Road to Victory (Dogs of Fire Book 5) (2 page)

“He’s more concerned than pissed,” Mack offered.

“He looked way more pissed than concerned,” I countered.

“Babe, your girl’s in good hands with my brother. He won’t hurt her.”

Dani had informed me that the club members called each other ‘brother,’ even though they weren’t related, but apparently, a few were actually blood. How that didn’t get confusing, I had no idea.

“He better not hurt her,” I said. “She’s fragile.”

“And he’s protective. He wasn’t happy you were even there to begin with.”

“Yeah, I was a little surprised we got in.”

Mack chuckled. “You got in because Booker let you in. We’ve been watching from the second you showed your IDs.”

“Figures.” I rolled my eyes. “What about you?”

He grinned. “I’m protective as well.”

“Yeah, I kind of picked up on that.” I laughed. “But that’s not what I meant.”

“I’m neither pissed nor concerned.”

“Well, that’s good to know, I guess.”

We pulled up at a red light and he asked, “You wanna grab a drink somewhere?”

“I was just doing that with Dani,” I pointed out. “You and Booker kind of blew that up.”

He nodded. “True, but I figured since I interrupted your night, we could go somewhere else... a little more fun than the places we work.”

“As gorgeous as you are, Mack, I’m thinking the two of us wouldn’t be a good idea.”

“Whoa babe, you’re rushin’ things a bit, huh?”

I snorted out a chuckle at his joke.

The light turned green and Mack grinned as we moved ahead. “What I’m suggestin’ has nothin’ to do with sex.”

“Hmm,” I murmured as I cocked my head. “You have me intrigued.”

Mack chuckled. “Trust me, babe, I know how to entertain, even platonically.”

“Yeah? Prove it.”

Within minutes, Mack pulled up in front of a non-descript building with an old west feel (leading me to believe he wasn’t planning on taking ‘no’ for an answer). He took my hand and guided me to the entrance and into... a honky-tonk. I shook my head and frowned over at him. “You’re joking.”

“Trust me.”

“No way.”

He grinned. “Seriously, trust me.”

“Ohmigod,” I groaned. “I hate country.”

He chuckled and greeted the bouncer who waved us in without collecting the cover. We slipped through the darkened room and I grasped for Mack’s hand, as if it could protect me from the grating jingle of auto-tuned country music, which was
far
too loud for my liking.

On the dance floor, men in barely-scuffed cowboy boots and giant pristine hats who’d probably never seen a horse, let alone ridden one, danced with dressed-to-the nines women, their hair in various stages of height.

I wrinkled my nose as Mack pushed open a door marked “private,” and tugged me into a large VIP-looking room. A bar sat along the back wall and the outer walls had intimate booths. Some were barely big enough for two, others large enough to seat ten, and there was a dance floor in the middle, although no one was dancing. Once the door was closed behind us, the music from the club ceased to exist and I let out a breath of relief. I noticed a jukebox over by the bar, and there was a song playing (not as loud as in the main bar), but it was rock. Rock-n-roll I could handle.

A lot of seriously gorgeous man meat milled around the room in vests and jeans. Some were deep in conversation while smoking and drinking, others were in booths playing poker or making out with the few women who were there. I smiled at the calmer atmosphere. Now, this was my kind of crew.

“Come meet my brothers,” Mack said, and took my hand again, heading toward the tables.

“Actual brothers or club brothers?”

He chuckled. “Club brothers.”

“Oh. Okay.”

A man with well-worn cowboy boots met my eyes as we approached and my stomach flip-flopped. God, he was gorgeous. Tall,
really
tall. Probably six-and-a-half feet. Delicious. I was tall, six feet or more, depending on the heel, but it was hard to find a man who matched my height (who wasn’t a stick). This gorgeous piece of ass was built perfectly.

His slow smile indicated I may have stared a little too long, but I didn’t really care as I smiled back. Mack was cute and all, but this man... he was someone I could have some real fun with... provided he quit looking into my soul. That was a little disconcerting.

“Knight,” the gorgeous man said, reaching out his hand toward me.

“Kim,” I replied, shaking it.

“That’s good enough.” Mack pulled my hand from Knight’s and I rolled my eyes.

Irritation crossed Knight’s face, but not for long and the next hour or so was spent laughing, drinking, and dare I say, dancing (Knight and one other guy, Flea I think his name was, danced with me, but Mack refused). It was a blast... well, it was until Mack got a call from Booker and my night was blown up... again.

“Babe, we need to go,” Mack said, ominously.

I frowned. “What, why?”

“Got an issue.”

“Everything okay?” I asked.

“You got a key to Dani’s place?”

“Um, yes, why?”

“On you?”

“Yes. It’s on my key ring. Why?”

“We need to go and pack her a bag,” Mack said. “She’s gonna be staying with Booker for a bit.”

I grabbed his arm. “What’s going on, Mack?”

“Problem?” Knight asked from behind me. So close, in fact, if I’d stepped back, I would have bumped into him.

“Dani’s gonna stay with Booker for a while,” Mack said (to Knight, not me, jerk).

Knight frowned. “Shit, seriously?”

“What is going
on
?” I snapped.

“How about I take Kim where she needs to go?” Knight offered. “You take Booker’s back.”

“You okay with that?” Mack asked me.

“Am I okay with what?”

“Going with Knight. We just said that,” Mack said, sounding irked.

Now I was pissed. “Oh, right, sorry. Obviously I didn’t understand the question the first time because you’re speaking as though I’m
not here
!”

Mack gave me a quirky smile. “Right, so it’s all good.”

“Jackass,” I hissed under my breath.

“I’ll text you the info,” Mack said to Knight, clearly ignoring me again, and walked away.

Knight smiled at me. “Ready?”

I forced myself not to curse as I followed him out of the club. He opened the passenger door to a beat up old pickup truck and I slid inside, surprisingly comforted by the smell of horses. I currently owned an Arabian gelding and competed in every local show available. My life could only have been described as tumultuous and horses had been my refuge and, on occasion, my savior. The smell instantly calmed me as Knight climbed into the driver’s seat and started the engine.

“Are you going to tell me what’s going on?” I asked.

“Waitin’ on Booker or Mack to tell me, sugar.”

“Right,” I conceded. “I’m surprised you don’t have a bike.”

He smiled. “I do, but outside of the fact it’s too wet to ride, I had a group class out at a dairy farm, so needed to bring more than the bike could carry.”

“Group class?”

He nodded, pulling out of the parking lot. “I’m in vet school.”

“Oh, wow. Really? That’s cool.”

“Yeah?”

I nodded. “I ride horses. I compete with my Arabian.”

“Great horses.”

“Definitely. I’ll never own anything other than an Arabian now. He’s the best.”

“Where am I taking you?” he asked.

I gave him the address for Dani’s apartment and we headed toward the freeway.

“You ride English?” he asked.

I smiled. “How’d you guess?”

He smiled. “Shot in the dark.”

“Do you ride?”

“All my life,” he said.

“Let me guess, you’re some kind of cowboy.” I nodded toward his feet. “I can tell by your boots.”

“Nah, although, I’ve rustled some cattle in my day,” he said. “I ride mostly Western, but I’ve been known to put a horse through dressage or jumping exercises every now and then.”

“Really? That surprises me.”

“It doesn’t matter what tack you put on a horse, they should all be able to respond to your commands and move between both disciplines.”

“I guess that’s true. Although, if you tried to put a Western saddle on my Arabian, he might kick you.”

Knight laughed. “Sounds like he’s perfect for you.”

“Because he’s ornery?”

“Did I say that?” he asked in mock offense.

I smiled. Tall, dark, handsome,
and
funny. I was in trouble.

Despite my nervousness from not knowing what was going on, Knight put me at ease and I was a little calmer when we arrived. He followed me upstairs and into the apartment, closing the door behind us.

“So, Booker said I’m supposed to pack her a bag?” I asked. “Any idea why or for how long?”

“No... let me find out.” He sent off a text, and then we stood in the entryway, waiting. His phone buzzed. He studied it for a moment before saying, “Booker needs you to pack enough clothes and shit for a week or so.”

“What’s going on?” I asked... again.

“Honestly, I don’t know all of it, but Booker’s trying to keep her safe.”

I studied him. “If you knew anything, would you tell me?”

He sighed. “Probably not, sugar.”

Him calling me sugar sent a thrill up my spine, but I ignored it and crossed my arms. “Well, since I don’t know you, I’m not handing over a bag of my best friend’s stuff. So, how about you get on that phone and find out why the hell I’m doing this.”

Knight smiled, but I could tell he was trying not to. He pulled out his phone and put it to his ear. “Hey, brother. Kim wants to know why she’s packing a bag for Dani. Yep, refusing to do it until I fill her in.” He chuckled. “Yeah.” He quickly sobered. “No shit? Okay. I’ll let her know. ’Bye.”

I bit my lip. His expression raised my blood pressure slightly.

“Some guy named Steven has offered her up for some kind of ransom.”

I gasped. “Steven…as in her ex, Steven?”

Knight shrugged. “That’s all I know.”

“It has to be. That fucking, piece of shit!”

“Booker’s keeping her at his place so he can make sure she’s safe.”

“Well, yeah, that’s the right answer,” I ground out. “I’ll be quick.”

I couldn’t believe Dani’s ex had resurfaced. Asshole. I moved through her room, packing things I knew she’d need, then headed to the kitchen and grabbed a couple of bottles of her favorite wine. I had a feeling she’d need them.

Knight carried the stuff down to the truck while I made sure everything in her apartment was locked up and turned off.

* * *

Knight

Unable to get the gorgeous brunette off his mind, Knight had bugged Dani for information on her best friend. He knew going to Booker or Mack would raise questions, and in the end, get him nowhere, so Dani was his best bet and she didn’t disappoint. He’d cornered her two days after the honky-tonk when Dani and Booker had come by
Blush
to drop off paperwork Mack had asked for. Dani had given Knight enough information for him to put into motion his “get to know Kim plan.”

One week after meeting Kim, Knight walked into her bar. Despite the fact
Mulligans’
was within walking distance from
Blush
, he’d never been there before, but the call of the pretty and feisty waitress couldn’t be ignored. Damn, she was gorgeous, not to mention funny as hell, had a passion for horses that just might rival his own. Plus, she was protective of her friend... all qualities he felt important.

She caught his eye and her smile widened as she set drinks on a table by the bar. He gave her a chin lift and headed to an open stool at the bar.

 “What can I get you, handsome?” someone asked, pulling Knight’s focus from Kim.

He turned his smile toward the pretty red-headed bartender waiting for his order. “Jack, neat.”

“You got it.” She grabbed a glass and a bottle of Jack Daniels, giving him a little more than a pour. “Six bucks,” she said with a wink. He dropped a ten on the bar and she beamed when he refused change. “Thanks, honey.”

He tipped his glass toward her and then sipped.

A gentle hand landed on his back. “Hey, Knight.”

He turned to face Kim with a smile. “Hey, sugar.”

“What are you doing here? Is everything okay with Dani?”

“You’d probably know more than me,” he admitted.

“Oh, good, ’cause I just talked to her.” Kim relaxed. “You scared me a little.”

“Sorry about that.”

“So, if Dani’s good, what are you doing here?”

He grinned. “I’m here, ’cause you’re here.”

“Oh, yeah?” she said. “Trying to steal me away?”

Knight chuckled. “From Mack, yeah, from here, no. You’re too good for
Blush
.”

“FYI, Mack doesn’t have me, so I can’t be stolen from him, and I personally think the servers at
Blush
are really good.”

Their ability to sling drinks wasn’t really what he was referring to.
Blush
was a favorite for escorts and johns, and as long as their activities didn’t draw negative attention for the Dogs, Mack and Booker allowed them to do business. “I’ll tell Booker you said so.”

“Miss!” someone called and Kim grimaced.

“I better get back to work,” she said, but she seemed reluctant to leave him.

“I’m gonna finish my drink and do the same. I’ll find you when I’m ready to go.”

“Sounds good.” Kim squeezed his arm and then headed back into the fray.

Knight finished his drink but couldn’t quite bring himself to leave, so he waited the two hours it took for Kim to finish her shift. He offered to walk her to her car, which she readily accepted. He held the door for her and followed her out the back.

“So, what’s a nice girl like you working for an asshole like Doug?” he asked.

Kim chuckled. “I needed something to do that would piss my parents off, but then I realized I actually really like the job. I need something to do with my days, and I’m not really the office worker type, you know? Plus Doug’s not so bad. He pays us well and doesn’t give us grief when we need a day off.”

They arrived at her Mercedes and he opened her door for her. “I’m surprised you work at all.”