Page 36 of Celtic Dragon
“Everything is going to be alright.” He’s quiet for a minute and then adds, “But I do have to know one thing.”
“Sure, anything.”
“Do you still have feelings for Briggs?”
I smile. “No, I don’t. I think leaving him at the altar was a blessing in disguise.”
He nods. “That’s good. I really didn’t want to have to shoot our number one ally on the force.”
I chuckle, hug him, and give him a big kiss on the cheek. “You know, you really are something special.”
“Of course I know that. It’s about damn time you realized it. Now let’s go back out and get this threat shit settled.”
“Yes, sir!”
About an hour later, Hawk and Honey emerge from her room. It’s obvious that she’s done more crying. When I make eye contact with her, she nods. I mouth, “Everything good?” She nods again, smiling.Good. It would’ve really sucked if her past mistakes wrecked her future. And I truly believe Hawk is her future.
When Sgt. Briggs arrives at the house, he immediately begins asking a lot of questions about what happened. When he asks me if I know what the note is referring to when it states, “I know what you did,” I play dumb and say no.
What worries me most is how Briggs reacts when he sees Honey. When he says her name, I can hear the surprise and shock in his voice. It’s hard to tell if he still harbors feelings for her, but it’s clear to see that he’s genuinely happy to see her again. He keeps calling her Amanda, even though nobody around here calls her that. But I guess that’s how he knew her. If I remember correctly, Ice gave her the nickname of Honey.
Hawk, being the possessive biker that he is, makes it perfectly clear to Briggs that Honey is his now and that the past is the past. He’s constantly touching Honey, either with his hand on her arm while they’re sitting, or his hand at the small of her back while they’re standing. It’s perfectly clear by his actions that he has definitely staked his claim on his girl. The whole time Briggs is at the house, nothing is said about anything that happened between him and Honey. I believe that the past has been laid to rest.
Sgt. Briggs leaves with a full incident report and says that he’ll get his men on it right away. I think he suspects I know more than I’m saying, but there’s no way I was going to tell him that Cade murdered someone. Nobody has to tell me that in our world, that is a big no-no.
Chapter 13
Caden
“You cool with this?” I ask Rebel. We’re standing outside of the house while he has a smoke. I know that his brothers and that slut Ciara have got him rattled. I need him at 100%, so it’s my job right now to set him straight. Nothing can fuck this up.
“I told you, I’m fine,” he says irritably.
“Then answer me this: why the fuck are you smoking? I thought you quit ages ago.”
“I still smoke once in a while. It’s been a long day, seeing my brothers after all this time … it’s a lot of things. But I can tell you one thing, it’s definitely not Ciara!”
“Ok, man. I’m not gonna press you. If you say she doesn’t affect you, then I believe you. But I’m also gonna remind you that I can’t have your head in your ass while we’re here. You got me?”
“I know. Fuck, Ice, you are harping on me like you’re one of my older brothers. Enough already. I get enough crap from them, I don’t need to get it from you too.” His words cut me like a fucking knife.What the hell was that all about?
I grab him by his collar and push him against the side of the house. I get in his face and say, “You listen and you listen good! Iamone of your older brothers and in this world, I am the only older brother you need to fucking worry about. Your number one loyalty is to this club and my fucking sister! So what if your big brothers in there push you around? You gonna let ‘em? You gonna let ‘em walk all over you like they did when you were a kid? Fuck no! You’re a big, badass biker and my sergeant at arms! And if you still feel inferior to those two dickheads in there, you remember one thing—you and your club are the ones they called to fix this mess!”
He just stares at me intently, and I realize I am still holding on to his collar. “Are we clear?” I ask. He nods. He still hasn’t spoken and I’m beginning to worry about him. “What the fuck, Rebel? You ok?” I ask as I release my hold on him.
“Yeah, man … holy shit. I get it! Ok! Don’t release that famous ice-cold rage on me now.” He pauses and then adds, “I’m good, really. No need to lose control.”
“Well, what have you learned from my lack of control?”
“Learned?”
“Yeah, fucking learned.”
“Don’t piss you off.”
“Damn straight. And what else?” I prod.
“Get my head outta my ass,” he answers dutifully.
