“Not the greatest,” she admits.
“I would assume not. Listen, you were shot. I can see where the bullet entered the top part of your shoulder, but what I can’t find is an exit wound. This means that the bullet is still inside you and I’ll be honest, I don’t have the equipment to search for it. If I go in, it’ll have to be blind, but I have painkillers to make it a little more pleasant for you. Or, we can take you to a local hospital to get in handled.”
Raven shakes her head fearlessly. “No, I don’t want any painkillers and . . . fuck. I don’t have any health care insurance. If I go to the emergency room, I won’t have any way to pay for it. I work at the bar and it barely covers my rent. I eat noodles in a cup most of the time because it’s cheap and I can’t afford anything else. Please, just do it here and don’t give me painkillers. They’ve destroyed everyone I know and I won’t let them do the same to me.”
Blackjack listens to her and looks at me, almost as if he’s giving me a plea for help. I can’t imagine how painful this will be on her, but if she’s adamant on not taking painkillers . . . I can’t force her to change her mind. “Raven, are you sure you don’t want any? If he has to go in . . . I think he’ll have to dig until he finds it, right?” I look over to Blackjack, who’s sure to nod.
“No, I will not have any painkillers. Put a piece of leather in my mouth, have five men hold me down if you need to, but I will not take any drugs. Do you understand?” She glares at Blackjack, “I know I’ll hurt, that I’ll be in more pain than I ever have before . . . but don’t make me take pills or inject me.”
“Alright.” He sighs, shaking his head. “I hate to do shit like this, but I will if I have to. Fist, Kade, Bull, Zane, get your asses over here, ‘cause I’ll need your help. Ivy, it’s probably best if you take a seat over there with your friend.”
“No. I want to stay here. She needs me.” I’m determined in my tone of voice, making sure that everyone knows they won’t be pushing me around.
“Let her stay. Just do me a favor and don’t get squeamish or throw up on me.” Raven laughs, showing me that even in the most difficult situations, she can find the humor in things.
Blackjack lays her down on the opposite shoulder, having Fist hold her feet down, while Bull is on the opposite side at her shoulders, keeping her in position. Kade and Zane are in between both of them, with strong grips on Raven. I stand next to Bull, holding Raven’s hand through the process.
Blackjack squirts iodine on her wound and the instruments he plans on using after he takes them out of a medically sterile bag. “Do you want a warning before I start?”
“Fuck the warning and just do it already,” she snaps out, and within a moment, the metal instrument enters her body as she screams, unlike anything I’ve ever heard before. It reminds me of those movies where someone has been accused of being a spy and gets tortured. The gut-wrenching screams that fill the air, showing us just how much misery the character is going through. That is what Raven reminds me of right now, someone going through the worst pain ever imaginable.
I’m not sure how long this goes on because it blurs together. I tell her it will be over soon and everything will be okay, but I have serious doubts that this is the case. It could go on for ages because we don’t know where the bullet is.
Blackjack suddenly yells, “Got it!” and out comes a small metal round. He puts the bullet down on the plastic and puts more iodine in her wound. “I hate to have to tell you this, but I need to stitch you up before we’re done. Are you sure you don’t want any Tylenol or something?”
“Tylenol?” Raven laughs, sounding so incredibly weak. “No, I’ll be fine. Tylenol won’t do a damn thing.”
“Please tell me you plan on staying here,” I say, knowing she probably wasn’t even thinking of it. I immediately look to Fist, “Connor knows where we work, which probably means he’s done his research and knows where Raven lives. She can’t stay at her apartment, it’s not safe.”
Fist looks aggravated but when his eyes shift to Raven, I see something I’ve never seen from him — sympathy. Honestly, it makes me a bit frustrated that he shows it to a stranger and not me. “She can stay here in the clubhouse for as long as she needs. He can too,” Fist mutters, glancing to Frank before turning away and starting for the door.
Kade speaks up, talking to his father. “I’ll have you know that I want Grizzly’s head for everything that’s happened. Connor’s too. I’m done with this shit, and we’re going to make them suffer.”
The next twenty minutes are spent with Blackjack working on Raven’s stitches. Disinfecting them again after they’re complete and wrapping her wound. He makes her take some Tylenol, informing her that she won’t get addicted to that. I take Frank and Raven back to an empty room with a king-sized bed, knowing they’d rather be together than apart right now. They’re both in a new place and scared. I just hope I can show them they have nothing to fear here.
Kade stands outside the door as I make sure they’re both comfortable, and walks with me back to our bedroom. “I’m so glad nothing happened to you. The fear of god went through me today,” he admits, keeping his hand planted on the right side of my hip.
“It could’ve been much worse,” I whisper lowly, putting the hand on the door to our room. I open it and we both enter, shutting the door behind us slowly. Neither of us bothers putting the light on. After all, it’s been a long day and an incredibly taxing past few hours.
I reach my arms out behind me, searching for Kade. After today, I just need to be in his arms and feel close to him. I crave it more than anything else in the world.
“Hey,” he murmurs softly, coming into contact with my hand. I turn around so I’m facing him, walking straight into his embrace. He sits his chin on top of my forehead and rubs his hand up and down in my back in a consoling manner.
“I can’t believe all of this,” I admit, hoping I’ll wake up to find out this is all a dream. I know I’m too hopeful, though. This is just how my life always is — chaotic.
“Just don’t, Ivy. Don’t give it another thought. For now, just think about you and me. In this room, nothing else matters, not even if the entire world is blowing up around us. You’re always so worried about what will happen to who, when it’ll happen, and what you can do about it. Worrying doesn’t do us any good, babe. It only causes us more pain.”
I pull my head away from his chest and stand up on my tippy toes, searching for his lips. When I meet them, our connection is something that it’s never felt like before. With every brush of our lips, his strength seeps into me, making me feel like I can continue going on, even if sometimes I don’t feel like I’ll be able to.
There have been many nights when I try to justify staying in a relationship with Kade. It’s not because I don’t love him, but because I worry about how our relationship is wearing on his family bond. It’s nights like this that make me realize no matter the price of us staying together, it’s well worth it.
We’re worth the fight and the people that we might lose in the process.
Chapter Six
The black sheep is sometimes the only one telling the truth
~ Unknown
Kade
I wake up to the searching hands of Ivy, skimming across my abs, up to my chest until she has her fingers looped in my necklace like she always does. It must be some sort of anxiety relief for her, to hold onto me like this. I bring my lips down to the top of her head, giving her midnight locks a chaste kiss. There’s nothing in this world that can represent just how much I adore her. “God, you have no idea how much I love you,” I whisper in a low tone, bringing my hand up into her hair, twirling her curls around my finger.
Her head shifts while the fear of God goes through me. I’ve never admitted to her how much I care or even told her that I love her. “Did you say what I think you just did?” Ivy mumbles, her voice cracking from going all night without a drop of water.
I contemplate telling her that she dreamt about som
ething and it must’ve shocked her awake, but I planned on telling her this at some point. I just didn’t think it would be so soon. “You’re damn straight I did,” I say coolly, running my hand along her back.
She lifts her head up and even though we’re in the pitch black, I know she probably has a brow raised and is trying to see if I’m fucking with her or not. “Are you serious?” Yep, there it is. She thinks I’m fucking with her.
“Why would I ever joke about something like this, Vampy?” As I finish speaking, I feel air coming toward my stomach and the sting of her slap. Ivy hates the nickname I’ve given her, but I think it fits. She’s hardly ever outdoors and yet has this dark brown skin. I joke with her that she’s some sort of hybrid vampire and it sticks.
“You know how much I hate it when you call me that. It would make sense if I was as pale as a cadaver, but I’m not,” she grumbles out, laughing at the end of her words. Ivy moves the covers from the top of her and before I know it, both of her legs are on the outside of mine, sitting pretty right above my cock.
Her hand searches for my face, slowly going up my chest until her palm is against my jawbone. Sliding my hands under me, I push myself up to get closer. Her breath hits my nose and I feel the nervousness coming out of her in waves. Part of me thinks she isn’t ready to say it, or maybe she doesn’t feel the same way, but after everything, we’ve been through together . . . I can’t live with that type of doubt. Ivy and I have stood by each other through thick and thin, still continuing to do so.
“Are you not going to say it back?” My anxiety gets the best of me ‘cause right now, it’s been a couple of minutes and she hasn’t made a peep. Well, besides the laughter that is slipping out of her lips right now.
“You silly man. I’m going to show you how much I love you.” Ivy grabs me forcefully by the neck and brings her lips crashing down onto my own, kissing me like she never has before. Her lips on mine are like water to the ocean or rain to a storm, each needing the other to flourish.
I snake my arms around her, holding her curvy hips while our lips become erotic as all hell, I feel like she’s fucking me with her mouth. I’ve had my fair share of chicks, lookin’ like I do, it’s never been hard. But things are so different with Ivy. It’s like we click on some other level in mind, body, and spirit.
My cock grows harder by the second, inching his way up to her entry. One thing I love about Ivy is that she almost always sleeps naked. She’s so determined to cover up her skin whenever she’s outside our bedroom that I’ve made it a point to tell her just how beautiful I think she is— every single inch, even the scarred ones.
I thrust my hips up knowing that I’m right where I need to be, and Ivy gasps as I slide into her. I bet she wasn’t expecting it, but there’s no way she minds. Normally, we have a substantial amount of foreplay, but this morning, I can’t wait. With the way she’s been kissing me and still is, I want her, and I want her badly.
I keep my hands planted firmly on both sides of her hips, digging my nails into her flesh as I thrust into her. She rocks herself over top of me, both of us moving forward in unison. With every thrust there’s a small mew that comes from her lips, encouraging me to continue. Part of me wants to take her in a savage like way, but that’s not what this is. We both need this to be sensual and not a rough, quick, animal type fuck. The two of us are amazing when it comes to that, like two lightning bolts striking together at the exact same time, but when we’re sensual . . . it’s like a tsunami.
I move my right hand from her hip to the back of her neck, holding her in place while I get a little sterner in my thrusts. “Oh! Yes, just like that!” Ivy eggs me on, wanting it a bit rough it seems. Her hands travel to my hair, running her fingertips through it. Still, she rocks her pelvis against me and my shaft swells, wanting to unleash inside of her. It’s almost been a week since the last time we’ve had sex and my balls are full, ready to load inside of her.
Her pussy tightens around my cock, practically begging to fill her up and mark her as mine. The way her cunt clenches me is tighter than any virgin I’ve been with— like she was molded by the gods just for my pleasure and sanity. “Kade, please just . . . oh!” Ivy rolls her hips back and forth as I bob her up and down, making sure my cock hits that lovely g-spot of hers. She can never last too long when I toy with her in this sensitive area. With every thrust, she grows wetter until the point that it’s like I’m shoving my cock into a slushie. Some dudes might not think it’s hot, but knowing I’m bringing her to the edge like this is more erotic than I can ever express.
“Holy fuck!” She tears her lips from mine, grinding her nails into my head so hard that I have to yank my head away from her. Sometimes, Ivy just has the habit of taking it a bit too far.
“Dammit!” I holler, taking my frustration out on her pussy and just as I do, she comes undone. With that final thrust, she comes over my cock and I fill her, hoping that by some sort of god she’ll get pregnant and carry my child. I don’t ever want to lose this woman, not now, not ever. I want her to experience everything in life that there is to offer by my side.
Ivy falls down onto my chest, shaking from the aftershocks of her orgasm. I glance over to the bedside and see that it’s a little past five in the morning. I hold her close to me for a few minutes before she rolls off my chest and gets back under the covers. “You getting up, or sleeping for a bit longer?” I ask, rising from the bed.
Instead of getting a reply, I get a grumble back, giving me my answer.
I exit our bedroom and shut the door behind me, walk down the hall and head into the kitchen to make some coffee. I need at least six cups before anyone so much as speaks to me, otherwise, they’ll probably get their throat slit.
I go over to the cabinet and open the door, grabbing a coffee filter and the container of coffee grounds. Over the next couple of minutes, I’m tossing the old filter and grounds into the trash and refilling it with a fresh bit. In ten minutes, I’ll be sitting here sipping a hot cup of black coffee. I hear the unmistakable sound of a barefoot hitting the wood floor. No one in this clubhouse walks around barefoot. Instantly, I know this must be one of our guests. If they knew about the parties we throw here, they’d be putting bleach down before they walk around this joint.
“Please tell me that’s coffee brewing,” Raven says, walking slowly into the kitchen. I walk over to her and help her get in, sliding my arm under hers to give her stability as I get her settled on a barstool. I don’t even think she should be walking around at this point, but this is the woman who was determined to go without any sort of drugs,
“It sure is,” I reply, walking over to the cupboard and grab two cups. “How do you take it, sugar, milk?”
“Both, please.”
“How are you feeling?” I ask. She doesn’t look too bad, besides being a bit pale. That could be from blood loss, though.
“Feel like I got shot.”
I want to laugh at her crassness, but I hold back. “Yeah, I bet. Surprised you went through it all without painkillers.”
“There’s no way in hell I’d go through what so many in my family have. My mom went through back surgery when I was ten and ever since then, she’s fully relied on the pills to dull her day to day emotional pain. My brother picked up on her pill-popping habit when he was nineteen, and it’s been quite a few years since then. I’ve had to keep the shit together for the family, and that’s not easy.”
Shit, I didn’t realize she had such rooted issues when it comes to drugs. If I did, I never would’ve asked her. It kind of makes sense that she and Ivy are good friends given they both have rough family lives.
“Anything else I need to know? We went really deep there,” I joke, walking over to the coffee pot to pour us both two cups. I make sure to put sugar and milk in her cup before I hand it her way.
“Are we going to dive deep into how my ex made me strip as a way to pay off his gambling debts?”
Jesus. “I was being sarcastic,” I mutter, looking at her
in a different light. I can’t help but wonder why such pretty women like Raven and Ivy seem to go through a world full of shit. What is the connection between the two of them?
Chapter Seven
Difficult roads often lead to beautiful destinations
~ Unknown
Kade
“I need everyone in church, right now!” my father shouts the moment he walks into the clubhouse.
I finally got Ivy to come sit out with Raven in the main room, which rarely ever happens. If anything, this just proves to me that having a friend in the club is helping her break out of her shell a bit more. Who knows, it might even be helping her feel more at home. Ultimately, that’s what I want.
“Do you need your ears checked or some shit? Pile in!” he hollers at me, and I rise from the couch, give Ivy a chaste kiss, and haul ass.
Within five minutes, every brother within a mile is in the club, ass planted in their assigned seat. The only one we’re waiting on is Zane and he comes flying in like he had a cop on his tail. “Hey, sorry. Was down at the station talking to a buddy and getting a bit more info,” he apologizes to our dad, overlooking the rest of the brothers. Considering that Zane will be the one who takes the gavel when our dad steps down, I’m betting he’ll get away with being late.
“Alright, well what did you find out?”
“I’m sorry to say this, but that guy at the bar died. Connor shot him right through the heart and luckily, there were cameras in the bar that caught him in the act. There’s no doubt that whenever they catch Connor, they’ll be able to prosecute him.” Fuck prosecuting him, that vermin needs to be exterminated.
“Shit, that’s unfortunate,” our Dad speaks up, with a few of the brothers nodding in agreement. “You gonna tell Ivy and her friends?” For the first time since she’s been here, my dad looks at me with sympathy. It’s almost like he feels bad for her.
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