Page 28 of Falling for Her Protector

“Yeah,” I offer a weak response.

“It’s your twenty-first, right?” she questions with a grin.

“Uh huh,” I nod. “But you don’t have to do anything, it’s really not a big deal,” I try, but the sparkle in her eyes tells me that she isn’t going to let this go.

“Oh, Vanessa. You only turn twenty-one once, and I’m not going to let you miss out on this rite of passage,” her smile grows as she moves around me and skips away, disappearing into her bedroom.

My eyes close as I push out a breath and consider what she’s proposing. Maybe celebrating my birthday will be fun. She’s right, I only get to turn twenty-one once, I might as well embrace it.

20

The Realization

Xavier

Ilet my bike guide the way as my mind bounces like a fucking ping pong ball between Vanessa and my boys. She leads me right to the clubhouse, like she has the memory of making this ride a million times before. I find my spot empty and waiting as I park her and slide from the saddle.

I had called Mikey before I left the apartment and told him to get the boys ready for a sit down. My footsteps seem to echo through the unusually quiet building as I make my way to church. I feel completely rattled, my mind still spinning. Normally I’m in my fuckin’ element when I head up a meeting, but today is different. Knowing that I have to stand up in front of my boys to tell them about a potential threat, and that the blame falls squarely on my shoulders, has me really fucking shook.

I crack the door and step inside, letting it close with a heavy thud behind me. All eyes lift and focus on me as I take my seat at the head of the table. I lift my ballcap off my head and set it down, running my hand through my hair as I clear my throat.

“Mornin’ boys,” I start. I can tell just from their waiting expressions that they’re chomping at the bit to find out why I called them all in here.

“What’s up, Pres.?” Pax questions and I lift my hand so he knows to shut the fuck up and let me talk.

“Some shit went down last night. I had a minor run in with Grady and two of his fucking goons. Vanessa was alone in town and they cornered her. The doc just happened to be in the right place at the right time and he texted me. I intervened and made it clear that they need to stay away, but I had to use more than words this time around,” I explain, watching the various reactions. Some of the guys love the excitement, but a few will avoid conflict at all costs and I can see the fear in some of their eyes.

“I honestly don’t think this will turn into shit, but I needed you all to know so that you can be on alert. If the Vipers come at us, we will take them down,” I growl, still feeling the residual anger from yesterday fueling me.

“Understood?” I question.

All heads nod in response as I glance around the table. Now for part two. My hand lifts to my chin, my fingers rubbing against the scruff clinging to my face. I need to choose my next words carefully.

“There’s more that I need to tell you. It’s about Vanessa,” I start. I gave them all very clear instructions that she was off limits, and what do I do? I break my own fucking rule. Now I have to come clean and explain.

A few seats away I catch sight of Stone. I watch as he cracks a grin and Griz elbows him hard in the ribs. He grabs his side, wincing in pain.

“And what the fuck is up with the two of you?” I question roughly. They settle quickly, but all I get are blank fucking stares in return.

“Well?” I demand, waiting for one of them to speak up.

“Sorry, boss,” Stone finally starts but his eyes drop to the table. “It’s just...well, shit. We already know,” he finally blurts out.

“Know what?” I ask feeling my eyebrows pinch together in annoyance.

“God damn, Stone. You really are a fucking moron sometimes,” Pax rolls his eyes and Stone just shrugs, causing the rest of the guys to chuckle around the table.

“Can I continue?” I question and they get quiet again. I take their silence as my cue. I pull in a deep breath, filling my lungs in preparation.

“I know I warned you all to keep your distance, that Vanessa was off limits. And believe me, boys, this definitely wasn’t anything I intended. But Vanessa is...I mean, shit. You’ve all fucking seen her. But that’s beside the point. She’s more, so much more...” I tell them before stopping and taking another breath as I feel myself starting to drone. I find the table full of smirks and half covered smiles, hands up over their mouths. Holy shit. How could they possibly?

“You all knew,” I say it as the realization finally hits. That’s why Stone was laughing, and what he was talking about when he said that they knew. Why the fuck did these assholes let me keep going?

“We didn’t really know, just had our suspicions,” Griz finally speaks for the group. “We knew you were looking out for her, and protecting her. Shit, we all thought it was cute, like you and Lacey had a new little sister. But the way you watched her. Fuck, man. Let’s just say, I’ve never seen you look at Lacey the way you look at Vanessa. But honestly, I don’t think any of us really knew that it was anything more than looking.”

“Speak for yourself,” Mikey pipes up. “I fuckin’ knew,” he grins from ear to ear. I completely forgot that he saw me go after her, that night I cornered and kissed her in the bathroom. Combine that with Lacey and her big fucking mouth, and I'm sure he got the whole story.

“Fucking asshole,” Pax reacts quickly to Mikey’s confession.

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