Chapter 12 #3
“You’re a bunch of assholes. I’m going to the bar. Not getting any of you shit,” I said, stalking away, desperate for a drink. I couldn’t take the idea of another man getting too close to Fiona, putting his hands on her.
It had been close to forty-five minutes since Fee had arrived at the cookout, and the Old Ladies still had Fiona in their grips.
As if sensing my unease, Charlie let out a beleaguered sigh before marching over to the table of women.
I watched as she greeted the Old Ladies before dragging Fee back toward us.
Once she was close to us, I couldn’t help but pull my girl to me, grateful to have her by my side finally.
“You’re so needy, Bash. Fee, you gonna be okay with that?” Charlie asked as I buried my face in Fiona’s hair.
“Yeah, I think I’m okay with that,” she replied in her melodic voice. I pulled back to see her looking at me, a smile spreading across her face, causing her eyes to sparkle.
I couldn’t help the matching smile that crossed my face, seeing her so settled among the people I cared about most. Charlie rolled her eyes and changed the conversation topic to something that wasn’t about me or Fiona.
An hour passed, and the party heated up.
The music was blasting, and Brothers and women were packed into the clubhouse and scattered throughout the backyard.
Nothing terrible had happened, so when Fiona left for the bathroom, I figured using the one in my room would be more comfortable for her.
Over ten minutes had passed, and I was starting to worry.
I checked my watch, startled when Trish flounced over to me, latching onto my arm.
Before I could shake her loose, she started shouting.
“Bash! That girl! The redhead? She’s crazy. She attacked me upstairs!” I could barely hear her over the sound of the music, but I could tell she was genuinely upset.
“What happened?” I asked, leaning toward her to hear better.
“Fiona! She said terrible things to me!” Trish wailed.
I frowned down at her, having a hard time picturing Fiona starting a fight.
I scanned the room until a flash of copper caught my eye.
Fiona was at the bar with Edge, the Enforcer from the SC charter.
Jealousy licked through me as I saw his arm around her.
As if sensing my anger, Fee turned around and locked eyes with me.
Instead of shrinking from my glare, she gave Trish, who was still pressed against me, a pointed look before turning her back to me.
I looked down and sighed, knowing our position looked bad, not to mention, I had no idea what bullshit Trish had spewed to Fiona upstairs.
I grabbed her by the upper arm and hauled her toward the bar.
“Bash! Ow! You’re hurting me!” she complained.
“Then walk faster,” was my only reply. Reading my mood, most people scurried out of the way until I was behind Edge and Fee.
“Here you go, beautiful,” he said, passing a beer to her. Before Fiona could take it from his hand, I grabbed the bottle and slammed it onto the table next to us, making foam erupt, mirroring the anger pouring out of me perfectly.
“Hands off, Edge. She’s spoken for.” He looked surprised, but then smiled, eager at the chance to fuck with me.
“That so? You with Bash, baby doll?” he asked Fiona.
“For now. Although, I’ve been told I’m just the flavor of the week.
My expiration date is just around the corner,” she said casually, but I could see the fire in her eyes.
I felt Trish start to stiffen in my grip.
I turned to her and pulled her forward, my hand around her arm the only thing keeping her from toppling over in her ridiculously high heels.
“Explain,” I commanded.
“She started it, Bash. I was just trying to be nice...” Fiona let out a harsh laugh at that, and I turned to her.
“What did she say to you?”
“Oh, you know, typical girl stuff. Mostly your favorite sex positions. Apparently, you just love it when she rides you. Giddyup, cowboy,” Fee said sarcastically as Edge laughed behind her.
“Although, I imagine reverse cowboy would work better, since there’s no way you’re gonna get any real bounce out of those fake tits,” Fiona continued, and Trish gasped, then quickly started rearing up to lash out at Fee.
“ENOUGH,” I roared in Trish’s face. Making sure to speak loud and clear, I addressed the meddling bitch.
“We are not together. We were never a couple or in a relationship. You were never anything more than an easy fuck. You have no claim on me, and if you cause another problem, I will have you banned from any and all club events.” There was a crowd around us now.
Trish was staring at her feet, her face flaming.
Her usual posse of girls was avoiding the entire scene, not one of them willing to step in as backup.
I looked up and saw Fiona still standing next to Edge, and a growl escaped me.
Letting go of Trish, I yanked Fee against my chest and kissed her hard.
When I looked up, several of the MC Brothers and club girls were watching us.
Taking advantage of their attention, I made an announcement.
“Fiona’s mine. Hands off. Anyone fucks with her, you deal with me,” I said, looking at both Edge and Trish. Edge lifted his hands in surrender and took a step back.
“Not trying to get my ass kicked, but if there were ever a woman worth fighting over, I’d go a round or two for her.” I looked down at Fee, who was watching Trish with a tinge of amusement. I curled my girl into my chest and leaned down until I was whispering in her ear.
“What were you thinking, troublemaker? Are you trying to get your ass tanned?” She blinked up at me, and I didn’t miss the blush of arousal that spread across her cheeks. She gave a careless shrug before replying.
“I’m not always going to be around to protect your virtue.
Needed to make sure you could handle yourself,” Fiona said casually, but I knew she also needed the reassurance that I didn’t want anyone else, that she was more than enough.
It was urgently clear to me that the club girls and townies needed to get the message that I was off the market real quick.
Sensing she wasn’t going to get anywhere with me, Trish stalked off, and Edge wisely headed back to the opposite side of the room.
I stepped closer to the bar to get a fresh beer for Fiona, then escorted her back to the table.
As we approached, Charlie started a slow clap, Bull and Match joining in.
All the seats were taken, so I tucked Fiona in front of me as we sidled up to the table.
Before either of us could get a word out, Charlie jumped right in.
“I TOLD you she was gonna be trouble. Did you really just have Fiona break up with Trish for you? Sloppy work, brother.” I sighed, not interested in talking about Trish any further.
“I feel kind of bad for her,” Fee said, and all heads whipped to her. Seeing our confused responses, she spoke.
“Don’t get me wrong, she’s a bitch, and I’m not writing off what just happened.
I just think it comes from a place of deep insecurity—or even scarier, desperation.
I can’t imagine that she has a lot of true connections with anyone, not just men.
It seems like she pins all her self-worth on other people and doesn’t have a true identity.
When she doesn’t have someone to fixate on, that’s when she’s really gonna let the crazy out. ”
“Bunny boiler. I called it months ago. Don’t listen to anything she said. My brother may not be the smartest tool in the shed, but he honestly hasn’t been anywhere near her in, well, since he met you, now that I think about it. I practically live at his house, so I can vouch for him,” Charlie said.
Fee turned to me, and I didn’t know which emotion to settle on. I was angry at myself, and at Trish. I was confused by Fee’s response, but mostly embarrassed that we were having that conversation in front of everyone.
“You okay?” Fiona asked, nudging me with her shoulder. Her voice was low, meant just for me, despite the fact that the entire table was watching us.
“I don’t like that she got in your face. I don’t like that another man had his hands on you. Mostly, I don’t like that Charlie’s right, and I should have handled Trish months ago. I’m sorry, pretty girl. Please believe me when I say that I haven’t touched another woman since I met you.”
“Bash, it’s okay. I believe you. We’re all good,” Fiona replied. She reached a hand up to cup my cheek, as if trying to physically stop the frown forming there.
“Really? That’s it? You’re not going to grill me to find out the exact time I spoke to her last?” I spit out, because I apparently had no filter anymore.
“Um, did you want me to do that?” Fee replied, looking confused and slightly amused.
“No. I just… I want to make sure you’re comfortable. Whatever you need or want to know, I’ll tell you,” I sputtered out, meaning every word.
Fiona turned her head, taking in our silent crowd, who were blatantly attempting to listen to everything we said. Turning back to me, she stood up on her tiptoes before pulling my head down toward hers, so she could yell directly into my ear.
“I trust you, Bash. You don’t have to defend yourself for things that happened before we met. Now, kiss me so we can change the subject, and these gossips can find somebody else to focus on.”
That quickly, my concern moved to laughter as I couldn’t help but kiss Fiona’s smiling face.
I pulled away, and her cheeks were flushed, her eyes glassy.
I didn’t know how I got so lucky, but I was going to spend every moment going forward doing whatever I needed to do to protect that woman and the relationship we were building.
Tucking her back into my side, I let out a sigh of relief, believing the hard part of the night was over. Things settled back down, and the next hour passed without any drama, Fee secured to my side, surrounded by those I trusted most.
When Prez requested I swing by his table to talk shop, I was hesitant to leave Fiona again. As if they knew what I was thinking, Bull and Match immediately shifted so they could take my spot next to Fee, keeping her safe from anyone trying to come near her.
Reaper gave me a knowing grin, and I sighed before pressing a quick kiss to Fiona, promising I would be back shortly. I thought things had finally settled down, that it would be okay to step away from her side. But it turned out, the turmoil of the night wasn’t over just yet.