14. Rogue
ROGUE
Iwatch Angel for the longest time after tucking her into bed before heading to my room and dragging a pair of jeans on to go down and get our clothes. I scoop them up and push them into a plastic grocery bag before grabbing a beer from the refrigerator and returning to my room.
The room not one other female has ever been in. Sure, the bunnies come around but not once have I brought one of them in all the years we’ve lived here up to my private room. But Angel, I would have brought her here to love, to kiss on and take her flower if I had known she was a virgin.
But Angel has a mind of her own. A sweet innocent young woman who the Scorpions used to make a buck at any club that would hire her while they protected her innocence so they could sell her to a son of a bitch who wanted her virginity and nothing else.
Now the reason they want her back is making sense.
I’m still trying to comprehend exactly what happened tonight with my Angel. Nothing could have surprised me more when I felt resistance and knew she was in pain And the fact she knew exactly what she wanted and wanted it with me.
Fuck…
The realization that the reason her stepdad sold her and her sister to the Scorpion bastards hits hard.
A virgin as pretty as her brings a shit ton of money.
The rich sons of bitches get off on that shit and pay more money than most men make in years.
That’s why the Scorpions didn’t hurt her, didn’t soil her and instead made her dance in the clubs.
A way to make money while not spoiling her before making the sell.
Greedy sons of bitches, well they got what they deserved trying to get her back.
And knowing exactly what her virginity meant, that she could sell it on her own too, for money that would hold her for years, she gave me the most special gift she had to give free of charge or any strings attached.
I close the door, tossing the bag of our clothes onto the floor before unbuttoning my pants and letting them drop to the floor. Angel purrs as I slide in next to her, cradling her body next to mine. I kiss the sensitive skin of her neck.
“Do you still want me now that I’m not a virgin?”
Angel’s question catches me off guard. I draw her closer because all I’ve been thinking about is that I should have made it a better experience for her, some romantic shit after a dinner out or something, but instead she’s thinking I only wanted her for her virginity when I didn’t know it at all.
I tip her chin up with a finger. “That doesn’t make a bit of sense. I had no idea you were a virgin. You should have told me, Angel. Tell me what’s going on? Why would you ask me that, knowing I didn’t know you were a virgin?”
She heaves a sigh, and a lone tear rolls from her eye, right down her cheek. I catch it with a fingertip and put it to my lips, tasting the salt of her pain. “Tell me what’s hurting you, Angel.”
Those green eyes assess me for long minutes. I lie still wondering if she’s going to tell me what I want to know or if she’s going to make something up that isn’t true or doesn’t make any sense.
“No man has ever protected me, in any way at all. They just wanted to make money off of my looks. I’m not sure exactly what they see in me but whatever it is, boys in high school wanted to get with me only to pop my cherry, and then my own stepdad wanted to capitalize on my virginity by selling me and my sister to the bikers who apparently could get a hell of a lot more for me than her, because I was virgin.
It’s the only reason I was able to set her free before I ran. I knew they would come for me.”
I hold her close, still absorbing all that I’ve learned tonight about Angel, who crashed into my club and changed my life.
I cradle her head, feeling the tears on my chest. “Angel, that was the most precious gift anyone has ever given me. It makes me a happy, happy man. Why would I not want you now?”
She sniffs and tilts her head to look up at me while I wipe her tears. “I hate to see you upset.” Angel shakes her head. “No, these are happy tears. I love that you didn’t know and still want me even after. It’s validating that there really still are a few good men in the world today.”
I kiss the top of her forehead and fold my arms around her tighter, just wrapping myself in the moment and her happiness.
She’s given me this extraordinary gift and I want to give her one in return.
I vow to send out messages far and wide to all the other Royal Bastard chapters across the states to be on the lookout for her sister using the little wallet-sized picture that Angel keeps on her nightstand.
And if ever find her fucking stepdad, I honestly don’t know what I’ll do but it’s not going to be good.
“Rogue?”
“Yeah, baby?”
“Thank you for protecting me, for keeping me safe even though your men don’t care for me much.”
“You’re welcome. It’s not that they don’t like you, it’s that you’re an unknown and that is something we all try to avoid for the safety of the crew. They’ll come around.”
She glances up at me with wide eyes. “You plan on keeping me here, after everything?
“I’m sure as fuck not giving you back.”