CHAPTER THIRTEEN
I wake up with a start, the sound of my phone pinging with a message somewhere, waking me up from one of the best dreams I’ve had in a long time. Disoriented for a moment, and much too comfortable to move, I look around and notice I’m still at Zoe’s place. The movie we were watching is long over, the TV screen cycling through an endless supply of movies and TV shows.
But what has my attention is the soft, warm body wrapped around me like a monkey. Zoe’s straddling my lap, and her hot pussy, covered in only a thin pair of sweats, is right over my cock, which is growing harder by the minute since she’s rubbing herself on me in her sleep. Shit.
As gently as I can, I extricate myself from beneath her, lift her effortlessly, and walk down the hall to the end room, knowing instinctively that’s the room she uses. I gently place her on the bed fully clothed—because heck, I wasn’t going to take her clothes off and look my fill while she was asleep, finally covering her with a blanket.
She murmurs something in her sleep, but other than that, she doesn’t stir. I retrieve the phone from the pocket of my jeans and am shocked to realize that it’s almost 2 a.m.
Kick has been trying to contact me, leaving text and voicemail messages, each one getting more pissed off than the last. I read the newest message first, and my brows rise above my hairline.
Kick: Hospital ASAP. After that, Church at the clubhouse.
I stare at my phone, a frown on my face. What the fuck’s going on that we need to have Church at this hour of the night? It’s on the tip of my tongue to ask outright, but I stop myself. I’ll find out in due course.
Me: Be there in ten.
I stare down at Zoe, who’s still sleeping, bending down to kiss her lightly on the cheek, I feel guilty for having to leave her, as she barely stirs before I reluctantly leave the house, locking the door behind me. Something’s going on with the club, and I don’t like it one bit.
I arrive at the hospital within the time I said I would. I get off my bike, a feeling of dread like I’ve never felt before assails me. I walk in expecting to ask at the nurses’ station for information, but I see Kick and Tiny straight away.
The feeling that something isn’t right has grown since I left Zoe, and rode all the way back here. But for the life of me, I can’t figure out what it is.
I guess I’m about to find out. Walking into the hospital, to what can only be described as mayhem.
“What the fuck’s going on?” I demand of both Tiny and Kick, noticing that Everleigh and Sage are sitting in the waiting room also, huddled together. Even Lexie’s here, Riggs has a comforting arm around her. What the fuck’s going on?
Tiny looks at me with a haggard expression, and Kick places a hand on my shoulder.
“Good of you to show up, brother,” he replies gruffly. I want to tell him to fuck off, and where I was and what I was doing was none of his business, but I stop myself from making the biggest mistake of my life. I’ve already been given a warning; I don’t need to have my ass kicked out of the club.
“It’s Storm.” Kick lowers his voice, careful to make sure Sage and Lexie aren’t close by to hear him.
“The idiot OD’d in his room. A club girl was with him and called me immediately. I rushed over, and the ambulance was called. Thankfully, we got him back. But it’s bad. They don’t know if he’ll make it, and if he does, what the damage is.”
“Shit.” I whisper. I knew the brother was struggling since he was released from prison a few years back, but I didn’t think it was that bad. The overriding feelings of guilt overcomes me. Why didn’t I check on my brother more often? If I did, maybe this wouldn’t have happened. “And what’s the prognosis?” I add.
Both Kick and Tiny look grim. “Not good, I’m afraid. We got a pulse back, but the doc’s not hopeful. Though we’re not gonna think like that. He’s gonna get better, and once he’s recovered, I’m sending his ass straight into rehab.” Kick announces. I nod my head, but don’t voice the question to the entire room. What if he doesn’t recover? My thoughts turn to Storm’s old man, Gunner, my mentor, when I was just starting out in the club as a prospect. What would he think of his son falling so low and hooked on drugs?
“Are we allowed to see him?” I ask.
“Not yet. They’re still working on him.”
I wipe a hand down my face, sitting my ass down in a chair. Unable to believe what I’m hearing. Storm, it couldn’t be real?
“How long has it been?” I demand. Guilt overwhelming me. I was with Zoe while my brother was fighting for his life in hospital, and my brothers were here, while I wasn’t.
“Since we brought him in a few hours ago. He hasn’t woken up. I’m really getting sick of hospitals.” He spits out, jamming his hands into the pockets of his jeans.
“That’s bullshit.” I look across at the voice and see that it’s Riggs, still holding on tightly to Lexie. But he’s garnered the attention of the nursing staff as well with his outburst. I silently tell him to calm down, otherwise they’ll be within their rights to throw us out of here.
“He needs to know we’re all pulling for him.”
“We are, and I’m sure he knows it.” Tiny replies, sharing a look with Kick. “But that’s how things stand for the moment. Hopefully, they change soon enough and Storm wakes up, and he gets the help he needs.”
Just then, the double doors to the left of the waiting room open to reveal a relatively young woman doctor dressed from head to toe in scrubs. Her head is down as she writes something. I can see she’s tiny, but she has some killer curves, though her hair is covered by a cap, a face mask resting underneath her pointed chin. I can see the interest in Ky’s gaze, as he takes her in, and it’s all I can do not to roll my eyes.
“Doctor Owen, how is he?” Kick rushes toward her. I look at her name tag pinned to her scrubs and see Dr Beth Owen written on it.
She looks up and gives us a wide smile, and my heart beats a mile a minute.
“Things were touch and go for a while. I honestly thought we’d lost him. But he’s back, and actually breathing on his own. So, I’m amending what I said earlier. It looks like he’s going to be fine. He’s actually awake, but I can’t allow you to see him just yet. Maybe in a few days.”
Hoots and hollers break out around the waiting room from my brothers and their women. The doctor gives a tinkling laugh, a smile on her tired but pretty face, but sternly tells us to be quiet.
“Can we see him, Doc?” I ask. I heard when she said we couldn’t see him yet, but I was hoping she’d forgotten and would allow us in. But she turns her blue-eyed gaze to me.
“Nice try, But as I just said, not tonight. I’d like him to get some rest before he’s bombarded with visitors. And please ensure that once you can enter, you limit the number of visitors in his room to two at a time.” She warns, before walking away.
“Okay, you heard the Doc. Back to the clubhouse. We all need to get some rest.” Kick calls out, wrapping his arm around his woman’s shoulders, pulling her gently along as the rest of us follow. I watch Tiny do the same with Sage, the love in their woman’s eyes, something I also want to feel when Zoe looks at me. I know I have a lot of work to do before that happens. Before she can trust me completely. But I hope tonight went a long way in showing her how I really feel.
We finally all arrive back at the clubhouse, the sound of all the sleds together and the wind whipping around my face has gone a long way in calming my nerves since learning about Storm.
Ky’s one of the first back, and I find him already at the bar, walking over to him.
“Hey, brother.” I greet him with a slap on the back.
“Hey, brother. Wanna join me for a drink?” He grins, showing bright white straight teeth. Ky’s his father’s son, alright, a complete chick magnet. I just hope he doesn’t have golden sperm like his old man and impregnates the whole of Briar Creek before he settles down. I chuckle at my own thoughts, and Ky looks at me with narrowed eyes.
“What’s so funny?”
“Give me a beer.” I instruct the young prospect behind the bar, taking a swig before answering Ky’s question, “I was just thinking how you and your old man are the same when it comes to women. Obviously, he’s got Everleigh now, but you’re still sowing your wild oats.”
“Damn straight I am,” he announces proudly, and I can’t help but chuckle. Ky grew up without a mom. Kick’s high school sweetheart, having been gunned down in a war with the Jackals when Ky was just a baby. Shock of all shocks, the Jackals are now our allies, since the new president of that club is Everleigh’s twin brother. Taking over as president when Jose Ramos’s men in Mexico a while back had killed her father, while we were rescuing Kick’s and Everleigh’s daughter Lily.
“I don’t intend to settle down anytime soon. I’m having too much fun.”
“Not even with that sweet little vet next door to the gym?” I test the waters. It’s been a couple of months since the woman opened her business next door to us. He’s been watching her closely, but hasn’t yet made a move.
Ky snorts. “She’s way too innocent for the likes of me, brother. I don’t wanna scare her. And believe me, with the things I’m into, she’d probably run a mile.” He takes a swig from the glass tumbler in his hands. “Let’s not talk about my love life, let’s talk about yours.”
I groan. “Let’s not.” I reply, not really wanting to talk to him about Zoe. My feelings for her are just that. Mine.
“Oh, come on brother, you’re no fair. You disappeared from the gym yesterday evening and didn’t resurface until we all were gathered at the hospital. Did you guys spend the whole time together?”
I sigh deeply; it looks as though I’m not going to get away from not answering his questions. At least some of them, anyway.
“There’s really nothing to tell.” I begin. “We spent the rest of the day at the place she shares with Lexie. As you know, Lexie was working, and I got the feeling Zoe didn’t want to be alone, so I stayed with her.”
“Zoe cooked me dinner, and then we watched a movie. We both fell asleep until Kick’s text messages woke me up.” I explain. I wasn’t going to tell him about the severe case of blue balls I had when I woke up with Zoe’s soft and sexy body wrapped around me. How we got into that position, I’ll never know.
His dark eyebrows lift in disbelief. “You two just fell asleep on the couch without getting up to anything.”
I shoulder check him, getting pissed off. “I wasn’t going to do anything with her, asshole. She’s getting over being beaten and raped by her ex-husband, for fuck’s sake. I wasn’t going to do anything to jeopardize her recovery.” At least the brother looked genuinely remorseful for spewing the bullshit he did.
“Okay, I understand that, brother. But you must’ve noticed the way she was looking at you the whole time. And you’re the only one she lets touch her.” I couldn’t help my chest puffing out with pride at his words, because I’ve noticed that too. With other men in the club, even though she’s known them for years, she’s weary. But with me, she lets me touch her anytime.
So far, it’s been all innocent, except for the dirty words I used with her. I need her to get used to me. The man I am now. Not the boy that she knew over ten years ago.
I check my phone and see that it’s almost six in the morning. I need to get some sleep if I’m going to be any good to Zoe when I see her later on today. Throwing back the rest of my beer, I stand, ignoring Sin’s wistful glance in my direction. Shaking my head, Ky and I shake hands.
He leans in and asks, “You don’t mind if I tap that, do you?” He motions towards Sin, and I almost laugh.
“Not at all, brother. Go for it. She’s nothing to me, you know that.” With that said, I go to my room, needing to sleep as I lock the door, and literally face plant onto the bed, still fully clothed.