Bishop: A Dark MC Romance (The Devil's Riders Book 3)

Chapter 8

Bishop

What the fuck had just happened? I felt like I’d fallen headfirst into a dream. Or, more accurately, a nightmare.

Evie Wild was here! At my Club! What the hell was going on?

Worse still, she’d seen me acting like a total man-whore with the Carlise twins draped across my arms squeezing my dick. The only thing that could have been more of a turn-off to a woman was if I was making out with another dude.

This wasn’t good. Any chance of us getting together had instantly plunged to zero. Though I hadn’t exactly done anything wrong, as we had no understanding between us that would require my fidelity, I knew women well enough to know that I’d just tanked any chance of us ever getting together in the future. The only hope I had of turning this around was if I talked with Evie before she left the Club thinking I was a complete scumbag.

Jesus Christ! This was a total cluster fuck! Why was she even here? Did she know someone in the Club? Was she seeing someone in the Club? That thought stirred up so much anger and rage inside of me that CiCi, the blonde to my right, asked me if I was feeling okay.

I smiled to reassure her that I was. “Yeah. I’m good. I just need to go take a piss, is all.”

Her fingers fluttered below my belt. “Want me to join you and lend a hand?”

Disengaging her arm from around my neck, I put some distance between her and Daniella, her twin sister, and myself. Though I wasn’t complaining, they’d both been attached to me all night like suckerfish and I was starting to feel a little claustrophobic.

Suddenly tired, I faked a lightheartedness I didn’t feel and said, “I’m good. Go mingle. I’ll catch up with you and Daniella later.”

Cici pouted. “I missed you when you were away, Bishop. The Club just wasn’t the same without you.” Her fingers twined in my cut as she rubbed her fake tits expertly against my arm.

Not wanting to be an asshole, but more afraid that Evie was escaping out the back door before I could explain myself, I slapped her on the rump affectionately and turned her in the direction of the bar. “I’m sure you didn’t go lonely for long. Go get another drink and have some cake. I’ll talk to you later.”

Cici said something about not eating sugar or carbs at the moment, but I couldn’t be bothered to decipher her meaningless statement. Heading for the kitchen where I’d seen Evie escape into, I was stopped by another blonde. This time, it was my sister.

“Where are you going, Bishop?” Grabbing me by the arm, Amelia pulled me back toward the refreshments. “You haven’t even had a slice of your cake yet. It’s strawberries and cream, your favorite!” she exclaimed excitedly.

Taking a forkful of her slice, Amelia shoved a bite into my mouth before I could argue. It was so fucking good my taste buds nearly exploded.

“Better than mom’s store-bought. Right?” she teased, letting go of my arm to throw hers around Hawk, her fiancé, and my VP.

“It’s amazing,” I agreed, taking another step in the direction of the kitchen. “Why don’t you cut me a big slice. I have to take a piss, but I’ll be right back.”

Before she could stop me again, I plowed through the double doors of the kitchen and began searching the space for my little run-away doe. I spotted her in the corner of the room, muttering about shoddy cell service and furiously typing something into her phone.

My skin tingled and my mouth watered like it had when I’d tasted the strawberry cake. However, this time, it was because I couldn’t wait to taste her. My girl. The woman I’d been fantasizing about nonstop since we’d met two weeks ago.

Suddenly, I felt every single one of those 183 days of celibacy while incarcerated. I was absolutely ravenous. And like any starving man, I zeroed in on the one thing that could slake my insatiable hunger.

“Evie,” I spoke up, trying to keep the desperation and need out of my voice before it scared her.

Evie’s head popped up and slowly turned in my direction. Her large green eyes were open wide as though she was shocked to see me.

When she didn’t speak, I took a measured step forward so as not to startle her. “What are you doing here?”

Clutching her phone as though it were a fucking life raft, Evie visibly swallowed. “Um, I own a catering business and Angel asked me to throw a party for someone in her husband’s Club. I guess that’s you.”

A sense of relief flooded me with her words. She wasn’t here with one of my Brothers. She was Angel’s friend. I didn’t realize I’d been holding my breath until she’d responded and I let the pent-up gust free from my burning lungs.

Finding the whole thing humorous, I grinned. “What are the odds that we should meet up outside of Cantiville? A million to one?”

Evie tentatively smiled back at me. The act transformed her already lovely face into something breathtakingly beautiful. “Yeah. It’s weird. Right?”

My gaze tracked her tongue as it nervously traced her bottom lip. God! What I wouldn’t give to feel it on my lips, skin, and cock. I stiffened just at the thought of it. Christ, I hope she couldn’t see I had a boner. The last thing I needed was to scare her off with my greedy dick!

“Weird in a good way,” I added, coming closer. “Did you make all of the food here tonight?”

Evie slowly nodded. “Most of it. Angel and your sister created a list of your favorites. I hope you enjoyed them.”

“I really did. You did an amazing job,” I praised, only a handful of steps away now. “But I’m not surprised. We both know you’re extremely talented in the kitchen.”

Evie blushed and stared down at her feet. “I don’t know about that. Have you tried your cake yet?”

“Not yet,” I returned. “I was more interested in talking to the girl that made it.”

Her blush crept down her neck and brought color to her ample chest. I’d fucking love to see how far down that blush went. To kiss my way as far as I could go before I reached something else equally pink and sweet.

Her gaze leveled with mine then. “Why do you want to talk to me?”

I was taken aback by how genuine that question was. It was as if Evie didn’t think she was anyone worthy of interest, which sent a pang of sadness straight to my heart.

“Because I’d like to get to know you better,” I stated bluntly, standing right beside her now.

Chucking up her chin so she’d have to stare up into my face, I looked straight into those mossy green eyes. I saw her studying my face. It was then that I remembered the bruises.

Her fingers reached out and grazed the colorful mass along my cheekbone. Her face contorted with concern. “What happened? You didn’t have these marks the last time I saw you.”

I wasn’t about to tell her about Pecker and his trapping me in the bathroom with Tiny and his minions, so I massaged the truth a bit, though the meat of the tale was mostly there.

“I got into it with one of the guys over lunch one day. I didn’t want to give up my dessert. You know how much I like my sweets,” I teased.

Evie looked horrified. “Why did the guards let the fight go on so long? This isn’t just from a little scuffle. It looks serious.”

I stifled the urge to snort. “Sometimes they let us get in a few swings before they interfere. I think they like watching us fight even more than we like doing it.”

When Evie realized she was still caressing my cheek, she hastily dropped her hand back to her side. “That’s terrible!” she replied, taking the slightest step backward.

“Nah. It’s good to let the guys blow off some steam now and again. It cuts down on fights in the future when you let the inmates slug it out in real-time. Besides,” I grinned, “you should see the other guy. He doesn’t look half as pretty as me.”

Though they were still in the infirmary when I’d left Cantiville, I heard a couple of guys talk about how banged up Tiny and his boys were. Made me smile just to think about it.

Evie blinked at my explanation, then quickly looked away when she couldn’t take the intensity of my gaze. “I’m glad you’re doing well. I thought, well, I thought those bruises might have been from something else.”

My little doe was as smart as she was pretty. She’d guessed it had something to do with Becker. And though she was dead right, I wasn’t going to be the one to tell her.

“It’s all good, babe,” I soothed. “It’s just a few bruises. I’ve had much worse.”

What that bastard prison guard had done wasn’t Evie’s fault. I had a feeling if she knew the outcome of that day he’d been harassing her, she’d blame herself for what happened to me afterward, and I couldn’t have that. I’d pay Becker back in my own way and in my own time soon enough, but she wasn’t ever going to know about it.

“Well, I kept you away from your guests long enough,” Evie said shyly. “You should return to your party. I just finished cleaning and was getting ready to leave.”

This change of attitude was definitely about the twins. I needed to assure her that they meant nothing to me. They were Club girls doing what Club girls did best. But I realized to someone outside of this life that made me seem like an absolute asshole. And seeming like an absolute asshole wouldn’t exactly help my case with Evie.

“That’s just it,” I told her, reaching out and gently stroking her cheek, “you’re the guest I want to spend time with most.” It sounded cheesy, but it was true.

Evie blushed a deeper red. “It didn’t look like that earlier when you were hanging out with your… girlfriends,” she pronounced awkwardly.

I laughed. “Babe, those girls you saw me with earlier aren’t my girlfriends. They’re just friends of the Club,” I said, trying to explain in the least crude terms possible.

I could tell that Evie didn’t have any experience with MC life and I didn’t want to turn her off of it before I even had a chance to properly introduce her to it.

“I don’t have a girl,” I said, trying to make myself as clear as possible. “In case you didn’t notice, I’ve been without one for quite a while,” I joked. “Six months to be exact. And even then, I wasn’t seeing anyone special.”

“Oh,” Evie said, grappling with all that I’d just shared.

“What about you?” I pressed, needing to know as much about her as possible. My fingers threaded through her beautiful brown hair as I gave it a playful tug. “You got a man?” If she did, I couldn’t promise that I wouldn’t make the dude disappear before the day was through.

Thankfully, Evie shook her head. When she bit her bottom lip, my cock jumped with longing. “No. I’m kinda busy with work right now.”

I could respect that. I liked that she had her eye on the prize. But she was going to have to start making a little time to live, as well as for me. Because now that I knew Miss Evelyn Wild, I wasn’t ever letting her go.

I shifted my body forward. Evie took a step backward, bringing her flush against the wall. My arms came up alongside her petite frame, caging her in.

“When I saw you here tonight, I was furious,” I whispered low into her ear.

“Why?” she asked, startled by my words.

Nuzzling my nose along the column of her neck, she let out a soft moan. That breathy sound made me so hard, I could have pounded fucking nails with my dick.

“I thought you showed up to the Clubhouse with one of my Brothers,” I confessed throatily. “I thought I was going to have to fight someone for daring to touch what’s mine!”

“I’ve never even met any of the Devils before,” Evie hurriedly defended, ignoring the latter part of my statement.

“I believe you, Babe. I just hated the idea of you being here with someone else. When we met, I just knew I had to get to know you on the outside.” My left hand caressed her exposed shoulder, slowly skimming the outline of her curves with my fingertips. When my hand landed on her trim waist, I jerked her against the pillar of granite in my pants. “I’ve been fantasizing about that meeting ever since. And the things I’d do to you… well, let’s just say, Evie, they’d make a sinner blush.”

My girl shivered as I nibbled her earlobe. “I thought about you, too,” she confessed, her whole body vibrating with the intensity of her emotions.

I growled, tugging her hair hard enough to bare the pale column of her throat to me. “Fuck, Evie!” I groaned, rocking the bulge in my jeans against her softness. “Do you feel that? That’s what you do to me, Babe. I act like a goddamned savage whenever I’m around you!”

Guiding her hand below my belt, I enclosed her fingers around my pulsing erection. Her audible gasp told me she was just as affected by our connection as I was.

Evie’s eyes became half-hooded with lust at the unbridled contact. Growing bold, her fingers began to explore my length and I groaned with repressed need.

“You don’t know how bad I want you,” I hissed, roughly fisting her long hair in my palm. “I must have jacked off to you a hundred times after we met. I couldn’t get you out of my fucking brain.”

Evie swayed her small frame into my much larger one. “You did?”

“Yeah, every chance I got,” I said and laughed, grinding my hips against her touch.

I watched Evie evolve right in front of my eyes, gaining a modicum of confidence with my words. Instinctively, I’d known there wouldn’t be anything more beautiful than this woman coming apart in my arms. That look on her face now only reinforced those instincts. I couldn’t wait any longer. I had to taste her. To know if she was as sweet as she looked and smelled.

Leaning down, I sealed my mouth against hers. Instantly, I knew my theory was correct. Evie was every bit as sweet as I thought she would be and more.

Our kiss was different from any other woman I’d been with. The contact somehow more intimate. More intense. The starving man inside of me wanted to glut myself on her. To tear off her clothes, spread her thighs, and dive as hard and deep as I could into her tight, wet heat.

Giving in to the temptation, I spanned my hands around her tiny waist. Encouraging her legs to circle mine, I pinned her against the wall so fully I could practically feel every inch of her against me.

Fuck if this woman wasn’t everything I’d fantasized about and more! My hand slid under her shirt as our mouths slanted hotly against one another. Her large tits heaved as my fingers slid beneath the cotton material and the silky fabric of her bra. Once inside, my calloused skin scraped across her bare nipples. When she moaned at my touch, I redoubled my efforts and added more pressure. Her response was to buck wildly against me and cry out for more.

Goddamn, I wanted inside of this woman! Shoving away from the wall, I transferred her petite frame onto the counter so I could explore her lush body more completely. Parting her thighs, I ran my palm between her legs and felt the heat of her center radiating through her pants. I wanted to fuck her right here and now on this countertop, but I knew Evie deserved better. At the very least, she deserved a bed with clean sheets against her soft skin instead of the sterile impression of tile against her delicate rear end.

The door to the kitchen banged open then. “Bishop, what the hell is taking you so long? Get your ass out here and back to the party!”

I quickly shielded Evie from Hawk’s view. “I’m busy. I’m going to be a while. I’ll catch up with you later.”

Hawk noticed I was with someone and sighed. “Your sister has something she wants to give you, man. Everybody is waiting for you to open it. You can bang CiCi or Daniella or whoever the fuck is with you in here, later, Brother.”

“I said I’m coming,” I angrily ground out.

“Yeah, I’m sure you are. That’s why you’re lucky it was me and not your sister who came in here and got you. I knew you’d be with one of your many girls and I didn’t want her to see that shit, man. She’s suffered enough with you being in prison. You don’t need to torture the woman with your naked ass pounding away on Club pussy.”

Evie went rigid in my arms. I’d never wanted to punch another human being in the face more in my life. Hawk had just acted like the world’s biggest cock-block and there was no telling the amount of damage he’d done with his careless words.

“I said I’ll be there in a minute, okay,” I ground out through clenched teeth, praying that somehow Evie hadn’t heard every ugly word he’d just uttered, but realistically knowing she had.

“You get one minute, then I’m dragging you, naked or clothed, back to the party,” Hawk replied, turning around and exiting back out the way he’d come.

Evie wrenched free of my arms the moment Hawk was gone. Righting her rumpled clothes, she said, “Go ahead. I’ve kept you from your friends too long already.”

Though her words were cordial enough, her tone told me I was now living just shy of the South Pole in terms of an emotional connection.

“Come with me,” I encouraged, trying to tug her toward the door. “After I open my sister’s gift, you and I will disappear upstairs where no one can bother us.”

Evie’s expression looked panicked at the idea of being alone with me, which wasn’t exactly flattering.

“I need to finish a few chores here first. And I promised Angel I’d meet some of her friends after dessert was served. Go to your sister,” she encouraged with a brittle smile. “We can meet up later.”

I glanced around the spotless kitchen and sighed. “I meant what I said, Evie. When we met, I knew you were someone special who I had to get to know. Don’t leave before we have a chance to do that. Stay and let me show you around my Club. I promise I’ll make it worth your while,” I said, running the rough pad of my thumb across her lower lip.

Hawk banged on the outside of the door again. “Ten seconds asshole, then I’m coming back in!”

Fuck, man! Hawk was killing me here. “I’ll be there in a minute!” I shouted over my shoulder with obvious irritation.

“Make it quick,” Hawk growled back through the wooden partition. “Which, after six months in the pen, I”m sure you can manage.”

Evie blanched. “Sure. We’ll talk later,” she hurriedly agreed, but there was no spark of joy in her beautiful green eyes anymore. “You better go before that guy gets any more upset with you.”

I swear, if Hawk wasn’t my VP and future brother-in-law, I’d have snapped his neck and stuffed his oversized corpse in the nearest dumpster I could find for the way he’d upset Evie.

Pulling her close, I gave the delectable woman one more searing kiss to remember me by before reluctantly pulling away and heading towards the banquet hall.

“I’ll be right back. Don’t go anywhere!” I ordered, before shoving through the kitchen doors and reluctantly returning to the party I’d never asked for or wanted.

* * *

Evie

I was a fool. What was I thinking? Making out with a stranger at a party I was working at!

To complicate matters, he was a felon I’d met while volunteering at the prison. Even if it was one of the most mind-blowing sexual experiences of my life, it was still an insane thing to do. Not smart Evie, I chastised myself. Not smart at all.

I had to get out of here before I made yet another terrible decision. Gathering my belongings, I frantically looked around to make sure I had everything. Because deep down I knew, if I stayed, I’d follow Bishop straight back to his room. And once there, all bets were off.

I scanned the kitchen one last time to make sure everything was tidy before texting Angel a message about why I’d left the Club so suddenly. I hated lying about the onset of a migraine that I just couldn’t shake, but I didn’t want to make her leave the party she’d worked so hard to put together.

With a heavy heart, I scurried out the back door of the kitchen. As I strode briskly to my car, I promised myself that I’d come up with a way to make this up to Angel, just as soon as I could think of one.

* * *

Evie

I woke up the next morning to a slew of text messages. One was from Angel asking me how I was doing, two were from possible future clients, and the last was without a name and simply read, “I meant what I said about getting to know you, Evie. This isn’t over, Ms. Wild…”

As I read and reread the message, my heart thudded excitedly against the walls of my chest. Truth be told, I didn’t want whatever “this” was to be over between us either. Could I have been wrong about who Bishop was? Was he sincere in his intentions toward me? Could a relationship between us even work?

It only took a few seconds before the memory of the “twins” popped back into my head. Yup, I’d been a fool. Bishop was a player. I’m sure he had women falling at his feet no matter where he went. Between the leather and his looks, the biker was serious man-candy to the female species. It would be naive of me to think otherwise.

“And he’s a felon, too,Evie,” a small voice in the back of my mind spoke up then. “Just like your dad. You can’t let him worm his way into your life. That kind of relationship never lasts. Just look how that worked out for your mother.”

Resolute in my decision, I called Bobby. She picked up on the third ring. Her voice was strong and clear sounding. “Hey, kid! How’s it going?”

“I’m good,” I fibbed, wanting to focus on my friend for the time being. “The real question is, how are you feeling?”

“Oh, you know. I have my good moments and my bad ones. Overall though, I can’t complain,” she said pragmatically.

“How’s the hip healing? Can I get you anything from the store?”

“I’m good and good,” Bobby responded jovially. “I wouldn’t mind meeting up for coffee sometime soon though. I’m starting to feel a little housebound. I’d welcome any outing that doesn’t involve PT or doctor’s appointments.”

She was right. The first few days at home were always the best. After that, I always got a little bored. “Name the time and place and I’ll be there.”

We settled on meeting up the following day at a breakfast joint named Sam’s, then moved on to other topics. When Bobby asked me how the prison job had gone, I was quick to gloss over the gritty details.

“What aren’t you telling me, kid?” Bobby pressed. I could practically see the firm set to her jaw as her words carried over the line.

I might not have wanted to get into it, but I wasn’t prepared to lie for the likes of John Becker. I came clean about what the guard had done, and how Bishop, inmate Wilmont to her, had found us.

Bobby didn’t sound shocked. I think my friend had lived quite a life in her sixty-five years, and very little surprised her anymore. “Oh child, that inmate Wilmont is a looker! The first day I met him, I couldn’t stop thinking about what I would have done to the man if I was just a decade or two closer in age!”

I burst out laughing. “Bobby!” I chastised good-naturedly. “Tell me you”re joking?”

“Absolutely not,” the brash woman shot back. “Those eyes alone are worth it!”

“Speaking of good-looking men with nice eyes,” I said, changing tact. “What about Officer Garrity? He seemed really interested in how you were doing both times I visited Cantiville.”

This time it was Bobby’s turn to laugh. “So you met Peter?” she answered in a roundabout way.

“Yeah,” I returned with a smile in my voice. “He’s a looker, too. If you’re into sparkling blue eyes, beards, and charming personalities.”

“Sure,” Bobby hedged good-naturedly.

“Anything to report there?” I pressed, wanting her to spill the tea so badly I could practically feel it burning my tongue.

“Anything you want to share about prisoner Wilmont?” she shot back, her ability to sniff out the truth unparalleled.

“So coffee tomorrow at Sam’s?” I knew a stalemate when I heard one.

“Meet you at eight,” she returned cheerfully.

* * *

Bishop

Church, our term for Club meetings, was being held soon. Seeing as though I had thirty minutes to kill, I decided to find my Brother Pipe. Because he wasn’t in his bedroom, I figured he must be hanging out in our Club rec room and headed downstairs.

I’d decided I was going to take him up on his offer to help me find out a little more about Evie. Namely, what she did with her free time. After last night, and my unanswered text this morning, I was going to have to do some real leg work to get this evasive woman’s attention.

It wasn’t like me to chase girls. They usually came quite willingly. But Evie was different. I couldn’t get her out of my head. I’d like to blame it on the strawberry cake, but the desire to get to know her, to taste her, was a more tempting prospect by far.

Walking into the kitchen to get some coffee, I saw that my Brother German was in there plowing one of the Club girls. Since we were all used to this behavior, I ignored him and walked over to the coffee pot to pour myself a cup.

Out of the corner of my eye, I could see it was CiCi he had bent over the table. I should have felt annoyed, as Cici had been begging me to make her my Old Lady nonstop since she started hanging with the Devils. But I wasn’t. I was relieved. Maybe now that she’d moved on with German, she’d leave me alone and I wouldn’t have to deal with her being pissy about me and Evie once we went public.

Hell, it just might do German some good to shack up with the adventurous woman. I knew he had a thing for my sister. But Amelia only ever had eyes for Hawk. It couldn’t be easy for German to watch them being so happy together at every event. Maybe Cici would be a welcome distraction for the sullen biker.

My Brother blew his load and grunted one last time before pulling out of the bleached blonde. Doing up his pants, he gave me a head nod as he walked over to the trash. Stepping on the pedal, he dumped his used condom inside.

“Have you seen Pipe?” I asked, pouring a splash of milk into my coffee.

“Yeah, he’s in the rec room,” German informed me before pulling a bottle of water out of the fridge and upending the entire contents into his mouth.

I could feel Cici watching me as German walked out of the kitchen and she slowly lowered her denim skirt back into place. When I didn’t acknowledge her, I heard the irritated tapping of her high-heeled shoe on the tile floor.

“Well?” she demanded, clearly wanting to talk about it.

Already tired of the discussion before it had even begun, I turned toward her and took a sip of my coffee. “Well, what?”

She waved her arm toward the door. “Don’t you want to talk about what just happened?”

I shrugged. “Nope. Nothing to talk about.”

“Fuck you, Bishop!” Cici spat venomously. “I can’t believe you don’t have anything to say about what you just saw.”

I took another slow sip of my hot beverage. “It’s an MC, Cici. I see my Brothers fucking every day of the week. I don’t know if you noticed, but it’s not exactly scandalous behavior around here.”

This time, she angrily stomped her spiked heel. “That’s not what I’m talking about, and you know it!”

Scrubbing a hand down my face, I frowned. “Why don’t you tell me what you want to say, Cici.”

Striding over to me, the busty blonde poked her manicured finger into my chest. “You’re okay with me fucking German?”

I knew what she wanted to hear, but, Evie or not, I wasn’t going to say it. Cici was never going to be my Old Lady. She was a good time and all, but our connection just didn’t go beyond that.

“You’re a grown woman. You don’t need my permission to do anything,” I returned matter-of-factly.

This calm comment only served to enrage her further. “Who is she?”

I was thrown by the question. “What are you talking about?”

“The woman you care so much about that you’d throw me away without a second thought,” she demanded.

I wasn’t doing this with her. Not now. Not ever. “This isn’t about anyone else.”

“I don’t believe you!” she hissed like a scalded cat.

“Believe what you want,” I returned blandly. “It is what it is.”

Sensing she was failing, Cici tried another direction then. “I’ve done everything for you that a man could want, Bishop. Everything! Why can’t you give me the one thing I want? Is it so bad for me to be your Old Lady?”

I snorted my disgust. “After I just walked in on you banging my Brother? Gimme a break, Cici. If you’re honest with yourself, I think you’d admit that you don’t want to be with me any more than I want to be with you. You just want to ride on the back of someone’s bike. Which one doesn’t seem to matter to you all that much.” It was harsh, but it was the truth.

“So only your precious sister is allowed to be someone’s Old Lady?” She snorted with contempt. “From what I hear, she wasn’t exactly Mother Teresa before she hooked up with Hawk,” she disparaged hatefully.

I could take the insults. But I wasn’t about to ignore them when it came to my sister. “If you want to stay friends with this Club, Cici, don’t ever talk about my sister or VP again. You hear me?”

The hostile blonde got right up in my face. “I deserve that title, Bishop! I waited for you while you were in prison. But you didn’t even touch me when you got out. I know you’re not the type to go lonely. So, who are you fucking now? It’s not any of the other Club girls. I checked into it. You haven’t touched them either. Unless prison turned you into a faggot, I don’t believe for one second you’re going without!”

I’d underestimated the woman’s intelligence and ambition. I wouldn’t be so foolish again. “What the fuck does it matter to you? You’ve clearly moved on. I just watched my Brother ream you over our kitchen table. Stop acting like a victim, Cici. It’s not your best look.”

Tears of anger and frustration welled up in her eyes. “At least I know where I stand with German! He doesn’t fall off the face of the earth for six months and then ignore me when he gets home.”

“Then go ride on his bike,” I suggested with disgust. She had no idea how tough doing time was. How much it ate away at your soul. But I did. She could suck a thousand dicks for all I cared. It meant nothing to me because she meant nothing to me.

“I don’t want to ride his bike,” she practically whined back at me. “I want to be with you!”

I sighed out of pure exhaustion then. “You could have called or written when I went to Cantiville, Cici, but you didn’t. And I didn’t expect you to. We don’t have that kind of relationship. We both know it. We’re done now. Accept it like an adult and move on.”

“You should have let me know that’s what you wanted. You’ve never been quiet about your desires before,” she returned with a snort. “Instead, you secretly held it against me. I would have been there for you, baby. You just had to let me know you wanted that.” Reaching out her hand, she stroked my cheek and then let it run down my chest.

Why were we going around in circles like this? It was pointless to argue about something I didn’t care about.

Plucking her hand off my chest, I placed it back down at her side. “I’ve got Church. I gotta go.”

“That’s right, walk away whenever things get tough, Bishop!” she lobbed at my back, her voice quavering.

That particular barb cut me deep. I wasn’t the kind of man who walked away when times were tough. I stuck it through. I followed through. Hell, I’d gone to prison for my Club without so much as a thought for my own safety! I’d been offered countless deals by the DA to turn rat, and I didn’t. I wouldn’t. Because that wasn’t the kind of guy I was. If Cici didn’t know that about me by now, she didn’t know me at all and she never would.

“Good luck with German,” I tossed over my shoulder. “I’m sure you guys will be really happy together,” I taunted as the door swung closed behind me.

I could hear Cici screaming a string of profanities as I walked away, but the only two words I could make out were “bastard” and “liar”. Oh well. Let her think what she wanted. I was done with that crazy bitch anyways. German could have her.