He nods, closing his eyes before we see the pain in them. He knows most of this is his fault, and taking out Moseley when we were in Italy only has made things worse.
“Do you think the Misfits will retaliate?”
He nods. “They have nothing stopping them now. With Moseley and Rico gone, I bet they’ll come for us next. We basically took out their buffer and left ourselves wide open for attack.”
“But we had no other choice,” Krampus adds. “They took Mindy.”
A smile slightly toys with my lips as I watch my closest friend’s face light up the second he says her name. I never expected for him to find his person, but things have drastically changed within the club, and slowly people have been falling victim to Cupid’s arrow left and right. Not only did Drac finally marry Amber after years of them being apart, but now he’s a father too, making him softer than he should be. He’s not the only one though. Phantom now has a girl who isn’t bat-shit crazy, unless you count the fact that she can talk to dead people. He’s happily tied down to Autumn, who’s made her presence pretty prominent in the club. But it’s Mindy that was the shocker. She came out of nowhere, stealing my man Rich’s heart so easily the second she settled into town and opened a bakery here. Now the bastard can’t stop smiling. And it’s a little unnerving.
“Right, and we’d protect her again if we have to,” Drac announces.
“We’ll protect them all,” Krampus adds. “If the Raging Misfits come for us, we’ll be ready.”
Will we though?
It’s been entirely too quiet since Moseley’s death, and I have this sinking feeling that at any moment they’re going to come after us, hitting us when we least expect it.
“Look, we all know that Moseley’s death is going to turn into a catalyst of shit we’ll eventually need to deal with, but until we know what the Misfits are planning, we just need to keep moving forward, and start working towards something better for all of us.”
“Like what?” I question, hating how I’m the only guy here without a girl. Not that there’s anyone else for me in this world but Poppy. I haven’t slept with anyone but her since I got out. And even after she stabbed me, doing so in a way that would keep me alive, I’ve stayed loyal, refusing to open my heart to anyone else. Sure, the Annies have tried, but none of them have successfully wooed their way into my bed. I won’t let them.
Maybe that makes me a crazy person. I’m sitting here pining over a girl, that’s hated me her entire life, stabbed me with a knife, and tried to burn my clubhouse to the ground. But despite everything, I still want her.
That white knight syndrome just never stops.
“You look lost in thought, Voor,” Drac comments, his eyes slightly narrowing.
“Just thinking.”
“About Poppy?” Krampus questions.
My head bobs reluctantly. “I know it’s stupid, but I just can’t stop thinking about her. If it wasn’t for her, Amber and Gio might’ve…” my voice trails off.
Drac’s hands slowly start to clench, knuckles turning white. Maybe it was her way of trying to apologize for setting the club on fire, but for whatever reason, Drac has Poppy to thank for bringing him and Amber back together. The Raging Misfits had plans on kidnapping her and Giovanni, and then using themas bait, or selling them to the same trafficking ring that dick Moseley tried to sell Mindy to.
“I fucking hate that bitch,” Drac growls. “I know she saved Amber and Gio’s life. But that doesn’t change anything for me. I still fucking hate her.” He catches my gaze and doesn’t even apologize for his words.
He has every right to hate her.
I just never will.
“We going on the ride today?” I ask, needing the open Nevada roads and air to clear my thoughts.
Drac nods. “I think we all need it after everything that happened in Italy.”
Krampus agrees, “Yeah, it’s been hard to bounce back from it. Mindy’s been a wreck, but I’m starting to wonder if it’s just pregnancy hormones?”
Drac shrugs. “They pop up out of nowhere, Brother. One minute they’re fine. The next minute they’re crying. It’s crazy.”
Phantom and Gremlin appear from out of the backrooms to join us. The rest of the club is still sleeping, I guess.
“We talking about babies again?” Phantom questions, looking a little afraid.
“Yeah, sort of. Pregnancy hormones.”
Phantom chuckles. “I’m making sure that Autumn doesn’t drink the water here. I’m not ready for a kid right now.”
“None of us were ready for this, Phantom. They just sort of come without warning,” Krampus acknowledges. “Somehow I’m getting two.”
