by Bec Botefuhr
“Okay.”
She kisses me goodbye and then turns to Jaxson.
“Goodbye Jaxson,” she smiles sweetly.
“Later Moms,” he says chirpily.
When she leaves, I breathe a sigh of relief. Making my way into the kitchen I open the fridge and scan the very poor contents.
“Lucky she didn’t look in here.” I mutter to myself.
“Right about that,” Jaxson says, coming up behind me.
I pull out some bread, and slide it into the toaster before pouring myself a coffee. As I am waiting for my toast to cook, I call Caden to see what time we’ll be going today. He answers after about five rings.
“Hey, it’s me.” I say, leaning against the wall behind me.
“Hey Angel.”
“I was just calling to see what time you wanted me today?”
“Anxious to see me?” I can hear the smile on his voice. “Be there in half an hour.”
“What?!” I shriek. Clearly this man has no idea of the level of preparation required before meeting the pseudo-family of your ‘sort-of-boyfriend’. “I’m still in my nightie!”
He chuckles, “Stay in it.”
“Pervert.”
A laugh sounds out, “Alright you got me. Be there soon okay?”
“Ok, what should I wear? Jeans?”
“Sounds good to me… or you could opt for nothin’.”
“Nice try.”
“A man has to try, right?”
“Right. See you soon.”
“Later.”
I grin and hang up the phone, before pulling out my toast and slathering it with butter.
“How do you eat butter like that and not get a fat ass?” Jaxson asks, sliding on the bench beside me.
Talking with my mouthful – I might be a Princess but I’m still human – I manage not to spray him with crumbs, “I work out.”
“That will increase soon…” He says waggling his eyebrows.
“Stop it, you’re giving me ideas.”
He laughs loudly. “I love when you’re playful.”
“Well,” I say, crunching on another piece of toast. “I have to get dressed, he’ll be here soon.”
I finish my breakfast, then I shower and pretty myself up. By the time I get out into the lounge, Caden is already inside my apartment. Jaxson is chatting casually to him, and they seem to be getting along reasonably well. Caden’s eyes fall on me, and he grins.
“Hello there.”
“Hello yourself.”
“I was just talking about your nasty habits with your room mate.”
I give Jaxson a panicked look and they both burst out laughing.
“Told you she would fall for that.”
“Jaxson, you’re horrible,” I say, walking over to the counter to get my purse.
“I know.” He calls, as he disappears down the hall.
Before I can turn, Caden is behind me; his lips are on my neck.
“I missed you last night.”
“Did you now?”
“Mmmmmm.”
He shifts my hair to the side and licks my neck softly; I moan and lean my head back against his shoulder, enjoying the feeling of his lips moving over my skin. He spins me around and presses a soft, but hot, kiss to my lips. I pull back and give him a weak, lusty smile. He looks gorgeous today, wearing his black leather jacket for riding. He is wearing a thick black belt, with a silver buckle and black jeans that cup his ass in a very, very yummy way.
“Ready to go?”
“I’m ready.”
We yell our goodbyes to Jaxson, and then head out front. Caden throws me a leather jacket and I pull it on and slip on the helmet.
“Now that’s hot,” he says, gripping my hips and pulling me close.
Pretending to be outraged, but secretly loving it, I chastise him. “Behave! It’s only our second date.”
He growls, but lets me go. We get on the bike and ride until Caden pulls up in front of a large, white house. Where not the first here; there are at least twenty bikes already parked up. I feel my eyes widen, and my heart speed up.
“Is this your house?”
“No, mine’s next door. This is Max’s house, he is the club President.”
“Oh.”
I turn my eyes to the house next door and admire its beauty. The beautiful, large wooden house is situated right across the road from the beach and it really stands out. Caden takes my hand and walks me into the house we have pulled up at; it looks very similar to his. When we get out back, I see a group of twenty or so men sitting around chatting. They stop when we walk in, and their gazes rake over me.
“Guys, this is Angel,” Caden says, pulling me into his side.
“Angel?” I question.
“That is what you are to me, so it is what you are to them.”
“Angel, these are my brothers; the Phoenix Motorcycle Club members. The only two you need to know by name are the President and his best bud,” He points to two men standing and grinning at me. One is very handsome, with grey eyes and salt and pepper hair. The other is older, with a goatee and long grey hair. “Max and Bill.”
The handsome man steps forward and offers me his hand. “Pleased to meet you Angel, I’m Max.”
I smile and shake his hand. “Nice to meet you Max.”
“And I’m Bill.” The other man says, shaking my hand too.
“Thanks for having me today.”
“Any friend of Chief’s is a friend of ours.”
Chief…I still wasn’t used to that.
“Daddy!”
I turn to see a young blonde haired boy running towards Max. His grey eyes twinkle as he bounds over and stops in front of him.
“What is going on boy?” Max says.
“Samuel was annoying me, so I hit him with my bat and now his Momma is mad.”
Max crouches down in front of his son. “Travis, what did I say about hittin’ people?”
“Well, he started it.”
“Well now I have to face his Momma.”
“Who is that lady?” He asks, pointing towards me.
I smile down at him, taking in his beauty. The boy is going to grow to be a dazzling man.
“This is Chief’s friend Angel.”
Travis stares up at me in awe. “Are you a real Angel?”
“I wish honey.”
He grins and puts up his hand, “High five?”
I slap his hand and laugh as he runs off.
Caden stands behind me and wraps his arms around my waist. “That is Max’s boy, he’s nearly five.”
“He’s sweet.”
“He lives a pretty rough life; his Momma ran off and left him with Max.”
“That’s sad,” I say, watching the young boy running around.
“He’s a good kid.”
“So, how long have you two been seeing each other?” Max asks, leaning back against the door, lighting a cigarette and inhaling deeply.
“Not long,” I say.
Exhaling a series of perfectly formed smoke rings, Max points his cigarette towards Caden. “Careful of this one; he’s a fuckin’ rascal.”
Caden glares at Max and growls, “Careful Max.”
Max waves Caden away with a flick of his wrist. “Ahhh calm down boy, I won’t spill all your dirty little secrets.”
“I don’t have any.”
Max raises an eyebrow in Caden’s direction. This doesn’t look good. “How is Dani going to take this new flame?”
I feel awkward right about now, really awkward, and who the hell is Dani?!
“Fuck Dani! She don’t have a claim to me anymore.”
Uh oh; an ex-girlfriend. Marvelous.
“Dani doesn’t seem to think that.”
“Dani’s a slut.”
Wow…
“Careful speaking like that in front of the lady.” Max laughs, winking at me and walking away.
Caden turns me to face him. “Sorry about that, he can be a handful.”
“S
hould I be worried?”
“About Max or Dani?”
“Dani.”
He sighs, “No, but she didn’t take our break up well and tends to be…a pain in my ass.”
Great; just what I needed. As if I wasn’t nervous enough about my relationship, now I have a batshit-crazy ex-girlfriend to contend with. “How long ago did you break up?”
“A month, give or take.”
“A month?” I cry.
“It doesn’t matter; it was over long before that. It was over when she fucked my best friend.”
“Oh, I’m sorry, how long were you together?”
“Over a year.”
“Oh, ok.”
“Look, it’s over with now. Let’s just forget it ok?” He says, meeting my gaze.
Sucking in a deep breath, I nod my head at Caden. I resolve to put all thoughts of crazy ex-girlfriends out of my head and just enjoy today for what it is. “Sure.”
“So, are you ready for the ride?”
“I think so.”
When all the bikers are ready, we pile onto the bikes. I slide on behind Caden and wrap my arms around his waist. When the Harleys fire up, the sound sends shivers through my body. To be protected by such a huge brotherhood must be quite an incredible feeling; I know I feel safe right now and I’m not even a member. Caden glides out smoothly and we follow the mass of Harley’s out onto the road. I grip Caden tighter as we speed up, and a smile stretches across my face.
I feel free on this bike, like nothing could upset me or hurt me in this very moment. Everything feels amazing, everything feels pure. I close my eyes and breathe in the fresh salty air as we zoom alongside of the beach in LA. We ride for an hour, when finally we pull up at a massive lighthouse. A car park stretches along one side of it; packed with bikes and other vehicles. The light house sits to the left, and has a huge deck coming off the base.
“Wow,” I say, as I slip off my helmet and pull it away from my face.
Caden looks pretty pleased with himself. “It’s pretty impressive right?”
“Yeah, it’s amazing. Look at that ocean.”
I stare at the pale yellow sand and the blue waves crashing lightly against the shoreline. It’s a beautiful day, not a cloud in the sky. I beam when Caden takes my hand and leads me into the massive lighthouse. The men find the biggest table and settle themselves in. A waitress comes over and greets them by name. I’m warmed by them; they aren’t what I expected them to be. Ok, they have dirty mouths and no doubt do some serious illegal junk, but here and now, they are pretty damn awesome.
“Do you do this often?” I ask.
“Every week,” Caden grins, pulling out my chair for me.
I raise my eyebrows in mock surprise. “A gentleman?”
Bill snorts beside me, “Chief ain’t a gentleman.”
“Shut the fuck up Bill.” Caden laughs.
“Angel, don’t let him fool you, the man is a pocket rocket.”
I laugh, I was getting used to this whole ‘Angel’ thing. Bill grins and sits down beside me.
“Did Chief ever tell you how he beat the shit out of three men who picked on him because he was younger than them?”
I look at Caden, who rolls his eyes.
“No, he didn’t. Do tell.”
Bill launches into a story about how Caden was only sixteen and he hadn’t yet filled out. The men caught him on the way home from work one night, and they started a fight. Unassisted, handed the three of them their asses and since then he has been teased about being a pocket sized rocket. I giggle and stare at Caden, who is laughing alongside of us. I know, just by looking at him, that he packs one hell of a punch.
“He is a black belt in the arts,” Bill says, clearly proud of him.
“He is?”
“Sure is, and trust me when I say the man can fight.”
I flush and stare at Caden and he winks back at me. I feel quite comfortable around these men and, considering how nervous I was, I think it’s going rather well. We sit and eat, laughing and joking throughout the afternoon. By early evening, the men have far too much alcohol under their belts and are joking loudly. Caden stands and offers me his hand. I take it and he walks me outside and down to the beach.
We walk along the sand, not saying anything for a long, long moment. He finds a spot on the sand and drags me down until we are perched next to each other. I wiggle my toes through the soft grains and let loose a sigh of happiness. Caden takes my hand in his; his fingers tracing small circles over my palms. My heart flutters wildly and I know I’m falling far too quickly for him. There’s just something about him; an intense pull that I can’t run from.
“How are you enjoyin’ tonight?” He asks.
“I think those men are great, I can see why you love them.”
“It’s not always pretty.”
Although I don’t doubt that he speaks the truth, I find it hard to associate the fun-loving men I have seen all afternoon with hardened criminals. “I can’t see them being anything but nice.”
“You would do good to know that they aren’t always nice. Those men can go from nice to dangerous in a matter of seconds.”
“I don’t have to see that part if I don’t want to see it, right?”
Caden shakes his head. “No, most don’t see that part.”
“Do you?” I ask softly.
“Yeah, I do.”
We sit in silence for a while. There’s one question I’ve wanted to ask but I’m not sure I really want to know the answer.
“Caden?”
“Yeah?”
“Have you ever…killed someone?”
“That ain’t a question I wish to answer so I’ll tell you this once and once only, don’t fuckin’ ask again.” He snarls; his face stern and sharp.
I look down, confused. “I’m sorry.”
“We should get back,” he snaps.
He stands and walks off without helping me up. What happened? What deep, dark secret did I unlock in his heart that had him reacting that way? I get up and follow him back to the lighthouse; dodging the other people who have made their way down onto the sand. Mid-way to the car park, a man grips my arm. He’s drunk, and slurring.
“Hi there pretty lady, what is a nice girl like you doing out here all alone?”
“Oh, I’m not alone. I’m just with some friends.”
He smiles, it isn’t threatening in any way; at least, I don’t think it is.
“How’d you like the place?” He asks.
I smile back, “It’s very pretty.”
“It is, ain’t it? What’s your name sweetheart?”
His hand moves up my arm and he leans in to me but before I can do anything I feel his weight being pulled off me and he is tossed backwards on the sand. Caden puts his foot on his chest, pinning the man to the ground.
“She’s with someone, you fucking pervert.”
“I was just talking with her bro!”
“Don’t fuckin’ bro me you piece of shit!” He snarls.
He lets his boot off the man’s chest and turns to me.
“Angel. Ass. Bike. NOW!”
My eyes widen. I begin walking with Caden when suddenly he lurches forward. I gasp and step back, only to see the man has leaped off the sand, swung Caden by his arm and is driving a fist into his face. Before I know it, the man is flat on his back in the sand and Caden is driving punch after punch into his bloody face. My blood runs cold and I can see what Bill meant; Caden is pure steel and it’s scary. Caden grips the man by the shirt and raises his fist again, but the men are there quick as lightning, pulling him off.
“Chief! Fuckin’ settle down man.” Bill snarls, holding him back.
“Fuckin’ little cunt tried to fuckin’ jump me.” Caden hisses.
I back up, terrified. I hurry up the sand and onto the road. I hide out in a nearby bus stop and pull out my phone. My hand is trembling and I can hear the sound of sirens in the distance.
“We gotta fuckin’ go, now,” I hear
someone order.
“Where the fuck is she?” Caden bellows.
“Chief, we gotta’ fuckin’ move. The cops are comin’,”
“Fuck, I can’t leave her.”
“She’s a bright girl – she’ll find a way home. Get movin’ now!” Bill snarls.
I peek through the gaps in the bus stop and see Caden looking around frantically. His lip is bloody, his knuckles are bleeding and he looks so wound up it frightens the hell out of me. Caden scares the shit out of me and yet, he stood up for me in a way no one ever has.
“MANDY?” He shouts.
“Chief, we gotta move. If the cops get you again, you’re done for.”
Again? If they get him again? What did he do?
“Fuck it, fuck!” Caden roars.
I hear the bikes start up and they disappear out of the car park as quickly as they arrived. When the sound of them dies down, I dial Jaxson with trembling fingers.
“Hey, how’s it going?” He asks.
I know my voice is shaking but I don’t care. “I need…Jaxson, I need you to come and get me.”
“Hey, Mandy, is everything ok?”
“No,” I whisper. “Please come.”
I give him my location and I hide out in that bus stop, ignoring Caden’s constant calls for two hours. By the time Jaxson arrives, I’m shaken, hurt and more confused than ever.
CHAPTER FIVE
“Open the fuckin’ door.”
I hear the voice yelling from the hall. I clutch the blanket up to my chest and listen as Jaxson tries to send Caden away. It isn’t working out so well for him.
“I’m going to see her.”
“She doesn’t want to see you.”
“Fuckin’ move bud or I will move you.”
I know Jaxson is not match for Caden physically but I don’t doubt it’ll take a lot for Caden to get pass him. “Don’t come in here on your massive power trip and tell me what to do. She. Doesn’t. Want. To. See. You. ” Jaxson shouts Caden down; every word a staccato.
“I need to see if she’s alright?”
“You mean after you left her alone in a strange place with a bunch of drunken men.”
“I had no fuckin’ choice.” Caden shouts. I can just imagine him running his hands through his hair; pacing the hallway.
I hear Jaxson humph in contempt. “Well, I think that is incorrect but that’s just me.”