Cap turned to face me. “Well, you don’t want to go to my clubhouse, so I’m going to have to go there on my own to get my things.”
“You could just drop me off at my house,” I offered, liking the idea of being alone.
He closed the gap between us, and slightly cupped my face. “I’m sorry, Ruby, but I can’t leave you alone like that, not unless I know for sure that you’ve worked through your grief. I’ll be back in a few hours. I promise.”
Then, before I could enjoy the warmth of his palm against my cheek, he pulled away, leaving me standing there in a puddle of my own abandoned misery.
Chapter Five
I pieced together the last of my things, throwing them all in a few duffle bags before heading out into the bar area of the clubhouse. Zodiac, Bull, Scales, and Leo were all standing there waiting for me, arms crossed, with concerned yet also a tad pissed off expressions on each of their faces.
“Tell me again, Cap, why you think you need to leave the club for a whole month?” Zodiac questioned.
“Because, Prez, she needs my help.”
“Ah, so it’s a woman pulling him away,” Bull said with a grin. “Knew he wouldn’t be running away from the club over a man.”
Scales laughed. “Cap, when you asked the club if you could do this business on the side, you said it wouldn’t interfere with the club. Having you on a constant watch of a woman for a month definitely constitutes interfering with club business.”
“She won’t come here, Scales. I can’t do anything about it.”
Leo took a swig from his beer, his angry gaze finding mine. “So, you’re choosing some woman you just met over the goddamn club?”
Leo was always a hostile person, but he seemed overly sensitive today.
“No, the club always comes first.” I swiveled my gaze, so it fixated on Zodiac. “But she needs me, Prez. I can’t explain why, but something is telling me that I need to do this. I promise thatif anything comes up with the club, Church, whatever, I’ll be here. But this girl is on the verge of ending everything if she’s not watched closely, and what kind of man would I be if I just let her slip through the cracks like all the others?”
Zodiac scrubbed at his chin and sighed. “Fine, but if the club needs you for anything, you’re going to have to leave her, Cap. You’re our Road Captain, and we need you at every meeting and club function. Plus, Grief’s Conviction is going to be here at the end of the month.”
“I know. I just need a month, Zodiac. One whole month to piece her back together.”
“And what if you can’t?” Leo boomed. “What if she’s so far gone that her grief swallows her up and sucks out her soul?” A familiar ghostly gaze swept over his deep blue eyes. It was the look he returned home with that didn’t seem to ever go away. Leo didn’t like to talk about his past, but I could tell that his past was still with him, toying with every emotion he had left. The man was slowly killing himself, and he was one of the major reasons why I always stayed at the clubhouse. Whether he liked it or not, Leo will always be my best friend, and I was going to be there for him as much as I could, but the difference between him and Ruby was everything. He had all of us, while she had nothing.
“I have to try, Leo. The girl deserves a good life, one where she isn’t hurting every day.”
He took another drink, his fingers clutching the glass like he wanted to break it.
“Hurt isn’t something you just get over, Cap. It lingers and haunts until every breath is overwhelmed by it and just the thought of existing is too much for you.”
Bull put a friendly hand on Leo’s back, but all it did was anger Leo more. “Don’t touch me.”
Bull laughed. “Sorry, I forgot that we aren’t supposed to poke the lion.”
“Fuck you, Bull.”
Scales’ phone chose that exact minute to interrupt us, and despite who was on the call, it was something we all needed to break up the hostility floating around the room. Or so I thought.
“Yeah?”
“Rosalie, calm the fuck down.” He took a long pause, but you could hear her muffled yells through the receiver. “I’m at the clubhouse,” he said, his voice rising. “Goddamn it, stop acting crazy. Just because I’m not doing what you want me to, doesn’t mean you can just order me around. I’ve already given up a lot for you, and I’m not about to give up the last thing I have left to appease your wounded ego.”
He looked around and noticed us all staring at him. Quickly, he moved to the other side of the room.
“Look, stop threatening me, you know how much that shit pisses me off. And don’t you dare bring that up! I’m getting sick of your shit, Rosalie, it’s getting old really fast.” Another long pause. “Oh yeah? Well, fuck you, too!”
He threw his phone across the room shattering it into a hundred pieces.
Zodiac was at his side within seconds, trying to calm the man down. “Dude, chill.”
