She skipped ahead and looked through the canopy of leaves above us as we walked.
“Can we walk off the beaten path?”
“I’m not your warden, Darby, if you want to go somewhere, I just need to know so I can keep you safe.”
She nodded and stepped up against a large tree, and climbed in between the sticks and bushes until we got into an opening full of dead trees, almost like the animals had their own little place to hang out in. Darby looked around, up into the canopy, watching the birds chitter away. Her lips were parted slightly as she looked up and giggled at the squirrelsrunning down the branches of one tree and hopping to another.
It was such a pure moment, not filled with sass or eye rolls, but just genuine happiness. It reminded me just how young she was. I mean…if I’m being honest with myself, she wasn’t that much younger than me, five years to be exact, but she just seemed so happy with something so sweet. It made me forget why we were here, why I was away from the clubhouse…why I was sporting a hard dick with no way to relieve the tension.
She looked over at me, her smile broad, and I wondered how her father could treat her like she meant nothing, how he could do that to Shona. It made me wish I could blow him up over and over again. This fierce protectiveness I had over her was getting me a little concerned for my mental health. I never felt this way about anyone, and I had protected others for the club before, women even, but for some reason Darby has weaseled herself under my armour and I knew it was going to end up with me needing to escape.
“Let’s go back,” she said. “I think the new season of the Kardashians just landed.”
Groaning, I followed her back to the house and got her set up in the living room while I moved down to my room to get my ear phones. Therewas no way in hell I was going to watch that crap with her without something to tide me over. When I got back to the living room, she had her fleece blanket wrapped over her legs and she was flicking through the programs.
“I thought you wanted to watch the Kardashians.”
“I don’t know, just seeing what else is on.”
She finally settled on Dirty Dancing as I flicked to a podcast on my phone and sat there with her while she watched the movie.
Darby
When I awoke from my nightmare, the first person I sought out was Rebel. I don’t know why but he was calming, almost like I knew I was safe with him. He wasn’t here though, he’d left while I was asleep and now Viper sat on the couch flicking through his phone.
I didn’t mind Viper, he had always been funny when he was around me, making fun of Rebel. It was in a big brother way, the way Keefe used to be with me before my father saw me as a woman and started doing to me what he did to Shona. I was lucky. Keefe put a stop to it, but he couldn’t protect me forever.
“Hey.”
He looked up and smiled, putting his phone away. “Hey, kid.”
“I’m not a kid.”
“Sorry, princess,” he smirked. “That better?”
“I suppose,” I sighed. “That’s what Rebel calls me, anyway.”
“What do you want to eat?” he asked. “I can order us something.”
“You mean someone is allowed to come here?” I asked him, challenging his authority. He rolled his eyes.
“I mean I’ll get one of them to bring us food here,” he said. “Phones are a miracle and you can call anyone you want.”
“Unless, of course, you’re forbidden from having one.”
His smile dropped and he sighed. “Right…I forgot we were holding you captive for a moment there.”
I stuck my middle finger up at him which earned me a deep, throaty chuckle while he picked up his phone and called someone. “Yeah…can you get us some food out here?”
There was some talking on the other end and then he rolled his eyes.
“Yes, I know there’s food in the pantry…I don’t fucking cook. Do you want me to burn down the house?”
Viper finally hung up and I let my laughter burst forth. “Who was that?”
“Morena,” he replied. “She’s Hawk’s wife.”
He was the VP, I knew that much. I didn’t think I’d met Morena yet, but I liked her sassiness, so I could only imagine she’d be cool to get to know.
