17. Chapter Seventeen
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
WAR
Ever since Prez found out about Ora being his daughter, he’s being a fucking asshole. And I seem to be his target. I get it. He just found out about her, and he’s feeling a bit possessive, but he’s not the only one.
The real kicker, though?
I won’t be able to put a property patch on her without his approval, and I don’t think he’s going to give it to me. I knew I should have done it before, but I wanted to take things slow. I rushed into things with Sarah, and I wasn’t going to make that mistake again.
But now, because of my fucking hesitation, I might not get to.
“Someone needs to go and do a run. It’ll be an overnighter,” Prez announces, glancing around the table. I know he needs someone to move the guns. “War, I want you to do it. Take two men with you.”
See, shit like this.
Typically, as VP, I wouldn’t be the one being sent. I know for a fact he was going to send the twins, but the fucker wants to get rid of me and away from his daughter as much as he can. “I don’t want to leave Ora now, not after Insanity approached her.”
“I will be watching my daughter ,” he fires back, a muscle working in his jaw.
Jesus Christ.
We usually work together like a well-oiled machine, but now we seem to be butting heads at every moment. I linger after the rest of the men clear out, wanting to have it out with him.
“You don’t think I’m good enough for her?” I growl, standing to my full height. I cross my arms over my chest, legs spread.
“Fuck no, I don’t think you’re good enough for her.” He scowls, raking his hand through his hair. “You’ve fucked almost every woman who’s stepped through those doors. Does she even know you did time?”
My jaw clenches, giving him the answer to that. “You haven’t been a saint, either.”
“No, but it’s not me in question right now, is it? Does she know just how many women you fucked after you’d already been with her?” He’s yelling now, and my hackles are rising. He’s my president, yes, and I should always respect him, but right now, he’s acting more like a pissed-off father-in-law.
“You made me your VP because you trust me. Why should that change now? I wasn’t with Ora when I did all that, and I’d just done five fucking years with no pussy for this club!” I bark, lowering my arms and clenching my fists. “You trust me with your life and the lives of the men in this club but not with your daughter? Who I met first , claimed first !”
He turns and punches the brick wall, which I know had to hurt like hell. “Her mother took her away from me, and I’m not losing her to you now.”
“Her being with me ensures she stays right here, where she belongs,” I reply, taking a deep breath to try and calm myself down. “She’s safer with me. I would do anything to protect her.”
“You haven’t put a patch on her,” the bastard points out. “You’re not ready to commit to her.”
“Don’t tell me what I’m ready for. I was taking it slow. I didn’t fucking know there was a time limit on it, or I fucking would have,” I growl out.
“You tell her about Sarah?” he asks, smirking when I grit my teeth and stay silent. “Seems to me like you’re keeping a lot of secrets, War.”
“I don’t want to scare her off,” I admit, rubbing the back of my neck. “She’s it for me, Prez. I’m not going to cheat on her, and I’m not going to fuck this up.”
“You say that now,” he murmurs, narrowing his eyes. “But if you hurt her, then what? She won’t want to be here. It wouldn’t be just you who lost her. You will do this run, and that’s an order from your president. We both need to clear our heads. The club comes first, War. Please tell me, how are you going to put both the club and my daughter first?”
Motherfucker.
“I could ask you the same thing.”
He curses under his breath.
“Fine,” I snap. “I’ll go.”
“And I’ll watch over Ora.”
“I’m loyal to the Serpents, and you know that. Why can’t you believe I’d not offer that same loyalty to the woman I love,” I ask, lowering my voice. “And I can do both, serve the club and look after my woman.”
He laughs without humor. “Like you did with Sarah?”
Okay, low blow. Prez is fighting dirty, and he’s treating me like the enemy instead of his patched-in brother, his VP.
And that’s not fair.
Sarah was different. I didn’t feel for her what I do for Ora, and I know that Ora won’t betray me in the way Sarah did. We were toxic. And yeah, in the end, I did some things I regret. She left me with trust issues and a cynical outlook on love.
Ora doesn’t even know it, but she’s healing a heart she didn’t break.
“You can’t compare the two,” I admit, which is shitty but the damn truth. I thought I loved Sarah, but when she left, I felt nothing but relief. Still, her betrayal cut deep, and there’s no pretending it didn’t. “I’ll go on this run and take care of business. But we need to be on the same page right now. We’re about to go up against the Insanity MC and don’t need to be fucking fighting. We’re brothers, Rome. For good or bad. And I’m not walking away from Ora.”
“Who’s to say you’ll be the one walking away?” He smirks, leaving the room.
Fuck.
Lifting my head to the ceiling, my hands gripping the back of my neck, I start to pace, trying to force down my emotions.
I need to come clean with Ora about a few things because that’s the only thing that might pull her away from me. We’ve only been seeing each other for a short time. I just need to hope that what we have is enough to get us through this.
I’m almost completely covered in ink, six foot four, and full of muscle. I’ve been to fucking prison, and I’ve had more pussy than should be legal. I’ve killed. And there isn’t much of anything I haven’t tried.
So I’m sure you can see why parents have never liked me.
I just never thought one of those ‘parents’ would end up being my president.