13. Aimee
Aimee
It’s been a week since I told Levi about the Iron Sinners kidnapping me fourteen years ago. I didn’t share the whole story but said enough that some of the weight lifted from my shoulders as the sun set in the desert.
I could tell Levi would have listened to me talk all night, but he didn’t push for more. There are holes in my story that will eventually gape. But for the time being, Levi respects that there are things I’m not ready to say.
So we orbit each other, knowing the time will come when we open old wounds. Just not yet.
It helps that Levi has been busy. He seems to work nonstop, helping his club or looking into the whereabouts of my father.
There’s no shortage of people demanding his time.
I watch from a distance as he slowly wears himself to complete exhaustion.
Which is why, as curious as I am to know if he’s getting anywhere, I don’t ask .
Besides, I’m familiar with how motorcycle clubs work. Our history might be deep, but there are limits to what he can tell me. All I can do now is trust he’ll make good on his promise.
I might hate his cut.
I might hate what his club represents.
But I believe Levi when he said he’ll help. It’s who he is. Who he’s always been.
A protector.
When we lay beneath the stars, I saw the truth. Levi didn’t change when he patched in; he’s been a biker all along. I wanted to ignore that side of him when we were teenagers, but it was only because he shielded me from it. Now, I’m finally seeing all sides of him.
Opposite ends that form the man he is.
Someone who is nothing like the bikers who ran my soul over. Who fights for a club nothing like the Iron Sinners.
The Twisted Kings are a family.
I stand in front of the mirror and check my outfit.
With Levi as busy as he is, I don’t know if he’ll be at the party tonight, but Reagan made me promise to make an appearance.
Up until now, I’ve avoided the main body of the clubhouse after the sun sets, retreating to Levi’s room with my dinner as soon as the music starts.
No matter how comfortable the guys have tried to make me in my time here, the madness of their parties rustles up memories I can’t escape. Times when Titan would force me to be at his side during the debauchery, whether I liked it or not .
Closing my eyes, I take a deep breath and brush my fingers over my outfit.
This isn’t the Iron Sinners clubhouse.
These men aren’t the same.
Levi would never let anything bad happen to me.
My shoulders relax, and I blink my eyes open.
My outfit is simple compared to the sexy dresses the patch bunnies will probably be wearing.
I won’t draw attention in a black tank top and dark-gray jeans.
But even if I’ve kept my outfit discreet, I decided at the last second to add a dash of eyeliner and to curl the ends of my hair.
It’s a small rebellion when I generally try to be plain and unnoticeable.
I’m allowed to make myself pretty without worrying how men will weaponize it.
With a final swipe of my lip gloss, I press my lips together and head for the door.
After that first night I stayed here, Levi swept through and cleaned up all his things, so there’s no longer a mess of clothes everywhere. But he hasn’t been back since, and I can’t help feeling a little bad that I’ve kicked him out of his room.
I swing the bedroom door open and head down the hallway, toward the sounds of laughing and cheers. As I pass a window, the smell of cigarette smoke filters inside. Still, the air in the clubhouse is surprisingly clear.
Reagan told me that Steel enforced a strict no-smoking indoors policy when Tempe got pregnant. That surprised me. It’s one more thing Titan would never do in his club because it would require him to care about the well-being of the women he holds there.
The moment I turn the corner to the main room of the clubhouse, I’m tempted to turn back around.
Reagan told me the club was still under lockdown, so there wouldn’t be any outsiders here tonight, but the room is still packed with people.
Most I recognize in passing, but I don’t know many of their names.
Across the room, my gaze snags on Levi, who’s sitting at the bar beside Ghost. Apparently, he found the time to be here tonight, regardless of how busy he’s been this past week. Or maybe he was told that he needs to be since all ranked members are in attendance.
I spot them scattered throughout the room.
Ghost and Levi at the bar, with Luna hanging on Ghost’s arm. Chaos and Soul are playing darts. While Steel and Legacy have claimed couches off to the side. Tempe is sitting on Steel’s lap while he rubs her growing belly. And Reagan is tucked under Legacy’s arm.
My stare shifts back to Levi while I consider my options, and I find him still staring at me. A cyclone of promises and regret brews in his eyes. There are things I want to tell him so he’ll understand why I can’t stay here after my father is rescued, but the past fourteen years stop me.
He deserves to move on, even if I can’t.
Finally taking my eyes off Levi, I cross the room to meet up with Reagan.
She smiles wide when she spots me and stands to give me a big hug. It takes me a second to remember I should probably hug her in return. So I plant a hand on her back and pat. Thankfully, she doesn’t make me feel bad for how awkward I am. When we pull apart, she’s still smiling.
“I was worried I was going to have to drag you out of your room.”
“I’m pretty sure you shouldn’t be dragging anything.” My gaze falls to her stomach.
“Then I’d have Jesse do it.” She smiles proudly, and I have no doubt he’d do anything she asks, given how he looks at her. “Do you want a drink?”
“I’m going to grab a water.” I tilt my head toward the bar. “But I’ll find you in a little bit.”
Reagan nods, sinking back onto the couch and falling into conversation with Tempe as I snake my way to the bar. Since Levi is on the end by the back doors, I move to the opposite side.
We used to be friends. He used to know me better than anyone. But right now, I don’t know what to say to him. Every look is a question I’m not ready to answer. It was easier hating him and shoving him away because now all he seems to see is the broken shards of what the Iron Sinners made me.
“For you.” Venom slides a water bottle across the bar the second I reach him, so he must have seen me coming.
The girls told me that Venom is one of the newest members to patch in, which is why he is always on escort duty when any of us need to get anywhere.
I don’t mind it because Venom is easy to be around.
He’s friendly without being pushy about it.
He doesn’t mind sitting in silence. And even if he’s usually smiling, I sense something darker hidden beneath the grins he uses to comfort the people around him.
“You saw me coming.” I pop the cap of the water bottle off and take a drink.
Venom grins. “I pay attention.”
“No wonder the ladies love you.”
“Not half as much as they love me.” Soul stops to my left, while Chaos leans on the bar at my right.
That simple feeling of being surrounded would have sent me into a spiral a week ago.
But with Chaos, Soul, and Venom, it doesn’t.
Of all the members, I see them the most around the clubhouse.
They don’t have families in the neighborhood or relationships that pull them away.
More often than not, when I lounge on the patio or a couch during the day, one of them will join me.
Sometimes we talk. Sometimes we don’t.
I appreciate the company they offer without having strings attached to it.
While I appreciate my growing friendship with Reagan, Tempe, and Luna, it’s different with the guys. They don’t look at me like they’re wondering what broke me or trying to figure out how to fix it.
They let me simply exist, no matter what mood I’m in.
“I don’t know why you bother arguing about it when any woman in this room would choose me over you assholes in a second.” Chaos grins.
“Bet?” Soul rests his elbows on the bar.
If there’s one thing I’ve learned about Soul in my short time around him, it’s that he can’t resist a challenge. Something Chaos is always more than happy to oblige .
“Help us out, Aimee.” Chaos spins so his back is to the bar. “Pick a girl.”
“So the two of you can annoy her for the night? That would be rude of me.” I turn to face the room, feeling Chaos grinning at my side.
“You’d rather we annoy you then?” Soul turns as well.
“You boys couldn’t handle me.”
Chaos and Soul burst out laughing, while Venom says, “Touché,” before disappearing to the other end of the bar.
“This isn’t actually a challenge if all the girls in the room already want to sleep with you.” I shrug. “And no, that’s not a compliment.”
“I’ll take it as one anyway.” Soul smiles.
“I’m sure you will.” I roll my eyes.
Scanning the crowd, I find Levi standing at the back door now, talking to Reina. I should probably be jealous when she smiles up at him, soaking in every word he says. But reading his posture, I wonder if she isn’t seeing what I am.
His arms are crossed over his chest, which he only does when he’s closing himself off. And his jaw is tense like it is when he’s stressed out.
She might be talking, but his mind isn’t on the conversation.
“He’s not fucking her,” Chaos says, following my gaze to Levi.
“I wouldn’t care if he were,” I lie.
Chaos hums. “And we’re the ones full of shit?”
Soul stretches his arm to cheers Chaos in front of me as if he’s in agreement .
“You’re as bad as the girls are. Always talking about relationships.” I lift off the bar, trying to divert the conversation. “Enough talking. Let’s do something more interesting.”
That catches Soul’s attention. “What did you have in mind?”
I shrug, and maybe I’ll regret it later, but I’m done caring. “Surprise me.”