Techie opens the door, and we walk in. I try to act confident, but inside, I am anything but. Mad Dog looks the same as always, his long gray beard forming a triangle down from his face and his huge frame filling the entire chair. He’s more than intimidating when he looks up and nods to Techie and me.
“You two a thing?” Mad Dog grumbles.
Techie chuckles. “She wishes.”
I simply huff.
“Okay, lovers, what’s going on?” Mad Dog asks, and Techie looks at me, dipping his chin.
Puffing out a long gust of air, I prepare myself, then start talking, “You know how I’ve been spending more time with Danger and Recoil and less time at the club?”
Mad Dog nods and sits back in his chair. It creaks under the weight of his body.
Swallowing hard, I take another breath. “Well, I started a foundation, and I’m going to spend a lot more time on it. Recoil will begin their Australian tour soon, and I’d… well, I would like to go with them.”
He rubs his bearded chin and licks his lips, leaning forward as he looks at me like he’s seeing right through me. “You wanna leave the club?”
I glance at Techie, and he nods infinitesimally. I return the gesture to Mad Dog, who flares his nostrils and inhales loudly, sits back in his chair, and places his hands on the table. “You haven’t been servicing the brothers on Steel’s orders. I respected that. He’s my VP. You’ve been out gallivanting with rock stars and slacking on your duties here as a club girl. And you quit at Straplesswithoutconsulting me. I respected all that too. But now… you want to leavemydamn club?”
My insecurities surface, and I panic, rambling. “It’s not that I don’t appreciate everything you’ve done for my family and me. You took me in, gave me a home, and a job right when I needed them. I can never thank you enough, but—”
He raises his hand to silence me, so I close my mouth and pull my lips in by my teeth.
“You’re fucking right, Lunar, we did take you in, gave you a fucking job and a home. What did we get in return, huh? Do you think I’m gonna give you a damn blessing, a tap on the butt and send you on your way?You owe me. Not just me, the club. So what are you gonna do that’s gonna helpmemake up my mind?”
Swallowing the golf ball-sized lump down my throat, my breathing comes faster. I have no idea what he means, and I amnotgoing down that path with him, so I start talking, “My heart is not at the club anymore, Mad Dog. I know you’ve been good to me, and I’m eternally grateful for everything you have done for me and my family. I’m sorry I left Strapless without discussing it with you. That’s on me. Steel had my heart, but he’s made it clearhe doesnotwant me.” I take a deep breath and continue, “I could give you a percentage of my earnings for the amount of time I was with the club for compensation—”
He raises his hand again, and I stop talking. His enormous frame rises from the chair, and it is so imposing that I take a small step back, knowing whatever is coming will not be good. I take another step back, then another, but he keeps advancing.
I know what he wants, and there is not a damn thing I can do about it, even with Techie here. Mad Dog is the president, and whatever he says goes.
The brothers willneverdisrespect the patch—especially not the president.
He’s so close now, I smell the alcohol and tobacco on his breath. It stinks.
Mad Dog grabs a handful of my hair and pulls so hard that a tear forms in my eye.
I will not let it fall.
I will not show fear.
“Keep your damn money. Your arse is mine for the next hour. Techie, get out.Now!”
My body reacts instantly, knowing what this bastard has in mind, but I can’t show him any kind of fear because the asshole thrives on intimidation. The more alarm I show, the more he will terrorize me.
It’s best to get it over with, and perhaps after, I will be free of this damn club for good.
He gropes my butt cheek and pulls me into him, and I feel everything.
His belly protrudes into me, and his cock is as hard as a rock against my stomach. Honestly, I feel like I want to faint. The blood rushes through my body so quickly it makes me want to be physically ill.
The grip he has on my hair is so strong I feel the roots being pulled from my scalp, and I twinge from the pain. The twinkle in his eye tells me he’s enjoying my agony. Mad Dog is all about misery and suffering—this bastard thrives on torment.
He pushes me back into the wall, grabs my hand, and holds it above my head. “You wanna leavemyclub…” he pauses, sweat rolling down his temple and his chin, “… then you gotta show me some attention. Show me why I should even contemplate you leaving.”
I don’t reply. There is little I can say to change this man’s mind once he’s determined to get his pound of flesh from me.
His other hand comes up and slaps my face hard. My head flicks to the left with the fury of the strike. I know it will leave a mark because it throbs like a thousand needles have entered my skin. I blink a few times, wondering where this is going. Mad Dog is unhinged, and there may be no way out of this for me.
