by R. E. Bond
“What kind of job are you after? I have heaps of shit that you can do, but half of it I don’t want you to be part of.”
“Like what? You’re not going soft, are you? Don’t want me on the battlefield with the men?” I teased, earning a sly smirk from him.
“Babe, I’d prefer you on the battlefield, trust me. We have plenty of girls that work for us, but not the kind of industry you’d want.”
“Like what? Spit it out,” I demanded, his lip twitching as he fought a grin.
“We’ve got strippers, bar staff, hookers and all that shit. You aren’t doing that. The guys have too much respect for you to let you anyway. I can probably send you on a run with Diesel later if you want?”
“Doing what?”
“I’ve got to run some drugs over to one of our other places and drop some guns off, but I’ll do the guns.”
I scoffed, climbing off the desk.
“So, I can’t run guns? I can shoot better than…”
“Calm down. I know you can handle the guns just fine, but we’re running them to Skeet’s and could be there a while. I’d prefer to handle that for everyone’s fucking sake, and send you with Diesel instead, because you two don’t need me to worry about you,” he rolled his eyes at my dramatics.
I gave him a slow nod, seeing the logic in his plan.
The last thing he needed was for me to start shooting at his right-hand in the middle of business.
“Alright. How far are the drugs going?”
“Across town. Diesel knows the drill, so listen to what he says and make sure you do as you’re told. You aren’t stupid, but if you’re going to run with us, you need to just go with it, okay? We’ve all got rules to follow.”
“I don’t mind doing what Diesel asks. I like him,” I shrugged and I turned to leave the room, but he took my arm gently to stop me from getting far.
“Hey, be careful on jobs. Shit can go wrong real quick. Keep an eye out, and don’t be afraid to call if you need me. We all call in back up, so I’m not asking you to because you’re a girl, it’s because you’re family.”
I smiled, patting his chest gratefully.
“I promise. I’ll go find Diesel and see if he wants to do it before we visit Sasha, yeah?”
“Sure thing. He’ll teach you shit quick, so pay attention,” he smirked, letting me leave to find Diesel.
I ignored Skeeter as he watched me through narrowed eyes from the cage as he spoke to someone as I headed straight up to Diesel at the bar with a grin.
“Hey, D, I hear I’m your new partner in crime. Want to show me the ropes?”
He glanced up from his beer, seeming confused for a second, before his eyebrows shot up.
“You’re doing the run with me? Slash actually said that?”
“Yep. You want to go cause some mayhem with me?” I kept grinning, watching the surprise leave his face and smugness take over.
“Sure thing, babe. Can’t go causing mayhem without the right outfit though, can you? Got you a gift,” he winked, leaning over the bar and pulling out a black leather jacket, identical to the rest of the crews.
I gave him an unsure look, not hiding the surprise in my eyes.
“You got me a Psychos jacket?”
“A few of us figured you needed one. Leave your keys with Slash in case they need to move your car. Let’s get this show on the road.”
I hesitated as I took the jacket and pulled it on, my face heating as a few of the guys whistled at me and clapped with approval.
I met Diesel’s eyes and gave him a confident nod.
“Let’s do this. I get a gun too, right?”
He chuckled and gave me another wink, pulling a handgun out from the back of his jeans.
“Yeah, might have sorted one of those out for you too. Don’t go waving it around though, okay?”
I rolled my eyes and took it, tucking it into the back of my pants like they always did.
“I have more fun with my blade anyways, don’t panic.”
I turned, instantly slamming into a solid chest.
I glanced up, my eyes meeting Skeeter’s.
My eye twitched with annoyance and I turned away, but he scruffed my jacket and yanked me back sharply, his light green eyes looking lethal.
“What the fuck do you think you’re doing, Aurora?” He growled, but he didn’t sound angry like his face showed.
I knew when he sounded worried.
I shook him off and went to speak, but Slash suddenly leaned against the bar from out of nowhere and cleared his throat.
“Skeet, stand down. We have shit to do and so does she.”
Skeeter’s eyes blazed as he let me go and faced off with his boss.
“The fuck do you mean by that?”
“I’m sorting the guns out with you guys, while she goes with Diesel,” he explained lazily, Skeeter’s fists clenching with anger.
“You’re fucking joking, right? There’s no way in hell…”
“I’m in charge, so stand the fuck down. She’s a good set of eyes for Diesel, and you know they’ll work well together. Deal with it,” he snapped sharply, but Skeeter just exclaimed his opinion even louder.
“Deal with it? Are you trying to get her killed?”
“She needs money and wants to work, so I offered the drug run. I wasn’t going to send her out with the fucking girls,” he shrugged as if that was the reasonable answer.
Skeeter spun around, getting in my face without hesitation.
“If you need money, I’ll give it to you.”
“What part of, we aren’t together and fuck off, don’t you understand?” I asked with frustration, knowing he was going to explode about it.
He growled, jabbing his finger into my chest firmly.
“I don’t give a fuck, Rory. I don’t want you out running gear or…”
“It doesn’t matter what you want, I’m doing what I want, and I don’t need your fucking permission,” I cut him off, moving away from him with a scowl.
The next time he grabbed for me, Slash moved between us and glared at him.
“Enough. I’m not patching her up again because of you.”
“The fuck does that mean?” He snapped, and Slash was quite obviously starting to lose his cool.
“It means you’re a fucking idiot, Skeeter. You really don’t remember fighting with her yesterday?”
Skeeter snorted, his fists clenching again as he held back the urge to swing.
“I didn’t mean to hurt her. It was hardly a fucking fight.”
“No? Well, try to convince me. I spent ages digging around her goddamn back, picking the glass out of it after you stormed off, then Ty decided to come around and piss her off, so she ended up with a cut hand when she broke a bottle. No more fighting. You run guns, and she runs drugs. Do as I fucking tell you, before I knock your ass out. Let’s go,” he ordered, waiting for Skeeter to storm off before he turned, giving me a supportive pat on the shoulder and leaving me in Diesel’s capable hands.
Dropping the drugs off ran smoothly, but the car ride home didn’t go as planned.
I glanced at Diesel as he drove along the old road, cocking my head curiously.
“So, how did you find the Psychos? How old were you?”
He hardly glanced at me before answering honestly.
“I was thirteen with an ice addiction. I lived on the streets and managed to steal some ice from an old shed. I got caught and they dragged me out from where I was hiding. Hunter and Skeet stood up for me, and Slash managed to convince our old leader to help me instead of punishing me. I’ve been here ever since. They helped get me clean, taught me everything I know, and gave me a roof over my head. I lived in a place with Skeet, Hunter and Slash for a few years with a guardian, but when we got older, we all got our own places. It was around the time that Hunter fucked off and Skeet fell off the deep end without him. I know he’s left some nasty scarring on you.”
I tensed, the anxiety slowly creeping in.
“What does that have to do with anything?”
“Look, Skeet isn’t good with affection. He’s only used to hurt, so he expresses his feelings through pain. Want to know why he likes his women damaged?” He asked, and of course I wanted to know why my ex-boyfriend liked slicing me up while we fucked.
“Sure.”
“Because he never thinks he’s good enough for someone that isn’t a little jaded around the edges. He’s worried girls will hate his scars, his tattoos and all that shit, so he makes sure to find girls that will take the same damage. Thing is, you scared him the most, because you were perfect and he couldn’t fault you. He didn’t want to lose you, and he assumed you’d leave him for some prince kind of guy if he didn’t get you addicted to what only he could give you. You crave the hurt as much as he does, and you both feed off each other’s pain.”
“Why are you telling me this, D? He and I are done, so there’s no point…”
“I’m telling you because people die, Rory. At least when they do, everyone knows everything and can be at peace,” he replied, scowling as the back window suddenly shattered. “Fucking hell.”
I frowned.
Shattered glass wasn’t usually a good sign.
“What the fuck was that?”
“Bullet. We’ve got company babe, so stay low,” he sighed as if the supermarket had sold out of his favourite fucking coffee brand and it was a basic inconvenience.
I pulled my gun out, making him smirk as he glanced at me.
“What the fuck are you going to do with that? You can’t climb in the back to get a good shot.”
“No, but you can get yours out and pull over to help me shoot?” I replied sweetly, all humour leaving his face.
“Like fuck. You don’t know who’s shooting for starters, or how many. I don’t recognize the car tailing us, so it could be fucking anyone. Stay down and we’ll try to lose them.”
I did as I was told like the good girl I was, but as more bullets hit the car, I started to worry.
Diesel suddenly grunted, and I glanced over to see a small trail of blood dripping down his bicep as he gritted his teeth.
Fuck, did he get shot?
Was the bullet in his arm?
Was it grazed?
The fuck was I supposed to do?
“Shit, hang on I’ll…,” I started to speak, moving to sit up to help him, but he glared daggers at me.
“Stay the fuck down before you get shot. Slash would fucking kill me if I get you hurt, especially on your first run!” He snapped, but I ignored him and ripped a strip off the bottom of my shirt to wrap around his arm.
The bullet had grazed deeply across his skin, but it wasn’t lodged in there.
I focused on wrapping it up before I grabbed my gun and peered over my shoulder, scowling as the car got closer.
I aimed and fired, the car’s tires squealing as it jerked to the side to dodge whatever I may fire at them.
I heard Diesel curse as he slammed the brakes on, nearly throwing me through the windshield, but his arm shot out to brace me for it.
I gave him a grateful smile before looking at the reason we’d stopped, seeing cars parked across the road to block us in.
The car behind us pulled up close so we couldn’t back out, making me growl.
“Who the fuck do they think they are?!”
“Rory, stay in the fucking car,” he warned in a low voice, but I yanked the door open and climbed out, pointing my gun at one of the cars in front of us and shooting the two front tires.
I ignored Diesel as he swore at me from the car, but when someone shot at me, I instantly turned and fired, watching them drop to the ground with the bullet almost centred on his forehead.
Damn, I was finally fucking good at something.
I spun around and aimed again as I heard movement behind me, my eyes narrowing as Hunter moved in front of me with a nasty smirk.
“Now I see what Skeeter sees in you. Bet that got you fucking wet. What the hell are you doing on a run? It was meant to be Slash and Diesel.”
I aimed my gun at his head, giving him a filthy look as I fought the urge to just kill him for the sake of it.
“So, the idea was to what? Kill them?”
Hunter laughed, sarcasm dripping from his voice as he spoke.
“I was only going to play with Slash a little to fire him up, and possibly take his cash from the drop off. C’mon, babe, this is men’s business. I’m not playing around.”
“Neither am I,” I barked, shooting at his feet and only narrowly missing his toes.
His crew aimed their guns at me, but Hunter chuckled lightly, his eyes twinkling with mischief as he lifted his hand slightly, his crew lowering their guns with the motion.
“You seem snippier than the other day. What’s wrong, princess? Who broke your nail?”
I sneered at him, turning to get back in the car, but his stern voice suddenly hit my ears.
“Did you get shot in the fucking back? You’re bleeding.”
Was that concern in his voice?
I glanced over my shoulder and raised an eyebrow at him.
“Don’t be stupid. Your guys couldn’t hit shit off a shovel. It’s just from a fight with Skeet, so don’t worry about it, pretty boy.”
“He’s keeping you in line well I see,” he snorted, making me roll my eyes.
“Doubt it. I left all of them so…”
“All of who?” He cut in, making me snort.
“Like you don’t know. I was dating Caden Holloway’s guys and Skeet. Do me a favour and fuck off out of town, because I’m already sick of you. Stay the fuck away from my family,” I demanded, instantly feeling his shift in attitude.
I relaxed as he leaned back against his car and crossed his arms to watch me as he motioned to his crew to fuck off.
One guy with almost as many tattoos as Hunter lingered behind as the others drove off with their dead member, but Hunter shooed him off as well before continuing.
“You’re something else. So, you like to fight, huh?”
We’d already discussed that, and I fucking hated repeating myself.
“I love to fight but I end up killing people, so I’m not allowed to anymore.”
“Why’s Slash got you on a drug run?” He asked casually as if I was going to just tell him.
Did he think I was stupid?
“Nice try, but it’s none of your business and you know it.”
Tires skidded in our direction, and I groaned out loud as I turned to glare at Diesel as the black and red Mustang barrelled towards us.
“You fucking called Slash?”
He pretended to ignore me, but he smirked as I flipped him the bird before turning back to Hunter, thumping his chest.
“Now, why the fuck were your guys shooting at us? Were you really trying to hijack Slash’s money?”
He watched me through lazy brown eyes with a small smile, his dimples popping in a cute way.
Fucking hell, he had dimples too?
Bad boys shouldn’t look so good.
“Admit it. This shit turns you on, babe.”
“Like fuck.”
I was such a liar, it totally did.
He leaned in close, the humour in his voice replaced by a seductive tone as he spoke.
“I bet your panties are fucking soaked.”
I heard a car door slam close by as I gave Hunter a naughty grin, not being able to help myself as I moved a hand forwards so my fingertips could trail down his shirt and over his abs, causing him to shiver slightly.
“Not possible, pretty boy. I’m not fucking wearing any.”
I was yanked back sharply and Slash suddenly stood in front of me like a human wall as he glared at Hunter.
I zoned out as they argued, but when Slash drew his gun I snapped out of it, startling him as I moved in front of him to block his shot, crossing my arms tightly.
“Let’s go, Slash.”
“Donovan, get the fuck out of my way!” He bellowed, but I
took a step closer and sighed like he usually did when I was irritating him.
Fuck him.
“He called his guys off, so why the fuck are you aiming at him? He was just talking.”
“Yeah, to you!” He shouted, making me frown with confusion.
Hunter hooted with laughter though, slapping his knee for dramatics.
Everything was a joke to him, I swear to fucking god.
“Holy fucking shit, is that why you booted Skeet, Miss Donovan? So you wouldn’t feel so bad about fucking his boss?”
I glanced at him and scrunched my face up with confusion.
“I’m not fucking Slash.”
“Nah, but I can see by the expression on your face that you’ve thought about it. Everyone knows Slash wants you all to himself, not that I blame him.”
I cocked my head with amusement, ensuring not to swoon over the lust filled expression he was giving me.
“Sounds more like you want me riding you, Hunter?”
He grinned, stepping towards me more, but Slash moved with him to block his view of me.
I rolled my eyes and moved around him, looking Hunter right in the eye as I almost pressed against his front.
“Thing is, you couldn’t handle a woman like me.”
A throaty laugh left him, and Slash gently touched my waist to remind me that he was there.
I ignored him, watching Hunter as he kept giving me the same expression.
“Skeet and I share the same taste in women, so if he actually dated you, that means you fuck like a porn star. Feel free to ride me if you want, babe. I’d only push you out of bed to fuck you on the floor.”
I stepped against him completely, hearing his breath catch as my front pressed firmly into his.
“I do fuck like a porn star. How about you?”
“How about you come with me and you’ll find out?” He said in a lazy tone, but I could hear that his breathing was still uneven.
His dick hardened against my hip, so I knew he liked the idea.
His eyes held more interest now, seeming genuinely intrigued by the idea.
“Rory, let’s go,” Slash said to break the silence, and I finally pulled my eyes away from Hunter’s.
Hunter smirked as he took a step back.
“Hey, Slash? You guys ever need her gone, you send her my way. I like my bitches crazy,” then he turned and sauntered back to his car and skidded off, leaving the damaged car with blown tires behind.
