Chapter 6
Chapter Six
Rage
“Hey, boss,” the new prospect says when I walk in.
I give him a one finger salute as I head to the cameras. “Why is room two empty?” I ask, looking at the screens.
“Oh, shit. CC told me to cancel the reservation. Maybe I misheard them.”
“You didn’t, but someone else is supposed to be using the room.”
“Don’t know about that, but I heard there was a bit of trouble over at the Inn,” he tells me.
I don’t even wait for him to finish his sentence before heading out the door.
Shelly, Wolfe’s wife, is getting in her car when I get to the Inn. She gives me a big wave. Okay, well, it must not be too major of a crisis over here. If there was trouble, she’d be right in the middle of it.
“Hey, Rage,” Tiff says, smacking her gum while leaning over the counter to show me her tits.
“Are the twins here?”
“I don’t know. I just got here.”
Cole jogs down the stairs.
“Why aren’t you over at the Cage?” I ask him.
“We were just getting ready to head over there.” He pulls me to the side. “There was a small issue, but we handled it.”
The two of us head up to Serenity’s room, but before we go in, he pauses outside the door. “She’s a little self-conscious right now, so don’t react.”
“Do I ever?”
He rolls his eyes because he knows I’m right. When we get inside, Serenity is in the bathroom, and Carson is sweeping her hair into a pile in the middle of the floor.
That explains why Shelly was here.
“I thought I told you guys to get her over to the Cage. Did she really need a haircut first?”
Carson points to the bed, and I walk over to find hair scattered over the pillows. “Did she cut her own hair?” I hope she didn’t do this because she was scared of us.
“No, but we think we know who did.”
She walks out of the bathroom, and it takes everything in me not to react. I’ll admit that surprises me.
I also don’t like the way she retreats when she spots me. The door clicks softly, and she continues to hide out in the bathroom.
“Tiff must have snuck in here last night. I already asked Cowboy to check the cameras, but it seems they mysteriously cut out for about an hour,” Cole says.
“But …” Carson holds up a finger, continuing where his brother left off, “I just happened to find this in her car.” He drops a plastic bag with a pair of scissors and a clump of Serenity’s beautiful hair onto the bed.
I take a deep breath. “Bring her up here.”
The two of them exchange a knowing glance before jumping into action.
I walk over and rap my knuckles against the bathroom door.
“Go away.”
“It’s …” I push the door open, and just like the first time I saw her, my breath is stolen from my lungs.
“Don’t you dare say it’s just hair. I know it’s just hair, but it was mine,” she says, crossing her arms over her chest.
Her bottom lip trembles, and I reach out, trailing my thumb over it. My eyes take in her short pixie cut. She’s fucking adorable, and trust me, I don’t use that word often.
The way her green eyes shimmer with tears makes my dick fucking rock hard, something that usually doesn’t happen unless I have at least a half bottle of tequila in me.
I step into her, whispering into her ear. “You look stunning.”
She stumbles as I push us farther into the room. I kick the door closed with the bottom of my boot and spin her around. Her soft gaze meets my hard one in the mirror. My fingertips trail over the back of her exposed neck, and she shivers.
“You don’t have to pretend to like it,” she says quietly, her head dipping in an attempt to escape my touch.
I reach around and grab her chin, forcing her to look at us. “Do I look like a man who pretends anything?”
Hesitantly, she lifts her eyes, looking at me before turning her focus to her hair.
I run my fingers through it, feeling my rage rise to the surface. “It’s edgy. I like it.” I’m still able to grab a fist full, so I do, tugging her head to the side. “Look at the copper in the light,” I tell her, but it’s not her hair I’m looking at any longer.
Her slender neck is right there in front of me like a buffet of heavenly scented flesh.
She wiggles against me, and it takes monumental effort not to sink my teeth into her soft skin. I release her when there’s a commotion in the other room.
Serenity’s brows pull together as she pushes past me to press her ear against the wood. Her mouth falls open when she hears Tiffany yell.
“I’m sure she didn’t mean to,” she rushes to say, pressing herself against the door to prevent me from leaving.
I don’t say anything.
“You’re not going to hurt her, are you?”
“You’d have me spare her after what she did to you?”
“It’s just hair.”
“You said not to say that.”
“Yeah. But at the end of the day, it really is just hair. It will grow back.”
“It will,” I agree easily.
“O … Okay,” she says hesitantly, moving away from the door.
I open it, waving for her to exit in front of me.
We find Tiffany sitting in a chair in the middle of the room.
Something tugs at my chest as I picture Serenity sitting there as Shelly fixed her hair. I’m sure Tiff didn’t give her a salon style, and neither will I.
“The rest of the guys will be here shortly,” Cole says, perching on the corner of the dresser.
Cowboy enters the room with a big smile on his face. He knows he’s about to be rid of the thorn in his side. He put his dick in Tiff first, before we figured out who she was. That’s how we voted in fairness that he should be the one to babysit her.
“Thank god,” he says absently while tipping his hat to Serenity. “Who’s this pretty lady?” he asks.
“She checked in yesterday. You know who she is,” Tiffany spits.
He looks at her and then at Serenity. “Well, I’ll be. It is you. The beauty who checked in yesterday. Wow, don’t you look gorgeous.”
Serenity’s lips part at his compliment like she doesn’t know how to respond. Maybe she’ll believe me now that she’s heard it twice. She glances at me shyly, dipping her head.
I sit down beside her and drop my arm across her shoulders. Cowboy’s eyebrows jump in surprise at my sudden claim on her. I know he’s flirting with Serenity to piss Tiff off, but I also sense he has a genuine interest in her.
He tips his hat at me and backs away.
The next to arrive are Wizz and Wolfe. Wizzard has a keen eye for patterns. He was the first to recognize Tiff was sent by the Scorpions. He makes most of his money – and mine – by playing the markets. Thanks to him, I was able to buy my house.
Wolfe is semi-retired. He spends most of his time tending bar over at the Trough, not that he has to. He just enjoys being an ear for the guys. Every club needs a wise old geezer, and he’s ours. I brought him with me when I started the club. His calm presence is a godsend. He keeps our heads level.
A few minutes later, my VP strolls in. “Sorry, I came as fast as I could.”
“Bullshit,” I say. “You were right across the hall. I saw you slip into that cougar’s room last night when I was leaving.”
He holds his hands up in surrender. “Guilty as charged.” He winks at Serenity. “I don’t believe we’ve met. I’m Cub.”
“Don’t worry, he doesn’t bite.”
“Unless you’re aged like old moldy cheese,” Carson teases.
“More like fine wine,” Cub corrects. “Don’t knock it till you try it.”
He plops down on the other side of Serenity, his gaze bouncing over her face. “So, does your mother live around here?”
“Try grandmother,” Cole says, getting up to lock the door.
“This it?” I ask, watching as Serenity shakes her head at Cub.
“Everyone else is working,” he tells me.
I nod, checking my watch. It doesn’t matter if the whole crew is here. This is more of a ceremonial meeting, not an actual officer’s one. “We’ve got enough for a vote,” I say, looking at Tiff.
“What are we voting on today?” Cub asks excitedly.
“On which of our two little moles we should send back to the Scorpions.”
Serenity sits up straight, and I swear I can feel her blood racing through her body.
“One came to us offering truth, the other in secrecy.”
Tiffany swallows hard.
“What the fuck did I miss yesterday?” Cub asks the room.
I stand up, grabbing the scissors from the dresser. Carson and Cole grab Tiffany’s arms, holding her in place as I approach.
“I thought that since you enjoy giving Savage information on us, it should be you.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. I’m not a rat,” she begins to argue.
“Oh, but you are. I know everything about you. Even the dirty little secret about where you came from. I didn’t have to dig to find out who Serenity was. She’s been nothing but honest with me.” I tap the scissors on her head. “Who here wants to see what Tiff looks like bald?”
Serenity instantly raises her hands. Both of them.
Everyone in the room laughs. Everyone but Tiff. One by one my men raise their arms.
“What about the eyebrows?”
The room keeps their hands up.
I start cutting as close to the scalp as I can.
Tiff yips when I get a bit of skin, but it can’t be helped.
“When they let you back in …” I pause to look at my handiwork.
“If they let you back in, you let them know that Serenity belongs to me now. She’s off limits.
If they want to argue, they know where to find me. ”
“I thought you said she belonged to the club?” Tiffany sobs.
“Yet you still put hands on her!” I bark, my rage coming to the surface.
The way Serenity scoots back on the bed helps me to reign it in.
Cole bends over in front of Tiff. “Man, you definitely can’t pull off short hair like she can.”
She’s crying, but I don’t feel one ounce of empathy toward her. I know all of her dirty little secrets, and they are as ugly as the men who sent her here.
“Fun fact. Did you know Tiff here also cut her daughter’s hair?”
My brothers don’t know. I didn’t share everything with them. I knew they’d never be able to tolerate being in a room with her if they knew, and at the time we needed her to keep the Scorpions distracted.
Not anymore. I should have cut her loose by now. That was my mistake. I’m just sorry that Serenity had to pay for it. It won’t happen again.
“Yep, she sure did,” I continue. “The man she was married to had just given the little girl a tiara for her birthday. When he placed it on his daughter’s head, he told her she was the prettiest girl he’d ever seen.”
“Her dad was horrified when he came home from work the very next day to find his daughter not only with her hair horribly cut, but her body also covered in bruises.”
Serenity’s face falls, and she touches her own head.
That right there is what real empathy looks like.
Cub growls, walking up and lowering himself in front of her. “Maybe we ought to give her a few of those too.”
She tries to back away from him.
Cub is all cute and fuzzy until he’s not.
“My ex lied,” she whines.
“I’ve seen all of the videos and documents. Would you like me to pull them up for the others?”
She shakes her head feverishly.
“It doesn’t matter. We know who the liar is,” Cub says, slipping his brass knuckles over his fingers.
I know he isn’t going to hit her. We don’t hit women around here. Now if he had found her in the act of hurting her child, he’d pop her without hesitation. But she’s already been tried and punished. She did her time.
Her ex-husband has remarried. I’m glad he got what seems to be a fair shake in the system. That doesn’t happen often. According to his social media, he, his daughter and his new wife are living life to the fullest.
Cub presses the cold edge of his knuckles against her chin. “If I catch word that you’ve so much as touched a hair on any child’s head, I will come for you. In the dead of night. When you least expect it.”
She stares at him, the color draining from her face.
He slowly pulls his hand away. “I’ll be watching.” He points to his own eyes before pointing his fingers at her. He stands and then leaves the room.
Everyone is quiet.
I’m going to need to show him the pictures of Tiff’s daughter now, so he can let some of his anger go.
Her hair has grown back, her bruises have healed, and she’s smiling in every photo.
Cub didn’t get that. No one fought for him, just like no one fought for me.
But Tiff’s daughter had her dad in her corner. He did the right thing.
“There. That wasn’t so bad, was it?” I ask Tiffany as I brush hair off her shoulders and into her lap.
She lifts her hands, sadly letting it sift through her fingers.
Someone should have done this to her a long time ago.
I yank her to her feet. “What’s the message you’re going to deliver?” I ask her.
“Serenity belongs to you.”
Cole holds the door open, and I shove her out. “You have thirty minutes to pack your shit and leave.”
“But Rage …” She turns and stares at me.
I tap her forehead with my finger. “Go back to the swamp you came from.”
When she tears her eyes from me to throw a glare in Serenity’s direction, I push us both out into the hallway.
“Get Serenity something to eat and take her to the Cage. I’ll meet you there later,” I say over my shoulder.
I close the door quietly behind us before pouncing on Tiff. “On second thought, your times up,” I tell her. “Let’s go.”
“But my stuff,” she mumbles, stumbling over her own feet as I drag her down the stairs and out the door.
I’ll be giving her a personal escort out of town.