“Fuck,” Lucky said, his eyes on Lily with a grim expression on his face.
Shade wanted Lucky to enjoy being back at the club, but he didn’t want Lily hurt, either. The brother was going to have to find a happy medium, one which kept Lily happy while also keeping Lucky happy. Shade had kept Beth and Winter out of his business, so Lucky could be circumspect and still have his fun, too.
“Be cool,” Shade warned Lucky.
“Pastor Dean, hi. I was wondering where you were today,” Lily said as she came up to the group.
“I’m outta here,” Jewell said under her breath.
“Coward,” Evie teased.
“I’m a lover, not a fighter. Arguments tense me up.”
Jewell left, but Evie didn’t. The woman loved to sit back and watch drama unfold around her.
“Hi, Lily. I was going to come back and introduce you to the new pastor because you were at lunch with King when I came by the church store earlier.”
“You went to lunch with King?” Shade asked sharply.
“At the diner,” Lily answered.
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I wasn’t aware I had to tell you my every move since the danger is over.”
“We’ll talk about this later.”
“No, we won’t. It was lunch, just across the street.”
“Lily, we still don’t know who Digger hired to hurt you. Until we make sure he’s stopped, you’re not completely out of danger.” Shade knew exactly who the guy was, and he had plans for that motherfucker.
“Oh.” She paused. “Next time, I’ll tell you when I leave the church.”
Lily turned back to Lucky expectantly. “Are you staying for dinner?”
“Actually, dinner and breakfast. I’m moving in.”
“That’s great. I was worried you would move away, and I wouldn’t see you anymore.”
“I think you’re going to be seeing a lot more of Lucky than you ever expected to see.”
Evie just couldn’t help herself, Shade thought. He and Lucky both gave her silent warnings. It seemed their talk wasn’t going to take long concerning Lily.
“Let’s go home, Lily,” Shade said, taking Lily’s arm and moving her toward the pathway to their house.
“Spoil sport,” Shade heard Evie call out as they left.
“What did she mean by that?” Lily asked curiously.
“Nothing,” Shade answered, changing the subject to asking about her lunch with King.
Keeping Lily’s world safe and happy was becoming more difficult to manage than he had anticipated. Lucky and King were both threats. One he could handle without difficulty, while the other would take a little time.
Chapter 71
Shade drove Cash’s old truck with Lily sitting in the middle and Evie by the passenger door. He would rather be going anywhere other than King’s house for dinner. Neither King nor Shade thought the other belonged in Lily’s life, and they were both right. The evening was going to be a fucking disaster, one he had every intention of having Lily make up for when they returned home.
A huge fucker opened the front door for them.
Shade hadn’t lost time by finding out all he could about King. He hired the best, and Henry, his bodyguard, was known to be lethally efficient at his job.
He led them into the living room where King was sitting. Evie and Shade both silently watched as Lily greeted her father, bending down to hug him and brushing a soft kiss on his cheek.
King then turned to him. “Shade.”
“King.” Shade gave a small nod.
Shade had dressed in his good jeans, boots, and a nice black shirt. King’s eyes flicked over Shade’s relaxed attire. Shade stared back just as critically, scanning over the expensive suit and shoes King had dressed in for the dinner. Then the two powerful men glared at each other, neither afraid.
“Evie,” King greeted.
Shade stiffened at the condescending tone King addressed her with. His mouth snapped open to say something, but he was silenced at her own tone. Evie hadn’t earned her rank of being over the women by allowing herself to be pushed around.
“King.”
A twist of King’s lips showed he had received her message.
“Henry, get everyone a drink.”
Shade placed his arm around Lily’s shoulder at her wary look as they sat down on the leather couch. While she was around liquor more constantly at the clubhouse, she would never lose the fear it inspired; her scars ran too deep. She was still uncomfortable being around it, and King had just showed how little he knew about his daughter.
After the doorbell rang again, Beth and Razer were shown into the living room. Beth was much more casual with King, giving him a hug and inquiring how he felt.
“I’m almost back to normal.”
Shade was barely able to restrain his snort. The fucking bastard wasn’t normal when he was in tip-top shape.
“Dinner’s ready.” Henry’s voice broke the silence in the room.