“The Riot is after Emily.” Eli twists my shirt tighter in his grip. “They’re pissed because we won’t give them a cut of our profits since we’re riding through their territory. They’ve been taking it out on us on the road and because someone told them about Emily, they decided to make this personal.

“My daughter’s life is in danger. I’ve had to rip her from her home and I’m going to have to work like hell to keep the integrity of this club and my business intact while keeping Emily alive. I asked for one thing from you and you put my daughter’s life in danger. On your fucking life, will that happen again?”

I overpronounce each word. “On my fucking life, I will never fail you or this club again.”

“Do you know what I’ll do to you if you put Emily’s life in danger again?”

Eli swings the gun away, the bang reverberates through the room, then the muzzle of the gun is back in my face. A loud ringing in my head disorients me. My survival instincts scream to fight, but Eli’s not through with me and I’m not done standing.

Not a guy in the room moves from their seat. The ringing gives way to silence and then Eli’s voice comes out clear and calm. “You know what Cyrus told me?”

“What?”

“That Emily trusts you.”

The safety clicks back on, Eli flips the gun away from my head and he offers me the grip. For the first time, I glance in Dad’s direction and he subtly nods. I raise my palm up and Eli plants the gun in my hand. “It’s yours. Keep it with you at all times. Do you understand?”

Not at all.

Eli reclaims his seat at the table, the tension from his body gone. “We have several runs over the next few weeks that are back-to-back and long-distance. The majority of the club will be working them, including me. I want you by Emily’s side twenty-four-fucking-seven. If she has to pee, I want you outside the door listening to the toilet flush. If she’s asleep, you better be stalking the outside of her window. You got it?”

Jesus Christ. I check the lock on the safety. I’ve shot guns multiple times in my life, but I sure as hell haven’t carried one. Age of open carry in Kentucky is eighteen and with the job I’d be taking with the security business, I knew I’d be packing, but somehow, this gun feels heavier and hotter than anything I’ve handled in my life.

“What are you expecting to go down while you’re gone?” I ask.

“Hopefully nothing, but I won’t run the risk of them going for another grab at her.”

My eyes snap to his. “Is that what it was? A grab?”

Eli flexes his jaw as if he’s grinding his teeth. “Are you going to be able to do what I’m asking? Can you protect Emily?”

Every man fixes his eyes on me and the weight of their expectations smashes onto my shoulders. Eli’s trusting me with his daughter, just like each man here will be trusting me with his life when I join the security business. I glance down at the gun. This is going to be my life.

“Listen to me,” Eli says. “We’re a legit club. We manage things aboveboard. You know this. No illegal shit is done within our community. With that said, you have the right to pull the trigger when someone is threatening bodily harm and I’m asking you, do you have the balls to do what needs to be done when the time comes?”

This is it. This is what should have happened last night. This is the start of them testing me. “Fuck yeah.”

Eli tosses me the holster and I tuck in the gun.

“Congratulations,” says Eli. “That gun is your graduation present from all of us. When we’re in public you’ll have to keep it on your hip as you’re not old enough to conceal.”

The guys start to clap and I can’t help but smile. A couple of them call out their congratulations or a well-done. Eli lets the moment ride. When the room goes silent again, Eli looks me over. “You were supposed to become a prospect last night.”

“I heard.”

“If you join the club, I need to know you’re going to be firm and do what needs to be done. I got a second chance once. Consider this yours. We’re considering this your probationary period for a job with the security company. We’ll vote on your position when this stuff with Emily calms down. Prospect is going to be a wait-and-see.”

The muscles in my shoulders relax. I’ve bought myself time. It’s not the best-case scenario, but it’s not the worst. Keep Emily safe and alive and I’ll have a job. As for prospect, at least I’ve been granted a fighting chance.

I head for the door and when I open it, Cyrus calls out, “For your information, I consider anyone hitting on my granddaughter bodily harm. Shoot any son of a bitch who’s stupid enough to think of touching her.”

My grip on the knob tightens. My entire future hangs in the balance and Emily and I couldn’t keep our hands off each other for twenty-four hours.

Damn.

Emily

FRESH OUT OF the shower and in a pair of black shorts that are way shorter than anything Mom would have ever allowed me to wear, I do a sweep of the room again. It has to be around here somewhere. Nothing else from the past twenty-four hours has been a dream so there’s no way that picture Olivia gave me was a figment of my imagination.

I drop to my hands and knees and peer underneath the darkness of the bed. Guess I could have lost it outside. Two knocks and I jump to my feet. “Yes?”

“Hey.” Eli opens the door and I lace my hands behind my back. Nope, I’m not keeping secrets.