Page 4 of Phoenix

I nodded slowly, already mentally pulling apart the structure we’d set up. Frustration built inside me with every word she spoke. Even though I hadn't been hands-on with the center in years, it was extremely important to me. To the entire club. And if someone was fucking with it, depriving those kids of a safe place and decent meals and snacks, they were gonna pay.

However, I wasn’t one to be easily riled, so I remained calm and queried, “You have any documentation?”

Anything she’d found would be useful in speeding up the process.

She crossed her arms, mirroring me. “I have some notes from people I’ve talked to. And I took some screenshots of anything budgetary I could get eyes on. I’m not a forensic accountant, but I’m also not an idiot. I double-checked everything before I marched into the wedding and nearly ruined your friend’s special day.”

“Hunter will survive,” I murmured, my mind split between the problem at hand and the gorgeous woman I was quickly coming to think of as mine. “He’s got his girl. You’re worth the interruption.”

Surprise flickered in her expression, and pink bloomed on her cheeks, but she kept going. “I tried asking the manager about stuff I noticed that hasn’t been done, but he blew me off.” She shrugged. “I don’t know anyone on the board, and I doubt they would take my calls. Maybe I’m wrong and paranoid?—”

“Relax, baby. I believe you,” I quickly jumped in to reassure her.

Drumming my fingers on the edge of the desk, I explained, “We’ve donated to Juniper Grove for years. Quietly, consistently. But I let the board handle allocation. Stayed mostly hands-off because it was so well run in the past. Clearly, that was a mistake.”

“Clearly,” she echoed with an adorable huff. Her eyes narrowed on me again, her stare probing. “Now you can fix it.”

I met her gaze, letting her see I was taking every word seriously. “I will.”

Lindsay’s arms dropped to her sides, and she exhaled slowly in a small show of relief.

“Need to head out back,” I told her, not bothering to hide my reluctance. “Wedding’s startin’ in a few.”

She nodded and turned, but stopped when I ordered, “Don’t go back to the center.”

Twisting back to face me, she blinked. “Excuse me?”

“You said it yourself, baby…they’re dodgin’ questions. Don’t know how deep this goes. Someone’s skimming off the top, and they figure out you’ve been poking around, they might see you as a threat.”

Stubbornness glinted in her pretty eyes, and her mouth parted. I could see she was about to argue, but I didn’t let her.

“Not saying this to scare you,” I said evenly. “Just makin’ sure you understand how serious this is. People do stupid shit when they’re cornered. Until I’ve traced the flow of every dollar and figured out who the fuck is involved, stay away from Juniper Grove. Understood?”

“And if I don’t?” she challenged, tilting her head and causing her red tresses to spill over her shoulder.

I didn’t outwardly smile. “Then we’ll have to have this conversation again, and I won’t be as subtle next time.”

Her mouth opened, then shut again, and she nodded.

Good girl.

“I’ll contact you as soon as I know more,” I said, standing and walking around my desk. My hands balled into fists at my side to avoid touching her. But I lost the fight and trailed a finger across her bottom lip. Her tiny gasp had my dick hardening to stone. “From now on, consider yourself under the protection of the Iron Rogues. Undermyprotection.”

She arched her brow. “I didn’t realize I needed protecting.”

“Neither did any of the other old ladies,” I muttered. “But their men knew better.”

“I…” She trailed off as her eyes met my heated gaze.

Cupping her shoulders, I turned her around to face the door, then put my hand on the small of her back. I guided her down the hall and through the lounge until we reached the front entrance to the clubhouse.

“I’ll see you very soon, baby,” I told her, my voice low and smooth. My lips pressed tight to hold back my smile when she shivered. Reluctantly, I held the door open for her. She stepped through, then paused and looked up at me.

“Thank you for taking this seriously. The center means a lot to me.”

I wanted to unpack that statement, but someone called my name with an impatient tone. Fuck. “Of course,” I grunted. “I’ll call you soon.”

She frowned. “I didn’t give you my number.”

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