Chapter 18
Chapter Eighteen
Joey
When Alejandro stepped through the clubhouse doors, I immediately grimaced.
I might have exploded at him and basically told him we’d be at war after Yeller Giddons and his sex trafficking ring got taken down if he ever crossed into my territory again, but honestly, I hadn’t meant it.
I’d been confused about my reaction to him and how much I found myself wanting what he laid out, which meant I’d lashed out at him.
But I’d never wanted him hurt. Definitely didn’t want him to get shot.
And the amount of blood soaking his pristine white button down?
It was going to be a miracle if he didn’t need a hospital for a transfusion, at the very least. His olive-toned skin was paler than usual, and he was just a tiny bit unsteady on his feet.
Muttering a curse, I hurried forward. When I made to support him on the walk to the chair next to the table where I had everything laid out, he shook his head. “If I lean on you, she’ll panic,” he muttered.
I glanced over at Elaina, huffing an annoyed breath that he was more concerned with her than bleeding the fuck out.
Even if she was too pale for comfort as she stared at all the blood soaking his arm, I knew she would stand strong.
She hadn’t come this far in all her trauma and abuse to not be able to keep herself together in this kind of situation.
And even if she couldn’t, one of us could console her. But we couldn’t console her if he passed out on my fucking clubhouse floor.
“Just lean on me,” I snapped. “You look like you’re about to fucking pass out, Garcia. Elaina will be fine.”
At the mention of her name, the woman tilted her chin up the slightest bit and crossed her arms over her chest, a show of her strength. Proving to us that even though she was terrified for Alejandro’s well-being, she could stand on her own.
Fuck, it just made me fall for her even more. I’d stood no chance against her. I really, really fucking hadn’t.
“Worried about me?” Alejandro asked, directing his question to me. I was sure he meant it to sound teasing, but the question was strained and threaded through with pain.
“Shut the fuck up,” I snapped, forcing his good arm over my shoulder. The moment I took some of his weight, he groaned in relief. As soon as I had him in the chair, Elaina began making quick work of getting his shirt off of him.
Miguel emerged from the hallway his room was down, and he shot Alejandro an annoyed look. “Where the fuck did you even go?” Miguel snapped at him.
“I went to get Elaina some clothes,” Alejandro told him.
“Fuck,” I swore, thrusting a hand through my hair. I glanced at Ink, and his face was grim. We were both obviously thinking the same thing, and his next words confirmed it.
“Our plan won’t work,” Ink said. “Her father knows she’s here.”
Elaina paused in pulling Alejandro’s sleeve down his injured arm, and her fingers trembled before she forced them to tighten around the blood-stained fabric, her pale fingers coated red with Alejandro’s blood.
I stepped closer to her at the same time Alejandro reached up with his good hand and cupped the side of her neck, using his thumb to lift her head so their eyes met.
“He will not touch you, pequena luchadora,” he promised her, his Spanish accent a little thicker due to the blood loss and the anger he was trying to hide from her.
I settled my hand on her upper back between her shoulder blades, and she drew in a deep breath, trying to steady her nerves. “You’re safe here,” I swore. “I won’t let anything happen to you. None of us will.”
She nodded, blew out the breath she’d just sucked in, then finished pulling Alejandro’s shirt off.
When she stood and turned, she squeaked when she bumped into my chest. When she lifted her head to look up at me, Alejandro’s blood-stained shirt clenched in her fists, I cupped her face and leaned in, pressing my lips to her forehead.
“So brave, sweet girl,” I murmured. She relaxed into my hold, and my heart clenched in my chest. “Go wash your hands, then bring me a washcloth and a pot of water.”
“Okay.”
I moved out of her way, and she hurried to the kitchen.
When I looked at Alejandro, he was already staring at me, his head cocked to the side the slightest bit, his brow arched.
Ignoring him, I moved closer and crouched, inspecting the bullet wound.
There was no exit wound, which meant I’d have to dig the bullet out.
“This is going to hurt like a bitch,” I warned him.
Alejandro grunted. “Figured,” he muttered. “Got liquor?”
I snorted. “The fuck kind of question is that?” Looking up at Ink, I said, “Mind getting him a bottle? Strongest we got.”
He strode off toward the bar. Miguel moved closer, his arms crossed over his chest. “Was getting Elaina clothes worth this?” he asked, still annoyed with his boss.
“She is worth everything,” Alejandro told him, his voice steely. There was a warning there, but Miguel didn’t care to heed it.
“You could have fucking died, Alejandro, and then what?” Miguel snapped at him.
“Not only will your empire be left scrambling as we all struggle to take down who did this to you, but there are men who are loyal only because you are their boss. An uprising could very well happen. And what do you think they’d do to Elaina?
You think it hasn’t gotten around the cartel yet that you’re soft for her? ”
“I can take care of myself,” Elaina snapped as she came out of the kitchen toting the pot of water, a washcloth draped over her shoulder. “I might be covered in bruises, Miguel, but it is only because they had to tie me up and hold me down to beat the shit out of me. Don’t get it twisted.”
My lips quirked in amusement all while pride swelled in my chest. Alejandro smirked at Miguel.
“There is only one person in this world your future queen is afraid of, Miguel, and we are working to take him out,” Alejandro calmly told him.
“As for the cartel—you are well-versed enough in my role to take over and run things smoothly. You would figure it out.” He looked at me. “Can we get started now?”
Miguel scoffed and stormed off, but not before he aimed his middle finger at Alejandro. Elaina looked at the two of us. “Your queen?” she snapped.
I smirked because I knew if he wasn’t down a lot of blood, he would’ve never said that in her presence yet.
Still, Alejandro hummed, pretending as if he hadn’t slipped.
“Yes, pequena luchadora. Mi reina.” He glanced at me before looking back at her again.
“And if I have my way, I’ll have Joey, too, and we can share him. ”
I opened my mouth to snap at him, confusion burning through me as my body reacted to the way he wanted to claim me much in the same way I felt when I saw a hot as fuck woman I wanted to sink my cock into.
I was straight. Always had been. But I wasn’t stupid enough to think I couldn’t be a little bit gay for someone.
People were constantly changing and evolving, and I was no stranger to doing either of those things.
Before I could speak though, Ink choked, his eyes about bugging out of his head. I scowled and pointed a stiff finger at him. “Do not say a fucking word,” I growled.
He smirked and held his hands up, one holding an unopened bottle of vodka. “My lips are sealed, Prez.”
I grunted in disgust with his amusement, then snatched the bottle from him and twisted off the cap. I thrust it at Alejandro. “Shut the fuck up and drink this, you asshole.”
He chuckled and took the bottle from me before tilting it up and swallowing three gulps. Elaina’s eyes met mine, and her cheeks stained red. Fuck, she was beautiful when she blushed.
“I… I wouldn’t mind,” she said quietly.
Christ. If anyone could make me give Alejandro a chance, it would be this beautiful blonde in front of me.
I tugged her closer and pressed my lips to her temple. “Don’t be a tease,” I rasped. Reluctantly, I released her, then nodded toward the pot of water. “I need you to clean his arm, then keep the blood wiped away while I dig the bullet out. Can you manage that?”
She nodded. “Whatever you need.”
Our eyes met, and her cheeks darkened even more. My cock was half-hard behind the zipper of my jeans.
Whatever you need.
Fuck, those were dangerous words.
Alejandro grabbed Elaina around the waist and tugged her onto his lap. “Get to work, pequena luchadora.”
“Fuck you,” she muttered, but she reached forward and grabbed the cloth from the pot of water anyway. After wringing it out, she began wiping the blood away, and as soon as the area was clean, I set to work.
And if I admired the way Alejandro possessively held the woman that would hopefully be ours as I worked… who could fucking blame me? But I’d never admit to it. Not yet. I needed—and deserved—time to sort through all these new feelings for a man.