Cole (The Ride Series)

by O'Brien, Megan

  “He apologized,” she said. “Sincerely,” she added when I looked over at her. “I don’t think he realized what an ass he was being.”

  “Told you.” I grinned.

  “He’s got some work to do but I think he likes me, at least enough to apologize, which I have the feeling he’s not used to doing,” she said with a smirk.

  “Definitely not,” I said, as a black SUV with tinted windows came screeching to a halt at the curb.

  “Let’s go inside,” I said immediately as the hair rose at the back of my neck. “Go!” I shouted more desperately when I saw Jake and two other men jump out of the car and race toward us.

  We were up and running for the doors of the club when a strong arm wrapped around me and I saw Victor fucking Cross grab Kat.

  “No not her!” I screamed angrily as they dragged us quickly to the SUV. I couldn’t believe they had the balls to snatch us in front of the Knights’ headquarters. Clearly they were sending a message.

  “Cole!” I screamed as loud as I could as I kicked and struggled with everything I was worth. I was shoved into the backseat with Kat. I saw Cole and the rest of the guys come hurtling out of the doors, murder in their faces as we tore off from the curb.

  “Why the fuck did you take her?” Jake demanded gesturing to Kat, his eyes blazing as the SUV swerved through traffic. I didn’t recognize the driver. It had been eight years since I’d set eyes on Jake and the years had not been kind. His dark, wavy hair was now shaved close to his head, making his already hollow face look more so. His dark brown eyes looked wild, and they were framed by dark circles as he glanced around the truck with a hysteria that I’d never seen him exhibit. He was either on something or was just that deranged. There was nothing left of the Jake I remembered from my youth, though that fact had already been confirmed during our last encounter.

  “I don’t know, she was just there so I grabbed her,” Victor replied as both men tried to subdue us. Neither Kat nor I was making that easy, as I bit down hard on Jake’s forearm.

  “Mother fucking bitch!” he bellowed, punching me hard in the face. Kat screamed.

  Damn that hurt. Especially with that fucking ring he was wearing. I saw stars briefly but it only served to piss me off more. “Do you have a fucking death wish?” I screeched.

  “Not as much as you do,” Jake sneered. “Now calm the fuck down,” he barked.

  “Let Kat go, she has no part in this,” I demanded.

  “She does now,” he answered sharply.

  Fuck.

  I heard the roar of Harleys behind us and realized that Jake really had lost his mind. How had he figured he’d snatch us without swift and violent retribution? I hadn’t known Cole long, but I knew Jake would be lucky to escape with his life after this stunt. You did not fuck with another man’s woman, especially on his turf.

  “You tell your new boy toy that this is only a taste of what I’m going to do,” Jake demanded, pulling my already bruised face close to his. “You tell him they better start giving me some goddamn respect,” he added before he kissed me roughly on the mouth. I fought back the urge to gag. “Missed you babe, look forward to having you back where you belong,” he said with a cruel smile. “But until then…” he trailed off as the door was swung open.

  My heart raced as I realized his intention--what his intention had been all along. This was simply a stunt designed to scare me and fuck with the Knights, and it was one that Kat and I would pay for with blood. “Don’t toss ‘em too hard Vic, I need her in one piece,” Jake called casually as Vic made a grab for Kat and hauled her out of the SUV to the pavement. I heard her scream and bit back a sob, caring far less what happened to me. Kat was just an innocent bystander in this mess.

  “I hate your fucking guts,” I seethed while looking at Jake straight on.

  “We’ll see,” he said, watching as I met the same fate as my best friend.

  Pain seared over the exposed skin of my legs and arms as the pavement came cruelly up to meet me. It sliced through my hip and side as I came skidding to a painful halt. The SUV had slowed some as we were tossed out, but not enough to prevent injury. I heard a screech of tires and voices shouting as I tried to ascertain if I was still in one piece.

  “Mother fucker!” I heard Cole roar as he came crashing to my side.

  “Kat?” I asked desperately.

  “She’s okay,” he bit out, looking down at me with an expression so angry I could barely see the blue of his eyes.

  “Where else are you hurt?” he demanded, his eyes taking a quick survey of my body. “Is anything broken?”

  “I’m not sure,” I answered honestly. “Just give me a second.” I breathed, lying on my back looking up at the sky. My whole body throbbed, it was impossible to tell what kind of state I was really in.

  “Where’s Kat?” I asked after her again.

  “She’s sitting up, Sal’s with her. She’s okay baby,” he soothed, his voice gruff with emotion.

  I nodded as tears welled up in my eyes. “It’s my fault,” I said hoarsely, feeling so insanely guilty for what had happened to her.

  “Baby, this shit is not your fault,” he said angrily. “Put that out of your head and let’s focus on getting you up off the road okay?” he asked.

  I nodded, glancing around. We were out in the middle of nowhere. Jake’s SUV had quickly and purposefully headed directly out of town, not hard to do since the club was already on the outskirts.

  “Do you need an ambulance?” he asked, his voice tight with worry.

  “I don’t think so,” I said as I shook my head. I took a deep breath and made an effort to sit up. Cole brought his hand to the back of my head helping me carefully. I sat up looking around dazedly until I located Kat, sitting not fifteen feet away. Sal was hunched over her but she looked okay. I sighed in relief.

  “Pop’s bringin’ the truck, then we’re going to the hospital,” Cole said firmly.

  “I think I’m okay,” I argued.

  “Baby, I don’t want to freak you out, but you’re in shock. Trust me we need to go to the hospital,” he answered firmly.

  I squinted up to look at him, the sun streaming behind his emotion stricken face. “Okay,” I agreed quietly.

  We were soon surrounded by Harley’s and Cal’s SUV.

  “Come on, baby,” Cole coaxed, picking me up off the ground and carrying me carefully in his arms to the backseat. Sal was depositing Kat gently in on the other side.

  “Shit, we’re back in another SUV,” I groaned over to Kat. And despite ourselves we both burst out laughing. Maybe we were both just completely hysterical, or maybe it was just really funny. Cole looked at me like I had completely lost it before he shut the door.

  “That mother fucker is dead, do you hear me?” I heard him demand of his father. The words were muffled through the door but there was no mistaking his rage.

  “Not disputin’ that shit, son, but you need to lock yourself down,” Cal ordered.

  “Did you see her?” Cole roared. “Did you fucking see her face?”

  I winced at the raw emotion in his voice.

  “I said, lock that shit down. Come here,” Cal commanded, pulling Cole out of hearing distance.

  Kat and I regarded each other for a moment.

  “If you even think of saying you’re sorry I’ll blacken your other eye,” she warned tersely as Sal hopped up into the passenger side. “This isn’t your fault,” she reached a hand over to mine, squeezing gently. “Love you, Scar.”

  I simply nodded swallowing back my tears, unable to speak, and laid my head back and closed my eyes. The pain was getting worse now that the shock was wearing off. My skin felt like it had been torn off in certain places and my face and joints throbbed.

  Cole returned quickly and hopped into the driver’s seat, peeling out and gunning it for the hospital.

  “What’s the story?” I asked hoarsely.

  “Story?” Cole asked, peering at me through the rearview mirror. Even in my stat
e I had to admire the color of his eyes as they locked with mine.

  “Well, I assume telling the hospital that a rival motorcycle club kidnapped us and threw us from a moving vehicle is out,” I replied dryly.

  “Right, that story,” Cole muttered.

  “We’ll just tell them we were fucking around trying to learn how to ride motorcycles and ditched them,” Kat answered, her voice weak with pain.

  Sal twisted in his seat to look at her, his face full of concern, “What about her face?” he asked turning to look at me briefly before his eyes found Kat again.

  “Best to stick with one story,” I said, my own voice growing more and more quiet. “They won’t push too hard.” I sighed.

  “How do you know so much about this?” Cole barked at me. He clearly had a fairly loose hold on himself.

  “You have got to chill, Bud,” Sal said quietly but firmly.

  The lump rose again in my throat at what my past was doing to the people dearest to me. Cole was clearly torn up inside while Kat was quite literally torn up. I gazed out the window thinking about how much easier it would be if I just removed myself from both of their lives. I was confident that with me out of the picture, any twisted interest Jake had taken would fall to the wayside.

  Cole nodded briefly, his jaw set tightly and the rest of the short drive was silent.

  Both Sal and Cole carried us into the emergency room while barking orders at the staff. Words were exchanged, but I was in too much pain and too overwhelmed by the day to pay attention. Everything went relatively smoothly until the nurses asked Cole to leave the room.

  “I’m not leavin’,” he scowled with his feet planted firmly, arms crossed over his formidable chest.

  “Baby, it’s okay,” I assured him. “I’m sure these nice women are just doing their jobs,” I said quietly from the bed they placed me in. I knew they just wanted to question me in private about my story, something I was sure from Cole’s expression that he knew as well. I also felt it prudent that he didn’t witness the extent of my injuries, at least not at the moment, when he clearly didn’t have a handle on his anger. He was still visibly seething, which wasn’t helping the nurses to believe my story.

  “Fine, ten minutes. No more,” he said firmly before turning on his heel and stalking off.

  The nurse turned to me, concern in her eyes as she began to gingerly remove my clothing with scissors. They already gave me something for the pain and I focused on the ceiling, not wanting to see the extent of my injuries.

  “Are you safe at home?” she asked quietly when she had me situated with a gown covering my naked body. “You can tell me, I swear it won’t get back to him,” she added. Her eyes brimmed with sincerity, and I knew had the situation called for it that I would have trusted her.

  I turned to her with a small smile. “I promise I am. I was just reckless and he worries about me,” I assured her. “I have no doubt I’d be safe to confide in you, but there’s no need.” I smiled and gave her hand a small squeeze. She studied me for a moment before nodding briefly. I couldn’t tell if she believed me or not. If I was her I probably wouldn’t given the circumstances.

  After that, Cole never left my side. He kept a forced lid on his anger when the doctor discussed how to care for the terrible road rash that I sustained on my left side, but he didn’t lose it. I knew he wanted to, but he didn’t. Even after everything Jake had done to me, I still couldn’t believe that the boy I’d lost my virginity to was capable of such violence against me. He had no compassion, no remorse, and no soul. It was true that I was never in love with him, but I certainly felt something for him – we’d known each other our entire lives. And now I was just a vessel of vengeance in his sick mind. He wanted to hurt me badly, but even worse, he wanted to hurt the people I cared about. I was grateful when they got me into a hospital bed, administering pain medication that quickly knocked me out. I needed a mental and physical break from it all.

  Chapter Nine

  I was awoken from an incessant beeping, and for a brief moment I thought it was my alarm clock. Then it all came rushing back that I was in the hospital.

  “Cole,” I murmured, my voice sounding hoarse.

  “Right here, baby,” his soft voice sounded in my ear.

  “Do you realize this is only like our third date?” I mumbled.

  “Wouldn’t classify this as a date darlin’,” his deep voice replied, and I felt his hand stroke my hair back from my forehead.

  “Bet you miss the days of, what’s her name again?” I searched my muddled mind for her name. “Daisy, that’s it. Daisy,” I continued to mumble. “So much easier with a girl like her,” I said as I began to drift off.

  “Didn’t cross my mind for a second, sweetheart. Nowhere else I’d rather be,” he assured me.

  I made a scoffing sound and drifted back to sleep.

  When I woke up a second time, I was more lucid. It was very dark in the room and I assumed it was the middle of the night. I took a moment to take in my surroundings. Cole was asleep, his large form slumped over in the chair by the window. My heart immediately lurched that this man who’d known me for such a short period of time was so clearly devoted to me. I had so few people to depend on, so few people that I could trust in the last eight years. Before my father died, he was always at my back, ready to protect me. And before things went south, I had the club. I’d known those men and their families since I was a little girl. After losing everything I had to keep myself closely guarded, the only person I truly let in was Kat. But now this man was knocking away at all my armor after just a few weeks. I was already hopelessly in love with him, something I’d never experienced in my life. I couldn’t stand the thought of him getting hurt, of him losing anyone close to him because of me. He already suffered because of my history. I felt tears prick the back of my eyes as I realized that the very best thing I could do for him was let him go.

  When I woke up again, sunlight was streaming in through the windows. The chair that Cole had occupied the night before was empty. I sat up assessing my pain level. My joints were sore, especially my wrists-- I had been lucky to avoid a break. My left side was incredibly tender, but I could manage with the help of some pain medication.

  A new morning shift nurse came in to take my blood pressure. “Do you know where my boyfriend went?” I asked her, the term sounding silly when spoken aloud. Cole was far more than a boy and the term seemed so…casual.

  “He wanted me to tell you that he went to meet with his father for a short while. He was reluctant to leave you,” she said as she smiled. “Quite a looker that one,” she added.

  “I know,” I sighed, my throat feeling tight with what I planned to do.

  She finished taking my vitals and left me to the quiet of my hospital room. I realized that if I didn’t go now, I’d never have the gumption to do it at all. The thought of not being with Cole felt like being thrown from the SUV all over again – except this time there would be scars.

  I swung myself out of the bed and quickly dressed in the clean clothes someone had brought me. Whoever it had been, they thoughtfully brought me a dress so there would be minimal rubbing against my sore and bandaged side. I didn’t know how much time I had before he got back, and I knew if I had one look at him I’d lose my nerve. I didn’t know where I was going or what I’d do but the fierce desire to protect him and to protect Kat was all I could think about. I knew I was making myself vulnerable by heading out on my own, but I’d done it successfully before and I could do it again.

  I asked a nurse for Kat’s room number, and after peering inside to make sure the coast was clear, I quietly opened her door. She was propped up watching TV, looking small and pale in her bed. My eyes welled up at the sight.

  “Hi,” I said softly when she looked over at me in surprise.

  “Hi, are they discharging you already?” she asked with raised brows seeing me fully clothed. She muted the television and turned her knowing blue eyes to me.

  I simply look
ed at her with tears in my eyes and shook my head.

  “Scarlet, what the hell?” she demanded, immediately understanding my expression. “We’ve been over this. Don’t you dare do something stupid!”

  “I’m sorry, Kat. I love you so much, you’ve been my family. You’ve been everything to me, and I can’t stand what my past has done to you, or could do to you,” I tried to explain, my voice hoarse.

  She huffed with impatience, “Scar, you need to forget all of that. None of it is your fault. The only thing you could do to hurt me is to leave,” she said fiercely.

  “I don’t know what else to do,” I said quietly. “And now Cole’s involved. And…I love him, Kat,” I choked out. “If something happens to him because of me I couldn’t live with that. I know you can’t understand right now, but this is the only way I can see Jake backing off,” I pleaded.

  “Scarlet Malone, that is bullshit! He’s going to come at them regardless. This is about more than just you – you have to understand that. You leave, and it will make everything worse!” she argued.

  Well at least I put some color back in her cheeks.

  “Don’t you dare walk out that door, Scar,” she warned as I shot her a small smile and backed my way toward the door.

  “Love you, Kat,” I told her.

  She gave me a wry smile. “I’m not saying good-bye to you dumbass, I’m sending Cole after you. You’re not getting rid of us that easily,” she hollered as I shut the door behind me. “I’ll bet my ass you’re back by dinner!” I heard her shout.

  I had to smile at her, throwing me attitude even as I was leaving. I wiped my face and strode out of the hospital with the clothes on my back, the medicine the doctor had prescribed and the cash in my wallet.

  By nightfall, the bus dropped me off within the outskirts of Idaho. It had been an incredibly long and unpleasant day sitting on a cramped bus in unbearable pain, trying to deflect sleaze bag after sleaze bag.

  I had enough money to stay in a motel off the freeway and I used a few bucks to get my dinner from the vending machine. I didn’t want to risk going back to my place to get anything, including my car. My phone had rung about one hundred times before I finally turned it off.