26. Emery
Emery
One drink is all it takes to have me swaying on my feet. By the second, I’m clinging to the bar, and the room is a little fuzzy. But I feel… good.
I feel free.
And it’s not just the alcohol, which is now swimming freely through my veins. It’s being here in this place. A place I should probably fear because of the guns and leather, but instead, I feel safe.
Luna and Reagan are seated at the bar, while Tempe, Aimee, and I stay perched beside them. There’s a bubble of empty space around us that no one dares cross. If they even come close, Ghost has his eyes on them.
He and Legacy are at a table nearby, giving us our space to talk, but making sure that even in their clubhouse, someone is watching over us. They laugh and sip their beers while Hayes jokes with some of the other guys across the bar. There’s a camaraderie. A brotherhood.
And I’m free to enjoy myself without worrying about what might happen. I never drank around my uncle and his friends because I couldn’t trust my uncle to protect me. But even with Hayes across the room, I know he’s paying attention. If anything happened, I have no doubt his friends would step in.
I take another sip, savoring the lemony deliciousness that coats my tongue. It was strong at first, but now it goes down like water. I lift my glass, and Tempe smiles, tapping her glass against it.
“I’ve made a decision,” I say, holding up my drink. “Lemon drops are the best drink ever invented.”
“I second that.” Tempe lifts her glass, downing the final swig.
Her wavy brown hair is curlier tonight, bouncing around her shoulders as she spins to set her glass on the bar.
“We need snacks,” Luna decides, narrowing her eyes at the door that leads to the kitchen.
“I’ll go with you.” Reagan slides off her barstool, and Legacy immediately walks over to see if she needs anything.
For a group of lethal bikers, feared across Vegas, they’re absolutely weak when it comes to their women.
Aimee follows Luna and Reagan to the kitchen, but Willa takes a detour toward Chaos, leaving me and Tempe at the bar.
Still, no one dares step into the empty bubble. I sense they know better than to approach the president’s wife.
Tempe sips a water, relaxed with the madness raging around us. Music blares. People fuck on random surfaces. It’s a mess of booze and laughter.
“Are you hanging in there?” Tempe nudges my shoulder.
“I’m fine, just feeling a little inexperienced at the moment,” I admit, glancing around. “And I get the impression my husband is far from it.”
The slight downturn of her lips tells me I’m right. “Soul likes you just how you are.”
“I know,” I assure her. “And I didn’t mean for that to come out so negative. But sometimes I wish I’d have experienced something—anything—growing up.”
“It’s never too late.” Tempe smiles. “It’s better to experience new things like this anyway. Around people you trust. People who will take care of you. Before coming here, I felt like I’d seen it all, and that wasn’t a good thing.”
“Hayes mentioned your father was in the club.”
Her smile tightens as she nods. “We weren’t close because of that.
I didn’t have a great view of the club. But that’s the thing about experiences.
They’re different depending on who you share them with.
Jameson changed my perspective on the Twisted Kings.
He showed me that a biker wasn’t predestined to be just one thing.
It’s not about what you’ve done, it’s about who is with you.
Nothing compares to what Jameson has given me. ”
“What’s that?”
“Freedom to be myself.” Her smile widens as Steel meets her stare, and I find Hayes through the crowd.
All night, he’s given me space to spend time with the girls, while staying within my line of sight. Even now, as he stands at the other side of the room, his back is to the wall so he’s facing me.
His eyes lift, meeting mine, and I’m pulled back to the night we met. Hayes sees my spirit. He doesn’t try to dull me; he sets me free.
So why would I give that up?
My uncle had me dragged out of here to crush my confidence.
He knew I’d been given too much rope, so he found a way to rein me in.
To stoke my fears and manipulate me like he’s good at.
But what he didn’t realize is that while I’ve been here, I’ve been changing, discovering who I am.
I don’t need to be the quiet girl who obeys or feels like she owes him something for raising her.
I’m someone more.
Someone stronger.
What if I didn’t just bow down to his demands? What if I fought to get Charlie and me out of his grasp instead?
Hayes breaks my gaze as Venom leans in and says something that makes him laugh.
I’m tempted to walk up to him right now and tell him what’s going on, but he’s done so much for me already.
It’s unfair to burden him further. I’m the one who handed him more problems. I need to try and figure this out for myself.
Tomorrow.
I'll figure this out tomorrow.
Aimee pops out of the kitchen, waving for Tempe from across the room. She holds up what appears to be a burnt grilled cheese, and Tempe laughs.
“I’ll be right back. It seems I’m needed before the girls sacrifice any more bread and cheese.” Tempe shakes her head.
The crowd parts as she moves through it, careful to keep their distance. The level of respect these men show the ranked members’ old ladies is surprising given all the debauchery happening around us.
Tempe disappears into the kitchen, and I’m left alone at the bar for the first time since arriving. Hayes is deep in a conversation with Venom, so I sit back with my drink, looking around the room.
In one corner is a group of beautiful women all gathered together. A blonde and a redhead watch me intently, whispering to each other. I’ve noticed there’s this invisible line when I’m around the other wives. The clubhouse girls avoid me like I’m an old lady.
Am I?
My gaze drops to the ring on my finger.
Whatever Hayes and I are is more than us simply dating. This ring claims me as his. When all is said and done, could he actually love me? If I found a way to help him with my uncle instead of letting my uncle destroy us, could we explore this for real?
The blonde stands, not taking her eyes off me as she crosses the room. Her cherry-red dress is practically painted on, showing off every curve as she slips into the empty spot at the bar beside me.
“Vodka soda.” She smiles sweetly at the prospect behind the bar, who hasn’t stopped staring at her chest.
He makes her drink, and I wait for her to leave once he passes it to her, but she doesn’t. She spins, standing so close that our arms brush. Her gaze stops on Hayes as she takes a sip.
I wish I didn’t immediately wonder if he’s slept with her. I wish I didn’t wonder how many of the women in here have shared his bed. He swears I’m the only one he wants now, but it doesn’t stop my insecurity from flaring.
“You’re Emery,” the blonde says, still watching my husband.
Her nose scrunches like my name sours her mouth.
“I am.” I take a sip of my drink, wishing it would cool my nerves. “And you are?”
“Reina.” It’s followed by a huff, as if I’ve insulted her by not knowing.
Her name does sound vaguely familiar. I believe the girls mentioned she’s been around the club for a while. They said something about her being difficult to get along with. Territorial.
“Of all the surprising things Soul has done, I didn’t expect playing house to be one of them,” Reina muses, stirring her drink with her straw; her perfectly outlined eyes narrow on me. “Then again, I thought he was smarter than to knock up some random girl.”
“Do you have a point?” I ask, my irritation spiking.
“Hmm.” Her smirk turns malicious. “You’re not as meek as I expected. I suppose that makes sense.”
My fingers tighten around my drink as I take another sip. At least this conversation has temporarily lifted the fog of alcohol. With every sideways comment, I sober up a little more.
A group of girls circles Hayes and Venom, one brushing her hand down Hayes’s arm. He takes a step back at her touch, but it does nothing to stop her advances as she continues to laugh and chat with him.
“This isn’t the place for jealousy.” Reina watches the girls surrounding my husband. “Even if he does care about you, he’s a Twisted King. They do what they want. If you can’t get used to it, this isn’t the world for you.”
“Is that a threat?”
“It’s a fact.” She shrugs. “Take it however you want. But as you can see, there’s no changing what this is. You either accept this place or you leave. It’s rare these men are faithful.”
My stomach turns, and while I suspect Reina is simply trying to get under my skin, I don’t think she’s completely full of shit. Most of the guys here are moving between women like they have no attachments. How many have girlfriends or wives somewhere else?
Is that what Hayes expects of me? For me to look the other way?
He didn’t approve of his father cheating on his mother, so would he really marry me just to do the same? Infidelity tore his family apart, but we haven’t discussed his boundaries.
The beautiful girl standing near Hayes is a pillar of proof that, at the club, he’ll be surrounded by endless options. While I’m at home with Charlie, what will he be doing here?
It shouldn’t matter after my conversation with my uncle. I don’t know how long we’ll be here. Still, this painful tug of jealousy is a living being inside me.
“Don’t worry. I’m sure he won’t get bored.” Reina shrugs like she’s proud she made her point.
A malicious smile crawls up in the corner of her mouth.
She wants to scare me off, either for her amusement or because she wants Hayes to herself. A month ago, her attempts might have worked. Back then, it was safer to hide behind my defenses than stick up for myself.
But I’m not that girl anymore.
Reina doesn’t know me, and while she’s trying to convince me she knows Hayes, she only knows the side of him he shows at the club. There’s a whole other person when it’s just the two of us.
So she can try to provoke me, and she can call me out for being jealous if she wants.
Maybe I am. Maybe I’m a little possessive as well. But maybe Hayes doesn’t mind it. After all, he was the one who said he wanted me as is. He’s never asked me to change.
I throw back the final sip of my drink, setting the empty glass on the bar a touch harder than necessary.
“I guess we’ll see if he gets bored or not.” My smile isn’t anything close to sweet, and it makes hers fall.
Good.
It’s not her Hayes is watching as I cross the room. He doesn’t even spare her a glance.
I roll my shoulders back, aiming straight for him, ignoring the whispers of what he’s done. Brushing aside my insecurity over the life he lived before me.
They don’t know him, and they don’t have him.
I do.
I might be a good girl. And I might have lived a sheltered life. But that doesn’t mean I can’t meet my husband toe-to-toe. Reina seems to think I’m going to try to tame him. But that’s what she doesn’t understand. I fell for his wild side. I want to be wild right alongside him.