Page 6 of Perdition
He couldn’t stop the full body shudder even if he were made of stone.
Patriot’s lips thinned, his eyes narrowing, he answered, “No.”
That was it, that single word, and yet it carried a whole other meaning, one that made the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end.
Fuck.
Standing, his bones like jelly, his heart like cement, he followed his VP from the room, knowing that he wouldn’t return to his office the same man who’d left.
THREE
The momenthe crossed the threshold into the conference room and spotted every club officer seated at the table, glaring, he knew what their little “meeting” was about.
Sarah—more accurately,himand Sarah. He hadn’t missed the looks they’d all been shooting him, especially when he and Sarah were in the same room. It didn’t help that he’d been seen by two of the brothers doing things with Sarah they apparently didn’t appreciate. Not once had he crossed the line with the woman, but he could see how sitting close, touching her, and even holding her in his arms to offer her emotional support could be misconstrued as something more intimate. He also hadn’t missed how pissed the brothers were with him regarding his behavior toward Em—but they hadn’t even bothered asking him what she’d been doing, or rathernotdoing, for the last year.
It's hard for her to be a housewife if you’re never fucking home, dipshit!
Fighting the urge to growl and punch each asshole in their face, he didn’t let his feet hesitate to carry him forward. He had nothing to hide, nothing to be ashamed of. He’d done nothing wrong…not really. He might be a goddamn motherfucker aboutmany things, but he wasn’t disloyal to Em, no matter what these men thought of him.
You must have done something wrong for your most loyal brothers to look at you like you’re a piece of shit.
And the fact that they’d all gathered, to lecture him, like some sort of fucked up MC intervention? Yeah, that rankled. These men were his brothers—ride or die, and they were looking at him like he’d stabbed them in the back.
Stopping at the head of the table, he glowered at each of them, but the assholes only glowered back, their stubborn jaws set, their frames tense, and determination in their eyes.
Goddamn it.
Biting back a curse, he crossed his arms. “This is bullshit, and you know it,” he barked.
“And it’s bullshit thatyouthink this is bullshit when we all know this is a goddamn problem,” Patriot replied, anger in his voice.
He growled, “And what, exactly, do you think is a problem? And don’t forget, I’m your fucking president.”
Locust snorted, his expression etched with anger and disappointment. “We haven’t forgotten you’re our president, Frost, matter fact, theonlyreason you haven’t been laid out ten times over isbecauseyou’re our president, a man we’ve all looked up to, respected, handed our lives and loyalty to. We would kill and die for you, brother.” Every one of them grunted and nodded, their gazes pinned to him as if they were peeling back his layers to see the truth beneath. “And I think I speak for each of us when I say that when I pledged myself to this club, to you, I also pledged that same loyalty to Emily, your wife, the queen of the Unchained MC.”
Again, each man grunted, nodding, this time their expressions softened, as their thoughts filled with Emily.HisEmily.
Redtube, club secretary and tech guru, leaned forward, planting his forearms on the table.
“What I saw when I walked into your office….” He shook his head, disappointment in the droop of his shoulders. “The way you two were so fucking cozy, like two lovers in a goddamn romantic interlude, touching each other, all gentle and shit,” he sneered. “If Emily had walked in instead of me, you’d be picking up your shit from your lawn, and dealing with splitting your assets, ‘cause she’d divorce your ass so fast your head would spin.”
A horse couldn’t kick him any harder than those words did.
Divorce?
No, that wouldn’t fucking happen—they had it all wrong!
“I can see by that look on your face that you think you’re the injured party here, that we’re making something out of nothing, but that’s so goddamn distorted, it might as well be a fun house mirror,” Patriot exclaimed, his voice uncharacteristically loud as his emotions lead him.
Shit. For Patriot, all calm, cool, and ice under fire, to raise his voice….
Goddammit!
A surge of helplessness, confusion, frustration, and fear coiled in his guts, pushing out words he never thought he’d ever say.
“I don’t know what the fuck I’m doing,” Frost snapped, shoving his hands through his hair. “I just…when I look at Sarah…I see how Emily and I used to be. How we were before all the bullshit of life aged us. I wanted that feeling again…that piece of my life from before it all got so serious.”
There was nothing wrong with wanting to remember simpler times—it wasn’t like he was making out with Sarah under the red maple tree, for fuck’s sake!