Chapter 25
Ghost
She’s still ignoring me. Not like before, when she’d look right through me like I didn’t fucking exist. Now, if her eyes land on me, by some goddamn miracle, she just narrows them.
Barely. Then looks away. Like I’m filth.
Like I’m something stuck to the bottom of her shoe.
Like I’m not even worth the energy it takes to hate me.
And maybe I’m not. She got what she wanted, me signing those cursed fucking papers, and now I’m scrap. Tossed. Done.
I sigh and look away from where she’s standing. She’s surrounded by people. Ol’ ladies. Brothers. Ria. Temperance. Just like before, more than a decade ago.
She doesn’t even realize the effect she has on others. She never did, because of the shadows in her mind. They make her think no one really wants to be around her, but it couldn’t be further from the truth.
Those shadows are the only reason she was alone when I found her and dragged her to my dungeon. People want to get close to her, but she keeps them at a distance without even meaning to.
Only someone as pushy as Ria could’ve ever broken through. And, somehow, me. I broke through twice. Could I—? No. No, I can’t. Stop fucking thinking that!
Fuck. The itch won’t stop. This fucking thought — this need to have her back — it’s been crawling under my skin ever since she handed me those papers, four fucking days ago. At first it was quiet, just a whisper. Now it’s screaming.
On Friday, she was skipping around the clubhouse like she hadn’t downed half the damn bar the night before with Ria and Temperance. And I just watched her from a distance, waiting for those few seconds when her eyes would find me.
I couldn’t even make myself clean my room. The one she destroyed. Because she created that mess, and I’d rather live buried in the aftermath of her rage, than not have it at all.
My violin is destroyed. I could fix it, but what would be the point? Which reminds me...
I jerk my chin at Ria to follow me outside, and wait for her to move first. She points a finger at her chest and raises an eyebrow in challenge. I nod, waiting for her to make this difficult. To my surprise, she doesn’t.
She strolls toward the door, movements casual. Suspicious as fuck. I follow.
“What do you want, Fade Vader?” she asks the moment I’m facing her.
I sigh. Damn her and her nicknames. Does she have a fucking list?
I pull out my phone and start scrolling. “I’m sending you a file. It’s a recording.” I glance at her, then back down. “It’ll help Adora if she spirals while she’s here. Works best if she counts to ten while it plays.”
She purses her lips and cocks her head, studying me.
“Why didn’t you send this recording months ago?” Her eyes narrow dangerously. “That’s when she needed it most, you know. She’s better now. Stronger. She can survive the clubhouse without a problem. She’s thriving here, actually.”
I close my eyes for a second. Breathe through the pain cutting straight into my chest.
“I didn’t have it recorded back then, Ria,” I murmur. “And she’s got me blocked or something. None of my messages ever got through.”
I hit send. My nostrils flare the second a red ‘failed’ appears.
“When the fuck did you block me?” I growl.
She smiles smugly, pulls out her phone, and starts tapping.
“After I shot you with the dart. Felt like the perfect ending to our hate song, Ghoulio Iglesias.” She looks at me, still smiling. “You can send it now,” she chirps.
“Don’t block me again. Not until this whole snake mess is over,” I snap, sending it again.
“You got it, Poltergrump,” she declares, offering a mock salute that sends a flare of irritation through me. How the hell does Tank deal with her?
“Good,” I murmur, checking the time. “If you don’t leave now, you’ll be late to the shop. And Adora’s due at the bookstore.”
She crosses her arms and smirks. “Still planning to play second fiddle to Domino?”
I see red. Instantly. The second she says that fucker’s name. He’s always too close to her. Too fucking friendly. And she smiles at him. Careless. Easy. Just like she used to smile at me.
It hurts. It fucking hurts.
I can’t believe I’m the one who sent him to her in the first place. Fuck my life.
I turn and head for my bike without a word, leaving Ria cackling behind me.
I swing a leg over the seat and settle onto the bike, thinking about the best spot to hole up today. There’s one with a perfect view of the bookstore and the coffee shop.
I sigh. I’ll need to keep an eye on Belladonna Brew too. Just in case.
The moment everyone walks through the clubhouse doors, I turn the key. The engine roars to life… and so does something else.
PFFFFFT.
A burst of soft, sparkly, and horrifyingly pink air hits me in the face. Like a fairy princess just threw up all over me.
“What the fuck,” I murmur, stunned. Completely fucking stunned.
Fine glitter explodes around me in a shimmering cloud. It’s everywhere! Raining down from under the handlebars, sticking to my jacket, clinging to my beard, coating my sunglasses. My hands look like I just strangled a unicorn.
I sit there, frozen. Sparkling. Pink. Fucking pink.
Tiny flecks drift through the air in slow motion, catching the sunlight like I’m in the world’s worst magic show. A couple of prospects near the clubhouse burst into laughter. One of them actually doubles over.
I don’t move. Not a fucking twitch. I just breathe through my nose, rage simmering under my skin. I knew Mindfuck started a prank war weeks ago, I just didn’t think anyone was stupid enough to mess with me. They all know I don’t deal with childish shit.
I glance down at the tank. There’s glitter all over the damn fuel cap. Someone’s gonna die for this.
I’m about to get off my bike and straight-up murder an asshole, when I hear it. The most beautiful sound in the universe. I look up, and Adora’s laughing. The idiots around her are laughing too, but I barely notice them.
Her laughter turns into a smug as hell smirk, and she starts walking toward me. Slow. Confident. Like she owns the whole world. Her hips sway hypnotically, and her eyes glint with satisfaction. She’s definitely not ignoring me anymore.
She stops in front of me, tilts her head to the right, and reaches out. Her finger touches my cheek. Just a tap, but I feel it straight to my soul. She holds it up between us, watching the fleck of pink glitter shimmering on her fingertip.
I can’t say a single word. I’m afraid I might shatter whatever spell this is.
“You really should listen when I tell you something,” she says, voice smooth and coated in sugar.
I blink, still gripping the handlebars tightly. “What?”
She steps closer and shrugs, like it’s obvious. Like I’m an idiot.
“I told you I don’t want you as my bodyguard. But instead of listening, you barked. You gave an order and expected me to fall in line.”
Her gaze sweeps over the cloud of glitter still dancing in the air around me. “Now you need to accept the consequences. They will stay with you for weeks to come.”
“I stepped back. You got Domino,” I say, still a little stunned.
She gestures to the sparkling disaster I’m currently sitting in, and smiles, all teeth and satisfaction.
“But you made me work for it first. Let the glitter remind you what happens when you don’t listen to me, Ghostie.” She glares suddenly. “I had help with this. There better be no blowback.”
Then she turns on her heel before I can speak. Walks away, hips swaying, straight to Ria and Temperance, and high-fives them both.
Bones moves toward me, eyes wide, barely holding in his laughter. I narrow mine, slide my aviators down, and point a finger at him.
“Your woman was part of this. Just for that, I’m taking your new Iron today,” I snap, though it doesn’t land as hard as I want. At the end of the day, if pink fucking glitter makes her laugh, then she can drown me in it. I’m still making Bones pay, though.
“The hell you are,” Bones snarls, no trace of laughter now. “You can take the King. Not my new bike.”
“It’s either the Iron, or I let Temperance know you already ordered her new Ol’ Lady cut,” I whisper harshly, eyes locked on his.
He stares right back. A beat. Two. Then he sighs, exasperated.
“Fuck, you’re mean,” he mutters, glaring as he yanks the keys out of his pocket and throws them at me.
I catch them with one hand.
“You’ve got an entire outline of pink glitter around your eyes from those sunglasses, fucker,” he spits, then turns and walks away.
I don’t even realize when a smile tugs at the corner of my mouth. I watch him go, and when my eyes drift, they lock with Adora’s. She’s looking at me funny. She’s plotting. Wonderful. I’m fucked.
But I’d rather face her hurricane than her silence.
Bring it on, adorable.
“What a fucking ball-twister of a day,” I mutter to myself, slamming the door to my office behind me.
I had to watch Domino make googly eyes at Adora all day. He kept making her laugh while all I could do was watch from a distance. Sparkling like a fucking disco ball. Not knowing what the hell he was saying to her felt like nails being pounded into my brain.
To top it all off, that Griffin fucker also stopped by. All smiles and casual touches.
Fuck. I’m bugging the bookstore. Tonight.
Shit. No. I can’t do that. Can I?
I’ll give it a few hours to think about it.
I slump in my chair with a heavy sigh and start the check-in process with Viv and Myth.
I’m barely done when Bones walks in. No knock.
He thinks it’ll annoy me enough to start knocking when I go to his office.
Back in Driftwood, I didn’t have one. The clubhouse wasn’t big enough.
He’s been thrilled to pay me back for my lack of respect ever since we moved here. Sucks for him, I don’t mind it.
He takes a seat but doesn’t say a word. Just watches me with narrowed eyes. I wait him out, let him stew in the silence.
Finally, he rolls his eyes and blows a breath.
“You still have glitter all over you,” he says, voice casual.