Tank's Property (9 page)

Chapter Twelve

Tank looked at Bunny once more before leaving the bedroom quietly. He’d left his woman sleeping, sated, and tucked in, and he felt damn good about how things had gone. It wasn’t because he’d finally fucked Bunny again, but because she was in his life again, and there wasn’t anything holding her back. He’d known all along that her leaving had been because she was afraid of what he’d said, because her father, the piece of shit that he was, had damaged a part of her, and that hearing “I love you” was a bad thing.

He looked at his phone again, and read the text from Wrath again that said he was waiting at the bar in the clubhouse. He knew Wrath was supposed to be coming down so they could take care of the Spike issues. He just hadn’t known it was going to be tonight he’d see Wrath. It had been years since he’d seen the other man, and a part of him wondered if the years had been good to him.

He scrubbed a hand over his face, knowing shit was going to go down, that people could lose their lives, but Spike needed to be taken care of. They were going to head out first thing in the morning, but he hadn’t even told Bunny yet, not wanting to ruin what they’d shared.

He stepped into the main room, scanned the bodies gyrating, getting fucked up, or just relaxing, and finally looked right at the big, heavily muscled body of Wrath. There were a few of the Patches standing close by, their focus trained on the stranger to them, their hands close to their weapons. Wrath may be welcome at the clubhouse because of the circumstances, but it was clear Wrath’s presence and appearance made the club a little shifty.

The man had his back to Tank as he sat at the bar. He didn’t have a glass in front of him, but instead had the entire bottle he was drinking straight out of. But as if Wrath knew Tank was looking at him, the big fucker turned in his chair and focused on him. And then the grin Wrath gave him had Tank chuckling. He made his way toward Wrath, the man already out of his chair. The two clapped each other on the back.

“Man, you look good, fucker,” Wrath said, sitting back down on the chair and grinning. Even though it was clear the man was happy and smiling, Wrath was still a scary bastard.

“You look the same but not,” Tank said, noticing the difference in Wrath. It was the truth. Wrath was bigger, and even though he had been pretty hardcore back in the day, no he looked like he was heavy into some shit Tank steered away from, and that was saying something since Tank did some pretty fucked up things.

“We got someplace personal to talk?” Wrath asked, his expression turning more serious.

“Yeah, come on.” Tank led Wrath to the meeting room that was currently empty. Once the door was shut and they were sitting across from each other, Wrath still holding the bottle of whiskey, Tank started to speak. “Thanks for coming out here and helping out with this shit.”

Wrath nodded. “For you and Lila, and anyone you guys held close, I’d fuck some assholes up until they are beyond recognizable.” He grinned. It wasn’t pleasant, but more of an expression that showed he was anxious to deliver some hurt.

“Thanks again for coming out. I didn’t know how shit would go down since it’s been a long time since we saw each other.”

Wrath leaned back in his seat, the leather creaking from his weight. “Time doesn’t mean shit, man, not when family is concerned. And you are all like family to me.”

Tank couldn’t agree more. He’d already filled in Wrath about everything going on with Spike, but he hadn’t told him about the plans since they were just made and everything was set in motion. “We’re heading out tomorrow morning to Thorne to scope things out before we make the move.”

“The fuckers are there now?”

Tank scrubbed a hand over his face. “They left their place, and the man we had watching over shit lost their trail.”

“Fuck.”

Tank nodded.

“So do you know if they are coming for Lila?”

Tank shook his head. “I mean we don’t have definite proof, aside from what Lila says, but I believe her. She wouldn’t have come to me if things weren’t bad. I also have Bunny at the clubhouse, so if that asshole wants to go after her he’ll have to come here to do it.”

Wrath sat up straighter, and Tank knew it was because of the mention of Lila. He knew the man had it bad for Lila, but for whatever reason they’d never hooked up. Lila may act like Wrath was too “scary” and too “hardcore”, but the truth was he saw the flicker of emotion on Lila’s face whenever Wrath had been around, or when the other man’s name had been mentioned. But he had never pressed her about it, and had never questioned Wrath about being with Lila. Neither had said anything, so it wasn’t going to be looked at any further, not on his end anyway. And besides, now that Lila was dealing with this, and had a newborn, she had a lot of bigger shit to worry about than feelings for someone they used to know.

But look at the intensity on Wrath’s face. He hasn’t forgotten about Lila in the slightest.

“How is Lila doing?” Wrath’s voice was tight, hard.

“As well as she can be doing, I guess. She’s trying to focus on the baby and not that sperm donating fucker.”

Wrath’s jaw was clenched, and Tank saw the way his hands were in tight fists on top of the table. Obviously talking about Lila, even after all this time, still got under his skin. But right now they needed to keep their heads about what was going down, and not about what they wanted. Hell, Tank was in the same boat thinking about Bunny and what he wanted with her.

“The baby is okay?” Wrath asked, and Tank had to give the man credit for being decent. Tank knew a few fuckers that wouldn’t have wanted to deal with a woman that had a baby with someone else, but Wrath was concerned about Faye and Lila, and he knew the man would do anything for them. It was written clearly on his face.

“She’s good, gorgeous, too. She looks just like Lila.”

Wrath smiled, but it was just a lift of the corner of his mouth. “I’m glad they’re safe.” Wrath leaned forward, his face now taking a serious expression. “So, straight to business. How the hell is this going down?”

****

“That’s their clubhouse?” one of Spike’s men said from beside him. Spike inhaled from his cigarette, focused on the building, and thought about all the shit he was going to do to the people inside. He inhaled once more before tossing the butt aside when he was finished.

“Yeah,” Spike responded, still staring at the clubhouse. They were down the road, the night giving them the stealth they needed. It hadn’t taken much to find Lila’s brother, and although he didn’t actually have confirmation she was in there, he had a gut feeling the bitch and his kid were behind those walls. There was nowhere else for her to go. She’d run, and no one ran from him without repercussions. She had wanted to be with him, and that meant for life.

“Man, that’s going to be a fucking bitch to get into. You sure you want to go after the bitch? Seems like a lot of trouble for a piece of pussy.”

Spike turned and backhanded Spurs, one of his men. Spurs’s head cocked back, and blood sprayed from his mouth, his lip split. “You shut the fuck up. Whether or not I want her as a piece of ass doesn’t matter anymore. I own that bitch and her fucking bratty kid.” He bared his teeth. “No one fucks with me.”

Spurs wiped his nose and mouth and nodded. “Whatever you want to do, we got your back.”

“Yeah you fucking do,” Spike said, disgust dripping from his voice. He scanned the clubhouse perimeter, counting the men on patrol outside. “I only see two out there, one by the gate and another off to the side, partially hidden by the shadows. If we can take them out we can get in without the cavalry coming out and putting a stop to it before we even get started.”

There was a round of murmurs and agreements from the other men that had come with him as backup. Spike wasn’t all for waiting around for shit to get done. He didn’t need to make a plan, didn’t need to make sure he had all bases covered. He went in with guns hot and bullets tearing through flesh. It’s how he always lived his life, and it had done him well so far.

Getting his gun out, Spike made sure he was locked and loaded, and was ready to do this shit. He was going to get Lila back, and when he had her he’d teach that bitch a lesson.

****

Bunny had woken up a few moments ago, knowing instantly Tank wasn’t beside her. She stared at the ceiling, the scent of her man still wrapped around her, and the feeling of her sore pussy a remembrance of what they’d shared just an hour ago. She sat up in bed, the bathroom light on, the door cracked so just a sliver of yellow came through. There was no going back now with Tank, not when she’d let her emotions come to the surface, not when she’d taken her walls down. Bunny hadn’t meant for things to play out the way they had, but she was glad she’d allowed herself to unloosen that constraint of self-hatred. It felt right being with Tank, even if it had happened so fast.

She was his. He’d said as much, and it felt incredible to know that nothing could come between them, not even herself. Bunny had meant it when she said she was done running, and when she had some money she would be tearing her father’s place down, watching the rubble settle and the nightmares of the past she’d tried so hard to run from leave her. She was damaged, she admitted that, but she knew, or at least hoped, that with time she’d heal. Even if she ran from Tank because of what she’d felt, and ignored everything for far too long, she was here now and that’s all that mattered.

Bunny stood and put her sweats and t-shirt back on, wanting to talk to Tank, but also wanting to talk with Lila. She knew the other woman was going through so much, and the conversation they’d had when they first had seen each other again hadn’t touched so much on the past, on what Lila was going through. Having a baby with a man that was out to hurt her was something Bunny would never understand. The asshole might be coming after her, as Lila said, but truth was Bunny didn’t care about herself when it came to that. Lila and Faye were the ones she cared about in this situation, the ones that were getting hurt from all of this.

And she had a pretty good feeling Lila wasn’t sleeping, not with the shit happening. If they could be together, and taking to her friend was the one thing Bunny could do for her, then she’d gladly do it in a heartbeat.

She was glad no one was in the hallway as she made her way to the room Lila was staying in. Knocking on the door a few times, she took a step back, her mind a rush of thoughts, her body strung tight. The door opened a few seconds later, Lila standing on the other side looking wide-awake.

“I didn’t wake you, did I?” Bunny whispered, mindful Faye was probably sleeping.

Lila shook her head and held the door open. The table lamp was on, casting a soft glow in the room on one side. Bunny looked in the opposite corner of the room, saw a basinet, and looked over at Faye.

“Lucien had it bought for Faye. That stuff, too,” she said and pointed to a bag. Bunny could see diapers and clothes sticking out of it.

“That was nice of them.”

Lila nodded.

Bunny stood there for a second, not speaking, not knowing what to say even though she had a lot on her mind. “How are you doing?” she asked again. They’d just spoken earlier this evening, but Bunny didn’t think it was nearly enough. It had been too long since she’d seen Lila, and she wanted to talk, wanted this time to keep her mind off other things. She also wanted to be honest with her friend in regards to being with Tank.

Lila sat on the edge of the bed and gestured for Bunny to come forward. Once Bunny was sitting beside Lila, they sat there for a second, the sound of the club outside of the room dulled.

“I could be worse, a lot worse,” Lila said, her voice soft.

Bunny was mindful of Faye sleeping, so she nodded and looked at her hands in her lap. “You know things will be okay?” She lifted her head and looked at her friend. Lila looked so much like Brendan in the coloring of their hair and eyes, and she hated that their lives had been so fucked up.

“Can I ask you something?” Lila asked.

“Of course.” Bunny had a feeling she knew where this was going.

“You left all that time ago, without saying anything to Brendan or me. Why?”

Bunny was silent for a moment, and although she’d already talked about this with Tank, she wanted Lila to know, as well. “I loved your brother, Lila.” She paused. “I
love
your brother.”

“I know,” Lila said and smiled sweetly.

“He told me he loved me back then, and I freaked out, only seeing my father telling me that as he burned me with his cigarettes.” The sympathy on Lila’s face was tangible, but Bunny pressed forward. “I knew I was too fucked up to ever be good for Brendan, or at least that’s how I felt. I left him behind, left you behind…” She shook her head. “I left the only two people that gave a shit about me because I couldn’t handle what your brother wanted to give me, and I was a coward, weak.” Bunny wiped away the tears that rushed to the surface.

“You’re not a coward. You were just trying to survive the only way you knew how.” Lila had her arms wrapped around Bunny instantly, and the two just held each other. They’d both had fucked up families, struggled to live decent lives, but look at them now. It could have been laughable if the situation wasn’t as dire as it was. They might not have had ideal situations while growing up, but they were alive, and things would work out. Bunny knew that with every part of her.