I woke on my twelfth birthday and knew that things needed to change, I decided that from that very day, I wouldn't let anyone ever hurt me again. I would choose what I did or didn't do, and it would only be for my benefit and no one else's. Why should I help and support the people that had let me down and allowed me to be abused? Frank had invited the monster into our home, Maggie had happily sent me off to be raped and Chloe had let me down every single night by falling asleep and not protecting me. I was going to make their lives a misery so they could feel pain, even if it was only a fraction of what I felt inside.
These thoughts often filled my head and that's why I had turned to casual sex, drink and drugs because this was my escapism, I was able to forget if only for a couple of hours. The blokes I went with wanted me, if only for a quick shag but I was able to tell them what I wanted and how I wanted it, I held all the power, I could pick and choose and this gave me the control I needed. That's why I preferred anal sex, because this was the hole that Harry hadn't violated and it was mine to give if I desired to.
My alarm went off at 9.30am and I reached over quickly to stop the bleeping before it woke Tiffany. Rolling over I realised that I was still wearing yesterday's clothes and the drug paraphernalia was scattered around the bed where I hadn't cleaned it away before getting high.
I rubbed my forehead and sighed, I really needed to get my shit together, I had a meeting with Duke this afternoon and needed to look presentable otherwise he would know that something was wrong.
I spent the next hour making myself respectable and cleared away the mess from my latest binge, and drove to the clubhouse with the evidence that would hopefully hurt Chloe and send Frank on the warpath. I pulled up outside the clubhouse and took one final look in my compact to make sure the black circles around my eyes were truly hidden. On exiting the car, I noticed that it was a lot quieter today and was pleased as I wouldn't have to be too sociable as I wasn't in the mood.
"Good morning, you're up earlier." Maggie stated sarcastically as she stopped mopping the floor.
I glanced at my watch noticing that it was just after eleven. Duke had told me to come here this afternoon but I needed to get this out of the way, I had work later on this afternoon, that's if I could be arsed to turn up, as I was having a particular bad come down from the shit I'd injected last night.
"I have a meeting with Duke." I stated strutting over her clean floor.
"I'm not sure if he's up yet." She shouted after me.
I glanced over my shoulder briefly to see her look of discontent and I smirked deliberately trying to wind her up, she had no fucking right to look at me in such away. Where did that woman get off?
I turned the knob on the office door to find that it was unlocked and eagerly pushed it open.
Duke raised his glock in my direction but slowly lowered it when he realised it was me.
"Don't you ever walk into my office again without fucking knocking, do you hear me?" He spat but his furious expression only made him sexier.
I nodded and made my way further into the office to sit on the chair opposite him.
"Oh please make yourself at home Paige." He gestured to the chair sarcastically in front of him, that I had already sat in. Duke stood and limped around his desk to perch himself on the edge directly in front of me, "To what do I owe this pleasure, I'm a busy man."
I notice the bandage on his right hand that wasn't there last night, I was going to ask about it but he didn't look like he was in the mood for pleasantries. I shook my head trying to clear my thoughts, because I knew as soon as I told Duke, shit would hit the fan.
He looked at me expectantly, "I caught Woods and Chloe getting it on at the party last night."
Duke frowned, "You must've been mistaken, Woods wouldn't do that and come to think of it nor would Chloe."
I scoffed, "Well that's what I thought you'd say, so I took this as evidence." I removed my phone from my handbag and pressed play so that Duke could watch the short video of the secret rendezvous in the grounds of the clubhouse, before they moved into the shadows.
I noticed his expression change as he watched the short clip and then he eagerly tapped away on my phone.
"What are you doing?" I asked grabbing for my mobile.
"Calm down, I've just sent the clip to my phone."
I snatched my mobile from his grasp and sat back into the chair to scroll through my phone to see that the clip had been deleted. I frantically went to my messages to get the clip from the text Duke had just sent himself but he had deleted that also, I stared at him clearly annoyed.
"You don't need that Paige, if it falls in the wrong hands it could do some serious damage."
My mouth fell open in shock, "That's what I want it to do!" I screamed as I stood so that I was now nose to nose with him.
"What I'm finding difficult to digest Paige, is why you would want to hurt Chloe so much? You know what the repercussions would be, if your dad finds out."
I smirked and saw the confusion on his face, "Because I've had to deal with enough pain in my life, it's about time she had some back."
Chapter 8
Woods
I opened the passenger side door and Doris jumped out wagging her tail excitedly and ran in the direction of Chloe. She crouched and lovingly stroked her, giggling as Doris rolled onto her side to give Chloe better access to rub her tummy. I strolled over to my girls and sat on the kerb as I watched Chloe interact with the Jack Russell, she was just a natural and brought out the best in everyone and everything.
"Aren't you supposed to have guard dogs to protect you, not lick you to death?" she sniggered as Doris got even more excited by her touch.
"She wasn't my choice, Lauren chose her."
Chloe's face became flushed at the mention of Lauren's name, "Erm, how is she?"
"She's good but I think we've scarred her for life." I sniggered remembering her mortified expression when she caught us together.
I stood, tapping the side of my leg indicating that it was time for a walk, Doris instantly fell in line by my side as I held out my hand for Chloe to take. Pulling her gently to her feet, she fell comfortably towards my chest and I leaned down to claim her mouth. Chloe instantly deepened the kiss and grinded her hips against my body as I instinctively placed my hand at the back of her head to claim her.
Chloe broke away mid kiss, "Sorry, I forgot we're in public." She eagerly looked around the car park to see if anyone was looking.
"Stop it, its fine. The majority of the guys are at the clubhouse today or at the Bird Cage because of the fallout from last night."
"Aren't you supposed to be there?"
"No, Duke will call if I'm needed." I stated, already feeling anxious, as I knew that I could receive a call from him at any moment because of the threats made by Paige last night. I knew that I'd pissed her off by turning down her advances and she'd want revenge because that's the kind of girl she was.
I hadn't let Chloe know of the altercation as I didn't want her to worry or even scare her away. I still didn't know if a relationship could be possible although it was starting to feel natural being in her company. Remembering Chloe's comment the previous evening, I grabbed her hand which took her by surprise and strolled through the park with Doris by our side to see just how normal this all felt.
As we leisurely strolled through the park enjoying each other's company, Doris left my side and bounded over to a family sitting at a picnic bench under a tree. I noticed the bloke lean down to stroke the back of her head and feed her something from their lunch. It wasn't until Chloe and I made our way over to the picnic area that I realised it was Spike, Louise and the twins.
Chloe instantly tried to pull her hand away but I held firm, I don't know why maybe to test the water with the one guy that I knew wouldn't judge. Spike looked at our entwined fingers and instantly glanced in my direction with a knowing smile before shaking his head.
"Please join us, we have more than enough food." Louise stated as she s
huffled further up the bench towards Spike, to make room for us.
Chloe caught my eye and I nodded for her to take a seat but surprised her again, when I straddled the bench and pulled her closer so that she was sitting in my embrace. I could see that she was embarrassed although she didn't protest but I wanted to see how it all felt especially in front of Spike.
Louise had put together a delicious spread and the conversation was kept light, although I knew Spike was dying to bombard me with questions once he had me alone. We finished our lunch and Louise and Chloe packed away the containers before playing Frisbee with the twins. I watched as Chloe ran around the field after the children, looking untroubled as a smile spread across her face as if she didn't have a care in the world.
"Well I never saw that one happening," Spike stated surprised. "How long has it been going on?"
"I've liked her for a while but it's been difficult for obvious reasons."
Spike sniggered, "Really! And what reasons may those be?"
I ignored his sarcasm, "Friday, we got together Friday."
"So it's new, really new."
I glanced over at Chloe, she smiled and waved when she saw me staring and I couldn't help but smile back.
"Fucking hell you've got it bad but you're asking for trouble Woods. Hound and Duke will hit the fucking roof when they find out, and they will. Things like this don't stay secret for long."
"I know Spike but I want to see if there is a connection before everyone else gets involved."
"I understand man but I'm just stating the facts. Say it was Diesel, Duke or Hound in the park today, they would've kicked your fucking arse all over the place."
I sniggered although I knew the seriousness of his statement, "Yeah I know."
I stood to retrieve my mobile from my pocket as the vibration indicated that I'd just received a text.
I want to see you at the clubhouse now!
I read the text and quickly held it up so Spike could read it, "And so it begins!"
"What you gonna say if Duke knows?"
"I really don't know."
"Well you better start thinking quickly. You can either deny it and hope that he doesn't have any evidence or admit it and take the fall out which won't be pleasant."
"Ahhh,"
Spike looked at me expectantly, "Enlighten me."
"Paige saw me kissing Chloe last night at the party."
"Paige!" I nodded my head, "Well you're done for, it was nice knowing you."
"Well thanks for your support."
Spike rubbed his head, "Do you want me to come with you, safety in numbers?"
"Nah, I'm a big boy. I'll just have to take what's coming to me." Spike shook his head in disbelief as I stood and made my way towards Chloe.
"What's up?" Chloe asked breathlessly as she jogged towards me.
"I've gotta go babe, Duke wants to see me."
I saw the look of horror on her face, "Do you think he knows?"
I shrugged but I knew full well why he wanted to see me, "Do you want a lift?"
"I don't mind keeping Doris here at the park for a while then drop her off at yours later."
I walked closer to Chloe and pulled her into my arms, "See that's why I know we would've been good together." I whispered in her ear before kissing her lightly on the forehead. As I pulled away I saw her confusion and gave her a tight smile knowing that this was the last time I would be able to touch her. "Thanks anyway but I'll take her with me as I may need her for protection." I sniggered.
Chloe smiled sweetly, "Okay."
"I'll call you later."
I turned and waved to Spike as I made my way across the field towards the car park, trying to decide what I was going to say to the inevitable question.
I nervously stood outside Duke's office and took a deep breath before knocking on the door.
"Come in." I pushed the door open and smiled, "How you doing Woods?" Duke asked as I walked into the room and sat on the sofa.
"Fine man and you?" I looked at him intently trying to read his expression to see what sort of mood he was in but he wasn't giving anything away.
"Have you got something to tell me?"
"Regarding?"
"Stop fucking me around, you know full well what this chats about."
"Look..."
"It stops now!"
"But..."
"But nothing Woods. I can totally understand that you can't help who you fall for but...fucking hell Woods, she's Hound's daughter!" Duke stood and made his way around the desk to perch on the edge in front of me.
"I know what you're saying but..."
"Do you love her?"
"It's way too early for that." And it was, I truly cared for her but it wasn't love, was it?
"Good, so you can end it now before anyone gets hurt."
"I wanted to see how things went before we said anything, to possibly explore how we both feel."
I stood fucking annoyed that at twenty-six I was being dictated too, in regards to who I could or couldn't have a relationship with.
"Don't look at me like that Woods, you know I'm right. If you loved her it would be different as you could possibly justify your actions and all the hurt you're gonna cause but is it really worth the fall out for a quick shag?"
"It's not like that Duke, stop being a prick. What if we were to see each other for a while and then realised that it was something worth fighting for?"
"I'm afraid you don't have the luxury of time. What you're not getting here is that she's Hound's daughter. How would you feel if I was shagging Lauren?"
"I'd fucking kill you!"
"I rest my case, it's no different. It ends tonight, am I making myself clear?"
"This is bullshit Duke and you know it!" I ran my fingers through my short hair agitated.
"Am I making myself clear Woods? I don't wanna be telling you again." Duke's harsh tone filled the room as he stepped closer to make sure I understood what he was saying, and the implications that were involved.
I turned and stalked out of his office, slamming the door behind me. Deep down I knew it would come to this but it didn't stop it fucking annoying me now that it had. I was hoping that now Duke had found love himself he would understand or maybe even turn a blind eye but I was obviously mistaken.
"Is everything okay Woods?"
I glanced towards the bar as I stomped through the clubhouse to see Diesel and Hound staring at me.
"Just fucking marvellous!"
Chapter 9
Hound
The Bird Cage had open auditions today for strippers and it was usually a good crack to see people from all walks of life giving it a go, that when Diesel called and asked if I wanted to join him and Spike at the club I jumped at the chance.
We walked towards our usual table to hear Duke talking heatedly on his mobile and by the look of things, he was hitting the bottle hard.
“She still not taking your calls?” Diesel asked referring to the one sided conversation we just heard.
Taylor and Duke had been shot at on Saturday evening resulting in them coming off Duke's motorcycle. Taylor was a great woman, she was perfect for Duke in every way but I wasn't sure if she was cut out for this kind of life. Since the incident she had ignored his calls and that's why he was sitting here alone drowning his sorrows. He wanted her as much as she wanted him but the two just needed to listen to their hearts rather than their heads and stop analysing every goddamn thing.
Duke shook his head obviously not wanting to talk about it, “What are you doing here anyway?” he asked looking between the three of us.
“We thought you may need some moral support.” Spike stated as he pulled an uneasy expression while looking up at the first auditionee trying to make her way up the pole.
“Fucking hell, it wants to get better than this otherwise it’s gonna be a long evening.” I said as we all burst out laughing as the overweight auditionee fell off the pole.
“Priceless!”
"Sorry
to bother you Hound but is it possible to have a quick word?"
I glanced in the direction of Natasha, wiping the tears from my eyes as I laughed hard watching the young girl pick herself up from the stage, and run towards the back of the club clearly embarrassed.
I followed Natasha to the bar so we were out of earshot of everyone, "Paige hasn't turned up for work again today. It's been two days in a row now and she hasn't even bothered to call in sick, she just hasn't turned up. To be honest it's turning into a regular occurrence and after her little performance with Coco on Friday, I thought you should know."
"What went on with Coco on Friday?" I wasn't aware of anything happening but her facial expression had now piqued my interest.
"Well erm..."
"Natasha I'm not gonna blame you babe, I just need to know what I'm dealing with."
"Well Paige erm created quite a scene on stage, pleasuring herself before later attacking Coco with a broken bottle." Natasha nervously told me, not wanting to be the brunt of my mounting anger.
"So how comes I haven't heard about it? If she's masturbating on stage and attacking people shouldn't you have called Diesel?" Natasha knew the protocol, if there was a problem regarding the club, Diesel was the first port of call, then Bear and finally Justice.
"I was going to but Justice was here when it all kicked off and said that he'd deal with it."
"Justice?" Natasha nodded her head. "Do you think she's using?"
She shrugged, "I don't know for sure Hound but I wouldn't be surprised. Sorry to give you the bad news but I wanted to talk to you first before raising it with Diesel."
"And how's Coco doing?" She was a good looking girl, I only hoped that Paige hadn't disfigured her.
"She has superficial wounds but Justice managed to smooth everything over, I think he's taking her out on a date as compensation."
I sniggered, "I'll have to thank him for that. Look I appreciate you telling me first Natasha but I'll deal with it from here."
Paige and Chloe Page 10
