Chapter 6
Chapter Six
Koa (Koa)
I’m going to try to play this cool and give Maddox the benefit of the doubt. To be completely honest, there's nothing he can say that will make me feel differently.
I'm cool. Cucumber type shit, that's me.
"Yo, guys, look at this!" I holler. Slow stomps surround me in the living room where I sit on the couch. Leaning forward, ass barely on the cushions, I hold my phone out for everyone to see. "Isn't it perfect for her?"
I know exactly how the three of them will react, and damn they don't disappoint. A sure-fire way to light a fuse under these assholes is to show them a picture from Cassie's social media. And a new motorcycle? Phew, we're going to be trapped in a raging inferno when they finally pop off.
Smirking, I note the twitch in Parker's tense jaw.
Poor fucker can't hide shit from us. He may only show his parents and us all the teddy bear energy in his big, dangerous body, but that doesn't mean he doesn't feel soft for anyone else.
Cassidy is one of those people he tries to convince himself he isn't good enough for.
It's incredibly infuriating when I know that's how he feels, but he makes other people believe he thinks he's better than everyone else.
Ripley's reaction gives me so much fucking joy I can't contain it.
With a full smile on my face, I relish his hostile growl and rising tension.
"What the actual fuck?! She's going to hurt herself on that!
! How did I not know this was happening?
! NO. JUST NO. She's not keeping it. I'll take it away before anything happens. "
Parker is inches away from our feral stalker and rolls his eyes. I, on the other hand, raise an eyebrow at Ripley. "Are you done?"
"NO! I'm not done!" he shouts.
Turning around, he yanks his hair back into a low ponytail and punches the wall. The tantrums this man has had about Cassidy? Let's just say there's a new hole in the sheetrock every week for one of the prospects to fix.
"Who let her do that?! She's reckless. Too fucking daring for her own good!"
Hmm. Is now a good time to push? Why the fuck not? "Well, since we're all under the illusion that we're protecting her by keeping our distance, I don't think anyone can let her do anything."
"Shut the fuck up, Koa," Parker snaps and grabs the TV remote.
Ignoring his half-assed attempt to stop the conversation, I look at Maddox to gauge his reaction. I hum and kick back in my seat. "You act like you knew, Maddy."
The use of Cassie's nickname for him causes something to flare in his gaze, but he's quick to shut it down. Muted and not fooling me, he shrugs. "Doesn't matter what she does. I don't care whether she ends up in a ditch or—"
Wrong thing to say when her obsessed stalker is standing right there...
With a loud curse and a fuck load of muscle, Ripley grabs Maddox by the throat and shoves him into the wall. Why must we do this constantly? "Say that again, Shade, and we're going to have a fucking problem," Ripley warns, all recognition of our love for one another gone.
Thankfully, that gets a reaction out of Maddox. His hands raise slowly, and he nods. "I didn't mean it. I'm sorry, Rip. I know how you feel about her."
That's all I can take. Slamming my phone down on the armrest, I stand to my full height and speed toward them. Ripley moves out of the way for me with ease. Without putting my hands on one of the men I love, I point my finger at Maddox's thick chest and give him all I’ve got.
"You knew. You ambushed her and Jake out on the edge of the state park. He was pretty tight lipped, but by the concern he was expressing for Cassie after being threatened to leave, it's pretty fucking clear you were a prick. What did you do, Shade?"
"Don't fucking call me that," he snaps.
Huffing, I step back and cross my arms. "I'll call you whatever I deem you're worthy of. And right now, I don't feel all that close to you. Did you or did you not fuck with her head then send her off to drive home with little to no experience on a new bike?"
Heat encompasses my right and left sides. With Parker and Ripley beside me, it bolsters my confidence against Maddox. I may be calling him by his road name right now, but I still love him to hell and back a trillion times.
"Does it matter?! She's nothing!" he spits, his body jerking at the words as if revolting against the lie.
I wave off Ripley's thundering growl, but I register how Parker stiffens beside me. Not so unaffected as he's trying to make himself out to be. "What happened after Jake left? Please, just tell us. I only want to make sure she got home safe."
Maddox tosses his hands in the air like I'm being ridiculous. "You saw the photo. She's fucking fine! And I'd bet you my favorite boots she called Jake right away."
"That photo was before she met up with Jake. Why do you think Jake is so concerned, dumbass? She hasn't responded to a single text in the past two hours."
Maddox stands there, stupidly silent while the three of us fume.
Parker shocks the shit out of me when he takes a menacing step forward and growls, "What are you so afraid to tell us?"
"FUCK! Look, it wasn't supposed to happen the way it did.
She just kept pushing me and pushing me.
I had to teach her a fucking lesson. Then, goddamn it," he moans and turns around, hitting the wall a few times.
With his head bowed, both hands holding himself up, he says, "I got the call that Victor would be dropping in this evening and I panicked.
Just hearing his fucking name while I was balls deep in Cassie—"
"You left her," Ripley states, sounding pained and furious at once, "because you were fucking scared. Did you come first? Did you even get her off?"
"What was the last thing you said to her? Or did you shove her aside and leave once you had your release?" Parker sounds ready to throw up.
What we're describing is not us. We're not bad men. Sure, we're assholes and brutal when it comes to protecting our brotherhood, but this? What it sounds like Maddox did, that's not who he is.
A shuddering breath leaves Maddox, and when he turns around, the single tear on his cheek feels like a physical blow to my heart.
"I pulled her away from my bike. She still had her pants down and my cum on her thighs," he grits out.
"The last thing I said was that would be the only way she'd ever get on a Shadows’ bike ever again. "
"YOU MOTHERFUCK—"
The shrill ringing of our phones halts our murderous uproar in one wave of dread. Maddox wipes the stray show of emotion from his face and straightens his shoulders. "We have bigger things to worry about right now."
Victor's here.