by Kasey Krane
“Until he double-crossed us tonight. With our property that was worth over a hundred thousand dollars.”
I blinked. Still confused. What was that supposed to mean?
“Your property? What do you mean he double-crossed you.”
“I don’t know how else to describe it other than that he stole it from us and gave it to someone else.”
I shook my head in disbelief. “Chip did that? My brother, Chip? You must have got your wires crossed. I mean, Chip’s a bit lost but there’s no way he’d be stupid enough to pull something like that. No way.”
Bolt was glaring at me from under his heavy lids. Slowly, he started shaking his head.
“Yeah, that’s what we thought too. We don’t expect any of our patched-in members to behave this way. We trusted him. We trust each other completely.”
“He didn’t do it!” I snapped.
Bolt didn’t make a move. He continued to stare at me with those steely blue eyes, like he could see right through me somehow.
“Cassie…” he said my name in a low firm voice.
“Listen to me. Are you listening to me? My brother didn’t do it. You have to trust me. Ask him. Trust him!” I shrieked this time. This was ridiculous. Chip wasn’t an idiot. I didn’t know these guys, but I could easily tell how dangerous they were. That stealing from them would lead to some serious consequences. Why would Chip take a risk like that?
“He confessed,” Bolt said.
I clamped my mouth shut. The words choked in my throat. I could feel my skin stinging. I wanted to scream because I didn’t want to believe the words I was hearing.
Bolt peered into my eyes. “He told us he did it.”
This couldn’t actually be happening. I felt like I was losing my mind. Whatever my brother’s other faults were, I did not consider him a double-crossing, disloyal liar. Neither was he stupid enough to get on the bad books of these people.
“Sit back down,” Bolt growled when I stood. I glared at him, challenging him for a moment with my eyes. I didn’t have to do anything I didn’t want, but on the other hand, was technically a prisoner here. Nobody would be able to rescue me from this place if they didn’t want me to be found.
So I sat back down.
“What are you going to do to him?” I asked in a low voice. I was fast losing hope. There was no way Chip was coming out of this in one piece. That much I knew.
Bolt ran a hand through his hair again. I saw the muscles twitch in his bicep.
“Chip broke the rules. He broke the law.”
“What are you going to do?” I asked again. I met his eyes; he was looking at me unflinchingly. This man meant business.
“I am going to do whatever the rest of my Club deems necessary to uphold the law.”
“You mean the laws you people have created out of thin air?” I snapped.
“They’re the laws we operate on. It’s how our world functions.”
I rolled my eyes, forcing myself to look away from him.
“Your fictional world, where you people believe everything revolves around you.”
“Do you realize how much money that is? A hundred thousand dollars. Your brother played with that kind of cash. He knew exactly what he was doing.”
“There has to be some explanation. Have you tried speaking to him? Have you asked him why he did it?”
Bolt took in a deep breath, his wide shoulders squared. I couldn’t stop myself noticing the way my body reacted to every move he made. I needed to stop thinking about sex at a time like this!
“There’s no explanation. He confessed to it himself, we didn’t have to coax it out of him.”
I shook my head, wasn’t buying it. I didn’t care.
“He never should’ve joined our Club if he wasn’t going to be loyal to us.”
“You’re not going to hurt him,” I said.
“I can’t promise you something like that, Cassie. Your brother is going to be punished for his actions. That is how it works. Do you understand that?”
I stood up from the chair, not caring what he’d do next to make me sit back down. “If you do anything to hurt Chip, I’m going to go to the cops,” I said.
The air shifted between us in that moment. A raging darkness overtook Bolt’s eyes. I could immediately sense he didn’t like the sound of that threat.
5
Bolt
Great. Just fucking great.
Of all the things I had to get involved with, Chip’s feisty, sexy sister was the last thing I needed right now. But she was standing on the other side of the desk, both hands on her wide hips, her breasts sticking proudly out, making the material of her tight top stretch. I wanted those breasts in my hands. I wanted to feel the curves and softness of them.
My cock throbbed. I could feel my veins pumped with adrenaline—a need to possess her, even though I had every reason to fuckin’ hate her right now.
She’d just threatened me with cops, and even though I wished she hadn’t said it, I couldn’t take that threat lightly. I couldn’t just ignore it. Something needed to be done, something she wouldn’t like. But it was her choice. She shouldn’t have threatened us. She should’ve just kept quiet and maybe I could have made things go differently for her.
I glared at her, looking into her bright green eyes.
“You shouldn’t have said that,” I said.
Cassie licked her lips, still trying to hold the fort, keeping her chin up. She was trying her best to assume a position of power, but wouldn’t win this battle.
“Try me. I’ll do it. I’ll do anything I have to do to keep my brother out of harm’s way,” she continued.
“You need to stop talking. Right now. You have no idea what you’re doing to yourself.”
Cassie’s nostrils flared.
“I’m more concerned about my brother now.”
I had to hand it to her. She was loyal to her brother, no matter what I told her about him. I wanted to push her back, pin her to the wall, take her right here and now if I could. But there were more serious matters to attend to.
I took a few steps toward her. She stepped back. I shook my head.
“I have to do this. Do you understand?” I growled. Her breasts heaved. She was glaring at me. Challenging me.
I caught her by her hips and pulled her to me. Our breaths tangled. She didn’t fight me this time and my hands were all over her. I felt those curves again. The warmth of her skin. Her eyes were on me as I pushed my hands into the pockets of her tight jeans. Her breasts brushed my chest. I could feel my cock throbbing.
This woman had no idea what she was doing to me. Or maybe she did.
I pulled her cellphone out of the back pocket of her jeans and held it up.
“I’m going to have to keep this with me,” I said.
“What are you going to do to me?” she asked. I took a step away from her. I needed some distance between us. Just to get a hold of myself again.
“I’m not sure yet but you’re not going anywhere, not for some time.”
Cassie gulped and looked away.
“You people are not going to get away with this,” she hissed.
It wasn’t my intention to put her through this. I didn’t want her to be mad at me—but I had to admit she looked pretty damn hot when she was. Besides, she did this to herself. She should’ve kept her mouth shut. She shouldn’t have threatened me.
I said nothing more to her but went to the door and opened it.
“I’ll be back,” I said and stepped out. I locked the door behind me. With her phone in my hands, she wasn’t going anywhere.
Flash was headed my way when I locked the door.
“You’ve been in there a while,” he commented.
“She’s his sister.”
“Chip has a sister?”
“Yeah, apparently. I was just as shocked to hear it.”
“Are you sure she’s telling the truth? I mean she could be in the Silver Knights?”
“She’s not lying
about being his sister,” I said.
Flash studied me closely and nodded.
“You sound like you trust her.”
“I’m not sure what I’m thinking right now. I didn’t think Chip was fuckin’ capable of this. So no, I don’t know if I actually trust her. I need to keep an eye on her anyway.”
“An eye on her?”
“She’s a feisty little thing. She’ll do fuckin’ anything to save her brother.”
“What is that supposed to mean?”
“She threatened us with the cops.”
“You fuckin’ serious?” Flash rubbed a hand over his face.
“Like I said, I need to keep an eye on her.”
He grunted, glaring at the door over my shoulder like he could see inside.
“We don’t need this shit.”
“I’ll watch her.”
“She can’t be let near a phone or people,” Flash continued.
I nodded. I understood what the task would entail. Cassie would have to remain isolated as long as possible. Till I determined what her threat level really was, what she was actually capable of. Or at least till Chip was on the other side of his punishment.
“I said I’ll watch her,” I said.
Flash looked me over. I could see there were cogs turning in his head. “Chip’s been put in the black room.”
I nodded. I figured that was what was going to happen to him. He’d have to stay in the black room till the MC decided we were done with him.
“I’ll keep her away from there, put her in the room upstairs.”
“She still needs to be watched. We can’t risk her running away,” Flash insisted.
“I fuckin’ said I’d watch her.”
“You could use your time better than keeping an eye on a silly girl,” he stated.
Whatever Cassie was, she wasn’t silly. But I wasn’t about to defend her to him. That wouldn’t go down well with the MC at the moment. Not after she’d just threatened to go to the cops on us.
“I’ll do it. You deal with Chip, and once it’s over we can be done with this shit,” I said.
Flash clenched his jaws. He was thinking. When he opened his mouth to speak, I knew exactly what he was about to say next. I made to walk away.
“Bolt!” he called out to me. I stopped, my back turned to him. “Hooking up with Chip’s sister will be a very bad idea for you. Ya get that, don’t you?”
“You don’t have to worry about her,” I said.
“She’s a problem for us.”
“I fuckin’ said you don’t have to worry about her,” I growled.
In the very next second, Cassie banged her fists on the door.
“Let me out! Help! Somebody!”
Flash and I heard her scream. I looked over my shoulder at him and he was shaking his head. He didn’t believe me when I said he didn’t have to worry about her.
“You better fuckin’ take care of this,” he muttered as he walked away.
“Calm the fuck down, Cassie,” I said softly, even though I knew she couldn’t hear me. I needed to go find Drax.
Spike found me first.
“What’s the scoop with the chick?” he asked.
“Chip’s sister.”
“Yeah, he seemed pretty fired up about her. Wanted us to keep our hands off her. I figured she was his girl.”
“Yeah. She’s not,” I said, attempting to walk past him. I needed to find Drax so I could get his approval on my plan.
“So what are we doing with her?”
“I’m going to watch her. Keep her out of the way while we deal with Chip.”
“You gonna bang her?” Spike asked. I stopped in my tracks and turned to him.
Could he read it on my face? I tried to keep it neutral.
“I don’t know yet,” I said. I figured it was the most tactical response to his question to get him off my back. “Maybe I will.”
Spike smirked. “Hot piece of ass. If you’re not claiming her, I’m next in line.” He laughed. I shouldn’t have cared what he said. We always talked about chicks that way. And that’s what Cassie technically was. She was just as good as any other chick who could’ve walked into the bar.
But what Spike said made my skin crawl.
“Send some guy over to my apartment. There’s a chick in my bed. I need her gone from my place,” I said. I didn’t need her waiting for me or playing house. I didn’t intend on returning to the apartment soon.
“Cool. Yeah, I will.”
“I need to go find Drax,” I said.
“He’s in the kitchen. Pissed off, obviously.”
I nodded. I was about to walk away, and Spike stopped me again.
“Remember, I’m next in line,” he said.
I didn’t reply and made my way to the kitchen. Whatever the reason was, I didn’t want to hear the others speak of Cassie like she was just a piece of meat. There was something about her that set her apart from everyone else. But I didn’t want to think about what that could be. It had to be my cock talking.
Drax was in the kitchen, just like Spike said he would be. Some of the girls who usually hung around Drax were there as usual. Pouring drinks, stroking his hair, taking care of him while he sulked.
“She’s his sister,” I told him when I entered the room.
“Huh? What? Who?” Drax turned to me, drink in hand.
“The girl I locked up in your office.”
“Yeah. Her. Right. Just deal with her.”
I didn’t want to tell him how Cassie had threatened us with cops. Drax had too much on his plate already.
“Ya, I’m taking care of that problem,” I said.
Drax nodded as he sat down. One of the girls took her place on his right leg and he placed a hand on her back, stroking her gently.
“This means fuckin’ war. We have to get the shipment back from the Silver Knights, and they aren’t going to be happy about it.”
I nodded. This was exactly what I was thinking. We couldn’t just write off a hundred thousand dollars’ worth of shipment. We had our own deals and contracts that needed to be honored.
“This kid has really done us in,” Drax continued, shaking his head.
“We should discuss it with the rest of the club in detail.”
“Yes. Tomorrow. One of you has to come up with a good plan out of this.”
“Call Church tomorrow.”
Drax nodded. The girl on his lap leaned into him and whispered something in his ear. He drew in a deep breath and started to stand up.
“But tonight, I’m going to hit the sack and try and get some sleep. You should too. We’re probably not getting any sleep after tomorrow.”
“Any opinion on what should be done with the sister?” I asked.
He barely even looked at me now.
“No, I don’t give a fuck. Frankly, don’t give a fuck what happens to the kid either. I just want him out of my sight. The fucker. And I want my shipment back.”
I gave him a nod and walked out of the kitchen again.
Now that I had Drax’s approval to deal with Cassie the way I thought fit, nobody else would be able to object to me keeping her locked in the bedroom upstairs where I could keep an eye on her.
I didn’t exactly have a plan yet. All I knew was I had to keep her away from the cops till this thing had blown over. Right now, if the cops came after us, they’d end up blowing up our plans of getting the shipment back. In a few weeks’ time, once this war was over, they wouldn’t find anything. We’d be able to fight them back. Cassie could go ahead and lodge as many complaints with them as she liked.
Hopefully, in a few weeks, this would all be over.
6
Cassie
Once Bolt left the room, leaving me alone and having robbed me of my cellphone, I knew immediately how stupid I’d been.
I was so desperate to save Chip, but shouldn’t have opened my big mouth. Why did I threaten him with cops? Why did I make him think I would betray the Club? Maybe what I shoul
d’ve done was played nice. Seduced him? Done something to bring him over to my side.
Have him eating out of my hand.
But this guy despised me now. He viewed me as someone dangerous. Someone he needed to keep locked up.
I felt helpless. I wanted to cry. I still didn’t know what they were doing with Chip out there. So I banged my fists on the door, screaming for help even though I knew there was nobody coming. The only people able to hear my screams were the members of this MC, and none of them were going to let me out.
Bolt hadn’t returned, and a part of me wished he had. At least when he was here, I didn’t feel so lonely. Was he going to leave me by myself the whole night? I’d go crazy.
I looked around the room in desperation. This ‘office’ had nothing in it. The filing cabinets were locked. The desk had one drawer with nothing but a letter opener in there. I slipped it into my back pocket. Since Bolt had checked me already, maybe he wouldn’t check me again? It was my only hope.
I had no idea how I’d use a letter opener as a weapon and under what circumstances, but I felt a little better knowing I had something.
I forced myself to sit on the chair, hoping Bolt would return. Even though he probably hated me and was plotting against me. Even though he was keeping me prisoner here, something about him made me want to see him again.
How messed up was it that he turned me on when he was searching me? The way his fingers dug into my skin when he was looking for my phone—I could still feel the rough pressure of his hands when he stuffed them into my pockets. His hands on my hips, on my breasts. These weren’t gentle soft caresses. The man was on a mission.
But I wanted him to hold me again, to be roughly handled. What was wrong with me? I should have hated him.
I should’ve wished to never see him again.
And here I was, patiently sitting in the chair, my foot tapping the floor as I waited for him to return. Blue eyes. Dark hair. Muscles. The taste of whisky on his breath. Those dangerous tattoos crawling over his bulging biceps. I felt a sharp tug between my legs, and had to press my thighs tightly together. I was fantasizing about him at the worst possible time.