Angel Unseen: An Unseen MC Novel

by J Bree

  My stomach roils with nerves.

  I want that.

  I want him and that protection so goddamn much, having him for myself… fuck, that’s exactly what I want. The stabbing feeling in my chest when he rolled away from me the other night, that was the worst fucking pain I’ve felt since I ran away from home.

  Could I survive this if he’s not being real with me?

  “I’ve got four days until I’m going on a run for the club. You’ll stay with me until then. When I get back, we’ll talk. You’ll tell me your secrets and I’ll fix anything you need me to. Answer me, Angel. Say yes.”

  I clear my throat. Four days… four days together nd then when he gets back I’ll have to tell him.

  He’ll be gone for my birthday.

  It’s probably for the best.

  I clear my throat. “Okay. Okay, I’ll stay with you. If it… works out, I’ll tell you… everything.”

  Chapter Twenty Four

  Tomi

  By the time Angel makes it out of the shower, there’s no one left in the changing room. The relief is right there on her face, clear as a fucking bell, and I make a note to find out what the fuck the other women are doing to her when I’m not around. I thought I’d made it clear that shit wouldn’t fly but her face tells me she’s still having a shitty time here.

  No more.

  I’m fixing all of her fucking problems.

  “Sorry for taking so long.”

  Her voice is different when she’s out of the getup she wears on the stage. It’s softer, more hesitant and full of ghosts, and it sets my teeth on edge.

  I can’t think about whatever demons she’s hiding, whoever it is that she’s running from. Whichever piece of shit beat on her and has her scared of her own shadow.

  “You’re good? Let’s get out of here.”

  She falters a little, that big bag of hers that she drags around everywhere with her over her shoulder. It’s as if she packs her whole life to come to work just in case she might need something.

  It’s fucking weird.

  I check the security cams before pushing the back door open with a palm, gesturing for her to go ahead now I know there’s no one out there waiting for us both. “What’s going on in that head of yours? From here out, Angel, you need something, you come to me.”

  She hesitates for a second and then shrugs, walking ahead of me and leaving me with that sweet honey smell of hers.

  Makes a man fucking ravenous.

  I get her bag strapped onto my hog all while she fusses with her helmet nervously. I switched out my spare to make sure it would fit her head properly. I’m a fucking sap for this woman who’s wrapped in secrets, coated in broken armor and trip wires.

  Once her arms are wrapped around me tight and I can feel every fucking inch of her pressed against my back I get us onto the road and I let the hog fly, the deep rumble of the engine loud in my ears and like a balm on my soul.

  It’s fucking perfect.

  For a second I can forget all about the endless bullshit I’ve got going on in the club, with my brat of a sister, with my cousin fighting for life, and with the beauty on the back of the bike. I can just pretend everything is exactly the way I want it to be.

  I can pretend I was lovestruck at the sight of her and she’s mine for keeps.

  I’m still not sure that’s what’s happening here but at least I can say I tried. It’s fucking perfect while it lasts but, as always, we make it to the club way too fucking fast and I feel the tension start to fill her the second the gates of the compound come into view.

  I fucking hate how uneasy this place makes her.

  Was the guy who beat her a biker?

  I’ll fucking fill him with lead or, better yet, beat the life right out of him. I pull up into my usual spot and huff out a laugh at Rue’s missing rig. Guess he really is off stalking his little flower child again. It’s a good thing tonight, means there’s another set of eyes on Trink too.

  I still need to find out what the hell is going on with her too.

  Fuck.

  Angel takes a second before she climbs off, her arms squeezing me tighter right before she lets go like it’s hard to separate from me.

  Fuck, what the hell is going on with my head tonight?

  Seeing her cry at the sight of Speck, knowing she’d rather sleep on the streets than tell me she needs help, the shaking, the broken phone… she doesn’t want to be touched.

  Fuck.

  Who the hell has hurt my girl?

  Is she still being hurt? Is she lying to me about it?

  Nope, can’t wander down that thought spiral. If I think about if someone is still hurting her or, fuck, how they’re hurting her, I’ll be dead by dawn.

  Killing rampages don’t go down well in Coldstone. It’s too fucking small to get away with that shit.

  She glances up at the clubhouse and wraps her arms around herself like she’s cold but it’s still warm enough out. “Is there a party going on? I’d rather not go in there. Is there… somewhere else we can stay?”

  “Nope, this is home,” I say, trying to keep my cool. Pushing her isn’t going to help my case but it takes everything I have not to just shake the answers outta her.

  She sighs and scuffs her foot on the ground. “Okay. I guess… I mean, Speck said—”

  “Stop fucking talking about Speck. You’re sleeping in my bed where I know you’re fucking safe for the night and then I’ll drive you into work. You don’t have to party or talk to anyone.”

  She nods and glances around. I follow her gaze and I see all of the extra bikes hanging around. There’s a party going on like there usually is on a Friday night but the fear is real in every inch of her as she counts up the vehicles.

  I see it now.

  And I don’t like it, not one bit, so I do something fucking stupid. I strip my jacket off and sling it over her shoulders, marking her up as mine and definitely not available to any of my brothers and then I tuck her tiny hand in mine. Wearing my shirt with the patch was one thing but wearing my jacket in front of other charters?

  No mistaking that move.

  “Come on, I’m not in the mood for a party either. I’ll get you to my room and then I’ll grab us both something to eat.”

  She nods and hesitates for half a second before stepping in close to me, using my body as a shield as we move into the crowd of men and women spilling out of the packed bar.

  I feel ten feet fucking tall.

  Her bag is tucked in tight between our bodies like she’s scared it’ll get ripped away by the crowd. There’s shouts and jeering as we make our way through but I ignore them all. I’ve got zero fucking time for any of their shit tonight. I’m stone-cold sober and the only thing on my mind is Angel.

  “Who the fuck is that? Is she wearing your patch right now?”

  I roll my eyes and pull Angel in closer to my side as Monroe steps into my path. Fucking dumb bitch, if her daddy wasn’t a brother I’d take her down a fucking notch right here but I don’t have time to deal with this bullshit.

  Angel just wants to get to my room.

  “It’s none of your fucking business. Go find Diesel and suck him off, I’ve got nothing for you.”

  She smirks, trying to get a look at Angel but my girl is tucked in tight with her head down. “Oh really? You bringing a fucking stripper home? Your momma must be so proud, Tomi.”

  Angel’s hand twitches in mine but for once I’m not angry at her for getting her tits out at the club.

  I’m fucking livid at Monroe for talking down to her.

  She sees it too, sees the look in my eye that says she’s fucked up and there’s no coming back from it.

  “Get your ass the fuck out of my way before I decide to take it personal and tell Diesel about your little obsession with Rue. Does he know you’re trying so fucking hard to bend over for his brother? Fuck, does Dave know you’re trying to fuck us all?”

  She finally gets the fuck out of our way and I get moving, weavi
ng through the drunk and stumbling crowd until I get us to my room. I get it unlocked and gently push Angel in there first, breathing a little easier when she’s in my space and away from all of the bullshit and debauchery.

  If she saw the four-way happening on the pool table she says nothing about it, just pulls the jacket around herself a little tighter.

  She looks fucking perfect in my leather.

  I sling her bag down onto the couch. “Lemme grab us some food. I saw burgers, anything you don’t like?”

  She shakes her head and I head out.

  It takes me way too long to grab the shit. King tries to catch my eye but I ignore him, making my way back through the crowd without pausing for fucking anything.

  When I get back Angel is still standing in the middle of the room clutching at my jacket like it’s a goddamn lifesaver and she’s stuck out at sea.

  “Angel, you’re here for the next couple of nights. You can’t be standing around feeling fucking awkward for days.”

  She startles and turns around to give me a half-smile. “Sorry. I just don’t want to get in your way… I don’t want to rock the boat.”

  Her voice is quiet still, like she really is afraid I’m about to kick her ass out. “Here. Eat this so we can go the fuck to bed. I’m gonna go shower first.”

  She nods and takes the plate, perching her ass down on the couch and then falling onto the burger like she’s gone days without food.

  Come to think of it… “When the fuck did you last eat?”

  She pauses with the last bite of the damn thing halfway to her mouth. “I can’t eat before I dance. I’m too… nervous, I guess.”

  Breakfast. We’d gone to the diner for breakfast and she’d barely poked around at some eggs and a little bacon. We didn’t get dinner after she’d finished dancing the night before either, just went straight into the hospital to see Speck, so she's only eaten that breakfast in the last two days.

  She must be fucking starving.

  “Angel, listen to me and listen good because I’m only saying this once. You’re going to start taking care of yourself right the fuck now. You’re going to tell me you’re hungry when you need food and you’re going to stop taking the fucking high road. I’m not a fucking mind reader.”

  She half nods and shoves the last of the burger in her mouth, glancing at the one I made for myself.

  “Eat it. I’ll get another one when I’m done in the shower.”

  By the time I get out of the shower, Angel is asleep in my bed with nothing but my hoodie on. It’s a fucking tempting sight and I have to force myself out to the kitchen to eat something. I’ve barely had an hour's sleep in the last two days and I’m running on fumes. Keely and Hawk have taken the night shift with Speck to give us the break because they both know how long and hard Rue and I have been working.

  Here’s hoping Rue is actually getting some sleep too and not just obsessively watching Poe breathe through her bedroom window like a psychopath.

  I eat in the kitchen so I don’t get dragged into having a drink with any of the guys here. They’re all used to me drinking and partying and fucking my way through any situation the club is in so there’s no doubt there’ll be questions if I go straight to bed.

  I couldn’t care less.

  At this point, I’m sure half the guys already know I’ve been ‘struck. Axe sure does but he’s been good about keeping his mouth shut, probably thanks to all of the death threats I sent him when I put him on Angel duty.

  When I get back to my room, Angel is still asleep but thrashing around a bit. Fuck. I can’t remember the last time I slept next to someone and that shit doesn’t look comfortable. Her arms keep flailing about and her legs are kicking… looks like she’s fighting some asshole off.

  I don’t like that.

  Not one bit.

  I climb in the other side and try to get comfortable, not touching her in any way because I’m proving to her that this isn’t just about the good sex.

  I’m just a little pissed she said the sex was just good.

  She fucking gushed, the wet spot on my bed was a fucking lake, that’s more than just good.

  It takes me a good hour to fall asleep but when I finally do, her body calls to mine like a silent siren’s song. I only know that I’ve reached out for her when a strangled scream lets out of her throat and she scrambles away from me, straight off of the bed and onto the floor.

  My brain is still half-asleep but even dumb, deaf, and blind I’d know exactly what the fuck that reaction meant.

  Someone’s hurt her. Hurt her real bad.

  My mind goes fuzzy as my rage tries to win out over the hazy sleep.

  She’s barely awake as she pulls herself up into a sitting position against the wall, her chest heaving and her hands clawing up her arms like she’s trying to gouge my touch out of her skin. This high-pitch keening sound starts up but the wild and frantic look in her eyes makes me sure she has no control over it.

  “Angel, it’s me. I’m not going to hurt you, sweetness.”

  The nickname slips out.

  This entire fucking thing has caught me off guard.

  I’ve gone from wanting to hate fuck her right out from under my skin to wanting to break any man that’s laid hands on her in anger before.

  She’s still freaking the fuck out so I carefully, and slowly, get up off of the bed and walk over to the bathroom to grab some pants and clear my head.

  I get her cleaned up with a warm washcloth. Her fingernails are destroying the skin of her arms, gouging at her own flesh like she’s trying to dig something out.

  I’m done messing around.

  I’m finding this motherfucker and I’m killing him.

  Slowly, after I’ve cleaned her up and tucked her into my chest, her breathing evens out before turning into quiet sobs.

  I can’t handle that either.

  “You’re back then? I’ve been trying to get you to talk for over an hour.”

  Her voice comes out in a little whimper. “I’m—I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to—”

  I cut her off because the thought of hearing her lies right now has my gut churning with rage. “Yeah, I get that. You gonna tell me who the fuck I’m killing for this?”

  She tenses in my arms but I don’t let her go. I’m not going to either, not until I have some answers. “You told me we were going to wait. I just… I need more time.”

  “Angel, you’ve got to fucking answer me. Where was your old place, who did you live with there? Thorn said you told Alby it wasn’t this one hurting you so who was it?”

  She turns to press her face into my chest a little more and I have to focus on my anger at the claw marks up her arms not to just say, fuck it, and spread her out. “I told you I don’t have a boyfriend.”

  Thank fuck. “Then who kicked you out?”

  She shakes her head. “No one, Tomi, please. I’m so tired, I just want to get some sleep.”

  I try not to fucking yell because that’ll only have us going backwards. When I stand up and tug her towards the bed she pulls away from me.

  “It’s the bed. I can’t—I can’t sleep in it. I’m sorry, I’ll take the couch.”

  Fuck that.

  I grab her hips pushing her towards the bathroom. “Just go get a glass of water.”

  When she’s gone I pull everything off of the bed and onto the floor. I’ve slept in a lot of questionable places in my life, spending a night on the floor won’t fucking kill me.

  Hell, I probably won’t even notice.

  “What are you doing?” she whispers and I ignore her, lying down amongst the pillows.

  “Get your ass down here. No, you’re sleeping right here where I can hold you. Right. Close your eyes and stop fucking thinking.”

  It hasn’t taken much to notice she does best when I give her firm instructions. Clear and to the point, it’s like her brain switches off and she just gets her ass moving.

  Her heart races when I get her bundled into my chest but
it doesn’t take long before she’s asleep, her body finally relaxing fully and the thrashing over with.

  I sleep like the dead.

  So does Angel.

  Maybe we were made for each other.

  Chapter Twenty Five

  Angel

  It doesn’t matter how many times I try to sleep in the bed with Tomi, we always end up on the floor.

  He pointedly doesn’t ever try to initiate sex and it’s suddenly all I can think about around him. His shirts just get tighter and tighter as the nights go on until I feel like I can count every last one of his abs.

  Yup, he has a six-pack and one of those Adonis belt ‘V’ things that look photoshopped in photos.

  It’s wildly unfair, especially now that sex seems to be the last thing on his mind.

  I wonder what it would be like to be with him and then sleep together afterwards? What it would be like to finish and not feel… dirty afterwards.

  Jesus.

  The last night before he leaves for the run, I wake up on the floor again. Tomi’s arm is under my head like a pillow and the thin blankets from the bed thrown over us both, my face is pressed into his chest and his chin resting on the top of my head as he tries to soothe me. I’m shaking so bad that his arms are the only thing keeping me from vibrating all the way out of the damn room.

  This is getting fucking shameful.

  “It’s okay, sweetness. Everything is going to be okay.”

  His voice is a slow, soothing sound and the rasp of it speaks of a shitty night of sleep.

  Fuck.

  “I’m sorry,” I mumble and his arms tighten around me.

  “Don’t start with that shit, Angel. The only thing I need you worrying about is telling me who the fuck did this to you. I’ll fucking end the gutless cunt.”