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Steel was worried about these guys when he sent me out here, but when I look around, I get the impression we’re all kind of the same. A group that’s figuring out where we fit in. They care about their club, and like me, they get shit done, whatever that might be. As far as what comes from that, we’ll see.

Lawson yanks out a prickly weed, working nearby. “Did the fire department say when Ransack will be clear?”

“Hopefully sometime this week.”

“Where’s Harloe crashing in the meantime?”

“You didn’t hear?” East grins, tossing a weed at me, so I flip him off. “She’s getting comfy in Shane’s bed.”

Lawson pauses, his eyebrow lifting. “I thought that whole fake relationship text was a joke.”

“It was something she said to help me out with the cops, but then we figured we’d give it a shot.” I shrug. “They like Harloe around town, and she needs a place to crash.”

“I’ll give her a place to crash,” East offers, pointing to his crotch and grinning.

I throw a weed at him. “It’s not like that, so stay the fuck away from her. She’s helping us out.”

“From your bed?” Aiden chuckles.

“I passed out while she was in the shower last night, and she was too tired to kick me out of the room. That’s it. It’s nothing.”

“I call bullshit. Harloe is fucking hot.” East whistles, and I have to resist the urge not to punch him in the face. “If she were in my bed, it sure as fuck wouldn’t be nothing.”

“She’s not in your bed,” I remind him.

East shakes his head. “Yeah, well, doesn’t really matter whose bed she’s in. She’s here, and to Zander, that’s a problem. He already went to the city council about our new crew, trying to delay them as well. I hope she makes it worth the trouble this shit is going to bring.”

I’m about to kill East when Aiden steps between us, likely sensing my irritation. But it’s Lawson who speaks up.

“Shane’s right. Harloe being seen with us helps us out,” he says, surprising me. “The crew from Arizona got the go-ahead this morning. It seems our man here won over some hearts with his heroic bullshit.”

“I’m not a fucking hero.” I drag my hand through my hair. “Not even close. I just tend to survive when I make poor decisions.”

Back in Vegas, I also got a reputation for being heroic. Problem is, I’m far from it. Being a hero requires honor and intent, and I don’t think that deep into the trouble I walk into. If anything, my actions are a lack of self-preservation and a dash of luck.

What I do is make sure bad things don’t happen to anyone else because I know how much it sucks to lose someone you care about.

“Same difference.” Aiden shrugs. “At least people in town are already coming around, so your plan is working.”

“Yeah, and so long as Harloe is crashing here, she’s safe,” Lawson adds.

That has me pausing. “Weren’t you the one warning me to steer clear of her just a couple of weeks ago?”

He wipes the sweat from his forehead. “Doesn’t mean I think she deserves the shit that’s coming down on her. It’s fucked up, and if we can help, we should. That’s what we’re doing here, right?”

“Playing the good guys?” Aiden chuckles, pausing in the shade for a moment.

“Protecting our territory,” Lawson corrects him.

And he’s right.

Whether this town wants us here or not, we aren’t leaving. It’s the club’s new home, and we protect what’s ours. We look out for people who slip through the cracks where law enforcement is concerned. After what I saw last night with the cops and Zander, it’s needed.

Between arson, break-ins, and robberies, someone is getting away with too much right under our noses. It’s going to stop.

“So does that mean she’s staying in your bed, then?” Aiden asks, circling the conversation back around to the one question I was avoiding.

“Are we still on this shit?” I grab another weed and rip it out. “Since when do you give a fuck about my sleeping arrangements?”