I wasn’t sure if he was worth the time to help him repair the relationship with my brother or worth the time for something else. It didn’t take a genius to imagine he’d be epic in bed. Don’t go there, I warned myself, wondering just how strong I would have to be to resist him if he pulled out all the stops.

“Good luck with that,” I said with a sassy toss of my ponytail.

His grin grew broader. Determination was etched on his ridiculously handsome face, and by challenging him, I might have bitten off more than I could handle, which was a lot. Or had been a lot until Weasel destroyed my confidence and exposed my vulnerable side I’d hidden from the world.

Yes, Weasel. My ex’s name given to him by his motorcycle cronies. His real name was Wendall Mendoza. I never really knew why he didn’t have a cool nickname like Eagle or Rocky or Raven, but the more I got to know him, the more I realized how Weasel was appropriate. He was a weasel, yet he had some sort of strange power over me no man had ever had before.

“Later.” He waved in my direction as he shut the door behind himself.

If Jock knew Axel was harassing me, he’d have one more reason to hate the man. I wasn’t going to tell him. He had enough to worry about with Bria and a pending divorce. Yes, my dear, sweet brother had finally faced reality and called an attorney this morning.

I’d deal with Mr. Hot Ass myself. I’d dealt with worse.

Chapter 4—Darkness

~~Axel~~

By the time I left the practice facility, it was after five, and darkness had descended upon Seattle. It was the end of February, and the days were starting to get longer, but they still had a ways to go.

I walked through the deserted parking garage. A light was out in the area where I parked my car, a black Toyota RAV 4, making it doubly hard to see.

A figure stepped out from the shadows, and I stopped dead in my tracks. My senses were on high alert. I fingered my keys in my hand, positioning them so I could use them as a weapon if attacked.

“Axel?”

I knew that voice, and I almost wished she’d been an anonymous stalker.

“Bria? Or is it Heidi or Hilda?”

She stalked toward me like an enraged lion, and I stiffened, preparing myself for whatever might come next.

“What are you doing here?” I glanced around the garage quickly, hoping none of my teammates witnessed her appearance.

“I’ve been waiting for you.” A determined glitter in her eyes set me on edge. This was no fucking good. We’d had a one-night stand, and I wanted nothing further to do with her.

“Uh, Bria, why are you waiting for me?”

“You have to help me save my marriage. You have to talk to Jock and explain we didn’t do anything. You gave me a ride home, that’s all.”