BORDEN 2 Read Online Free Page B

I was within five feet of her, and hissed like I’d burned her with red-hot oil. Yet she pranced around Granny like a lover reciting a sonnet to its beloved, rested on Granny’s shoulders at night, and purred into Granny’s ear as she was stroked in ways that if it were done by me, I’d have ended up looking like I’d gone through a fucking shredder.
     
    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