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  King bit down on his cigar. After his stunt today, his seduction was going to take time. Jackal had called earlier in the day to inform him Evie was accompanying Penni back to Queen City. A member’s wife from Jackal’s biker club was friends with Penni; therefore, the information had come as no shock to him. The Last Riders were checking on him.

  His life was one of violence. He held a stranglehold on Queen City. No illegal activity happened in his city without his permission and a cut of the profits. All those who tried found themselves out of the city or six-feet under. The last few years had been calm since, over the years, no one had dared to challenge his authority except Digger who was now in protective custody, courtesy of the state of Texas.

  “Should you be out of bed?”

  King didn’t let his surprise show. He didn’t even bother to turn around, instead looking at his son-in-law’s reflection in the glass. “I needed to move around. You just missed Lily and Beth.”

  “I saw them leave.”

  King took a deep draw of his cigar. “Henry okay?”

  “He’ll wake up in a few minutes.”

  King turned to face Shade. “Say what you want to say.”

  “Stop, King. Go back to Queen City. Live your life. If you want to play father, call Lily once a month. Come and see her for a week in the summer. But stay out of our lives the rest of the time.”

  “And if I don’t? I’m not someone you can make disappear without Lily asking questions.”

  “I don’t have to make you disappear, King.” Shade’s eyes held the promise while his features remained emotionless.

  “I see, like how the two bikers who nearly killed Lily ended up at the bottom of Black Mountain?”

  Shade’s stony silence filled the room. King had met every type of man imaginable in his type of work; however, this man staring at him from across the room was different. He didn’t react with anger at his manipulations or cutting remarks. Nothing got beneath his skin. He was as cold-blooded as a snake, and sooner or later, he would strike out and hurt Lily. King’s stomach clenched with fury that his daughter was married to the sinister assassin.

  An ironic smile came to Shade’s lips. “I understand your desire to protect Lily from me, but I will never hurt Lily—I would die for her. You, on the other hand, have always placed your own needs above hers. You were the one who left her in the care of a mother who sold her. You were the one who placed a child molester in her home. And you were the one who nearly got her killed three weeks ago. Lily needs protection from only one person—you.”

  King crushed his cigar out. “You don’t need to remind me of the mistakes I’ve made with her. I plan to do better by her.”

  “The only way you can do better is by staying out of her life. You’re not going to fix your past mistakes now. It’s too late.” Shade went to the bedroom door.

  “You’re not going to keep me out of her life. You’re wrong for her, and we both know it. When I prove it to her, she’ll leave you behind. You don’t frighten me, Shade. It’s been awhile since I’ve had to get my hands dirty, but that doesn’t mean I’ve forgotten how.”

  “Go home, King.” When Shade went out the door as quietly as he’d entered, King went out after him, but he was already gone. He found Henry lying on the kitchen floor, just coming to.

  “What in the fuck happened?” he asked as King helped him to his feet.

  Damn, I’m getting old, he thought as he felt his body’s aches and pains under Henry’s staggering weight. “Shade.”

  “Damn, I didn’t even hear him.”

  “I didn’t either until he talked.”

  “I think you’re biting off more than you can chew with him, Boss.” Henry’s cautionary words weren’t a deterrent, but he wasn’t stupid either. He hadn’t lived this long being stupid.

  “Next time, I’ll be more careful.”

  “If you’re not, I don’t think either of us will be alive to regret it.”

  Chapter 8

  Penni tossed her magazine down on the couch between them. “Let’s go out to dinner. I’m bored sitting around the apartment.”

  Evie looked at Shade’s sister in amusement. “We’ve only been back two days.”

  She shrugged. “I know, but I want to go out.” She leaned forward, looking at her with her pleading blue eyes. “Please, Evie… please.”

  Evie playfully shoved her off the couch. “Okay, okay. Jeez.”

  The women grabbed their jackets before going out the door. Penni’s apartment was close to several of the higher-end restaurants, but they chose a restaurant that was more laid back, deciding to sit outside at one of the small tables.

  They were discussing how much Penni was looking forward to going back to work the next week when a dark car pulled up to the restaurant across the street. Evie recognized the man getting out of the driver’s side door.

  Henry walked around the front of the car, opening the back door. King came out, reaching his hand back in for the beautiful woman sliding out of the car with a seductive smile aimed at an elegant King dressed in an expensive dark suit. King’s arm circled the woman’s waist as he escorted her inside the expensive restaurant.

  The woman’s pale-pink ice dress moved fluidly against her body as she walked. The dress was stunning, the flowing silk ending just below her knees with a row of ruffles. Evie had last worn ruffles when she was five-years-old. On King’s date, they looked flirty and enticing. She was everything Evie had turned her back on years ago.

  Evie took a long drink of her beer.

  “Something wrong?” Penni asked at her sudden silence.

  “No. You ready to go?” Evie paid the check.

  Walking back to the apartment building, she listened to Penni’s enthusiasm, which brought back her own reflections of how long it had been since she had felt the same about her own job.

  She loved being around The Last Riders. She even enjoyed the laid-back lifestyle of working in the factory. However, she was a NP and that was being ignored. She was going to use the time she was in Queen City to come to some hard decisions she had been avoiding.

  * * *

  “She’s here.”

  King sat at his table doing paperwork. At Henry’s words, his eyes went to the doorway, seeing Evie walking through as if she went to a strip show every Saturday night.

  He had wondered when she would show up. She had been in Queen City for over a week. Jackal had told him she and Penni had driven there from Treepoint while he had flown home. He had been confident she would show up at his strip club; how else was she supposed to find out what she needed to know?

  Shade would want to know if Lily was in danger. How else would he do that other than to send someone in to find out? The sexy woman was the perfect one, too. His son-in-law was a smart bastard.

  King had no intention of getting Lily hurt. In fact, he had decided to get out of the business, but the man he wanted to take over was proving resistant. Until he came around, King was unable to move on. He had fought for years to reach the position he was in, yet now, he couldn’t give it away fast enough.

  “Tell Jackal I have another job for him. I want him to get Evie’s background. I have a feeling I’m going to need all the help I can get.” Henry moved away to follow his order while King looked Evie over as she took a seat not far from the stage, and one of his girls took her drink order.

  Women would often come in to watch the shows, usually with their boyfriends or husbands, wanting them to get horny enough to climb into bed together. I doubt Evie has that problem, he thought cynically. She sat at the table confidently, ignoring the admiring gazes of the rowdy men sitting around her.

  King lit a cigar, studying her as she drank her drink and watched Sherri on the stage. She even whistled a couple of times, yelling encouragement when Sherri almost tripped as she finished her spin before she had regained her equilibrium.

  King signaled to Henry, who had come back after his call to Jackal. “Tell Sherri, if she doesn’t pass the
next drug test, she’s gone. I’ve warned her about taking something before she gets on the stage.”

  “She says she needs it to get on the stage.” Henry’s defense of the woman came as no surprise.

  “She won’t need it if there isn’t a stage to get on. You can tell she’s high.”

  “I’ll talk to her.” Henry withdrew at his sharp gaze. He was getting fucking tired of Sherri taking advantage of being his headliner.

  King went back to observing Evie, who was ignoring him. He got up from his table, walking across the room. Usually, he sent for the ones he wanted to talk to and had someone bring them to his table. He was sure Evie would ignore the order, however.

  When he pulled out a chair at her table and took a seat, she didn’t say anything.

  “How are you enjoying the show?” King was amused at her pretended indifference to his presence.

  Evie looked at him briefly before lifting her drink. “Are your girls always stoned?”

  King’s mouth tightened. “No, usually I fire them.”

  As Evie finished her drink, King motioned for Angel to bring her another.

  “How are you enjoying staying with Penni?”

  Evie’s face lit with affection. “You can’t not enjoy being around that girl. She’s in a perpetual good mood.”

  “I don’t think Jackal would agree with you.” Her indifference disappeared at his sardonic comment.

  “The fucker who kidnapped her?”

  “He didn’t exactly kidnap her; he held her as collateral for one of his friends,” King reasoned.

  “I think Penni would disagree with you.”

  “He won’t be bothering her again.”

  “No, he won’t.” Evie’s quick agreement had King wondering what measures she had taken to ensure Jackal wasn’t allowed another opportunity to get near Penni.

  “If he fucks with her again, he might get more than he bargained for.” Her smug smile had King thinking he should pass on a small warning to the biker.

  When Angel set Evie’s drink down in front of her, managing to rub her breasts against King's shoulder as she leaned over, Evie caught the movement with amusement.

  “I don’t fuck my girls.” King interpreted her look.

  “I don’t care who you fuck.” Her steady gaze didn’t shy away from his.

  “You don’t mind sharing?”

  “Never have, never will.”

  “That’s a dangerous concept.”

  She leaned forward, putting her face in his. “I know you’re old,” her insult struck a nerve, “but there is such a thing as condoms. I’m not the one who doesn’t practice safe sex.”

  “I’m not old. I’m only forty-three.”

  Sherri finished her set, leaving the stage.

  “When’s the next show?” Evie faked a yawn.

  “Fifteen minutes. Do you want me to show you around the club?” King offered, trying to regroup. He couldn’t seduce the woman if she hated his guts; he was actually going to have to work hard to get Evie to drop her guard. It was his own fault; so far, he had been the mastermind of fuckups.

  Evie shrugged. “I don’t have anything better to do for fifteen minutes.”

  King stood up, leading the way through the club. He took her backstage to the dressing area where he opened the girls’ dressing room without knocking. Sherri was getting dressed, and a new girl he had hired just a few weeks ago was sliding her panties on. Both women were naked from the waist up.

  “King!” Pepper squealed. The girl dropped the top she was about to put on to run to him, pressing her bared breasts against his chest as she reached up to kiss him. King let her have his mouth for a second before raising his head, stepping back and taking her wrists in his hands to move her hands away.

  “Sherri, Pepper, this is Evie.”

  Both women studied Evie, sizing her up as competition on the stage, and their friendly looks disappeared. King could understand why, too. Evie looked sexy in tight jeans that hugged her ass, a wine-colored t-shirt leaving the tops of her breasts bare, and her black leather boots coming up to her thighs. Around her throat was a black leather collar that had silver studs.

  King’s eyes roved over her. She had an air of confidence usually found only in men. He was becoming more and more attracted to her each time he was in her presence. If she wasn’t The Last Riders’ whore, he would have already made a move to fuck her himself.

  “You going to work for King?” Pepper asked, sliding on her see-through, white angel top then putting on the fake wings.

  “No. I only strip in private.”

  “Oh, you’re a private contractor. I did that once and was dumb enough to do a bachelor party. After that, I went to work for King.”

  “I’ll make sure not to take any bachelor parties.”

  When a knock came at the door, Pepper grinned before going to open it. “I’m up.”

  After the door closed behind her, Sherri took a step forward. “Sorry, King. Henry told me what you said. I’ll make sure I don’t do it again.”

  “You want to do that shit, do it on your own time, not mine. If you need to take something to get on the stage, I can put you on serving drinks.”

  “No. The money’s not as good.”

  “Then don’t screw up again,” he warned without sympathy.

  “I won’t.”

  King led Evie out of the dressing room and back out front.

  “What’s up there?” She motioned to the steps that led upstairs.

  “I’ll show you.”

  The stairway had gold carpeting and led to a large, gold door. King pressed a button and it automatically opened. He watched Evie’s reaction when she entered the VIP room. It was busy tonight with a large crowd.

  He showed her to a booth at the back of the room, motioning for her to slide in. She slipped in, scooting over so he could sit down on the circular seat.

  King made sure he slid close enough to her that his thigh and shoulder brushed hers.

  “Hi, King. What can I get you two?”

  “Bring us two of the Dalmore 62.” He saw Evie's amused expression. “What’s so funny?”

  “You and Shade have a lot in common.”

  “Really, I don’t think we’re anything alike.” King’s mouth tightened at the thought of his son-in-law.

  Evie burst out laughing as Ashley set the glasses of expensive whiskey down in front of them. “If you didn’t have a stick up your ass where he’s concerned, you could be best friends.” She took a drink of the whiskey.

  Her glistening lips were more than he could resist. He leaned down, catching her mouth with his own.

  Evie jerked her mouth away from his. “Stop flirting with me, King.”

  “Why? I think you’re sexy as hell.”

  “You also think I’m a whore.” She downed her drink when he remained quiet. “You’re a real bastard.”

  “Yes, but since when did you only fuck nice guys?” King snapped his mouth closed. He couldn’t keep from antagonizing the woman. Her fiery spirit gave him a respite from the ennui he had been experiencing for the last year.

  She leaned closer to him, her hand running up the length of his thigh under the table. His cock jerked in lust, thickening behind his suit’s pants as her fingers traced over the outline before cupping it in her hand.

  “I’ve known men like you my whole life. Men who think only a man deserves sexual satisfaction. Even those goody-two-shoes bitches who see me on the back of one of the men’s bikes will call me slut because it’s too mortifying to admit even to themselves that I’m getting laid and enjoying every minute of it. I’m fairly young and having fun. I play with people who feel the same, just wanting our freedom. There’s nothing wrong with that, is there?”

  King shook his head no, gritting his teeth in pain because her hand had tightened on each word until his cock was clutched in a grip that threatened to break his composure. “I see your point.”

  “I hope you do,” Evie said, releasing his cock to
pick up her drink.

  “Have you eaten? You’re going to get sick with that on an empty stomach.”

  “I had dinner before I came. Besides, it’ll take more than three glasses of whiskey to get me drunk.”

  “Good.”

  “Why?”

  “Because I don’t fuck a woman when she’s drunk.”

  “I’m not going to fuck you,” she snapped. “I don’t even like you!”

  “You like everyone you ever fucked?”

  “Yes.”

  “Then I’ll be the first,” King said, finishing his drink. “Let me show you the rest of the club.”

  He thought for a minute she would refuse, but she slid out of the booth. King moved to the side of the room where windows looked into the private rooms and pulled Evie closer for a better look. Inside the room, Jazz was giving a lap dance.

  The sultry dancer was standing over the client with a leg on the side of his chair while she ground her breasts into his chest. Her ass was swaying to the beat of the music King and Evie couldn’t hear.

  “The room is soundproof,” he offered, seeing the question in her eyes.

  Jazz straightened imperceptibly, raising her arms to place behind her head. She lifted and tossed her hair around as her breasts, covered only in a small pasty at her nipples, swung in front of his mouth.

  “Why is the other curtain pulled over that room?” Evie pointed to the room next to the one they were looking through.

  “The client wanted privacy.” The red room had a separate entrance from downstairs that the client was given a special key to. The lap dancer was given a door code only she knew at the time of the appointment. The dances involved no clothes on the dancer and touching was allowed, of course. The dancer’s fee skyrocketed at the added services. The elite in town didn’t mind paying his prices for their privacy, though.