Page 185 of Fury

Jesus, she had it bad too. She needed to be patient just a little while longer. I leaned in to her, my mouth at her ear. “Her relationship with Butler is as solid as the wind, Tania.”

“What?”

“Butler and Nina—it’s fake.”

“No,” she breathed.

“Yes. Pure business between clubs.”

“What is this?” she said loudly. “The fucking eighteenth century?”

I clamped a hand around her upper arm and dragged her down the hallway away from the Jacks, who were already staring at us. I pulled her in close to me against a wall.

Her face was red. “Did you hear what the doctor just said? Butler’s going to be a daddy.”

“What makes you think that kid is Butler’s? Could be Catch’s.”

Her mouth fell open. “Oh, shit.” She glanced over at Butler still talking on the phone. She was worried about him.

Her hand tugged on the edge of my leather jacket. “We can’t tell Catch about this baby until we’re sure. Nina’s family is going to be pissed about her getting hurt, aren’t they? You think they’ll come here and make trouble for the Jacks and for Butler? They’ll blame him? Come after him?”

“Sounds right,” I replied.

“Is there any way you can help him? Do you know who did this? Jump is dead. The president of a club has been murdered. All hell is going to break loose now, right?”

“You’re worried?”

“Of course I’m worried. They’re my friends. This is my hometown we’re talking about.”

“I meant, you’re worried about Butler?” I asked.

She leveled her gaze at me. “Yes, I am. He’s a good guy.”

I’d help her make it happen, if that’s what she wanted. If she really wanted him. I let out a huff of air. “Good, bad—it’s all relative at the end of the day.”

“It can’t be,” she said, her jaw tight. “Some things simply cannot be relative. For you, they probably are. But I don’t live that way.”

Some things were relative for me, yes, but the vein pulsing in my heart for Serena and the one for my club—they were absolute.

I pulled Tania in closer. “Shit’s either real, or it isn’t,” I whispered, squeezing the back of her neck. I planted a kiss on her forehead. “Relax. I’m going to see what I can do. You make sure the pics on Nina’s phone don’t get erased.”

“Okay,” she murmured, taking in a breath.

I loved how Tania could rise above the mire immediately after feeling her shit out. Her loyalty, her concern for what was just—even in the face of the ultimate rejection—always compelled her forward.

My hand stroked the side of her jaw. “You go support your guy over there. He could use it.”

She made a face at me. “He’s not my guy.”

I let out a laugh. I loved teasing her. “Baby, you haven’t been able to tear your eyes away from him. You went to him in his hour of need, then jumped up and down in the man’s defense like you just did? He’s your guy.”

52

Butler wasn’t answering his phone.I tucked my cell back in my pocket.

Either he was annoyed with me about being close with Tania. Tough shit. Or he was keeping his distance because he’d seen me kill his Prez. A good reason.

Would he tell? I didn’t think so, but I was sure it was eating him up. Even though Jump rode Butler’s ass hard since he fucked up last year, and created roadblocks for almost every damned new idea Butler had, Jump was his Prez.

---