My eyes have got to be out of my head. I look back at my girls and see they’re just as shocked as I am. The guys? They’re nodding in agreement with the trash coming out ofthisasshole’s mouth.
“Grateful?” My breath pushes out of me in disbelief. “You want me to be grateful? For what?”
He looks me over, going from the top of my head to my toes, then back to my tits. “For looking past your issues and offering you some fun.”
“You need to stop the fucking car. Right now.” I’m seething. So much.
“What? I’m not stopping.” He looks at me likeI’mthe crazy one.
“Stop the fucking car, Lewis. We’re getting out.”
“Don’t be ridiculous. Roy’s place isn’t for another fifteen minutes. I’ll let you out there.”
“No.” I take a deep breath to calm my nerves. “You’ll let me out here, where I’m still close to fucking civilization and not ten miles out of town.”
He shakes his head with a roll of his eyes, and I’ve had it. I ain’t going with this guy any longer than I have to. I unbuckle my seat belt, slide my leg over the console, and try to put my foot on the brake while grabbing the wheel.
“What the fuck!” We swerve, and I hear Nat scream. I’ll apologize to her later for this, but after we get out of here.
Lewis tries to push me back, but I elbow him in the nose. He grabs his face as he groans in agony.
Roy yanks my hair, trying to pull me off his friend and push me back into my seat. It works, and he grabs me from behind and holds me back down as Lewis jabs at me with his elbow. Bastard gets lucky and hits me in the eye.
I recoil on instinct. I might know how to throw a punch, but taking an elbow to the eye socket? This shit hurts.
“Goddammit, Ruby. Look what the fuck you made me do,” Lewis shouts at me, and it only makes me see red.
Still holding my eye, because I swear it feels like I’m bleeding, I yell, “WhatIdid? You’re the one who won’t stop the fucking car.”
“Why the hell—”
“Lewis, man, you hear that?” Trevor says just loud enough to get everyone to stop talking.
Engines. More specifically, the rumble of a motorcycle. More than one.
“Shit.” Lewis looks in the rearview mirror, and I look out the back window. I don’t know who it is, but I see two, and oh does that make me smile.
“You’re fucked now. All of you.” I grin as they speed up and flank us on either side. And then my smile is gone. Because now I can see who’s gesturing for Lewis to pull over.
Thankfully, Lewis listens. Not sure if it’s because the club is here or the murderous look on Kooper’s face.
We pull off the road, and the other brother, Atom, parks by Kooper. They get off their bikes and wait. No one from the car moves.
“Get out.” Atom says it loud enough that we hear it inside the vehicle, and we all exit. Nat is the first out, then the rest. Even Lewis makes it out before I do. Mostly because I’m already mad, and I know shit’s about to go down. While some will go to Lewis, I already know, based on who it is and the fact that since I got out of the damn vehicle, Kooper hasn’t taken his eyes off me, that I’m in for a world of hurt.
Before any of us can speak, Kooper growls, “What happened to her eye?”
The boys eye one another. Roy shakes his head, and Trevor says, “Nothing, man.”
“Nothing? She got a black eye for nothing?”
“She did it to herself,” Lewis states with all the boldness he must have.
I still don’t speak. Now is not the time for it. One, because I know I’m not the one Kooper wants talking right now. And two, because I have a sense of self-preservation, and I really don’t want to alert him that I’m here. I mean, sure, he can see me. But if I’m lucky, he’ll only look and not force an interaction between us.
“Say that again?” Kooper takes two steps closer, his hands clenching as if he’s holding himself back.
“Ahh….” Lewis glances at his friends, wets his lips, then looks at me as if pleading for me to help.
