s all right, Zane. I know everything you’re going to say. The Warriors like to talk. But you’re wrong. The Warriors were after you, not me. I’m the one who insisted they take me.”

Heat flooded Zane’s cheeks as fire filled his eyes. “Why would you do that? If they wanted me, you should have let them take me. I’m a guy. You didn’t need to be held by a bunch of outlaw bikers.”

Her heart. It just might break. “I couldn’t do that, honey. You were only thirteen. I couldn’t let them take you. Phillip would have lost his mind.”

A look she never wanted to see on her brother hardened his features to an angry mask. “I hate him. He a total asshole loser who only cares about himself. I don’t get it. How could he do that to you, Lovie?”

There he was. The newborn her mother brought home from the hospital, who cried non-stop around everyone except Lovie. The five-year-old, who didn’t want to go to a different school than her. And that thirteen-year-old, terrified as grungy, greasy-haired men grabbed him and tried to force him onto the back of a motorcycle and take him away.

She’d never forget those moments, and she’d never forgive Phillip for causing them. Never. But she couldn’t let those thugs take her Zane, not when she had the power to stop them.

“Take a breath, kid. You tell your story at your pace,” Law said, his voice surprisingly gentle.

Zane took his time, regaining control of his emotions. He placed his hands, palms down, on the table. “Like I said earlier, my dad wouldn’t help me find out who took Lovie. After begging him for three solid months to do something, I decided to take matters into my own hands. Whenever he was gone, I would sneak into his office and search through his things. You know, papers, drawers, files. I looked everywhere. After another three months, I finally found what I was looking for: the connection Dad had with the Society and the Lawless Warriors.”

Without looking at her, Zane delivered a lethal blow. “It took me too long to find out what happened, Lovie. I tried. I swear, I tried. It’s my fault you were with them so long. I’m sorry.”

That did it. Burgeoning manly pride or not, she needed to hug him. When she wrapped her arms around him, he didn’t move. “Don’t hug me, Lovie. I don’t deserve it. I let you down.”

Oh, she didn’t think so. He wasn’t taking the blame on himself, not on her watch. “You stop that right now. I don’t want to hear you talking like that. None of what happened was your fault. And it wasn’t your responsibility to fix it. You take all of that and lay it on Phillip where it belongs.”

A huge Viking hand landed on Zane’s shoulder. That got her brother’s attention, but he still didn’t move. “I’ve always been straight with you, yeah, kid?”

Zane muttered a reluctant, “Yeah.”

“You’re damn right I have. You need to listen to your sister. She’s being straight with you, too. You might have been only thirteen years old, but you had the heart of a lion. You did more than anyone expected from you. Your dad sure didn’t think you’d figure it out, or he would’ve destroyed all that evidence you found. You went above and beyond. You know I’m not the kind to blow sunshine up your ass and tell you what you want to hear. I’ve got more respect for you than that.”

Zane’s head shot up as he stared at Law.

“You got grit, kid. I’m proud of you. The sacrifices you made? You got no call to feel shame. You let that shit go.”

Law held Zane’s gaze until her brother nodded. Thank the lord! However, Law’s words reminded her of where her conversation with her brother had ended.

She raised her hand, just as she had in grade school.

Law grinned. “Yes, Lovelyn? Go ahead. ”

Turning to Zane, she asked, “What were those sacrifices, exactly?”

Color flushed Zane’s cheeks again. He might be almost a man, but right now, he looked like a kid caught with his hand in the cookie jar.

Zane rubbed the back of his head. “Yeah, about that. Once I found the information, I did my research. I dropped out of school the day after I turned fifteen and joined the Lawless Warriors.”

Lovie shot up from her seat. “You what!”

Law pulled her back onto his lap. “Hush. Let him talk, babygirl.”

Easy for him to say. It wasn’t his brother who had given up his prep school education to join an outlaw motorcycle gang. Wait, Zane said fifteen. “You couldn’t join the Warriors at fifteen. They don’t take recruits until they’re at least sixteen.”

“I told them I was sixteen. The only good thing Phillip had was money. I bought a fake ID and a fake birth certificate. One thing about outlaw motorcycle gangs, they’re not big on research. Of course, eventually, they figured out who I was. I think they used me to pressure Dad, which was fine with me.”

“Oh, Zane.” Her heart might just break. He had given up everything to find her. Then he’d escaped and gone back in to rescue her. She wasn’t worth the price he’d paid. She’d figure out how to make it up to him. “We’re together again now. We’ll work it out.”

Zane looked past her at Law, then returned his gaze to her. With a grin, he said, “I’m glad, Lovie. I missed you.”

Yeah. Worst. Sister. Ever.

Chills snaked up her spine when Law whispered in her ear. “I can hear your thoughts, little girl. Thinking mean things about yourself will get you a sore bottom, too. You’ve done nothing wrong. I’ll take care of everything. You’re used to looking out for everyone all the time. Now, you have a Daddy to carry that load for you. Your new job is to trust me and be a good girl.”