Chapter 1 #2
She’s retained nothing from the class, which means I have to start from scratch. This is going to be harder than I thought and pulling out a notepad, I start with the basics, but I’ve barely gotten going when she leans back and groans, “This is useless.”
“No, it’s not. Just walk through it with me.”
Snorting, she rolls away and grabs a box from beneath her bed. “You’ll say anything to get paid.”
I open my mouth to argue but pause when she produces a joint and proceeds to light up.
I’m pretty sure this is not going to help her concentration.
Whatever.
Closing the book, I shove my shit back in my bag and say, “Maybe I should go.”
She shrugs, inhaling deeply and I eye her for a moment before saying, “If you don’t want to do this, just say so.”
Her eyes meet mine, the dark irises spacy. “Whatever. I don’t need your fucking pity.”
“Who said that?” I mutter because the last thing I feel is sorry for her.
“You think–”
She’s cut off by the sound of a roaring motor and we both look at the window as it approaches.
“Fuck,” she mutters, extinguishing the joint on the sole of her shoe before grabbing the notebook out of my hand and shoving it under the bed.
Bemused, I cock my head as the sound of heavy boots rings on the floor. Draven’s eyes droop and she rubs her face before pulling up a bitchy smile just as the door swings open.
I’m not sure what I was expecting but it’s not six-foot-something of sheer muscle.
He’s so ridiculously male that I think my brain fries and I drop my gaze, practically salivating for another look while he barks, “What the fuck, Dray?”
His arms gleam in the light, covered from wrist to shoulder in swirling ink and I can’t help but wonder what he’s hiding beneath his tight white shirt.
When his black as sin eyes meet her stare, I shrink from his nasty frown, but she’s immune as she says, “Fuck off.”
He’s MC, easy to see from the vest he’s wearing with the distinctive patches proclaiming him one of the Shadow Saints—a dark angel holding two swords against his chest.
It’s no secret that our small town is overrun with bikers. I suppose even if it were, I’d know about it from Peter anyway.
As a cop, he’s constantly dealing with them and the Smokin’ Aces, neither of which he has anything good to say about.
Pushing away images of Peter and his possible displeasure, I glance between them cautiously as the sexy biker’s wide, sensual lips thin.
“You know what time it is?” he says. “You’re fucking late. Put on the fucking dress and meet me outside.”
“Can’t.” She waves her hand in the air.
“Why the fuck not?”
“Company.” She points at me, and he glances over, his dark eyes glittering with frustration as his brows furrow.
“Who the fuck is she?”
“Friend.”
He snorts and eyes me like I’m a phantom or some shit. “You don’t have friends.”
“Sure, I do,” she says with a bitchy smile.
“Yeah? Who?” he snarls.
My neck is starting to hurt from the back and forth, but I’d be lying if I said this wasn’t fascinating.
So, this is Draven’s home life.
Draven yawns and says, “Delaney.”
He glances at me again and sighs before running his hands over his face. “Look, just get ready.”
“Fine,” she says, “but I have to take Delaney home.”
Shaking his head, he mutters under his breath, “Make it fucking quick.”
When he slams the door, I look at Draven who sighs dramatically and pushes to her feet.
“Who was that?” I ask while she retrieves a pink, puffy monstrosity from the closet and drops it to the floor.
She steps on it for good measure before pulling her shirt over her head.
“My brother. He’s an asshole but rumor has it he has a big dick if you want to give it a go. Although I doubt it.”
Averting my gaze when she rips off her bra and drops her shorts I mumble, “Um.”
I don’t really have a good response because now that she’s mentioned his dick, I’m envisioning what he might look like, naked, and sweaty and….
Wow.
Draven pulls the dress on and stares down her reflection in the mirror with a snarl. I share the sentiment because it’s hideous with a ballerina skirt and yards of tulle.
However, with her fishnet stockings and combat boots, somehow, she makes it work.
Apparently satisfied, sort of, she grabs the joint and her bag and motions to the door, saying, “Let’s go before Maddox loses his shit.”
“You mean he hasn’t already?” I mumble following her down the hall.
I’m insanely curious about where she has to go in that outfit but wisely, I refrain from asking.
When we exit, Maddox is sitting on his bike. If you had asked me twenty minutes ago if I thought bikers were hot, I would’ve laughed.
Now as I take in his silky dark hair and five o’clock shadow, my tummy swirls and I slide my gaze away, hoping he can’t sense my bewildering attraction.
This is when he climbs from his bike and holds out his hand to which I raise mine before dropping it quickly as Draven says, “What? No way.”
“You think I want to babysit your ass?” he says, eyeing me sideways. “This is from Pops himself. Gimme the keys. Let’s roll.”
Draven stomps her foot but tosses him the keys. He grabs them out of the air with a grunt and strides around the car while I climb in the back and sink in my seat, still mortified.
What was I thinking? That he wanted to hold my hand?
While Draven mutters profanities, Maddox removes his vest and folds it inside out before laying it across the seat.
Dropping my head, I stare at my bag as he slides behind the wheel and says, “Where do you live?”
When I look up, he’s staring over the seat. Jesus, just kill me now.
“Omega Heights,” I murmur.
His gaze drops to my cheer uniform and his brows rise before he shakes his head. I’m guessing he didn’t expect me to live in the park, but appearances can be deceiving. Look at their pretty house in the woods.
Once we’re back on the highway, I cover my burning cheeks wishing I could crawl into a hole, but they further flame when I glance up and find him watching me in the mirror.
His mouth curls at the corner, revealing a devastating dimple in his cheek and my heart thumps before he looks away when Draven rolls down the window.
I’m thankful for the reprieve and the remainder of the ride is silent while Draven stews stiffly and Maddox cruises through town.
“It’s um, here,” I say, pointing to the shit hole that used to be a trailer on the corner.
The door doesn’t close, and Joey’s fix was to add bungee cords. The front window has plastic over the hole and his truck which stopped running three years ago is a rusting heap in the pathetic excuse for a drive.
And fantastic, he’s sitting in a lawn chair out front in nothing but his boxers, clutching a beer. Could this day get any worse?
“Jesus,” Draven mutters. “And I thought my dad was bad.”
Ignoring the comment, I step from the car.
A last look at Maddox reveals him staring at Joey with furrowed brows and when he stands, weaves in place and stumbles forward, Draven cocks her head.
From here, I can see skin through the gap in his boxers and I step between them. It’s bad enough that they’re getting a front row viewing of this free fucking show, but I’d prefer that Draven leaves without spotting his wrinkly dick.
“What’s this?” Joey slurs and I mentally wince. Just go the fuck inside, asshole.
“Nothing,” I say, smiling pathetically at Draven. “Thanks for the ride.”
“Your mom called again. Tell that bitch I don’t got nothing to say,” he grumbles while Draven drops back into her seat, and I pray they just go.
“You hear me?” he says, grabbing my arm.
“Yeah,” I snarl, pulling away.
The glare off the windshield prevents me from seeing Maddox’s expression and with a sigh, I mumble, “C’mon.”
“Who’re they?” Joey asks, turning to the siblings.
Thankfully, Maddox puts the muscle car in reverse and backs out of the spot while Draven says something to him, waving her arms around.
I assume based on Maddox’s scowl that they’re arguing again which works for me because I don’t think I can stand anymore humiliation today.
Finally, Joey backs away, scratching his belly and I follow.
When he throws the door open, it hits the wall with a thwack before he practically climbs the stairs to get inside.
After collapsing to the couch, he clutches his head and hoping to avoid him, I move toward the back, as he says, “Call your fucking mom. I’m tired of listening to her bitch.”
“Why?” I ask, pausing at the threshold to the room. It’s the only mercy I have because he chose to sleep on the couch, and I have a modicum of privacy.
I’m quite sure he didn’t do it with any thought for me. Nope, sleeping on the couch puts him closer to the refrigerator.
“I don’t fucking know. Just do it.”
“We have nothing to say,” I mutter, and he sighs.
“She ain’t gonna give up.”
With a humorless smile, I drop my bag on the bed. She will give up.
Maybe she’s convinced herself that she’s better, but without confessing her sins, the wound continues to fester.
Whatever. It’s not my problem. I tried but she didn’t want my help.
“I’m taking a shower,” I say, and he sags into the couch, grabbing the can of beer by his head.
I guess we’re both happy to end the father-daughter moment.
Maddox
It’s bad enough that I have to retrieve my sister when she knows better but now, I’m driving her supposed friend across town in the opposite direction of the compound.
Shit. Pops will have my hide if Wolf doesn’t get to me first. This is Lilli’s big day and as usual, Dray doesn’t give a fuck.
When did my sweet little sister turn into such a fucking sourpuss?
Fuck me but she has to be lying about this girl because my sister would rather eat shit than hang out with a cheerleader.
So, what’s my baby sister up to now?
Notwithstanding the fact that the little beauty with the pretty eye’s lives in a rundown trailer park, I’m racking my brain trying to figure out why her dad looked so familiar.
It’s not like I hang out with a lot of people. I grew up MC with Pops being president. We stick to our own for the most part.
So where have I seen him before? Who the fuck knows. Maybe I saw him at the gas station or some shit.
Eyeing Draven, with her face in her phone, I shake my head.
I know it’s been a tough road. Our mom’s been dead for ten years now. On a day like today, we should be celebrating but there’s always a part of me burning to finish this and until we find the man responsible for her death, I can’t breathe easy.
It’s worse for Draven though because Pops didn’t know what to do with an eight-year-old little girl. I tried my best to fill Mom’s shoes, but I didn’t know shit about dolls and rainbows and fucking hormones.
Now she’s hell on wheels and I worry about the path she continues to take. We may not be perfect but we’re a family, although Draven seems to have forgotten what that means.
Anymore, she seems to hate us and for the life of me, I can’t figure out why. She used to talk to Romeo. Thank God for that fucker but even he’s taken to avoiding her.
She ain’t my problem but she is my sister. I just don’t know how to reach her anymore.
When we roll up to the clubhouse, Pops is waiting at the gate. Immune to his displeasure, of course, Draven stalks past him. His brows furrow but he doesn’t comment while we move into the outdoor kitchen area.
Much like Duke’s ceremony with his woman, we set up a tent in the grass beyond with rows of chairs for the families. Thankfully despite the dropping temperatures, it’s a mild fall day.
The ceremony is quick and to the point, just the way we like it. Lilli smiles from ear to ear the entire time while her sisters look on with matching grins.
Little Mercy with her bright red hair shines and my chest clenches when I consider the past they are finally leaving behind. The Abernathy girls deserve nothing but peace and now that both Miriam and Lilli have claimed their men, the Shadow Saints will stop at nothing to make sure it happens.
That's why I’m proud to follow in my grandfather and father’s footsteps. We may not always be on the right side of the law, but we protect what’s ours and never target the innocent.
The Shadow Saints formed out of the ashes of my grandfather’s sister's death. Stone Montgomery refused to standby while her killer remained free, and the Saints meted out the justice that she deserved.
Later, when someone touches my arm, I glance up to find Lilli beside me. When a chill marches down my spine, I move away with a chuckle to cover my unease.
“I never got to thank you,” she says, her dark eyes shining. “For bringing, Dray.”
Oh…that was a fun car ride—not. Still, it was worth it to see Lilli smile.
“No problem,” I rasp, and Lilli cocks her head.
She’s so small and frail in comparison to Wolf and once again, I battle an uneasy feeling and move away, joining Romeo by the keg.
It takes a special woman to join with a man who’s MC. It’s not an easy road and I hope that she’s up for the challenge.
While we protect our women, we purposely exclude them from the business.
Is Lilli willing to operate in the dark? What happens if the Aces act up again?
Shaking away the grim thoughts, I focus back on the celebration. We set this whole thing up a few weeks ago and now that the formalities are over, it’s time to party.
The women spent the day cooking while the brothers attended to last minute details outside. Rose, Wolf’s sister showed up, which whether the asshole will admit or not, was a big deal.
The weather is perfect and now, with a live band we commissioned to rock the proverbial walls out here, everyone’s itching to get down.
Wolf, the Shadow Saints VP, was a complete dumb ass for a while, but I knew he wouldn’t be able to resist Lilli and now they’ve tied the knot with Wolf also making her his ol’ lady.
I just wish I could concentrate on anything but the unease crawling across my skin like a fucking cancer.