“You OK dear?” I jumped as my mom poked her head inside the room right where I had been staring. It was like she popped my little daydream like a bubble .
“Fine,” I said as if I’d just been caught doing something I shouldn’t have been doing .
“Need anything? I’m heading out to the store .”
“A cold shower,” I muttered towards the computer screen .
“What did you say?” she said squinting into her bag as she worked at fishing out her car keys .
“Nothing. Never mind. Which store are you going to?” I said grabbing the receipts and stacking them into a neat pile in front of me .
“Grocery store. I can pick you up some lunch,” she said, but it didn’t seem like she was paying any attention to me as she looked at her phone. It was as if her mind was already out the door .
I shook my head, and she walked away without another word. My brain had been somewhere else too so I couldn’t really blame her for seeming distracted. Only I shouldn’t have been thinking about him .
I dropped my head down on the table and sighed. There had to be some way to get him out of my mind. I closed my eyes, but that only seemed to make it worse. He was standing there in my daydream and I could make him do whatever I wanted .
“Snap out of it,” I said tapping my forehead repeatedly with my fingertips. I turned towards the computer and started entering the numbers from the receipts .
No matter what I tried my thoughts kept sneaking back to Stone. The numbers weren’t powerful enough to keep my mind busy, in fact it may have actually made matters worse .
I tried Facebook, searching for new recipes, YouTube, listening to music but none of it helped. I couldn’t get him out of my head .
“Hey baby,” my dad said startling me back into reality. I sighed and ran my hand across my forehead. “Everything OK ?”
“It’s fine. Everything is just fine,” I said sounding harsher than I had intended .
“You’ll get it. I know I made a mess of everything,” he said as if he thought I was frustrated by the work. “Just take your time .”
“Right… yeah, I know,” I said closing whatever it was I had open on YouTube. I didn’t even know what I had been watching since all I had been thinking about was what Stone’s body looked like under his T-shirt and cut .
My dad stepped forward and walked right up to the desk. He looked down at the receipts and then over at the computer. He sniffed, “I wanted to talk to you about something .”
“What’s that?” I asked pretending to be busy with the spreadsheet .
“There’s going to be a little get together here tonight, and I was just thinking you should stop by just so the guys can meet the new — ”
“Oooh no way, dad! There is no way in hell. I was very clear that I didn’t want to have anything to do with the club,” I stood up and pushed the chair away. I wanted him to know that if he was going to try to push the club on me, I was willing to walk from my new, barely minimum wage job and my rent-free bedroom too .
“OK, well I just wanted to — ”
“It doesn’t matter. You should have told me about this days ago. I could have made other plans. I don’t want to be around,” I said crossing my arms in front of my chest .
My dad laughed, “What kind of plans? You don’t leave the house .”
I could feel my face turning red. I was angry and frustrated… in more ways than one. And it wasn’t like he needed to point out the fact that I didn’t go out .
“You didn’t even give me a chance. I could have gone out to a movie or something .”
“With who?” he said smiling at me .
“Myself,” I said stepping around to the side of the desk. Even though I considered quitting, I wasn’t, at least not yet, I just needed a break .
“Listen, you aren’t leaving this house. I don’t care if you come to the fucking party or not, but you will not leave this property… do you hear me Josie? It’s not safe right now with him out there when we’ll all be at the house .”
The way he said it made it seem as though if I left during the day he’d put a tail on me. I definitely wouldn’t put it past him .
“Dad, he’s not going to kill me,” I said turning to face him .
He shook his head, “I don’t know what that idiot is capable of and I’m sure as hell not going to let you find out .”
“I’m not going to the dumb party,” I said staring him right in the eyes. I wanted him to know how serious I was. Yes, he was super intimidating most of the time, but he was still just my dad .
“But you will not leave this property. Is that understood?” he said giving me the same stubborn look back .
I nodded and walked out of the room. My feet stomped as I walked down the hall and stepped inside of the bathroom. I slammed the door behind me. At least I wasn’t thinking about Stone any more .
I stayed in the bathroom until I heard my dad leave the house. Even though I was sick of staring at a computer screen, I went back to the office. I was confident I was done thinking about Stone and I could finally get some work done .
I kept working undisturbed for a couple hours before my mom returned from the store. She was holding several bags when she stepped inside the office. The look on her face told me that she had run into my dad .
She sat in the chair across from me and set the bags down next to her. I kept my eyes focused on the monitor while she crossed her legs and lit up a cigarette. I could feel her eyes drilling a hole into me, and I knew she wouldn’t stop until she said her peace .
“Josie,” she started calmly, “you know you can’t leave here without someone, especially at night. It’s just not safe. Not yet baby, we’ll get there… you’ll get there, but we just don’t know what he’ll do yet, you know ?”
I rolled my eyes at her. TO me it seemed like she was being over dramatic about the whole thing. Sure he was a bit of a loose cannon but it wasn’t like Troy was just going to whip out a gun and start shooting at me the minute he saw me leave the house. And yes, he hadn’t wanted me to leave him and threatened to kill me if I ever did, but he wasn’t a murderer. At least I was pretty sure he wasn’t. He was just an idiot that got a little rough sometimes. I left him, it was over. I wanted to be done thinking about Troy .
“Don’t give me that look, I’m still — ”
“You will always be my mother,” I said already knowing what she was going to say. “But I’m old enough to take care of myself. It’s not like I’m going to hide behind dad and the club forever. Once I can afford my own place, I’ll be back out there and you and dad won’t be able to watch me every second of the day .”
“You keep telling yourself that honey,” she said standing up as if she had made her point. I hated having to admit that I was hiding behind my dad and the club, but it was true. “Don’t come to the party. I don’t fucking care what you do as long as you do it inside this house. For now .”
“Aye-aye captain,” I said as I saluted her .
Maybe I should go to the party. And maybe I should hang all over every club member there until my dad tells me to go inside. That would teach him a lesson. They wouldn’t want me to go to any future club events that would be for sure .
But I didn’t want to do that. I couldn’t do that. Could I? No. No. I’d just forget about it. After all, they were right about one thing, I didn’t have anywhere to go .
27
Chapter 3
T he noise from the party in the backyard was too much. If only I had earplugs. With each passing hour they all only got louder and louder. It was a mix of the camaraderie, the music and the booze .
The backyard had been decorated up really nicely. There was streamers, glowing lanterns and a big fire going in the fire pit .
I closed the curtain roughly so I wouldn’t have to see any of it through the window anymore. If my parents saw me looking out, they would have mistaken it for something else… they would have thought I wanted to be there, but I did
n’t. I didn’t want anyone to think I cared .
I didn’t know how I’d get any sleep with the all the racket they were making. Maybe I’d have to flip on the TV in my room, crank it up and find something to binge watch. But that wouldn’t be enough to block out the noise .
I grabbed a diet soda from the fridge and started to go to my room. Right as I was about to turn the corner the back door opened and Stone stumbled inside the house, laughing and pointing at someone outside. He laughed at himself. I didn’t know if I wanted to smile, or be pissed off that he was just waltzing into the house like he owned the place .
“Oh, hey,” he said trying hard to act like he hadn’t been drinking. But failing miserably .
“Yeah, hey,” I said glancing towards the back door, “are you supposed to be in here?” The words had come out sounding way meaner than I had intended. I opened my mouth to apologize, but he raised his hand as if to stop me .
My dad didn’t like the club members in the house when they were sober, he sure wouldn’t want them in the house when they were drunk. He kept the house pretty much off limits to the MC unless it was an emergency, or if my dad otherwise approved it. And for some reason I didn’t think my dad had approved this entry .
“It’s fine,” he said opening the fridge. “This ”
He turned around holding a six-pack of beer and smiling his sexy smile at me. I wondered how many women were outside waiting for him to return so they could hang on him .
“Isn’t there a keg out there ?”
“Running dry,” he said as if he was proud of the club’s accomplishment .
“Of course it is,” I said as I took a step towards my room. He weaved backwards and accidentally bumped into me. We’d only touched for half a second but my heart skipped a beat .
He put his hands on my shoulders to help steady me. Or maybe it was more so that he could steady himself. When he looked down into my eyes, it almost seemed as if he knew what he was doing. That maybe he had planned the whole thing, but that was probably just my imagination .
Stone wouldn’t do that when he could have any woman he wanted. And it wasn’t like he would make any kind of move on the president of the MC’s daughter. There was no way he’d ever do anything to get on my dad’s bad side. Unless he did it in such a way that it would look like a total accident .
My heart felt like it was making extra beats. I wondered if Stone could feel it pounding through every vein in my body. Could he tell what he was doing to me ?
He looked down at his feet and flashed me that half-smile that melted panties before he stepped away. “Sorry, sweetheart,” he said as he cracked open one of the cans of beer .
“It’s OK,” I said wishing I could step forward, and he’d kiss me. If I could just know that one kiss that would be enough. That’s all I needed. Then I could stop thinking about him. I could walk away from this easier just knowing what I would be like to kiss him. To feel his arms wrapped around me. His body pressed into mine .
I looked at him and pinched at my lip nervously. He was so fucking hot I couldn’t stand it. I had to get more space between us .
I let out a quick breath and reminded myself he was in the MC. Hot or not it didn’t matter. Not only did I want nothing to do with the club, being with him wouldn’t ever be allowed. I took started to walk backwards and didn’t stop until I bumped into the wall .
He watched me and I couldn’t help but wonder if he was thinking the same thing. The look in his eyes seemed hungry, but then again he was drunk. He probably looked at all women that way .
“I have to go. Good night,” I said and turned to go to my room. I thought my breathing would return to normal once I couldn’t see him anymore, but it didn’t .
“You’ll be back, sweetheart… mmm-mm, they always come back,” he said after me. I practically had to force myself to keep walking away from him. His words were like a magnet pulling me back towards him. I closed my bedroom door and let the breath I’d been holding out of my lungs .
I closed my eyes and tried to calm my racing heart when I felt a hand clamp down over my mouth. It couldn’t have been Stone because I’d closed the door. I opened my eyes wide as I tried to make sense of what was happening .
Someone was in my room and they were pressing their body against the side of mine. I tried to turn but whoever it was held me in place .
“Don’t even think,” the voice said, and I instantly recognized the voice. It was the voice I’d heard every day for the last several years. Troy had somehow gotten inside my room .
I shook my head. If there was one thing I knew how to do, it was how to keep Troy from freaking out. Well, at least most of the time I did and ninety percent of the time it worked .
As long as I remained calm and didn’t question him, I’d probably be OK. At least that’s what I was hoping for, that was until I smelled the alcohol on his breath. I was now down to about twenty percent chance of being able to keep him calm .
He dragged me across the floor and over to my bed. I didn’t fight back even though he was hurting me. For now, I’d save my energy .
He lifted me up and threw me down on the bed. Troy stepped backwards and tripped over his own feet. It took everything I had not to laugh at him as he crashed loudly to the floor. But if I would have laughed, he would have definitely made me regret it .
Troy looked at me almost as if he was daring me to laugh. He wanted to fight. Troy hadn’t come here to play nice. He was daring me to do or say anything that could flip his switch. But of course I bit my tongue .
Troy stood up and weaved right into my nightstand and the lamp tipped over and fell to the floor. I watched as it broke into several pieces. He got down on his knee and started to pick up the pieces but then he remembered he didn’t care about the lamp .
There was knock on my door and I hugged myself. I didn’t know if I should call out for help or just be still. If I got a chance, maybe I’d be able to convince Troy to leave on his own .
“Josie? Are you all right ?”
It was Stone. He must have heard all the noises. Troy looked at me as if I should handle it. Make him go away. But it felt like my lips were glued together .
Troy looked at me nervously as if he wasn’t sure what he should do. He looked afraid of what might happen if someone came in and found him there .
I opened my mouth ready to call out for Stone, but Troy must have been able to tell by the look in my eyes that I wasn’t going to tell them to go away. He jumped down on top of my and clamped his hand down over my mouth. I could tell he changed his mind and was afraid of what I might say .
“Josie?” Stone shouted as he pounded on the door again. There was something about the way he was calling for me that I knew he wasn’t going to leave until I answered him. Somehow Stone must have figured something was wrong. “Josie, I’m coming in .”
The door shook as he slammed what I assumed was his shoulder into it. But it didn’t budge. There was a brief pause before whatever he had done caused the door to pop open so hard it swung around and hit the wall .
He looked around the room, and when he saw Troy on top of me with his hand over my mouth, he instantly reacted. Stone peeled Troy off of me like he was ripping a Band-Aid off. He pulled his fist back and launched it forward into Troy’s face .
Troy’s head seemed to move one way while his body moved the other. He looked around the room as if he had no idea where he was. Stone let go of him and he fell like a rock to the floor. Troy grabbed at his head while Stone stood over him looking as though he’d hit him again if he tried to get up .
“Do you know him?” Stone shouted barely taking his eyes off of Troy .
I nodded, “Sort of .”
“Didn’t look like you wanted him here to me,” Stone said looking confused .
“He’s my ex .”
“He’s supposed to be in here?” Stone asked as if he was trying to think what my dad would have done if it had been him to find Troy in here. Stone seemed worr
ied that he wasn’t doing enough .
I shook my head side to side. He wasn’t supposed to be in my room. Troy wasn’t supposed to come anywhere near me .
Stone twisted his fist around the front of Troy’s shirt and effortlessly lifted him off the floor. The next thing I knew, he was dragging him out of my room and down the hall .
I followed as he hauled him through the living room and towards the front door. Stone stopped and looked at me as if he was waiting for me to do something. I quickly realized he wanted me to open the door, so I twisted the knob and opened the front door as wide as it would go .
The music in the backyard was playing some upbeat tune. I could hear the guys chuckling while the women were laughing and giggling. None of them knew what was going on in the front yard .
Stone lifted Troy off the ground, his feet dangling as he pointed his toes down trying to find his footing. He hurled him into the front lawn as if he weighed nothing. Troy hit the ground and rolled several times before his body came to a stop .
I looked around and noticed over to the side of the house there was a small group of guys discussing something that looked serious as they puffed on their cigarettes. They stopped talking the second their realized something was going on .
“Everything OK, Stone?” one of the guys with messy hair asked. He had an unusual slightly higher pitched voice that I would have imagined would come out of a biker .
“Under control, man,” Stone said, brushing his hands on his jeans. He took a step towards Troy who was still laying on the ground looking at them almost as if he was waiting for permission to move. “This party crasher was just leaving .”
I was glad he didn’t mention that the man on my front lawn was my ex. If anyone of this got back to my dad, I would worry about what he would do, or have done, to Troy. I didn’t like him and I didn’t want to be with him anymore, but I also didn’t want him dead. It was definitely a possibility if the club was involved. My dad would do what it took to keep me safe and it wouldn’t take much to convince the MC to back him up .
Caught - A Brother's Best Friend Romance Page 11