Chapter 10 #3
“I’m man enough to take a spanking for the Prez’s love life,” he says, deadpan. Then his eyes go wide. “Wait — fuck. That came out wrong.”
He scrubs a hand down his face. “You fuckers know what I mean. We deserve it.”
There’s a beat. And then, one by one, the heads nod in silent, guilty agreement.
We watched. We let it happen. We deserve it.
Bones leans forward, arms braced on the table. “That’s settled then.”
Meeting adjourned. In a week, we’ll be marching toward our execution. With our pants down.
That fucking paddle should be classified as a torture device. I can still feel its sting.
I want to go home. To her. Why the fuck did Temperance have to trash our bikes too? I don’t want to sleep here. I can’t stay here. Not… without her.
I need to borrow a ride.
Fuck, I’m fucked. I’m in deep.
This is bad. This is really bad. I’m getting too attached. What the hell am I doing?
“You ok?” Bones’ voice cuts through the dark.
He’s stepping out the back door of the clubhouse, walking onto the deck with measured steps, looking like death itself.
“Yeah,” I say, tone clipped. Not convincing at all.
He watches me for a beat. “What do you need?”
I sigh and straighten up. “A ride. I need to go home.”
“Take a cage,” he says. Then pauses, as if weighing his words. “It’ll be… painful.”
The corner of my mouth lifts. “My need to sleep in my own bed outweighs the pain, Bones.”
He nods once, his expression serious. He thinks he knows why. And a few months ago, he would’ve been right. But not now. Now, it’s not space that I need. It’s Adora. Fuck!
Another breath escapes me as I glance up at the night sky. Everything feels heavier.
“She won’t forgive you,” I say quietly, the words falling like lead.
His voice comes back raw. “I can’t believe that.”
I turn to him and stare him dead in the eye.
“The kind of pain she’s carrying? Maybe this revenge shit will take the edge off. But it won’t disappear. Not completely. She might forget for a few hours. Maybe even days. But it comes back.” I clench my jaw. “It always comes back.”
The warning hangs in the air before I say it.
“She’s going to kill you, Kane.”
He holds my gaze, something broken flickering in his eyes. “Then she’ll kill me.” His voice is calm, like he’s already made peace with it. “If my death heals something in her… then so be it.”
“That’s fucking stupid,” I snap, voice full of heat I didn’t plan to let out. “You die, and what? She gets her revenge, but what about us? What about your brothers? The club? Me?” I’m such a fucking hypocrite.
His face tightens, eyes full of sorrow. “You’ll be fine, Dom,” he says softly. “The club is a family. You won’t be alone.”
He doesn’t stop. “She needs me more. She’s in pain. So much fucking pain. And I did that to her. I’ll try not to let her kill me, I promise I’ll try. But if it comes down to it, if she really needs me to give her my life…”
He swallows.
“I will.”
“Then you’re already dead,” I mutter. The words leave no room for argument.
A muscle ticks in his jaw. He looks away for a moment, then back at me. “Where’s Adora?”
My stomach drops.
“I know you’ve got eyes on her,” he continues. “Did she ever go back to Willow Harbor after the divorce?”
Relief trickles in — he doesn’t know. Not yet.
I shake my head. “She didn’t go back.”
“You could go get her,” he says casually, like we’re discussing groceries. “It’s not three years yet, but if she hasn’t gone back to Willow Harbor, chances are she’s not in contact with the cop. It’s only a few months early. You could finish her quickly. Take a day or two, and be done with it.”
I keep my voice even. Bury everything as deep as I can. In the end, it doesn’t matter what I feel, all that matters is that she follows the script.
“I’ll wait,” I say. “See what happens with you and Temperance first. What I’m planning for Adora…”
I pause. It stings too much to finish.
“…It’ll take time.”
The road stretches in front of me, slick with rain, looking like a postcard from hell at this late hour.
Or is it too early? I grip the handlebars of my bike tighter, teeth clenching.
It took me almost the entire night to finish a job at the clubhouse that would’ve normally taken no more than two hours.
I couldn’t stop checking Adora’s tracker, even though all she was doing was sleeping. And I couldn’t stop thinking about the fact that the five months are almost up.
Is it too early to finish it? Or should I just do it, no matter what?
Am I ready?
I don’t think so, and that’s a huge fucking problem. She caught me in her hurricane again, and she’s been spinning me around and around, higher and higher, this whole time. Now I feel like I’m about to crash into the ground at the speed of light.
I shouldn’t have taken this much time. I got greedy, and now I’m paying for it.
Memories from another time I was afraid of losing her have been haunting me all week. A time when there was no revenge plan. When it was just us.
…
I step forward slowly, my heart pounding hard enough to bruise my ribs.
“What are you doing, adorable?”
Every instinct in me screams to shout, to grab, to demand. Instead, I force my voice low, trying to keep calm.
She flinches at the sound of it and her eyes snap to mine, wide and frightened.
“I… I…” she stammers, drawing in shaky breaths.
Her gaze drops back to the gun on the table. She pulls her hand away from it quickly.
I shudder on the inside. I wasn’t gone long. She came at the clubhouse earlier, already shaken. Crying. In the five months we’ve been together, I’ve never seen her like that. I calmed her down, then she asked for pancakes, but didn’t want to come downstairs to the kitchen.
Fuck. I didn’t even realize I’d left my gun behind. Why the fuck was she touching it like that? It looked wrong as fuck.
A smile curves her mouth, but it doesn’t look right. Her eyes aren’t smiling.
“I’m sorry, Dominic,” she says softly, tilting her head. “I was just curious.”
Her gaze flicks to the plate in my hand, and she steps toward me, that smile stretching wider.
“Thank you for the pancakes.”
I study her for a long moment, my heart still pounding. I’ll let her eat. Then I’m taking her for a ride to clear her head — and mine — and we’re going to talk.
…
That fucking memory almost makes me lose control of the bike. That was when she told me about some of her mother’s punishments. I was ready to kill the bitch, but she didn’t want that. Said it was too risky for her sister. So I started working on a plan, trying to get them both out of that house.
And then she ruined me. What a fucking idiot I was. She was nothing but lies soaked in honey, and I need to remember that.
The thought settles something inside me. I feel some of the control returning. Fuck, I hope it lasts.
I ride for a few more hours, clearing my head until sunrise.
When I finally step through the cabin’s front door, Adora’s already awake, having coffee in the kitchen.
I make a beeline for her, like a moth unable to resist the flame.
“Good morning, adorable,” I murmur, hiding the storm inside me behind a smile.
“What’s got you in such a good mood?” she whispers, smiling back.
I grab her waist, pull her closer, and grin.
“I’m free today. I was thinking I could make us some sandwiches, you take your book, I take mine, and we use that rowboat at the dock to read, swim, and sunbathe in the middle of the lake all day.” I peck her lips. “And maybe see how much we can rock the boat before we end up overboard.”
Her eyes light up. “Give me ten.”
Perfect. She's fucking perfect. I’m doomed.