“Marry her?” Gunner fairly spat the words. “The hell are you talking about?”

 

“You’re a bit slow, I’m afraid, aren’t you?” Russell’s eyes glinted. “Marry her. In a church. Before God and all your little friends. Marry her, and then give me a grandchild.”

 

Gunner wanted to burst out laughing. This was the craziest thing he’d ever fucking heard. He was pretty sure Russell was just doing it to humiliate him — train the gun on him, make him say he’d marry Kelly, and then laugh at him for taking the plan seriously. Because, crazy bullshit aside, what father would let his daughter marry someone she’d barely met? Let alone demand that the guy she’d barely met get her pregnant?

 

But Russell looked dead serious.

 

Gunner curled his lip into a half grin, half sneer. “That’s insane. You’re insane.”

 

“Am I?” Russell waved the gun slightly. Gunner refused to flinch. “Then I guess you’d better not push me, hmm?”

 

Oh, I’ll do so much more than push you, you fucking—

 

“You’d better do it, Gunner.” Silverback’s low, tight voice.

 

Gunner turned to him, stunned. “What?”

 

“Say yes.”

 

No way. No way would Cesar “Silverback” Ortiz go along with this for any fucking reason. Gunner’s hands clenched at his sides, and he prepared to protest, to fight. The look Silverback gave him was nearly inscrutable, but Gunner suddenly understood.You have no choice. Do this for your brothers. Give him what he wants … for now.

 

Gunner turned back to Russell. “DoesKelly want this?”

 

Russell brushed some imaginary piece of lint from his suit. “She seemed quite taken with you when she spoke about you earlier. I imagine she’ll come around to the idea without too much fuss.”

 

“You haven’ttold her?”

 

“I didn’t want to spoil the surprise.”

 

Jesus Christ. This guy was a bona fide lunatic.

 

Somewhere, a coyote howled. Others answered it, a chorus of yips and wails that made the nearly non-existent hair on the back of Gunner’s neck stand up.

 

Then there was another sound — one Gunner didn’t recognize at first. A frantic, huffing sound that Gunner suddenly realized was coming from Mica. He glanced at the kid. Mica was half doubled over, shaking with near hysterical laughter.

 

“Shut up,” Silverback snarled at the kid. “Shutup.”

 

But Mica straightened, still laughing, and looked directly at Russell. “That’s your evil genius plan? You want a grandkid so bad you’re gonna make Gunner marry your daughter? Dude, that’s … that’s lame as fuck.”

 

Gunner’s heart pounded. He could see that Mica’s hysteria was a cover for his terror, but he wanted to congratulate the kid for saying what was on everyone’s mind. He couldn’t tell if Mica was stupid as hell, or a whole lot braver than Gunner and Silverback and the others combined. “Kid, don’t,” he hissed.

 

Russell took a step closer to Mica — thought not before gesturing to a henchman to take over guarding Gunner. “What’s your name?” he asked Mica quietly.

 

“Russell,” Gunner called. “This is between you and me. Leave him out of this.”

 

Mica bit his lip, but huffs of laughter kept escaping. He leaned forward, never breaking eye contact with Russell, and enunciated each word: “Fuck. You.”

 

Russell raised the pistol and fired once. Mica went to the ground, clutching his shoulder and screaming in pain.

 

Russell turned back to the group, pretending to scan it before his gaze landed once more on Gunner. “Now, where were we?”

 

Gunner tried to drown out Mica’s cries, his jaw set tight. This was serious. This was dead fucking serious, and Gunner wasn’t feeling very confident anymore. Still, he squared his shoulders and faced Russell. “You were blackmailing me into marrying your daughter.”

 

“Ah, yes.” Russell gestured at him with the gun. “I’m not going to get down on one knee and offer you a ring, Cam.” His voice softened. “Say yes.”

 

Gunner had a sudden vision of his mother — her brittle, bleached hair as wild as her eyes. Her bony fingers were clasped around his wrist, and she was staring at him, tears tracking down her cheeks.“Say you’ll stay with me. Say you’ll stay no matter what.”

 

He was sixteen years old. Old enough to drop out of school, if he wanted to. Old enough to get a job. To leave this house and this woman behind. But the way she looked at him… He was afraid to disobey her. Afraid of what she’d do to him, to herself, if he didn’t say what she wanted him to say.

 

“Say yes, Cam.”

 

He’d sworn he’d never let himself feel that helpless again.

 

“Promise me.”

 

And after all those weeks of waiting for his sixteenth birthday, saving money, dreaming of the day the authorities couldn’t make him go back to her…

 

“Yes,”he’d said, voice cracking.“I promise.”

 

Now here he was, in a stare-down with this fuckhead, and everything in him wanted to fight. He didn’t even care if he went down, just as long as he got a chance to physically tear that smirk off this asshole’s face before he died.

 

But Silverback’s words came back to him from seven years ago.“You have potential. But you’re reckless.”

 

“So when do I get a spot in the club?” he’d demanded once, a studied sullenness covering up his need, his desperation to be allowed into the Horned Devils. To have a family he could fucking rely on.

 

“When you learn to put others’ needs before your own. When you learn you’re not the center of the universe.”

 

He stared at Russell. Mica’s groans had turned to soft hisses.

 

What other way out was there? For the sake of his brothers, he had to bow down. It was temporary anyway. As soon as they were out of here, they’d regroup at the clubhouse and start strategizing. They’d find a way to get Russell Powers to back off. Hell, if Gunner was lucky, maybe Silverback would assign him to personally “exterminate” the bastard.

 

“Yes,” he said through gritted teeth, glaring defiantly at Russell for another moment before dropping his gaze.

 

“Excellent,” Russell said, and Gunner could hear the grin in his voice. “I’ll bring the happy news home to my daughter.”

 

Love to see how she handles that.

 

He felt another ache as he thought of Kelly.

 

Russell’s henchmen began loading the truck. Russell grinned again.

 

“Cesar? I’ll be in touch.”

 

Gunner watched Silverback. Silverback wouldn’t look at Russell. Wouldn’t look at Gunner. Gunner felt a stab of betrayal.You let this happen. I thought you’d come here to help us fight. Not bend over and let this dog fuck you.

 

There had to be a reason.Hadto be.

 

Silverback went with Chevy to hoist Durango up, while Bones went to help Mica. Durango was conscious, but barely. Silverback put Durango on Silverback’s own bike, on the bitch seat. He growled at Durango to hold onto his waist and not let go.

 

A few feet away, Mica gave a groan through gritted teeth as Bones pulled him up.

 

Russell still had his pistol on Gunner. “Cam? This goes without saying, but don’t even think about running. I have friends in high places. And I know you’re not a coward. Are you?”

 

Gunner narrowed his eyes. “I’m no coward.”

 

“Good. I’ll be in contact about wedding arrangements.” Russell gestured toward the hut. “Go ahead. Mount up.”

 

Gunner guessed he wasn’t getting his Glock back.

 

He walked numbly to the hut, aware of Russell watching him. All this reckless rage, and nowhere to put it. So he thought instead about Kelly. Those eyes. No girl’s eyes had ever pierced him like hers. Had made him want to … to know her.

 

Shit. He’d never wanted anything like that before. Had never needed anything but his bike, the open road, and his brothers. The idea of being with Kelly filled him with a combination of fear and resentment and something else, something deeper, wilder, something he didn’t understand.

 

Holy fuck.

 

He was getting married.