Chapter 16
Feather
I went to work like usual. It’s been a normal day at the job, which I like. Now it’s time for me to get off. Pike is picking me up. He dropped me off this morning after I stayed with him last night. He’s taking me to his place tonight, and I’m nervous. I’ve never been there, and he hasn’t had anyone else stay there. It kind of makes my heart swell he’d actually allow me to stay there.
I know he’s just trying to keep me safe, and I appreciate that more than he could possibly know. I don’t know what Blake will do now. He’s unstable, and he left me to the wolves that night.
I clock out and start walking down the hall, but something just feels off. I check behind me, but no one is there, so I keep walking. I make it to the elevator and step inside, praying that no one climbs in with me. I’m thankful when the door closes, and I let out a sigh. I don’t know what’s got me so on edge today, but something’s bothering me.
The doors open, and I walk out to see Pike standing in the middle of the lobby, waiting for me. I sigh in relief to see him.
He turns, and our eyes lock, a smile tugging across my face. I’ve loved every second of being with Pike. He’s different but in a good way. He’s caring even though he’s rough on the outside. I know there’s more to him than what I’ve seen, and I want it. I want it all.
“You ready?” he asks before leaning down and pressing his lips to mine. I kiss him back and savor every touch of his lips to mine.
“I’m ready.” He nods and grabs my hand in his leading me out of the hospital and over to the truck. “No bike?”
“We’re gonna stop and grab your stuff from the asshole’s place,” he tells me. I nod my head, unsure how I feel about that, but I know it has to be done.
“I hope he isn’t there,” I say softly.
“I hope he is. I got somethin’ for his ass,” Pike grumbles as he opens my door for me. I climb in and settle into the seat as he closes the door and walks around to the driver’s side.
“Just us?”
“The guys are meetin’ us over there.”
“Are you sure this is okay, Pike?” He looks over at me, stares at me for a long second, and then nods his head.
“I’m keepin’ you, Feather.” Those words seem so final, but there’s a part of me that loves it. I love that he knows what he wants, and he isn’t afraid to take it.
We ride in silence to the house I shared with Blake. My stomach trembles as we pull into the driveway. I don’t want to go in there. I’m not sure I can handle it. My stomach drops as I think about all the hate that lives here. I see the bikes and the other guys waiting around outside, and it makes me feel a little bit better.
“You don’t have to go in. I can handle it,” Pike tells me when he notices me looking up at the house and not getting out of the truck.
“I just hate what this place means,” I tell him.
“I get it, but it’s over now. You’re never gonna be in that position again.”
“I know it’s just … things weren’t great between me and him, you know?”
“He ever force you to have sex, Feather?” His question isn’t one I was ready to answer, but it’s easy to talk to Pike, so I nod my head. I nod because it’s the truth. He has forced me.
“It’s just …”
“Don’t make excuses for it. For him. Tell me where your stuff is, and I’ll grab it.” I ramble off where my clothes are, and that’s about all I need. I don’t need anything else from this house. Pike climbs out and heads to the door, kicking it in. My mouth drops open as he walks in, but the guys just laugh.
“Oh my god,” I mumble to myself. He didn’t even ask me for a key or anything. He just kicked in the front door! I keep an eye on my surroundings hoping to hell none of my neighbors call the police on us.
It seems to take forever when he walks back out with a suitcase and a bag over his shoulder. I watch him toss them into the back and think about how final this all is. I never have to see Blake again. Ever.
Pike climbs in after talking to the guys for a second and glances over at me before smirking.
“Hope you didn’t value anything in there,” he says.
“What do you mean?”
“I redecorated a little,” he smirks and I find myself smiling along with him. I don’t care what he did to the house. I hated that place. I hated what it meant and what it was.
“I owed him a lot, Pike. He paid my way through school. That’s the main reason I was there. Things changed; he changed. He started making me steal from people. Not just clubs either,” I open up and tell him.
“What did you have to do?” he asks as he backs out of the driveway.
“Get them drunk. Make them think I was into them. Some it was easy, others it wasn’t. A few caught me, but they just kicked me out. Not like the other club,” I tell him. He nods his head as he watches the road and drives.
“You sleep with them?”
“A few,” I reply, feeling like an asshole. I lied to him when I said I was only ever with Blake willingly. It was a lie I can’t take back, and now he knows the truth. My stomach knots as I think about it all. I should have been honest with him but I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t tell him I slept with other men for money. I didn’t have a choice. Blake would have kicked my ass if I didn’t, and I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t face him without getting what he wanted.
“I’m sorry.”
“For lyin’ to me?” he asks without ever looking over at me.
“Yes. I know I shouldn’t have, but …”
“I get it, Feather. It’s not somethin’ you’re proud of. That motherfucker forced you into it.” His knuckles turn whiter as he grips the steering wheel.
“I had a choice to make, and I’d like to think I made the right one. I couldn’t keep going to work covered in bruises from him.”
“I know.”
“But I’m still sorry for what I did. I feel disgusted for it, Pike. I’m no more than a worthless whore.” He slams on the brakes so quickly the seatbelt yanks me back. He pulls over on the side of the road, unbuckling his seatbelt as I try to figure out what the hell is happening.
“What are you doing?” I ask him as he jumps from the truck and stalks around to my side. He rips the door open and stands there staring at me, chest heaving.
“You ever say that shit about yourself again, and I will bend you over my knee, Feather. He forced you! He made you do shit!” He roars as his fists clench at his sides.
“It is what it is, Pike.”
“No, the fuck it isn’t. That’s different. They didn’t pay you; you stole it. You did what you had to do to keep yourself safe, and no one will fault you for that.” I can see the anger in his eyes, and I can’t help but slowly slip a little further for him. He reaches over me and unbuckles my seatbelt before pulling me toward him. He parts my legs and stands in between them, gripping my face in his hands.
“I never, ever wanna hear that shit come out of your mouth again, you hear me?”
“Pike,” I begin, but he cuts me off.
“No. No more bullshit, Feather. He forced this shit on you. That’s not who you are, and we both know it,” he says, slowly calming himself as he speaks.
“I’m sorry.”
“Don’t say sorry. You did nothin’ wrong but say those words. I’m gonna make him regret ever hurtin’ you, baby.”
“What are you going to do?”
“So many things.”
“Like what?”
“Right now, I’m gonna kiss you before I can’t hold back any longer,” he says before his lips crash into mine. I savor every lick, every touch, every part of this man. He drives me crazy in a good way, and that’s not something I’ve ever felt before.
When Pike pulls back, we’re both breathless. His eyes dance between mine before he steps back and runs his hand through his hair.
“You make me crazy.” Then he closes the door and walks back around to get in.
“The feelings mutual.”