“Mercedez, can you show Elena where the downstairs bathrooms are?”
Mercedez pouts and reluctantly gets up.
Oh crap!“It’s okay, just tell me where it is.”
Mercedez ignores me, so I follow her down the hallway. She points in the direction of the bathroom. I pause outside the door when I hear Grace’s and Vera’s voices inside.
“No more parties because of her. Who does she think she is? Axle was taken from me, now other men aren’t allowed here anymore. For what... a guy touched her, who cares. She’s not an ol’ lady. The nun should go back to wherever she came from. She doesn’t belong here.” I can tell by the voice it’s Grace speaking.
I flinch. That proves my theory. Nun?Ouch!
“I agree,” says Vera. “But I think Reaper and a few of the men don’t like the parties, bringing people they don’t know into the clubhouse. I think it was a long time coming, but don’t worry. Elena’s not going to be here long. As soon as Axle’s done with her, he’ll be yours again.”
I backpedal, regretting my decision to leave Axle. My chest aches. Grace sounds hurt and angry.
“I just don’t get what the big deal is about her,” Grace says. “She’s got small tits. She’s practically a virgin saint. He liked it when we fucked, and he fucked me hard. There’s no way she’s allowing him to do that to her.”
Another blow to my chest, but this one hurts more.
Mercedez walks into the bathroom and clears her throat. I hear the soft hum of voices but can’t make out what they are saying. Grace and Vera walk out, glaring at me as they pass by. Mercedez is walking out as I’m about to walk in. “What do you think about me and Axle?” I ask her.
She gazes at me with sympathy. “You sound like a nice girl, but... they have a point. You don’t fit in here, and Axle is Axle.”
My heart sinks.
“For your own self-preservation, I’d consider seeing someone outside of the MC. Grace really likes him, and I can’t see her letting him go easily.”
My shoulders fall. “Thanks for your honesty.”
After I take a moment, I walk back to the living room, though I’m dragging my feet, feeling deflated by what the women said. I try my best to shake it off. When I meet Axle’s gaze, I say, “I might go rest for a while.”
“Are you alright?” asks Axle, frowning.
I glance at Mercedez, but quickly divert my gaze back to Axle, giving him a tight smile. “I’m fine.”
Mercedez stands and grabs Twitch’s hands in hers, pulling him up. “Let’s go lay down too,” she says, her tone rich with innuendo.
We follow them out of the living room, but once we get to the far side of the room, Mercedez pushes Twitch against the wall and kisses him. In slow motion they swivel around, and Mercedez’s arm falls back. She hits the motorcycle that’s on the podium in the wall.
As it falls, I launch myself and catch it against my shoulder so that it doesn’t crash to the ground. It’s heavy, and pain radiates from the point of impact. A few seconds later Axle is pushing the bike upright. He carefully checks the bike for damage.
“Oh shit, we’re sorry,” Twitch blurts. Wariness is etched on his face, and he and Mercedez take a step back.
“Watch what you’re fucking doing!” Axle lashes out, but the fear in his eyes is unmistakable. His heavy breaths pain me, so I gently grab his hand in mine and pull him away from them, through the house and into his bedroom.
Axle sits down on the bed and puts his head in his hands. We’re silent as I kneel in front of him and undo his laces. His eyes are soft. He lifts first one leg and then the other so that I can tug his boots off.
His hands fall from his face as I stand up. He encircles me with his arms and pulls me between his legs. “It means a lot; you saved my bike tonight.”
The vulnerability in his voice and his adoring gaze makes my eyes glassy. Clearing my throat, I run my fingers through his thick hair. “I know how much it means to you.” I appreciate being privy to his past.
“I’ve been a cranky dick.” His brows knit together. “Sorry, my head’s not in a good place.”
“Do you want to talk about it?”
“The thought of you going to work...” He shakes his head. “The more I think about it the angrier I get.”
Remorse weighs heavily on my chest, so I lean down and give him a gentle kiss on the lips. “It won’t be for long.” It seems as though everything is against us and we are in constant battle with the rest of the world.
