“No big deal.” I shrugged and went to clean up the counter where I’d made the coffee.
“It’s good to look out for your brothers. Sometimes we are our own worst enemies.”
I nodded. He was right, but I wasn’t looking out for a brother, I was looking out for my employer. Growing up the way I did made it not easy to connect with people. Connections meant the chances were higher to get hurt or let down, so I stayed the fuck away. My only connection was to Joey, and so far, since I came back to Rising Star, the Joey I encountered wasn’t the same one I remembered. She was a shell of the person she used to be, and I was beginning to think that for the first time in my life, my big sister was going to let me down like everyone else.
“I understand that, but I was looking out for everyone, not just Scorpio.” I dismissed the action again with a shrug. “If I didn’t try to stop him and something happened, I didn’t need another thing on my conscience.”
Archer looked utterly confused. “Either way, good job, kid.”
I nodded and finished working before going into my room and laying out on the small bed. It wasn’t lost on me that this was the first place I’d felt safe in a long time. Even at the boys’ home, you had to worry about someone trying to do something to you in your sleep. It was better than a fucking jail cell. This small room wasn’t much, by normal standards, but to me it was a refuge of peace and solace.
My mind drifted off to Sienna, and I couldn’t help smiling as I pictured her beautiful face. She was sweet and smart, too smart for the likes of me. It still surprised me that she chose stripping as a way to supplement her income. She was definitely good at what she did. I’d been hard since I walked onto the club floor tonight and caught the last half of her set. But I wasn’t the only one. There were probably at least nine other men in the club that were captivated by her dancing as well. Sienna was a beautiful woman, and I could feel her lips, like I was still kissing them. Damn, I wish I knew what I did to make her run away like she did. She hadn’t talked to me since, but I did catch her looking at me a few times, just long enough for that familiar stirring to happen behind my jeans when I caught her blue eyes for a half a second.
Jesus, I was hard again just thinking about her. Sitting in my room alone didn’t help the matter, because all I could picture now was the way she moved gracefully and sensuously across the stage, and how those sinful lips changed my whole world when I touched them.
She was the woman I wanted my first time to be with. Hell, I wanted to give her the world if she let me. It didn’t matter that she was slightly older than me. Sienna was perfect in every way, and I’d give my left testicle just to prove to her how special she truly is.
But what did I have to offer a woman, especially one as beautiful and smart as Sienna? She was too good for me, and I was nothing more than a street rat that was taking advantage of a handout. In a year, she’d be a nurse, and where would I be? Either living on the streets or sitting here with my cock in my hand with only the images of Sienna rocking and swaying while she gyrated her hips and chest to the music as she danced across the stage in nothing more than a thong and a pair of pasties to keep me going. Like she said the other day, she wasn’t ready or looking for a relationship, and even if she was, I knew in my heart that I’d never have a shot with her.
But that didn’t stop me from wishing for a chance. Hoping that one day she would give a guy like me the opportunity to be with her. And just like the ghostly linger of her kiss that I can’t seem to shake, I’d always have Sienna’s image following me into my dreams–a permanent mirage that would always be just out of my reach.
Chapter Seventeen
“Hello?” I answered the phone, groggily. It was Sunday morning, and last night had been an extra-long and rowdy night. The place is always a little dirtier on Saturday nights, so it takes longer to get it cleaned up. Plus, Scorpio’s adventure into the bottom of the bottle didn’t help much.
“Hey, kid.” I recognized Archer’s voice. His voice seemed a lot gruffer than normal. “Did Scorpio show you how to take deliveries?”
“Yeah, I helped him last week, and he walked me through it. Why?”
“Tomorrow morning, we are getting a delivery at Stars and Strips. Scorpio won’t be there for a while, so I was hoping he showed you how to do it.”
“He did. Is everything okay?” I sat up, my stomach sinking like a brick.
“I’m not going to lie to you, kid, it isn’t good. But what I can tell you is that what they’re accusing him of is bogus.”
Damn. It must be really bad then.“Okay. Yeah, I’m here, so I’ll take the delivery.”
“Good. We’ll probably send someone over to help, but I don’t know what time the truck will be there, so just give me a call when it shows up. We have to deal with things here.”
“No problem.” I hesitated. “Archer, what are they accusing him of?”
Archer growled low in his throat, showing me how pissed off he truly was. “They think he killed Brooklyn.”
It was Monday afternoon before I heard from anyone, and it was Cap that showed up at the club to help me with the delivery.
“How’s Scorpio?” I asked, knowing there was only one answer to that question, but I was curious all the same.
“Pissed off like the rest of us.” Cap lifted a case of wine onto one of the shelves. “You know he didn’t kill her, right?” He gave me a curious look, trying to read my expression. I guess with the way I acted after Zodiac shot the asshole from the Hell’s Artillery, I could understand his sideways look.
“Yeah.” I shrugged just before lifting a case of beer onto a shelf. “Anyone with eyes knew that he and Brooklyn were good friends and maybe even fuck buddies.”
“It’s not always like this, kid. We are mostly at peace and have been until recently. This bullshit with the Artillery, everything that happened at the rally, and to Brooklyn, that’s not something we normally deal with here. We’re a bunch of guys that own a strip club, ride bikes, and do shit for charity. That’s the norm, but ever since the rally, it’s like we’ve had this fucking cloud over our heads sending us into one shit storm after the next.”
“Okay.” I didn’t know what else to say because I could see it. That damn rally was a shit show for everyone. The sheriff getting killed was a shock to the whole community. I actually remember Sheriff Rooker from before I left for the boys’ home near Austin. He pulled Joey and me into questioning, asking us about the Sinclair’s house after Joey went public with the shit we had been through. He was a nice man and seemed to genuinely care about what was going to happen to me and Joey.
“He’ll beat this rap, kid. Scorpio wouldn’t harm a hair on a woman’s head. He might grumble and talk shit, but he would never strike out against a woman, let alone kill one. None of us would.”
The more I was around the Celestial Sons, the more I knew that was true. They could have hurt London for the shit she pulled, but they didn’t. They simply cut ties with her. I watched them interacting with the girls in the club, and they showed them nothing but kindness and respect. It made me wish Joey had gotten with this club instead of the Hell’s Artillery.
