Chapter 8
ROGUE
Sitting in the passenger seat while Rebel drives is definitely not my favorite thing to be doing. I’m pissed. I can’t ride my bike and won’t be able to for a while. At least not until the doctor back home clears me.
I’d demanded they release me from the hospital and told them if they didn’t, I’d still be walking my ass out of that place.
I fuckin’ hate hospitals. I can’t stand them.
The smell of them reminds me so much of my childhood when my mom was fighting breast cancer.
She was in and out of the place for months at a time for either surgery or chemo. In the end, my mom didn’t make it.
My dad, Scorn, had took it hard, but stayed strong for me growing up. He’d finally decided to head out to the Tennessee charter when I turned eighteen. I didn’t mind him moving up there. The man needed to heal, and the memories here were just too much for him.
Cy told me back at the hospital, our Prez had called Scorn to let him know. Due to him being out on club business, he’s made sure to get updates daily on my condition. My dad knows I’m awake. I’d kick his ass if he was sitting around the hospital.
It’s bad enough Rebel had refused to leave my side. I’m not going to complain about her being the first face I saw waking up. But that doesn’t mean I like the fact she looks to have not slept in weeks.
Rebel didn’t want me to leave the hospital, but I explained to her, I can’t be there.
She knows how much I hate even having to walk into one, let alone staying in the place.
Now going home with her in the driver’s seat, I should be relaxed.
However, I’m not. Cy is riding my bike behind us instead of trailering it.
He claims this will give Rebel and me a chance to talk.
There’s plenty of time for her and me to talk.
The asshole only wants to ride my girl to piss me off, I think.
The ride so far has been quiet. I’m sure Rebel’s in her head, overthinking like she normally does.
“Do you wanna stop anywhere for food?” she asks, breaking the silence after nearly three hours of being on the road.
“Stop wherever you wanna stop, Duchess,” I grunt, twisting my head and to look in her direction.
Taking in her features, I notice two things right off the bat.
One, she’s lost weight, meaning she hasn’t been eating right.
The other being her eyes are puffy. They only get that way when she’s exhausted or crying. “You sure you’re okay to be driving?”
“I’m okay.” She nods and puts on her blinker to exit the highway. “I’m just going to stop at this fast-food place and grab something for us.”
“Sounds good to me,” I say, not pushing her anymore right now. I’ll find out more when we get to her house.
Fifteen minutes later, Rebel has us back on the road. She had tried to order me something that would be light on my stomach, but I won’t have that shit. Then the damn woman had tried paying for our food. That right there wasn’t gonna fly with me.
We still have about three hours until we’re even at her house, and I’m not ready to tell her where I want her to take me. The argument could wait for when we’re closer to town. For now, I’ll enjoy being with her while coming up with a plan to get her to understand I’m dead serious about us.
Closing my eyes, I relax into the seat and let her drive. I’ll admit I’m still weak as hell, and the pain is starting to get to me. Once we get to Rebel’s house, everything will be better.
“Xander, wake up,” Rebel says, waking me from my nap.
Groaning, I open my eyes and look in her direction, “What’s wrong?” I ask before scanning our surroundings, seeing we’re not too far from town.
“I’m just trying to find out if you need me to drop you off at the clubhouse or your house,” she says, giving a quick glance my way.
“Neither,” I grunt, preparing for the argument.
“What do you mean neither?” she demands. “Where the hell am I taking you?”
“Your place.” I shrug nonchalantly.
“My place,” she mimics. “You are not going to my place.”
“Yeah, Duchess, I am.” I chuckle. “Think about it this way, at least with me there, you’ll know I’m not doing anything I shouldn’t.” The nurses had given Rebel my paperwork telling her that I needed to still be resting and not doing anything strenuous.
Rebel’s shaking her head and lets out a breath without saying anything. Before I know it, she’s pulling into her driveway. “I’ll get you inside, then I have to go to the office for a while,” she says, putting the car in park.
“Why are you going to the office?” I demand. “It’s closed right now anyway.” Cy and Axe gave me a rundown of what I’d missed while out of it. Evidently, Cy fired Rebel’s receptionist and had the ol’ ladies find her someone. From what they said about the new girl, everything was gonna work out.
“Because I have a case coming up this week I have to prepare for and haven’t even had a chance to completely go through everything yet,” she huffs. “Plus, I need to make sure my office isn’t in complete disarray.”
“Baby, you ain’t goin’ anywhere except for in the house and resting with me,” I proclaim. “We’ve both been on the road, and you need to relax. Maybe even take a bath.” I remember how Rebel had loved to take long baths when she was younger.
With a heavy sigh, my woman gives in again. It’s not like her to simply give in without an argument. I’ll have to remedy that the first chance I get.