Chapter 10
Hush
“Heard you had a visitor last night.”
I glanced over as Riptide walked up. The VP was the one who managed the club’s bar. Lockout was too busy most days with his freelance pilot business to manage the bar directly. Riptide loved The Bunker like she was his baby. It worked well for both men.
He had on jeans, boots, and a long sleeve Henley under his cut.
His long dark hair was loose and fell to his shoulders.
The sweet butts were always sighing over his long hair and longer eyelashes.
Personally, I thought he looked ridiculous with the girlie hair, but he’d just laughed when I’d told him that.
Ignoring him, I wiped down the bar with a rag.
These men were my brothers and I loved them, but damn they liked to get up in my fucking business.
It was a toss-up as to who had ratted me out.
Probably Smokehouse, but it could have been just about anyone in the bar last night.
The men from the other local MCs who frequented The Bunker were friends of ours and wouldn’t hesitate to say something to Riptide.
My mind had been preoccupied with Seek all night, so I’d sent Kit home and planned on coming back this morning to clean up properly.
It shouldn’t have surprised me that Riptide knew I was here.
Just like it didn’t shock me he knew Seek had been at the bar last night.
He knew everything that happened within these four walls.
I didn’t say anything, just kept wiping down the bartop. My silence had never stopped Riptide before. We’d met overseas, years before I’d joined the MC. The fact that we’d known each other for so long had just made him that much more of a nosey bastard.
He sat down at the stool across from where I stood. “Heard you kicked her friends out and let her stay.”
I looked up and met his eyes then shrugged. “She wanted a drink.”
“See, that’s not what I heard,” he said with a grin. He was getting a kick out of antagonizing me. “From what I was told, you asked her if you could buy her a drink.”
“Your informants are wrong.” They weren’t, but if I admitted to that I was never going to get any peace.
His grin widened. I wasn’t sure why I thought he’d let it go, but all I had to see was that smile to know he wouldn’t. “No they aren’t. You’re into her.”
I glared down at the bar. “What the fuck does it matter?”
“I haven’t seen you show any interest in a woman since-” he broke off, realizing now was a bad time to bring up Daphne. “It’s nice to see you joining the world of the living, Brother.”
“The fuck is that supposed to mean?”
“You’ve been acting like you died that night, too,” he explained, anger rising in his tone.
“I did.”
“Fuck that!” He slammed his fist down.
I gripped the edges of the bartop and squeezed to keep from decking my friend—and vice president—right in his meddling fucking face. “Don’t fuckin’ tell me what to feel, Riptide,” I snarled at him.
“Then quit acting like such an asshole, Hush,” he threw back. “You know as well as I do that Daphne wouldn’t want you doing this to yourself.”
“Don’t fuckin’ talk about her.” My voice had dropped to a low, dangerous growl.
“She was my fucking friend, too, Hush. We all miss her and I’ll say whatever the fuck I want,” he replied, continuing to poke at my festering wound.
“She was my wife!” I roared at him.
“Was,” he agreed. “And now she’s dead.”
I wouldn’t realize until later that it was me bellowing like a wounded animal as I vaulted over the bar. He got off his stool and met me, our bodies crashing together as we each fought to take the other off his feet.
His fist connected with my jaw in a way that rocked my vision.
He had always had a mean right hook. I punched him in the gut and swept his leg.
He was ready for the move, though, and back pedaled, bringing me with him.
We crashed into a chair and he lost his balance.
His left hand was still bunched in my cut so when he went ass backward over the table, I flew forward with him.
The wooden table splintered beneath our combined weight and we dropped into heaps on the floor. Riptide snapped his elbow out, catching me on the cheekbone and splitting the skin.
Rolling onto my back, I stared up at the ceiling as blood poured off my face. It seemed to be a sign to both of us to stop. My chest was heaving so hard it felt like I’d run a mile.
“Feel better?”
I looked over at him and flipped him off.
But yeah, I did. It hadn’t lasted long, but that fight had been brewing between us for some time.
Since the night I’d walked out on them. I knew for a fact that Lockout’s decree was the only reason Riptide and some of the others hadn’t tracked me down and dragged me home.
Lockout had known I needed to come back on my own.
“God damn, Old Man. You can still fight,” he grunted as he rubbed his stomach. He stilled, then glanced over at me. “That first punch was for Daphne.”
My gut cramped. Here it was. This was when he was going to tell me he blamed me for her death. I was pretty sure they all did. How could they not when I did?
“She’d have wanted to do that herself if she could.” He went back to staring at the ceiling. “She wouldn’t want you to be alone and miserable, Hush. If you think she’d care that you’ve found another woman to love, you’d be wron-”
“What was the elbow for?” I asked, interrupting him. I couldn’t hear those words right now. It was too much.
“Leaving the club. Our brothers. Lockout. Me.” He rolled over onto his hands and knees and shook his head like a dog shaking off water, his hair flying.
“The rest of it was because it was fun. Glad to have you home, brother, but you need to get your head out of your ass.” With that, he got to his feet and left.
I laid there, thinking over what he’d said.
He wasn’t wrong in that it felt like I’d died the same night my wife had.
I’d started opening up in Texas, but now, being back here had ripped open the scab over my wound.
I was shutting down again, and he knew it.
Bastard wasn’t going to let me this time.
“Oh my God!”
“What happened?”
I lifted my head, then sighed when I saw Kit and Sylvia rushing toward me. “Nothin’.”
“This isn’t nothing, Hush,” Kit scolded and touched my cheek.
I winced away from her probing fingers. “I tripped.”
“It needs stitches,” she declared. “Sylvia, would you mind cleaning up so I can take him to the hospital?”
“Not at all.”
“I don’t need a fuckin’ hospital,” I grumbled, but Kit ignored me, shoved a clean towel in my hand, and pulled me out to her car. If I wasn’t seeing double right now my arguments might have been more convincing.
She kept side eyeing me the whole ride to the hospital, but didn’t bother to ask me any questions.
That was one thing about these people. They knew me.
Knew me almost better than anyone. She was aware that I wasn’t going to talk unless I wanted to and that was the last thing I planned on doing.
We sat down in the waiting room after checking in with the receptionist.
Pulling out my phone, I settled in to wait. I stretched my legs out and tried to put Riptide’s words out of my mind. Only, whenever I did, a pair of haunting blue eyes took their place. I couldn’t get any peace and it was pissing me off.
* * *
Two hours had passed and Kit was getting agitated. “What is taking so long?”
“It’s an emergency room, Kit. Always takes forever.”
She huffed out a breath, then stood. “I’m going to go talk to them.”
“Don’t bother,” I told her. “You don’t have to wait here with me.”
She glanced at her watch. “I’m going to be late for an appointment if I don’t go.” Guilt flashed over her features.
“Go,” I insisted. The room was spinning a little, kind of like I was on a slow tilt-a-whirl. I wasn’t about to tell her that, though.
“Promise me, you’ll wait to see the doctor if I do.”
I was never going to get away from the well-meaning, annoying people in my life. I loved Kit like a little sister, though, so I didn’t give her a hard time. “Promise.”
“I’m holding you to that, Hush,” she said, glaring at me. She watched me for a brief moment before sighing when I remained quiet. “Fine, I’m going.” She leaned over and kissed the top of my head.
Left alone in the silence I’d been craving since this morning, I stewed over what to do about Seek. Nothing good would come from me pursuing her. I was a damaged man. It wasn’t fair to shove my baggage off onto her. Not to mention she was too damn young for me.
Despite those reasons, the piece of me that was interested didn’t give a damn. Neither did my cock. Closing my eyes, I let my thoughts drift while I waited.
“Fancy seeing you here.”
I groaned and let my eyes pop open. Seek’s eyes searched my face, lingering on the bloody towel I held to my cheek. It took me a second to realize that I wasn’t hallucinating.
“Do I want to know what happened?”
“Ran into an immovable object,” I commented. It was true enough. Riptide’s stubbornness was legendary within our circles. “You sure are good at findin’ people.”
“I wasn’t looking for you.” She sat down next to me and sent me a smirk that was far too sexy for my comfort. She blurred and suddenly there were two of her.
I shook my head lightly, trying to clear my vision. “Why are you here?” It came out grumpier than I’d meant for it to. I was genuinely curious why she was here in the ER. My eyes roamed over her—both of her—searching for injuries.
Her sunny smile didn’t dim even at my pissy tone.
“Casanova over there thought he could take on a linebacker when the guy hit on my sister.” She motioned over to where her sister and the boyfriend were standing in the check in line.
“Joanna panicked this morning and called me.” Her lips twitched as she studied my bruised face.
“Looks like fighting is something guys don’t grow out of. ”
I narrowed my eyes on her as she insulted me. “You think I’m like a frat kid?”