“What the fuck was that about?” Buzzard lowered his voice so the guards couldn’t hear their conversation.

“He’s going to make a dumbass move on the teacher.” Ice took a seat at one of the empty tables.

“Why do you give a shit?” Buzzard sat down next to him while Jackal moved within listening distance at his back, remaining silent. Jackal always covered his back so if someone was going to stick him while his back was turned, they would have to go through Jackal first. Good luck with that. They would find themselves gutted before they knew what happened. Jackal had the reflexes and instincts of the predator he had been named after.

Ice shrugged. “I don’t, but him being in that class could fuck everything up. I wanted him to take a swing at me. If he’s in solitary, he’s not in class.”

“I thought we didn’t want to confront Church until we had to. He’s not going to stand for being disrespected in front of the others.”

“It was only a matter of time, and I would rather it was on my time.” Ice wasn’t used to explaining himself to his men, but he couldn’t appear soft where the teacher was concerned.

“He’s going to be out to prove he can take you down.” Buzz warned.

“Let him try. I can handle Church. What I don’t need is to get stuck serving the rest of my sentence because she was able to alert the guards. Do you?”

“No, I don’t. I guess you’ll have to use your charm to make her believe we’re all just harmless,” Buzzard joked. Ice didn’t have a charming bone in his body.

Ice’s stony gaze turned to his vice-president. “Max can charm her. If she keeps me from getting out of here, Church will be the least of her worries.”

Buzzard’s mouth snapped closed as Ice stood to his feet, going to his cell.

He wasn’t going to have any fuck-ups; every detail had been planned. The pesky teacher was already taking too much of his attention. He had to get his mind back on track for the job ahead and couldn’t let any woman distract him, even one who had legs that went on for fucking forever and a mouth, which had him hard every time he saw her.

Ice shook all thoughts of her from his mind. He couldn’t afford to become preoccupied with her. His own life and his men’s depended on him keeping his attention where it needed to be. He liked to plan every little detail and she had placed a wrench in his plans. She had made a mistake taking the teaching position; Ice just hoped she lived to regret her mistake.

Chapter 4

Grace sat behind her desk, feeling Church’s steady gaze on her. She had learned to deal with it for the last two weeks but was becoming fed up with the man.

The guard next to her spoke in his handset then motioned to the two other guards, who left the room.

Church raised his hand. Tempted to tell him to send it to her email, she reluctantly stood and went to his desk. His smirk raised her hackles as she leaned over to look at his computer.

His page was a mess. He had only completed a fourth of the page and what he had done was wrong.

She was about to correct his mistakes when she felt his hand on her butt over her slacks. She attempted to take a quick step back, but his other hand came around her hip, holding her still.

“Church!” the guard by the back door yelled, beginning to come forward.

Grace reached for the book on the Church’s desk, picking it up as his hand slid down her butt, trying to wedge between her thighs. With the book in hand, Grace smacked the prisoner in the face with all her strength. His hands dropped as he grabbed his face while she continued beating him with it.

“You fucking bitch!” he yelled.

The guard moved her out of the way then quickly pulled Church out of his chair.

The struggle between the two men frightened Grace, but she remained calm when she saw the guard subdue Church. The other two guards then ran back into the room, watching while Church was dragged away.

“He doesn’t come back,” Grace said firmly to the guard.

He nodded, talking on his radio.

“Do you want to end the class for today?” he asked when he finished.

Grace looked at the clock. They still had an hour to go. “No.”

Gathering herself, she walked back to her desk. Ice was staring at her with a half-smile on his lips. She was proud of herself for not freaking out, and his surprised gaze showed he was, too.

She picked up her class notes and taught the next section of the lesson, not letting herself dwell on what had just happened. She was just relieved she wouldn’t have to deal with Church leering at her for the rest of the semester. Now, if she could only get her reaction to Ice under control, everything would be perfect.

* * *

“Did you see her smack the shit out of him with that book?” Buzzard laughed next to Ice after class. “I almost pissed myself I was laughing so hard.”

“She made an enemy out of him when she did it,” Jackal said, coming to stand next to Ice and Buzzard as they stood to the side where no one could hear them.

“Yes, she did. What punishment did they give him?” Ice asked.

“Solitary, I’m sure. He definitely won’t be returning for more lessons,” Jackal answered.

Fade joined the group. “Word is Church went ape-shit after they pulled him from the room. He’s in medical now.”

Ice gave a low whistle. “Our pretty little teacher made an enemy from Hell, and she doesn’t even know it.”

“Seems to me she handled him just fine,” Buzzard joked.

“Because she had a guard backing her up. What happens when he gets out?”

They went quiet, their amusement dying.

“Damn,” Fade said under his breath.

“The sick fuck thought she was actually attracted to him,” Ice said.

“I don’t think he’s the only one,” Buzzard said under his breath.

“You got something to say, spit it out,” Ice stiffened.

“I see the way you look at her. It’s no different from the way Church does. You want a new bitch to warm your bed, pick another one, not one who’s going to cause problems. I’m sick of this place.”

Ice didn’t lose his temper. He never lost his temper. That was how he had gotten his nickname—coldly and methodically making decisions, which would make another man hesitate.

“Since when have I ever made a bad decision for the club? She may be hot and I like looking, but that’s because I’m stuck staring at your ugly faces.” His cold voice lashed out like a whip.

Buzzard nodded, his hand running over his closely cropped head. “Sorry, Ice. I’m just getting stir-crazy.”

“We all are.” Ice didn’t relent, staring down the men facing him.

Only Jackal stayed behind as the other two moved away. “You okay?” he asked.

“Yes,” Ice snapped. “Have you gotten any info on her yet?”

“Just the basics. For the last few years, she’s worked at the college. I asked Rave to check her out, and it was all she could come up with until we get the report back from Henry.”

“He needs to hurry.”

“I passed along the urgency of the situation. Rave said she would make sure he understood we needed the information pronto. We do know she’s worked at the college for the last five years after she graduated from UT. She lives alone in a house she makes regular mortgage payments on. No credit cards. No bills. She only socializes with her boss and his fiancée, and her only friend is another teacher named CeCe Brown, who seems to be in a mess at work for fucking her students, which Grace doesn’t do. She hasn’t had a date or a boyfriend since she moved to town.”