“My Diego was a lot like you. Quiet and stubborn, yet very strong and smart. Same as my boys. I can feel your loyalty. It’s why you sit here; you are now one of mine.” Coming from a kid that lost his parents. Claiming me as part of hers is respect. One that makes me feel proud.
“She already has your phone number, address, birthday, blood type, DNA, everything.” Snake chuckles, “there will be no escaping her wrath either. Congratulations.”
“Snake,” Fuego reprimands and his fist hits the table. “You sit at her table, no? Do not tease her when she has fed you and helped raise your ungrateful ass.”
“Abuela, tu sabes yo te quiero mucho, si?” The grin on his face says that he has been in this position many times and probably won’t ever quit.
“Sí,” Abela laughs. “Always a charmer, I know you love me and I you, travieso, troublemaker. This one, is just like his tio, Diablo Negro.” She picks up our now empty plates, placing them into the sink then smoothly walks outside, shutting the door behind her.
The chair screeches across the floor and Ghost addresses us, “Kilo is a problem. He roughed up some girls at the strip club and last night he beat one of the girls at the clubhouse.” His eyes flare and his hands clench. “We have her recovering but won’t talk about what happened.”
“He’s gotten worse over the years. I have my suspicions over what went down a year ago.” Fuego intently holds my stare, “If you want Jazmine, you want to claim her as yours, make it right. Snake is going to oversee so you don’t overstep. You want in this familia, you avenge la hija de mi hermano.” If I understood correctly, the daughter of his brother.
Cuervo’s gruesome chuckle is low and menacing. “You fail, I clean it all.” He may be rogue, ride for his purposes, but he is devoted to the Battle Born MC as a whole, and more so to his family. If I am caught, Cuervo will kill me and Kilo. They know enough that Kilo should be put down sooner rather than later. But not enough to make it happen as club business. The other part is, everyone will know what should only be family business. When I joined this MC, I had no idea how far these men would go to protect the women they love. All my doubt has been erased. I’m proud to stand with these men.
“Well, family breakfast sounds over,” Snake breaks the tension. “We have some work to do.” He claps his father and uncles on the shoulders on his way out.
Cuervo shakes my hand steady and strong and leaves me with, “I’ll be around for a while.”
“So, will I, Cuervo. I’m claiming Jazzy. She has some healing to do, but she belongs to me and not even you, can stop me.”
“Bueno, cabrón.” He smirks and let’s go.
“She will be married, if she is in your home, she will wear your ring.” Ghost warns, “Don’t forget the ass whipping Axl got. I’m not too old to kick more ass.”
I will never forget how many times Ghost punched him in the face for stepping out of line or coming close. “Done, when she’ll wear it, Jazzy will have all of me. She already has my devotion and protection.”
“Get to work, Spider.” Fuego relents and sees me off. I start to turn but my instincts tell me not to turn my back on a room full of killers. Lifting my head over my shoulder, the three men smirk and hold a slight approval on their faces.
“You sure you can handle that kind of intensity? I swear, I’ll never settle down because the thought of dealing with that gives me hives.”
“Not hives man, a purpose. They give us a purpose.”
“Women, or those pain in the asses?”
“Both, brother. Women give us the reason and those men keep us on track.”
Snake and I ride, collecting the cash, while Kilo and Hawk drive the truck with deliveries to be made. It’s been a long day that has given me plenty of time to decide how I want to handle the situation I created with Jazz. I can’t say that I regret it, at some point I will screw up. It's the only way her and I are going to learn each other and understand how to get along.
Jazzy
I snicker while I look around at the chaos I created in this kitchen. He wanted a kept woman, well he’s got one now. Dirty pans, plates, utensils litter the space. Spider is a clean freak, and I could tell by how meticulously he organized his stuff and cleaned up our dinner from the night before. I had to cancel my last appointment to get this done and run to the grocery store. After hours of cooking, he has a home cooked Hispanic meal. Beans, rice, shredded beef, salad and Pozole soup. I hope he’s hungry because this is a lot of food. Tres leches cake sits in the fridge cooling off to that yummy milk base poured over it to set.
The whip cream topping is coated on the rubber spatula. Timing is my friend. Men’s voices enter the house and Spider comes around the corner to find me licking the whip cream away with my tongue. Snake runs into his back and Hawk looks around his shoulder. “You boys hungry?”
Snake growls when his eyes trail over my exposed legs up to and around my curves only covered by an apron and straps peek out from my underwear. Snake covers his eyes, “Jazz, please go put clothes on. I want whatever has this kitchen looking like heaven. You are ruining it.”
“Hawk?” Spider snarls, “Go,” he points to the living room. He starts to move after he gives me a wink.
Snake cracks his fingers over his eyes and ambles out as Spider charges to me. “What are you up to, sucia?” Framing my face, he licks the outside of my lower lip before sucking it into his mouth. My moans escape as his nails scratch across my bare ass cheeks.
Tugging out of his kiss I answer, “You didn’t text me instructions on who would be here and when I should be home. I thought you needed me here, to make sure my man had dinner done by the time he got home. Or you should let me know when you bring home company, honey. I didn’t think…” I yelp as his hands grip my thighs picking me up and wrapping my legs around his waist.
Pinning me to the wall in the kitchen he rasps, “Oh, I know you think plenty, Jazz.” His nose circles mine before laying his tender lips on my cheeks.
“Maybe if you would have asked, I would have let you know what I was doing today. You’re an asshole for sending me those flowers.”
“Yeah? I thought you wanted to smell how bad you fucked up all day. You know, you could blow up my phone with pictures of what you were doing, and I would have never brought company home because I would have known what my sucia was up to.” I grind my core against his cock, and he curses. His dick wants out and I want that whip cream all over my body. “I don’t want to fight, I want to fuck.”
“Mmm,” I groan. “Take me to bed, Spider.” I forget if I made my point, but at this rate, I also couldn’t care less.
Slowly, he lowers me onto my heels and smacked my ass to get moving. Yelping, I take off to our room. Grabbing the bowl of frosting on my way as he hollers to Hawk and Snake, “Grab a plate to go and get the fuck out.” Spider stalks behind me with a lustful gaze of hopes and dreams to come true. Nothing better in this world than makeup sex.
Chapter 33
Jazzy
“Angie, I’m telling you that Spider is crazy, not cute.” For the last hour, we’ve been arguing since breakfast. It seems all my friends are pro Spider. Except this morning the man claimed he had business and left to the clubhouse, leaving me alone with my mess. I couldn’t go about cleaning this disaster alone so I called in reinforcements. Plus, Angie won’t even notice what I’m doing to manipulate her for help. So, here we are cleaning and talking. Truth is, I needed the company before I freaked out alone in this new house.
“Girl, if he has a brother, throw him my way.”
I snort at her antics, but telling her about his deceased brother doesn’t feel right and I keep it to myself. “Why not go for one at the clubhouse? They are all pretty close.”
“Ugh, they are all, I don’t know, not it. It feels like the world has lost flavor. I’m bored with the guys I’ve been seeing.” Angie is a west coast rarity with her New York accent. At first glance of her dark hair, eyes and olive skin, you think average beauty. Angi
e’s attitude subdues most in their place a stone exterior, but as soon as she opens her mouth, the guys, they fall in line pretty quick. Her east coast accent voice draws them in.
While I wash the last pan, she hits my shoulder with hers. “What has you all squirrely, girl?”
“Ange, look at this place. It’s like I woke up and grew up in one night. I’ve never lived with a man, never had so much square footage to myself and a yard, I didn’t contribute to it, and so it doesn’t feel like mine.”
“Then, let’s go to your place. Grab things that will make your mark here. Put up pictures and move in your clothes. Give it a real shot. Piece by piece, it will start to make sense.”
“It’s worth a try, but there is just this nagging feeling that Spider doesn’t belong here. I don’t like it. His home is with Blade, Axl, and Tank. It seems as if I am pulling him away from where he is meant to be.”
“What about you? What if all he wants is you?”
I mull over the possibility. “It could be,” I muse.
“Then, keep your place for now. When you are ready, jump in with both feet. Grow together. Why are you worried this isn’t just as much yours?”
“It is hard to wake up and your world is turned upside down. Most couples take the logical steps, and you take time to process shit. We have literally done nothing normal. Not a damn thing. We didn’t talk about this house or pick it out together. He just moved me in. Can I just say I’ve been mind fucked?”
“You aren’t most couples. And the ones that are probably have boring missionary sex for life.” She points out. “Shit, you are living a biker and chrome fairytale. Life never makes any sense. Forget all the rules and run that shit over. Get your purse, call your man, and let him know that you will be at your old apartment moving some stuff. We’ll take both of our cars. Just in case.”
Motherfucker, she is going to haul all my stuff over here. “This is like being force fed.”
“Don’t be a prissy girl. I want a man, but I don’t want his help and house. You’re living a goddamn dream and I’m definitely force feeding you because I’m jealous as hell. Move bitch.”
Vegas and Angie both have told me to quit my bitchin’ and move on. I think sometimes we get so stuck in our heads we forget when it’s time to get off the ride until there’s a slap to get us back to reality. It’s not that I’m not happy and surprised that he did this, maybe I want the same things for him too, to be happy. I want us to work more than anything. I love living here, but he doesn’t have family that would keep him here. The answer is obvious. We need to talk, and take time to figure us out. Not the Spider and Jazzy that we were before, but the people who we are now. That has a lot to do with why my head is so mixed up.
I press the call button on the screen and laugh out loud. Spider changed his name to “My Love God.”
“Hey, you okay?” he questions, picking up. The clubhouse is noisy and the sounds start to drown out before a door closes.
“Yes, my love god, how could I not be? I was just calling to let you know that I’m moving some stuff into our house today. I’ll be back and forth.” There is a spark of excitement that overtakes my worry.
“If you need help let me know, I’ll get Snake’s truck on my way home. Send me a text, okay?”
“Thank you, Spider.” Just the word is sexy in his voice, home…
“Bye, sweet cheeks.” The phone disconnects and the radio takes over the silence in the car. With every mile I let go of the stress and feel the contentment start to settle. I have someone now who will back me, and I him. Things will be okay no matter the outcome.
Angie and I trail up the door, key in the code, and walk inside of my apartment. I toss my purse to the couch as usual. Behind the door on the floor is a picture that someone shoved underneath it in the last couple of days. My blood pressure thunders into my ears. Slowly, I pick up the old picture of Kilo and I as teenagers. I’m looking up at him with stars in my very naive eyes. It was all before it all went to hell.
He was prospecting for the club and just got his vest that night. My Tio Fuego pulled me aside the next day. He begged me to find another guy to date, and so did Ghost. He may not be my uncle by blood, but he is family in all ways that count.. One by one, they all tried and failed; I still wanted him anyway. Believing in all his lies along the way. Gave him parts of my life that can’t be undone.
Now, it makes me sick. To some degree I give myself credit and the experiences I’ve gained. I can’t look back on the past and not have some regrets, but I grew stronger. The hard times have made me appreciate the good ones more, and myself. Looking at this photo is a stark reminder of how far I have come and reinforces where I am going. Home to Spider.
He may as well have left a dead animal on my doorstep. Angie watches me light a candle and I burn the photo with the past. Tossing the ashes into the kitchen sink. “You think he was here?”
“He’s out. I’ve been avoiding being anywhere he has been or will be. It’s been only a few days, but I knew this wouldn’t be good.”
“What are you going to do?”
“Nothing, he’s past that point. I’ll tell Spider and Snake. I can’t run and hide, he’ll feed off it. The only good thing is I changed my phone number from a year ago, so at least there is that.”
She nods in agreement. “Let’s get your shit and get out of here as soon as possible. We can come back when one of them is with us. Maybe you with Spider and Snake need to make more appearances at the clubhouse. Don’t let him see that this has got to you, you know?”
We start to throw clothes, makeup, toiletries, and what I can shove into suitcases. I’m determined not to let Kilo ruin my life or day. I can’t afford to fall behind. Chin up, I lock up and then drag the four suitcases out to the car.
Angie hands me a suitcase and excitedly suggests, “Hey, instead of bringing your old pictures, we should get new ones.”
“Yeah! That is a great idea. Follow me back to the house first.” We drop off my stuff and Angie jumps into my car and we cruise the neighborhood, finding new shops and restaurants to eat. We finally decided on one of the stores to start our little shopping adventure. My girl really did come up with a great idea. Looking around content, I realize my shopping cart is packed full of new decorations. A smile stretches across my cheeks. “Hey Angie, let's grab food before we leave.” I holler out and turn around in the aisle and run into a solid chest of muscle. “Shit.” Jumping back, I put my hands up and start to back up slowly. The aisle is at the back of the store and the only way out is past Kilo. Where the fuck did he come from?
His eyes look hollow and cast an emptiness I’ve never seen. Chills blanket my skin with fear. “I thought when I came home, we would be past this, bella.” He tries to smile, but he looks more menacing. “Why have you been so hard to track down?”
“It’s not hard to get lost, Kilo, when someone doesn’t want to be found.” This can’t happen and in fact will not happen here. He has to get me alone outside. Thinking of that helps to calm the fear of him finding me.
“So, you’re hiding from me then?”
“Are you kidding me right now?” Angie yells. “You don’t get to talk to her Kilo. Guess who is on the phone motherfucker?” She holds out her cell.
“Don’t tell me you called the cops, Angie.”
“Ha, no dick. Snake. Don’t think you are getting anywhere near her again.” Angie holds a rage in her face I have never seen before. Seeing my best friend so fierce and loyal, snaps me out of the shock I was stuck in. He will never be close enough to hurt me ever again.
“What’s he going to do Angie? All this is, is a little domestic conversation between lovers,” he taunts.
Fire lights up my spine, “No, not fucking lovers, asshole. Don’t think what you did is nothing.” I bite my tongue before I spout off how I want to see a bullet in his head in public. Gritting my teeth, I seethe, “Just a thought or word of advice, run while you can.” I sidestep around Kilo, never taking my eyes
from him. An evil grin creeps up his face the closer I get.
His hand sneaks out and stops me in my tracks as it lands on the shelving next to my head. “I’ll never let you go. You’re mine, bella, and always will be mine. I have plans.”
“Not with her.” Spider growls and rounds the corner. Pure grit thunders toward us. Slowly, Kilo’s arm drops. I can see Spiders muscles flex at his shoulders. His hands are fisted by his side. Steel determination in his eyes. One look and I see what Spider wants. For me to go to him. I don’t waste time and quickly find myself behind the strength of his back. One of his palms finds my thigh. Emotion racks through me in waves. The pride I feel for my man to come for me is every-mother-effing-thing to me. I hold my chin high and scowl at the asshole, Kilo, in front of us. This moment, it solidifies where I went wrong; a man fights for his woman. I never should have been in a place to protect myself against Kilo. What he did to me is on him, and now he can answer to Spider.
Outside of the store aisle, there is a pool of people that gathered watching the show. Lightly, I tug on Spider’s cut to pull him to me. My hand roams down his forearm until I lace his fingers with mine. “Take me home, love.” Spider takes a few tentative steps back before he turns his back on him. When we get to the parking lot, I toss the keys to Angie for my car. She knows where to go. Spider swings a leg over his bike, and I follow, tying my body tight to his. No words pass between us because we know, we belong to each other. I have no doubt he will protect me, and his vow is made when his hand holds my calf in his grip. We will find a way to bury the past and fight for what we deserve; our future together.
Chapter 34
Spider
Claiming His Forever (Battle Born MC Book 8) Page 18