Chapter Three #2
“I don’t know. I think Mom would prefer for him to.
I can tell she likes having him home. The days he doesn’t do any work for the club, she smiles more.
He always made time for us, but Portia, Hadrian, and Ivy are still young enough they need him more than I do.
I know they’d be happy if he had less responsibility with the club. ”
Her dad was more than twenty years older than me, and I knew I wasn’t ready to hand things over anytime soon, but would I be when I was closing in on seventy?
Most likely. So why hadn’t Torch done so already?
Did he worry about who he’d hand the club to?
Venom wasn’t much younger than Torch, so even if he took the President’s spot, how long would it be before he decided he’d had enough too?
I’d never stuck my nose into another club’s business, and I didn’t want to start now, but with Lyssa being a Reaper by blood, I felt like I needed to keep an eye on things there.
“Water’s getting cold. We should wash and get out,” I said. “You hungry?”
She nodded and her stomach growled. Her cheeks flushed and I couldn’t help myself. I had to kiss her. She was too damn adorable. I kept it brief so I wouldn’t be tempted to do far more, but I was already getting addicted to her.
As much as I wanted to wash her, and feel her soft hands on me, I knew we’d freeze in here if we played around.
I washed myself while she quickly scrubbed her skin.
She winced a little as she cleaned between her legs and I made a mental note to take it easy on her.
Even though she said she’d taken her own innocence with a vibrator, I was betting it had been a lot smaller than me.
She’d probably be sore the rest of the day and maybe tomorrow too.
I dried off and pulled on clean clothes while she did the same.
I noticed there wasn’t much in her bag. The Reapers had said something about her being in school.
I hadn’t given it a thought before now. If she wanted to continue her education, I wasn’t about to tell her no, but I didn’t like the idea of her being off somewhere without protection.
She caught me staring and arched one eyebrow.
“Something you want to say?” she asked.
“Need to get the rest of your things,” I said and motioned to her bag. “That’s not enough.”
“I had to drop my classes when Tony wouldn’t back down and I knew I’d have to leave.
” She sat on the edge of the bed. “All my stuff is in a storage unit near the campus. A friend packed for me and left it all there since the university said I needed to be out by a certain day. I wasn’t sticking around long enough to take care of everything when Tony was being all stalker-like.
I’d thought about going home and letting my dad send someone for the stuff later, but I ended driving aimlessly in an effort to not need help. I ended up coming here instead.”
“You could always enroll online,” I said. “We may be in the middle of nowhere, but there’s still Wi-Fi.”
“As fancy as your clubhouse is, I wouldn’t expect anything less. I’d heard this place was impressive, but I hadn’t believed it until I saw it for myself. Part of me is curious how the club can afford so much, and yet I know better than to even ask about club business.”
Yep. She was fucking perfect.
“It’s no secret we run a few businesses nearby.
Shield has a tech shop where he repairs broken computers or cleans up destruction from viruses.
The club gets a cut of the profits since we helped him set it up.
Forge has a metalworks place. Again, the club helped him set it up so we get a profit from it.
Snake manages the pawn shop the club owns.
Nitro manages the strip club, which the club owns.
All legit businesses. Prospero invests a chunk of our money and always gets a good return. ”
“You expect me to believe everything is one hundred percent legal here?” she asked.
“Nope, but I know you won’t ask what else we’re into.
If anyone ever wants to know where the money comes from, any of the things I just mentioned is what you can tell them.
” Her stomach growled again. “Time to feed you. You aren’t big enough to go skipping meals.
Might blow away with the next gust of wind. ”
She rolled her eyes and huffed. “I’m not tiny.”
I patted the top of her head, which barely reached my chest. “Yeah, you are. But I think you’re cute, so it’s okay. I’ll just call you Tinkerbell.”
She patted her hips and ass. “Too much padding to be called tiny.”
I grabbed her, tossed her over my shoulder, and smacked her ass.
Twice. She yelped and grabbed my shirt as she squirmed.
“You’re not allowed to talk shit about yourself, especially when it comes to this gorgeous body.
I love every curve you’ve got so don’t even think about going on a diet or missing meals on purpose. ”
“I was only kidding. Sort of.”
I eased her down in front of me and held her chin so she’d be forced to hold my gaze.
“You had my attention the second you walked through my door. You think just anyone gets that reaction? Fuck no. I mean it, Lyssa. You’re beautiful just the way you are.
Stunning. Most attractive woman I’ve ever seen. ”
I realized I meant every word. No matter how much I loved Lo, even after all these years, I could admit that Lyssa was far more beautiful.
Loretta had been more of a girl-next-door kind of pretty.
With my little Tinkerbell, everyone took notice when she’d walked into the room.
I had no doubt I’d have my hands full keeping men away for the next few decades, or however long I lived.
Her lip trembled and she hugged me tight. “That’s the nicest thing anyone’s ever said to me.”
I made a mental note to have a chat with the Dixie Reapers.
If no one had ever told her how pretty she was, or said anything else nice to her, even if her daddy was their President, I’d have to start kicking some asses.
It amazed me how she’d been so tough and no-nonsense when she’d walked into the clubhouse, compared to the softer, more vulnerable woman clinging to me right now.
Hard on the outside with a marshmallow center. Yep, perfect woman.
“Come on, Tink. Time to feed you. Let’s see what I have in the kitchen. I have a feeling we’ll need to make a grocery run, or send a Prospect out to grab some stuff. Until I know Tony isn’t coming back, I’d rather you not stray too far from the compound.”
“Trust me, I have no desire to see Tony again ever.”
I ended up dragging some ground beef from the fridge and found noodles and a jar of sauce in the cabinet.
It wasn’t gourmet cooking, but it would fill her up.
While I browned and seasoned the meat, I tried to think of how to best phrase my questions.
I needed to know exactly how in the dark she was over Tony and why he’d been so adamant about chasing her down.
Had her daddy’s club told her anything at all?
She didn’t seem like the type to want to sit on the sidelines, blinded by anything going on around her.
No, Lyssa would want to know if she was in danger.
She’d want to be prepared. I might not know much about her, but it only took me a few seconds of talking to her to realize she liked being able to take care of herself, but wasn’t too proud to let a man step in when she needed him.
“Why does Tony think he has a shot with you?” I asked. “It’s obvious you aren’t interested.”
“I’m not sure. He just kind of focused on me and refuses to go away. But there’s something… off. I get this feeling it’s not that he wants in my pants. It’s like I’m a challenge? No. Something else.”
Smart girl. “A job?”
“Yeah! It’s like I’m a… Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me.” She closed her eyes and sighed. “I really am a job for him, aren’t I? He’s been paid to kidnap me or something.”
I smirked. Definitely smart.
“Tony works for some bad people,” I said. “And yes, he did target you for a reason. It’s why the Dixie Reapers came here. They wanted our help. It’s not just you the men are after. The fact you’re here only made things easier on Venom. He said he’d been on his way to get you.”
She tensed. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Tony is part of the Mancini family. They’ve been gathering up girls and women to auction off.
You’re on the list.” I shut off the burner.
“Before you get some great idea to run off and try to save everyone, because that sounds like some shit you’d pull, I’ll put you on lockdown if I have to.
Your ass is staying right the fuck here, Tink. You hear me?”
As if in agreement, the ferrets scampered into the kitchen and shimmied up her legs to get in her lap. They stuck their little noses in her face, making Lyssa smile as she petted them. Then her nose wrinkled.
“Yeah, I know. They need another bath. Won’t matter. There’s a certain level of stink that just sticks to them. They’re fixed, but even right after a bath they still have that eau de ferret smell.”
“So why get ferrets?” she asked. “I have to admit, they scared the hell out of me when I first saw them.”
I cleared my throat and looked away, not ready to admit to a level of geekiness that wasn’t befitting a biker. “Kodo and Podo.”
“I’m sorry, but that was supposed to make sense?”
“ The Beastmaster was my favorite movie in the early eighties. He had two ferrets. Kodo and Podo. So when those two needed a home, I gave them one.” I folded my arms. “And if you tell anyone that’s why I have ferrets, I’ll gag you and never let you leave the house again.”
Her lips twitched and her eyes sparkled with merriment. “Are you a closet geek, Eric?”