by K. Renee
“Why the fuck are you blowing up my phone like I’m your damn prom date?” I ask with a grin on my face. One thing I love is fucking with my big brother. Ever since he met Coley, he’s been a pussy. She’s got him by the balls and all but drags him around.
“Fuck you,” he bites out. “I called because shit’s getting strained here. We need you to head home.” I run my hand through my hair and sigh. I never told them I was headed home, so it should be a fun little exchange.
“You have plenty of guys. I won’t make that much of a difference,” I state, seeing if I can get some information out of him.
“We need you, Bentley. You know I wouldn’t call if it weren't true.” I guess he isn’t lying about that. They’ve let me stay gone this long.
“Fine. What do you need me for?” I question.
“Someone is trying to move in on the strip club. We need to get that shit on lock, and since you were the one who was the mastermind on that shit, I need you to come handle it. You know that business better than anyone here.”
The strip club. Fuck, I forgot all about that damn place. I converted it from some dive place to what it was today and hired Sadie to run the shit for the most part. She runs her side business out of it most nights, and that’s how I used to get the companionship I wanted when I didn’t find anything at the BDSM clubs.
My old man was the only one who knew about the deal for the longest time until some shit went down and the word came out that Sadie was running her girls out of the club as well. Some tempers flew, but my old man convinced everyone that it was a good move on our part. We didn’t need to do much for them, and I think he liked that. It was self-sufficient, to say the least.
“Shouldn’t be a problem. You know who it is?” The cars and trucks continue to fly by me as I stand in the sun waiting for this fucker to finish this shit so I can get on the road again. Part of me is dying to see Brynn and the other part is hating the thought of being back in Nevada.
“No, but I have an idea.” Before he can say another word, a line of bikes catches my attention. I mumble that I have to go and pocket my phone, not giving a shit that I just hung up on my brother.
As they pass me, I see one by one as they look at me. Their patches are ones that I haven’t seen before, and that makes me wonder if we gave them permission to ride through our territory. We typically only let our friendlies through these parts.
Once they pass me, they pick up speed, and I start my engine and pull out in front of a few cars that were coming up behind them. I stay behind them for a few miles before they make all the right turns towards the clubhouse. I stay a ways back when they pull into the parking lot of Wayward Cycles.
Who the fuck are these assholes and why are they in our territory?
I hear my brother ask them what the hell they are doing there and their response about us having something they want. Then I hear my old man’s voice. He sounds pissed as fuck, so I start my engine and start towards the clubhouse. As soon as I pull in the lot, all heads turn to me.
I park my bike next to the door of Wayward Cycles and see that they are blocking someone. As I get off my bike, I eye the guys standing before my brothers. They remind me of wannabe bikers that think they are hot shit and try to go up against us. They never win and I sure as hell won’t let them come in and try to take what we’ve built.
“Who the fuck are you?” I growl. I stand next to Dom and try not to notice that Brynn is standing behind him.
“Your worse nightmare kid,” he grins at me, and I roll my eyes.
“You look like a pussy. So why don’t you just get the fuck out of here and find someone else to try and intimidate.” Before he can say something, the clubhouse doors open and Severye comes running out. He runs right toward the guys on bikes, and I see movement from behind me.
The douche that looks like he is in charge watches my nephew as he comes running, and then his eyes lock on Brynn as she grabs him before he can go past us. Just as the biker tries to move closer to Brynn, I move in front of her and put my hand on his chest, stopping his movement.
“Stay the fuck away from my family.” I’m now the only thing between my nephew, Brynn, and this piece of shit.
A wicked grin spreads over his lips, and I know that he has a new target and Brynn and I are it. Brant moves from beside me and grabs Brynn around the waist and picks up his kid, ushering them toward the clubhouse when the doors open again. “Inside now,” he barks out to whoever it is that is now coming out.
I hear my sister’s voice, but he probably pushes her ass inside with him.
“Don’t worry; I’ll be back for what’s mine,” he says as he tries to push me away. I don’t budge, and I can see the amusement in his eyes. I don’t know who the fuck this asshole is, but I’m going to kill him.
He starts to walk away, and his little bitches follow him. We don’t move until they pull out of our lot. As they head off down the street, Dom slaps me on the back. “That was some good fucking timing. I didn’t expect you until at least tomorrow.”
I chuckle, still staring at the road just outside the clubhouse fence. “I was already right outside of town when I saw those clowns ride past me while I was talking to you. I followed them and tried to get a read on this situation before I came in.”
“Good thing kid. Good to have you home.” My old man pulls me in for a hug, and I hug him back. As much as I liked being away, this is what I missed. I missed my blood.
“I bet Brynn is scared shitless. You want me to handle her?” Dom asks. I shake my head no. I can deal with her, plus I’m going to have to warn her about what might happen. Fucking shit. And here I thought that I would have a little time before I had to address anything with that damn woman.
We start to make our way into the clubhouse, and a truck pulls into the parking lot. Dom groans from beside me, and when I turn to look, it’s some dude I’ve never seen before. “You know him?” I ask, grabbing the door to pull it open.
“Yeah, Brynn’s new fiance.” I suck in a breath and yank the door open harder than necessary. I storm through the damn place and see Brynn sitting on a bar stool with her bag in her arms as she stares at the ground.
Walking straight up to her, I put my hands on either side of her and lean in close. When she sees that it’s me, she pulls back, and her eyes widen. She goes to say something, but nothing comes out.
“We need to talk.” Her wide eyes don’t change, and I don’t know what is running through her head right now. She barely nods her head in, I don’t know, acceptance. I need to get her out of here before that douche of a fiance comes in here and tries to sweep her away. I reach out a hand, and she stares at it for a second before she grabs it and lets me lead her away.
I drag her through the clubhouse until we come to my room. I unlock the door and push her inside before shutting it behind me, locking the door. My brothers will do their best to keep the douche bag fiance away until I’m done with what I need to do now.
Chapter Twelve
Brynn
The moment his hand touched mine, every single feeling I had for Bentley came rushing back. I felt like I couldn’t breathe when he said that we needed to talk. I have no idea what he could possibly want to talk about, but for some reason, I am nodding my head, and soon he’s dragging me through the clubhouse.
When we come to a room, he unlocks the door and pushes me through it. I still don’t know what the fuck happened outside, and my hands are shaking. I have never seen any of their feuds, or whatever it is they call them, before. They typically keep a lot of that hush hush, but today? I got to see exactly the type of men they are.
Standing as still as a statue, I wrap my arms tighter around my bag and try like hell to calm myself.
I see Bentley pace the room for a few minutes before he comes to a stop in front of me. The heat of his body is radiating off of him, and it’s like I can feel him against me. He reaches out and cups my cheek, forcing me to look up at him. My heart stops completely, and I d
on’t know how to breathe.
“Fucking hell,” he whispers. He closes his eyes for a second before they open again and his blue eyes are shining brightly at me. The anger I felt from him outside is gone completely, but in its place is something I can’t describe.
His eyes stare at my mouth, and he looks like he might kiss me, but when I put my hand on his, his eyes move to the ring on my finger. He curses and pulls back slightly almost like he’s been burned.
“Shit won’t be safe for you for a little while. What happened outside isn't just going to go away, and when I went up against that dick, he thought it would be fair play to go after anyone that is connected to me. When you grabbed Severye, and I stepped between you, he took that as you both being mine. I saw the way he was looking at you. It’s why Dom stood in front of you.” I suck in a breath as I try to take in everything he just said.
“Why would someone come after me?” My throat is dry, and my heart is starting to pound.
He starts to rub the bridge of his nose before he says anything else. “They think they can hurt me with you.”
I scoff at that. “Yeah, like you could give a shit about me,” I mutter, moving away from him and taking a seat on the bed.
He moves towards me and gets right in my face. “You have no fucking clue how I feel.” His eyes bore into me, and I have to lean back slightly to get out of his face. Him being this close is making me feel all sorts of messed up. I try like hell to think about Aaron and the last two years that we’ve spent together, but with Bentley this close, it’s impossible.
“Then why don’t you for once tell me something other than you don’t want to ruin me.” I don’t even know why I said it. I really don’t. I don’t want to know about his feelings now. They don’t matter. I’m with Aaron, and he’s going to be the one that I marry.
“Because if I did, then I would have to face my feelings about you.” He pulls back slightly and stands to his full height again. My eyes rake over his body and fuck does it make me squirm slightly in my seat. I still want him even though I know the type of guy he is. He doesn’t do girls like me. He doesn’t commit. He’s a damn biker that’d rather fuck the whole damn state than admit his feelings.
“Face them? You don’t know what feelings are,” I bite out. My anger is starting to get the better of me, and I can tell by the look in his eyes that he likes when I lash out at him.
Instead of waiting to see what he’s going to say, I stand up and make my way toward the door. I don’t need him or his bullshit protection or whatever it is he is trying to sell me right now. I just need to get the fuck away from him and stay a safe distance away.
As soon as my hand grabs the doorknob and I twist, his hand slams into the door, and the door doesn’t open. I try pulling for a few seconds before I whip around and level him with a glare. “I swear to God if you don’t let me out, I’ll scream rape.”
His eyebrows raise and he gives me a try me look. Just as I open my mouth to scream, his mouth comes down on mine. The shock of his mouth on mine renders me speechless and stone still. I can’t move or do anything as he shoves his tongue into my mouth. When his hand tangles into my hair, my body melts into his, and I kiss him back.
I don’t know what comes over me, but I give into him like I did the last time. Nothing else matters at this moment but the feel of his lips on mine and I want to relish in this moment for the rest of my life.
My fingers dig into his biceps, and when he finally pulls away, I’m panting and trying to catch my breath. One kiss from Bentley makes me forget the life I’ve lived since he’s been gone. One kiss will never be enough if I’m honest with myself. Part of me still craves him, and I don’t know what to do.
“I won’t let them hurt you. They will only come after you because of me, and that shit isn’t going to happen. I need to know you’re safe.” His voice is no more than a whisper and everything from outside comes back to me. Someone wants to hurt me because of him. I can’t get mixed up in his life, not when it can affect Aaron’s life too.
Swallowing around the lump in my throat, I try like hell to not cry. I won’t show him emotion. I can’t let him know that he affects me still after all this time.
“They won’t come after a plain girl like me,” I say hoarsely. “I don’t mean anything to the Wayward Saints except working in your office. I am nothing more than that.”
“You have no fucking clue what you mean to me.” His breathing is ragged, and his eyes never leave mine. “I would kill for you. I know I’ve done a shit job at showing that to you, but coming back, I didn’t expect all that shit to hit me again and seeing that,” he points down to my new shiny engagement ring. “Is the fucking icing on the cake.” He shakes his head a few times before lowering his forehead to mine.
“I wish like hell I didn’t run before. I should have stayed, but watching you move on would have been fucking torture. I don’t think I can handle seeing you with him.” He lowers his lips to my forehead, and I’m stunned speechless. I don’t know what to do or say and that isn’t something I’m really used to. I always know what to say, or how to handle a situation. But for some reason, anything that has to do with him makes me forget how to speak or even think.
“He’s here, probably waiting for you out in the bar. I won’t stop you from walking away from me right now, but just know that I will do everything in my power to protect you from those assholes that showed up today. If you see them, call one of the brothers or me. Your safety is all I care about.”
With that, he releases the door and steps away from me. He doesn’t say anything else, and I don’t know what hurts the most. Him finally saying that he has feelings for me that he’s been hiding, the kiss, or him letting me walk away right now.
Instead of trying to figure out my emotions, I just make my way out of the room and back the way we came. As soon as I come out of the hallway, I see everyone standing around the room. No one is talking, and everything is silent as I make my way toward the bar.
I see Aaron’s face, and when Dominic turns to look at me, Aaron’s head turns in my direction too. Dominic’s eyes scan over me to make sure that I’m still in one piece after Bentley all but dragged me into the room with him or maybe he thinks that we just had a dirty little time in there all alone.
Clearing all thoughts of being with Bentley, I walk over to Aaron and wrap my arm around his waist and put my head on his chest. His touch still doesn’t send electrical currents through my body like Bentley’s does. Trying not to think anymore, I close my eyes and just hold tighter to him. Maybe if I force myself not to think about Bentley, all these feelings that I pushed away will stay gone, and I can get back to planning my engagement with Aaron.
An engagement you didn’t even want. The little voice in my head reminds me.
Talking about marriage and the actual act are two very different things and I guess that I wasn’t really sure about it like I thought I was. Maybe I just agreed with Aaron because I was afraid of being alone, I was afraid that the only other person who may ever be able to deal with me would leave too if I didn’t say yes.
God, I need to get out of here and away from him, away from all of them.
“Can we go?” I ask.
Aaron looks down at my face, and he looks to Dominic before Dominic tells me that he’ll keep the office closed the rest of the day and that if I need more time to take it. I nod my head, unsure of what to even say. Do I really need more time or do I just need to stay away from Bentley? Probably both.
As we make it to the door, I hear someone yell out, “Bentley, my man! It’s so fucking good to see you.” When I look over my shoulder, my eyes land right on him and he’s staring right at us. His eyes are narrowed, and he’s got his arms crossed over his chest. Aaron doesn’t even turn around. Looking back at Bentley one last time, he’s got his back to me acting like I don’t even exist again.
“You okay?” Aaron asks as soon as we get outside. A shiver rolls up my spine causing me to look around the
parking lot. When I don’t see anyone outside other than a few prospects, I let out the breath I was holding.
“Yeah, I’ll be fine after a long soak in the tub,” I murmur. Relaxing in the tub might make me forget about everything that happened today, although I doubt that. Whatever might happen between that biker and Bentley isn't something that I need to worry about. I am not his ole’ lady or anything else, and everyone knows that. He won’t come after me.
At least I hope not.
Aaron walks me to my car, opening my door for me to get in before he leans down and presses his lips to mine. The kiss doesn’t bring me to my knees or make me feel weak. Instead, it’s plain. Ordinary in a way that I never realized. “I’m right behind you.” He kisses my forehead once before he shuts my door and makes his way to his truck. As I start out of the parking lot, my head is swimming, and I need to figure out what the hell I’m doing, or everything is going to be messed up beyond repair.
Chapter Thirteen
Bentley
Watching her walk right up to him and wrap her arms around him pisses me off. I know that Brant can see the anger written all over my face, but he doesn’t say a word. Part of me wants just to go over there and put a bullet in his head just so she would choose me, but I know how irrational that is.
No woman has ever made me feel so damn hostile after one kiss.
Watching them walk out of the clubhouse is even fucking harder. I want like hell to go after her, but Anslie told me that they were pretty much living together lately. If I head to her place, I know that he will be there trying to figure out why the hell I was there.
Walking over to the bar, I grab one of the bottles closest and take a long pull from it. I don’t even care what the shit is as long as I can get drunk off the shit.
As the vodka hits my stomach, I can feel it turn. I’ve never been a vodka drinker, but right now, it doesn’t fucking matter. Anything that can numb the pain that is taking up residence in my chest is good with me.