by Vivian Gray
“Well, that’s between her and Jude. I’m not stepping into that mess, and neither are you.” I touched my fingertip to the tip of her nose.
A soft blush blossomed over her cheeks, and I couldn’t help smiling at her. Even after all of the things she had done with me, she still had that fresh sense of innocence.
“I wasn’t getting involved. You’re the one asking all the questions.” She tapped her finger on my nose and laughed.
“You might be getting a little too big for your britches,” I said with a chuckle.
She merely batted her eyes at me and turned to walk down the hall. She looked over her shoulder back at me and blew me a kiss. “I’m done in one hour. I’ll see you back home, okay?”
When did we become an ordinary couple? It wouldn’t surprise me if she asked me to pick up some milk on the way home. I liked it.
Almost too much.
“Straight home,” I called out to her.
She got a few stares from the nurses and family members walking down the hall, but it only made me laugh harder when her blush deepened. She waved me off and disappeared into a patient’s room.
She should be home in an hour. That gave me enough time to stop by the clubhouse and check in on things before heading home. Joker hadn’t given me another run since Jack had dropped by. I was starting to wonder if he suspected anything about Jack. Because them being family friends had obviously been a lie.
I still haven’t figured out what to do about the club. Joker had got himself in too deep for anyone to help him. And he was stealing from the club, which meant he deserved no loyalty from the members. But I promised Jack I wouldn’t get involved. I wouldn’t out him. So, what the hell was I supposed to do?
If I went against Jack, there was a good chance he would come after the club. Small-time criminals or not, if I blew his case with Joker, and whatever cartel he was dealing with, Jack would come after us. He would have to save his skin with the DEA. But if I did nothing, I was going against my club. Knowing that our activities were being watched and not saying anything… that was dangerous territory. That could be seen as helping the police, and that wasn’t tolerable.
I left the hospital and walked straight to my bike. I was going to see what was going on at the clubhouse before I made any other decisions. Jude would be there too. He wanted to do some work on his bike, so he would probably be in the bike shop. I would stop there first. At the very least, I needed to get his opinion on what to do.
There wasn’t anyone in the club I trusted more than Jude.
Chapter Nineteen
Shannon
My feet ached. My back was sore. And I really wanted to devour a tub of chocolate chip ice cream. And since Noah would be at the clubhouse all afternoon, I could indulge without having to hear him run his mouth off about how too much sugar and dairy wasn’t good for me.
It amazed me how much that man knew about pregnancy. I hadn’t bothered to pick up one book since I’d moved in with him. He was like a walking ‘what to expect when you’re expecting’ encyclopedia.
I pulled into the driveway with the ice cream softening in the seat beside me. A bike was parked in our driveway. But it wasn’t Noah’s. I got out of the car slowly, looking around. I didn’t see anyone. I didn’t recognize the bike. Not that I would; I’d only ever seen Jude’s and Jack’s. Maybe Noah was inside with someone? Maybe he put his bike in the garage already?
After grabbing the ice cream and my keys, I headed up to the porch, only to find the front door already open. I stepped just inside the doorway and listened. I didn’t hear voices.
“Hello? Noah?” I put the ice cream and my purse on the end table and started to walk towards the hallway toward the bedrooms. “Noah? Are you here?”
“In the kitchen,” a gruff voice called out to me.
I stopped and stood still in the hallway. Frozen.
It wasn’t Noah’s voice.
With quiet steps, I made my way to the kitchen and eased my way around the corner. Joker leaned against the kitchen sink with a beer bottle in his hand.
“Joker.” I tried to force a smile on my lips, but everything inside of my body was telling me I needed to get out of the house. I should get back in my car and drive away. Fast and far and not ask questions.
“Where is he?” Joker asked.
It was then that I noticed his gun sitting on the counter beside him.
“Who? Noah? Isn’t he at the clubhouse?” I asked, taking a step back towards the doorway.
He must’ve seen my intention in my face because he picked up his gun and pointed it at me.
“Don’t go anywhere, honey. You just sit down right there.” He aimed and pointed the gun at the kitchen table, signaling where I should sit.
My heart was racing; I could hear it pounding in my ears. What the hell did he want with me? And why was he looking for Noah?
“Did you try calling him?” I asked.
Noah wasn’t hard to get a hold of. If you just called him, he usually answered. He never did tell me what happened with Jack. He only told me that Jack wasn’t something to be worried about. He said he had it all worked out.
I pulled out a chair and eased down into it. The pain in my feet was no longer my greatest concern. I felt my phone nestled in the side pocket of my scrub pants but didn’t reach for it right away. He would see.
“He ain’t answering my call, and he never showed this morning when I told him to. I need to know what he’s up to, and you’re going to tell me.” Joker stepped closer to the table, keeping his gun pointed at me.
“How would I know?” I asked, with as much feigned fear as I could muster. I was scared, that wasn’t completely fake, but I needed him to think I was just as empty-headed as his woman appeared to be. “Noah does his own thing. I don’t know where he is most of the time,” I lied.
“Bullshit. Ever since your blonde-haired ass showed up, Noah’s been inching his way out of my club. You know the other night was the first time he’d shown up for a club party since he met you?”
I didn’t miss the sneer in his voice.
“I-I didn’t know that,” I answered honestly.
I worked the night shift more often than not, so there wasn’t any reason for Noah not to hang at the clubhouse. Unless he was staying clear because nothing there was interesting to him anymore like it had been in the past.
“When you left, Jack went with you. Came back here. I want to know what they talked about.” Joker stood at the foot of the table now, his fat, dirty finger resting just on the side of the trigger.
I swallowed. “I don’t know. I was in the bedroom.”
“Bullshit.” He jerked the gun toward me.
I covered my head and whimpered. No need to feign fear anymore. “I don’t. Noah made me stay in the bedroom while they talked. I couldn’t hear them.” I spoke fast, trying to make him believe me.
“What did Noah say when Jack left?”
“Nothing. He doesn’t talk to me about club stuff. He just said Jack was a friend from the Marines.” I looked up at him, lowering my arms. “I swear. I don’t know anything.”
He continued to stare at me for several long moments. I could see his pulse on the side of his neck. Even with the fall air making it chilly outside, a thin layer of sweat covered his neck.
“You know, back in the day, Noah used to share his women with me.” He sneered and licked his lips.
A cold shiver ran through me. Noah wouldn’t share anything with this man, and definitely not a woman. Some of the other guys in the club may have seen women as nothing more than a piece of meat to be enjoyed and passed around, but Noah was not one of them. He may have had plenty of women in his bed, but I knew, deep down, he had treated them with respect. Even if it was only for one night.
“Maybe I can have a taste.” Joker moved his free hand to his crotch and grabbed hold of his erection.
I tried not to look repulsed. I tried to figure out what the hell to do. Maybe I could outrun him? I w
as pregnant, but he looked twice as many months as I was with his big round belly. The keys to my car were by the door. If I could swipe them and get to my car, I might be able to get away.
Not taking any more time to decide, I darted out of the chair, heading for the front door. I heard him curse. I’d only gotten four steps before he was on me. He pulled my hair back, and I slammed to the ground.
A sharp pain spread through my head, and tears sprang to my eyes. I tried to claw at him, but he managed to get on top of me. He pointed the gun at my belly, at my baby.
“Don’t fucking move, bitch,” he said, and with his free hand, started to tug down my pants.
“Don’t. Please,” I said quietly.
If I fought him, he would shoot me. If I didn’t, he’d be inside me.
“If you aren’t any good to me with information, at least I’ll get to ride some of that sweet pussy you have.” Joker laughed.
My scrubs tore the harder he pulled, and I tried to wiggle away from him, but he pulled his hand back and smacked me across my face. Stars burst in front of me.
“You son of a bitch!” I heard a voice growl out, then a loud pop.
Blood splattered across my face, and the full weight of Joker fell on top of me.
I cried out, waving my arms and trying to push him off at the same time. Another grunt and he was thrown off of me.
Noah was there.
He knelt beside me. “Are you okay?” He looked me over, saw my tattered scrubs, and a darkness I’d never seen on him fell over his face.
“He didn’t. He was going to, but you stopped him,” I said, trying to sit up. He helped me and cradled me in his arms. I looked over at the huddled form. “Is he dead?”
“I doubt it. I shot him in the shoulder,” Noah said but didn’t leave me to go check.
“What the hell was that?” Another voice entered the room. “Fuck.” Jack cursed when he saw the mess in the living room.
“He was hurting her,” Noah said but didn’t look up. He didn’t look anywhere but me.
Jack pulled out a phone and started making calls.
Noah picked me up and carried me to the bathroom.
“Your face,” he said, once he had me stripped down and in the shower with him. “He hit you.”
There was a new anger brewing in his voice.
“Just once,” I told him, like that would alleviate his ire.
“Just once?” There was a blank look on his face, then a smile spread across his lips. “Once is too many, sweetheart.”
“I don’t even care.” I leaned into his chest. I didn’t, not really. I just wanted him to hold me, to wash away the memory and take away the fear.
He turned the water off and helped me get out of the shower, wiping me down with a towel.
“The cops are going to have questions,” I said.
I didn’t want to face them. I didn’t want to tell anyone what happened – how close I’d been to having that scum inside me, how much he’d hurt me with that backhand, how scared I’d been with the gun pointed at me.
“There’s not going to be any cops,” Noah assured me, walking me into the bedroom.
He sat me on the bed and went to the closet, pulling out a dress. He loved me in dresses these days, and whenever possible made me wear one. And he’d stuck with no underwear. I hadn’t worn a pair since the other night when he declared them banned.
“How?”
“Jack is the cops,” he replied simply.
“Oh,” I said, like I understood, but I was more confused. “What?”
He smiled at me and pulled the cotton dress over my head. “He’s a DEA officer. His men will be here to clean this up. Don’t worry. I’ll talk to them if you want.”
“You’re not going to get in trouble, are you?” I gripped his vest tight. I didn’t want to see him hauled off to prison. Not for me, not because of me.
“No, sweetheart.” He wrapped his hands around mine, and softly pulled them away. “It’s going to be fine. Everything is going to be just fine,” he promised.
I walked behind him back into the living room, and he’d been right; Jack was there with a huddle of other men. Joker was already gone.
“Is he dead?” I croaked out.
“No. Just a shoulder wound. He’ll be fine. And in custody,” Jack replied, with a glance at Noah. “Sooner than we wanted, but he was starting to suspect me. Meeting you at the clubhouse the other night tipped him off.” He shrugged. “It’s fine, we got some good stuff.”
“And the club?”
“The Death Angels are not a group of interest. For now.” But the look on Jack’s face hinted that they could be in the future. “If I were you, I’d find other means of employment. You were too damn good a Marine to be tied up with this bullshit.”
“Yeah, well, the world wasn’t really worth saving when I got home,” Noah said, but then looked down at me. “But that’s changed now.”
Jack looked at both of us and nodded. “I can see that. We’ll be out of here in just a few minutes. We can, of course, add sexual assault to his long list of charges, if Shannon would be able to give us a statement.”
“No,” I said quickly. “He didn’t, I mean, he tried, but Noah got here in time. I just want this over with.” I pressed myself against Noah’s side. He wrapped an arm around me.
Jack nodded. “If you’re sure.”
“She is.” Noah backed me up. He knew how to make things better, and a long, drawn-out statement wouldn’t be the way. I needed my man’s touch, his kisses.
“Okay, then.”
Noah stayed by my side as the crew finished up and left. They’d even cleaned the carpet. It was like nothing had happened.
Once they were gone, I walked into the kitchen and sat at the table.
“I can’t do this.” A tear fell down my cheek. “I can’t live worrying that you’re not going to come home one day, or that some rival gang will break in here and try to hurt me or the baby.”
Noah dragged the chair out beside mine and sat down, taking both of my hands. “I love you, Shannon,” he said, matter-of-factly.
“What?”
“I love you, and I know you love me, even if you try to hide it and only tell me when you think I’m sleeping.” A small smile tugged at his lips. “When I got home from deployment and saw my little sister torn up about giving up her baby, and saw how my parents had destroyed their marriage, and how everything around me was just falling to shit, I didn’t want to be on the good side anymore. I wanted to just be on my side – just out for me and what was best for me at that moment. I didn’t care that it meant losing my parents, or losing my sister, or any of that. I only cared about myself.”
I blinked a few times, trying to focus on his words.
“But you changed that. I want what’s good for you, what’s good for our baby, what’s good for our family. The club – it’s not my family. It never was. Maybe for some of the other guys it is – they are all wrapped up in the brotherhood. But there’s a reason I was a courier. I didn’t give a shit about the club politics. I just wanted a payday.”
“Okay, so what does that mean?” I asked, feeling his rough fingers caressing my palm.
“It means… I’m done with the Death Angels. With Joker being in custody, the VP will want to change shit anyway. I don’t want to be involved. I just want out. We’ll move closer to your grandma. Have this baby, get married and raise our family.”
“We can’t just pick up and move.”
“Sure we can. If you really want to work, you can get a job as a nurse anywhere. And I have enough cash stashed away that I can do whatever the fuck I want. And I want to marry you.”
“But… what if you get bored with the suburban life?”
“Never going to happen so long as I have you.”
“Really? So, soccer clubs, and carpools, that’s what you want?”
“I want you. I want this baby and everything that comes with it. If that means I have to deal with minivans
and play dates, fine. I can always ride into the city for some trouble on the weekends if I really need it.”
I looked at him with surprise. “What trouble?”
“The sort that has you riding on the back of my bike. There are some really kick ass clubs out by your grandma’s. Plenty of places to take my dirty girl and have my way with her.”
“Sex clubs?”
He laughed.
“Noah, you are nothing like I expected the first night I met you.”
