Blind Devotion (6 page)

“Why do you want to know? I’m not that important.”

“You’re important to me,” he said.

She let out a gasp.

“You’ve not always been blind?” he asked, directing
the conversation elsewhere.

“No, I’ve not. How have you been since you lost your
friend?”

Her question caught him by surprise. Thinking about
Ashley upset him.

“She died, and there’s no changing that.” He rubbed
his palms down his legs.

“Do you blame yourself?”

“Yes, I do.” Pussy wasn’t going to lie to her. He
didn’t want to. Was this what Ripper and Curse went through with their women?
Devil seemed to change overnight with Lexie.

“Why?”

“She did something for the club and died for it.
Ashley didn’t deserve to be killed, but when I get the bastard responsible,
I’ll kill him.”

He watched her tense.

“Are you afraid of me?” he asked.

Sasha didn’t answer him. He watched her frown, but
seconds later she shook her head. “No, I’m not.”

“No, are you insane? I just told you I’d kill a man
for killing my friend, and you’re not afraid.”

She ran a hand across the table. “I don’t get you. Do
you want me to be afraid of you, or do you want me to trust you?”

Letting out a sigh, he rubbed a hand across his face.
“I’m sorry. Thinking about Ashley makes me mad, and I don’t know what I’m
saying.”

“It’s okay. You’ve never hurt me.”

“You don’t know me,” he said. Didn’t this woman have
any gut reaction to the dangers out there?

“Kenneth did know me, and yet I’m blind because of
him.”

Her words forced him to pause as he looked down at the
menu.

“What? He hurt you.”

“No one knows what he did. The doctors think I was
arguing with him over something silly and I fell down the stairs. I was told
trauma to the head can cause blindness. Kenneth hurt me, and since then I’ve
been blind, depending on him to take care of me.” She stopped talking. He saw
her lip wobble. “My mom can’t do anything. She’s scared of him, I’m sure of
it.”

“He caused your blindness, and now
you’re
having
to rely on him. Who takes care of you?” he asked.

“No one.
My mom and Kenneth take turns to get me out of the house. He rearranges
the furniture so I can’t remember the layout of the room.” She stopped. “I
really shouldn’t be telling you this.”

Pussy opened his mouth to talk to her when the sound
of her stomach rumbling caught his attention. “You’re hungry?”

“Yes, I’ve not had any breakfast.”

Cursing his interest in her life, he started to read
off the menu. None of the food registered in his mind as spoke the words out
loud.

“Oh, I like the sound of the spicy cheeseburger. Could
I have all of that with extra sauce and sides?” she asked. Her face looked
animated.

“Sure.” He signaled for the waitress to come to the
table. Pussy ordered their food and asked for the dessert menu. When he turned
back to her, he saw her panicking.

“Crap, I’m so sorry. I don’t have any money. There’s
no way for me to pay you back.”

“Don’t worry about it, baby. I’ve never taken a woman
out with the intention of her paying. This is all on me, so enjoy it.” He took
hold of her hand once again.

Pussy liked the feel of her hand in his. There was no
way he’d be giving Sasha back to Kenneth, knowing about what he’d done. The
club wouldn’t let a woman go back to someone who was going to hurt her.

Sasha was vulnerable.

“I’m sorry about your friend,” Sasha said, breaking
the silence that had fallen between them.

“Thank you. Ashley, she was a spitfire and didn’t
deserve to die.” He stopped talking to clear his throat.

“Have you killed someone before?” she asked.

“I’m not going to answer that.”

“I don’t know what else to talk to you about. I hate
silence.”

“Tell me what you know about our club.” He ignored all
the other people in the steakhouse. The smells were making him desperate for
food.

“I don’t know anything about you. My mom and Kenneth
have warned me to stay away from you. They’ve not said anything other than that
you’re dangerous.”

“And yet, you’re not afraid of me?” he asked.

Looking down her body, he caught sight of her hardened
nipples. Did he turn Sasha on?

She’s blind, you idiot. Don’t start thinking about that shit.

“No. You don’t make me feel afraid. I’ve been around
Kenneth. He’s not a nice guy. Whenever he goes to town he’s always in meetings
with an Italian guy.”

He paused.
“Italian guy?”

“I think he’s an Italian. He’s got an accent, but I
think I’ve heard Kenneth say he’s not actually Italian. I think he has mixed
Spanish and Italian heritage, but I’m not sure.”

“What does he look like?” he asked.

“I don’t fucking know. Blind remember?”

“Shit, sorry.” Could Kenneth be working for Frederick?
Shit, today was only supposed to be about getting out of Piston County.

****

Sasha smiled. Did he know how sweet he was?

“You’ve no need to be sorry. A lot of people forget
about it, even my mom.” She tried her best to reassure him.

“It doesn’t matter. You shouldn’t have to go through
something like that. It’s not right.”

She really wished she knew what he looked like. From
being next to him, she knew he was tall. Was he taller than Kenneth? She didn’t
know. In her mind she pictured Pussy with messy blond hair, which he never
brushed. Bed hair, she believed they called it. He had to have tattoos. Every biker
had to have them. She wondered what pictures or words they wore.

“Why do you go by Pussy and not Shane?” she asked.

“You’re a curious little devil, aren’t you?”

“I’ve got a lot of things in life to be curious about.
You intrigue me.” She rested her face on her hand, wondering if she was even
meeting his eyes. Did he have brown, ocean blue, green, or hazel colored eyes?

There was so much she wanted to know about him.

“I intrigue you?”

“Yeah.
I’ve heard how bikers are supposed to be rough, tough, and mean, yet I
think you’re sweet, possibly the sweetest man I’ve ever known,” she said,
smiling.

He made a gagging sound. “Babe, don’t go around
telling people I’m sweet. I’ll lose my reputation.”

She giggled as something was placed on the table.
Pulling back, she squeezed her hands together to help ground her. Sudden noise
always alarmed her.

“I hope you enjoy your food,” the woman said.

Was the waitress eyeing Pussy up?

“Thanks, doll,” Pussy said. Seconds passed, and Sasha
tried to hear everything she could.

“Noise and movement around you unnerve you, don’t they?”
he asked.

He touched her hand and slowly slid her fingers over
the plate. “This is the burger. Let me know when you want it. Here are some
fries.”

There he was again being all sweet with her food.
“Erm, thank you.
Yes, sudden movement or noise upsets me. I
don’t know what’s going on, and not being able to see freaks me out,” she said.

Silence fell once again. She picked up a couple of
fries and started to eat.

“Why are you not freaking out more about your
condition?” he asked.

“I’ve had it over four years. It’s hard to freak out
anymore. I just get frustrated about what I can and can’t do.” She stopped
talking to eat.

“Is it permanent?” Pussy asked.

“In the beginning the doctors were unsure, as with all
trauma
it carries risks. Now, I’m permanent. I’ll
never be able to see again. I think they said there was too much damage to my
nerves or something. I was still reeling from being told I would never see
again. I didn’t pay much attention.” She’d gotten used to not being able to
see. There was still a tiny spark of hope that maybe one day that would all
change, or at least some new wonder drug or maybe even surgery would change it.
She didn’t expect it to. “Could you pass me my burger?”

“Sure.” He placed the burger in her hands.

“This is huge.”

“It won’t be the only thing you think is huge.” The words
came out as a mumble, but she caught them.

“What do you mean?” she asked.

“Do you have a boyfriend?”

“No. Stepdad keeps all men away.” She took a bite of
the burger and moaned. “This is amazing.”

“I’m not taking you back to your stepfather.”

She paused with the burger pressed to her lips.
“What?”

“You heard me. I’m not taking you back there.”

Keeping hold of her burger, she lowered it down. “You
can’t do that.”

“Not only am I going to do that, but you’re not going
to stop me.”

“You’ll be making a mistake,” she said. Inside she was
cheering at having a savior intent on helping her. No one would try to take her
away from Kenneth. Would she finally be able to break free from the cycle her
stepfather had forced her into?

“You expect me to feed you and drop you back at the
diner back in Piston County for that fucker to take you, knowing that he hurt
you?”

“You sound angry?”

“I’m pissed, Sasha. Don’t you have any urge to protect
yourself?”

“Yes, but you don’t know what he’s like.”

She jerked as he touched her arm.

“Don’t be afraid, Sasha. The club will take care of
you.”

“Why?”

“Because I’d ask
them to take care of you.
They’ll do what
I ask.”

“None of this makes any sense to me. I don’t think we
should be talking about this. Crap, I don’t know what I’m doing.”

She dropped the burger.

“It’s on the plate.” He caught both of her hands
within his. “Stop freaking out.”

Sasha stopped even as her heart pounded inside her
chest. What was she supposed to do?

“Where would I go?” she asked. “I didn’t want for this
to happen.”

“You need to stop worrying about what could happen and
start thinking about yourself, babe. You’re twenty years old, living at home
because that fucker blinded you. I’m offering you an out.”

Biting her lip, she tried to focus on everything that
happened. For the last four years she’d tried to believe the story of herself
falling downstairs rather than remembering the feel of Kenneth hurting her. Her
mother had begged her not to say anything, asking for her trust. What the hell
was she supposed to do?

“He’ll hurt my mother. I can’t leave her alone.”

She was breaking inside. How long had she been with
Pussy? Was it already too late to get back to the diner before Kenneth saw she
left? She didn’t want anything to happen to her mother because of her.

Do you really want to leave?

No, she didn’t want to leave, and the thought of going
back to Piston County filled her with dread. Pussy was offering her an out, and
she wasn’t even taking it.

“Then let me deal with him, Sasha. I don’t care what
he does to me. I will not leave you alone with him.” His grip tightened on her
arm. It wasn’t painful or threatening. He held her tightly, and it kept her
grounded. She could think past the fear.

“Okay.”

“Are you sure?”

“No, I’m not sure. I’m not sure of anything right now.
We were only supposed to be having lunch.”

Her hands shook. She felt the tremors.

“Stop worrying.”

“I can’t help it. Is this what you do with all the
women you take out to dinner?” she asked.

“No. Most of the women end up in my bed and I eat out
their pussy.”

She gasped. “What?”

“You heard me, Sasha.”

“You eat out women’s pussies? Is that some kind of
carnivore reference?” She frowned. Pussy didn’t sound like the kind of person
to eat people, let alone women. Was eating out pussy porn or something?

“You’re a virgin?” he asked.

“It’s not hard to guess that I am. I’ve never been
around enough men to want to sleep with me.”

Silence met her words.

“Have I said the wrong words?”

“I want to fuck you,” he said.

She licked her lips. “Did I hear you correctly?”

Squeezing her legs together, she tried to relieve the
ache that was building inside her.

“Yes, you heard me correctly.”

“Wow, this conversation has changed tack. One moment
we’re talking about killing people, then Kenneth, now sex.” She liked talking a
lot more than she liked silence. There were times when she was home that she’d
lie down on her bed, listening to classical music, anything to stop herself
from listening to the silence, knowing there was nothing she could do about it.