BORDEN 2 (3 page)

Joy and Hawke would have been perfect for each other. They both just wanted to watch the world burn.

“Just tell me who’s down there,” I pressed Graeme.

“Quit it, Emma. You’re starting to bother me.”

“I’m the one feeling bothered! I’ve been kept in the dark.”

Graeme opened his mouth again when the door suddenly opened, and Borden strode into the room, with dick Hawke following. Graeme looked relieved by their arrival, and I just glowered at Borden as he rounded the desk and took my face into his hands. Without warning, he bent down and kissed me quickly. Unfortunately, it wasn’t passionate enough to wipe away my scowl. He backed away, a curious look in his eye as he asked, “What the fuck is wrong with your face, doll? You eat something you shouldn’t have?”

My brows shot up and he chuckled, plopping down on his office chair.

“What am I doing here?” I asked tiredly. “I could have stayed home.”

“I’ve got business to take care of, and I need you here with me so we can keep an eye on you,” Borden explained.

“What business?”

“Private business,” Hawke interjected, looking annoyed by me, but then again he was
always
annoyed by me.

“I’m not talking to you,” I snarled at him before I looked back at Borden. “Who’s downstairs? It sounds like a herd of elephants.”

“I’d rather the elephants,” Borden replied, his amused face fading away. “We’ve got bikers here. The Warlord chapter from outside of town.”

My mouth dropped. “You’re dealing with bikers?”

“I wasn’t before, but now…Well, now I’m exploring my options.”

“Why?”

“For your protection,” Hawke cut in. “Not because Borden wants to. The President of the Warlords has been hounding him for over a year straight, so it goes to show how far Borden’s going for
you
. A little appreciation wouldn’t kill.”

“Why add that?” I whipped back, pointing at him as I stared at Borden. “Why does he have to add the appreciation part like I’m some sort of spoiled cow?”

“He talks to everybody like that, doll,” Borden replied on a shrug. “You know Hawke’s a dick and it’s not personal. He has a point in the centre of it all.”

I ignored Hawke’s smug look and said bitterly, “And his point under that bullshit is that I need protection?”

“Yes.”

“And this has to do with bikers?”

“Yes.”

I glanced at them all, searching for more answers, but they weren’t saying anything else. Bikers were bad. The city was lucky not to have had its share of them, but that was because Borden was here. Still, I heard things. Knew enough to know they weren’t just a bunch of jolly guys that created a cute little club just so they could ride their big Harleys around town and look cool.

“I don’t understand,” I finally said. “Explain it to me. Why would bikers offer protection?”

“It’s simple,” Borden explained. “I haven’t found the culprit behind the threat. On top of that, I can’t afford to have you vulnerable, and my guys on the streets have turned up nothing. The bikers, on the other hand, are better at finding people than I am. They deal, and with all their customers coming through, they’ve developed connections – very valuable connections. They
know
people. If I ally with them, I have a better chance at finding the threat, annihilating that threat, and making sure you’re safe in the process.”

“What do the bikers get in return?”

Hawke smirked, glimpsing at Borden. “At least she asks the right fucking questions.”

Borden’s lips twitched, but his eyes remained cool on mine. “They get the port, Emma.”

My mouth went dry and an uneasy feeling came over me. “To bring their drugs in.”

“To bring their
product
in. Whatever product that is, that’s their own business.”

I raised a brow, sceptical. He wasn’t fooling me.

“Is it a one-time thing?” I asked him.

“No,” he answered. “It’ll be for as long as the deal is standing.”

“So…?”

“So it could be forever at this stage.”

“This is a strong alliance,” Hawke added, looking at me without contempt for once. “We could be impenetrable after this. That club has been owning the towns they’ve been marking their territory in for over two decades. They’re strong, and in a world where snakes hide in alleyways threatening to tear us apart, that’s what we need. Strength.”

I still felt unconvinced.

“Don’t you find this a little too serendipitous?” I replied, glancing between Hawke and Borden. “You get a text threatening my life, and the only people you want to turn to are the ones who have been trying to use your port to bring their product in. How do you know this President hasn’t orchestrated the entire thing just so they can have access to it?”

“While that’s an intelligent guess, I know that he hasn’t,” Borden said, firmly.

“How do you know that, though?” I stressed, pushing for a definitive answer I knew he couldn’t just give me. “He’s a biker and probably a criminal. How do you know you can trust him?”

“Because,” Hawke cut in, his face going hard, “he’s my brother.”

Emma

There is shocked, and then there is
shocked
.

Shocked
was what I was. The entire room fell silent, and a million more questions buzzed through my mind. I didn’t know where to begin. I stared at Hawke for several moments, and he turned away from me, as if concerned I’d read everything on his face. The guy had secrets, and judging by the way Borden didn’t react, I knew he was aware of every one of them.

With another sigh, Borden inched closer to me and took my hands into his own. He brought his face closer to mine, so close I felt his breaths against my mouth. So close I was swimming in the blue depths of his eyes as he searched my own.

“Stop overthinking it,” he whispered to me. “Hawke and I have gone over this, and I wouldn’t be here inviting a group of savages if I wasn’t sure about this guy.”

As he spoke those words, I glimpsed at Hawke again. He just nodded, agreeing with Borden’s words, and I hated to admit that it helped ease my concerns.

“Don’t worry,” Borden continued. “I promise everything will be alright. I know what I’m doing.”

His gentle words were soothing. I shut my eyes and leaned into him. He kissed me gently, communicating through his kisses that all was fine. I believed it despite the warning I felt at the pit of my stomach.

“Fucking hell,” Hawke cursed from across the room. “Get a fucking room or something.”

Borden’s lips shot up, and he let Hawke’s words slide like usual. I kind of wished he’d be a dick to him like he was with everybody else. He pulled away, and I resumed staring into his eyes like a lovesick puppy that I was. No shame in that either.

I felt a little foolish for questioning him. Of course Borden would know what he was doing, and who to trust. Why would I have doubted that for a second?

“Okay,” I whispered to him. “You know what you’re doing.”

“I’m touched you believe in me,” he replied, dryly.

“You’re the almighty Borden, I sort of have no choice right now.”

“That’s right,” he replied lightly, before quietly adding, “I like that you referred to my place as your home, by the way.”

My smile stretched wide at the look of gentleness in him. “Did that make you feel all warm and fuzzy?”

“Jesus,” Hawke interrupted again, “they really fucking carry on, don’t they?”

I rolled my eyes. “You need Borden’s attention, Hawke? Are you jealous?”

“Yeah, right.” He scoffed.

Tearing my eyes from Borden, I turned to Hawke. “So what’s your brother like anyway? He’s gotta be real tough to be the president, huh?”

He shrugged absently. “Hector is… Hector. I’m sure I’ll have to put him in his place at some point.”

“Why?”

He winced. “He’s...he’s got a few weaknesses, particularly never knowing when to keep his mouth shut.”

“Loose tongue,” Graeme added on a firm nod. “I’ve met that man. Not a big fan.”

Jeesh. The way everybody looked, you’d think the man was a complete asshole. You couldn’t find somebody more of an asshole than Borden, though.

As if on cue, a series of loud knocks interrupted us, signalling the arrival of a man I was suddenly itching to meet.

“That’ll be him,” Hawke said, striding to it.

Borden was too busy staring at me to acknowledge him. He kissed my hand before letting go and resituated himself at his desk. All signs of affection immediately evaporated. He was going into Borden-mode. Jaw locked, face impassive, lips drawn in a straight line. Borden-mode was sexy just as it was scary, and my heart jumped in my chest.

Hawke opened the door and a deep, gravelly voice immediately sounded out. “Well, shit, look at you.”

I watched the door widen and a tall and broad man stepped through, giving Hawke a few hard pats on the back. The man was younger than I’d have expected him to be for a President of an MC. He was probably in his early thirties, dark short hair, and a completely clean shaven olive toned face. I kind of expected a bearded man with a giant gut. Instead, it was a solid man the same mammoth height as Hawke, and for a split second, I could see the uncanny resemblance between them, but Hawke was more unkempt, whereas this man was just damn good looking all around. It kind of made me wonder what Hawke looked like underneath his dreadful garb that was his facial hair.

“It’s been a while,” he told Hawke, his eyes looking him over closely. “You look like a fucking homeless man.”

Hawke just shrugged. “I can’t just walk around with my face showing, now can I?”

“No, I suppose not.”

What the hell did that mean?

“You still look like a sissy ass bitch,” Hawke then remarked, his mouth twitching at the end. “Can’t grow a beard to save your life? Shit hasn’t changed, I see.”

“Fuck you, the bitches dig me how I am. You’d know that if you were around.”

Something dark flashed in Hawke’s eyes as he moved to let Hector through. Then he shut the door and crossed his arms, watching his brother carefully. Hector nodded his head at Graeme in greeting, and Graeme gave a half-ass nod in return. Then the big biker looked over at Borden, and then at me. His face softened a little, amusement skirting his features as he took me in. I straightened myself up in the chair, looking back at him, not wanting to look away like my mind was instructing me to. His mouth widened into a grin before he directed his stare at Borden.

“This is a big fucking surprise, Borden. I didn’t think this day would ever come,” he said, collapsing into the chair in front of us. He leaned back in it, his legs spread wide as he made himself absolutely comfortable. These were the movements of a man in power; one that didn’t fear Borden in the least. It was definitely out of the norm for me to witness, and I glanced at Borden, trying to assess his reaction at Hector’s behaviour. Borden was still a blank canvas, though.

When he didn’t respond straight away, Hector glimpsed at me again. Once more, he didn’t care that he was openly ogling me, and I started to get a little nervous. I wasn’t used to this anymore. Borden was very possessive. I’d seen his cutthroat glares at men we passed, and they always whipped their heads away in fear, to the point where nobody really looked at me anymore.

This man didn’t seem to give a flying shit.

Hector wasn’t necessarily looking at me the way those men did.  There wasn’t anything lustful when his eyes roamed me, though he licked his lips briefly as if appreciating me. Mostly, he was just curious, and I understood why.

Borden didn’t just let any woman into his world.

“The babe is fuckable,” Hector remarked, his eyes locked on my face. “Who is she?”

“Mine,” Borden finally said, his voice hard, that backbone of authority bleeding through. I knew that tone well. It was a warning, one that wouldn’t be repeated if this dick continued talking about how “fuckable” I was.

Hector chuckled, nodding at him. “Fair enough that she’s yours and all, but what’s a hot piece of ass doing in your office while we’re here to discuss business? A woman’s place is outside that door. Preferably on her knees, in my opinion.”

Oh, no he didn’t.

Sexist pig.

My lips curled up in anger, and I glared at him. He caught the look and just smiled. It was an easy going smile –
a very nice smile
– a mouth full of straight white teeth that made every feature on his face glow with mischief. It was one those goddamn smiles that unfortunately had the power to put you at ease. He enjoyed riling someone up, and I was the one he was targeting. I felt my cheeks suddenly redden, and I finally tore my eyes off of him, looking directly at Borden, a man who made me feel the complete opposite of ease.

Borden remained impassive. With an almost bored tone, he replied, “She’s here because your end of the bargain involves her.”

“How so?”

“We got a threat,” Hawke cut in from behind him, his voice suddenly cold. “So get your fucking shit together and learn some respect. The girl is Borden’s, and you’re meant to be mindful of other people’s property.”

Property? Bloody hell, sexist pigs must run in the family.

The tension in the room suddenly spiked. Taken off guard, Hector glanced over his shoulder at his brother, and I suddenly realized what was going on here. Hawke was the older brother, and he was giving his younger one a scolding. Obviously shitty, Hector tensed a little before smiling forcefully at him, bottling up his anger.

“My apologies, brother,” he murmured. “I’ll mind my mouth.”

“Good. Now we need your help to locate this threat,” Hawke continued. “We’ve scoured the streets searching for it, and at this point, we need a fresh pair of eyes.”

Hector shrugged, still a bit shitty. “Why me?”

“You’re good,” Borden inserted. “Very fucking good from what I’ve heard. Plus your men are loyal to you, despite acting like fucking savages in my club.”

Hector ignored the dig. “What does their loyalty have anything to do with it?”

“It has
everything
to do with it. When a man has the loyalty of his crew, it usually means he’s generally good at what he’s doing. Am I right?”

The amusement on Hector’s face faded away. He nodded solemnly at Borden’s words, and I could see a hint of pride in him hearing it. Glancing at me again, he asked, “So what’s going on then? Hawke was vague about it. Said you were getting threatened or some shit, which seems fairly the norm for someone like you. You’re a fucking tyrant. I was under the impression nobody runs you down anymore as it is.”

“No, they don’t. I make sure of it.”

“So what is it then? I’m scratching at the walls, man. I need to know what it’s going to take for me to get to that fucking port. That’s what I’m here for, right? Let’s cut to the chase. Shit’s getting tight on my end, the cops are cracking down on my transport trucks, and I need this to happen. A-S-A-P.”

“I got a text threatening her life,” Borden explained, tilting his head in my direction. “The fucker had sent it outside her apartment building, and he purposely left behind his phone in the process.”

Hector crossed his arms, shooting Borden a look of confusion. “I mean, I could lie right now and tell you that’s bad just so I can get what I want. But your reputation is pretty fucking crazy, Borden, and it’s like that for a reason. I’m not sure you should be stressing over a text this much, man. What if it was a just a little shit trying to act tough and then getting spooked by what he’d done?”

“Either way, I want to know the person responsible. In the rare event that I’m not here and shit goes south, I need to ensure that you’ll be there to protect her.”

“To protect her,” Hector repeated, glancing at me. “Does this extend beyond this text message, in any sort of situation?”

“Yes.”

Letting his arms drop, Hector ran a hand through his hair and let out a sharp breath. “Man, I got a lot of people to look after as it is, Borden. A whole club worth of people, to be more precise. And I get you’re protective of the girl because she’s pretty fucking hot and all, and shit, I’d be just as angry if I had a piece of ass like that and someone was threatening to kill it, but I really don’t think I should be wasting resources finding some shit who might be a fucked up teenager looking for his next thrill.”

Threatening to kill
it
? Was I just an object to this dude? Wow, this guy really was the most sexist piece of shit I had ever met. I looked at Borden, part of me wanting to scoot over and plead for him to find somebody else to help with our situation, but I could see the determination on his face. He’d most likely just ignore me.