4. Camile
CAMILE
Vani’s gaze sears into me, despite the fact I’ve got my head down, staring at the floor.
God, why can’t she start to accept things?
It’s not even as if Jack and I are officially an item in any way.
There’s so much still up in the air, but her behavior to me makes me think she’ll always be in the way of anything happening between us.
While part of me gets it, the other is just pissed.
Her men, the Vipers, hate Mackenzie’s men, the Devils, and none of them can stand the Preachers, and yet they’ve tried to put their differences behind them.
For the sake of their women. It’s so unfair that Vani gets everything and yet refuses to even consider that I might genuinely love her father.
Because I do.
Now that he’s lying on an operating table, I know without a doubt that what I feel goes beyond infatuation or lust. I love Jack, and I’d spend my life trying to make him happy.
I sigh and glance up.
“You don’t have to be here if you don’t want. If you’re bored, you can always leave.” Vani stares at me, hostility oozing from her.
God, I am sick of this. She needs to grow up.
“You know what, Vani? You are such a fucking hypocrite.” I finally stand up for myself.
I cherish our friendship, but maybe she needs to realize how unreasonable she’s being.
Her eyes widen. “I beg your pardon?”
“It’s okay for you, isn’t it? You got what you wanted, and everyone had to accept it, including your father. Including Mackenzie, who is with men who were enemies of the Vipers.” I pause before I push on. “Including me, who the Vipers used to torment and treat like shit.”
Saint shoots me a murderous glance, but I carry on.
“All that mattered was what you wanted.”
“You—”
I hold my hand up, interrupting her. “And I understand, I really do. You were in love, and that’s more important than all those other things. It’s just a shame you can’t see the same for me.”
She snorts. “Oh, my God, so now you’re in love with my dad? Get real, Camile.”
“Wait, what do you mean, they tormented you?”
I turn to Ace at his words, and my heart sinks at what I’ve let slip. He’s got that crazy expression that means he could do anything.
“It was ages ago. They were just idiots,” I say.
“Are you calling my men idiots?” Vani stands and puts her hands on her hips. “Oh, no, you did not. Camile, you’ve always been judgmental and holier than thou, but you can drop the act, okay? We all know you’re screwing a whole ton of my dad’s biker club, and you’d screw him, too, if you could.”
My blood rushes hot and livid, pounding in my skull. How dare she? I push to my feet and step up to her, getting right up in her face. “You absolute hypocrite. Don’t you dare slut shame me when you’re with three men.”
“I’m not with three men and trying to get your daddy into bed as well, though, am I? There’s a fucking difference, Camile. A big one. Plus, you’re manipulating them all.”
“Manipulating?” My voice is screechy now.
“Yes. You’re a manipulative bitch.”
I don’t even think. Pure instinct has me moving before I can stop myself. I dart my hand out and snatch a fistful of her thick curls and pull, yanking her head to one side.
“Ouch! Get the fuck off my hair.”
A sharp crack rings out in the room, and the pain registers a second later. She slapped me, and God does it hurt.
Pushing me as hard as she can, Vani sends me stumbling back, but I still have hold of her hair, so she staggers after me. For a moment, we kind of wrestle, neither of us getting anywhere. She’s grasping for my upper arms, and I’m trying to pull her head farther down with her hair.
“Christ,” a male voice grumbles.
Two big, strong arms come around me, and Ace speaks in a low, calm tone.
“Let go of her hair, Camile. We’re at the hospital. You don’t want to get thrown out, do you?”
He’s right, I know he is, so reluctantly, I let go of Vani’s soft curls. The girl has great hair; I have to admit that, even if right now I don’t like her.
Zane has Vani by the waist, his massive arms holding her back from doing anything else.
Suddenly, tears prick at my eyes, and I know I can’t hold them back any longer.
“Let me go,” I cry out and push Ace off me, before turning and running out of the waiting room door, my face burning in mortification. I won’t let her see me cry.
I stagger down the corridor, looking for signs for the restroom and, when I find them, I push my way inside. Storming into a stall, I grab some paper before I sit down on the closed seat, with the stall door still open, and let the tears come.
Please don’t let Jack die, I pray to a God I’m not sure I believe in. Please, please, please, don’t let him die.
The door to the restroom bursts open, and I brace myself for more attacks from Vani, but it’s Ace who sweeps in.
“Hey, Camile, come here.” He hauls me up and pulls me into his arms.
His scent washes over me, familiar and reassuring, but that only makes me cry more. I’ve held back so much of my recent fear, grief, and loss, but now it’s all pouring out of me.
“She’ll never accept it,” I sob against his chest, “and I’ve lost a good friend.”
“First, I do believe, eventually, she’ll come around. She will want Jack in her life, and when she sees he wants to be with us, then Vani will accept it.”
“We don’t even know if he does! We don’t even know if he’s going to get out of surgery okay.”
“Don’t say that. This is Jack. He’s such a tough son-of-a-bitch. He will be back to normal in no time. As for us? Yeah, he does want it, and he just needs to get his head out of his ass.”
“Vani was such a good friend, and now she hates me.”
“Was she? I mean she’s with a bunch of guys who did horrible stuff to you. And by the way, this isn’t going to be forgotten. I want to know what they did.”
Oh, God, this can’t become a whole other thing. I can’t cope with it. Pulling myself away from his shoulder with great effort, because I could stay there forever, I lift my gaze to study him.
“Ace, listen to me. It was before they met her, and it was ages ago. They were assholes. Still are, if you ask me, but it’s gone and in the past. I dealt with it myself, and I don’t want any more trouble. If you care about me, you’ll leave it.”
His eyes search mine, then he nods. “Okay. Understood.”
Wow, I got through to Ace when he’s on a mission. Maybe I really am finding my power.
“I want you to listen to me now.” Ace tips my chin up gently, brushes his lips over mine, then pulls away and carries on speaking.
“Jack is in good hands here. The nurse at the desk has my number. I gave it to her on my way to you, and she’s promised to call as soon as there’s any news.
But Ghost isn’t in safe hands. We don’t know where he is.
Jack will be in surgery for some time, and then in recovery.
So, he’s not going back to his room anytime soon.
I think we should head back to the compound and try to help them find Ghost. Plus, I think Rook could do with a hug, you know? ”
He’s right, but all I want to do is stay here. Then I think of Vani and her anger, and my body sags a little as I give in to what Ace is saying.
“Okay, let’s go back. But the minute he’s out of the OR, I want to return. Promise?”
“Of course. I want to see him, too.”
“Fine. You have a deal.”
His hand snakes into the hair at the back of my head, cupping my nape, and he lowers his face to mine once more.
This time, the kiss isn’t just a brush of lips.
It’s a deep, lingering moment that makes me melt against him.
Kissing Ace is like drowning but in the best way.
He pulls me into the depths with him and, for a while, there’s nothing but him and me, no other noise or stress. It’s beautiful.
When we finally break apart, he brushes his thumb over my mouth and kisses my forehead. “Come on, brave girl, let’s go get our other man back.”
Out in the hallway, I see that Vani is still in the waiting room, and a thought hits me. “I just want to do one thing, okay?”
Ace sighs, but he nods his acceptance. I walk over to the nurses’ station and ask if I can borrow a pen and paper. She hands me over a Post-it note and a pen. I thank her and write hastily.
Jack, get better, be strong. I love you, Camile.
After handing her the pen back, I keep the note in the palm of my hand, and as we walk down the corridor to leave, I search the room numbers on the doors. I see the one I want, room seven, according to Tank’s sister.
“One moment,” I whisper to Ace.
I push on the door and, relieved to find it open, slip inside. I walk to the bed and sneak my note under the pillow. If, for some reason, I can’t get back to Jack anytime soon, I hope he’ll find it.
I do love him, and it’s time he knows how I really feel.