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“I don’t care.”
“Right.” She looked over my shoulder. “She’s been here one night, and half the club is already protective of her.”
“That’s not surprising.”
“No.” Sloane smiled. “And it's not because of you. She's extremely likable. But you’re the interesting part.”
I stared. “What does that even mean?”
“It means you brought sunshine into a room full of assholes and now everyone is confused.”
I almost argued. “They're not confused. Half these guys are curious. Some of them probably have murderous intent on who did her dirty.”
“Yeah, what's up about that, though?” She leaned in until we were at eye level. “Who do I have to fuck up? Who put their hands on her?”
My lips twitch. I didn't have to tell Sloane when I was already working on it. Sloane would fuck him up badly, but I wanted to do more than that. He deserved way more. He deserved a painful death. But Wren didn't know that yet, so I was holding off.
“I'm on it,” I swore.
“Good,” she said, satisfied. Suddenly, she was frowning. “Oh, shit,” she said as she placed her drink on the table. “Rosa is here.”
My eyes darted past her to the door where she was. She was wearing too-short underwear with black pantyhose and boots. Her hair was styled in a bob that framed the sides of her face, and her glare was sharp.
I followed her gaze as they traveled behind me toward ... Wren. I shot to my feet, but Sloane’s hand on my wrist stopped me. She shook her head at me, silently asking me to stay put.
“I'm sure she can handle it,” Sloane said as we observed Rosa march toward Wren. Half the club was watching. “She looks like a woman who knows how to bark and then bite.”
My teeth ground against each other. I couldn't hear what Rosa was saying, but I could see the emotions displayed across Wren’s face as she took her in slowly. First, intrigue, and then surprise. Now, she looked ... irritated? I wasn't sure. But if the way her lips were curled downward and the dent in her cheeks were anything to go by, then she was starting to look annoyed.
Next to Rosa, Wren looked different. She wasn’t dressed in the traditional biker attire. Instead, she'd put on black jeans, sneakers, and a huge hoodie. I noticed she loved to dress in those.
Then Rosa put her hands on Wren, touching her hair. I was out of my seat and charging toward them in no time, with Sloane on my tail.
Rosa looked at me, flashing me a fake smile. “So, the rumors are true?”
My eyes flashed. “Rosa.”
“The new girl has you wrapped around her pinkie finger.” She turned toward Wren haughtily. “Or is it not, little birdie?”
Wren’s face turned pink. “The name is Wren.”
“I don't care what your name is.”
Wren’s gaze shifted from Rosa to me in a nanosecond. Then her lips twitched. She squared her shoulders as she took a tiny step toward Rosa.
“Bitch,” she began, surprising me and everybody else within hearing distance. “Say what you really want to say if you have the guts. If not, get lost.”
Rosa cackled, looking at me. “She's funny.”
“Don't talk about me like I'm not here. I'm right here.” Annoyed, Wren gripped her jaw, forcing her to look at her. “I might have let someone put his hands on me in the past, but that has ended. The next person who would dare lay their hands on me wouldn't make it out of the fight alive. I'm not a girl you can prey on. Go practice your mean-girl streak on someone else. Got it?”
She didn't wait for Rosa to respond before brushing past her, hitting her shoulders with mine as she walked away to the bar.
Sloane clapped softly beside me, grinning. “Damn. Cinderella's got some fire, Graves. You picked right.”
I stared at Wren now laughing again with Viper. Something fluttered in my chest. I couldn't have picked someone like her. It was just my luck that she found me first.
I just had to make sure she knew that too.