“You know I can’t deny you, but not tonight. We need to get back to Souls,” he says, pressing his lips against mine.
He’s a smart man. I can’t protest if I can’t talk and I take full advantage. He deepens the kiss as he tightens his hold on me. My skin begins to burn as he runs hands up to my hair. I’m wrapped around him, holding myself up, but I don’t care. When his hands grip my hair, pulling it just hard enough, my pussy takes notice. My panties are getting wet, my nipples are hardening, and my body is begging for so much more.
“I love free porn,” Kace says.
It immediately snaps me out of the erotic thoughts, and I break the kiss. Zane lets me slide down his body, which doesn’t help with my building needs. I look over at Kace and he’s got his arm draped around Ivy’s shoulders. Well fucking hell.
“Can we get the hell out of here?” I ask.
“Yeah, let me just say hi to my mom really quick,” Zane says, giving me a quick kiss.
I should probably follow him, but I’d rather not. I’m tired, turned on, and in no mood to deal with more pointless conversation. I notice Kace is staring at me, so I move closer.
“I offered Ivy a job at Souls Two. I know it needs to be brought up to the club, but I wanted to let you know first,” I say.
He turns his head to look at her, his arm still around her shoulders. “You’re not stripping.”
I smile at his possessiveness. Damn if these two ever give in to their feelings it’ll be explosive.
“I’m not fucking stripping. I’d be helping Harper behind the scene,” she explains.
“Is that something you wanna do?” he asks, his tongue playing with that lip ring.
She looks at me and I give her a small nod. She needs to tell him how shitty she’s had it working in the past. I notice her swallow as she bites her lip. “Yeah it is. I’m ready for change. I’m tired of making shit money, getting my ass grabbed, and being harassed. If it’s okay with the club, I’d really like to give this a shot.”
“Who the fuck is grabbing your ass?” he hisses.
I laugh, saying, “That’s what you got out of it?”
“It doesn’t matter, but if I don’t need to go back to waitressing I’d rather not,” she says, both of them ignoring me.
He squeezes her shoulder and pulls her a little closer. His large size makes her almost disappear. “I’ll talk to them.”
The door opens and my incredibly sexy guy walks out. “Alright, let’s get the hell out of here.”
He grabs my hand as he walks past and we all pile into my car. “At least someone is driving her,” I say, closing my door.
“You’ll miss me driving you around soon,” he says, winking.
When we get back to Souls, it’s busy. I want to ask what happened today, but I won’t in front of everyone.
“Oh damn, Harper, why’d you bring him back? It’s going to be harder getting you alone now,” Riley jokes.
“Shut the fuck up before I kill you,” Zane laughs.
“I won’t tell him what happened today, don’t worry,” Riley says, holding up his hands when Zane pushes him.
“I need a drink,” I say, sitting down. Zane goes to grab everyone a drink and I see Finn walking past. “Finn!” He comes over to me and leans down to hear me. “Sit down and tell them your story.”
He stands up and looks around, uncertain if he should. “I don’t know,” he whispers.
Zane comes back with drinks and I put my nose where it doesn’t belong. “Hey, listen, Finn has a story that I think you guys will enjoy.”
His eyes widen as he looks at me, but I grin sipping my beer. I’m using my power for good. First with Ivy, and now with Finn. I feel like I’m on a roll today.
“Well, pull up a chair and fucking talk, Finn,” Zane says.
For the next few minutes, they all listen to Finn’s story. I’ve never seen them all so intrigued with a conversation before. I look at Ivy and smile. She shakes her head but returns the smile. She’s sitting next to Kace and I’m starting to feel like everything is starting to fall into place. Things are going in a positive direction for a lot of us. It has to be a sign that this is coming to an end. That soon we will all be in a better place and happier.
I’m pulled back to the conversation when I hear Zane whisper, “Shit.”
They are all looking at each other and I sit up a little straighter. “Do you guys know who it was?” I ask.
“Oh, fuck yeah,” Porter says, running his hand through his beard.
I look at Zane and he’s staring at Finn. “It was my dad.”
Holy.Fuck.
“How do you know?” I ask, looking between him and Finn.
“It was his cousin who was raped. It was his own vigilante justice,” Zane whispers.
I grab his hand in mine and he looks at me. “He did good,” I quietly say, squeezing his hand.
“Finn, that’s a fucking great story. Looks like Axel sent you here,” Porter says.
“Why didn’t you tell us sooner?” Kace asks.
Finn finishes off his beer and leans back in his chair. “Because I don’t like talking about where I came from. I’d rather not dwell on the past.”
“I get that,” Ivy chimes in.
Kace looks at her, his eyebrows dipping, but she refuses to look at him. She keeps her focus on Finn.
“No one likes talking about their pasts. Fuck look at mine,” I say, sighing. “Everyone is in danger because of mine.”
“No.”
“Stop it.”
“Bullshit.”
Is what I’m hearing, but it’s true. I’m not going to sit here and pretend I didn’t bring this to their doorstep. I know Zane helped, but it doesn’t always feel that way. The longer I’m around them, the more guilty I feel that it’s my father, my flesh and blood, that is causing all this.
“Hey,” Zane whispers, grabbing my chin to make me look at him. “Stop going there. This isn’t your fault. It was going to happen the minute Club Kingsley opened.”
I search his eyes and I notice the hurt in them. It’s not because of my thoughts. It’s not because of Finn’s story. It’s because he misses his dad. He never talks about it, but maybe he needs to.
“I love you, baby,” I whisper, pressing a soft kiss to his firm lips.
“I love you more,” he says.
My heart explodes in my chest. He’s never said that before and it actually causes butterflies to erupt in my stomach.
“Shut the fuck up,” Kace yells.
I snap my head toward him, just as his fist lands across Riley’s face. Fuck.
“What the fuck?” Zane shouts. He jumps up to grab Kace, while Alex and Porter check on Riley.
“It’s fine. I forgot he doesn’t have a sense of humor,” Riley says.
Ivy looks terrified and I shake my head. One step forward and two back.
“Kace, go get some fucking sleep,” Zane hisses. “I’ve had enough of this shit today.”
Zane pulls me up and flips everyone off. I laugh as I blow them a kiss, rushing to keep up with him. When we get into the room, he slams the door.
“Relax, baby. Riley was trying to get to him, and it obviously worked. They’ll be fine in the morning,” I say, rubbing his shoulders from behind, pressing a kiss between his shoulder blades. He’s tense, I can feel it in his muscles. “What’s going on?”
“I’m no closer to answers. Brooks is hiding something; I can feel it. Finn telling that story, it just reminds me how this club used to be when my father was in charge. He wouldn’t be secretive; he wouldn’t drag his ass to get justice. He would be out there seeking his own vigilante justice,” he whispers.
“You miss him, huh?” I ask.
“Everyday.”
“Why don’t you ever talk about him?” I move to stand in front of him.
His eyes lift to mine and the pain I see in them haunts me. “Because I get pissed that Brooks is now in charge. Because I hate that my mother is alone. Because the
pain of losing him is too much for me sometimes.”
“Baby, I know what an incredible man he was. I know how much he loved this club, your mom, and you. I saw the pride in his eyes when he looked at you. I might not have known what it was at the time, but I do now. He was always good to me. You don’t need to pretend with me. I will grieve his loss with you,” I whisper, pushing up on my toes to kiss him.
He wraps his arms around me and buries his face into my neck. “I’ve learned to live my life without him, but I can’t live it without you. He adored my mom, but I’m certain the way I feel about you is more. When I think of losing him, I think of losing you. That’s why there’s so much pain. Until your father is dead, the possibility of losing you is still there. I can’t handle it. I grieved for him already. I need to live for you.”
I try to keep the tear from falling, but it rolls down my cheek. “You aren’t gonna lose me. I’m a fighter, baby. I survived everything he’s done to me and this will be no different. I don’t know what our future holds, but I know it will be together.”
He pulls back and searches my eyes. “I know what it holds,” he says, confidence rolling off him.
“What?” I ask, running my hand down his rough cheek.
Banging on the door interrupts our moment. I want to kill whoever it is because he was going somewhere with that thought and I’m sure it’s long gone now.
“Fuck, what?” he yells.
“Sorry, Z. We need to be around the table,” Riley says.
He’s cursing as he stomps over to the door, yanking it open. “Right now? Are you fucking serious? It’s late and everyone is half trashed.”
Angry Zane is back, and I don’t like it. He’s not thinking straight right now. He’s got his father’s memory and my future clouding his thoughts. I don’t want him to do anything stupid, because I know all too well the urge to do something to protect the one you love.
“Well, Brooks doesn’t give a shit,” he says, slapping his arm. “See you out there.”
Zane turns to me, shaking his head. “Sorry, babe. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”
“Don’t be, I understand.” He goes to walk out, but I say his name. He turns around, lifting an eyebrow. “I love you.”
He smiles and gives me a wink. “I love you, too, babe.”
It’s not what I wanted to say. I wanted to tell him to let the anger go before he walks in there. I wanted to tell him not to do anything stupid. I wanted to tell him that he’ll get his justice. But, when his blue eyes crashed into mine, I said the only thing that mattered.
19
Zane
I look at the closed door, shaking my head. The only thing I want right now is to be with Harper. It’s been a long fucking day and apparently, it’s about be get longer. I fight the urge to punch the door and walk out from the back. I was just breaking up a fight with Kace and Riley, now we are expected to be around the table. Brooks has lost his fucking mind. He’s been shady as fuck all day.
Earlier when we were all in the room with Dom, Brooks was losing his mind waiting for me to end it. That told me he didn’t want Dom saying something, so I pushed. He was already weak from the loss of blood and I took advantage of that. I asked him again why Kingsley thinks we stole his drugs. He gave nothing. He took it all to his grave.
After I put the bullet in his head, I’m positive I heard Brooks breathe a sigh of relief. I wanted to question him, but he was walking out of the room barking orders to get it cleaned up before I could even turn around. We haven’t seen him since. Now he wants us all around the table. Drunk, tired, and in my case pissed. I push through the door, seeing Kace is missing still. I nod to Finn, sitting at the corner of the table. He deserves to be in here.
I yank my chair out and sit down, looking at Brooks. “A little late, no?”
“It couldn’t wait.” He looks around the table. “Where the fuck is Kace?”
“He’s probably having trouble getting his drunk ass out of bed,” Porter says.
“Fucking hell,” Brooks mumbles.
I light a cigarette and lean back. “What did you expect at this hour?”
He jerks his head to me, his eyes burning into me. “Watch it.” We stare each other down for a minute before he turns away. “Alex, go get fucking Kace.”
He leaves, but I feel the tension in the room. Enzo is quiet, Brooks is brooding, and it’s fueling my anger. As we sit and wait for Kace and now Alex, I think about how moody Kace was today. This late-night meeting is going to piss him off as much as me.
The door slams open as they both come in. Kace laughs as he falls against the door and I shake my head. Great fucking idea having us all meet now. Once they are sitting, I turn to Brooks.
“Alright, what the hell is going on?”
He tosses a piece of paper down and I grab it before anyone else can.
All this blood is on your hands
My head snaps up and I look between Brooks and Enzo. “What the fuck is this?” I growl.
“We found that on Harper’s car,” Enzo says.
“FUCK!” I roar.
Enzo picks up the note and shows everyone else. “No one outside of this club knows anything. They can assume, but they don’t know any blood was spilled. I think this person knows exactly what’s going on. Which makes me think Thomas wasn’t lying when he said there was an informant,” Enzo says.
“A rat, a fucking rat,” I hiss. “That note was put on her car in our fucking parking lot.”
Brooks nods as he puts out his smoke. “Someone better start fucking talking.”
Riley slams his hands down on the table, causing us all to look. “Are you accusing one of us of being a rat?” he growls.
“After everything we’ve done and sacrificed, you’re gonna fucking sit there and question our loyalty?” Alex says.
“Fucking funny coming from the guy who has been shady as fuck lately,” Kace says, shaking his head.
“Shut the fuck up,” I yell. I look at Brooks and he lifts an eyebrow. “Look what you’re doing, you’re ripping this club apart.”
He reaches over the table to grab me, but Enzo pulls his back. “Fuck you, Z. This club is my life. Anything I do is to protect it.”
“Protect the club or protect yourself?” I ask.
“This is bullshit. No one in this room would turn their back on the club. Whoever is doing it wants us to think this. They are trying to tear us apart and you’re letting them. Brooks and Zane have been at each other for months now. The more shit that happens, the uglier it gets. You guys are letting Kingsley win. How the fuck does no one else see that?” Porter yells.
I’m so pissed my skin is on fire. I want to tear Brooks apart. Porter’s right, we have been at each other and it is getting worse. But, it’s not Kingsley trying to tear us apart, it’s Brooks. No one will make me see it any other way.
“I want Harper out of here. I want her somewhere that no one knows about. She goes into hiding and we find Kingsley. I fucking refuse to let anything happen to her. That note means whoever it is, got too fucking close and none of us were the wiser. We do this as a club, or I do it on my own. Sitting around and waiting to see who’s going to make the next move is over,” I say through clenched teeth.
“Gloria’s family has a vacation house. We’ll take Harper there,” Brooks says.
I nod and look at the rest of the guys. They all agree, and I focus my attention on Enzo. “What about Kingsley?”
“Alex can’t find any properties in his name. I talked to a realtor and he’s looking into properties sold in the last ten years locally that are on a lake. We’ll find out tomorrow,” he says.
“I’m tired of this shit,” Kace says. “Running in circles, looking like fools. Our president thinks one of us is a rat. Our vice president doesn’t seem to give a shit that we are being accused. Our SAA thinks the president is dirty and has most of us convinced it might be true. And one of us doesn’t think it’s a problem fucking a girl that is related to the bitch wh
o destroyed my trust.” He laughs, scrubbing his face. “We’re falling apart, and no one wants to admit it.”
I look at him and then around the table. He’s right. We are falling apart. It needs to be fixed, but the truth is it won’t happen until we know the lies are exposed. Everyone thinks they know, but we don’t. We are all assuming what it is. Brooks blames me, I blame him, Enzo seems to have Brooks’ back, and the rest of the club doesn’t know who’s to blame. We’re losing trust and that will destroy us faster than Kingsley ever could.
I sit up straight as my eyes widen. “Holy shit,” I whisper.
“What?” Enzo questions.
I run my hand through my hair, looking at each of them. “This is all a set up.”
“What the fuck are you talking about?” Riley asks.
My hands are in fists on the table now as I take a deep breath. “This all started long before Harper and I got together. It’s been driving me crazy trying to figure out why the hell Kingsley would listen to Harper and start a strip club. He’s never done anything for her before, so why would he not only do it, but allow her to run it?” I shake my head. “Not only did he realize it would piss this entire club off, but he knew once Harper was around, I’d be lured in. He couldn’t have predicted how it would all play out, but he knew it would get it all rolling.”
“Okay, so he had a plan and it worked. Why are you surprised?” Porter asks.
“Holy shit,” Enzo says, catching on.
“What?” Alex asks.
I scrub my face. “He’s using his daughter to destroy us.”
“What the fuck? How?” Riley shouts.
“It’s the drugs. Instead of coming at us, guns drawn, he snuck his way in. He thought Harper would come in and give him the information he wanted. When she wasn’t, he must’ve switched strategies,” I say.
“The notes to Harper and threaten our innocents,” Enzo says.
I nod, lighting a cigarette. “Exactly. He must’ve thought Harper would eventually break, going to him with information. I’m sure the night he shot her; he was expecting that to go differently. He probably thought she was finally going to ask him what she can do to help. I’m sure he never imagined she’d discover everything she did along the way about him.”
Redemption (Shattered Souls MC Book 2) Page 16
