Monk (Royal Bastards MC: Sacramento Book 3)

by Winter Travers

  I shook my head. “I probably shouldn’t. I’m on so many meds right now that I’m pretty sure one sip would make me drunk.”

  Today was the worst day since the accident. It was like my body had finally relaxed, and now everything hurt.

  “You okay?” he asked.

  I flitted my hand at him. “I’m fine. Just a little sore.” Try a lot sore.

  “How about a hot bath when we’re done eating?” Monk suggested.

  I shrugged and tossed a loose pepperoni in my mouth. “I mean, that sounds nice. An ice cream sundae would make it better, though.”

  “You got a thing for ice cream, Birdie,” Monk chuckled.

  “Your company in the tub would be better, but I’m not sure I’m up for that just yet.”

  Monk pointed at me and clucked his tongue. “I think you’re right about that. I’ll see what I can do about the sundae, though.”

  I batted my eyes at him. “I was going to tell you to bring home ice cream, but I thought asking you to pick up a pizza on your bike was asking enough.”

  “Finish up your pizza, and then I’ll help you in the tub,” he laughed. “I might have a surprise for you.”

  “Might? That doesn’t sound very promising.”

  Monk managed to eat three slices of pizza, while I only managed to get down one and a half before the pain became too much.

  “Mitz,” Monk called.

  I looked up from my plate I was staring at. “Huh?”

  “You’re not doing good, are you?”

  Tears clouded my eyes. “I might be in a little bit of pain.”

  “When was the last time you took a pain pill?”

  I tipped my head to the side. “I don’t remember.” Jesus. How the hell could I not remember the last time I took a pain pill?

  “Then I think that means it’s time for another pain pill, a bath, and an ice cream sundae.”

  I wiped my nose with the back of my hand. “Have I ever told you that I really like you?”

  “No, but you can say it again.” Monk grabbed the pizza box and set it on the kitchen counter. Then he grabbed both of our plates and dumped them in the garbage.

  Monk stood to my side, and I tipped my head back to look at him. “I really like you. I get to be me, and I don’t have to worry that you’re going to run when you find out I’m a bitch.”

  He hooked his finger under my chin and leaned down ‘til we were face to face. “Knowing what you want and not being afraid to ask or go after it does not make you a bitch, Mitzy. You’re smart, strong, beautiful, and unapologetically honest. Never apologize for any of that.”

  “You always know the right thing to say,” I whispered.

  Monk kissed me slowly. “Just saying the truth, Birdie. You’ll only get the truth from me.”

  “Thank you, Monk.” This was what I needed. This man standing in front of me saw me the way I always wanted to be seen. There was one problem.

  Everything hurt, and I just wanted to scream. “Not to break this sweet moment, but do you think I can get that pain pill now? I’m normally not much of a whiner, but I don’t know what to do, Monk.”

  Monk chuckled and helped me up. “You got it.” He helped me up the stairs to the bathroom and turned on the water. “How hot do you want it?”

  “Uh, let’s go with scalding, yeah?” I hooked my thumb in the waistband of my pants and tried to work them off.

  “You want some help with that?” Monk chuckled. He adjusted the temperature of the water then plugged the tub.

  “I mean, I won’t say no if you help.”

  Monk shook his head and helped me out of my clothes a hell of a lot quicker than I could have myself. The water would have been cold by the time I got my shirt and bra off.

  I sunk into the hot water and sighed. “Oh, my God. This is Heaven.”

  “Just make sure you don’t get your cast in there, Birdie. We don’t need to deal with a soggy cast on top of everything being sore.” Monk grabbed my clothes from the floor and tossed them in the hamper.

  “You do that a lot,” I laughed.

  “Do what a lot?” he asked.

  “Pick up after me when you don’t need to. I could have put those in the hamper.”

  Monk shrugged. “No reason why I can’t do it.” Monk reached for the bottle of pills on the sink. “You good with water to take your pain pill, or do you want something else?”

  I shook my head. “Water is more than fine.”

  He pulled a pill from the bottle and filled the cup on the edge of the sink.

  I downed the pill and handed the glass back to him.

  “I’ll be back in a minute, Mitzy.”

  I waved my hand at him. “I’m just gonna float here until I can’t feel anything and I become a prune.”

  Ten minutes later, I opened my eyes, and Monk was standing over me with a huge bowl of ice cream in his hands. He crouched down next to the side of the tub and held the spoon to my lips. “Hot fudge, whipped cream, and a cherry on top.”

  I moaned when the sweet fudge hit my tongue. “I don’t know where you got this, but I glad you did.”

  Monk fed me another spoon full. “One of the perks of being VP. I can tell Jinx to bring me ice cream, fudge, and whipped cream.”

  I slapped Monk’s chest. “You did not.”

  He nodded and ate a spoon full. “I did, and he brought it.”

  “Fancy party trick,” I laughed.

  By the time we finished the sundae, the water was turning cold, and the pain pill had kicked in. Monk helped me out of the water and wrapped a towel around my shoulders. “Last time you did this, I was tipsy off a bottle of wine.”

  Monk pulled the drain on the tub and flipped off the lights. I headed down the hallway to my room and glanced behind to see Monk was following. “Stay with me?” I asked.

  He pulled his shirt over his head and ran his fingers through his hair. “I had planned on it, Birdie.”

  Monk helped me to bed and slid in beside me.

  I laid my head on his chest and sighed. “If I toss and turn in my sleep, I apologize in advance if I club you with my cast.”

  He pressed a kiss to my forehead. “I’m pretty sure you’re gonna sleep like a rock tonight, Birdie. A hot bath, a pain pill, and an ice cream sundae sound like the perfect combination for a good night’s sleep.”

  I hummed softly and rested a hand on his stomach. “Let’s hope so.” I drifted off to sleep once again, surrounded by the delicious scent of Monk, and knew I was truly where I was meant to be all this time.

  *

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Photos from the past…

  Monk

  “You look miserable.”

  I grunted and grabbed a beer from the fridge.

  Mitzy was upstairs taking a nap, and I was sitting at the kitchen table with Barracuda. I popped the top on the beer and handed it to him. “Get whacked in the head ten times a night by a cast has gotten old after two weeks.”

  Barracuda chuckled. “I would assume so. Things haven’t gotten any better?’

  I shrugged and sat down in the chair opposite him. “All that matters is Mitzy is sleeping.”

  “While you’re not?”

  “You come here for a reason or just to make fun of me?” I growled.

  Barracuda laughed. “I came by to talk to you about Rain and a phone call I got from Leo Banachi.”

  “Leo called you?” I might as well hit that head on.

  “You forget to tell me something?” Barracuda asked.

  I shrugged. “We might have struck a deal with him when we were trying to figure out where the hell you were.”

  “How was getting Leo to have Menace start working for him gonna help you find me?” he asked.

  “Well, that was actually more about getting vengeance for you. Leo was going to get Menace to confess that he had killed Leona, and then we were going to take him out.”

  “And then what?”

  I clamped my lips and glared at B
arracuda. He knew what would happen next. He had talked to Leo and I was sure Leo had told him the whole plan. “Working with the Banachis will be good for the club. We become his reach on the west coast, and it just strengths our hold in our territory. Having Leo behind us can’t be a bad thing.”

  Barracuda sighed. “You’re not wrong about that, but I just wish I could have been here to help make that decision.”

  I shrugged. “Yeah, well, you’re here now. You can personally get Menace.”

  “Now, we need to talk about Rain.”

  I curled my lips. “Please, for the love of God, do not tell me you’re hitting that?”

  Barracuda let out a bark of laughter. “I was gone for five months, brother, not five years. I remember what a piece of work she is. I wouldn’t touch that shit with a mop.”

  “Then why the hell do you want to talk about her?”

  “Rebel’s been keeping an eye on her for the last two weeks. Last night, someone else showed up to her new place.”

  I tipped my head to the side. “No shit? Some unlucky fucker she got her claws sunk into?” I guessed.

  Barracuda shrugged and pulled out his phone from his pocket. “He got this picture.”

  I grabbed his phone and saw a grainy photo of a man standing by a wood line with his phone to his ear. “Wonder who he is and who he is talking to.”

  Barracuda grabbed his phone. “I can tell you both of those things.”

  I blinked slowly. “Well, you gonna make me wait, or tell me what you know?” We had been waiting for a break like this for weeks, and now Barracuda was acting like this wasn’t important information.

  “His name is Allan Spinor, and he’s talking to me on the phone.”

  My eyes snapped to Barracuda. “Come the fuck again?” What did he mean that the guy was talking on the phone to him? And how did he know who the fucker was?

  “Hey,” Mitzy called. She breezed into the kitchen and headed straight to the coffee maker. “What are you two broody men talking about?”

  “Mitzy,” Barracuda called. “You’re looking pretty good.”

  Mitzy grabbed a cup from the cabinet and filled it to the top with coffee. “Every day gets a little better. The bruises have gone from dark purple to a putrid browny yellow now.”

  Barracuda chuckled. “That definitely means you’re healing, darlin’.”

  Mitzy leaned against the counter and held her coffee cup in her hand. “What are you two talking about?”

  I glanced at Barracuda, who nodded. “She’s gonna find out, so you might as well tell both of us at the same time,” I suggested.

  Mitzy pushed off the counter and moved over by the table. “Tell me what?” she asked. “Did you find something out about who did this to me?”

  Barracuda nodded and held his phone out to Mitzy with the picture of the guy who was at Rain’s house.

  Mitzy’s face paled, and the coffee cup slipped from her hand.

  “Holy fuck,” I gasped. I jumped up from my chair and managed to catch Mitzy before she crumpled to the ground.

  Barracuda put his phone back in his pocket and sighed. “He’s back, Mitz.”

  Back? Who the fuck was back?

  “What are you talking about?” I asked. “You actually know who this guy is?” I demanded.

  Mitzy nodded numbly and laid a hand over her heart. “That’s Allan Spinor.” She tipped her head back, and her eyes connected with mine. “My ex.”

  *

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Leaving…

  Mitzy

  He was back.

  The man who had made my life a living hell for two years was back in town.

  “Where did you get that picture from?” I demanded.

  Monk’s arms tightened around me, and he held me close.

  “Rebel took it last night. I was just as shocked as you were when Rebel sent it to me.” Barracuda laid his clenched fist on the table. “After he took that picture, Rebel watched Rain come outside where they kissed and then went back in the house.”

  My stomach rolled at the thought of kissing Allan. “They’re together?” I gasped.

  Barracuda shrugged. “So it would seem. This is the first time Rebel has seen him there, but they were pretty comfortable with each other.”

  “He has to be the one who’s been trying to hurt me. He had vowed if he ever got the chance, he would kill me.” Allan’s threatening words from years past rolled through my head. The man didn’t have a nice or sweet bone in his body, but he had managed to get me under his spell in no time.

  When I had been racking my brain to figure out who was trying to hurt me, his name had popped into my mind, but I didn’t think the man was dumb enough to ever come back to Sacramento, let alone California.

  Barracuda had wanted to kill him, but I insisted that he let him live. Allan was a horrible person, and I didn’t want Barracuda to sink to his level. I obviously was a complete fool back then, and even when Allan deserved to die, I had spared him. For a while, I had thought that Barracuda had actually killed him and just told me he hadn’t because Allan did stay away.

  Until now.

  “Well, we don’t know for certain, but I would bet my left nut that he’s the one who gave you those pills and the one who loosened the lug nuts on your tire.” Barracuda sat back in his chair.

  “But how did he get those pills to me?” I asked. “I looked at all of the videos from that night. He was not in the club.”

  Monk rubbed his hand up and down my arm. “He’s got Rain doing his dirty work, Birdie. I’m sure she is the one who brought the pills into the clubhouse and then grabbed them from your desk while you were overdosing right before her.”

  Up until now, I hadn’t hated Rain. Sure, I wanted to fire her and just get her out of the club, but I didn’t hate her.

  I did now.

  “So, what are we going to do about it?” I asked.

  Monk shook his head. “We aren’t doing anything. The club is going to handle this, and you are going to stay here.”

  I reared back and looked up at Monk. “Did you really just tell me I’m going to rest while you handle this?” Yeah, that wasn’t going to happen. I thought Allan was gone before, and now I was going to make sure that he was.

  Barracuda chuckled. “I thought you had figured out that you can’t tell Mitzy what to do, brother.”

  Monk folded his arms over his chest and gritted his teeth. “I guess I just got sick of standing over your bed after you almost died.” He leaned toward me. “Or did you forget overdosing and then totaling your car?”

  I rolled my eyes. “It’s not like I’m going to go by myself and take care of Allan. You guys are going to catch him or whatever, and then I want to have a word with him.”

  “A word with him?” Monk seethed. “You can tell me what you want to say to him, and I’ll make sure he gets the message before I rip his head off and shove it up his ass. I’ll make sure of it.”

  “I’m coming with you, Monk, and you know you can try to stop me, but it won’t work.” I stepped toward him, and I pointed a finger into his chest. “Don’t cage me in.”

  “It’s not caging you in. I’m keeping you safe.”

  “I’m gonna head out and let you two figure this out.” Barracuda stood and grabbed his keys off the table.

  “When are you going over to Allan’s?” I asked. I kept my eyes on Monk, but my question was for Barracuda. I knew he would tell me the truth.

  “Uh, we need to figure a few things out, but we better do something soon before he decides to pack up and leave.”

  I rolled my eyes. “I’m still alive. He’s not going anywhere. The man is a piece of shit, but when he set his mind to something, nothing stopped him until the job was done.” Living with him for two years had shown me that.

  “You are not going to do anything, Mitzy,” Monk vowed.

  I awkwardly folded my good arm over my bad arm. Instead of looking intimidating, I looked like I was trying to land a plane. �
��Keep saying that, and things are going to change real quick between us, Monk.”

  Allan had been the last person to tell me what I was and wasn’t going to do. No one else would ever treat me that way again.

  “You mean keep caring about you and not want to see you get hurt?” Monk roared. “Excuse me for caring about you, Mitzy.” He grabbed his gun and pushed it into my hand. “Here, take my gun, and why don’t you march over to his place with guns blazing. You are one of the smartest people I know, but you are so stuck on the idea that no one can tell you what to do that you’ll cut off your own arm just to spite me.”

  “If that’s what you think about me, then maybe you should leave,” I hissed. “No one tells me what I’m going or not going to do.”

  Barracuda raised his hands in the air. “I’m out of here. You two figure this shit out on your own. You’re both in the wrong, by the way.” Barracuda slipped out the back door, and I listened to his bike roar to life.

  “Why don’t you follow him back to the clubhouse?” I spat. “You’re not welcome here anymore, Monk.”

  Monk closed his eyes and clenched his lips together.

  “I’m serious, Monk. If you think you’re going to tell me what to do, then you can leave.” I wasn’t going to bend on this. I couldn’t.

  Monk grabbed keys off the counter and stormed out the back door.

  I couldn’t listen to him leave.

  I had really thought he was different.

  I was supposed to be his Birdie and he was my biker.

  Tears clouded my eyes, and a sob ripped through my lips.

  I wasn’t going to be a caged bird.

  Not again.

  *

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Alike…

  Monk

  The night air cooled, and I rocked back and forth gently.

  It had been hours since Mitzy had drawn a line in the sand, and she thought I had left.

  I had left the kitchen, but I hadn’t left her house. Instead, I had listened to her alternate between strangled sobs and her cussing my name out.