“Alert all of the guys,” Flint says. “Call Toby and tell him to make sure everything is secure on his end with the suppliers. The merchandise needs to stay far away from us right now. It’s time we informed all of the girls about what is going on, too. Even the Sweet Butts. If ATF agents decide to make a surprise visit and come bursting through the doors, they need to be prepared. I wouldn’t be surprised if the ATF raided us before the end of the day.”

“I’ll head on back to the shop and double check everything,” I say. “Call me the instant you find out something about Lila.”

“No, I’m not calling you,” Flint says. “I’ll call Jesse. This is out of your hands now, Sam. I’m sorry. You have a thing for her. We get it. But you need to get the fuck over it. Frankly, I don’t want to hear another damn word from you about Lila.”

“I’ll call the guys and then go over to the clubhouse to break the news to the Sweet Butts,” Jesse says. “It’s time to batten down the hatches and get ready for Hurricane Lila to blow back into town.”

“This is a damn nightmare,” Flint says. “Kendra is going to kill me when she finds out I didn’t tell her about everything earlier. I’d better go grab her now before she heads out to the vet clinic. I’ll call you later with an update soon.”

Flint hangs up the phone.

I down my last sip of coffee and stand up.

“Don’t you dare do anything stupid,” Jesse says. “Trust me. She’s not worth it.”

Yes, she is.

Chapter Twenty-Four

Lila

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I wait by the front window and watch for Erik and his team to arrive. When they pull into my driveway, I hurry out into the darkness to greet them.

“This way,” I say to the group of muscular men in tight t-shirts piling out of the two cars. “Feel free to put your equipment anywhere you want. None of the rooms are off limits.”

They quickly unload their equipment and file into the house to start setting up.

I wait for Erik to pull the last box out of the trunk. Even after all this time, he still looks exactly the same, only a few years older. Tall and big, with long wild hair, blue eyes, and a trimmed beard. A real life walking, talking Thor.

He walks up to me and engulfs me in a big, warm hug. My eyes unexpectedly fill with tears and I blink them back. What the hell is wrong with me lately? I cry over everything. It’s been so long since I’ve seen my mentor. I knew he wouldn’t let me down.