Reclaimed (Skulls Renegade MC Book 6)

by Elizabeth Knox

  I take the opportunity to touch up my makeup, adding on a light plum colored lip stain and then busy myself with doing Maria’s makeup and hair. I didn’t even ask her what she wanted, knowing she’d probably be dressed in some deep red, elegant thing. I pin her hair in this half up, half down type of style with a few pieces of hair falling by her ears. Grabbing the curling iron, I twirl them around the wand and release them, taking a good hard look at my masterpiece. Shit, if I wasn’t such a great bartender I’d make a great hair stylist or makeup girl.

  “Damn, you make me look HOT.”

  “You’re Mexican which means that you’re hot period.”

  “That’s not racist at all.”

  “Nope, it’s a compliment so get over yourself, culo.”

  Maria slaps me on the shoulder and laughs, “Oh how I love our banter. You can always keep up with me, Meech.”

  I walk a couple steps closer to the mirror and start curling my own hair, only turning around when I hear a gasp from Maria. “What is it. It can’t be that bad,” I grumble, not bothering to look behind me. I focus solely on my hair, and when he steps behind the mirror, I can’t say that I’m anything but shocked.

  “You’ve never looked this hot before. That new girlfriend of yours help you get some snazzy clothes?” I tease Slash, sticking my tongue out at him.

  He snickers, and out pops the girlfriend.

  “All he needed was a few pointers, and luckily I had pointed him in all the right directions. Armani does do him justice though, does it not?” Katya says, smiling as she ogles her man. Shit. I look at Kyle like that. I didn’t realize ‘til right now how much deep water I’m actually in.

  “You come to hide in here so Reed wouldn’t pop your ass?” I joke, letting the curls fall around my face. I pay close attention, making sure my hair is equal on both sides and then look up in the mirror. I guess my joke isn’t that funny. “I was only kidding.”

  “Sure you were,” Slash grumbles,

  I put the curling iron in the sink and whip around, placing my hands behind me on the stone. “Stop that shit right now. I was only kidding, when have you ever known me to be the super serious chick who doesn’t crack a joke to help tone down the tension. Shit, Slash. It was a damn joke. Stop being a little fuckin’ pussy.”

  “I may be a lot of things Meech, but I’m not a damn pussy”

  “Fine then! Start acting like it,” I hiss back at him, causing him to smile.

  “I missed you, kid.”

  “Stop acting like you’re some old man.”

  “You make me feel like I am. It’s just every time I’m around you, you just suck the energy outta me. You know how hard it is keeping up with your ass?”

  “Rather difficult. I’ve been told on occasion.”

  “She is a funny girl,” Katya says, acting as if I can’t hear her.

  “And the girl is right here…”

  “Why didn’t you tell me about this one? I like her.” Katya smacks him on the arm.

  “I’m only about twenty thousand.”

  As soon as I say it Slash shoots me a glare that could incinerate me to ash.

  Katya’s eyes go wide, and I’m really regretting making the for sale joke right now but the bitch laughs, and boy does she laugh hard.

  “Okay, I lied. Da. I really like this girl. You and I must be friends, yes?”

  That was a close one.

  Chapter 18

  One of the biggest mistakes that we make is assuming that other people think the way we think.

  Morgan Freeman

  Kyle

  “Did you see him walk in there?” Reed hisses, glaring out the window like a father would overlooking his daughter’s date. He’s really not happy that Slash is here, and while I understand why, it’s about time he cuts out his shit mood.

  “Yeah, Dad. Sure did. Stop being an overbearing ass,” I snap. Over the past week, I’m about up to my limit with Reed’s fucking attitude. Every time I think it may get a bit better, it only gets worse. I don’t know what’s more aggravating, expecting it to change, or watching, as it doesn’t. “You knew they were coming, and this isn’t about me or you. This is about Bellamy and Butch’s big day and you’re not going to fuck it up.”

  “I’m not going to fuck it up.” His tone is as icy as that dead heart of his. I’m sure of it.

  “Then stop acting like you have some evil plan up your sleeve.”

  “Jesus Christ, Kyle. I’ve told you a million times that I don’t have any shit planned. I just want to talk to them after the fucking wedding. I don’t plan on waving my fucking glock around and shooting up the joint. I’m allowed to be pissed. I am allowed to grieve the death of our father, even though he did shit things it doesn’t mean that I loved him any less. It doesn’t mean that I’m not angry he’s dead, that I’m not betrayed because my friend was the one who ended his life and then didn’t even tell me. Dmitri didn’t say anything, Kyle. He didn’t say a damn thing, and that betrayal of trust. That is what’s fucking with my head more than anything. He didn’t fucking tell me.”

  For the first time since I found out that our father was killed, I’m seeing the hurt and pain that Reed has been trying to cover up with his shitty attitude. He’s right – he does have a right to be upset. We both do. I wasn’t reading him right. He’s upset because Dmitri wasn’t honest with him. I just don’t understand why he had to keep that bottled up for so long.

  “I mean, fuck! We all knew that Dad’s life was going to catch up with him one day or another. It was always going to happen, it was just a matter of when and where. If it didn’t go down in the way that it did, I might not have been so damn upset. If we got a call from some random police officer states away, I wouldn’t have even blinked. It was because how close to home it is. It wasn’t a stranger who killed him. It was Dmitri. The same Dmitri who protected Elena her entire childhood. That Dmitri, the one I grew to trust and respect, until every bit of faith I had in him was shredded to pieces when the lab got back to us. Finding out that Dmitri…fuck.”

  Reed covers his hand over his face, and for the first time in years, I watch as my brother falls apart, crumbling to pieces in front of me. Reed hasn’t cried since Celine died, and that was hard enough on him. I know he loved her so much more than he loved our father, but this isn’t about him.

  It’s only about the trust that was broken.

  Trust means so much to us, especially in our lifestyle. If you don’t have trust, what do you have? Trust is the cause for so much hurt. If a Prez can’t trust their men, they become paranoid. I’ve seen it happen at other MC’s, especially when I wasn’t here, out avenging what happened to Dais’. I didn’t just crash in shitty motels, I slept in other clubhouses along the way and bared witness to a lot of shit. Some of it shocked me more than others.

  As much as I want to help Reed, I know that I can’t. This is something that he needs to work through on his own. I can’t help him, and no one else can, not even Elena.

  I look down at my brother, who’s now on the ground with his head against his knees, in the weakest state that I’ve ever seen him. “Pull yourself together. We’ve got a wedding in a couple hours” I don’t bother to look at him as I say it, instead turning and leaving him to be by himself.

  Fuck, I hope he gets his shit together.

  He can’t let anyone else see him like this. They’ll tear him apart. Especially someone in particular.

  Chapter 19

  We all have someone who hurt us so much, that it changed us forever.

  Ilovemylsi.com

  Michelle

  Bellamy and Butch ran off to have a pre-wedding rendezvous. I should’ve known it was something like that, but I was too focused on the impending shitstorm that was heading our way. Slash and Katya had arrived with Jenna and Dmitri who were chatting with Elena. I haven’t asked too many questions, but I think that’s really because I’m afraid of the answers I’ll get. I want to believe the best, but I know it’s better to be prepared a
nd expect the absolute worst.

  Surprisingly enough, everything was going off without a hitch. Down on the beach there were log benches out for people to sit on, with an emerald green pathway in the middle, cascading down to where the altar is. It’s made up of what looks to be the same type of wood that the log benches are, with deep green ferns, and small light purple flowers accenting it.

  The breeze from the previous day is still here, making me rub the sides of my arms. Bellamy didn’t want bridesmaids, and Butch didn’t argue with her about not wanting groomsmen. I found out just a few minutes ago that Slasher is actually going to walk her down the aisle. The smile she had on her face when she said it caused me to grin in return. Her relationship with Slash is definitely interesting, and through everything they went through together, I’d say that their bond is unbreakable.

  I walk down the aisle and take a seat on one of the log benches, holding my arms closely to myself while I try to warm out. Sixty-five isn’t so bad normally, but with this wind? Shoot! I snap my head around at the sound of laughter, seeing Rocky, Jase and Syd. They had Bellamy open for them on her first ever tour and now they’ve been co-headlining. Bellamy is leaving for her first ever solo tour in just a few days. I take another glance and furrow my brows. One of The Stones are missing.

  “If you’re lookin’ for Miles I think you know he would never show up here,” Syd tells me, and I nod. Everyone knows that Miles and Bellamy have a very rough relationship. “He’s not gonna spend any more time with her then necessary. I believe his words were ‘if I’m not getting paid, I’m not gonna be there.”

  “Damn, talk about a sour puss,” I comment, making him chuckle lowly.

  Kyle comes within my view, decked out in an all-black tux with a white dress shirt on. He takes a seat next to me and slides his arm around my waist, pulling me as close to him as possible. “You look gorgeous, babe.”

  “Thanks. You don’t look too shabby yourself, hot stuff.”

  “Keep complimenting me like that and you won’t be able to escape my evil clutches,” he murmurs, pressing his lips against my ear.

  I turn my face to the right and look up at him, staring into those eyes of his ever so deeply. “Have you ever thought to consider that those evil clutches of yours happen to be the place where I feel the most safe. I don’t want to escape.”

  He leans his other arm around me, caging me between him. He looks to the left, and to the right. “Okay. This is how it’s going to go down. I’m not gonna get beheaded for that gorgeous ass of yours and you know the prince will do it. We have to run away, now. Right now. You wouldn’t want me to die, would you?”

  “You aren’t going to get beheaded, you baboon. Whoever the princess loves shall be eternally safe from harm.”

  “You just said you loved me.” He smirks, moving his arm so I’m not caged between them any longer. He pulls me just a teeny bit closer, smiling at me like I’m the most precious thing in the world to him.

  Who knows. I might just be.

  “Stop over reacting, crap head. I’ve loved you since we were fifteen.”

  “Do you love me, or are you in love with me?” He asks, and it takes me a moment to think about that. I don’t think that I’ve ever not been in love with Kyle. Sure, I dated Max, and while that went to shitsville…it’s always possible to be in love with more than one person. People will say it isn’t, but it is. We’re human, and we all have our own faults. Part of those faults is our hearts, wanting to love.

  “I don’t think I ever fell out of love with you, Kyle Michaels.”

  “Ditto, Princess. You were my first love, and have always had a special place carved in this dead heart of mine.” He mutters just as the music starts to play. Before we know it, Butch is standing at the altar with what looks to be a preacher. Slash and Bellamy are standing at the end of the aisle and make their way with the melody until she reaches Butch.

  Watching Slash hand Bellamy off to Butch has got to be one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen in my entire life. Her best friend, handing her off to the love of her life, who just so happens to be his best friend as well. Unified from a torturous past, walking her to the happiest moments that are yet to come. It’s a vision, and I’m sure it’s a dream come true.

  Tears are shed, and they sure as hell aren’t from Elena. Butch is being a little bitch and sobbing through the whole thing. I can’t blame him, though. He’s staring into the eyes of the woman who he’ll spend the rest of his days with. Meanwhile, Rocky is behind us snickering because Butch is the one crying. Kyle and I are hearing all about how he plans on busting his balls for this shit, but I bet ya whenever Rocky decides to marry his girl, he’ll be doing the same damn thing.

  Kyle takes off his jacket the second I start to shiver and makes me put it on.

  I pull the warmth close against me and catch him smiling at me out of the corner of my eye. This is what love is. These moments, and I can’t feel more blessed than I do in this very moment.

  This is what I’ve been waiting for.

  Now I finally have it.

  Chapter 20

  Sometimes, I still wonder why things happened the way that they did.

  Anonymous

  Michelle

  After the ceremony, we had a bonfire on the beach set up with lovely catering. Bellamy and Butch opted for barbeque. I just wasn’t expecting Korean barbeque. I love spicy stuff though, so I’m happier than a pig in mud right now. Kyle kept his arm wrapped around my waist for half the night, and I’m forced to tear him from me.

  “You go talk about boy things with them. I wanna catch up with Jenna and Ksenia, plus I really like Katya. She’s a feisty bitch who can take a joke, now go skedaddle.” I wave my hands to shoo him away from my proximity but before he takes off, he plants an incredibly hot kiss on these lips of mine.

  His tongue traces over mine, sending electric volts through my entire body. I’m a goner, I grab his tie and pull him closer to me, not giving a fuck about whoever is watching this unfold before their eyes. He has a way of firing me up, and I really want him to keep the heat going. “Tonight,” I whisper into our kiss. He doesn’t react, or act like he’s even heard me.

  I pull away, staring at his lips while I speak, “Tonight. I want you inside me. It’s been too long, Kyle. Far too long.”

  “You sure?” He asks, eyes searching my own for an answer.

  I’ve never been more sure in my entire life. It’s not like we haven’t done this before and he’s acting like I’m a virgin. “Kyle. If I wasn’t, we wouldn’t be having this conversation right now. Come to my room tonight, after you’ve had your talk with the guys. Okay?”

  “Mhm,” he murmurs against my forehead, planting a soft kiss before he walks off to deal with the sea of shit he’s about to walk into. I don’t want to be anywhere near that discussion. Nope. Not me.

  I take my wedges off, chuck them somewhere in the sand and walk barefoot over to where the girls are. We’re all by one of the fires, meanwhile Bellamy and Butch are probably somewhere fucking again. Those two have always been like that, I’m dead sure that Butch corrupted our innocent little Bells.

  “You and Kyle, when the hell did that happen?” Jenna laughs, looking me up and down. I can barely make her out from how dark it is, but the fire helps illuminate us.

  “Oh, only in the last week. You leave and people start dating their friends exes it seems,” Daisy grumbles, shooting me a glare.

  “Holy shit. What in the world is wrong with you?” Jenna snaps her head around at Dais’. “Seriously. Are you going to be that petty cunt of an ex who is happy with a man and a baby and then goes draggin’ on your ex’s new girl? Michelle DATED Kyle before you. You don’t get to pull that cunt card Dais’. I’m takin’ it. You don’t even have a cunt card. I swear, woman…I don’t want to hit a momma but I sure as fuck will if you start speaking that dumb nonsense again.”

  “You know what,” I mumble, looking over to Dais. “I get that he hurt you in the most
horrible of ways, but you punished him enough for that and the guilt that he still has continues to do the job. Who you don’t get to punish is me. I never did anything to you, Dais. I was there the entire time, supporting you whenever you would allow me to. I’ve about had it with your shit. If you don’t want to see me be happy then it’s pretty plain and simple, just fuck off and stop being my friend.” I don’t bother sticking around for her response. Instead, I walk straight up the pathway and head towards the main cabin, only wanting to be in one place – my room.

  “She doesn’t mean it.”

  I turn around, half way to the house when I hear Seamus’ voice. “You can’t just make excuses for her behavior, Sea’. She’s acting like a kid and I’m pretty tired of it.”

  “It’s hard for her to see him happy. I’m sure you can understand why.”

  Yeah, because Kyle was the sole reason she went through so much misery and heart ache. I get that. I understand the whole abandonment thing. I am the queen of abandonment issues. If there was an Olympic sport for abandonment, I would have the gold fucking medal. Every person I have ever loved has abandoned me. My father. Max. I can go on and on, telling you the tales of my tragic love life. It’s pointless though. I refuse to allow the past to dictate my future and instead I’m just gonna roll with the punches and tell life to go suck a big fat one.

  “Sea’, just do us both a favor and don’t waste your breath. It’s no use talking to me about it, and you know that,” I tell him, turning around and heading back in the direction of the house.

  I increase my speed, wanting nothing more than to be in the shower and wiping this day away. While it was beautiful, bullshit was thick in the air. I take my time in the shower, lathering my hair with shampoo and scrubbing my body with the lavender body wash that was already in the bathroom.

  After, I watch a couple episodes of Younger on TV Land and change into the maroon lace teddy that I had bought just in case Kyle and I decided to go to funky town. Okay, so I had already planned to fuck him…I just wanted to make it so clear to him that he couldn’t get confused. Cause men like Kyle don’t always have brains. They look hot as hell, but shoot… are they as dumb as a rock sometimes.