Just thinking about her sister brought everything into focus again. Braya was scared out of her mind. She wanted to know if Kayla was okay, where she was, and what the hell was going on. There were just too many variables to think about—their family connections, her kidnapping, and now, motorcycle gangs. Where and when did it all end? She hoped like hell it wasn’t six feet under for any of them, including the grumpy ass biker.
Braya found herself at the bar, next to the woman with the baby. This time, she didn’t question it, just sat down. She had her own problems, and if this woman wanted to bring her kid to a bar, more power to her.
The woman smiled at her but didn’t say anything. She was pretty, the little boy she was holding absolutely adorable. Braya had always loved kids, so just like she would at any other place, she said, “He’s adorable.” The pretty woman kept smiling at her, seemed kind of shy but approachable, and she was obviously very proud of her little man. She also didn’t fit, much like Braya. Oh, how wrong first impressions could be.
“Thank you. I would properly introduce myself to you,” the woman said, holding up her hand with a pacifier in it, the other occupied with her precious little bundle, “but the second I put this down, he’s going to want it, and I don’t exactly trust Santa has cleaned off the bar top.”
“Well, then let me do the honors,” Braya laughed. “Hi, my name is Braya. What brings a nice lady like you,”—she could feel herself sneer at their surrounds—“to a lovely place like this.” Yeah, well, she couldn’t help it was a little condescending, her brain was still rattled.
“My name is Addison, and a place like this? Well, let’s see... this little guy here belongs to me and one of the officers of this club. Who also happens to be my husband, so we frequent it often because it isn’t only a bar like you’re seeing. It’s a clubhouse for the members and families to hang out in. Though I have to admit, I can see where it would seem kind of strange to an outsider.”
Yep, Braya thought, maybe a little too far. Shit, she didn’t really mean it, but she was an outsider, and it was a bar with a sex club on the other side of the wall—not exactly a kid friendly environment. Since she spent most of her adult life taking care of and protecting children, she just couldn’t wrap her head around it.
“Oh, honey, you need to chill a little. Okay, I get it, and I’m not giving you a hard time about it. For your information, not that I have to or need to explain myself, my husband is out on a run, and we’re waiting for him to get back so we can go home. He has to check in here first,” she explained, lifting up her shoulders. “I miss him.”
Now Braya just felt like an ass. Putting her elbows on the bar and her head in her hands, Braya rubbed her temples, relieving it just a bit, then turned to Addison.
“I’m sorry, I’m having a really crappy day, heck, a really crappy week if I'm honest. My week and the meeting I just had with Tuck and Crash kind of put me in a mood, and this...” Braya said, waving her hand as if indicating the room, then blew out a breath forcing her bangs into the air. “Can we just start over? I promise you, I’m generally not a judgmental bitch. You just caught me on a bad day.”
Okay so it was kind of a lie, but now that she knew the circumstances of why Addison had her baby in the bar—no clubhouse—she wasn’t as judgmental.
“You know I will, but not because of your apology,” Addison laughed. “Not too long ago, I was the one sitting at the bar in this very room, thinking some very judgmental thoughts, so I can relate. Thank you though, and I’m sorry you’re having such a crappy time.”
Shit, this woman was just too damn sweet for her—like putting frosting and powdered sugar on Kayla, times ten.
“Has your husband been gone long?” Braya asked, changing the subject.
“Couple of weeks. Since we had Storm, he hasn’t gone on any runs, so this being the first is really getting to me.”
“That sucks. I can see why you would be waiting for him as soon as he pulled up.”
“Do you have a husband waiting for you somewhere?”
“Nope, no hubby for me, not even a dog or a cat.”
Yep, that was how pathetic Braya’s life was. She worked, went home, ate, and slept, some nights she watched tv, but most times, she just read. Then rinse and repeat, doing the same thing over again the next day. Relationships were too few and far between for her because she didn’t trust people. There was always the threat her mother would decide it was time to bring her back into the fold or send someone to accomplish that goal for her. It was one of Braya’s worst nightmares—to get involved with a man, only to find out he had ties to her mother or her family’s organization. Braya knew she had issues but justified them; hell didn’t everyone? Hers just came with a price.
Addison looked at her little boy, then back at Braya with undisguised pity. She wasn’t being mean about it, and the truth was, Braya had kind of put herself out there, which she never did, but there was an easygoingness about Addison that made her want to talk. Either that or as she suspected, Crash really had fried all her brains cells.
“No feeling sorry for me I’m all good with my life, little momma,” she said, putting a smile on her face and straightening up. “Now, what exactly do I have to do to get a drink around here?” Another woman came in front of her behind the bar. Now this woman she knew; not personally but from a photo Kayla had sent her a few years ago. This was Katie, and if all Braya’s research was correct, she was also married to Tuck. Braya remembered thinking the woman was beautiful when she saw the photo, but in person, she was even more so, but the look of suspicion she had in her eyes kind of dimmed it, and it was all directed at Braya.
“Hey, Addy, I heard Brass say that Whisk just pulled in. Why don’t you take Storm out to meet him properly?”
Braya looked at both women. Katie was smiling, but it was just a facade. Addison got the hint, immediately gathering up her precious little bundle and climbing off the bar stool. Once she was out of the room, Katie’s focus was on Braya.
“I know who you are.”
Braya tilted her head in acknowledgment.
“I know who you are too, Katie. What I don’t understand is why you’re looking at me like I just killed a litter of kittens and kicked their mother on my way out.”
“You’re trouble, I can see it plain as day. But what bothers me the most is my friend never once mentioned she had a sister. She didn’t talk about you or her childhood, she didn’t even mention an out-of-state friend, and I’ve known her for years."
Braya propped her elbow up on the bar, laying her head in it, shaking it at the same time.
“Join the fucking club, Katie. I just spent over an hour explaining just that to your husband and Crash. I’m not going to do it again.”
“I think it’s very convenient you show up here all of a sudden, after a crapload of shit just went down, claiming something that can or can’t be proven.”
Damn.
“Listen, it has obviously been proven, or I wouldn’t be sitting here, and you know it. I’m not going to justify my relationship with my sister to someone I have only heard about in passing” Braya said. Take that, two can play at this game. Hurt her, and she would strike back, simple as that. Better for all of these people to learn that from the start.
“I don’t trust you,” Katie snarled.
“Good, don’t, it’s better that way for everyone involved. Listen, I’m leaving later today with Crash. We’re doing what my sister...”—Braya said the word sister louder and slower to press her point across—“asked me to do. I don’t plan on coming back to this state, let alone your clubhouse, so I don’t think you have much to worry about.”
“You're putting my club, my husband, and friends, people I consider family in danger, and I don’t like that.”
“Whoa!” Braya held up her hand? “What is your deal? Listen, I’m not doing anything. You obviously know why I’m here, who I am, and what is going on, so let’s cut the crap. I didn’t ask to be here, and I’m not sor
ry that Kay never told you about me or our relationship. We don’t talk about each other. EVER! It’s safer that way... for each other and the people we consider family,” Braya said, throwing Katie's words right back in her face. The truth was, Braya didn’t have anyone she considered family outside of her sister, but she knew that Kayla cared for these people. So, in a small way, so did Braya. But one thing Braya had inherited from her mother was her temper, and this woman was going to get a little taste of it—Kayla’s family or not.
“I also don’t expect you to believe me or instantly take me into your fold, but lady, you will not come at me and expect me to sit here quietly and take it. I am not my sister, and I do not back down. If you want to dish it out, expect the same in return. Understand?”
The woman didn’t look happy, but she inclined her head in acknowledgement, but that wasn’t all. Katie had more to say.
"Consider this your first lesson in dealing with the club, Braya Collins. Your bravado is good, hell, your temper when dealing with some of the guys, especially Crash, is excellent. But you are not one of us, and if your story doesn’t check out, if you are purposely putting my family, my club, or my life in danger, there isn’t any place that I won’t be able to find you.”
Braya wasn’t stunned by Katie’s words. She was doing her job as queen bitch, but she was a little surprised. This woman was a doctor who happened to be married to an MC President. She also wasn’t all that intimidating, but then again, Braya hadn’t played in these circles in a long time. When everything boiled down, the same rules applied to MC life, Mafia life, or hell, dealing with a bunch of toddlers—the leading and most important rule, show no fear. Braya had forgotten that for a while, her mother’s training evaporated for the years she played at being a normal citizen, untouched by the seedy world.
Right now and for the next few days, she needed to get that person back. Once it was all over and Kayla was safe and sound, she could once again go back to being the normal girl next door who knew nothing but happiness and light.
“I’m just doing what my sister asked, Katie, nothing more,” Braya repeated for like the hundredth time.
Katie grabbed a bottle of beer and held it up, asking without words if Braya wanted it.
“How about something a little stronger and comes from your neighbor?”
Katie grabbed a bottle of Jack Daniels. When Katie only filled a fingerful, Braya motioned with her finger for more, and Katie obliged. That first swallow burned like a bitch, but the next went down smooth.
“Your sister didn’t talk to me about you, specifically, but she always mentioned a “friend” she was close too. I’m assuming that was you?” Braya didn’t confirm or deny Katie's suspicions. “I know the two of you kept each other a secret, and I think I understand why.”
“It seems your husband talks too much,” Braya said blandly.
“Only to me and with the right incentive. Your secret, Kayla’s secrets will always be safe here. I owe her a lot, the club owes her a lot, she helped many.”
Braya smiled. That was and had always been Kayla’s calling—man, woman, or child, she had an innate need to help them. Braya had always wondered how things would have turned out if the two of them weren’t born into their respective families, if they could have made different choices or had different lives. The only conclusion she ever came up with for that line of thought was Kayla was doing precisely what she was meant to. Herself, she was still figuring that stuff out.
Braya must have been quiet too long.
“Kayla trusted me, and I hope you will too,” Katie said.
Braya couldn’t do it even if she wanted to. Hell, the woman already said she didn’t trust Braya, why would she trust her in return? Plus, it was ingrained in her to be distrustful, she had been burned way too many times not to be. This woman was putting everything out there, and to be honest, Braya felt like she needed to do the same.
“I appreciate that, I just don’t…”
“Know if you can? I get it,” Katie finished for her. “I was raised in a club just like this, was taught from a young age what you see isn’t always what you’re getting. So, I know a bit about where you’re coming from, but I was also raised to believe people show their true selves when the chips are down. I’m hoping Kayla’s trust in you is warranted.”
Braya wanted to laugh because she hoped it was too. The last person she wanted to let down again was her sister, but she didn’t say that out loud.
“This trip is going to be rough, and Crash is going to be a prick. It’s just who he is, but I wanted to tell you that underneath all that gruffness and bravado, he’s a good guy. Your sister was close to him for a while. I thought the two of them would get together, but then she left. Crash has been even more broody since then if you can believe it.”
“You're telling me this for a reason and it isn’t to warn me about my traveling partner. Listen, Katie, I’m not good with games or hidden meanings. You might as well come right out with it and spare us both the trouble.”
“I’m saying I think your sister and Crash would be good together. I also think they would be good for each other. “
“So, basically, what you’re really saying is hands off.”
“Basically.”
“That’s not a problem, Crash is hot, I’m not going to deny it, but he and I are worlds apart. But I think you're wrong about my sister. She cared...” Braya shook her head again and changed her word—she never wanted to talk about Kayla in the past tense. “Cares for him. I know that, but she wasn’t in love with him the way you’re thinking. You’re her friend, you know that already, so don’t look surprised. The man who finally breaks through Kayla’s walls will not be Ryker St. John, I can tell you that with one hundred percent certainty. But I’ll keep my hands off, that I can promise you.”
She felt him before she even heard him. It was like a knowing or a tingle up her spine that raised the hairs on the back of her neck. His warm breath shot past her ear, and he said in that deep baritone voice.
“I won’t be making the same promise, princess.”
Chapter Eight
Crash was not happy. The bitch of it was, he should be. Hearing Braya say she would keep her hands off him was a good sign. Shit, it would make things a hell of a lot easier for the next couple of days. He didn’t need the complication of fucking her, then getting her hopes up of what would never happen. He didn’t want it—at least, that was what he kept on telling himself. But hearing the words spoken from her mouth, that she would deny him, sparked his competitive side. The bigger problem... he wanted her.
There was this crazy chemistry going on between the two of them. He felt it and knew that she had too. That little scene in Tuck’s office proved it. Even through her shirt, he had felt how diamond hard her nipples had been. Hell, she had practically melted into him until her brain caught up. He wondered what she would be like if he could keep that mind focused on other things—soft and sweet or rough and hard.
There was another thing bugging him about that conversation though. What Katie said and how Braya had responded, that was a given. He doubted Braya would admit to a stranger any intentions she had or didn’t have. But hearing Katie thought he and Kayla would be good for each other, now that bothered him. He had entertained the idea, no question about it, but only because it was easy. He never thought others were thinking it as well, thinking he was good enough. He wasn’t.
Kayla needed someone to watch out for her, to care for her. He always knew he could provide the basics, but Kayla was the one who told him and made him realize that wasn’t enough for her. She said they both deserved more. Well, she deserved more, Crash wasn’t so sure what he deserved. He chose the MC life so he didn’t have to worry about shit like that. Being a member of the RBMC, he had the ability to help people but stay out of their lives. Kayla, in a way, had changed that from the moment he laid eyes on the woman. She reminded him of his past, and a part of him wanted to fix the shit that happened through her or by h
elping her. Braya, she was another story altogether. He didn’t want to fix her or help her, beyond his current mission—he wanted to fuck her.
Which in his mind proved how fucked-up he was. His little comment after coming up behind the woman, pushing his hard body into her soft one, was just more proof on what a fuckup he was. Braya wasn’t one of the hang-arounds, she wasn’t a puppet, and she sure as fuck wasn’t looking for a good time with a bad guy, but he had to push it, and he was going to pay the price for it—days with her instead of mere minutes. Shifting away from Braya, he scowled at Katie, but she only smiled back his way. That only pushed him more fully into his pissed off mood. She was as bad as Tuck, meddling where she shouldn’t.
“We leave in ten, Braya. I suggest you do whatever you need to before we hit the road.”
Crash walked off and down the hall, trying his damnedest not to let his mind wander to those thoughts again. Tuck met him in the hall and handed over several papers.
“Here is the route we laid out. You know what to do.”
Yeah, this wasn’t his first rodeo. Taking the documents, he went into the control room. Jinx was at the computer, but the other man just lifted his chin, obviously already informed of Crash’s mission. Crash committed the route to memory; he also noted the towns and alternative routes, in case something happened. This was what he was good at—missions, getting the job done. He had been training for it since he turned eighteen and joined the Air Force.
When he got up to leave, Jinx was still looking at him. This man knew him better than the others. They had served together, rode together, and fought together for all of their adult lives. So, the question he asked didn’t surprise Crash in the least.
Crash: Ruthless Bastards (RBMC Book 9) Page 6