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Birdie stops me when she notices the council members heading into the chapel. “Is everything okay?”

I grab her by the belt loops on her jean shorts and pull her to me. “Frankie called me.”

Her body breaks out in tremors, but her eyes hold steady on mine. There’s strength in them instead of the fear that used to fill them with his name.

“Tell me,” she demands.

“So fucking strong,” I murmur, swiping a quick kiss across her lips before leaning away so I can fill her in quickly.

When I finish telling her about the conversation I had with Frankie, she cups her soft hands over my cheeks.

“You listen to me, Pope. Get what he said out of your head. Frankie is just trying to get under your skin. He’s good at doing that.

He’ll dig and dig until he finds that weak spot and then he slides right into it.

You refused to let me believe it was my fault that Frankie abused me, so I’m refusing to let you believe this bullshit about yourself.

Evil people are just evil. Sometimes they’re born that way, sometimes they’re made. Frankie was born that way.”

“Yeah, but I have the same blood running through my veins. Hell, mine should be worse because at least his mother was someone worthy. She was just a fucking kid. Both of my parents had poison in their veins.”

“You also have Gavel’s DNA. Don’t discount the good that’s in his heart that he passed on to you. You’re both more . . . morally gray, but neither of you is evil. Maybe the good that should’ve been in Frankie died with his twin.”

“Yeah, maybe,” I agree.

“So, what are you going to do?”

“I’m going to give him what he wants. His fight with his dear big brother.”

Birdie jerks out of my hold, staring at me incredulously before pacing around the room. “What? That’s crazy, Apollonos! He’s not going to just give up because you fight him. Frankie’s going to play dirty. You can’t go to him alone. It’s preposterous.”

“Calm down, little mama.”

She twirls around and pokes her finger in my chest with a snarl.

“Calm down? Calm the fuck down? Are you serious right now? My idiotic ol’ man tells me he’s doing something stupid, like meeting up with my monstrous ex, and I’m supposed to calm down?

” She digs her finger into my chest. “Who the hell do you think you are to tell me to calm down?”

“Apparently, I’m your ol’ man,” I say with amusement, grabbing her finger and lifting it to my mouth to nip the pad of it.

Her face loses color, but she lifts her chin and narrows her eyes. “Well, now, you’re just old and hearing things. You should probably get that checked.”

“Wench,” I mumble.

Birdie pulls her hand from mine and turns away. Her ass is just right there, calling my name, begging for my hand. I give in to the urge and crack my palm across her ass cheek.

She lets out a squeal of laughter and rubs her ass, turning to stick her tongue out at me.

“Get back here and put that tongue to use, brat,” I tease as she walks away.

Birdie lifts her middle finger in the air and I toss my head back in laughter, breaking away from the funk Frankie’s call put me in.

Fuck, I love that woman.

“Let’s go, son. They’re waiting for you,” Gavel says, amusement in his tone.

I squeeze his shoulder as I pass him. “I’m going to marry that one. You watch and see.”

“Have no doubt.”

Hannibal stands outside of the chapel door with the lockbox for electronics and I toss my phone in before stepping inside. Gavel and I are the last to arrive, so I take my seat at the head of the table and bring the meeting to a start.

“Frankie called me and made a deal. If I meet him alone and fight him one-on-one, he’ll leave Birdie and the kids alone.

Not that I fucking believe him, but this could be our chance to grab him.

” I lean back in my chair with a sigh. “He informed me that all of this is my fault. We thought Birdie and Valkyrie were targets in the past, and they were, but the primary target was me.”

“What a load of shit. You don’t control what someone else does,” Tomcat says.

“Right. Not going to lie, it hit me for a minute there. Had me questioning if I was the right person to lead you all. Had someone wise explain the error in my thoughts. I agreed to his fight.” The room breaks out in angry objections, but I just hold my hand up.

“I have a plan and it’s not to go fucking alone as he wants.

Guaranteed that he doesn’t either. Joker, this is where you and your drones come in.

He’s going to have his men hidden, ready to take me out.

You all are going to do that to them before they get the chance.

The heat signatures will tell you where they’re at and you’ll direct our brothers where to go.

He won’t be stupid enough to bring a lot of them.

He’ll be too worried about them being exposed.

I’ll be fighting Frankie as you all take care of them.

Leave no one alive. They’ll be there for me.

Let’s not give them another chance. Once they’re dead, you’ll move in to where we are.

He’s going to take a trip to Slop ‘N’ Chop.

We’ll shut down for as long as it takes.

Butcher, you’ll need to find some reason to satisfy our clients. ”

We bounce plans and ideas around for the next thirty minutes until we’re all satisfied that we’ll be able to pull this off. Once a plan for this fight is secure, I call an end to the meeting.

Leaning my head back against the top of my chair, I close my eyes as wariness settles on my shoulders.

I’m ready for all this fucking shit to be over so I can find peace with my family.

A light knock has my eyes popping open.

Birdie stands at the open chapel doors. “Do you have a minute?”

“Always for you,” I tell her, pushing the chair away from the table and patting my lap.

She steps inside, but instead of climbing in my lap like I want her to, she moves behind me and places her hands on my shoulders. “If I sit on your lap, it’ll be too distracting. Let me work these knots out of your shoulders.”

“I have something you can work out,” I mumble, closing my eyes with a groan when her fingers dig in.

Birdie laughs softly. “I’m sure you do. Maybe later.”

“Fuck, I forgot how magical your hands are.”

Her fingers hit a knot right at the back of my neck and I swear it’s almost as pleasurable as fucking her is.

Almost.

Nothing will ever truly compare to that.

Fucking ambrosia. That’s what her pussy is.

Dammit. Now my dick is hard again.

“Something’s on your mind,” I state.

“Yeah,” she sighs, “I’m trying to figure out how to bring it up without accusing anyone. It’s too worrisome for me not to say anything, though.”

I spin my chair around to face her, grasping her hip when she stumbles back at the sudden move. “Tell me.”

Birdie shakes her head with another heavy sigh. “I’m probably just being paranoid.”

“Birdie.”

“There are eyes on me,” she blurts.

My back goes rigid. “What?”

“I didn’t start noticing it much until all of that went down with Spunky, but ever since then, it feels like someone is watching me.”

“Why are you just now telling me?” I ask with a growl.

She shoots me an incredulous look. “Do you know how hard it’s been to trust you?

To trust anyone here? I chalked it up to residual feelings from the past. That maybe I was just being paranoid because I’m still not completely over what happened.

Not with you all, and not with Frankie. There’s so much shit I’ve been trying to deal with on my own that sometimes I feel as if I’m never going to be healed. ”

“What can I do to help?” I ask.

“You can try to figure out if it’s just in my head or not.

When you had that confrontation with Spunky, I swear she was going to tell you who that male voice was.

I swear it, Pope. Her eyes bounced all around the room like she was searching for someone.

Then there was a moment that it seemed like she found whoever she was looking for, but then she never said anything.

She was scared, Pope. I tried to see if I could figure out who she was watching, but no one stood out.

Nobody was acting guilty or looked suspicious. ”

“How did I not see all of this?” I mutter.

“It was easy for me because I didn’t really trust anyone at that point.”

“Dammit. All right.” My brain struggles to accept that someone I trust could have nefarious purposes. “We have cameras in the common room, but if they’re one of us, then they already know that. I’ll have Cypher see if he can get some hidden in a few places without anyone’s knowledge.”

Birdie leans down and kisses me.

She licks across the seam of my lips, and I open, letting her tangle our tongues together. It’s short, full of heat, and packs a goddamn punch.

“What was that for?” I ask breathlessly when she pulls away.

She runs her fingers through my beard. “Because you’re trusting me with something important.”

“I’m trying to do better, little mama.”

“I know you are. Love you, you big beast.”

“Never going to get overhearing you say that again,” I admit quietly.

We spend the next few minutes just being with each other. Something we have rarely gotten since she’s been back home. We usually spend our time with the kids or the club, sneaking in brief moments when possible. Those are fucking amazing, but these rare moments . . . these are the ones I crave.

“All right, little mama. Got to prepare. Asses to kick, names to take. All that fuckery.”

Birdie’s fingers tighten in my beard as she yanks on it. “You better stay safe and come back to us.”

“Not getting rid of me that easily. Love you, Birdie.”