by S. Nelson
“Fuck you!” Marek shouted in response, rising off his stool and stumbling toward the back, no doubt heading to the bathroom to either piss or vomit.
As soon as he disappeared, the door opened and in strolled Stone. At first I was happy to see the guy. Then Adelaide and Sully appeared right behind him.
“What the hell?” Ryder quickly walked over to him and pulled him aside. They huddled in the corner, our VP glancing over at his woman and Sully every few seconds. I knew their presence wasn’t gonna go over well as soon as Marek came back from the bathroom, and I only prayed he’d passed out back there.
Approaching the two women, I gave them both a tight smile. “What are you doing here?” I knew Stone never told Adelaide exactly whose DNA was being tested, but she wasn’t stupid. And while I believed she’d never guess what was really going on, she had to know something was off. Stone’s moody ass had only intensified.
In truth, all of us had been on edge since that fateful day when Psych spewed his final admission. Or lie. The truth was yet to be determined.
Jerking her head to the side, Adelaide had me follow her until we stood away from Sully. Once her friend was out of earshot, Adelaide started talking. “Sully called me this morning crying because she’s worried about Marek. He won’t talk to her, snaps at her for the smallest things, and he hasn’t spent the night at home in a week.” She looked at me expectantly, as if I was gonna tell her something her own man wouldn’t. “I don’t know what the hell is going on, Tripp, but this is bullshit. She’s been through enough. She doesn’t deserve this, and if you know what’s goin’ on you need to tell her.”
“You know I can’t do that.” My shoulders slumped forward. I wished I could put their minds at ease, but it simply wasn’t my place. Marek had to handle this on his own, and although I didn’t agree with the course he’d taken, it was essentially his call.
“Why?” Her voice rose. “Is it some kind of man code? Is he cheating on her?” she finally asked, lowering her voice to ensure Sully didn’t hear. The whole time we’d been standing off to the side talking, Jagger had been keeping Sully occupied, giving her a quick hug when she started to cry.
“No, it’s nothin’ like that. That much I can tell you,” I told her honestly.
“Then what is it?”
I opened my mouth to tell her she wasn’t gonna get anything out of me when I heard a crash come from down the hallway. The noise grabbed everyone’s attention, and I held my breath for what was to come. I knew damn well Marek wouldn’t be happy when he saw Sully, which was awful. If anything he should’ve been seeking comfort in her arms, but he turned the other way, hurting her in the process.
The whole situation was beyond fucked-up, and the longer he had to wait to find out if his wife was actually his fuckin’ sister, the more he unraveled.
The second Marek appeared all conversations ceased. Everyone turned toward him and waited to see his reaction. At first he didn’t see his wife; it was apparent in the way he ambled back toward the bar, stumbling over his feet and almost falling on his face. Twice. He was a sad sight and when I glanced over at Sully, the tears flowed more freely than before.
Adelaide had left my side to console her friend, and it was when a sob erupted from Sully that Marek finally turned around, noticing her for the first time. A mix of anger and torture distorted his expression at the very sight of her. As if his heart was being ripped out all over again. I walked the few feet and stood next to the women and Jagger, Ryder, and Stone approaching our group as soon as they saw Marek’s reaction.
None of us knew what he was capable of at that point. Would he ignore his wife or rant and rave until he forced her to leave? He’d never lay his hands on her, that much we knew, but what words would come out of his drunken mouth was anyone’s guess.
It seemed as if time stood still as Marek and Sully locked eyes with one another, the tension in the air building until Marek finally spoke.
Tripp
“What the fu . . . fuck is sh . . . she doin’ here?” he slurred, walking as swiftly toward us as he could in his inebriated state. His eyes were bloodshot and his hair disheveled. He reeked of alcohol and his clothes were a little worse for wear. All in all, he looked like shit.
The closer he came the more we huddled around Sully, preparing to deter him from whatever he planned on doing.
When he stood a few feet from his wife, he wobbled and tried to reach for her, but Jagger stepped directly in front of her. His move of protectiveness only served to infuriate Marek, the look of astonishment on his face quickly giving way to boiling anger.
“Move!” Marek shouted, continuing to sway on his feet.
“Not gonna happen, Prez,” Jagger said, crossing his arms over his chest but looking a little apprehensive. “Why don’t you go sleep it off?”
Stone stepped in and stood directly in front of his friend. “Yeah,” he agreed. “Why don’t you go sleep it off? You can talk to her later.”
“I don’t wanna talk to her,” he growled, clenching his fists until his knuckles turned white.
“Why?” Sully suddenly shouted, shoving past Jagger so she could look at her husband. “What did I do? Why won’t you tell me?” Her voice trembled, tears cascading down her cheeks while she waited for him to answer. “I love you, Cole. Why are you treating me like this?” She stepped closer—too close, in my opinion. Emotions ran high and I feared the worst.
Before anyone could stop him, Marek grabbed Sully’s arms and drew her in, their noses almost touching they were so close. “I. Don’t. Want you here,” he enunciated. “Go home.” He shoved her back, but not hard enough to cause her to stumble. He took a step back, glaring at her the entire time.
I understood why Marek didn’t want to fill Sully in on exactly what was goin’ on, not until he absolutely had to, but there was no reason for him to be treating her like this. It was uncalled for, and certainly unnecessary. Then again, he wasn’t in his right mind. Hadn’t been for a while now.
As if shit weren’t already spinning out of control, Adelaide stalked toward Marek, Stone trying to pull her back before she reached him. “I don’t know what’s going on, but you’re a real shit for treating your wife like this. A real shit,” she repeated, hitting his chest for emphasis. “You better get your act together, and soon, before you lose the only good thing that’s ever happened to you.” They stood toe-to-toe, Adelaide throwing Marek icy daggers and Marek swaying from side to side, trying to keep his balance.
“Stone, get your fuckin’ woman outta my face or else,” Marek threatened, continuing to clench his hands at his sides. The sight disturbed me. The guy I knew would never raise a hand to a woman, yet there he was essentially threatening Adelaide. Would he really do something? I had no idea, and that realization rattled me.
The icy expression that crossed Stone’s face alarmed everyone present. “Don’t you fuckin’ talk to her like that. You hear me?” he asked, stepping in his best friend’s face. His drunken, out-of-his-mind, heartbroken, and confused best friend. I would’ve bet Marek’s mental state, drunk or not, was the only reason Stone didn’t physically attack him.
As the two men squared off, we all backed up to give them some room to sort out their issue, if that was at all possible right then. After an intense stare-down, Marek still wobbly on his feet, Stone leaned in and whispered something in his ear. Resting his hand on Marek’s shoulder, Stone continued to speak, but only on a level our prez could hear. A minute later I saw some of the tension evaporate from Marek, although he still appeared to teeter on the edge. Shaking his head, he stumbled back before turning around and heading toward the hallway to no doubt escape everything and everyone.
Sully continued to cry, resting her head against Jagger’s chest while she expelled everything she’d been feeling.
“Stay with her,” Stone told Jagger, grabbing Adelaide’s hand and tugging her behind him into Chambers. He motioned for the rest of us to follow with a jerk of his head. Normally, women we
ren’t allowed inside Chambers but this was one of the rare exceptions, the last time being when Sully had forced her way inside to demand that Marek trade her for Adelaide and Kena after her father had orchestrated their kidnapping.
I had an idea what Stone wanted to ask his woman, and the seclusion of the room would certainly provide the privacy we needed. The tension coming off the VP built and built until he looked like he was gonna explode. Pacing in front of all of us, he ran his hand through his hair before clenching his fists at his sides, much like Marek had done moments before.
“Why haven’t we heard anything back about those results?” he asked to no one in particular, although there was only one person present who could give an honest answer.
Ryder and Trigger mirrored Stone, pacing and glancing over at Adelaide every few seconds. I’d chosen to lean against the wall, content to just listen to whatever was about to unfold. Someone had to be the semi-calm one.
“Like I told you yesterday when I called them, the lab is backed up. There’s nothing I can do about that,” she said. “Why is that DNA so important, anyway?” There was a small part of me that thought maybe Stone had told Adelaide everything, but thankfully I’d just been proven wrong.
Stone ignored her question, instead edging closer until he towered over her. “You didn’t call today?”
“Not yet, no.”
“Are you fuckin’ kiddin’ me right now, Addy? I told you how important those results are. That I needed them back right away,” he bellowed, the veins in his neck bulging the more he continued to speak. Or rather yell. Stone started pacing again, mumbling incoherently to himself.
“What the hell is wrong with you?” She looked to each of us standing in the room, her nervousness displayed on her face. “Whose DNA is it?”
“None of your business,” Stone yelled over his shoulder. I’d seen those two shout at each other before but this was on another level, and Adelaide knew it. Before she could respond, however, Stone gripped the back of his neck in frustration and headed toward his woman again, backing her against the door before she could react. He loomed over her once more, intimidating her with his size and aggression. “Get your fuckin’ ass on that phone and get the goddamn results, Addy. Now!” He slapped the doorframe above her head for added effect.
My eyes popped wide as I looked around at everyone in the room. To say we were surprised Stone had yelled at his woman like that was an understatement. Sure, our VP was hotheaded and went overboard sometimes, but I’d never heard him speak to Adelaide in such a way.
Sure enough, in true Adelaide fashion, she didn’t let him get away with it. I saw what was gonna happen before Stone did, her hand cracking across his face before he took his next breath. The sound shook the room and everyone gasped, me included—an odd reaction coming from three grown men, but it was the truth. We’d all been through the mental wringer for what seemed like forever with no end in sight, and right then was the culmination to the ever-growing tension.
Stone backed away, the look on his face softening as if she had indeed just slapped some sense back into him. “Baby, I’m sorry,” he apologized, reaching out to touch her, but she shrugged away from him.
“Don’t even think about touching me,” she fumed. Stone had a condition where he was immune to physical pain, but right then I could see that he was hurtin’. Not from the slap, of course, but because he knew he’d crossed the line, and it’d take quite a while for him to grovel enough for Adelaide to forgive him. She never put up with his shit, pushing back as often as Stone tested her.
Shoving him, the adrenaline pulsing through her surely enough for her to move him, or he allowed her to do so, she continued to speak. “There's obviously something detrimental going on here to have Marek treating Sully like shit, and for you to have lost your damn mind and yelled at me like that.” Adelaide was the one to advance on Stone that time, looking up at him and throwing him a stern glare. “You better get your head out of your ass, Stone, and until that happens you can stay here. I don’t want you at home.”
Again Stone tried to draw her into him but she dodged his touch. Looking every bit the apologetic man, he raised his hands in submission. “I’m sorry. I was outta line. It’s just . . . there’s so much goin’ on and—”
“I don’t care what’s goin’ on here. That’s no excuse for you to talk to me like that.” Anger and hurt shrouded her expression.
“I know. I’m sorry, baby,” he repeated.
Adelaide continued to glare at him, even when he attempted to grab her hand, which he failed at yet again.
“Don’t,” was all she said before she threw the door open and hurried from the room, Stone hot on her heels. I could hear him apologizing over and over, but it was no use. Adelaide was as stubborn as Stone, and I knew—we all did—that his sullen ass would be staying here at the clubhouse for at least the next few days.
As if whatever had just transpired in the past hour hadn’t been enough, I noticed two missed calls from the alarm company when I pulled my phone from my pocket.
Tripp
Rushing inside the house, I shoved past the officer standing in front of Reece and pulled her close. “Are you okay? What happened?” I looked between the both of them, impatiently waiting for one of them to answer me.
“I’m fine.” She tried to pull away but I wouldn’t let her.
“Do you live here?” the officer asked, flashing me a stern look before glancing back toward Reece. The guy was young, a rookie maybe?
“Yeah,” I lied, deeming him unworthy of a full explanation. “What happened?” I repeated.
“Apparently the front door was opened, setting off the alarm.” Nothing further from him before he jotted something down in a notepad.
“How the hell did that happen?” I finally let go of Reece and neared the doorframe, searching for any sign of foul play but not readily finding any. “Did you check the house?” I wasn’t sure who I directed that specific question to.
“Yes,” they both answered, Reece dipping her head for a moment before looking back at me. I had a suspicion she was hiding something from me.
“And?”
Reece spoke first that time. “I checked the house after the alarm went off, and thankfully didn’t find anyone. Officer Bauer did another check when he arrived. Just in case.” She gave the cop a thankful smile, and I didn’t like it. I saw the way he kept checking her out, right in fuckin’ front of me. Brazen little shit.
Needing him to leave, I threw my arm around her shoulder and leaned down to kiss her. “Well, it looks like maybe a faulty door. I’ll have it checked out. No need for you to stay here.” My tone left no room for misunderstanding. Or argument.
He gave me a final once-over before smiling at Reece. “Miss.” He nodded before leaving, still writing something down on that damn notebook of his.
After I’d shut the door, I asked, “Are you sure you’re okay?”
“Yeah. Just a bit frightened. But that alarm probably scared me more than anything.” Putting her finger in her ear and wriggling, she said, “It’s really loud.”
“That’s the point. A deterrent.” I took some time before blurting out my next statement, figuring it was as good a time as any to let her in on my plans. Plans that had formed on my way over. “You’re gonna stay with me at my place.”
I expected some sort of argument, some sort of refusal, but she had none. A simple nod from her and I’d been put right back on edge when I should have been relieved.
She was definitely hiding something from me.
Reece
Despite the fright I’d endured two days back, I never imagined my life could turn out normal. Well, as normal as it was working in a strip club and being involved with a biker. I was smart enough not to put too many hopes and dreams on a new relationship, if that was even what this was, but I couldn’t help but picture myself with Tripp for the long haul.
His incessant need to make sure I was safe was sweet. Something I certainly wasn�
�t used to. He’d increased security even more at the club after the mysterious issue with the front door. Not sure why, seeing as how it had happened at the house and not at Indulge, but I couldn’t help but feel a sense of relief either way.
What I failed to tell Trip was that I’d been a little more than freaked out, and while I tried not to show my vast relief at his suggestion to stay with him at his house, a calm had descended over me when he uttered the words.
“You wanna go dancing after work?” Carla asked, giving me a quick smile while she poured a beer for a customer. “I know a place that’s open late.”
She busied herself wiping off the counter and taking orders while I contemplated her offer. After the hang-up I’d been worried. Then when the door at the house had been mysteriously opened, thankfully setting off the alarm, I’d been rattled to my core. For as much as I wanted to relieve some of my anxiety about both incidents, I knew I shouldn’t go anywhere Tripp wasn’t able to accompany me, and I highly doubted he was the dancing kind.
“I don’t think I should,” I finally answered.
“Oh come on,” she prodded.
I gave her my most apologetic smile. “Maybe another time.”
“Does this have anything to do with Tripp? Is he keeping you under lock and key?” Her question wasn’t meant to be a serious one, but when she saw the fleeting widening of my eyes, she changed her tune. “Are you serious, Reece? Did he tell you that you can’t go anywhere without him? I’ve noticed how the two of you have been attached at the hip recently. The man is relentless, and while I think Tripp is a good guy, don’t let him push you around. You do what you want, when you want. Do you hear me?” Her hands found their way to her hips, her brow arched in wait.
“It’s not like that.” She looked at me skeptically. “Honestly. He just wants to keep me safe.” Carla had no idea what I’d been through in the past. If she did then she’d fully understand my need to relent to Tripp’s slightly overbearing tendencies.