by Lexie Davis
The majority of the club wanted Ryker. He got along with most of the guys and he tried to push them in a different direction than coke and extortion. He wanted something a little more legal. Something that made a little more money to fill their pockets.
Now seemed to be that time.
They hauled them out of the club, tied their hands, and put black sacks over their heads. The guys knew to meet him back in Georgia, where they planned to take care of business the right way, so they had a long journey ahead of them.
“Thanks for keeping things peaceful.” Ryker slapped Rizzo’s hand and patted his back.
“Yeah, anytime, brother. It’s about time you got the leadership of the club anyway.”
He nodded. His father was a leader by force. It served him well for a while, but the other charters were tired of putting up with his shit. He walked into other people’s turf thinking that he owned the damn place. The lack of respect didn’t go unnoticed.
“Take care.” Ryker shook the hand of the VP. “Let me know if you need anything.”
“Will do.”
Ryker got on his bike and started it up. While the other guys wanted to stop for a smoke break, he’d quit the habit along with the coke when he’d finally gotten sober. Ella had never complained, but he knew she didn’t like it. Hell, he didn’t like it. Not really. He rode on ahead, leading the van down the road, with the guys following in behind. It’d just turned nighttime and he had at least seven hours of road to travel.
Chapter Thirteen
Ella didn’t like the feeling she got when she saw Ryker. The talk she had with her father lingered in her mind and the nagging feeling she had about his elusive behavior suggested that something else was going on. Something she didn’t understand and probably something he wouldn’t willingly volunteer information about.
“Hey, beautiful.” He smiled at her as he shrugged his cut off. He wore a black hoodie with his jeans and black riding boots.
She sat on the sofa, staring at him. “Where have you been?”
“Taking care of some business out of town.” He pulled the hoodie off. “I really need a hot shower and then I’m all yours.”
Ella licked her lips. How did she approach the conversation she wanted to have? “What kind of business?”
He glanced over at her. “Club business.”
She stared at him. “Illegal club business?”
He glanced toward the coffee table and saw the arrest file she’d had her father pull for her. His record was longer than she’d thought. Her father had also thrown in some case notes for some of the other members. Some of the stuff was pretty bad.
“Where did you get that?”
“My father.”
He rolled his eyes. “Let me guess, he’s trying to get you to see how terrible I am for you?”
“No, I asked him for it.” Ella shook her head. “I stupidly thought all you did was drugs. I thought that was what made you so bad.” She swallowed. “I didn’t realize that you regularly beat men to death with your bare hands. Or that you don’t even fucking blink an eye at someone shooting someone that is an enemy of yours.”
He propped his hands on his hips. He didn’t say anything and it pissed her off more. How could he expect her to trust him?
“I guess it’s a good thing I slept with you. Spared my life from your father’s sadistic ways.” She shook her head. “I don’t know what I was thinking. My mom is scared to death you’re going to beat the shit out of me and after everything that I read, how can I reassure her that you won’t?”
He walked over to the chair next to the couch and sat down. “Is that really how you see me? By some fucking words on papers written by people that hate me? I’ve never done anything to you to even suggest that I would hurt you.”
“But I’d be stupid to think that you couldn’t. What the fuck are we doing, Ryker? You say you love me, but I don’t know what that means anymore. Spell it out for me.”
He rubbed a hand over his face. “I risked my life to save yours. I risked my club to save your father. I try my best to show you that I care about you. Fuck it, Ella. I’m wandering in the dark here. I want you. I’m willing to do whatever the hell it is that you want me to do because of it.”
“Yeah, but for how long?”
He blew out a breath. “I wasn’t aware that our relationship had a time limit.”
She played with the edge of the pillow next to her. “You’re going to grow bored. You spent your entire adult life fucking anything willing and now you only want to be with me? I’m not convinced. How long will it be before you’re wanting someone new?”
He shifted in his seat, leaning forward so his elbows rested on his thighs. “You’re insecure about me being around other women?”
Insecure? Maybe. A little. She was more worried about him reverting to his old ways despite him saying how much he wanted her and loved her. They came from two different worlds. She wasn’t sure they really could mesh well either.
“Okay.” He sat back in the chair. “Fair enough. What can I do to convince you that you’re the only woman I want?”
She shook her head. “I don’t know if you can.” Tears filled her eyes. “You can’t exactly change your behavior overnight. You’re going to miss the excitement. The thrill of fucking someone new.”
He got up and moved to the couch. “What the hell is this about, Ella? What bullshit did your father put in your head?”
She pulled away from him. “Don’t blame him. You can’t even be in the same room with him for a civilized dinner. How did you really see us happening? I would give up my relationship with my father for you? That if we’re together, you’d never have to see him? God, I can only imagine the holidays. You’re going to force me to pick and choose and I’m not doing it.”
He rubbed his temples. “So I don’t want you because I want to fuck all the pussy I can get, and we can’t be together because I don’t want to be around your father? Have I got that right?”
“Don’t mock me.”
“I’m not.” He stared into her eyes. “This bullshit is coming from nowhere. I’ve been gone for one day and you’re calling it quits. Surprisingly after you spend the fucking night at your parents’ house.”
“You won’t tell me where you went or what you’re doing. It’s not coming from nowhere.”
“You think I went out of town to cheat on you?”
“I don’t know what you did.”
“I didn’t have sex once.” He scoffed, shaking his head. “I didn’t even masturbate.”
She stood. Their conversation was going nowhere. She didn’t know what he’d done out of town, but he wasn’t giving her any information about it. God, how did women live like that? She couldn’t imagine letting him do whatever the hell he wanted with other women and not being upset about it. She deserved better than that.
“I’m going to my parents.” She’d already packed a bag for the night. “I’ve got to sort out what I want to do.”
“What is the worst thing I could ever do, Ella? The deal breaker for our relationship?”
“Lying.” She said it without even thinking about it.
“And you think I’m lying to you right now?”
“You’re omitting the truth.” She reached for her bag. “It’s the same thing.”
He ran his fingers through his hair. “Let me ask you something. Don’t the laws prevent you from discussing patient procedures with me? Isn’t there some kind of ethical conduct you have to abide by?”
She stopped, staring at him. “What is your point?”
“I’m not questioning you about your job. I’m not worried about you fucking some patient or not getting along with my dad. What’s the fucking difference?”
“My job is legal and yours is not.” She opened the door and walked outside. He was part of the club, grew up in it. If he wanted to, he could give in to his former temptations and where would she be?
She went to her car and got in. Distance would help cl
ear her mind. Maybe she needed to cut her losses before she ended up dead too.
****
Ryker spent the entire day waiting for Ella to come back. When she didn’t, he decided to go out and find her. The cop’s house was in the suburbs of Atlanta. It was a place where he stood out like a sore thumb. He rode his bike to her old neighborhood, noticing immediately that the neighbors stared at him as he drove by. The cop’s house was at the end of the block and he pulled in the drive. Ella’s little white car was there and he couldn’t stop the thrill from bubbling up inside him. He wanted to see her. He wanted to make everything right again.
He got off his bike and went to the door. After pressing the doorbell, he waited. He hadn’t been at the house in years. And the last time he was there, he’d been carried out in handcuffs.
The door opened and Ella’s father stood on the other side. Ryker half expected the bastard to make him explain why he was there, but instead he moved out of the way and invited Ryker inside.
“Ella, you’ve got company.”
Ella came around the corner, smiling. Icing covered her fingers, and a little green blob marked her cheek. “What?” When her eyes met his, the smile drifted a little. “What are you doing here?”
He shoved his hands into his pockets. “I missed you.”
She licked the icing off her fingers. “We were making cupcakes. I lost track of time.”
Ryker smiled at her. Her hair was pulled up, with a few tendrils falling into her face. She looked like she’d had a rough day.
“Do you want to try one?” Ella wiped her hands on her apron. “We tried a new recipe. You can be our guinea pig.”
“Yeah. Sure.” He followed her into the kitchen.
Her mother glanced up from icing one of the cupcakes. “Ryker. We weren’t expecting you.”
Ryker watched as Ella took a cupcake from the cooling rack. “Sorry to barge in.”
Ella handed him the plate with the pink-iced cupcake. “You’re fine. Try it and tell me if it’s horrible.”
He stared at the cupcake. He was fairly sure there was more icing on her than the food. He dipped his finger in it and licked it off. The sweet flavor made him smile. He lifted the treat and took a bite. It wasn’t horrible, so he nodded in approval.
“You like it?” Ella smiled.
“Yeah.” He took another bite. “Are you taking up baking now?”
“I’ve always baked.” Ella leaned against the kitchen island. “I just never have time or the groceries anymore.”
“Did you work at the clinic today?”
“ER.” She glanced over at the clock. “I pulled a twelve-hour shift. I’m really tired, but I wanted something sweet to eat.”
“You work too much,” her mother commented. “Margie said that her brother went to ER two nights ago. He saw you saving some man’s life in the trauma section.”
“Yeah?” She propped her chin on her hand. “I didn’t know he knew me.”
“I think it was your last name.” Her mother set the cupcakes she’d been working on aside. “He worked at the police station for a while with your dad.”
Ella shrugged and turned to Ryker. “Are you hungry? Mom fixed some beef stroganoff.”
“Uh, sure.” Ryker glanced over at her mother. “If that’s okay.”
Her mother gave him a tight smile. “Why wouldn’t it be okay?”
Ella ignored her and grabbed a plate. The food was on the stove and she dished him out a plateful with two bread rolls. She carried it into the dining room and set it at the table.
“I’ll get you something to drink.”
Ryker reached out and caught her hand before she could move away. Instead of saying anything, he leaned in to kiss her. His Ella. Everything felt right again when he had her in his arms.
“Are you planning on staying here tonight, Ella?” her father asked.
She jerked away from Ryker and turned. “I don’t think so. I need to do laundry. I’m running out of clean scrubs.”
He eyed Ryker. “You can wash the ones you wore today, here. You don’t have to go.”
“I don’t know. I’ll think about it.” She left Ryker with her father in the dining room.
For the first time of him ever getting close enough to a woman to meet her parents, he just had to choose a woman with a cop for a father. Ryker stood there, hands in his pockets, trying to figure out how to make that work. It was a rule of thumb that absolutely no cops were involved with the club. Not that Ella was really involved or, worse, her father. But the idea of having a cop in the family made other members twitchy with distrust.
“I know she left you to come here.”
Ryker took a deep breath. “Yeah. I’m sure it had nothing to do with what you told her either.”
“What I told her was the truth.”
Ryker snorted. “According to whom?”
“According to anyone with morals.” Her father turned so that he faced Ryker more. “You may think that it’s okay to play on the wrong side of the law, but you’re not going to drag my daughter down with you. She is a good person inside and out. She’s doesn’t belong in your gang.”
Ryker glanced toward the kitchen. “You think I don’t know that?”
“Then why drag her into your life?” He tilted his head. “Does she know about Razor going missing?”
Over the years, Ryker had learned to keep his expression neutral. It served him well when cops were around. “Why would she need to know that?”
“Because you killed him.”
Ryker met his gaze. “You have no proof of that.”
“Maybe not, but I know how things work. Razor was an evil bastard but he offended you. You wanted his title and you took the crown.” The disgust on his face didn’t surprise Ryker. “What kind of person are you?”
Ryker didn’t say anything. Ella came back to the dining room with a glass of tea in her hand and set it next to the plate she’d made for him.
“Are you two getting along?” she asked.
“We haven’t killed each other yet.” Ryker gave her a tight smile and pulled out the chair to sit.
She glanced between them. “I thought you had a truce.”
“I haven’t said a word.” He lifted the fork on his plate. “He’s the one bringing up bullshit.”
“I’m going to protect my daughter. If she can’t see the evil in you, then she needs me to.”
“Yeah? I wasn’t aware that you had any say over who keeps her warm at night. It’s a bit sick and twisted of you to even want that much control over her.”
“Stop it.” Ella pressed her hand against Ryker’s chest.
“My daughter deserves better than a criminal.”
“Pat, stop it.” Ella’s mother came out of the kitchen and stood by her husband.
“If I’m a criminal, arrest me.” Ryker arched an eyebrow. “Go ahead. I’ll go willingly.”
“You think you’re sly, don’t you?” Her father gripped the chair in front of him. “Ella, why don’t you ask him where he was last night.”
Ryker sat back. So the fucking police were watching him. Or maybe her father was grasping at straws to make him admit to some conspiracy theory he’d drummed up in his head.
“I’ve already asked him,” Ella commented.
“And what did he say?”
Ryker clenched his fists.
“He said he was doing club business.”
“Do you know what that means?” Her father finally took his attention off Ryker. “It means that he went to New Orleans to find his father and then he killed him.”
The room fell silent. Ella’s hand was still on his chest and he leaned forward to kiss her arm. He was far from being a good man, but it never seemed to bother Ella. He could simply be himself around her and she loved him for it.
“Did you kill Razor?” Ella asked him.
Their conversation about him lying to her floated through his mind. If he lied to her, then he lost Ella for good. So Ryker didn’t say an
ything. Her father didn’t want her with him and he’d do whatever he could to stop them from being together. If telling her that he’d cheat on her didn’t do the trick, why wouldn’t he disclose how Ryker murdered people? He should have seen that truce bullshit as a trap from the beginning.
But he hadn’t. He wanted to be civil with him for Ella’s sake. He didn’t want her to feel like she had to choose.
“I need to go.” Ryker stood from his seat and stared at Ella. “Maybe you should stay here for the night.”
“Why?”
Ryker caressed her face, brushing his thumb along her chin. “Because I’m not going to make you choose between us. He can tell you about how many women he thinks I’ve slept with and how I’ll cheat on you because that’s who I am. He can tell you how he thinks I’m a criminal and did heinous crimes without any proof to back it up, just to get you to hate me. He can tell you whatever the hell he wants about me. I’m not playing that game. You know who I am and if you’re that easily swayed, then you need to stay here for the night.”
“Don’t manipulate her.”
Ryker clenched his jaw. “I’m not the one manipulating her.”
“Please stop.” Ella fisted Ryker’s shirt in her hand. “I’m not a hapless female. I can make my own decisions.” She looked at Ryker. “You and I still have a lot we need to talk about.” She glanced over at her father. “And you… You don’t get to make decisions for me. I asked you for information and you gave me what I wanted. You don’t get to tell me how I feel about someone based on your own feelings for them.”
She shook her head. “I love you both.”
Ryker pulled her to him, kissing her temple. “I love you too, Ella. More than you could ever know.”
Stepping away from her, he went to the door. He thought about saying something polite to her mother, but getting out of that house seemed more important. He left, heading down the sidewalk to his bike. Tonight proved to him that they came from different worlds. Ella would always be better than him and he would always be a glutton for punishment with her.
