He’s got me?
What the hell?
“What’s going on?” I demand, my back straightening as he nears.
He looms over me, his hands dropping to his hips. I want to stand from the bench to put us on a level playing field, but I don’t dare move because the look on his face is more than a little terrifying.
“Everyone’s looking for you.”
They are?
“Why?”
“You went to the bathroom a half hour ago, Piper, and didn’t come back,” he says, his tone sharp.
I glance down at my watch and see he’s right. Then I frown. “Okay, and that’s a problem because…?”
I watch with fascination as his jaw clenches so tight I think he might shatter his teeth.
“You don’t think it’s a problem that you just disappeared after going to the bathroom?”
“I didn’t disappear. I came outside for some fresh air. I didn’t realise I had to give a status report every time I leave the building.” My tone is more than a little sarcastic, and this might be a mistake, judging from the way his expression goes hard.
Jem’s eyes go to the sky as his hands drop to his hips. Then he pins me with a piercing stare that makes my heart freeze in my chest.
“Do I need to remind you that your brother was shot in the grounds of this very hospital? That Beth was—” He breaks off, his jaw tightening further. “We brought you here, Piper. It’s up to us to keep you safe while you’re here.”
I have no idea what Beth ‘was’, but I have heard mention of her through snippets of conversations in the waiting room, so I know she’s also in the hospital with another man, Dean, and that they were hurt at the same time as Josh. No one is saying exactly what happened, but I’ve gleaned it had something to do with a crazy ex-husband. I haven’t probed much further than that, since it’s none of my business, and truthfully, I’m a little scared to know the details of what went down.
I’m also not his problem, and I don’t want to be. I don’t need keeping safe.
“I’m not a child. I don’t need protecting or looking after by you or your Club.”
I resist the urge to tell him Josh and I would be perfectly safe if his stupid Club would leave us both alone. Judging from the anger radiating off the man, I don’t think it would be well received.
“Yeah, well, you don’t get a say. Wade’s a brother, you’re his family. Until he wakes up, we’ll take care of you. That means you don’t disappear on a bathroom break without telling anyone where you’re going.”
I grit my teeth. “Did you bring me here to be a prisoner?”
The look he gives me is positively amused. “Are you insane?”
“No, but clearly you are. I can’t even sit outside without giving someone an update of my movements. I haven’t had to tell people where I’m going since I was fifteen, Jem.”
“It’s not exactly hard to just mention to someone where you’re going, is it? It’s a two second, ‘Hey, I’m going to ‘X’ place. I’ll be back in ten’.”
It’s not hard, but that’s not the point. I don’t need a keeper.
“Seriously? You want me to tell you every time I have to go to the bathroom or for food or for a walk?”
“Absolutely.”
I stare at him. Oh my word. He’s not joking. He’s serious.
“You actually want me to do this?”
“Yes.”
“Really?”
“Yes, Piper.”
“Do you know how insane this is?” I hiss at him.
“Keeping you safe is insane?”
“Demanding a grown woman tells you her whereabouts is insane,” I correct.
“Only while you’re here. Once you leave town, I couldn’t give a shit what you do.”
This, for some reason, stings. I don’t even want to think about why, because it’s as crazy as what he’s demanding, and what he’s demanding is crazy enough. Checking in with his stupid leather-wearing bike gang is ridiculous. I can’t even believe he’s asking it, but talking to him is making me a little dizzied, so for the sake of my own sanity, I throw my hands in the air and say, “If it stops you from lecturing me, fine.”
“I don’t lecture. I helpfully point out when you’re being a pain in the arse.”
Affronted, but not sure I should lash out at the man who is radiating danger beneath the sexy, easy smile, I mutter, “I just wanted some fresh air.”
“All you had to do was tell someone, so we don’t think you’ve been abducted or hurt.”
I stare at him. “Someone goes AWOL for thirty minutes and your first thought is abduction?” I shake my head. What realm of existence do these people live in? “You don’t consider maybe they went for a walk or took a call? Your mind jumps first to that?”
His gaze is weighted as he studies me and I have to look away from the intensity of it.
“I get it. Our life is different from what you’re used to. Hell, if I wasn’t in it, if I hadn’t grown up surrounded by these crazy bastards, I’d be just like you, questioning everything. But you’re looking at us like we’re scum for wanting to keep what’s ours safe, and we’re not. And if you think that about us, then you must think that about your brother.”
His words hit me like a wrecking ball. Shame fills me. I don’t believe Josh is a bad person, not inherently, but he has done bad things. He did go to prison, after all, and I know for a fact he wasn’t innocent of the crimes he was sent down for. I know Josh’s life growing up wasn’t easy, but it doesn’t excuse what he did. I didn’t have the easiest upbringing either, and I realise how insane that sounds, given the privilege I grew up with, but it’s true all the same. I didn’t choose to go off the rails and break the law. I didn’t get myself locked up.
I also didn’t have a grown man beating me senseless every day of my life…
No, but I did have my mother to contend with—and Grant.
“I don’t have to explain myself to you.”
“No, you don’t.” Jem stares out at the car park, his expression annoyingly blank. “But you do have to explain yourself to your brother, and if that’s how little you think of him, of his life, then I really don’t understand why you’re here. He doesn’t deserve your judgement.” He stands and gazes down at me. “We should get back inside. He could wake up at any time.”
And without giving me time to explain myself, Jem heads towards the door.
Chapter Four
“Piper?”
The voice breaks through my haze and I open my eyes to see a mass of blonde hair in my line of sight. Clara Thomas.
The woman has been both a godsend and an irritation. As a nurse, she’s been invaluable helping me with Josh’s care, but she’s also made it her personal mission to take care of me. It’s grating on my nerves because I don’t want to like these people. They’re not my friends, but the way they’re treating me is making my walls come down more than I would like.
I blink the last remnants of my sleep away and try to focus on her before my gaze slides to the bed. Josh is lying still, numerous wires and machines hooked up to him. He’s been in the ICU for two days, but he’s still not awake yet.
“Sorry, I must have nodded off.” I shift in the chair. “What time is it?” The smell of antiseptic tickles my nose and I rub at it before I sneeze.
She steps back from the chair, giving me space to stretch and unfurl my legs, which are tucked up underneath me. I’m stiff, my neck aching, and my back spasms as I move my bunched muscles for the first time in a while.
“A little after eleven o’clock. Why don’t you come back to the clubhouse? I can have one of the boys find somewhere for you to sleep. You need to rest in a proper bed—not in a chair.”
Go back to their clubhouse, their criminal headquarters?
Absolutely not.
I shake my head. “I want to be here when he wakes up.”
Clara glances back at the bed before returning her gaze to me. “That could be a while yet.”
/> “I don’t want him to be alone when he comes around.”
I have no intention of setting foot in their den of iniquity.
“He won’t be alone, Piper, I promise. One of us will stay with him.”
There’s always someone here, so I believe her when she says this. There has been a steady stream of visitors since I’ve been here. I’ve done my best to stay out of the way of the men in vests under the guise of giving them time with my brother, but in truth, they scare me half to death.
It’s bizarre that Josh has so many people who care for him while I’m alone. You’d think it would be the other way around, considering he’s living in a biker cult, and I was born into privilege, but my life is far from perfect, despite how it looks on the surface. I might have the gorgeous loft apartment in the swankiest part of Manchester, a fabulous education, attend amazing events, but my life is mostly hell.
My relationship with my parents is, at best, strained; at worst, dead. I’m a commodity to them. I’m not even sure if my mum loves me. I don’t know if she’s even capable of love. I know this sounds dramatic, but it’s true. I’m a burden to her. I always have been, and she’s not afraid to tell me either, and Grant sees me as a product to pull out whenever he needs a family photograph for his campaign trail. As a local councillor, he needs to look good for the electorate. This means me and Mum need to put on our best smiles a few times a year and get our photographs taken by the media, acting as the picture-perfect family.
I push down my jealousy. I shouldn’t begrudge Josh this. He grew up in hell with his father—our father, I correct. He deserves good people around him. Although, I’m not sure a motorcycle club qualifies, but at least they’re here. Curtis, I notice, is not. I did wonder if he would be, but I suppose it’s just as well he’s not. I’m not sure our first ever meeting should be in a hospital room while his firstborn is dying.
“I’m fine here,” I tell her, keeping my resolve.
Hell will freeze over before I go back to their clubhouse.
“But thank you,” I add. I don’t want to seem impolite.
Clara considers me for a moment. “Your brother is well liked in the Club.”
“I can see that,” I say, not sure where she’s going with this.
“He’s got a lot of people who love him.” Clara moves over to the side of his bed and glances down at him. “And part of us loving him means taking care of the people who matter to him. That means we want to take care of you, too.”
Internally, I flinch at her words. I don’t think I do matter to him.
“I know you’re scared to leave Wade’s side, but you’re no good to him if you’re dead on your feet. You need to be rested, Piper, so that when he does wake, you’re strong enough to help him. Wade’s going to have a long and difficult road ahead.”
I swallow hard. She’s wrong about everything, about me, about what I am to him.
“I’m not leaving,” I repeat.
She stares at me, then scowls. “I didn’t think they could make anyone more stubborn than Wade. I was wrong. You’re even worse.”
“Then you probably should stop arguing. You’re not going to win.”
“At least get something to eat.”
“I’m not hungry.”
“Piper, you haven’t eaten in hours. We can’t have you wasting away to nothing.”
I haven’t. I can’t even remember the last meal I ate.
“I’m fine.” My stomach grumbles, betraying me, and her brow arches. “If someone could get me something, so I can stay with Josh…”
It’s rude, I know, but I don’t want to leave his side.
She gives me a patient look before she shakes her head. “You’ve been sitting in that chair for nearly twenty-five-hours. You need a break. I’m sorry. For your own sake, you’re leaving the room, even if I have to ask one of the lads to put you over their shoulder and carry you out.”
I give her a look. “You wouldn’t dare.”
“Wouldn’t I?”
“This isn’t the nineteen-fifties. I’m capable of looking after myself.”
“I know you are, but you’re not.” She sighs. “If you won’t go somewhere to sleep, you can at least take half an hour out to grab something to eat.”
I’m sure the look I fire at her is laced with daggers. She doesn’t seem affected by it, though. “You’re incredibly bossy, do you know that?”
“You’ll get over it. Come on.”
I think about arguing more, but I’m not sure she won’t carry out her threat, so I relent. The thought of one of those big men carrying me out of the room is enough to get me moving.
“Fine.”
I snag my jacket off the back of the chair and slip my feet into my shoes, giving my brother a final glance. I don’t want to leave him, but Clara’s right. I need to eat, and I need to move. My neck is a giant knot.
“Will someone stay with him?”
“Yeah, I’ll wait with him.” When I don’t immediately move, she says, “He’ll be fine for half an hour, Piper. You need to look after you, too.”
I do. I don’t know why I’m being so intense. Guilt, I suppose. I walked away, and now he could die. I might never get to tell him how sorry I am for what happened between us. Fear keeps me locked to his bedside, which is ridiculous and irrational, but I can’t stop it.
I let her push me out of the room. With no choice, I wander down to the lift and take it to the ground floor. I don’t head to the cafeteria, as I told Clara I would, but instead head outside and find an empty bench overlooking the hospital grounds.
I call Cami.
“It’s good to hear your voice,” she says immediately. “I was starting to get worried. How are things?”
“Josh is still out of it, but he came out of the surgery all right. It’s just a case of wait and see now.”
“Bloody hell, that’s vague. Do you want me to see if I can sort some private medical care for him?”
Camille Neville, ever the do-gooder.
“He’s getting good treatment here, I think.”
“Well, if you want private care just let me know, darling. It can be arranged.”
“Thanks.”
“How’s things with the leather-clad posse?”
I snort at her choice of words. “Fine. They’re friendly enough. A little too friendly really. I’m trying not to get embroiled. They seem to want to mother me because I’m Josh’s family.”
“That’s a good thing, isn’t it? At least they’re not trying to smother you, right?”
This makes me laugh. “I guess.”
Cami sighs down the line. “Just stick around long enough to do what you have to for closure with Josh. No one’s saying you have to swear into their little society.”
A loud rumbling sound catches my attention and I twist on the bench in time to see a motorcycle pull into the hospital car park. I can’t help but watch as it moves. There is a certain beauty in the fluidity of it as it turns into the bike park area.
“Yes, that’s all I’m here for—my brother. I have no intention of making friends with these people,” I murmur into the phone, watching as the bike comes to a stop and the engine cuts.
I’ve not yet come to recognise the men of the Club, but I’m sure from the stature the rider is Jem. When the helmet is removed, I’m proved right, and I don’t even want to know how I knew this—especially considering I’ve seen the man all of twice, and every interaction I’ve had with him has been negative. Our last one in particular.
I don’t approve of Josh’s life, this is true, but I don’t think my brother is a horrible person—despite what Jem clearly believes.
I shift on the bench, feeling twitchy suddenly. I wonder if I can run inside before he sees me. The last thing I want to do is get into another argument with the man.
He kicks down the stand on the bike and attaches his helmet to the back, before running his fingers through his hair in a movement that would be attractive on someone less annoying.
I start at the voice in my ear. “Sorry, what?”
“Oh, I thought I’d lost the signal,” Cami says.
“Possibly. I am in the back of beyond.”
She grunts into the phone. “You’re in Yorkshire. Hardly the arse end of nowhere, Piper.”
“It may as well be,” I mutter as I watch Jem straighten his vest and start up the path toward the hospital entrance, towards me. He glances back at his motorcycle once, before continuing—right towards me. Bugger. “Uh, Cam, I’ve got to go. I’ll call you later, okay? If my parents drop by—”
“I’ll tell them you’re at a yoga retreat,” she interrupts.
I don’t bother to tell her how ridiculous that lie is. I’m not a fan of exercise, which my parents both know. My mother has tried, numerous times, to get me to do it. She comments often on my weight.
I don’t get a chance, though. Cami hangs up before I can say anything.
I barely manage to stuff my phone back into my bag before a shadow is looming over me. When I glance up, Jem is standing over me.
“You really do have a hard time paying attention, don’t you?” The growl in his voice reverberates through me.
“Not at all,” I tell him, keeping my tone pleasant. “I’m actually fairly good at doing as I’m told.”
“Then what the fuck are you doing out here?”
I glance around the flower pots and benches lining the small garden area I’m sitting in.
“Well, I was enjoying some peace and quiet,” I fire back at him.
“Alone?”
“I wasn’t aware I needed a bodyguard every time I step foot outside.”
“Did we not go over the shooting thing?” He sounds annoyed. I can’t really blame him for that. I did ignore him when he said this, but I don’t want to be followed around. I don’t even have this with Grant, and he’s in local government, which does make him a target of threats at times.
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