Page 54 of Allegiance
“It’s hard not to do,” Ice said.
“We need to play it cool. We don’t want them thinking we’re planning anything,” Snake said.
Nodding, Tank ran his hand through his hair. “I fuckin’ blew it.”
“Nah. Hammer knows there are members who don’t agree with him,” Fester said. “We need Raptor to agree to step down then we can restore order back in the club.”
“Like I said, I’ll talk to him,” Tank replied.
“Let’s get some shots. Nothing’s gonna change today,” Snake said, heading to the bar.
When Tank went up to the counter, a glass of bourbon, no ice, was on the top. He lifted his chin at the prospect and picked up the tumbler then chugged it down.
The club girls came out of their rooms now that the ruckus was over and started mingling with the members. Someone turned the music back on, and Chainsaw was playing a game of pool with Lynch. The club was back to normal.
Tank looked around the room, watching the club girls prance and show their wares, and all he wanted was to see Lena again.
As much as his common sense begged him not to do it, he shifted his phone out of his pocket and pressed autodial. He started in on his second bourbon, feeling it burn down to his stomach, waiting as each ring brought him closer to a better night.
“Hi, you’ve reached Lena. I’m not here right now, but if you leave your name and number—”
Disappointment wove through him and it pissed him off. So what if she hadn’t returned his text or didn’t pick up her phone? It was no biggie. She was clearly a busy woman. She’d told him that enough times. His hand tightened around the glass, savoring the oak taste on his tongue.
“You doing okay, man?”
“I’m rock solid.” Tank looked dead on at Omen, who was a little smaller than him, but well-built—less like a pro wrestler, more like a CrossFit addict or something.
The other man rubbed a hand across his buzz cut and shook his head.
“You know we got your back, right?”
“I know, bro. No worries.”
Omen shifted awkwardly before slapping Tank on the back and joining the others who were mingling around the clubhouse in tight packs. There was probably going to be a rousing game of Halo on the horizon now that everyone was so pumped full of adrenaline.
Over the next hour and a half, he found himself checking his phone constantly, like a damn dog with a bone. If he wasn’t so exhausted, he might have been disgusted with himself. But really, every minute that went by without a text from Lena drove him a little bit more into siding with his previous thoughts on their relationship. She clearly wasn’t into him anymore. She had ignored three of his texts and one of his calls throughout the day.
The nail in the coffin was when he texted her about a late dinner. He promised himself it would be his last text of the night, and after that, he was turning off his damn phone and handing it over to one of the brothers. Her reply was short, and to the point. And it boiled down to her being busy and she didn’t have time for anything more than her business.
The day before? Not more than an hour had gone by before she responded, and she was more than happy to hear from him. While he wasn’t sure what the fuck had changed between them, something clearly had. He knew a brush-off when he saw it, especially when he used them more than he cared to admit, so hers was glaringly obvious. Also, it wasn’t much of a shock that she had suddenly gone cold on his ass. Women did it all the time. They were fickle as hell.
Really, they thought men were the users in the world? That they would throw a chick away after sex like she was nothing? Women did it too, all the time. It happened to be a specialty of Tank’s type, and Lena’s action fit the bill.
At least now he knew where he stood in the grand scheme of things, which was nice in its own way.
Though it sure as hell wasn’t comforting.
