Although braced for the intervention of Viper’s bodyguards, he wasn’t prepared when the biggest and ugliest brute lifted him as if he weighed nothing and tossed him across the bar.
“Fuck.” Jagger yanked open the door and yelled for Sinners who had accompanied them to the Riverside Bar. “We got a fight.”
“Evie. Come.” Zane pushed himself to his feet, keeping some distance between him and the monolith in front of him as he held out one hand and drew his weapon with the other.
If he thought she’d throw herself sobbing into his arms with gratitude like she’d done when he saved her from Derek, her livid expression quickly dissuaded him of that notion.
“I’ve got this, Zane. Thanks. This isn’t high school. I don’t need you running to my rescue.”
“You gotta respect a woman with her own mind, Sinner. She wants to be with me.” Viper nuzzled her neck. “Let’s go, kitten. Your new chariot awaits.”
“I’m not going with you either.” She twisted out of Viper’s grasp. “I’m not a damn chew toy to be fought over. Give me my keys. I’m going home.”
Zane saw the flash of a blade, felt the slight disturbance in the air. Adrenaline surged through his body and he mentally kicked himself for not seeing the danger. While Viper kept him distracted, he’d left Jagger unprotected and at the mercy of the bodyguards who had taken the advantage of the cleared-out bar. Viper had baited a trap and Zane had fallen right in.
With a shout of warning, he flung himself to the side. The blade sliced through the sleeve of his shirt, cutting his arm, before it deflected and hit the wall only inches from where Jagger stood.
Jagger drew his weapon just as the door slammed open and Sinners poured into the bar. T-Rex fired a warning shot at the ceiling, covering Jagger while Gunner and Sparky pulled him to safety, despite his growled protests. The club was nothing without their president, and for all Jagger wanted to have his back, Zane would do anything to protect him.
“Zane!” Evie ran toward him, her face twisted in anguish. She threw her arms around his waist, her momentum carrying him back toward the door.
Zane put one arm around her and caught Viper’s hard gaze.
Mine. He mouthed the word at Viper, clenching his fist against Evie’s back in triumph.
Viper’s mouth tightened and he met Zane’s silent challenge with a derisive snort. Then his bodyguards closed in around him, and Zane pulled Evie away.
*
Evie handed Zane a beer and sat beside him on her front steps. Moonlight glinted off the chrome on his bike, parked in her driveway where her car should have been. She pulled the key fob Viper had given her from her pocket, and ran her thumb over the smooth, black surface. On their third date, Viper had asked her about her dream car, and they’d had a fun evening checking out pictures of luxury vehicles on her phone. She’d never thought he would buy the Mazda for her, nor had she ever considered that he’d take her car.
Damn Viper and his stupid gift. She wanted her car, rusty and worn as it was. She’d bought it with the last of her savings from Stanton the morning after Mark pushed her down the stairs in a drunken rage. Only quick thinking and years of daredevil stunts with Zane had saved her, and she managed to grab the railing on her way down. Although Mark was horrified at what he’d done, Evie had finally had enough. She’d put up with his insecurities, affairs, and controlling behavior to give Ty a family and to fill the hole in her life that had consumed her after losing everyone she cared about. But the price had become too high.
“What’s that?” Zane gestured to the key fob.
“Viper gave me a vehicle—a Mazda MX5—and he took the keys to my car. He said it wasn’t safe. The Mazda is still in the parking lot at Riverside Bar. I didn’t want it, or I wouldn’t have taken the ride home with you.”
“Hate saying this, but he’s right. Your vehicle wasn’t safe.”
“Do you seriously think I would drive Ty around in an unsafe vehicle?” she snapped. “It might not look like much but I had it all checked out. Bill’s mechanics said it was running fine.”
Zane sipped his beer. “So … you and Viper?”
“I’ve been on a few dates with him, although he’s never acted like he did tonight. Obviously. Because if he’d twisted my arm and pulled my hair on our first date, I wouldn’t have gone out with him again. Although he said what he did was all for show.” She twisted her lips to the side, considering. “If I tried to slap Jagger in front of his men, what would he do?”
Zane choked on his beer, wiped his mouth. “Pretty much the same thing Viper did. A one percenter president can’t let any disrespect slide. Makes him look weak, and a weak president is a dead president.”