“W-Wolf?”
Saying the name makes the man turn around, and my heart squeezes.
Oh my god.
Before I can stop myself, I jump forward and wrap my arms around him. Not a second later, he wraps himself around me. I never thought I’d see him again. I never imagined…
“Angelica,” he croaks.
A laugh mixed with a sob falls from my lips as I look up at him. He looks almost the same as he did years ago. His hair is a little longer. His green eyes are a little sharper than I remember, but they’re the same shade of leaf green that I remember.
The only difference is that he’s wearing a leather vest that bikers call a cut with a patch of a black hawk with its wings spread out. The name ‘Wolf’ is patched on the right front pocket space of his cut and the title ‘Vice President’ is patched over his heart.
“I-I thought you were d-dead,” I cry, wrapping my arms back around him and burying my face in his chest. The smell of smoke, leather, and whiskey tickles my nose and causes tears to prick my eyes with the familiar stinging sensation. Wolf lifts my chin and his smile fades, eyebrows pulling down, and eyes softening when he sees the tears rolling down my cheeks.
Brushing the tears away, he murmurs, “I’m fine, lass. I’ve been looking for you.” I blink, trying to stop the tears, and hug him. He’s alive. He’s here, right in front of me. He’s…
Oh, god.
I left him. My stomach rolls in guilt, churning at the thought. I left him in the wreckage of that warehouse with no way to get home, and in return, he spent years looking for me.
“I- I left you there! I didn’t even try to see if you were alive!” I shriek, my heart speeding up in my chest like a horse taking off on a racetrack. I can’t believe I did that to him.
He smiles down at me. “You have no reason to feel guilty, Angelica. You ran like I told you to, and I’m glad you did,” he claims. His words lift the weight off my shoulders I didn’t realize was there. Leaving him behind is something I’ve always felt guilty about, even if I thought he was dead.
“Thank you for saving me.” I squeeze his hands. He smiles again, and I sigh. “I go by Angel now,” I add, “Angel Emira.” No one has called me Angelica since he’d last seen me and since my dad had last talked to me.
He opens his mouth to speak when a clunking sound from my room makes him go rigid.
The kids. I left them hiding in the room.
Holding up a finger, I dash around the couch and down the hallway. When I enter the room, I find my kids sitting in the corner, hugging their stuffed wolves to their chests. I smile at the sight.
The first time I’d seen those stuffed animals in a store, I broke down crying. They reminded me so much of Wolf that I bought them on the spot. I slept with them for months, and when I found out I was having twins, I decided that I’d give them to the kids. Those stuffed animals got me through so many lonely, bitter nights when I was pregnant.
Now, my kids have attached themselves to the toys just as much as I did.
When they see me, Reece and Rosa run over and throw themselves at me. “Everything’s okay,” I murmur. I lift them up and hug them to my chest. “I have someone I want you to meet,” I say. I turn them to where they’re both sitting on one of my hips, and I make my way back out of the room.
Walking back into the living room makes Wolf look up. As his eyes run over us, his eyebrows pull together in confusion.
“Who are these little ones?” He asks, looking them over. I stay silent as he takes in their ebony hair, green eyes, and olive skin tone that matches mine. It takes only a second before a growl bursts from his chest, and his hands curl into fists. The noise startles Rosaleigh, making her jump.
“That bast-”
“Wolf!” I cry out. I try not to curse in front of the kids, I want to keep it that way as much as I can. “Wolf, I love them, no matter how they were conceived. She’s my daughter, and he’s my son,” I remind him, steeling my voice.
Something flickers through his eyes. He nods, sighs, and takes a seat on the couch. I watch as his shoulders slump and his eyes find the floor. The shame rolls off of him in waves as he says, "I’m sorry. I’m so sorry I dinnae get to you sooner.”
My heart cracks. I know he didn’t mean it that way, and I didn’t mean to make him feel like I was mad at him. I sigh. Wolf looks over the three of us and then to Rosaleigh, who's wiggling vigorously in my arms.
His eyes bore into me until they flick to Rosaleigh, who is wiggling in my arms. When I turn her and let her down, Reece leans back against me as Rosaleigh crawls over the cushions into Wolf’s lap. We both watch as she reaches up and touches the wolf patch on his leather cut. A second later, she lifts her stuffed animal and giggles, “Wolfy!”
Her squeaky laugh fills the room, making me smile. I love the sound.
“Me too! I gots one!” Reece waves his stuffed wolf around, not letting himself go unnoticed, so that Wolf can see it.
“What are these?”
I look up at Wolf and smile. “These are reminders, at least to me, that none of us would be here without you,” I tell him truthfully. I don’t mention my many one-sided conversations, pity parties, or cry sessions that these wolves have gone through. They were all I had, but if I’d known he was alive, I wouldn’t have needed stuffed animals.
A proud smile tugs at Wolf’s lips. He turns and looks at both Reece and Rosaleigh, pointing at his chest and saying, “My name is Wolf.”
They both smile big, but Reece is the first to respond, crying out, “Hi!” Rosaleigh follows close behind with a hug and a shriek of her own.
I swallow back a laugh at how excited they are. They’ve never been to daycare because they’re too young, and neither of them has any friends because they spend their days with Lacy. They don’t meet unknown people often, so this is new to them. Already, I can tell that they won’t be shy when meeting new people.
Glancing over at Lacy, I smile. She points at my clothes, and I look down. I’m wearing my pajamas, so with a quick comment, I dash to my room. I don’t think it’s right or comfortable to be in front of any man in my pajamas, so I slip into a pair of jean shorts and a plain shirt. I pull my hair up and then make my way back into the living room.
The sight that greets me when I come back makes me laugh. Rosaleigh found her way up onto Wolf’s shoulders and is holding onto his head like a cat up a tree. Reece sits on the couch laughing at his sister as she giggles and pulls on Wolf’s hair. I make my way over to Lacy and pull her into a hug.
“Thank you,” I whisper, and she nods. I pull away, go back over to the couch, and tuck my legs under me. With over one question in my mind, I take a deep breath.
“Can I still work at the bar?”
Wolf nods. “Definitely. I’m no’ leaving you on your own again,” he tells me, and I look down.
Another question that had been plaguing my mind pops up. “How- how did you survive?” I ask hesitantly, making him frown. Wolf sighs and picks Rosaleigh up off his shoulders.
“Your Da’ and I set the explosives, and when I realized everyone from Angel Crew was dead and you were out, I set them off,” he tells me, running a hand through his hair. “I underestimated the explosion and got knocked out. When I came around, you were gone and so was my bike,” he finishes. I guess that makes sense. I think I remember seeing something in his hand before leaving, but when I try to think about it, the image in my mind blurs.
My silence stretches, and I notice that Wolf glances at my cheek. I didn’t take the time to look in the mirror, so I don’t know how bad the bruise got. For all I know, it could be huge and purple. On the plus side, it doesn’t really hurt anymore.
“Um,” I mumble, “As I told Lucy, I went back to Angel Crew’s clubhouse and packed as much as I could that I needed. I ended up a couple of towns over,” I tell him.
A scowl crosses his face, and he growls. “You were this close the whole time? I should’ve been able to find you sooner,” he growls, his
fists clenching against his legs. I hear a muffled curse, so I reach over and touch his arm.
“I’m okay now, Wolf,” I whisper. “I’ve… come to grips with what happened, but I’m better than I was,” I tell him, and he frowns. Those first months were awful. Nightmares every night. Flashbacks during the day. I flinched away from everyone when they got too close to me. It was rough until the twins were born.
Something about having them with me, and taking care of them, helped me heal. I tried not to linger on who their father was.
“Angelica.” I look up to see Wolf staring at me, and I flush with embarrassment. How many times did he say my name?
“Huh?”
“Why is your cheek bruised?” He asks, his voice hard and tone serious. His sharp eyes dared me to lie. There’s no reason to lie, so I tell him the truth.
“My boss hit me when I defied him and told him I wouldn’t let his friends touch me,” I sigh. “Then he fired me.”
Anger lit a flame in Wolf’s eyes. Again, his hands curled into fists, and I couldn’t help but think it was nice to have someone care. I haven’t had someone, other than Lacy, care about me in a long time.
“Wolf, are you always this protective?” I ask, looking up at him.
Wolf’s eyes flicker over to Lacy, then he looks back at me. “I dinnae like when people hurt others, especially women, for no reason. You dinnae deserve what happened to you, and I wanted to protect your… innocence,” he says, hesitating on that last word.
“When I saw you chained up in that basement, I wanted to protect you. I imagined the worst and pictured my sister in your position,” he tells me as he looks over at Lacy again. To see the pain in his eyes is like a punch to the gut. It would be horrible to imagine anyone you love in the position I was in, especially Lacy.
“I just wanted to help you,” he admits.
Smiling, I wrap my arms around his neck. “Thank you, Wolf,” I whisper as he hugs me back. A small laugh bubbles out, and I pull back, looking in his eyes. “You’re like the older brother that I never had,” I say. His eyes widen for a second before he smiles, his chest puffing out with pride.
“Aye, and I will make sure nothin’ happens to you again,” he says.
~.~
“So, this is it,” Wolf says, sweeping his arm out to motion to the whole of the bar. “The Blacktop,” he says, pointing to the sign above the bar. The place is sleek but also rustic. The floors are wood and there are wood tables and pool tables scattered across the room. The bar is at the far end of the room. It has a black countertop with the taps lined up on one end. They lined the shelves behind the bar with a variety of drinks.
“This is nice,” I tell Wolf as I look around the area. There are several Harleys lined up outside, and the men that own them are scattered around the room.
“No one here will hurt you,” Wolf tells me when he notices me looking at the men. “I know all the regulars. Now and then, we have some other clubs stop by, but no one will give you any trouble,” he says.
Nodding, I continue to look around. This is a fresh start, and I believe it would be one that my dad would approve of… one that he would’ve wanted for me.
“Hey, Wolf! I thought you were out looking for Angels?!” A man yells out. Wolf returns a glare.
“Well, I found her. So, I don’t need to look anymore,” he says, and the man’s eyes widen. He wasn’t expecting that answer. He turns to face all the men and, gently, turns me to face them. “Everyone, this is Angel. She’s our new bartender and she’ll occasionally be a waitress.”
The men around the room cheer. I smile back at them and wave, but I don’t move away from Wolf. He said no one would hurt me or bother me, and I believe him, so there’s nothing to worry about.
Rumbles from outside filter into the building, getting louder and louder. The rumbles are coming from over one motorcycle.
There seems to be seconds between the time the bikes cut off to when the door slams open. A large, muscular man dressed in leather walks in. The men quiet as he walks in, from respect or fear, I don’t know.
His eyes sweep across the room, and my eyes sweep across him. He has dark brown, deep eyes with a faint, jagged scar running from the middle of his right eyebrow down to just below his cheekbone, and dark stubble peppering his face.
It only takes a second for his eyes to find me. His dark eyes pour into me, and my breath hitches, a zoo of animals erupting in my stomach and running around like they’ve all lost their heads. I try to push the unsettling feeling down, but it climbs up through my chest and into my throat.
He stalks forward, giving me an unobstructed view of his large build. His arms boast many black and white tattoos while his muscles strain against his t-shirt. His legs are long and muscled, filling out his jeans magnificently. I look to his vest and find the word PRESIDENT patched over his left breast pocket.
Oh, my.
The President stops right in front of me, looking me over. “Is this the girl?” He asks, his question directed to Wolf. His deep voice sends a shiver down my spine and makes me feel like I will melt. I don’t dare to move my eyes from him, and in the same, his eyes never move from me either.
“Angelica- Angel, this is Hawk,” Wolf introduces. “He’s the President of the Black Hawk Motorcycle Club.”
“Angel Emira,” I say, holding my hand out. Hawk’s tattooed arm stretches out, and he takes my hand. Another shiver runs through me as his calloused hand touches mine. However, it wasn’t a shiver of fear, it was a shiver of bliss. I’ve felt nothing like this before, so I jerk back and bump into Wolf.
As if he’s caught me with my hand in the cookie jar, Wolf grins like the Cheshire cat.
“Lead on,” I mumble, turning to Wolf. As he shows me around, I glance back at Hawk to find his dark eyes already on me. My heart slams into my ribcage. I duck my head and continue listening to Wolf explaining my job. He talks about how I’ll be the main bartender, but if the waitress isn’t there, I’ll be serving drinks and food too. I don’t mind, though. There will be people around I could rope into helping if things get too hectic.
Once he’s done explaining, Wolf grabs a bottle of whiskey and pours a glass. Then he grabs five beers. He puts them on a tray and turns to me. “Will you take this to the guys? Whiskey for Prez and beer for the others,” he tells me.
I nod.
Easy.
Taking the tray, I set my hand in the middle and balance it. The weight of the tray is more comfortable than some people think. To me, it’s a familiar weight. After working at the diner, and carrying several plates of food at a time, this weight is almost nothing. To have something familiar in a new place is helpful.
The hair on the back of my neck stands on end the closer I come to the table. I tighten the muscles in my arm the closer I get so my tray doesn’t shake.
“Here you go,” I say. Stopping by the table, I hand each of the men a drink. I serve Hawk last, and as he takes his glass, his fingers brush against mine.
There it goes again. The tingling sensation returns.
The front doors slam open, making me jump. Two young guys walk in. Two identical boys. Their eyes lock on me and the one on the left smirks.
“Hello, beautiful,” he calls out. I raise an eyebrow as he saunters over.
“Jayden, cut it out,” Hawk calls out, making me look in his direction.
It draws my attention back when the second teen introduces himself as Kayden. Ruffled brown hair, that he’s most likely run his hands through multiple times, and big brown eyes that sparkle with mischief. These two probably get into plenty of trouble together, whether it’s because of their looks or their attitude.
No matter. They’re adorable either way, so I don’t mind; even when Jayden continues to flirt and wink.
“How old are you?” I ask, “Fifteen?”
Jayden smirks, and his brother groans. This must happen often- Jayden flirts relentlessly, and Kayden gets annoyed.
Jayden chuckles, leans agai
nst the counter, and wiggles his eyebrows. “Yeah, baby; age is only a number,” he drawls. A prickle runs up my spine, sending goosebumps over my skin.
“Come on, baby. I know you don’t want me to leave,” he growls as pain shoots through my body. I want to say no, but the pain pulls me down and into the darkness.
“Don’t call me that,” I snap, the words coming out before I can stop them. I turn and walk away before either of us can say more. Moving into the back room, I let my head fall forward as I take a few deep breaths. I can’t let everything take me back there.
A minute later, I lift my head and sigh. I feel bad about snapping at the kid, but I can’t stand when anyone calls me baby. Anytime I hear that word, it reminds me of Viper. I try so hard to block out anything that reminds me of him.
Taking another deep breath, I walk over to Wolf. He gives me a concerned look, a frown forming to his lips and a crinkle forming between his eyebrows. “What’s wrong, lass?” He asks. I take another step forward, and Wolf wraps his arms around me.
“One of the twins said something that reminded me of Viper,” I explain. His arms tighten, making me feel better. I haven’t felt safe like this in a while… actually, it’s been years since I’ve felt this safe. My father used to make me feel safe like this.
Hawk stands there, looking between me and Wolf. There’s a slight furrow between his brows that makes me want to reach out and smooth it out. He crosses his arms over his chest, making his arms bulge. It takes a second, but I pull my eyes away from his biceps and look into his eyes.
“I’m okay.”
My voice is softer than I mean for it to be, and his gaze becomes more intense, smoldering with heat and narrowing on me. His gaze never leaves me, so when I glance back up at him, he’s still looking between me and Wolf.
“Is there something between you two?”
“No, we’re just close because of…” I trail off, not wanting him to know the details.
“We met a few years ago and became friends,” Wolf says, and Hawk nods.
Emerald Page 3
