Billionaire Stepbrother - Secret Lives

by Du Bois, Madeline

  He finally turned around to face the scowls of the members as the last few stragglers came in and looked around, stunned at what they saw. They began to gather around the bar, looking for answers. Some of them went into the crowd to help. It was quite scary looking at the mess they had made. Broken glass and beer scattered the floor, tables and chairs were overturned, some broken. Even clothing had been taken off in random places. It made him think back to what he had told Cynthia about how he felt about the MC lately. He wanted his family back.

  “Hey Diesel, I’m sorry. I just really didn’t know what to do.” Bryant approached and slapped him on the back, but he wasn’t in a forgiving mood. He remained silent as both Barbie and Ax joined them, sitting at the bar. Neither of them had taken part. That didn’t mean they were loyal to Dante, but at least they weren’t out of control.

  “What happened, Diesel? I thought the meeting didn’t start until after noon. Did we miss something?” Barbie asked innocently. Like her name suggested, she was small and blonde as well as soft spoken. Dante had never been quite sure how she got involved with a motorcycle gang other than the fact that she thought guys on motorcycles were sexy.

  “You missed a fucking good party, Barbie, that’s what!” Liz’s grating voice drifted their way as she tried to give Barbie a lap dance but ended up just awkwardly bumping knees with her instead.

  “Really, Liz?” Ax scolded, making Dante feel pretty proud of him. Perhaps Ax was truly on his side even if no one else was.

  Trying to keep his temper in check, he ignored Liz and looked around to see that as much of the mess that could be cleaned up immediately was. Many of the partiers had sat down, waiting for what was next. At least they still respected his authority when he was in the room.

  “Now if we could get to the fucking business now, I’d appreciate it so that I can get on with my day,” Dante called out from the front. “At four o’clock this afternoon I will be meeting with a man who is in need of private security as we discussed a few days ago. He seems to have a fair contract, and I will need three of you to come with me to sign that contract and take the work. It will involve a little travel occasionally, as well as security for his home. We were supposed to meet here, but seeing as you assholes have made that impossible, I will call him and reschedule it for the pub across the street. I hope that this will open up more contracts in the future, so I expect anyone who volunteers to really do the work. The club’s income and standing depends on it.”

  He was sure to shoot daggers with his eyes around the room, and he tried to see if he could catch anyone giving off any signal that they might be part of the faction forming against him. It was hard to tell considering how many angry faces there were.

  He looked to Bryant for support, and his VP raised a glass in toast as a response. Whether Bryant agreed with him or not, he still seemed to be helpful, but how long would that last? Dante wasn’t sure. “To the fucking Devil’s Pirates MC, may we prosper!” Bryant yelled out to the crowd, causing them to cheer rather enthusiastically, more so than they had recently for Dante. Maybe he was very wrong about his VP. Only time would tell.

  He picked up the phone and immediately called the man who would be giving them the security contract to move the location to Wicker’s Pub. It wasn’t the best place, but at least it was on the same street, so it wouldn’t confuse the man. He’d have to be sure to get the repairs done on The Blue Pig first thing Monday morning. He was already losing his members, and he wasn’t about to lose their meeting place, too.

  Chapter 14

  Cynthia rolled out of bed at the crack of noon on Sunday, feeling refreshed and ready for a day of listening to music and lounging around in her pajamas. She started by going to the kitchen for some coffee and eggs, but she heard her phone ringing in the bedroom. She tried to ignore it, almost sure it had to be Winslow again. As she turned on her Mr. Coffee and the smell began to waft through her little apartment, she went to turn the shower on so the water could get warm. The apartment’s water was always freezing, after all.

  On her way back to the kitchen she decided to check her phone and she saw that the call she missed was not from Winslow but from Dante. She snatched it off the nightstand and leaped into her bed hitting redial. She didn’t think she’d hear from him until work on Monday; what could he want? Hopefully it wasn’t to have the talk about what that night meant.

  “Hello,” he answered with a husky voice that sent chills up and down her spine. How had she resisted him as long as she had? How can she hope to resist him in the future?

  “Hi,” she breathed into the phone. “You just tried to call?” She tried to sound nonchalant, like she got calls all the time and she was just too busy to answer, but she didn’t think she was pulling it off.

  “Yes, I did.”

  “Did you need something?” she asked when he didn’t say anything else. It was quickly becoming a strange phone call.

  “Yes, sorry. I actually wanted to ask you something. Did you want to go on a date with me tonight? I just find myself with nothing really to do and I thought maybe I could spend it with you?” He sounded unsure, something she did not expect from such a tough guy.

  There it was though, he wanted to see her again and she knew she needed to say no. The other night was a mistake for so many reasons. They can't continue to see each other outside of work. He's her stepbrother. “Umm, sure that sounds nice. When were you thinking?” Her mouth paid no attention to the protestations of her brain.

  “How is seven? I’ll be there at seven.” She tried not to laugh as he struggled with whether to ask her or keep his tough persona going by telling her when he’d be there. It was pretty cute.

  “Sounds good, Dante.”

  “Okay,” was the last thing he said before the line went dead, leaving Cynthia stunned with the smell of burning coffee coming from the kitchen. She rushed to turn off the coffee pot and then headed back to her shower. The water had finally gotten warm, and she definitely needed a scrub now that she had another date with her sexy biker brother. Who was she kidding, trying to resist him?

  * * *

  Cynthia surveyed herself in the mirror to see how she looked. She had put on fishnets and black boots that stopped an inch or two below her knees, a faux leather skirt, and a black vest over a white shirt. She had curled her hair and left it down for a change. She was secretly hoping to fit into his world, to look like his old lady on the back of his bike. She hoped what she was wearing fit the bill.

  A knock signaled that Dante was there for her, so she made her way slowly to the front door and opened it. She didn’t want it to seem like she was doing nothing but waiting around for him to get there, even though that was exactly what she'd been doing.

  She opened the door to see that he was wearing a clean and unwrinkled polo under his motorcycle jacket, apparently trying to look nice and respectable for her. His hair was slicked back, and she could smell a strong cologne on him. Cynthia stifled a laugh at how they had both tried to accommodate each other and ended up as opposites. She saw dimples form on each side of his mouth, though, as a sly grin spread across his face as well.

  “I take it you’re ready for a ride, then?” he asked, raising an eyebrow. It made her weak at the knees as he yanked her through the door and slapped her ass, directing her towards his motorcycle. It was parked up on the grass and had a skull and crossbones on it. It was everything she would have expected the leader of a motorcycle club to have.

  “Do you like it?” he asked, with his eyes shining under the streetlight. She could tell he lived for that bike.

  “I definitely like it. What are we waiting for?” She ran to it, her boots sliding in the wet grass, and she straddled the back of the seat. He hopped on in front of her and reached back to run his hand up the side of her leg, causing her to break out in goose bumps as she put her arms around his waist. It felt so intimate just like that, and she wondered how many women he had taken on a ride on the back of his bike. Was it ten? Twenty? More tha
n that? She knew that a man like him was certainly a commodity.

  “Do you show your bike to all the girls?” she whispered in his ear just as he revved the engine. She tried to make it sound sultry rather than jealous.

  He shook his head. “There aren’t other girls.” Then, without warning, he took off, jumping over the curb and merging with traffic on the road. They almost hit a pickup truck before he swerved in between the lanes to get out of the way. If she wanted a wild ride, she was obviously about to get it.

  The rest of the trip continued that way with them speeding in and out of traffic as she screamed with delight. It was exactly the kind of adventure she’d been looking for. This was why she always fell for bad boys, because they knew how to live for the moment.

  They pulled up on the shores of Lake St. Clair, a lake that spanned over the Canadian border. It was fully dark outside by then, and there were mostly just fisherman around and some party boats out in the water. Dante put on the parking brake and helped her off the bike before reaching into the saddle bag to pull out two beers, two bags of chips, and two sandwiches. It looked like they were having a picnic.

  Cynthia busied herself with trying to find a dry spot to sit down and enjoy their meal. She found it to the west of where the bike was parked and waited as Dante handed her one of the beers with the top already popped off.

  “Thank you. This is nice,” she said as he sat down across from her, pulling an LED candle out of his pocket and placing it in front of him. “I like your style, Dante, very casual,” she chuckled, finding his attempt at a romantic dinner pretty sweet.

  “Well, I do try." He was quiet for a moment, like he was considering what to say next, before he finally blurted it out. "So, when do we have that awkward talk about what we did the other night?”

  Cynthia couldn’t help but giggle at their shared fear. “How about never,” she laughed as they both opened up their chip bags and began to eat, sometimes taking large sips from their beer. "It wouldn't be quite so awkward if... if we weren't..."

  "Related?" he finished for her.

  She blushed, then nodded.

  "Look, the way I see if, we barely knew each other. It's not like we share any blood or anything. How about we just forget about it. Just pretend we aren't step... anything. We're just a man, and a woman, and we're seeing how things go."

  She looked at him and smiled, very happy that he felt the same way. "I'd like that."

  “Great. So we’re at the lake. How would you like to go swimming?” he asked, now that they were finishing up their sandwiches. Cynthia looked at him for signs of whether or not he was serious, but he revealed nothing. His eyes caught her off guard as they held her gaze.

  “Well, I don’t exactly have a bathing suit with me…” she trailed off as he looked her up and down with a one-sided smile forming on his face.

  “Neither do I,” he said flatly. Apparently he was completely serious. The message was clear, and she didn’t think she could resist the opportunity. So she stood up and began to pluck off her shoes and top, sliding her skirt down as well. All that was left was her fishnets and undergarments before Dante joined in, stripping down to his boxers. A cool wind hit Cynthia’s body, and she held her arms across her for a moment before yanking the fishnets off too.

  “Are you ready?” he asked her. She reached over and grabbed his hand, nodding. They took off running like two kids about to use a diving board and plunged into the murky water with a unified scream. As soon as her body hit the water, she regretted it. Lakes in Michigan were always cold no matter the time of year. Most swimmers wore wet suits, and all she had on were some panties and a bra.

  “Shit!” she heard Dante call, obviously sharing her sentiment about the temperature of the water. She laughed at him and grabbed his hand again, tugging him back onto dry land. Their feet sunk into the mud on the way up, and they were both dripping water everywhere.

  “Well, at least we gave it a shot,” she offered in comfort as she tried to pull her clothes back on, minus the fishnets. She wasn’t dealing with those wet.

  “Sorry, that was a bad idea. So what would you like to do next? Or do you want to go home?” Dante asked, leading her back to his motorcycle. Cynthia thought about her choice of words and whether she should speak what was on her mind. It would make her even more vulnerable, and she wasn’t even sure what Dante was going to think about it. But with the way the night was going, she decided just to let it out.

  “Well, I was secretly hoping that you were going to show me your other life, your biker world. I mean, you know I’m a sucker for bad boys, and I just really want to be a part of that life with you.” She stopped and gritted her teeth, hoping she hadn’t asked for too much. She knew he was concerned about revealing his double life.

  “Well, hop on then, and let’s see who’s at The Blue Pig. They call me Diesel, though. Remember that.” And with that, they took off into the night again towards downtown Detroit.

  When they pulled up to bar, she noticed a sign on the door that said it was under renovations. “Well, there goes that idea,” she sighed.

  “Oh, that?” Dante commented, “That doesn’t apply to us.” He drove around to the other side and parked next to several other motorcycles before walking inside with her, side-by-side. She hoped she looked okay even though she was still a little wet, and her hair had been blown back into a frizzball as the wind dried it.

  She could hear noise coming from the inside as they approached the back entrance. She suddenly felt nervous about meeting his motorcycle gang now that it was almost a reality. What would they think of her? Would she make a fool of herself? It was an important moment in their budding relationship since he thought of them more as family than the two of them as step siblings, even though the MC version was behaving like a broken one lately.

  “Are you sure this is okay with you?” she asked as he reached for the door handle. She really hadn’t allowed him to give his opinion first.

  She felt him reach down and squeeze her hand. “I wouldn’t have brought you here if I wasn’t sure. You already know about it, anyway, and it’ll mean we can spend more time together if you’re a part of this life with me. I appreciate your acceptance of all of this. But please just let me know if at any point it’s too much for you.”

  She smiled, pretty sure it would never be too much.

  Chapter 15

  “You’ve gotta be shitting me. Look everyone; Diesel brought a chick with him!” a man called out over the noise of the crowd. He was rather tall, and he slurred his words as if he were drunk. Everyone seemed to pause what they were doing and look Cynthia’s way, and she felt a million eyes scrutinizing her.

  “And that is Bryant, the VP of the MC,” Dante, or rather Diesel, whispered into her ear. She tried to put a friendly smile on her face and then wiped it off immediately. Did bikers smile at each other? She covered her mouth, trying not to laugh at the silly question she had just posed to herself.

  A swarm of bodies came up to them, slapping them on the back, handing them drinks to chug, and introducing themselves. It became a blur. Luckily, it died down to just a few that stuck around, and Diesel reintroduced them. “The most important people for you to know are Bryant, my VP, Ax, Barbie, Liz, Jaz, and Billy.” He pointed to the people surrounding them one-by-one, but her eyes settled on Liz. She recognized her from the first time she’d met Diesel at that very bar. It was the girl he’d scolded. In the light she looked thin and orange like too much spray tan, but had the body of a model. She looked like she did serious drugs, as well. She wasn’t sure why she’d ever been jealous of her.

  Barbie, on the other hand, looked like she might be a problem. She had cute blonde hair with a pink streak on one side that looked fresh. She chewed bubble gum and wore some barely-there shorts and a tank. She looked better suited for Hooters than for a motorcycle club. Then she noticed that Barbie kept looking back at Bryant, and Cynthia let out a relived breath. She was clearly already taken.

  Ax w
as practically drooling in Liz’s direction, and Cynthia could almost see a porno film playing in the guy’s head. She hoped he would go away soon. It was Billy that looked the youngest and most charming, though there was no woman by his side. She had no idea why.

  “Well, are you gonna tell us her name or what, Diesel?” Barbie asked.

  “Yes, of course; this is Sin. She’s my old lady.” Diesel pulled her into him by the hip and squeezed on her right ass cheek. Sin? He hadn't mentioned calling her that before, but it seemed like he was trying to make sure even her life stayed separate so she played along.

  He left his hand on her ass, and it warmed her, made her feel safe and almost as if she belonged to him. She couldn’t imagine wanting to touch any other body again.

  Bryant walked up with a bunch of shot glasses that obviously had tequila in them and handed it to each one of them, holding his own up in the air. “To Diesel’s new old lady; to Sin!” he called out, loud enough for the whole bar to hear even over the sound of pool balls being hit. Then, the rest of the crowd followed suit with the toast, making her feel more welcome than she ever had with any other guy’s friends. Maybe a biker is what she’d needed all along.