Bella Chapter 7

I didn't know what I should do—smack him or embrace the sweet part he did with the roses and let it go. Or that was what I was thinking until the very end. Then it turned to thoughts of purely slapping him. If he thought this was a way to get in my pants, he was wrong. Coming here, telling me not to go on dates with anyone because they should be his… where did he get off saying that? Then he came around the table and grabbed me.

He didn't hurt me or anything, but he did startle me. I was somewhere else for a couple of moments, and he was someone different. Panic filled me, and all my brain did was scream, save yourself, so that's what I tried to do. I lashed out with a slashing motion to take him in the throat since I couldn't reach his eyes. Of course, with my bad luck, he evaded it and let go, but at least it gave me room. I backed away, and as I did, the fog in my brain started to clear, and I was back in Texas with Boomer.

He had confusion mixed with alarm on his handsome face. Damn it, why would I notice or care if he was handsome? He had grabbed me. I should be running for my life and locking myself in the house.

"Bella, calm down. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to startle you or make you think I was about to hurt you. I would never do that. I was only trying to keep you from leaving. Please, don't. I'm fucking this up, and I know it, but I need you to understand. Please, let's sit and talk more." I heard the pleading in his voice.

"I need you to leave."

He hung his head and closed his eyes. He now had a defeated look on his face. I watched him because I was wavering. He took a couple of deep breaths before he lifted his head and opened his eyes.

"I just want to say one more thing, and then I'll leave. I never meant to insult or scare you. I've been an asshole because I've been stupid. I was denying I had feelings for you. I'm not trying just to get you to sleep with me. Knowing you're going out with other men, especially ones in my club, is killing me. I don't know how I'll handle it if you end up with one of them. I know I haven't done enough as an apology, but I will."

Without another word, he walked off and around the house. I stood there frozen. I didn't know what to do. My anger and fear had almost totally receded. I was stuck at the stunned and confused stage. I heard his bike start, and then he was gone. It took me a few minutes to get my ass moving, and when I did, I did the only thing I knew to do. I called my best friend. As soon as she answered, all I had to say was, "Londyn, I need you."

"Where are you? Are you alright?"

"I'm alright physically, and I'm at home. Please, can you come? I need to talk."

"Is it about the guys?"

"Yes and no."

"I'll be there as soon as I can."

"Thank you," I whispered before hanging up.

I entered the house and wandered around, trying to occupy myself until she came so I wouldn't go crazy. I didn't know how long I meandered before I heard an engine. Only it wasn't just one. Running to the door, I opened it to find Londyn pulling in, followed by two more cars. Who in the world was with her? I watched as she, plus a few others, got out of her car, and then the two remaining vehicles emptied. I was taken aback to see what looked like most of the Ares ladies, along with Diane. Londyn marched over to me.

"Don't worry, they're here for emotional support. They've been involved in this whole deal to various degrees, so I thought it would be good to have them here. And, of course, I grabbed Diane. Can we come in?"

"Yes, you can come in, silly. Thank you. I didn't call Di because I figured she was busy with Sadie, and I didn't want to distract her from mother-daughter time. She only gets Sundays off with her," I explained as I stepped back to let them inside.

My tiny house was soon filled to overflowing with women. They all greeted me and gave me hugs. It took a few minutes to get them situated. After all, I had to be a good hostess and offer them something to drink. Londyn and Di helped me get the drinks for those who said yes, and then we sat on every available surface in my living room, including the floor. I gazed at them, at a loss on how to start. Facing me, besides my two friends, were Lyric, Jackie, Ember, Adara, Sara, Lorelei, Tamysin, Piper, and Raine.

"The others would be here too, but someone had to stay behind to help watch the kids. The guys could've, but we don't like to leave them all without female supervision. I mean, they are only men," Londyn informed me with a smirk. The others laughed. She made me grin.

"Well, I sure wasn't expecting this when I called you."

"Hey, you're a sista in need. I was actually wondering if I might get a call from you," Londyn said.

"Why would you think I'd be calling you?" I asked suspiciously.

"Okay, don't hate us, but we did something. We did it on purpose but for an excellent reason," Piper jumped in.

"What did you do?"

"Alright, we all knew about what went down with Boomer at the bar and then how the other four and those two guys you know wanted a chance with you, so we helped Londyn set up the four in the club," she said.

"Yeah, I know all this."

"What you didn't know is that we set a scene up earlier today. Piper and I were in the kitchen at the clubhouse, and we made sure when we knew Boomer could hear us to talk about how your dates with Ashes and Dragon went, how you would go out with them again, and how you were having dates with Daredevil and Vicious next week," Londyn continued the story.

"Oh my God, please tell me you didn't!" I shrieked.

"We did, and it worked great. Boomer lost his shit. He stormed into the common room and confronted them. He basically told all four of them that none of them were to date you and a bunch of other stuff. Sin and Saint laid down the law to him and said the only reason Boomer said and did what he did before was because he was fighting his attraction to you, and it was more than just for sex. That the other guys weren't doing anything wrong. Boomer said they were in the wrong by going after another brother's woman.

"He was reminded you weren't his, and now it was in your hands who you dated and if you wanted to be with any of them, including him. Then, he was told to man up or shut up. Boomer stormed out and was gone most of the day. We didn't know if he went to see you, but when there was no call, I figured he hadn't gotten the guts. When you called and said you needed me, I guessed he had, after all, and I told the girls. Presto, we're here. Now spill and tell us what he did and said?" Londyn demanded excitedly.

By then, I had my face buried in my hands, groaning. She tore them away and gave me an impatient look. "Don't look at me like that! I can't believe you did that and then didn't warn me. I thought you were my friend. Jesus. I need a drink," I muttered.

"You rarely drink, and you can't start now. Talk first, get shitfaced after," was her sage advice.

Knowing I would never get them to leave until I did and I couldn't kick all their asses out by myself, I gave in to the inevitable and told them what happened from the moment I came home and saw his bike to the moment he left. When I was done, it was so silent that I wasn't sure if anyone was breathing. Then, a loud cheer burst out, making the rest of us jump. It was Tamysin. We all gave her a look.

"Come on, you know what this means. He's gonna be pulling out all the stops now. There's no way, after this, he'll let the others possibly win your heart. The man planted your roses. Yes, he has a shit ton to learn on how to communicate with a woman and on expressing feelings, but he's never really had to do it. Think of how each of our guys fucked up, especially in the beginning. They can't seem to help it. It's in the male DNA. That's why God made women second. He knew he hadn't created perfection the first time, so he did an upgrade and hit pay dirt the second time," she avowed smugly. This did get us all to chuckle and nod.

"You've got to be kidding me," I stated.

"No, we're not. Let me ask, why did you ask Londyn to come over?" Jackie asked.

"To help me wrap my head around all of it."

"Why do you need to do that? I mean, if you aren't attracted to him and aren't touched by his poor attempt to apologize, and you're looking for a man completely opposite of him, what's to wrap your head around?" Adara asked.

"Can you honestly tell us there's zero percent of you who isn't attracted to him, and if he had gone about it differently, he wouldn't be someone you'd go out with?" Lorelei asked.

"My man chased me off the compound like I was nothing and then came groveling after me after Sara chewed him out," Lyric told me.

"Mine hated me and thought I had betrayed Kinslee, which I did, but not because I wanted to. I did it to protect my daughter," Ember added.

"Mine had to decide if he'd arrest me or not," Adara piped up.

"I thought mine was nothing but a manwhore, and he was before me. I knew of his exploits with women from stories Sin told since Trident was his commanding officer," Sara said.

"I didn't know if I could trust the club. When I came forward to help them, Phantom didn't trust me at all, and he made sure I knew it," Tamysin growled.

"I thought Saint had a baby momma and was playing with me. I went out with another man and cut off contact with him, and Raine did the same with her guys because she figured they were like him." Piper was the last to share.

I looked at Jackie. She shrugged. "Mine was the most well-behaved out of them, but he still almost beat the hell out of his brother, thinking we'd slept together, although, at that time, he didn't know he had a brother."

"And you know my story with Torpedo. So you see, they do mess up and sometimes badly, but in the end, they will make it worth it. If they make you their old lady, they'll treat you like a queen and protect you like a treasure. Sure, we still occasionally want to kill them, but show us a woman who doesn't think that about her man at least once a day," Sara summarized.

They weren't giving me a chance to answer them. One after the other, they hit me with it all, which made me want to cry uncle because what they were saying resonated with me on more than one point. When they were finished, I sat there in absolute shock. When they put it as they did, I could see that while he had been an asshole and he didn't explain close to correctly, he did have enough guts to apologize and try to explain it even though he made a mess of it.

"So what you're saying is, I should forgive him and tell him I'll go on a date with him. And I shouldn't go out with Daredevil and Vicious."

"Hell no, you can't totally forgive him yet. He needs to find more ways to make it up to you. I think you should go out with both of the others so you can make a fair judgment. But let me ask you this. Before a date with the other two, if we asked you out of the five of them if any struck you hard or captured your interest and just plain made you hot, would you say none of them, or who would you name?" Londyn asked.

Ten pairs of eyes stared intently at me. I felt myself break out in a sweat. If I lied, Londyn and Diane would know it. Di had been the one to stay quiet, but she listened closely to everything they said. I steeled myself, and then I confessed.

"I did have an immediate reaction to one, and despite everything, even the dates with Ashes and Dragon, which went well, they didn't come close to making me react like Boomer."

"I knew it!" Diane crowed, then blushed.

"Oh, we know, but we just wanted to see if you would be able to acknowledge it," my bestie said smugly.

I didn't know what to say, so I just gave her the middle finger. This had them all cracking up. When they quieted down, I voiced one of my biggest fears. "What if I forgive him, give him a chance, and I fall for him, then he ends up only wanting sex, or he turns into someone scary?"

"I can't see him lying just to get sex. Believe us, he doesn't need to, I hate to say. All the guys have women throwing themselves at them. However, our guys have enough honor not to play games. They'll straight up say if all they want is sex. As for the other one, he'll never harm you. Why would you be scared of him doing it? Did he do something to make you think he would?" Sara asked with a frown.

"He grabbed my arms but not to hurt me or even hard. He didn't want me running off before he finished talking to me. When I lashed out, he backed off and got upset that I reacted the way I did. But some men are good at hiding their true character, and some can end up being very creepy or even dangerous."

"Bella, who did that to you?" Londyn asked forcefully.

This was one thing I never talked about, not even to her and Di, and I wasn't comfortable talking about it now. I should've kept my mouth shut. Talking about it gave it life for me, and I worked hard to forget and move on. I wouldn't open the door further.

"Let's just say I've had some experience with something like this, but I don't want to talk about it. So please, don't keep asking." Their expressions made it obvious that no one wanted to forget about it, but they did stop asking.

"Okay, but if you ever want to talk, you have any or all of us willing to listen," Adara said sweetly.

"Thank you. So, you all think I should give Boomer a chance?" I asked to get us back on a different thread.

All their heads were nodding enthusiastically. I was torn. As much as Boomer pissed me off and for those few seconds frightened me, I wasn't able to forget my attraction to him. It was more potent than any I'd had for a guy before. I only prayed that the assertions he wouldn't be doing this if he only wanted sex were true. I knew there were no guarantees in life, and even those who fall in love could go on to break up, but I needed at least the hope that it would be long-term.

"Okay, I'm willing to give him a chance. Tell me how I should do this."

This opened the floodgate to their suggestions. Suffice it to say, when they were done, it was a couple of hours later. Okay, we had some fun talking about other stuff mixed in there, too, but it was mostly strategizing. I had a new appreciation for how diabolical they could be.

???

The next day, I was in the middle of lessons when a delivery truck pulled up. Making sure my riders were okay, I went to see what the driver needed. I didn't have anything ordered, so he had to be lost. It happened sometimes. As I got to the truck and he stepped out, I smiled.

"Hi, let me guess, you're lost and need directions. What address are you looking for?"

"I'm not lost. This is the right place. I have a delivery. Where can I put it for you? The box is heavy."

"Are you sure it's for Bella Saunders?"

"Yep, it says so right here," he informed me as he opened the large door and lifted out a big box. I knew it was heavy by the way his arm muscles strained.

"Oh, um, the porch, I guess," I quickly said. He followed me there, then set it down.

"Have a good day," he told me before walking off.

"You too," I called out.

I was dying to see what it was, but I needed to get back to my riders, so I left it until later. My mind kept going to it throughout the remainder of the day. As soon as the last person left, I rushed to get my box cutter and opened it. I was shocked to see numerous bags of an organic, high-end brand of horse treats. They were ones I'd used in the past, but they were pricey. I couldn't afford them all the time, though the horses loved them.

Wanting to figure out where they came from since I knew for sure I hadn't ordered them, I dug into the box until I found a packing slip. Unfolding it, I read the slip. My heart jumped when I saw it was a gift receipt with the option to exchange for different ones, and the sender was Brayden Wilde. I didn't know anyone by that name, which was my first thought, but then the address caught my eye. I recognized it. It was the same as the Infidels' clubhouse.

Taking out my cell phone, I called Londyn. I was curious to find out which of the guys had sent it. I didn't know any of their actual real names. I was thinking it had to be Ashes or Dragon since we'd had a date.

"Hey, girl, all done for the day? How was it?" was her happy response as she answered my call.

"My day was great. No students or parents I wanted to strangle. Hey, I need to ask you a question. Today, I got a big box of horse treats delivered. The sender has the address of the compound. Can you tell me which guy is Brayden Wilde?"

"Brayden Wilde, hell, I don't know. Give me a minute to text Torpedo and ask." I waited for her to do it. When she came back on, she sounded curious. "Wow, horse treats. What guy would think to send those?"

"One who must know I love my horses. They're the good ones, too. I've given them to the horses before. I wonder how he knew that?"

"They have their ways. Do you—" She was cut off by the beeping of her phone. A couple of seconds later, I heard her mutter, "Oh my God."

"What? Who is it?"

"Honey, are you ready for this? Brayden Wilde is none other than Boomer. What a sexy name."

I never considered it would be him. I was stunned. "Are you messing with me?"

"Honey, I wouldn't mess about this. It's Boomer. I guess the rose planting wasn't his only attempt at saying he's sorry. The man is stepping up his game. Speaking of him, has he tried to contact you today?"

"No, but then how could he? I doubt he'd try to come back here, and he doesn't have my number."

"Um, yeah, he does. I sorta told Torpedo he should share it with him. I mean, it was only fair since the other four have it. We know he would never ask them for it, nor would they give him the number. I wasn't sure if he'd ask me, so I was proactive." She actually giggled at the end.

I groaned. "Really! Londyn, did you ever think he decided to forget about me after yesterday?"

"No, and those treats tell me I was right. You should call him and tell him thank you."

"I can't call him!"

"Why not? Oh, never mind, then text him, chicken. Boomer deserves to know you got them and liked his gift."

"I don't have his number," I told her without thinking.

"Well, I just happen to have it. Torpedo included it when I told him why I was asking who Brayden was. I'll send it to you. You can't ignore the gift. It's good manners to say thank you. Have fun. Talk later," she said in a flurry, and then the ho hung up on me.

I stared at my phone, imagining it was her neck and I could choke her. A ding a few seconds later made me jump. Knowing what it was, I tried not to look, but I was unable to resist. Since I knew I had it, I wasn't able to forget. I tried distracting myself by taking care of the horses and thinking of my devious friend. It took me an hour of working and debating before I broke down, and I sent a text to him.

Me: This is Bella. I got your gift today. Thank you. It was very thoughtful, but you didn't have to do that.

Boomer: I hope they're the right ones. I read the reviews, and they were the best. You're welcome, and I know I didn't have to, but I wanted to.

Me: They are. The horses have had them before, and they love them. I'll have to ration them, or they'll get spoiled and want them all the time.

Boomer: I'll keep them supplied. How was your day?

From there, he and I chatted back and forth about our days and random things. I had to end it to finish off my evening chores, but I couldn't wipe the smile off my face. Who knew he could be sweet and thoughtful?

???

The next day, I got another delivery. This time, it was more rose bushes and mulch. When I texted to thank him and insisted he didn't need to keep sending things, he ignored the last part and informed me the second part of the gift was the free labor to plant them. He said he thought they would look pretty in the front of the house. He was right. I had been debating putting some out there.

As the rest of the work week passed, I kept getting a gift a day, and our texting lasted longer and longer, which was bad in more ways than one. I hadn't told him I was willing to go on a date with him, nor had he asked. The plan with the girls was to wait until after I went out with Vicious and Daredevil first. And that was the biggest problem. I was no longer looking forward to doing it. They had texted to let me know how much they were looking forward to our dates, to which I had to reply and say I was, too. The other two also texted to ask how I was and to see if I'd go out again. I'd put them off.

The gift Boomer sent on Wednesday was a basket filled with books. They were steamy romance ones by SK Tennison. I knew from our talks this was Sara's pen name. I'd been astonished to find out she was an author and wrote spicy romances. She laughed when she told me and said some readers called it "mommy porn." I was excited to read them and again surprised he'd thought of them.

Thursday, I got another gift basket. This one was filled with things to have your own at-home spa experience. As if it wasn't enough, a gift certificate to the local spa was in there for a massage and facial. What made me laugh was the candle he included. It had the name of the candle as—"Sorry I fucked up, forgive me." That night, I begged him not to send anything else. He told me he'd put things on hold for a few days, but he was making no promises. I was going to bed at night with a smile on my face, and my dreams of him got hotter. I wasn't looking forward to my date with Vicious on Friday at all.