Lay It Down: Bastards MC Series Boxed Set (51 page)

He shook his head. “C’mere!”

He dropped my chin and pulled me against him. A nasty scar ran up his throat and disappeared under his beard. A souvenir from that awful night last August? Without thinking, I traced the red line gently with a fingertip. I felt him tense immediately.

As much as I tried to, I couldn’t stop the tears. He ran his hand up and down my back, muttering comforting words.

“I don’t even know why I’m crying.” I sobbed against him. “Are you okay?” I mumbled as I backed away from him.

He searched my eyes. “Me? Ahh you?”

He glared over his shoulder, and I could see the other man watching us, confusion clear on his face. I nodded as I wiped away the last of my tears and looked around. The room was still empty, except for the three of us.

“No one’s gonna hurt you heah. I promise!” Ian said.

“She’s fine,” Gigantor snapped.

Ian’s eyes flashed, and his face hardened. “I asked her, not you!”

The other man stepped toward us, furry written all over his face.

Ian turned, going toe-to-toe with the much larger man. “Some things never change, do they, brothah?”

The look that crossed the other man’s face was enough to tighten my stomach in knots.

“I know I’ve been gone a long time, but you’ah outta line, kid. I wasn’t gonna force her to do anythin’ she didn’t want to do.” He glanced at me, and his face softened slightly. “If you wanna talk about this more, we can go out back.”

I stepped toward my friend, but I didn’t look at Ian. Instead I looked into hazel eyes as I answered. “It was a stupid misunderstanding, that’s all.”

Ian looked from me to the other man and back, relaxing a little. He turned, grabbed a stool from the table closest to us, and pulled it out before gesturing for me to sit. He took the seat beside me then kicked the third chair away from the table slightly, pointing at it as he glared at the other man. “Why don’t you two tell me what the hell I walked in on?” He turned back to me. “‘Cause after what I heard outside, I nevah expected you to be the one I found in heah.”

I blushed and looked away as the other man grunted before joining us.

Not taking his eyes off me, he answered Ian. “I thought she was a new girl and lookin’ for some fun. I’ll talk to Rockah when he comes out and take whatever punishment he gives.”

Punishment? The words had me breaking eye contact and looking at Ian to see if he was confused too.

“I’m sorry if I scared you,” the man said to me.

I shook my head, trying to convey that it was fine.

“I’m sorry, Bear.” I could hear the sincerity in his voice. “I didn’t realize she was yours, brothah.”

“She’s not mine.” A scowl crossed Ian’s features. “So you two don’t know each other?”

“No,” I answered, sighing. I turned my attention back to Mr. Massive, offering him a hand. “I’m Jo.”

He took it, swallowing it with his firm grip. “Tank.”

My eyes widened in surprise. Immediately, everything made sense. I could actually see some resemblance to Barbie in him. I smiled, trying to tell him that everything would be fine.

He smiled back, the same seductive grin he’d given me earlier, and winked. “So if you aren’t the new girl and you aren’t Bear’s, what ahh you doin’ heah, Jo?”

I opened my mouth to answer, but Ian cut me off, obviously annoyed. He tipped his head toward me. “Tank, meet Mateo’s Jo. Or as Rocker calls her, L.K.”

Tank snorted. “Quit fuckin’ with me, brothah. I’m not that fuckin’ stupid. I’ve seen pictures of Mateo’s girl. She’s pretty and shit, but she’s not you.” He winked, looking over my tight tank and dyed hair. His eyes roamed my face for a few seconds, then they grew large and he sat back, paling a little. “Christ, I’m a dead man!”

“That’s what I’m sayin’!” Ian nodded, crossing his arms smugly.

“You are not!” I snapped at them. “For God’s sake, you didn’t do anything some stranger at a bar wouldn’t do. And you didn’t know who I was—even though I could have told you numerous times.” I waved a hand in front of my face, dismissing their argument.

“We’ah not in a bah, Joey. What happens out theah doesn’t happen in heah. We don’t fuck with brothahs’ ol’ ladies, simple as that. We view it the same way the rest of the world views stealin’. Tank tried to take somethin’ that wasn’t his, and he’ll go to court to answer for it.”

Court? What? And back to jail. The thought infuriated me. “I wasn’t scared of him in the least!”

Ian shrugged. “Then why were you cryin’?”

I sighed, exasperated. “I don’t know! Adrenaline? Seeing you for the first time since…” I trailed off, but Ian understood. I swallowed. “No one will talk about you! I don’t know if Ellie recovered. I didn’t even know you were still a Bastard until I saw you ten minutes ago!” I rolled my head, trying to work out some of the tension in my shoulders. “You were the last person I expected to see.”

Ian sighed. “Doesn’t mattah. In this house, you ahh protected above all else. It’s club business. When somethin’ like this happens, theah are consequences.”

“It’s club business,” I mocked childishly. “Jesus, you sound just like Matty!” I sat a little straighter in the chair. “In case you hadn’t noticed, I didn’t need you to run in and rescue me.” I shifted my gaze to Tank. “You’re not telling Rocker shit. He doesn’t need to hear your version. I’ll take care of it.”

Tank shook his head. “Jo,” he started cautiously, “you can’t—”

My fists curled in anger. “You just met me. Don’t for one second think that you can tell me what I can and cannot do, or I will kick your ass!” I practically shouted, suddenly pissed at him. “What kind of man cheats on his girlfriend when he just got home from prison?” He started to speak, but I slammed my hand on the table. “Seriously? And why in god’s name would you think I was a club girl?” He started to answer, and I slammed my hand again. “No! Don’t fuckin’ answer that!”

His eyes had grown wide, and he looked as if he might be fighting a smile.

I narrowed my eyes. “Let me give you a little bit of advice. You may have gone to prison, but your girlfriend, wife, old lady, or whatever the hell you call her was also punished. Being without the man you love fuckin’ sucks. You have a free afternoon ‘cause she’s not coming until tonight? Awesome. Spend that time doing something nice for her instead of doing a club whore. Maybe think about a nice gift you could give her instead of giving her, oh, I don’t know, chlamydia!”

A look I couldn’t read passed between them, and they both burst out laughing.

“Little Kangaroo with boxing gloves,” Ian mumbled, laughing more.

Groaning in frustration, I slid out of my chair, grabbed my water off the bar, and walked to the couches. I wanted to leave and get the hell away from all things Bastard, but there was no way I was going outside alone. Ian had said he’d heard about Tank and me, which meant the men from earlier were out there. I had no desire to see them, and until Cris and Rocker were done, I had nowhere else to go. Sinking onto the couch, I leaned my head on the arm rest and closed my eyes.

“She got your cards. Thanks.”

I heard the sound of someone sitting on leather as the hushed voice spoke to me. After Matty had left me, I’d been a mess, but their attack was always at the front of my mind. It had given me months of nightmares. I’d sent cards to Cris, asking her to deliver them for me, because I wanted Ellie to know people were praying for her. I desperately wanted to know how she was.

As if reading my thoughts, he continued, “She’s fine, Joey.” He sighed. “Physically, it was a quick recovery. Mentally took her a little longer. But she’s fine.”

I sat up, turning toward his voice. Leaning back in the chair across from me, he looked defeated. His dark jeans were stained with what looked like grease, and I could see the steel on the toe of his boot where the material had worn away.

“Will I ever get to meet her?”

He swallowed and looked away. “We’re not together anymoah. I still see her sometimes. Ya know, just to check in, but we’re just friends.” He shrugged as if it wasn’t a big deal, but I could see the pain etched on his face. “You’ah a lot more naked than the last time I saw you.”

Confused, I looked at my outfit before following his eyes to my empty hand and the finger that used to hold my wedding ring. Last summer I’d still had it on when I came down with Matty, and his friends had taken offense to the fact that he was sleeping with me while I was still hitched. They hadn’t known the rest of the story.

I looked at the bare hand and smiled. “Yeah. Sometimes, Ian, friends become more.” A thought struck me. “Bear, huh?”

He nodded, smirking.

“What should I call you?”

“Whatevah you want. Most of the club calls me Bear, but my closest friends can call me either one.” He stood. “Have you gotten the tour yet?” I shook my head as he held out a hand. “Come on, we’ll show ya.”

Chapter 18

Jo

The clubhouse was huge. The door behind the bar led to a commercial-grade kitchen that any chef would be proud of. Next to the kitchen was a communal eating area that was obviously once the school cafeteria. Ian explained that at least quarterly, they had giant “family” gatherings where every club member brought his family and friends. It was also the room where the club gathered before charity events.

The hallway to the left of the main room was long and made several turns. No way in hell I would find my way around without getting lost. Not only did they have the main common room, there was a TV room, a game room, a quiet room, a giant playroom for the kids, offices, and an entire wing dedicated to the dorms and sleeping quarters. It felt like a compound where you could wait out any natural disaster.

Some of the dorms made me laugh. Once classrooms, they had been divided in half and now housed two sets of bunk beds. They looked just like college dorm rooms, each with two bureaus and a desk. There was one bathroom for every four rooms and a communal shower. I had a hard time picturing any biker staying in them, let alone four sharing the tiny space.

Most of the sleeping quarters though were private. No bigger than the shared rooms, they at least had a single queen-sized bed. Some had bureaus, some had closets, and all the ones Ian showed me were decorated uniquely by their “owner.” Another perk to having a private room, Tank told me, was that each of them had originally been classrooms for lower grades or teacher’s offices, so each room had its own bathroom.

“Why do people live here?” I asked as we were leaving Tank’s room.

“They don’t.” At my arched eyebrow, Ian rushed on. “Sometimes it’s easier to crash here than go home—after a party or a late-night run. Othah times, it’s a place to catch a few hours of shut-eye while you’re on duty. And sometimes you need a few minutes of privacy.”

I tried to ignore the last comment, knowing he meant a place to take women. “Does Matty have a room?”

Tank nodded. “All the officahs have rooms.”

Officer? One more question to add to the pile. “Can I see it?”

They both hesitated at once.

“Oh.” My voice was soft, but my heart started pounding. The apartment was literally twenty minutes away. There was only one reason Matty would have for keeping a room here. “Oh. Can you take me to Rocker’s office? He and Cris are probably done now.”

Tank nodded and put his hand on the small of my back, steering me down the hall back toward the main room. As soon as we turned a corner, we heard voices. Angry voices obviously having one hell of a disagreement. Tank grabbed my arm right above my elbow, preventing me from going any farther.

“Mommy and Daddy are fighting again,” he muttered to Ian. He turned to go, but I didn’t budge.

“It’s two nights away, Princess! You’ve known about it for how long? Why in the fuck would you wait to tell me until now?”

“I called Jessie as soon as I knew!” Cris screeched back. “Caleb just surprised me with the trip, you ass. You’re the one who asked me to date him, to do whatever it took to get close to him. That’s what I did! I can’t help it if I’m a good lay and he wants me all to himself this weekend!”

“Cancel the trip. You’re not going!” I couldn’t hear her reply but knew she must have said something because Rocker started screaming again. “Because it defeats the fuckin’ purpose, doesn’t it?”

“No!” Cris bellowed back. “I’ve spent weeks working on him, and I’m not losing it now. Go to the fuckin’ benefit yourself. I’m sure Barbie would be more than happy to play dress-up for you.”

“Is that what this is about? Jessie? I moved on to somethin’ better. Get over it! Petty jealousy doesn’t suit you, Crissia!”

“Fuck you!”

“Already did that, sweetheart. You're not that good. No desire to do it again!”

Silence surrounded the three of us for a moment, then all hell broke loose. Something shattered, Cris started screaming, Rob was yelling back, and there was loud banging. I yanked my arm away from Tank, ran for the door, and burst through, concerned for my friends. My entrance went unnoticed.