by Simone Elise
“I told you.” She swung around with a bottle of vodka; that explained the searching. “He called me trash.”
I arched my eyebrows, not believing her. “Don’t lie, Kim.”
She threw me an annoyed look before popping the cap of the bottle off. “I may have run into someone from the past.”
“And?”
“And it didn’t end well,” she snapped before taking a healthy drink from the bottle.
I put my hand out for the bottle, and she handed it to me when she was finished. “Don’t we have cups?”
“It’s Aunty Amanda’s place, Abby, of course she has cups,” she scoffed at me. “But the bottle seems more…” She frowned.
“Normal?” I smirked at her with an understanding of what she meant. “So come on, tell me the real reason Trent called it quits.”
She sank down into a chair across from me and leaned her elbows on the table. “Ever wished you could take back something you had done?”
God, did I know that feeling. I nodded my head, “Yep.”
“You know how Dad came down and shit went down with Reaper?” She started to open up.
Though I wasn’t expecting this conversation to go in the direction of Reaper or Dad, again I nodded my head. “Yep. Reaper threw his patch in or something.”
“Yeah, well. When news got out about Dad not having a vice anymore, an unexpected visitor showed up at my front door.”
“Who?” A frown appeared on my face as I thought hard of who would appear or have the guts to show up here while Dad was on holiday.
Surely they would wait until he got back to the club before trying to get the vice patch.
“Trigger.” Kim’s eyes flashed with disgust. “After all these years, he just appeared!”
“On your doorstep,” I muttered. I knew that feeling; I had felt that feeling.
“Yeah.” Acid lingered in her tone and she reached for the bottle. “No hello. Or how are you doing? Or how’s the kid? No, just is your old man here?” She was quick to take a mouthful of vodka. “He didn’t even say hi.”
I opened my mouth to say something but not knowing what to say, I just closed it again.
“The most twisted part of it was that Dad welcomed him with open arms.” Kim shook her head with a hurt expression. “Just like that, everything was forgotten.”
“So Dad took him back?” I couldn’t believe that Dad would do it, especially considering I thought Trigger had been killed. I thought Dad was sure to have killed him by now.
“Did more than that.” With bitterness in her voice, she added, “Even invited him to stay here for the rest of Dad’s trip.”
“He moved in here?” My mouth hung open. “You’re kidding.”
She shook her head, “Nope. He stayed in your old room. Dad managed to round up a bed for him.”
Suddenly I had one more reason not to want to move back into that room. “How long did he stay here for?”
“A week, but it was long enough to do damage.”
My mind started to click over the facts and the more I put together, the more I understood Kim and Trent’s break up.
“Please tell me you didn’t sleep with him?”
Her lips turned into a sad smile. “I nearly did. I still can’t explain why I even thought about it. It was as if he pulled me back, you know? Like everything that had happened, hadn’t. I can’t explain it.” She dropped her head into her hands and sighed. “It’s like when I’m around him, I lose all sense of control, all sense of thinking. All this time I thought I had grown up, but just a few hours with that man and I’m back to making the same mistakes.”
The similarities between her relationship with Trigger and mine with Reaper’s wasn’t lost on me. I guess it is true what they say about twins; we are similar. Even when it comes to our men, we both seem to fall for the wrong type of guy.
“So Trent dumped you after you told him the truth?” I asked, and her head snapped up.
“No. Trent dumped me when he caught me kissing the stupid prick.” Rage filled her eyes. “It was a split-second mistake, and of course Trent walked in at the right time to witness it.”
“Well, that explains the trash comment.”
She sighed and nodded her head. “He said a few other good ones, too.”
“So what happened with Trigger?”
“I told him to leave.” A mournful tone spread into her words. “So he did. He told me he was sorry for screwing up my fresh chance.” Tears began to fill her eyes. “And now look at me. I’m failing university. My friends, who all sided with Trent, won’t have anything to do with me, and now I’m crying over a man that couldn’t care less about me.”
I reached out, placing my hand over hers. “Don’t be so hard on yourself. Trigger has always cared about you. He wouldn’t have come here if he hadn’t.” Was I stupid to encourage their relationship? I really didn’t know. All I knew was I didn’t like seeing the pain of a broken heart in Kim’s eyes.
“He hasn’t even called me.” She wiped her tears away. “Not once.”
“I’m sure Dad is keeping him busy.”
“I’m sure the club whores are keeping him busy.”
I bit my lip, knowing that it could be a possibility. Trigger loved his women, though Kim always seemed like his favorite.
“So what do you want to do?” I gave in. “Do you want to go back home?”
Her face was void of expression, giving me no insight into what she was thinking. Finally, she said, “I just want to get drunk, and then tomorrow I want to start a life without him in it.”
All this time she had been living a life without him, but it still felt to her that he was there. I wanted to slap myself for doing the same bloody thing.
I had always thought in the back of my head that Reaper and I would end up together. That I would be able to trust him again, and he would get over his pride and want me as his.
“Sounds like a good idea,” I agreed. She had to get over Trigger, and I had to get over Reaper.
I couldn’t keep letting myself be dragged back to him. All it took was one look at him, and I was his to do with whatever he wanted.
It was time I stopped being so self-destructive.
Kim reached behind her and picked up another bottle of vodka. Handing it to me, she said, “Well then sis, let’s drown our sorrows.”
***
“This shouldn’t be how it is, ya know!” Kim pointed her empty bottle at me “We are the Harrison sisters. Men should be falling down in front of us.”
I laughed at her while shaking my head at her ridiculous claim. The alcohol had loosened my lips, which meant I had spilled everything about Reaper, right down to what happened earlier.
“You know what we should do.” Kim jumped off the table, which she had been parading on. “We should get them back.”
My laughter dried up immediately. “You’re kidding, right? What happened to let’s better ourselves and move on from them?”
“Screw that.” Kim shook her head, “Trigger is the best lay I’ve ever had.”
“Way too much information.” I scrunched my nose up, shaking my head.
“So you don’t want Reaper back?” she challenged me.
“He isn’t good for me.” Even with a blurry mind caused by alcohol, I knew that. “And he doesn’t want me. He joined the Vikings, remember?”
“Please, once you have him wrapped around your finger, he’ll ditch them.”
“I don’t think it is as easy as that.”
“Well, he left Dad’s club, didn’t he?”
“Because of me.”
“Because of Drake.” She was quick to correct me. “I think it is time we started doing what we do best.”
“What you do best. I was never into skank.”
“But you seem to have been doing it so well.” She smirked at me, crossing her arms. “So what do you say? At the very least, we have to show them what they are missing.”
“You sure you don’t want Tren
t back?”
She stopped pacing the room and looked to be really thinking on the subject. Trent was good for her; I see that now. “He doesn’t get my heart pumping.” She finally looked up and met my eyes. “I want a man that challenges me and gets my heart racing with just a touch.”
“So no more university?” Here I was thinking I was going to head back.
“Nope,” A grin spread across her lips. “I have a much better idea for our future.”
“What, flirting our way to the top?” I scoffed.
She shrugged her shoulders. “I was thinking more along the lines of joining the family business.”
“You’re joking.”
“We’re good at stealing, lying, and making money. Time to face the facts; we are cut from the same cloth as our dad. So it’s about time we stop trying to go straight and start embracing our inner offender.”
“I’m not liking where this is going.” I really didn’t like where this was heading.
“Come on, get up. We’ve got shit to do.”
“It’s nearly two in the morning!” I pointed out to her as she pulled me up off my chair. “And where the hell are we going?”
“Getting you out of working with Jenkins.” She swiped the car keys from the hook, which I then took off her.
“You aren’t driving.”
“Such a downer.”
“One of us has to have some sense.”
“Can’t we do this in the morning?”
“It is morning.”
I groaned, stepping out into the cold night air. “This is one stupid idea.”
“Well, you’re the one who did the stupid thing and started working for the scum.”
“I don’t see why this can’t wait until I’ve slept off this…” I lost my words trying to recall what I was thinking. “You know what I mean.” I clicked my fingers at her.
She shook her head at me but kept walking, which told me there was no way I was getting out of this.
Chapter 23
Abby
Parts of the night were a blur, but some memories were crystal clear. Kim’s plan of getting me out of work with Jenkins involved screaming up and down his street and banging on random doors.
Which led to us being chased by a grumpy old man with a baseball bat, and it ended with Kim and me hiding in a rose bush.
There were a few things that I had never experienced and some I had neither intended nor wanted. Passing out with rose thorns stuck to my legs because my drunk sister thought it was a great idea to hide in a bush of roses was one of them.
I cringed, pulling out the last thorn.
The morning really wasn’t getting any better.
“Where am I?” Kim groaned while holding her head.
“My place.”
“What, you live here?” She eyed the plain room with disgust. “Gee Abby, talk about keeping it to a minimum.”
“It’s my room.” So what if I didn’t feel a need to fill it with junk?
I watched as Kim’s eyes widened. “So Drake and Reaper live here too, yeah?”
Why did I suddenly get a bad feeling? “Yes.”
Her lips twitched with mischief. “I have an idea.”
“An idea I’m sure I am not going to like.” I didn’t even need to hear it before determining that. By the glint in her eyes, I knew I wasn’t going to get out of it.
Kim
I heard them in the kitchen. Glancing up at Abby, I gave her a thumb’s up. Her doubtful eyes looked back down at me. She didn’t think this was going to work. She really could be negative.
Pulling back my shoulders, I strode into the kitchen with attitude and if there was one thing my twin sister had, a lot of it was the attitude. Reaper leaned against the fridge, beer in hand already. Did it even occur to him to hold out until midday? Drake sat at the table eating breakfast.
“Can you move?” I looked up at Reaper with a challenging look on my face.
He swallowed. “Your hair is different.”
“So?”
“So why?” Drake’s eyes flashed with interest.
“Blondes have more fun. Don’t really see the big deal,” I snapped at both of them. “Now move, would you?”
God, they are like Abby’s guard dogs. How did she put up with the two of them snapping at her heels all the time?
Reaper sidestepped out of the way, giving me access to the fridge. He was still as ignorant as I remembered. God, Abby and I knew how to pick them.
I popped the lid off the fresh bottle of orange juice. It was time to have some fun. I just needed one of them to bite again. Running my hand through my hair, I flicked it to the side.
“Blonde again? Thought you were trying to harden your image.” Reaper picked up the bait, and the emotions flashing across his eyes told me that the blonde hair was really bugging him.
“Can you keep a secret, Viking?”
“That’s a new one,” Drake muttered.
Reaper and I both ignored him.
“You know I can, otherwise we would both have died young,” Reaper hit back.
I took a step closer to him, meeting his harsh eyes. “I have this, um friend, and he, well, he has a thing for blondes.”
He swallowed sharply. “Who might that be?”
“Oh fuck me, you two are flirting again,” Drake groaned from the table.
Time to kick in the acting skills. I flashed a confused look and turned to look at Drake. “Us flirting? Are you joking? I’m simply telling the Viking that I’m heading home this weekend and meeting up with an old friend.”
“You’re going home!” Drake rose instantly, outraged. “What the fuck for?”
“Trigger is back.”
Out of the corner of my eye, I watched Reaper crumple the can in his hand. “That scumbag is back?”
I nodded my head, turning back to look at him. “Yep. He’s Dad’s new VP.”
“You’re fucking with me?” He didn’t believe me.
“Nope.”
“Thought you hated the scumbag?”
“I do.” Or at least I was sure Abby hated him. I only wished I hated him.
“So why go blonde for him?”
“I didn’t. I’m going blonde for Brad. You might remember him as Gitz.” I flashed a bright fake grin. Now I was sure my sister was going red with rage on that staircase listening to this. “Gitz and I sort of have history, and he just broke up with that chick from the valley. So yeah.”
“First time I’m hearing about this history.” Reaper glared at me. His eyes were on fire, it could and would scorch the devil.
“Dad’s throwing that annual club meet. Heaps of people are heading in.” I eyed his patch before looking him in the eye. “Even Vikings have a habit of turning up.”
If Reaper cared for Abby—really cared—he would be panicking. If he thought for one second that another biker was going to take what he thought was his, I’m sure he would do anything to stop it from happening.
“Anyway. I’ve got to head out. Picking Kim up, and we’re picking up supplies before we leave tomorrow.” I waved over my shoulder, feeling satisfied with the destruction I was leaving.
Abby wanted Reaper, and by his reaction, he wanted her, too. If only I were so confident about what Trigger wanted.
Chapter 24
Kim
Abby sucker-punched my arm. “BRAD! Are you crazy!” Her face was red with rage. “I knew I would regret agreeing to your stupid plan.”
“Would you shut up before someone hears you?” I smiled evilly at her. “Reaper has a thing for blondes.”
“Pity I’ve still got black hair,” she snapped back, stuffing her clothes into a gym bag. “I never agreed to go back home.”
“Oh come on, you and I both know you miss it.” I let out a long sigh and lay back on her bed. “You know he is going to turn up, don’t you?” I dropped my head to the side to see my angry sister.
She muttered something under her breath. I thought her enraged expression was amusing, but
the look of terror that captured her face when someone knocked on the bedroom door was even better.
“Coming.” I dragged myself up off the bed.
Abby shook her head and mouthed “no” at me.
“Hide in the wardrobe.” I hissed at her.
She gave me a deadpan look. “Don’t fucking think so.”
“You don’t have blonde hair, remember?”
“Well fuck it, we can come clean.”
“Abby, open up.” Reaper’s impatient voice roared on the other side of the door.
I arched an eyebrow at her, “You really want to face that?”
A smirk spread across my face as I watched her close the wardrobe door. She was sure to kill me after this.
“Fine, come in, Reaper.” This was sure to be interesting. However, it was obviously not going to be pleasurable because Abby would rather hide in a closet than face him.
Reaper’s sharp eyes sliced across the room, focusing on Abby’s packed bag for a moment before he looked at me. “So you’re really going then?”
“Just for the long weekend.”
A tormented expression captured his face. “What the fuck for, Abby?”
“Kim wanted me to.” That was the truth. I did want to go home to see Trigger. Convincing Abby to go just made sense. I didn’t want to face him alone, plus it would do her some good to get out of this shithole.
“So you’re really going?”
“No, Reaper, I’m just saying I’m going.” I rolled my eyes. God, he was frustrating; no wonder Abby wanted to hide in the wardrobe. “Why do you care anyway? You and I both know you only joined the Vikings to hurt me.”
I could see through all their crap, though I was sure Abby hadn’t made the connection between the two yet.
“Fuck, you’re self-centered.”
“Perhaps.” I took a step forward, holding eye contact with him. “So are you coming or not?”
“Why would I go back there?”
He wanted a reason, but I knew he already had one. “Because I’m going.” My lips twisted into a smile.
It was easier to be Abby than to be myself. God, their relationship was so simple.
