by Erin Trejo
“Gimme awhile. Got some other shit goin’ on first and then I’ll get to this. You owe me, asshole.”
“I got you. Just find what I need,” I tell him before the line goes dead.
Chapter Five
I sit in the corner nursing a beer while I watch him. There’s a girl, Amy, hanging off his side while he throws his head back laughing at something one of the brothers said to him. That’s when Cali sits next to me.
“You’re not any different than we are.”
“Didn’t say I was.”
“But you are, aren’t you?” she asks pulling my attention to her.
“Why do you say that?”
“You sleep in his room,” she states.
“And? I sleep in the spare bed.”
“Demon has a spare bed?” she questions as I nod my head. She raises an eyebrow and shrugs. “Never had one before.”
“He didn’t let the others sleep in his room?” I ask wondering now.
“No. He would kick them all out when he was done with them,” she answers.
“Do you…you know, like that stuff?” She shakes her head rapidly.
“No. My dad used to beat me when I was little. It never worked but Demon didn’t care. He said that was fine and sent me on my way. Do you?” she asks looking over at me. I shrug.
“I don’t really know what all that means. I get that he wants to give me pain but that’s not what it felt like,” I admit for the first time to anyone. I suppose Demon should know that part too but I don’t plan on telling him. I don’t want him knowing everything there is to know about me.
“It’s okay to like it. Some do, some don’t. Just follow the rules around here and you’ll be fine.”
“What rules?”
“We all have different rules. Demon said we aren’t all the same so we all need a different set of rules.”
I don’t do well with rules. I know my place as a club whore but that doesn’t mean I want rules. My eyes land on Drake as I glance around the room and Cali notices.
“He’s insane. Like, certifiable. So is his old lady. You shouldn’t mix with her by the way,” she tells me.
“Why not? She talked to me first.”
“Yeah, well. Bad move. They get defensive and she’s as crazy as Drake. He has this blood lust that he can’t control. He loves it, craves it. She’s just as bad. When she first came here she thought I was after him and well,” she says pulling her shirt up to reveal a scar.
“What did she do?”
“She shanked my ass. It was crazy intense. I almost left but Demon assured me she would never do that again.”
“I can’t believe that. She seemed so nice.”
“Yeah, she can be but she’s also bat shit crazy over that man.” Nodding toward Drake, I follow her gaze until I notice Demon’s dark eyes staring right at me.
“What about him?”
“Demon?” she asks. I pull my gaze from his and nod my head.
“He’s a good guy. I know he likes control and all that and at times you think he’s a complete asshole, but under all that is a great man. He’s really cool with all of us.”
“I’m sure that’s how he got his name,” I add sarcastically. She giggles.
“No. That’s a long story of blood and death but he really is a good guy once you get to know him.”
He took me in on a trade. It made me wonder what he traded me for. I never asked and I sure as hell don’t plan to either. I don’t think I truly want to know that they traded something out for me. A person. A human.
Dark eyes burn through my soul when I look up and catch him staring once more. I lick my red lips and he smirks a dark sexy smirk that has my panties soaked. Swallowing the lump in my throat, I shove to my feet and head to the bar for something a little stronger than beer. I need a big class of Jack and coke if I’m going to make it around him.
Chapter Six
“You keepin’ her around?”
“Who the fuck asked you to comment?” I ask Salt, one of the other brothers. Nosey bastard.
“Just askin’.”
“Well don’t. Who I keep around is none of your concern. What you need to do is get your ass ready for the issue with the warehouse. We’re hittin’ that tomorrow night and I don’t want any bullshit flyin’ off while we’re there. Now get out and send Drake in,” I tell him. He stands and walks out of the room as I look over at Grinder. The smirk on his face is amusing to say the least. Drake strolls in and drops into the seat that Salt just left, his eyes on mine.
“Our shipment. We know where it is and now we need to get it back. The problem is we were friendly with their old prez and a lot of them men.”
“So you wanna what? Let that shit slide?” Anger dances in his tone and his eyes. I’d never let that shit slide.
“Fuck no! We’re goin’ in but we need to talk about how to handle this shit. Were they just followin’ orders?” I ask more to myself than them.
“He’s right. Their prez says do it they gotta follow orders,” Grinder says while I nod.
“Fuck! So we grab the new prez and fuck his world up. I don’t know why Dart wasn’t put in place to begin with. Riders would have been better off without that new fuck they have anyway,” Drake says. I agree with him there.
“So we grab the prez and you do your thing in front of the others. We watch, feel it out before we make any other decisions, yeah?” Drake always wants blood and it’s been awhile since he’s had it. I know he needs a kill, and if I can give it to him I will.
“Grinder, take a walk.” He nods and shoves out of his chair walking out the door. Drake eyes me knowing I’m about to ask him something.
“You good? You seem off?”
“Just everything goin’ on and Evie tellin’ me I don’t spend enough time with the baby. Fuck, I’m there every goddamn night holdin’ her ‘til she falls asleep. Said she won’t even know I’m her dad.”
Fuck. That woman is just as lethal as Drake is.
“You need some time?” His eyes jerk to mine and I laugh. “Okay. No time but if you do, take it. She knows you’re her dad, brother. We all see the way you look at that baby even if it is hard on you.” Drake had a shit life and being a part of this club? Well, I hope it makes it at least a little better.
“Just bullshit, brother.”
I nod my head when he stands and heads for the door. Just as he’s about to open it someone knocks. Drake pulls it open and Cheryl stands there wide eyed and gorgeous. I nod at Drake and he ushers her inside before closing the door behind himself.
“I need to know the rules, Demon.”
“What rules?”
“Rules for me. What are the rules?”
Ah, she’s been talking to Cali more lately and that little mouthy shit has been filling her head with stuff. I nod to the chair in front of my desk and watch her as she strolls over and takes a seat.
“The rule is you do what I say. No fuckin’ anyone unless I tell you to. That’s it,” I tell her honestly. I don’t make rules for all the girls, just the ones that need it. I don’t think Cheryl needs the rules that Cali has.
“That’s it?”
“Yeah, that’s it. Need to talk to you about somethin’ else, too.”
“What?”
“Daytona rally is comin’ up. We go every year and I want you to go with me.”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” she says softly, emotion flickering in her eyes.
“Why not?”
“I just don’t think it’s smart.”
“You’re a part of this club now. We get a little rowdier than Maryland may have. I need to know that you can handle yourself with that many people around.” What a load of shit I’m spewing. She’s handled herself just fine since being here.
“Okay.”
“You ever been?” I ask.
“When I was about six or seven,” she says swallowing hard. There’s more to this story than I know. More to what she’s trying to tell me here but I won�
��t push her. Not right now.
“With who?”
“My dad was into bikes. He…he took me.”
There. That pause. There’s something.
“That’s not really a place for a kid.”
She snorts a laugh.
“No shit. I saw things I will never forget at that thing.”
“I don’t know the whole story or why you wouldn’t want to go but you’re goin’ with me. No one will fuck with you when you’re with me, yeah?” Slowly she nods her head but it’s reluctant. She really doesn’t want to do this and I’m going to push her from her comfort zone and find out why.
“Okay.”
With a final nod I stand from my chair as she does the same and heads for the door. Right before she can pull it open, I give in to a baser need and grab her wrist and spin her to face me. Don’t do this, I try to tell myself. I shouldn’t do this. But I don’t give a fuck. I want to.
“I’ve been wonderin’ what this tastes like,” I tell her huskily before leaning down and pressing my lips to hers. Heat blooms inside of me like a rapid burning fire. It courses through my veins and I can’t stop it. I slide my tongue into her mouth and savor the taste of her. Fuck. I knew she would taste good but this? No, I didn’t expect this from her. When I pull away, she’s dazed. I lean in and press one more kiss to her lips before releasing the hold I had on her. Cheryl turns back to the door and pulls it open. I slap her ass, causing her to yelp as she goes. I follow her out and everyone turns to look at us. Cheryl’s cheeks turn pink which is cute considering why she’s here.
“Remember what I said. No one but me,” I remind her of what we just talked about when I notice Amy sauntering her ass toward me.
“What about you?” As soon as the words leave her mouth, her hand comes up to cover it. Embarrassment and a little fear cloud her vision.
I shove Amy off my side and grip Cheryl’s jaw in my hand. Something I never thought I’d say falls from my lips.
“I can fuck who I want when I want. But for now, I’ll wait for you.” I like sex. I like being a dom to the girls who like it and I love fucking when I want. This is going to be harder for me than I thought and I blame it all on her. But she has my head in a fucking mess and I can’t sort it all out just yet. And I like what I feel when I’m with her, when I touch. So I’m willing to torture myself for the delayed gratification because I know it will be worth it.
“Thank you, Demon.”
My brows furrow as I study her now calm face. She was worried about me fucking other girls and then touching her? Is that what this is? She’s had it done to her so many times before now. I suppose this is something different for her, though. She’s never been with a guy like me. I don’t even know what a fucking guy like me is anymore. Not with her around. For some reason I don’t want the other girls hanging off my cock; I want Cheryl there. I don’t want them in my bed, I want her there. What is it about her that has my head a fucking mess? What is it she’s doing to me?
Chapter Seven
“Invite us in,” Amy says with her arms crossed over her chest.
Oh like hell I will. That will never happen. I shake my head as I pull the door closed behind me. Crazy bitch.
“Not happening.”
“Why the hell not? It’s not like Demon hasn’t had us in there before. You can lie and say that we’re having girl time.”
I don’t like her already and I’ve only known her a week. She’s an evil conniving little bitch. The others aren’t so bad, but this one wants everything that is Demon even when I haven’t seen him reciprocate anything in return.
“I’m not being that disrespectful. Been there, done that. And besides, he asked me not to,” I inform her and her slut squad. I’ve given her little group the name of slut squad. Even though we all know what we are, they seem to be the worst ones. They always want what they aren’t supposed to have, like getting into Demon’s room.
“Oh please. Do you think we all haven’t been in there?”
“Don’t you think if Demon wanted you in there he would have asked you in?” We all turn to the voice behind us to find Evie standing with her arms over her chest, glaring. Oh shit. She is pissed off now.
“I…I didn’t invite them in,” I say quickly not wanting the wrath of her.
“I know. I heard it all. Why don’t you girls go clean something. Be useful for a change,” she snaps at them. I fight the urge to smile and start walking behind them when her arm flies out to stop me. “Not you. I have a job for you.”
“Oh, okay. What do you need?” I’m a little afraid to find out to be honest.
“A shower. I need a goddamn shower and I can’t do that if the baby cries. I need you to watch her.”
“Wait, what? Watch her?”
“Yes. I need you to watch her while I take a shower. Can you do that?” I open my mouth but I can’t tell her no. Instead I nod my head and follow her to her room. Right there in the crib is a tiny little girl. Tara. I remember hearing someone call her that. It’s a beautiful name.
“She will wake up as soon as the water turns on, trust me. Just hold her. She’ll stop crying. You can take her to the main room but if any of the guys are smoking tell them to stop.” I nod once more as she heads into the bathroom.
She was right. As soon as the shower turns on the baby cries. I walk over and lift her into my arms, amazed at how tiny she is. She stops crying almost instantly when I cradle her against my chest. It feels weird being in their room so I head back out and into the main room. No one but a few girls are in here and that’s fine by me. Sitting in the chair in the corner I hold her closely and look down at her little sleepy face. She’s beautiful.
“You have any?”
My head pops up when I hear Demon speak. I shake my head when I realize he’s talking about the baby.
“No.”
“Want kids?” I narrow my eyes this time when I look back up at him. He laughs. “Not today. Just in general, Kitten.”
“At some point, but I don’t know if I’d be a good mom. I didn’t have one.”
“She left?”
“Yeah. She didn’t want to deal with me once I hit the crying toddler stages,” I tell him. He nods like he understands but he doesn’t. I hated her. I hated the fact that she left me the way she did. I hated her for leaving me with him. I always felt like she knew what would happen but she didn’t care, and that fact made me hate her even more. I didn’t know back then just how fucked up my life would become. I didn’t know that I would hate people as easily as I’ve learned to since then.
“Well, she looks good in your arms.”
A small smile tugs across my face as I look up at him. He would look good with one too, I think to myself. Shaking the thoughts away, I watch Drake’s seriousness walk over and lean down. His breath is so close to me I can feel it. Then he kisses his daughter’s head and eyes me for a second before walking away, never saying a word.
“Be back late. Wait for me,” Demon says. I nod my head and watch Demon walk off followed by most of the other guys with guns in their hands.
“You got baby duty?” Cali asks when she walks over and sits next to me.
“She’s so sweet. I love the smell of babies. So innocent,” I whisper.
“Who hurt you?”
“No one,” I answer quickly trying to get the attention off me. I don’t share those things easily. “Are you going to the rally?”
“Is Demon taking you?” Her tone is harder and a little pissed off.
“He said I had to go,” I say keeping my eyes on the baby in my arms.
“Grinder asked me to go. I haven’t decided yet. Those things always turn into orgies, and if you aren’t ready to be fucked by five guys at once, I wouldn’t go.”
Is she saying that because she’s mad? She’s mad that Demon is taking me or is she serious? Flashbacks invade my vision, each one playing on a non-stop reel. I shake my head but they won’t stop. Tears fall down my cheeks when I hear Evie but I can still s
ee them. The men. The sweaty, foul smelling men and I was so young. I was a child!
“Shh, it’s okay. Whatever it is, you’re okay now.” Snapping back to reality, I see her sitting in front of me on her knees, caressing my cheek and wiping my tears.
“I’m sorry. That hasn’t happened to me in a long time,” I tell her. Evie nods and reaches for the baby. I pass her off to her mom and wipe my cheeks.
“I know how the past can be. Don’t let it hold you down, honey, because it will. It will drown you if you don’t swim.” I nod my head and watch her stand and walk away.
“Are you okay?” Cali asks.
I nod again and stand, heading out the side door and pulling my cell out. I call Razz needing her guidance and her sanity because I feel like I’m losing mine right now. I barely choke out her name when she answers.
“You okay? You’ve been crying. I can hear it in your voice.”
“Just had a little flashback. Shook me pretty hard. What are you doing?”
“Not much. I was getting ready to take a shower when you called. I miss you being here,” Razz tells me.
“I miss you too. This place is different. Demon is different.”
“How so?”
“He’s into BDSM shit. I’m not even sure about some of the stuff in his room.” She laughs on the other end but I don’t think it’s funny. I’m dead serious. Although he hasn’t told me to go wait in the room for him or used anything on me aside from what I ask about. I wonder why that is?
“It’ll be fine. You can always say no, right?”
“Yeah, I can. I should get back inside. I just wanted to hear your voice.”
“Aww. I miss you so much girl. Call anytime.”
“I will. Bye.” The line goes dead as I think about what she’s up to. She’s probably after one of the guys again.
With a sigh, I turn and start to head back inside when something hits me in the back of the head. I raise my hand to my head and start to turn around when a fist connects with my cheek. I already know who it is but I don’t know why. Amy and her slut squad surround me, throwing punches. I try to block my face and swing at them but there are too many for me to take alone.