Chapter 17
Cat
“I need every filthy detail,” Anna said, as she took a pull from her cherry Big Gulp. “Spill, sister!”
“Keep your voice down,” I hissed, glancing over my shoulder at the two bikers sitting on the opposite side of the mall food court. My bodyguards had driven me back to my apartment this afternoon because Anna and I had plans to go shopping together.
Anna rolled her eyes. “Why? You think Tweedle Dumb and Tweedle Dumber can hear me? They’re not even paying attention to us, Cat. They’re probably too busy watching some weird shit on YouTube right now to even notice our existence.”
“Don’t call them that. They’re really nice guys,” I scolded, feeling bad I couldn’t tell her the real reason why Ringo and Sliver were shadowing me everywhere I went these days. If I did, she’d definitely want me to go to the cops, and Ace was dead set on handling the Kane issue himself.
“They’re weird,” Anna moodily returned, glancing over her shoulder at them.
“I still don’t get why they’re here at all.
Your car is fixed, and I have mine. There’s no need for them to drive us to the mall.
You can find your way back to their precious clubhouse without an escort. That’s what Google Maps is for.”
Another twinge of guilt shot through me then.
I’d lied to Anna about why the bikers were escorting me everywhere by telling her that their compound was out in the boondocks, hard to find, and had spotty cell reception along the way.
Afraid I’d get lost without someone showing me the way, I needed the prospects to drive me back and forth a few times so I could get my bearings.
It was a stupid thing to say, but I’m not a good liar and I’d been put on the spot. Now I was stuck with my ridiculous fib and Anna probably thought I was a pathetic damsel in distress.
“How big was it?” Anna posed then, switching topics faster than my brain could follow.
It took me a few seconds to understand what she was asking. When I did, I laughed and nearly spit out my drink.
“Big,” I replied after I managed to swallow without choking, my blood heating to dangerous levels when I thought about Ace’s beautiful cock.
“Like, pleasantly surprised big or porno big?” She clarified, biting her straw as she awaited my answer.
“The latter,” I divulged, biting my lower lip.
Anna mouthed the word “wow”. “I wonder if it runs in the Club. You think his friend Domino is hung like him?”
I snorted. “They’re biker brothers, Anna, not biological brothers. I’m fairly certain good genital genetics don’t run through MCs.”
Sighing dramatically, Anna leaned back in her chair. “You’re right, of course. My luck, despite the biker’s gargantuan size, he’s got a tiny dick he’s named something stupid and doesn’t know how to use properly.”
Sliver and Ringo busted out laughing right then and I looked back at them to see what was so funny. Sliver was doubled over in hysterics, while Ringo was shaking his head and looking pointedly at his phone.
It was obvious they weren’t paying a lick of attention to us.
But for a second there, I’d thought the two men had heard what Anna had said about their club brother.
But that wasn’t possible. We were in a loud, crowded mall food court and speaking relatively quietly.
There was no way the two men could hear what we were talking about from across the pavilion. Nobody’s hearing was that good.
“So, are you two official now that he’s rocked your world?” Anna demanded, leaning forward to hear my reply.
“I’m not sure.” I wasn’t being evasive or coy. I really didn’t know what Ace and I were. We hadn’t exactly done a lot of talking last night.
“Girl! Have I taught you nothing? After you give up the goods, you’re supposed to lock that shit down and refuse to give him any more of your sweet, sweet loving until he makes it official.”
Anna always knew how to make me smile. “Yeah, I guess. I just don’t want to force him into a corner like some wild animal I’m trying to domesticate.
I’m not even sure he wants to be in a relationship.
He probably just thinks we’re having a good time.
And I am. I’m not looking for anything serious right now, Anna.
I need to focus on earning enough money to go back to school.
I’m going to just let this unfold naturally and see where it goes. ”
“So, you’re okay with him hooking up with other women then?
” Anna challenged, knowing the answer to her question before she even asked it.
“Let’s say, all of the club skanks hanging around his MC?
The other women at your work that keep drooling over him?
Didn’t you say Marcy was going on and on about how hot he was last shift, when she didn’t think you could hear her. ”
I felt a very uncharacteristic surge of fierce jealousy wash over me. Anna really knew me, didn’t she? “No, you’re right,” I confessed, taking a sip of my melting iced coffee. “I wouldn’t be okay with any of that.”
“How is Ace supposed to know that if you don’t tell him? He’s a biker, Cat. He’s going to screw anything that moves if you don’t make it clear to him that this isn’t just all fun and games for you.”
“It’s so much more complicated now that we’ve had sex,” I returned, disappointed in myself for not having thought this whole thing through. Damn my needy girlie parts and Ace’s ability to make them sing!
“No, it’s not complicated at all,” my friend denied with a shake of her pretty head.
“I’m telling you, Cat. You can’t sleep on this.
I know you. You say you’re just looking for something casual, but it’s not true.
You’re a relationship kind of girl all the way.
If you find out Ace is tapping everything from here to Timbuktu, it’s going to hurt you.
Badly! You need to be honest with yourself.
He’s not just a fling. You’re really into this biker badass.
There’s nothing wrong with that. The only thing wrong here would be if you lied to yourself and pretended it meant nothing to you. ”
Once again, Anna surprised me. Because she acted so light and airy most of the time, I didn’t always give her credit for being such a good read of people. But she was. And today, she was dead accurate.
“You’re right,” I reluctantly agreed. “The next time we’re together, I’m going to tell Ace how I feel. If he’s not up for being exclusive, I’ll have to accept his answer. And he’ll have to accept mine.”
“Good,” Anna said with a tight bob of her head. “Now tell me the part where he took off his pants and gave you the big reveal. Did you cry a little? Pee your pants some? Make the scream face?”
Placing her hands on her own cheeks, Anna mimed the famous Edvard Munch painting to perfection.
Tossing my straw wrapper at her, I said, “Come on, let’s go and look at some shoes. I discovered a hole in my sneakers the other day when I was getting ready for work and I need a new pair.”