Call Me...Vengeance: Book 1 in the Vengeance MC Series (22 page)

She doesn’t answer so I go on.

“It is one thing to take offense to something someone says to you and make that known, it is another thing altogether to call them a disgusting name like you just did.”

“Mind your own fucking business,” Laura spits. “You do realize that you’re only one of many bed warmers, Boss alternates between, right? Just a friendly head’s up,” she says, in a very unfriendly manner. “Don’t get too comfortable. He’ll be sick of you within the week, that’s at the outset, then he’ll be onto his next conquest.”

“Fucking Christ on a crutch woman,” Sarge bites out. “You’re fucking lucky Boss is tied up, because I’m warning you again, he hears you talking shit to his woman like this and he’ll feed you to the wolves at the door faster than you can pull your thong out of your ass.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure about that,” she jeers.

“I’m done,” Bella states resolutely, tugging on my hand. “No, we’re done.” Turning to Sarge, she asks, “I want to take Beth and Avery outside for a breather. Is it okay for me to ask, Hail to come with? I knew Boss doesn’t want any of us going anywhere unescorted.”

“Sure, darlin’.” Calling over his shoulder to Avery, he asks, “You wanna go too, precious?”

“Abso-freakin-lutely,” Avery replies enthusiastically. “The stench of bitch is getting overwhelming.”

Jumping up from her position on the arm of Sarge’s recliner, Avery skips the three-feet to our side. Feeling drained all of a sudden, I wish I had as much energy as she obviously does.

Extending her hand, Avery smiles at me.

“Hi, you’re Beth, right?” Shaking her head ruefully, she chastises herself. “Sorry, stupid question. Of course, you are. And I’m pretty sure from my epic display of temper earlier you know I’m, Avery. You can call me Ree, though. The only asshole who doesn’t is, Fury, but don’t get me started on him because if you do we’ll be here all day and never get away from the queen of all that’s wrong with the world.”

Her description of Laura causes me to grin, angry or not.

“Yep, I’m her,” I say popping the p. “And yes, your entrance was quite spectacular, but I won’t hold it against you if you don’t hold what I may possibly do to her in the future against me.”

Sarge chuckles, Bella, and Avery burst out laughing. The same cannot be said for Laura. Spinning on her heel, Laura stomps off in the direction of the kitchen, narrowly missing a small woman carrying a tray of used dishes.

“Watch where you’re fucking going,” Laura snaps at her in passing.

“Eat me, skankzilla,” the woman retorts.

Bella laughs even more loudly at that, and yells,

“I think I love you, Lonnie. Will you pretty, pretty please with a cherry on top have my babies?”

“Anytime, sexy,” Lonnie smirks.

“Come on, girls,” Bella prompts. “Let’s get the fuck out of here before the heinous she-cow comes back. I don’t feel like going another round with her before lunch.” Looking to where, Hail is seated at the bar she calls, “Hail, hop up and join us would you?”

“So how are you coping with it so far,” Avery asks stretching her legs out in front of her.

We’ve been sitting outside soaking up the last of the morning’s rays gabbing about nothing of consequence for the last hour or so. After the scene inside I’m not all that fired up to go back in, but I know once Jackson is finished with whatever it is he’s doing, I’ll have no choice. Damn shame that, because the previous hour has been nice, and somewhat enlightening.

Sitting on the grass far enough away from the picnic table Hail has taken up residence at, I’ve learned a lot more about Bella, and even more about Avery.

Aside from her being perpetually happy, smart as a whip, and hilarious beyond belief, I’ve ascertained that Avery is truly beautiful inside and out. The way she talks about her family, both of her sisters, her adopted brother, her Mom, but especially her Dad is fantastic. It’s clear she loves them all deeply, but it’s also obvious she shares a special bond with her father.

“It wasn’t easy you know? Growing up like this, always being surrounded by men who are as temperamental as they are protective. Honestly, it was suffocating sometimes,” she admits quietly.

“I hear you sister,” Bella agrees. “I might not have a Dad or brother who’s a member of an MC, but Jay is bad enough. And don’t forget, he comes with all these guys,” she adds gesturing toward the clubhouse.

At that point I kept quiet. I didn’t have anything of value to add, so I let my silence speak for me. They didn’t pry, and I was glad for it. I may have felt an instant connection to Bella, the same goes for Avery, but that doesn’t mean I’m ready to expose all the skeletons in my closet just yet.

“What was it like?” I ask softly.

“What? Growing up in an MC,” Avery clarifies. Nodding, I lean back on my hands which are extended behind me and tip my face toward the sun.

Shrugging, she does the same followed by Bella rolling to her side propping herself up on an elbow.

“Truthfully, it was equal parts of good and bad. The bad was stupid shit. Shit that at the time infuriated me, but looking back on it, I can kind of see why they did it. I’m not saying I agree with them showing up when I was out on a date, intimidating guys who were interested in me, and warning them off, but I accept it for what it is now.”

“And what is it?”

“Their way of showing me they cared,” she states plainly. “Dad sat me down one day and explained that it was his job, and by extension his brothers because they’re family to take care of me. They weren’t doing it to piss me off, more like make sure I was safe. That isn’t to say they didn’t take it too far occasionally because they did. More than a few times, actually. But in the grand scheme of things, once I learned to trust that they had my best interests at heart, I was less angry and more accepting of it.”

Gathering her hair, tying it into a low ponytail at the nape of her neck, she adds,

“Don’t get me wrong, I rebelled against it, lashed out at them, and was a general pain in the ass, but eventually I gave in and went with the flow.”

“You’re a better woman than me then,” Bella grins evilly. “I still piss Jay off as often as humanly possible, and I don’t see that changing anytime soon.”

“Meh,” Avery huffs. “I do that too, with my Dad that is, but I’ve learned to concentrate my efforts on just him instead of spreading my bitchy goodness far and wide. It’s easier that way. Only one alphahole to contend with then.”

“Alphahole,” Bella squeals. “I fucking love that, can I use it?”

“Sure can. I haven’t copyrighted it, so have at it.”

“Can I ask you something,” I enquire of Avery.

“Yep, consider me an open book babe, and ask away.”

Shifting nervously, I look between them dropping my gaze to my hand I’m wringing together in my lap.

“Jackson said a few thing this morning that he didn’t have a chance to expand on.”

“You mean he told you he had shit to do, and if you had any questions he’d answer them
later
,” Avery says.

“Oh, fuck me. I hate it when they use that word,” Bella interjects. “Why can’t they just be honest and admit they’ve got no intention of justifying anything to us?”

“Because that would piss us off and we’d be forced to retaliate,” Avery shrugs. “So was that about the size of it?”

“Yep, you got in in one,” I confirm.

“So what part of whatever he dictated are you struggling with? Break it down for us,” Bella instructs smiling broadly.

I’m glad she finds this amusing because I don’t. In fact, I find the whole thing freaking confusing.

“Basically, he told me that he doesn’t date, but apparently we’re together. As in, I’m his woman. I don’t even know what that means, and when I asked he told me that he wanted us to work on building something together.”

“Ah, the caveman act. A personal favorite of mine,” Avery scoffs.

“As informative as that answer was, do you think you can give me a little more insight than that?” I ask.

“There really
isn’t
any more to it, babe. When one of these guys claims a woman, and yes, I know it sounds like they’re all Neanderthals, but it is what it is, it’s a done deal. Bikers don’t mess around when it comes to their women, and if they see something in one that calls to them, they go about making her his, immediately. Without hesitating, most of them make it known and do it publically that she’s off-limits to anyone else. I’ve seen it with my sister Dakota and her man Cody. My friend Anna and her man, Kell. Same goes for another one of my besties, Amalia, and my cousin Bryce. Although their relationship was a total clusterfuck at the start, he pulled his head out of his ass eventually and stepped up to make sure everyone knew she was his.”

“Oh, I heard about that,” Bella chimed in. “She had planned to leave, Blackwater before he woke up, didn’t she?”

Nodding, Avery confirms,

“She had, yeah. It was kind of sad why too. Amalia had it rough with her Dad for a while there. She was diagnosed with ADD when she was younger and her Dad messed up big time, but they’ve worked it out now, so it’s all good. I just hope it stays that way. She deserves some happiness, and I’m glad Bryce is giving it to her,” she finishes sadly.

Turning to me, Avery studies me silently for a minute.

“I can only give you advice from the outside looking in, babe. I don’t have an old man, and honestly, given the choice, I don’t think it will be a biker I’ll hook my star to when I am interested in going down that path.”

“Ah, Ree? I think there’s a sexy, brooding alphahole who’d beg to differ,” Bella challenges.

“I don’t give the first fuck if he begs to differ or not, B, he can kiss my ass as far as I’m concerned. He had his chance, in fact, he had hundreds of them. And he blew every last one of them. No,” she says shaking her head ruefully. “No, I worded that wrong. He had hundreds of chances, and while I was busy giving him them, he was busy blowing them by letting countless women blow him. So, like I said, fuck him and his little dog too.”

“Wow, you really are on a roll with the wicked witch metaphors today, aren’t you?” Bella quips lightly.

Deciding now is a good time to redirect the conversation, I interrupt their banter.

“Excuse me, ladies, while it is truly fascinating to listen to you recount all the ways in which Fury’s an asshole,” I interject making the assumption that who they’re referring to. “I was wondering whether we could get back to you explaining what the hell Jackson was on about this morning.”

“With pleasure,” Avery sighs in relief. “Like I was saying before I was rudely interrupted by Little Miss Matchmaker, these guys don’t mess around when it comes to a woman they’re interested in. I won’t lie and say they’re all saints, some of them are worse than others, but when they make a commitment you’re guaranteed it’s for life. To them being in an MC is about the brotherhood, finding a family if they didn’t have one before, and having a place to belong. Money and status don’t matter here. Who your parents are, what they do for a living isn’t relevant. All that matters is, loyalty, respect, and dedication to your brothers pure and simple.”

Sucking in a breath, she continues.

“If you understand that, then you’ll understand why they behave the way they do. A lot of the guys come from shitty homes with equally shitty parents. They were juvenile delinquents, or well on their way to becoming them. And they didn’t have a code to live by that wasn’t one they’d developed themselves. Being here, being a part of all this isn’t purely about riding, drinking, partying, and pussy, although that does factor into it. But moreover, it’s about being surrounded by a group of men who share a way of life that most aren’t cut out for. Honestly, out of all the men I’ve met, the ones who wear a cut are among the strongest and most loyal. They might not be the easiest to live with, and God knows they’re a pain in the ass more often than not, but, at least, they stand for something. And when they do, they stand together.”

“That’s kind of poetic, Ree,” I whisper.

“You really feel like that, Avey?” A gruff voice asks from behind us.

Again with the freaking ninja’s. What is it with these people? This time, it isn’t the wicked witch, though, it’s Fury instead. Jumping up from her spot beside me, Avery brushes the loose grass off her jeans. Leaning down when she’s finished, she whispers,

“Don’t focus on the future, just live for the now. That’s how they live. All you need to ask yourself is, are you a better person with him or without him? If you can answer that honestly, you’ll know all you need to.”

Without answering, Fury, Avery turns her back on him making her way back inside leaving me with the sixty-four-thousand-dollar question; am I better with Jackson or is it in my best interests to call us quits before we get any more invested?