CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
– THORSTEN –
The shock of Kayden being an undercover agent is different than when I found out about Livi. I’m still fucking processing my woman’s link with law enforcement, but knowing about Kayden makes decisions easy as shit. Meaning I’m ready to kick the fucker out of my life, breathing or not, while I wasn’t ready to do the same with Livi.
Keeping her locked up wasn’t an endgame and keeping her in the room would only complicate things long-term. I’m taking a huge risk to let her out; putting my fucking trust in her. It’s the only way to move forward because without trust there’s nothing to build on. I hope for her sake she’s loyal to me from here on out. If not? Putting a bullet in her pretty head will suck but might be the necessary decision.
“You cut her loose, Ten?” Macsen rumbles as soon as we step foot in the clubhouse. “No leash at all? Risky.”
“Give me a damn leash and I’ll use it to strangle you with it,” Livi snaps. “Consider yourself lucky for kidnapping me once, it won’t be happening again.”
It’s hard to keep a straight face when this woman unleashes her sharp tongue. Even if I just locked her up for a few days, it doesn’t so much as dent her character.
Macsen places a hand over his heart. “You wouldn’t kill me, I’m the good guy. Falcon’s the one who succeeded in kidnapping you. At least, he’s the one who deserves the credit.”
“Falcon?” Livi frowns and her gaze hits mine.
I don’t have to give her all the answers. Besides, I think I shared enough for the time being.
“VP, where’s Kayden?” I demand.
Macsen pulls his phone to check the screen. “I think he’s still running through town to find Rainer, I guess. Want me to text him to get his ass back to the clubhouse?”
“Yes, and make sure he hurries the fuck back here.” Livi places her hands on her hips and gives my VP a stern look. “And don’t give him a reason why either.”
Macsen raises his eyebrow at me, and I mimic the action. “You heard her, make sure that fucker gets his ass back here asap.”
He dips his chin and shoots off a message.
I place my hand on Livi’s lower back. Fuck, that right there feels damn great. With regret I pull my hand away. I need my head clear and not fogged up again with feelings. It doesn’t feel like we’re back to square one yet. We have a long damn way to go when it comes to trust and loyalty. Something only shown and grown by working together.
“Sit,” I grunt a little harsher than I intended.
She simply takes a seat and looks at me as if she’s waiting for me to give her hell. One by one my brothers step into church. When I let her out of the room I held her hostage in, I texted the members to be present in church within twenty minutes.
Minutes pass as members fill all the seats around the table. Livi is looking a bit nervous, and she should be. Last one to enter is my brother. He hasn’t been active in club business, or shown his face a lot, when our father was president. Hell, he left the clubhouse in bright daylight for the first time since what happened between our parents.
“You must be Falcon,” Livi states, earning the harsh look of my brother. “So, you’re the one who made me crash my bike and kidnapped me.”
My brother dismisses her and walks to a corner to lean against the wall, making it easy to keep an eye on everything in front of him.
Livi’s still watching Falcon and is about to get out of her seat when I snap, “Stay.”
“I’m not a fucking dog, asshole,” she snarls.
Turning to face my men, I start to explain to them, and to her. “Here’s what’s going to happen. My decision to take Livi was based on the simple fact that I wasn’t done with her yet. Falcon and Macsen backed me up when they set things in motion. All of you had my back when you became aware, even knowing she’s an undercover agent.”
“I fucking quit for you, dammit,” Livi grumbles. “I’m not an undercover agent anymore.”
I release a sigh. “All of you have the right to question me since having her here, walking free, puts the club at jeopardy. If anyone has any issues, doubt, whatever…now is the time to confront me or Livi. I claimed her, she is my property, my responsibility. I failed when we found out she was law enforcement. That’s why this time all of you get one chance to throw anything at either of us. Now’s your one and only shot ’cause after today, after we vote, we will leave shit in the past and move forward from here on out.”
“Yo, Ten, can I go first?” I can hear the fucking laughter in Macsen’s voice.
I dip my chin and the first thing the fucker blurts on a singsong tone is, “Do you lubbbb her, Prez? Or is she a nice cockwarmer you wanna have on life’s payroll?”
Livi snorts. “You sound like a six-year-old who just found out the joy of the snake in his pants.” Glancing around the table she firms her voice. “Love is definitely not something you want to throw out there like confetti or has meaning when you voice it. It doesn’t mean someone takes care of you or respects you. Throwing out the word love doesn’t magically claim commitment. I’d rather keep things serious and real, it means more than a simple four letter word. Oh, and when I quit my job, I also did it by getting a vow of immunity for each and every one of you. Anyone have a normal question? Like, did I rat you guys out? No, I didn’t. If anything, I created an alibi for you guys for the night of Ruben’s murder.”
She flips me off to let me know she’s now aware I was the one who killed him. I smirk and she shakes her head, but not before I catch the smile on her face.
“Why are you throwing fuck me eyes at a man who kidnapped you? You are or were law enforcement? How do you rectify it in your head? Some kind of bad boy kink or somethin’?” Jocko asks.
Livi’s gaze lands on him and I’m also curious to hear her answer. This is something I’ve been wondering about ever since I locked her in the room.
She doesn’t even seem to think about it when she states, “Definitely no bad boy kink. I have to admit I have a dislike for motorcycle gangs, and that’s putting it mildly.” She holds up her hand. “I’m now aware it’s a club, not a gang. Though, you guys do fit the 1% kind. It basically comes down to the way I was raised. My father bailed on my mother the second he heard she was pregnant with me. The only father figure I’ve known was my grandfather. He had a hatred for MCs and worked hard all his life to put members behind bars. Recently my life took a spin when I found out I had an aunt and uncle. They told me the man who I’ve known all my life as my grandfather stole my mother. I’m still processing things over the past few months ’cause it’s a lot to deal with. Especially because I can’t confront my grandparents, and my mother never knew she had a sister and a brother.”
The room falls silent until Livi continues. “My aunt was once the president’s old lady, and now her son, Archer, has taken over from my uncle Deeds. Their other son, Spence, also has his own Broken Deeds chapter. My uncle Zack was the president of Areion fury, and now his twin sons are co-presidents. So, you can say my point of view slightly shifted, and I was more open-minded I think, when I moved in next door. You guys were sweet.”
Macsen snorts and Lenz chuckles.
“I also didn’t expect to experience…chemistry.” Her gaze meets mine. “Thorsten pulled the rug from under my feet, and the freefall was a delicious rush. My friend Makenzie raved about chemistry in those smutty books she reads. I always thought it was a load of fictional crap, until I met Thorsten.”
“Okay, I’ve heard enough,” Elric grunts. “None of us have an old lady and we don’t need to know what you two do behind closed doors. Unless you like to give us a show ’cause I’m all for watching people fuck.”
I slam my flat hand on the table and bellow, “No one is going to see my woman naked. And I sure as hell won’t share any intimacy we have between us.”
The room falls silent again.
Falcon pushes away from the wall and snaps his fingers at Livi. Her attention is on him when he brings his hands up. His thumb and index finger turn into a circle. With his other index finger he pokes the hole a few times and then points at the brothers around the table.
Motherfucker. He’s asking if she would fuck around on me?
I’m about to voice his question when Livi snaps, “No, I won’t fuck around on him, and I hope he knows better than to disrespect me in that way.”
My brother snaps his fingers again and points at the door.
Apparently Livi catches onto his rambling thoughts when she replies to his unspoken question. “I don’t care if you guys bring naked chicks here or if they walk on their hands to serve you beers by using their vjays as a damn coaster. Trust between lovers should go without chains.”
My chest squeezes painfully. This is foreign to what our parents had. The complete opposite is more like it.
“Any more questions, handsome?” She grins at Falcon.
He narrows his eyes, and suspicion hits me along with anger as to why she would call my brother handsome.
My brother is covered with scars all over his body. He turned some of the larger scars across his face into feathers through tattoos. No one has ever called him handsome. Our mother was the last one who did…until the day our father killed her. He was holding her hand and due to shock he ran blindly right through a glass door.
So, no…handsome is not a word people would use when it comes to my brother.
“Why the fuck did you just call my brother handsome?” I harshly ask.