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“You’re going to be fine,” Lily said, trying to assure Skylar, who looked anything but convinced she was going to be fine.

I was taking her home today, and she’d just spent the last fucking ten minutes freaking out about how she was gonna cope without the support she’d had while in hospital. Lily had to be one of the most patient women I’d ever come across. The way she remained calm with my sister impressed the fuck out of me.

Panic crossed Skylar’s face. “I might not be! King still hasn’t been able to find a physio off your list who can fit me in. What am I gonna do without you, Lily?”

“Jesus,” I muttered, losing my patience, but Lily’s eyes cut to mine and she hit me with a look that told me to rein it in.

“I’m going to give you my phone number, okay?” Lily said to Skylar as she sat next to her on the bed and held out her hand for Skylar’s phone. “And if you need to chat or need me to talk you through anything at all, you call me.”

Skylar passed over her phone and fuck if Lily’s offer didn’t calm her down a little.

Lily keyed her number in, handed the phone back, stood and then said with a level of bossiness that Skylar responded to, “Right, up you get. I’ve got another patient I have to see, and your brother looks like he’s about to lose his shit if you guys don’t get moving soon.”

My brows arched as I met Lily’s gaze. Her serious expression disappeared and a ghost of a smile flickered across her face. It didn’t last long, and as soon as she turned back to Skylar, it was gone, but it sparked a smile of my own.

I watched as she helped Skylar up, all the while talking positive shit to her. It reminded me of how Margreet used to encourage us as kids and how she always had the ability to stay focused and calm, even when we gave her hell. Lily’s words blurred into the background as my gaze drifted down her body. Fuck, she owned some serious curves and a tight ass. The kind that usually gave me a hard-on. If I wasn’t knee-fucking-deep in club shit at the moment, I’d have paid more attention to those curves by now.

“King!” Skylar’s voice sliced through my thoughts, drawing my focus back to the situation at hand. “I’m ready to go.”

I nodded as I continued eyeing Lily. When I made it back up her body and found her watching me, she blinked and immediately dropped her gaze before turning to Skylar and mumbling a goodbye. A moment later, she exited the room, confusing the hell out of me as to what the fuck just happened.

“King, can you take this?” Skylar asked, passing me her iPad.

I packed it into her bag and gathered her shit while she sat in the wheelchair the wardie had waiting to take her downstairs. Ten minutes later, I had her settled in the car, ready to take back to the clubhouse when Hyde called.

“I’ve got some good news finally,” he said. “Ghost has someone organised to take care of Marx.”

“When?”

“Tonight.”

“Let Tatum know. The less she feels the need to ring me, the better.”

“Will do.”

“Any news on Romano?”

“Nothing yet. I do have news on Ivy, though.”

I followed the wardie and Skylar to the lift. “What?”

“She’s looking for you.”

“And?”

“She’s harassing the fuck out of Winter about seeing you.”

“Tell her I’m busy, Hyde.” Seeing Ivy was the last thing on my agenda for today.

“You ever tried to tell Ivy something she doesn’t wanna hear? She’s fucking stubborn.”

“Yeah. I know.” Did I fucking know. “She can wait.”

“Fuck,” he muttered.

“You get Monroe out of town?”

“She left this morning. I hope to fucking hell we get this shit sorted soon because she’s headed down to Melbourne to see Charlie who’s staying with Tenille. Those women could kill each other if left together for long enough.”

I gripped my phone harder. “We need to make a new plan to get to Romano. I’m on my way back there now. Get Axe and Zane in on this too.”

As I ended the call, I eyed Lily ahead. “I’ll meet you downstairs, Skye,” I said, leaving her with the wardie while I cut a path to where Lily stood going over her files.

“King,” she said, glancing up from her work. Her eyes held uncertainty, wariness maybe, but they also held the kind of warmth I didn’t often come across in my world. And again, it reminded me of Margreet.

“Will you work with Skylar on her rehab?”

She shook her head. “No, I don’t do private physio work. Have you got many left to call from that list I gave you?”

“I’ve called them all. None have any spare appointments.”

She frowned. “Oh. I thought Skylar said you still had some left to try.”

“You saw how anxious she is about this shit. I haven’t told her they’re all busy. I was hoping you might be able to squeeze her in.”

“No, sorry, like I said, I don’t do any work outside of the hospital.” She shifted her weight onto one leg, drawing my attention down those legs again. Fuck, I really needed to get laid. I needed to drive some of this fucking tension out of my body.

Forcing my gaze back up to her face, I said, “I’ll pay you whatever you want.”

She opened her mouth to respond, but quickly shut it again. Then she said, “I honestly don’t have time between my kids and work. Sorry. There are plenty of good physios out there. You’ll find someone.”

With that, she gave me one last smile and walked away, leaving me staring after her wondering why the fuck I was annoyed she’d said no. There had to be hundreds of physiotherapists in Sydney.

“Fuck,” I muttered to myself, stalking towards the lifts. I’d find someone else. Skylar didn’t need Lily.

“I’ve spent days looking into Ryland and can’t find any dirt on him,” Tatum said an hour later when she found me in the clubhouse bar. I hadn’t been in the clubhouse for longer than twenty minutes, and hadn’t had a moment of peace in that time.

“Keep digging. Everyone has dirt.”

“I’m telling you, King, he doesn’t.”

“Fuck, Tatum, he will. Just keep fucking looking.” It had just gone midday and the bullshit I’d already dealt with today left me little patience for any more. From issues with cleaning jobs we had going on, to a drug shipment being delayed, to club members growing restless with the Romano situation not being handled yet, to Tatum being on my ass about this, I was ready to call it a fucking day and go in search of pussy to dull the roar in my head.

She hit me with the cool gaze she often reserved for me. “I should have known you’d fob me off. You’ve been doing it for days.” She turned to leave, throwing back, “I’ll get Billy to help me on this.”

I reached for her, wrapping my hand around her wrist and pulling her back to me. Every ounce of frustration and anger I felt over this fucking situation and her attitude spilled out as I growled, “You do that, and you won’t like my response. This shit stays club business. The minute you make it something other than that is the minute you’re out in the fucking cold.” My eyes bored into hers. “Understood?”

Her cool gaze quickly turned stormy. Yanking her arm from my grip, she continued to drive my blood pressure up, hostile as fucking ever. “No, not understood. You can take your threats and shove them up your ass, King. I’m not scared of you.”

“I’m not trying to scare you, Tatum. I’m just letting you know how shit will go down if you choose a path that’s not in the club’s interest.”

She glared at me for a moment longer before stalking out of the office.

Fucking hell. The last thing we needed was Billy getting involved in this. I had to keep this contained in order to keep the club safe. There was far too much shit buried that needed to be kept that way, and the more people involved, the more likely some of it wouldn’t stay buried.

I dialled the lawyer we’d hired to get Nitro out.

“King. What’s up?” I appreciated that he always got straight down to business.

“I need to see Nitro.”

“I can get you in tomorrow morning.”

“Book it.”

“Will do. I’ll send you the details.”

Hyde entered the office as I ended the call, his body as tense as I felt. “Ryland’s back.”

I blew out a harsh breath. A fucking frustrated-as-fuck breath. “Jesus fucking Christ.”

Hyde nodded. “Yeah. You want me to tell him you’re not here?”

“No, I need to know what the fuck he’s here about today. Has Tatum left?”

He nodded again. “What happened there?”

“She’s ready to get Billy involved. I’ve organised a visit with Nitro tomorrow. He needs to keep her on a fucking leash.”

“Might be easier said than done with her. And Nitro’s not gonna be happy if we threaten her in any way or do something to keep her quiet.”

“I’ve already threatened her. If Nitro keeps her quiet, I won’t need to go through with it.” Without waiting for his input on that, I asked, “Any luck on the rat yet?” He and Zane hadn’t turned up any good leads yet.

“Still nothing, but I’ve got some of the guys out knocking down doors to find this motherfucker. It won’t be long now. Also, nothing new on Brant either. He might be back in Melbourne, but Romano hasn’t made contact with him.”

“He will. Keep Devil and Kick on Brant for when that happens,” I said as I exited the office. “And organise Church for tomorrow morning. I want to see where everyone’s at.”

I made my way outside to where Ryland was waiting for me. He watched me come towards him with the same satisfied expression he’d worn the other day. The one I would wipe from his face when I was finally done with him calling the shots.

“King, are you having trouble sleeping? You look tired.”

Maybe I’ll just fucking deal with him now and be done with it.

“What the fuck do you want now, Ryland? I’m busy and don’t have time for all your visits. Either charge me with something or get the fuck off this property.”

He smirked. “I see my presence agitates you, which is completely warranted with the shit I’m digging up on you. I just dropped by today to let you know the investigation is progressing well.”

I clenched my jaw as the overwhelming desire to smash my fists into his face consumed me. The whole fucking scenario of how I’d remove him from this earth played out in my head in a rush of seconds, but I managed to control my thirst for his blood. “And now you’ve told me that, you can back the fuck up and leave.”

“Nitro sends his regards. Mind you, he doesn’t talk much, that one. No worries, though, Marx does enough talking for the both of them.”

I took a step closer to him at the same time Hyde joined us, warning, “King. Not a good idea, brother.”

He was wrong. It was the best fucking idea I’d had in a long time.

Fuck.

I stepped back. “If that’s all, Ryland, I’ve got shit to do.”

He hit me with another satisfied grin. “I bet you do. I wouldn’t bother trying to cover up all your skeletons though, King. It’s too late for that.”

As we watched him leave, Hyde said, “He’s fucking with us, brother.”

My head throbbed with the beginning of a headache. “Yeah, but I’m not convinced he doesn’t have some shit. We need to call Cole in on this now. We need all the fucking help we can get.”

He nodded. “I agree.”

“You organise that while I check in with Axe to see if he’s been able to find out what Marx has given the feds.”

I found Axe a few minutes later, chatting with Skylar in my room that we’d set up for her. They were laughing over something, and it caused me to slow down for a moment. Axe hadn’t been around much over the last few years while he’d been dealing with some personal shit, and I knew Skylar missed him. He’d always had a calming effect on her. Hell, Axe had a way of quieting any fucked-up situation. He also had his own way of fucking shit up if it was called for, but right now, I knew his presence soothed her fears,

“Did you find me a physio?” she asked when she realised I stood watching them.

“Still working on it.”

“Oh God, there’s not going to be anyone available on such short notice. I just know it.” Her voice wavered with anxiety, something she’d struggled with since Margreet’s death.

“Hey,” Axe said, in the deep lulling rumble of his that usually worked on her, “it’s all going to work out okay, Skye. There are plenty of physios around.”

The anxiety I’d heard in her voice flashed in her eyes as she glanced between Axe and me. “Can you please go and take care of it now, King?” She paused for a moment before adding with an almost begging emphasis, “Please?”

I jerked my chin at Axe. “I need a moment with Axe first and then I’ll get on it.”

Skylar reached for Axe as he stood. “Don’t be long. And can you bring me some of that chocolate when you come back?”

He nodded with a smile before meeting me outside. Closing the door of her room, he asked, “What’s up?”

“Did you get hold of the guy who might know something about what Marx has told the feds?”

“Yeah. Just waiting for him to get back to me. He said to give him a couple of days, so I’m expecting to hear something soon.”

“Let me know as soon as you do.”

“Will do.” He pulled a pack of gum from his pocket and shoved some in his mouth. “What’s the go with the physio? Surely it’s not that hard to book one?”

“Fuck,” I muttered. “None of the ones the hospital physio recommended are available. I haven’t told Skylar that so don’t mention it to her. We’ll have to take our chances on an unknown and hope like fuck they’re good.”

“What about the hospital chick? Skylar hasn’t stopped talking about her. She’d help ease Skylar’s anxiety.”

“She said no.”

“And since when do you ever take a no? Just make it happen.” He nodded at the door to Skylar’s room. “I better grab this chocolate she’s after and get back in to her before she loses her shit. This whole situation is fucking with her head.”

He left me alone with my thoughts, which was a dangerous place to be. This situation was fucking with all of our heads.

I entered Skylar’s room again and found her sitting on the bed crying. She glanced up at me and wiped her tears away. My fucking heart squeezed at the difficulty she was experiencing with everything going on. I had to fix this.

Holding out my hand, I said, “Skye give me your phone.”

Her brows pulled together. “Why?”

I motioned with my fingers for her to just do as I’d asked. “I want Lily’s number.”

The way her shoulders relaxed told me I had to do everything I could to get Lily to say yes. Axe was right that she would help Skylar’s anxiety.

She passed her phone as she swiped more tears from her face. “Thank you,” she said softly. “I know I’m a pain in your ass and that I don’t make any sense with all my worry, but I’m really grateful for everything you’re doing.”

“Fuck, if it wasn’t for the shit I’ve got going on, you wouldn’t have been in that accident, Skye. This is all my fault.”

She sighed and rested her head against the wall. “I don’t blame you, King. And you’ve really gotta stop taking the blame for every bad thing that happens in our lives.”

Before I could respond, Annika joined us. “How’s the patient?” She smiled at Skylar. “The kids are dying to get in here, but I told them you need some time to settle in first. I’ll do my best to keep them away for as long as I can, but I can’t promise anything. They’re going a little stir-crazy being cooped up here.”

A smile tugged at Skylar’s lips. “Oh God, please let them come in. We can go stir-crazy together. And besides, I need some little slaves to do stuff for me.”

Annika laughed. “Perfect. It’ll get them out of my hair. I might even get a nap in this afternoon.” She glanced at me. “What are you taking the blame for now? I heard you guys talking when I came in, but I didn’t hear what it was about.”

“Nothing,” I muttered, not wanting to get into that conversation again.

“It wasn’t nothing,” Skylar said. “I was telling King he needs to stop taking the blame for the bad stuff that happens to us.”

“Oh,” Annika said, nodding. “She’s right. I mean, you might be the almighty King, but you’re not responsible for everything.”

I ignored them and held up the phone. “I’m going to call Lily.”

As I stepped out of the room, Skylar called out, “We’re going to finish this conversation one day.”

It wasn’t a productive conversation, so I had no desire to finish it, let alone engage in it. Instead, I dialled Lily and waited for her to answer. She didn’t pick up, though. It went to message bank, which I didn’t bother with. I dialled again. Same thing happened. On the third try, she finally answered.

“Shit, sorry, Skye, I was in the middle of dealing with a teenage girl who thinks it’d be a good idea to follow in her mother’s footsteps and give up her virginity at an age where she doesn’t fully comprehend that babies can come from sex. And an asshole ex who still doesn’t understand that he wouldn’t get as much hell from me if he just held up his end of this parenting gig. I’m going to need copious amounts of wine tonight to get through this day. Why do men make our lives so hard some days? I know that if he backed me up on this with her, she’d be more inclined to listen to what I’m saying.”

Her outburst cut through the shit in my head in a way not much did. I didn’t know what the fuck it was, but she somehow managed to jolt me from my thoughts, easing some of the tension in my body as she did so. It was a welcome fucking distraction. One I didn’t have time for, but one I would indulge just to have a few minutes of peace from my thoughts.

“Take something from him that he values. He’ll do whatever the fuck you want after that.”

Silence. And then—“King? God, I thought it was Skylar calling. Just ignore everything I said. I’m rambling. Shit. Wait. What do you mean by take something from him?”

“What does your ex get from you that he values?”

A few moments passed in silence where I figured she was thinking about my question. “He likes to come over to my place a freaking lot, but there’s no way I can take that from him. I’ve tried telling him to stop, but he just keeps coming whenever he wants. Besides that, I don’t know…” Her voice drifted off before suddenly she said, “Oh, I know! He still has access to the couple’s gym membership my sister got for me years ago. I’ll take his name off it.”

I frowned. “You let your ex use a gym membership you pay for?”

“I don’t pay for the membership. It’s her bestie’s gym, so they give it to me for free. Linc is vain as fuck, so it’d kill him if I stopped letting him use it.”

I had zero clue what would possess a woman to let her ex use her like that, but in my experience, people did shit for the strangest fucking reasons, so I wasn’t touching that. “Cut him off. He’ll come crawling back to you begging for it back and willing to do whatever that takes.”

She turned silent again before saying, “You’re a smart man. Thank you.”

I’d been called a lot of things in my life, but smart wasn’t one of them. The compliment felt odd, but fuck, it put a smile on my fucking face. “I’ve dealt with enough assholes to know how to use them to get what I want.”

“Take the compliment, King. Now, what can I do for you? I’m presuming you called for a reason.”

I was unsure how her ex managed to coerce her into shit; she seemed switched on to me. But then I knew better than anyone how love led you down paths you never intended to take. “I need you to take on Skylar’s rehab.”

“I’m sorry, but I really can’t fit her in. My kids are a handful at the moment and work is kicking my butt.”

“There has to be something I can offer you to make you say yes. Name it.”

“You just don’t back down, do you?”

“No. Not when I want something this much. I’m not sure how close you and Skylar got, although with the way you answered my call, I’m guessing you guys got friendly, but she suffers from anxiety. It’s flaring pretty badly due to the accident and what she has to do now. Just the mention of your name eases that anxiety a little.”

She exhaled. “I really wish I could say yes, and I want to, but as much as I try to figure it out in my head, I just don’t see how I can work her into my schedule.”

The headache Ryland caused pounded harder against my skull. “You’re busting my fucking balls here, Lily. Have a think about it. I’ll get back to you soon.”

Without waiting for her reply, I ended the call. I’d give her the rest of the day, and then I’d strongly encourage her to come around to my way of thinking. There was no way she wasn’t taking on this job.