Chapter Nine
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PREACH
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“A shot of Jack with a beer chaser,” I tell the waitress as I sit down by the stage.
I look around and notice every seat in the place is full. Hell, even a few of the guys are standing near the back. Looks like every member of the Renegade Sons is here for the show. “Why’s it so packed in here tonight?”
Kidd looks at me with a smirk on his face. “You didn’t hear about the new talent?”
I shake my head. “Nope, ain’t heard shit.” Not sure if I care either. If it has a set of tits and knows how to flash some pussy, I honestly don’t give a fuck.
“Daisy’s taking the stage for the first time,” Kidd quips back at me, knowing damn well that shit will get under my skin.
“What?” I damn near shout. No fucking way! Daisy wouldn’t do that, not my Little Flower.
“Maybe if you’d put the booze down once in a while, you would’ve known. It’s the only thing any of the brothers can talk about. They all want to see what’s under her clothes,” Reese adds from his spot on the other side of Kidd. My blood pressure soars.
The brothers talking about Daisy is the main reason that I’ve stayed drunk the last two weeks. Ever since Maker’s party, all everyone wants to do is talk about her. Even Kidd mentioned how he wouldn’t mind having a piece of her. I had to force myself not to throat punch his ass on the spot.
Daisy made a hell of an impression on the guys at the party, and the worst part is, I can’t even remember any of it. I don’t even know if I saw her or not. I’m sure if I did, it wasn’t pretty. I can be a prick normally, but I’m a fuckin’ bastard when I’m drunk. I was more than drunk that night. Actually, I was trashed. Since none of my brothers have jumped my ass, I assume I didn’t see her, at least I hope I didn’t.
The waitress is just handing me my drink when Leah walks over and straddles my lap. For the last two weeks, this bitch has been all over me. I can only guess that I must have fucked her again while I was drunk. It wouldn’t be the first time, but it is the first time she’s turned into a leech. “Get the fuck off me.”
“Come on, baby. I just want a kiss,” she whispers in my ear as her hips start to grind against my flaccid dick.
I grab her hips, giving them a warning squeeze. “I’m not drunk enough to want your ass, yet. Try again later when I’m shit-faced, and one pussy is as good as the next.”
“One little kiss, and I’ll go. Promise.”
Not wanting to deal with her shit, I slam my mouth onto hers. Once her lips are open, I bite down on the bottom one, not hard enough to draw blood, but hard enough to teach the skank a lesson.
She jerks back, placing a hand on her lip. “I told you to get the fuck off me. It wasn’t open to negotiations.”
She jumps off of my lap and starts to back away, her eyes never leaving mine. She hesitates for a second before asking, “Can I still come to you later?”
Fucking pitiful. “Like I said, if I’m drunk enough, your pussy suits me just fine.”
As Leah walks away, I catch sight of Daisy heading toward the dressing rooms in the back. Seeing her for the first time in years causes my heart to nearly jump out of my chest. My God, what the hell happened to her?
My brothers talking about how hot she turned out has really been pissing me off, but it also confused the hell out me. As far as I was concerned, she was the prettiest girl I had ever laid eyes on. She wasn’t sexy in a typical way, but more of a girl next-door kind of thing. She was hot, but had a sweet kind of look to her that made my blood go wild. Judging from the glimpse that I just got of her, there is nothing sweet about her now.
The girl next door has been replaced by a sexy as hell woman. Those curves she had before are now more pronounced. She’s all tits and ass; every man’s fantasy. Her hair is still a million shades of blonde, but it no longer hangs to her ass. It’s cut short, not even reaching her chin, definitely not a look I’d normally be attracted to, but its fits her to perfection.
My brothers had one thing right though. She’s amazing.
I’m just about to follow her when I see Ice heading in her direction. There’s no way she’ll let me anywhere near Daisy right now. She might not know everything that happened between us, but Ice is far from stupid. I’m sure she’s figured out enough to want to keep me away from her permanently.
Giving up on the idea of talking to her, I turn toward Kidd and Reese.
“Did you ever find out what in the hell happened to her face?” Kidd asks Reese.
“What are you talking about?”
Kidd turns to me. “Daisy disappeared during Maker’s party, and the next day, she had a busted lip with a bruise on her cheek. She said she fell, but I wanna make sure none of the brothers got rough with her. She’s not a club whore, but even if she was, you know how I feel about that shit.”
Fuck! “If I find out that one of the boys laid a hand on her, I’ll kill him.”
“Shit. Don’t you think it’s about time you manned the hell up?” mumbles Reese.
“What the fuck do you mean by that?”
His eyes narrow as he looks at me. “Sober the fuck up and be a man. Claim her ass. We all know you want to.”
His words piss me off, but there’s enough truth behind them to keep me from kicking his ass. “I fucked up. Doubt she’d want me now.”
Kidd barks out a harsh laugh. “Haven’t we all fucked up a time or two?”
With that, we go quiet. Kidd and Reese’s minds are probably on the same person; Ice. Mine is thinking about Reese’s words. Yeah, I fucked up, but I could prove to her that I’m different now. I almost laugh at the thought. If anything, I’m worse, but I could clean the hell up; lay off the booze and stay the fuck away from the whores. Couldn’t I?
Yeah, it’s time. She’s mine, and I gotta figure out a way to make sure she knows it. Before I can come up with a plan, I hear Leah’s whispered voice behind me. I turn to see her talking to one of the other club girls. “Yeah, she plays all innocent, but she’s not. If Ice knew what she’s doing, she would get rid of her ass.”
“Ice is her friend. It would have to be pretty bad for her to get fired.”
Leah’s voice rises as she responds. “I saw her fucking some guy in the bathroom just a few minutes ago. I also saw him give her money, and you know that even Daisy can’t get away with that shit. Ice wouldn’t have it. ”
The girl shakes her head and starts to respond, but I’m no longer listening. Hearing Daisy’s name damn near makes me sick. I have to take a deep breath to keep from losing what little food I have in my stomach. All thoughts of claiming her fade away as my anger starts to grow into rage.
She wants to be a whore, does she? We’ll just see about that.
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DAISY
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I’m getting ready for my first time on stage when Leah walks in. I’ve done my best to avoid her over the last week, but it’s damn near impossible with both of us working at The Kitty Kat.
She sits at the station next to mine, a fake smile on her face. Her eyes meet mine in the mirror as she applies a yet another coat of mascara onto her overdone face. “Hey, Daisy.”
She is the last person I want to talk to, so I don’t reply. Instead, I nod and continue to put on my own make-up.
“How have you been?” she asks, pretending like she actually cares about my wellbeing.
Still not willing to speak, I just shrug.
“Well, I’ve been great. Wonderful actually.”
I know I shouldn’t, but I just can’t keep myself from asking, “What’s got you all happy?”
“I think I’m gonna be an old lady before too long,” she says, sounding pleased with herself.
“Good for you.” I know what she’s hinting at, but I’m not falling into her trap. She just wants me to fight with her, and I don’t have the time or the energy for that. If Preach makes her his old lady, that’s his choice. Even though the man I fell in love with is gone, and it will be another break in what’s left of my heart to see her wearing his brand, there’s nothing I can do about it. It’s his choice and his alone.
She rolls her eyes at my reply. “Jesus, Daisy. You have no reason to be such a bitch all the time.”
I can’t stop my own eyes from rolling. If she thinks that was bitchy, she should hear what I really think. After a moment’s hesitation, I decide to do just that. “A brother won’t make a whore his old lady, at least, not a whore that’s in it just to win a brand.”
Ice is a club girl. Actually, she is THE club girl. Still, I know she will be wearing a brand soon. Either Reese will finally kick his old lady to the curb and claim her, or Kidd will pull the stick out of his ass and put his brand on her. Leah is nothing like Ice, though. Leah is after a brand, any brand. Ice is here because she loves the club. She may be a whore, but she’s a member, even if she doesn’t wear a cut.
“I know you’re pissed that he chose me, but there’s really no reason to be mad at me. It isn’t my fault that Preach doesn’t want you. He proved that when he took me to his bed. You need to learn how to let go and move on.” She inches closer, making sure I don’t miss a word of whatever bullshit she is fixing to spew. “He told me my pussy was like a fuckin’ vise, squeezing his dick. He says he loves the way it milks him. He says my mouth is.... ” She doesn’t get to finish before Ice swings the door open.
“What the hell is your problem? Huh? Do you get off on hurting her?”
Leah’s face pales when she realizes she’s been caught. She knows not to cross Ice, so she backs away. “I wasn’t...” She stumbles over her words, not sure what to say to keep Ice from beating her ass.
“You weren’t what, being a fucking bitch? I heard your bullshit, you stupid cunt!”
“I’m sorry,” Leah whispers.
Ice just shakes her head and turns to me. “Daisy, babe, if she gives you shit again, you come find me. I’ll take care of her ass. I won’t sack her just because she’s a bitch. If I did that, I’d have to get rid of half the girls here, but she will pay. If she tries pulling this shit again, I’ll beat the bitch down.”
I smile, realizing for the first time that Ice isn’t just a friend. She is my best friend. “Thank you.”
“Just for the record, if Preach claims her skank ass, then I say let him have her. He isn’t good enough for you, anyway,” she says before leaving the dressing room. Right before the door shuts, she pokes her head back in. “Oh, and you’re on in ten.”
I take a look at Leah and notice her still sitting in front of her mirror. She’s still applying her makeup, but her hands are shaking so bad that she isn’t getting much done. I stare at her for a minute before deciding to ask her the question that has been burning inside of me for years. “I thought we were best friends? What happened, Leah? What changed? There is no way the girl I knew would have been with Preach, especially when she knew how I felt about him. Even if she did, she wouldn’t be rubbing it in my face right now,” I question.
She lets out a long sigh and turns to face me. “To be honest, I was never your best friend. Sure, we were friends, but we were never as close as you thought. You were just the only other girl my age that was part of the club. It was either hang out with you, or be alone. You may be boring, but you’re better than sitting in the corner alone. As for Preach, he’s hot, he has his cut, and he doesn’t have an old lady. He’s my chance at getting branded. I knew it would piss you off, but it’ll be worth it if he claims me.”
With that, she stands up and walks out of the room. I’d like to say that her words don’t bother me, but they do. I should’ve just kept my mouth shut.
I finally shake off her declaration and look back to the mirror. My hands shake as I apply the bright red lipstick. It’s my body’s way of saying that I’m making the wrong decision. Can I do this? Can I really go out there and take my clothes off in front of everyone?
A knock on the door brings me out of my dark thoughts. Skittles sticks her head in. “Daisy girl, you’re up.”
I slowly rise from my chair, my heart pounding. I look in the mirror one last time and see my vibrant red bra and matching thong. Both are covered in rhinestones, and when the light catches them, they look like little droplets of blood. I stare at myself for a moment, trying to gain a bit of courage, before grabbing my robe and heading out the door.
I make it to the stage just as the lights are going down. Ice is standing by the entrance with a look of trepidation clearly displayed on her face. “Daisy, are you sure you want to do this? I know this isn’t your thing.”
I swallow my worries and nod. “Yeah, I am.”
She looks toward the stage then back to me. “He’s out there.”
I don’t have to ask who he is. I know Preach is here. I saw him with Leah when I first walked in. She was in his lap, rubbing all over him. I swear I nearly gagged when I watched him shove his tongue down her throat.
“I know he is, but I don’t care.” My words may be a lie, but I’m working on making them true.
She looks me up and down and finally nods. “Knock ‘em dead, Little Flower.”
She nods at the sound stage girl, and the lights start to flicker. “We’ve got a real treat for you guys tonight. Now put your hands together and welcome Little Flower to the stage for the very first time.”
I hear Blood by In This Moment start up, and I know that’s my cue to walk out onto the stage. The spotlight hits me as soon as I take my first step onto the platform and start to move toward the pole. I teasingly shrug off my robe as I strut to the center of the stage while trying to avoid looking for Preach. When the robe has finally made it’s decent to the ground, I glide across the stage to begin my performance. But I’m caught off-guard when I zero in on Preach sitting right at the front of the stage. Our eyes lock, and I can see the fury radiating out of his tiger colored eyes.
Feeling my walls begin to crumble, I jerk my head away as the lyrics start to pound out of the speakers. It takes a moment for my body to catch the beat, but as soon as it does, I walk over and brace myself on the pole. As Maria Brink’s voice hits a low note, I grind my hips and throw back my head while rolling my body in time with the heavy bass. I see Leah take her place on Preach’s lap, and anger courses through my body. Screw them both!
Ice told me my choice in music isn’t the norm. She wasn’t sure how I was gonna pull this off, being that heavy metal music isn’t typical stripper material. However, this band and the beat of their song is perfect for me. It’s hot, sexy, and the words are so similar to what are in my soul right now. I hate him. I hate Preach, and I want him to feel it in his bones as I wrap myself around the pole and begin to slowly climb up the cool metal.
Ice was hesitant to show me any tricks during our training sessions, but when she found out that I have some pretty damn good core strength, she felt comfortable enough with teaching me a few of the easier pole dancing tricks. I’m going to have to thank her again, because all of the falls and minor bruises I got while learning the moves were worth it.
I can feel Preach’s eyes burning holes into my exposed body as I finally reach the top of the pole and lock my thighs around the steel rod. Leaning back, I arch sexily like Ice showed me. I relish in the heat that is radiating off of Preach and soaking into my blood. I begin to make my decent back down to the stage, slowly twirling and rolling my hips all the way down.
By the time my heels touch the floor, a thin sheen of sweat covers my entire body, and a low bubble of warmth has settled deep in my belly. The thought of dancing in front of a room of horny men used to terrify me, but all I can focus on now is the need to drive Preach as crazy as he’s made me. I hate the way my body is reacting to his gaze, but I love torturing him with what he missed out on when he stepped out on me with Leah.
Once I’m securely back on the ground, my body automatically sways back around the pole and follows the rhythm of the song, while my hips start to gyrate to the music. As the song starts to play the final verse, I slowly and seductively take off my bra. My tits bounce with the action, and for the first time, men other than Preach have seen my body. Something about that makes me even hotter, and the pool of heat I felt in my belly has transformed into an ache between my legs. Holy shit, this is amazing!
Ignoring the catcalls and whistles, I brace my leg up high on the pole and use my other leg to hold my body in place. Ice didn’t teach me this, but something in my soul tells me that I have to do this right now or I’ll spontaneously combust from all of the power that is coursing through my veins. Trailing the tips of my fingers over the crevice of my chest, I run my hand down the valley between my breasts. I bypass my stomach and head straight into my panties. Right there on the stage, in front of everyone, I brush over my pussy, sending a shockwave throughout my entire body. I know I shouldn’t be doing this, but I just can’t stop myself. It’s like my body has taken over, and my brain is no longer in control.
Harder and harder is all I hear in my head as I thrust my hips roughly against my hand and delve further into my slick folds. I can feel the fire growing even stronger inside of me, and I know I’m close to the edge. So close. As the song starts to fade away, I all but tune it out as I rub a few final circles over my clit. With the final beat of Blood, I throw my head back and shout out my release.
The shouts from the audience bring me down from my orgasmic high. When the announcer gives me another shout out, a wave of shame crashes through me. I can’t believe I just pleasured myself in front of a room full of people. What the hell was I thinking?
I rush over and grab my bra, robe, and a few of the various bills that are littered across the floor before making my exit off of the stage. The crowd is still going wild as I slip behind the curtain and make my way to the dressing rooms. Ice is standing at the door with a shit-eating grin on her face. “Forget all that shit I said before. You were made for this. Hell, I don’t swing that way, but damn, girl. I wouldn’t mind burying my head between your legs right now.”
I’m too mortified by my actions to respond, so I grimace as I run past her and into the dressing room.
Shutting the door, I move to sit down at my little station in front of the mirror and nearly cry. How could I have done something so private in front of everyone? Just as the thought races through my mind, I look down at the pile of cash I’m holding. Shaking away my shame, I start to count. Holy shit! I made eight hundred bucks just with that one dance, and that’s on top of my damn pay. That’s more than a month’s wages at the minimum wage jobs I’m used to.
As I’m stuffing the cash into my purse, the dressing room door slams open. I turn to greet Ice, but instead, I see Preach standing in the doorway. His fists are clenched, and I swear it looks like he has steam coming out of his ears and nose.
“What. The. Fuck. Was. That?” he growls out, pausing between each word.
He steps closer to me. “I thought you were better than that shit, but you’re no better than that fuckin’ mother of yours. You’re nothing but a worthless whore, just like her.”
“That’s not true,” I say in an attempt to defend myself, but a small part of me does dare to wonder if he is right. Would anyone but a whore do what I just did?
“What about your visit to the bathroom? Just so you know, when you get paid for it, it makes you a whore.”
“What are you talking about?”
He ignores me and continues to rant. “You fucking made yourself come on stage for everyone to watch. If that’s not something a whore does, then I don’t know what is.”
His words sting, because they mirror my own thoughts. I feel the tears fall down my face as I start to shake my head. “I’m not a whore.”
He throws back his head and laughs. The sound causes pain to shoot straight to my heart. “Get out,” I say quietly, not looking away from his handsome face.
I stand up and try to walk across the room, hoping he will just leave. Before I even get a few feet from my station, he grabs my arm. Walking backwards, he pushes me toward the wall. The power I thought I had over him earlier is thrown back in my face.
“If you want to be a whore, then I’ll treat you like one. I’ll stick my dick in you right now, right here against the wall and fuck you like the whore you’re pretending to be. Would you like that? I would. I would fuckin’ love to feel your tight, hot, wet pussy clenching around my dick, as you scream my name,” Preach says, caging me in.
I try to shove him away from me, but he doesn’t budge. “Leave me alone.”
“You don’t really want me to go, do you? You know you want to feel my dick between your legs. I can smell the heat on you.”
“Just leave me alone!” I scream at him, fear and excitement both pumping through my blood.
“I know you want me, and I want you too. Let me inside. I’ll show you how good I can make you feel,” he says seductively.
“No, I don’t. Please just stop,” I whimper out, knowing damn well that I do. A sick part of me would like to feel Preach thrusting deep inside of me, just once, to see if it’s as mind blowing as I’ve imagined it to be all these years.
“Yeah, you do. You want me every bit as bad as I want you. You know you were thinking about me when you had your hand on your pussy. You came, while everyone watched, just from thinking about my cock being inside you.”
Oh God, he’s right. All of it was for him, because I do want him. Common sense tells me that I should shove him away, hit him, or run screaming. When I register the depth of lust in his eyes, my stupid brain can only think of one thing, though. I love this man, and I want him more than I’ve ever wanted anything in my life. Even after everything he’s done, I still love him.
He uses one hand to hold my arms above my head, while the other makes its way toward my breast. “Fuck, baby. You got the most beautiful tits in the whole damn world. Every fuckin’ guy in there damn near shot his load when you took off your bra.”
He leans down and runs his tongue across my nipple, sending shockwaves straight through me. My pussy clenches and weeps, causing me to moan a deep throaty sound. I’ve held out for so long. Can I really give up my virginity against a wall in a strip club? My body is shouting ‘yes, I’m finally going to let Preach fuck me,’ but my brain is shouting, ‘no, Daisy, your first time should be special.’
A sound resolve, bathed in the love that I have for this man, makes my decision easy. I decide to listen to my wanton body as well as my heart and begin to grind back into his rigid hardness. When his lips move from my breast and barely touch my neck, I let out another throaty moan and move my head further to the side to give him better access to the sensitive flesh. After a few more sloppy kisses are peppered across my neck, his hands move away from mine in their upright position, and I soon realize that he has unzipped his pants and is in the process of rolling a condom onto his engorged dick. When the job is done, I wrap my arms around the back of his neck while one of his hands goes to my ass to lift me up and around his body. His other hand is busy slowly circling his dick around my wet core.
“You want this, don’t you Flower?” he whispers into my ear before looking me dead in the eye.
“Yes,” I moan, assuring him that I’m not caught up in the moment and this is what I want, before leaning my head back and accepting my fate.
With my consent, he thrusts inside me, brutally tearing away my innocence in one stoke. The pain is so overwhelming, I can’t hold in my scream when he finally plants himself fully. Not knowing the reason for my wail, Preach slams his mouth over mine, cutting off my scream, and starts to stroke in and out of my wounded core.
Eventually, his pace picks up. He continues to stroke into me as tears of agony slide down my cheeks. My back thuds against the wall with each thrust, and I realize that no pleasure will come from this for me. It’s nothing but pain. If I were honest with myself, I’d say that it hurts so bad that I’m not sure how much more I can take. All I can do is silently pray that it’s over quickly.
“Damn, so fuckin’ tight,” he says in a hoarse voice.
He starts to shudder, and I realize that’s he’s finally finding his release. I never found mine, never even came close. In fact, I’ve never felt anything so painful. I was always told that losing your virginity to someone you love is like a bee sting. It hurts for a second, but once the initial pain goes away, it’s amazing because you’re sharing the most precious piece of your body with the person who owns your heart. But not for me, all my pleasure washed away the moment he entered me. The more he kept going, the worse it got. I never imagined that it would be like this.
Preach starts to the pull away, but stops to whisper in my ear, “I told you, Daisy. You’re just like your mom.”
His cold words gut me. Nothing he said could have hurt me worse, and he knows that. My brain starts to shut down as I realize that I was wrong to listen to my heart. I can’t believe I just threw it away. I tossed my virginity at a douche bag for nothing. After he pulls out, I keep quiet and sink to the floor. Silently, my tears fall.
“Fuck.” Preach shouts, panic blatantly clear in his voice.
I look up and see the blood stained condom in his hand; a vivid reminder of something that I’ll never get back. “You were a virgin still?” he says in a shocked voice.
I look up at the man I thought I truly loved, doing my best to deaden the last remnants of heartache I feel. “Get out of here and never talk to me again. Please, just go away.” I’m shutting down and preserving what little soul I have left in me. It’s the only way I’ll ever be able to survive.
He stares at me for a long moment, seemingly in thought, with regret lurking in his eyes and whispers, “Sorry.” Finally, he turns around and tosses the condom in the trash, then walks out the door without a single glance back.
I watch the door vibrate from his forceful slam before heaving out the first sob and curling into a ball on the cold tile floor. I will get through this. I will get through this. I will...
I don’t think I can get through this.
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PREACH
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Slamming the door, I stomp out of The Kitty Kat. I barely make it outside before totally losing my shit. What did I do? What did I fuckin’ do? Filled with anger, I slam my fist into the brick wall of the building. As pain shoots through my hand, I brace myself against the wall and slide down. I fucked up, and I fucked up huge. If that shit with Leah hurt her, this has destroyed her. I don’t know how the hell I’ll ever be able to fix this.
I didn’t think that anything could feel worse than seeing Daisy up on the fuckin’ stage, naked, dancing and touching herself in front of everyone. It damn near gutted me to watch. I wanted to kill every motherfucker in the damn room. I wanted to scream that Daisy is mine, to let them all know if they so much as even glanced her way. I’d put a bullet in their brain, but that was nothing compared to this. I just treated her worse than the lowest of club whores. What the fuck did I do!?
How the hell do you make up for stealing the woman you love’s virginity? The answer comes to me in a flash. You don’t. Slowly, I push off the ground and walk to my bike. Right now, I need to get to the clubhouse, grab a bottle, and drink until I pass out.
Ten minutes later, I pull into the compound. Things are quiet here tonight. Only a few brothers are around. Guess they’re all still at The Kitty Kat. Good. I don’t need company to drink myself to oblivion. I barely make it inside the clubhouse before Wayne comes rushing at me. “You fuckin’ piece of shit!”
She must have called him as soon as I walked out. “Brother, I know I got it coming, but not here.”
Without looking back, I turn and walk out of the clubhouse. If I’m gonna get my ass kicked, I don’t want to do it in front of the few brothers still hanging around. As I walk toward the shed, I can hear more than one set of footsteps behind me. Fuck! This isn’t gonna be a beating. It’s gonna be a beat down. I shrug, knowing I deserve every bit of it.
I pull off my cut as soon as I step inside the shed. I’ve only been in here twice before. Both times were when someone had betrayed the club. Daisy’s a part of this club, and shares blood with my brothers. As far as I’m concerned, what I did to her was a betrayal not only to her, but also the brotherhood.
When I turn around, I only see Wayne and Holt. I’m surprised more brothers didn’t join them. I lift my chin to them as I lay my cut on one of the shelves lining the wall. “Alright, have at it.”
Holt doesn’t need to be told twice. He rushes toward me and sends his fist into my gut. “You’re a piece of shit.”
“You put your fuckin’ hands on my granddaughter?” Wayne growls out as he steps up to punch me in the mouth. “Bloodied her face.”
It takes a second for his words to sink in. I shake off the pain as I spit blood on the ground. “What the hell are you talking about?”
“Don’t play dumb, motherfucker. She saw you hit Daisy, and only a pussy hits a woman,” he says before sending another swing my way.
I don’t mind getting my ass kicked for what I did, but I’ll be damned if I take a beating for something I didn’t do. Swinging my arm, I land an upper cut to Wayne’s jaw. The old fucker’s tougher than hell, but even he can’t keep to his feet after a hit like that. Next comes Holt, and it takes a few more for him, but I finally get him down.
I taste the blood as it pools in my mouth, and suck in a deep breath. “What the hell are you talking about? I’ve never hit Daisy.”
Wayne pushes his body off of the ground and glares at me. “You can lie all you want, but Lula saw you.”
I shake my head at him. “I know she’s your daughter, but you know how she is. Lula lies as often as most people breathe.”
Holt finally makes it to his feet, clutching his side. “I wouldn’t have believed Lula’s lying ass if I hadn’t seen the bruises myself. If it wasn’t you, then how the hell did she get the bruises and the busted lip? Don’t try to tell me she fell. I’m not that fuckin’ stupid.”
My conversation with Reese and Kidd flies through my head. Just as suddenly, images of Daisy and me in the clubhouse hallway come to me. Me screaming at her and pulling her down the hall. It all comes back to me.
I still don’t remember hitting her, but I can’t be sure that I didn’t. Visions of Father beating Tabby, with blood running down her cheek, flash through my mind. My God, I’ve become the man I hate the most in this world.
“I don’t remember,” I mumble out, ashamed to even admit that I could’ve done it.
Wayne looks at me for a minute before he nods to Holt. “We’ve been talking. You may be a bastard, but you’re a valuable member of the club. If we tell Kidd about this, he could vote your ass out. We don’t want to see that happen. ”
Kidd doesn’t condone violence on women in any way. If it’s a members’ old lady, there’s not much he can do but try to rein the man in. Daisy’s not my old lady, so I think voting me out would be the least of my worries.
“There are only a few members that would die for the club, and you’re one of them. As much as we hate it, the Renegades can’t afford to lose you.” Holt explains. “If you’re lucky, he’d just have you punished, but that’s not a chance we’re willing to take.”
As far as being punished, I can deal with that. I’ve only seen it happen a time or two. It usually leads to a hospital stay, but at least I’d keep my cut. I’m pretty damn sure that wouldn’t be the route our Pres would take.
“We just want you to keep your ass away from Daisy. She wasn’t built for this life. She deserves better.”
I can do nothing but nod in agreement because I know he’s right. Daisy deserves a hell of a lot better than anything I’ve given her, and right now, I can’t trust myself with her. If I hit her, then I need to stay the hell away from her.
“If we catch you near her again, we’re going to Kidd and letting him know what you’ve done. From here on out, my girl is off limits. This is your last chance. If you fuck it up, we’ll see that you lose your cut,” Wayne says, making sure that I know exactly what they mean.
If they make it official, they’ve literally tied my hands. If a member forbids a relationship with a member of their family, then the person is off limits. You pursue that shit and you lose your patch. It’s either Daisy or the club. As much as I love her, the Renegade Sons are the only family I have. The fact that I love her also helps me make the decision. I can’t take the chance of doing to her what my father did to our family.
“Just let me tell her I’m sorry, and then I’ll stay clear of her.” Just saying the words sends a wave of pain through my body that damn near brings me to my knees.
After a few moments of silence, Wayne starts to speak. “We’ll give you that, but nothing more.”