Rider grimaced and shook his head, his sandy blonde hair dipping below his eyes.
“No, just no. Don’t call me that!”
Emily ruffled his hair and laughed along with him as Esme and Slayer rounded the other side of the fire pit, their faces illuminated by the flames.
Prettyboy and Axel came up along the other side, both of them in an in-depth conversation about tattoos.
Emily herself was covered in tattoos.
Ox had certainly been right when he told her and Scarlett that if they spent enough time with him and the crew, they’d end up with more than one tattoo.
Emily’s family hated them, but they let her live her own life as long as she did what was needed to further the Monroe name- aka, make them both proud and richer by providing them with art they could actually do something with.
As Rider joined them again, Emily smiled at him and took the marshmallow he offered her on a skewer. Rider was smiling too, as he shoved his into the flames.
Emily watched her marshmallow become golden brown as she waited for her marshmallow to reach the perfect amount of roasty-ness, her fingers still wrapped around Rider’s.
It felt good to hold onto someone who cared about her.
She didn’t need romance, sex, none of it- but Rider had given her a friendship she hadn’t even known she needed.
“You’ve got that look on your face,” He murmured.
Emily glanced up at Rider as she pulled her marshmallow from the fire. His gaze was questioning, curious.
“I know, Rider. I’ll be okay. I’m doing better,” She said.
Rider stuffed his marshmallow into his mouth and grinned at her, the dimple in his left cheek peeking out at her.
“I think you need to be drunker,” He said casually.
“Me thinks you should stop being such a worry-wart.”
Rider cracked up, his arm wrapping around her shoulder again.
“Careful, you may scare away all the sexy bikers that could fill your bed.”
Emily remembered saying something similar to Scarlett months ago and batted her lashes up at him.
“Yeah, yeah. Cool it, Romeo. I’ve had two one night stands in the last two weeks, and every time I’ve felt like a tagalong.”
Ox covered his ears with his hands.
“Not somethin’ I wanna think about, Em!”
She giggled and sipped from the drink in her hand- some fruity concoction that definitely didn’t taste like she imagined a royal bitch would.
“Sorry, Ox.”
Prettyboy and Esme were smooching across the fire again, but this time they were sitting down in a plastic chair. Slayer and Axel had disappeared somewhere, which left just the two of them.
“So, when do you start painting?”
Emily grimaced and shrugged.
“Whenever I can get my ass in gear, I guess.”
Rider patted her ass real soft like and smiled like a maniac.
“Better get that fine ass into gear, then. After everything that’s happened since you got here, it’s about time that you had something good just for you.”
Emily blinked away the moisture that statement brought to her eyes because it wasn’t the time or the place.
She needed to keep her shit together, tuck it away with the rest of it, and bury it.
“You’re a good best friend,” She said as she punched him in the shoulder.
Rider fake whined as she pinched his cheek.
“Stopppp, you’re gonna scare away all the pussy I’ve got lined up.”
Emily laughed and gestured to their surrounding area.
“Yeah. I can see you’ve got hordes of eligible ladies just waiting to get the D from ya,” She joked.
Rider narrowed his eyes at her, but before he could reply, someone Emily absolutely didn’t want to see, interrupted.
“This is cute,” Kandy said.
Rider tensed immediately at the sight of her. Astripper from the club that Emily could have easily done without interacting with for the rest of her life.
“What do you want?”
Emily couldn’t believe Kandy would actually speak to either one of them.
Kandy was a busty brunette with feline eyes and a swagger that told everyone in the general vicinity she was a whore, and that she liked it that way.
Rider looked at Emily, his kind eyes portraying his concern for her.
“Just came to see how you two love birds were doing,” She said with a vicious grin.
Emily hated the sight of Kandy. Hated her with every fiber of her volatile being, and the fact that Kandy was there to bother her because she knew that Emily didn’t like her, grated on her nerves.
“Go away, Kandy.”
Kandy shrugged and flipped her long hair over her shoulders, baring her pale skin to the both of them.
“Whatever. Green and I have…plans tonight anyways.”
The jab was meant to hurt Emily, and it did. It hurt her more than she could have imagined, but she didn’t say so. She just smiled.
“Have fun, Kandy. Stay clean.”
Rider snorted and tossed an arm around her shoulders, his gun pressing into her side. Emily took a sip of her drink and shrugged at her, waiting for her to leave them be.
Kandy pouted for a second before she glanced at Rider and then back at Emily, her dark eyebrows pressed together.
“What would you know about it anyways?”
Emily watched Kandy over the rim of her glass and told herself not to react. Told herself not to take the bait, to ignore Kandy, to let it go.
But, she couldn’t.
“Walk away, whore. Walk. Away.”
The words dripped from Emily’s mouth like venom, laced with hatred, laced with fury.
Kandy scoffed and took a step towards her.
“What’s the matter, Emily? Can’t handle the fact that your man wanted a taste of something better?”
“Kandy, take it easy. I wouldn’t,” Ox said from behind Emily.
Emily’s gaze swept over the brunette slowly as she mentally weighed her options. Kandy was banking on the fact that Ox was right behind them, that he was her boss and essentially Emily’s president- Kandy obviously thought that Ox wouldn’t let Emily handle her own business.
Which, obviously, she would.
Rider wrapped a hand around Emily’s shoulder and whispered, “Ignore her.”
Emily looked back at Kandy; she had on gold heels and a red dress that clashed with her skin tone, but Emily didn’t think Kandy cared about any of that.
“What? She can’t fight her own battles?”
“What is it that you want from me, Kandy? You want to rub it in that you’re tucked between Green’s thighs like the whore you are? Congrats, baby. You’re doing your job.”
Rider tightened his hold on Emily when she dropped her cup to the ground and kicked it to the side.
“Come on now, this is stupid. She ain’t worth it, Em!”
Kandy rolled her eyes.
“Is that how they do it around here? Your men fight your battles for you?”
“Does that bother you?”
“What bothers me is that you’re always walkin’ around here and the club like you’re better than me! Guess Green didn’t think so though, huh?”
Kandy was smirking like she’d already won whatever fight she was looking for, but Emily shook off Rider’s hold and choked out a strangled sound.
“I am better than you. Don’t need to put my hands on you to prove that, and as far as he goes? Well, him choosin’ you, says all I need to know about him.”
Kandy didn’t like that answer, but Emily didn’t really care. She didn’t care about a lot anymore, and wasn’t is ironic that this ala-carte bitch was the reason for that? Wasn’t is just the icing on a very bitter cake, to know that Kandy was the source of a very deep hurt that no amount of rum could heal?
“Ya know what, fuck it.”
Rider reached for Emily at the exact moment her fists began to fly
. Emily caught Kandy off guard and had her on the ground in two seconds flat, her hands wrapped around her throat. Kandy was screaming bloody murder, Rider was tugging on the back of Emily’s shirt, but nothing could stop her.
Kandy was clawing at the back of Emily’s hands.
Her pink nails were digging into her skin, but all Emily could think about was the way Green had whispered Kandy’s name while he fucked her in the back room of Sexy Sinners.
Kandy somehow got the twist on Emily before she had her flipped over and then Kandy was on top, landing one solid hit to the side of Emily’s mouth.
Emily paused for only a second before she spit her blood right into Kandy’s face, causing her to scream, her hands reaching for her own chin.
Emily used that opportunity to shove her back onto the ground where she kicked her hard in the chest and pressed her heel into the soft skin of her throat.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw someone familiar moving towards her. Green eyes met hers and she practically growled.
Blood dripped from her chin when she bit out, “Don’t take another step!”
Broken.
Raw.
It hurts…
Flashes of memories bombarded Emily- old ones, new ones, painful ones.
True to her word, Emily pulled her own gun out of the holster wrapped around her hip and pointed it at Kandy who burst into tears.
“Do you see this barrel, Kandy? Do you see how close it is to that empty fuckin’ head of yours?,” Emily asked.
Emily could see Esme and Prettyboy closing in on her from her right and Ox from her left- but she didn’t lower her weapon.
Not until she made her fucking point.
“Yes!,” Kandy cried.
“If you ever, I do mean ever, speak to me again, this barrel with be the last thing your whore mouth swallows. Do you understand me?,” Emily whispered.
Even though her eyes were filled with tears, and even though Kandy’s face was covered in blood- both hers and Emily’s- Emily didn’t care.
Not one bit.
“Y-yes!”
Emily looked up to see more than one person staring at her, watching her, including Green. His eyes were wide with fear and he raised his hands as if to touch her. Immediately, she aimed her gun at him.
“Don’t bother, you deserve each other.”
Emily removed her heel from Kandy’s neck before she slid her gun back into her holster and tossed her hair over her shoulder.
“Shows over gentleman. I need a drink,” Emily said softly as she left an entire lot full of people watching after her.
Green looked from between her and Kandy before he reached for Kandy, and that alone was enough to kill the rest of softness inside of her.
Rider chased after her, his deep voice catching her off guard. Emily didn’t want to talk to anyone. She didn’t want to discuss what’d just happened. What was she supposed to say?
The cunt deserved it?
I hate myself for ever letting him close?
The fact that she’d aimed her weapon at Green too went right over her head. Rider was speaking to her, saying something, but all she could hear was the way Green’s skin had slapped against Kandy’s three months ago.
All she could hear was the steady tempo of the song playing in the lounge while the man she loved railed out some stripper neither of them had known for more than two days.
“Leave me alone,” Emily finally yelled.
Rider stopped talking and Torch looked up from the bar.
“Em, come on-”
“No. No! I’m done here. I’m just- I can’t. I won’t. I’m getting one more drink, and then I’m going back to my apartment in town. Okay?”
Torch had a drink ready for her before she even turned around. Emily didn’t know it, but for the first time in months she was crying.
Fat, wet, tears were rolling down her face and Emily had no idea.
Torch and Rider both looked her over from head to toe, something Emily was oblivious to while she worked hard to swallow the bitter liquid in her glass. Ox came bustling into the clubhouse then, his amber eyes locked on Emily.
Before she had a chance to argue, he wrapped her up in his arms and held her tight against his chest.
Emily stiffened for the barest of seconds before she hugged him back, her tiny hands getting lost in the material of his shirt beneath his cut.
It felt like all her jagged edges were clashing inside her chest.
“You scared the shit out of me back there, and I gotta say, bein’ a dad is not what I thought it would be.”
Emily choked out a laugh and patted his back.
“Guess it’s a good thing I’m not your daughter.”
Ox pulled back and pushed her hair out of her face, wiping away the tears she hadn’t even known were there.
“I’d claim you as my own any day, sweetheart. What you just did? What just happened out there? Fuck, Em. I can’t heal what’s goin’ on in there,” He said pointing to her chest.
Emily shook her head, but Ox caught her by the chin and stopped her.
“But, I know what’s goin’ on in here,” He said as he gently probed her temple.
“Ya know who else knows? Rayna. She can help you through this. I know ya went through some shit before you came to us, Scarlett mentioned it. I know what Green did fucked you up, and it would do that to anyone. But, Em. You just pulled your gun on a tagalong!”
Emily tore herself out of Ox’s grip and motioned towards the doors.
“I know. I’m leavin’.”
He frowned.
“Just like that?”
She shrugged, her whole bottom lip trembling.
“I think that would be best, don’t you?”
Ox started to shake his head, but she stopped him.
Pressing a shaking hand to her own chest, Emily shook her head.
“I need this,” She whispered brokenly.
Ox didn’t argue anymore, but he did point to Rider.
“You’ll take her home, stay with her. Call me if you need me.”
Rider nodded dutifully, and Emily hadn’t expected anything less from him. Why should she? He’d been there for her ever fucking day since Green destroyed what was left of her.
Just as she reached the doors Emily threw her hands up and pointed at Ox.
“By the way?”
He nodded, waiting for her response.
“You’re a damn good father, and both Scarlett and me are lucky to have you.”
Chapter 3
Green ran his hands through his hair as he watched Emily walk away, his mind reeling from what just happened. Kandy was scrambling to her feet, so he held a hand out of her.
“Thanks for coming to my rescue,” She said.
Green released her hand as soon as she was upright and glared at her.
“I’m not here to help you. I’m here to warn you, Kandy. If you so much as look at Emily ever again, I’ll shoot you my fuckin’ self,” He rasped.
Green’s chest was on fire with how angry he was, but he had no one to blame but himself. He knew that. He’d fucked up, fucked up bad, and there was no taking it back. Kandy stumbled away from him, her face covered in blood, her elbows and knees scraped to hell. Green wished more than anything that she would just disappear, that everything they did together would just disappear, but he knew that would never happen.
He watched Kandy leave before Prettyboy interrupted his train of thought.
“What the fuck was that? You just let her walk off after aimin’ her piece at you?,” Prettyboy demanded roughly. He gripped Green’s shoulder tight enough to jar him.
“What the fuck am I supposed to do? I’ve done everything I can to apologize, to make it right!,’ Green argued.
Esme snorted behind Prettyboy, her long hair falling across his shoulder.
“Righttt, because obviously whatever you’ve been doing is workin’ out just fine. I’m gonna go check on Emily, the one we actually care about.”
/> Green took her anger and accepted it because he understood; Rayna had practically knocked his teeth in after she found out what he’d done, and he’d let her do it all over again if it meant that Emily would give him the time of day, but he knew very well that she wouldn’t.
Before Esme could get to the doors of the clubhouse, Emily came storming out, Rider not too far behind her. She glanced at Esme and nodded, but she didn’t even blink in Green’s direction , and even though he literally yearned to talk to her, he let her go.
With a curse and a crude gesture that damn near brought tears of frustration to his eyes, Green turned around and headed for his room…the only place he could manage to escape.
◆◆◆
Emily rolled over in bed as soon as the sunlight hit her face. Rider was beside her, his blonde head ruffled from sleep and his hazel eyes barely open as he reached for her hand.
“You doin’ better this mornin’?”
She tried to smile, but her fingers gripped his for only a second before she whispered, “No.”
Rider rolled over so that they were facing one another and Emily fought the urge to cover her face and her shame with the palm of her hand.
“I pointed a gun at him, Miles. What the fuck is wrong with me?”
Rider chuckled under his breath and shook his head as he reached over the side of his bed for his phone that was still tucked into his pants pocket.
Emily studied his features for what felt like the millionth time; slightly crooked nose, hazel eyes, blonde scruff that covered a perfectly sculpted jaw…
Why can’t I love him?
Why can’t I want him?
Emily sighed heavily and ran her hands through her tangled hair as she asked, “How mad is daddy Ox?”
Rider laughed and smirked in her direction before he shrugged.
“He hasn’t called or texted me yet, but Limit texted me to ask what the hell happened. He’s worried about you, my little badass.”
Emily snorted before she rolled out of bed and tugged her hair up into a ponytail.
“Man oh man, what kind of a fool gives up an ass like that?”
Emily peeked down at her boy-shorts and rolled her eyes, but she was still smiling, and she knew it had everything to do with the man watching her from her bed.
Greed (Seven Deadlies MC Book 4) Page 2