Chapter 17

SEVENTEEN

KYLE

"It doesn't matterwho I am," the man states after staring at me for far too long. I arch a brow, watching him and wondering why he thinks he's special. It's clear that this man is completely full of himself.

Ahh, I understand it now. This is likely one of the top men in charge.

"Your man and his people, they're very anxious to get you back. It has me wondering…" His words trail off.

As he watches me, I see his entire demeanor shift. This man is playing a game, and I don't like any part of it. He appears to shift right in front of me. He's no longer just a man who is watching me. Instead, he almost has a snakelike demeanor. I've never seen anything like it.

"Has you wondering?" I prod.

He shakes his head once, then takes a step toward me, but only one. He's still across the room from me, but the way his attention stays connected to mine, I have to wonder exactly what is happening here, but I'm not about to ask.

Even if I wonder, I'm not sure I actually want to know. I would like for him to spin around, close the door, and flip the lock into place again. I want to be alone. I want him gone.

The whole thing terrifies the absolute shit out of me.

"It has me wondering," he continues, "what is so special about you?" he asks. "This idiot Xavier is willing to do whatever it takes to have you, and the Dark Horse MC is willing to wage a war over you. Sure, they claim it has to do with us encroaching on Texas, but I know that the truth of the matter is you. So, please tell me, what makes you so fucking special?"

I'm not sure how to answer that. I've never thought of myself as desirable or even desired by anyone before. But if I had to describe the way Rider possibly feels about me, it would be an insta-lust/desire thing.

"Well?" he asks when I don't respond immediately.

"I'm not special," I confess.

He snorts. "You must be, or these men would not be fighting over you."

It's my turn to laugh, and as I do, this man's eyes widen, and he stares at me in surprise. I don't know if I'm the first person to genuinely laugh in his vicinity or what, but he's watching me like this is the first time he's ever seen anyone crack a smile, let alone burst out into laughter.

He takes another step toward me, stopping as he tilts his head to the side. I freeze and suck in a breath, then I give him what he wants. At least as much as I'm willing to say on the subject.

"Xavier fights over me because he wants control of me. He'd rather see me dead than be without him. I've been running from him for four years, so if you think that"s anything special, that he wants me for any reason other than because he doesn't want anyone else to have me, then you're mistaken," I snap.

His expression doesn't change. Instead, he jerks his chin in my direction as he waits for me to finish. When I don't say anything else, he clears his throat.

"And the Dark Horse MC?" he asks.

And the Dark Horse MC. I'm not quite sure how to answer that. I know what I want from Rider, but I don't know what the reality is for that. Sure, he says all the right things. But that's when we're in bed together. It's not like we've spent much time outside of the sheets to really discover one another.

That fact bothers me slightly. I don't know what that means. What that makes me. I jumped into bed with this man after not having the desire to be with anyone at all, for years, and now I'm pretty much in love with him.

In fact, I think if he appeared in front of me right this moment, I might confess my love.

How embarrassing.

"I'm nothing to them," I whisper, unsure of how to answer that. "I don't even know who or what they are, not really."

"Not really?" he asks.

"I'm just a girl working in a bar, trying to run from an abusive ex-boyfriend. I met someone, we slept together. I'm not sure what you want me to say."

The man hums, taking another step toward me. I don't move, although if I could throw myself out of the window behind me and get away, I just might at this point. He doesn't say anything immediately, but his eyes also never leave mine, and it's unnerving. It's definitely not sexy like when Rider does it.

"I want to believe you, but I don't. I already know that Gnaw has claimed you. Therefore, you're not just a fuck to him. Which means you hold value."

I want to scream. This whole thing is ridiculous, but then I decide to shift the conversation, because there is one thing that hasn't really been answered, and I think I might want that answer before he does whatever mission it is that he's brought me here to complete.

"How did you find Xavier? The truth this time. You people didn't simply stumble across one another. This is bigger than that."

When this man in front of me speaks, I have to press my back and palms against the wall in an effort to hold myself up. His words shake me to my absolute core, and I want to say that they are unbelievable, but they aren't. I would believe that Xavier would do anything to get what he wanted, even if he really didn't want it anymore… like me.

This is all about control.

And nothing more than that.

"You're not stupid. I'll give you that much," he murmurs. "But you don't get to know everything that happens here. Just know that if the answers are not what I want from the MC, then you belong to me, and we'll work out a deal between the two of us. I don't think I'm ready to give you up just yet."

I'm unsure of what that means, but at the same time, I don't ask for more information. Again, I don't want to know. Not anything. I'm done being curious. This whole moment has cured me of that.

I just want to go back to my motel—to Ophelia and Sal's Bar.

I want to return to where I feel safe.

And I want to do it right now.

GNAW

Talon turnshis back to us and walks into the house. I'm not sure what he's doing or what is going to come next. I'm not sure I want to know, either. I'm ready to just end this shit right here and now, personally.

The three of us stare at the empty sidewalk, in what I can only describe as… interested horror. Something is coming, and we're all unsure as to what it could be.

I hold my breath for a moment before I let it out slowly and turn my head to look at Atomic.

"You gonna put the other women on lockdown?" I ask, staring at the closed door to the house.

I want to break into this house. I want to search every nook and cranny. I want to find my woman, if she's even in there. She could be anywhere. It's clear they have several places. I can't even guess at what I'm going to do with her when I do find her, other than fuck her until we're both screaming, which sounds pretty damn good.

I want more of her.

Of us—together.

This is the woman for me. It doesn't matter that I hardly know her. It doesn't matter that she's running from something. It doesn't fucking matter, because she's mine. I've chosen her as my old lady.

"They need to be," Atomic grinds out. "But they're prepping for the back-to-school rush, I guess. Some shit like that. I'm going to send a couple prospects to the bakery to watch them, and anyone coming and going."

He digs his phone out of his pocket, and I watch his thumbs move over the device. He sends out some text messages, no doubt to the prospects. A thought hits me as he does. I haven't even had a chance to introduce Kyle to the other women, to buy her organic fancy-as-fuck treats from Shawn.

I want all of that for her, with her, together. I feel like a fucking pussy when I think about her, when I think about what I want with her, but I am falling for Kyle, and the last thing I want right now is for her to be hurt, by anyone, but especially by this fucker Talon.

She's lived a hard enough life. It's time for her to have the free and easy world I can offer her.

Atomic shoves his phone back in his pocket and jerks his chin toward the house. I take a step forward, and so does King. Atomic leads the way, but before we can make it up to the porch, Talon and a couple of his men step outside.

Talon lifts his phone, the screen facing us, and that's when I see her. She's standing in front of a window in what looks like an empty bedroom. Flicking my gaze to the house behind them, I arch a brow.

"It's not this house," Talon announces. "But I've talked to her, and I have to say she's not only beautiful, she's smart, too."

I hold back the growl at his words. I want to fucking kill him.

"Sal and Dennis?" Atomic asks.

Talon jerks his head toward the house. "They're inside. You can talk to them."

I'm not sure if we should actually go inside of the house considering we have no fucking clue what's in there. It's not like we can trust this asshole in any form whatsoever. He is clearly a goddamn asshole. He kidnapped three fucking people.

Then again, we killed a bunch of his men and took his bitches to keep for our own leverage.

"You think I'm a goddamn idiot?" Atomic asks, taking the words right out of my mouth.

Talon's lips curve upward, his eyes searching Atomic's, and I'm not sure if he's looking for something, but he jerks his chin once, then takes half a step backward.

"Suit yourself," Talon murmurs. "We want Texas. We want Sal's. We want money. And I personally always get what I fucking want," he grinds out. "Always."

"Then you're starting a war, because you came here, you kidnapped our people. You think you're going to strong-arm us into anything. I got news for you, Talon. The Southern Mafia isn't as big and powerful as you think it is."

Fuck. Yes.

I'm not sure what I expect Talon's response to Atomic's amazing speech to be, but I don't expect him to let out a laugh.

"The Southern Mafia is bigger than you could ever imagine it could be. Sal owes me protection money, he owes me a portion of the bar, and I'm going to collect. I'm also going to move my way into and throughout Texas."

"Prove it," Atomic snaps. "Where is the fucking contract that proves you have any right to Sal's. Because I know what I got in hand."

Talon grins and jerks his chin. "I don't have to give you a goddamn thing. I know what's mine. I'm claiming it. And I don't give a fuck what paperwork you think you have."

"Then I think we're done here?" Atomic asks just as I hear a bike coming up the street.

I don't have to look to know that it's Clink coming up the road. We all know what one another's bikes sounds like without even having to look. And I'm not sure what it means that he's made his way here, but I'm not mad about it. One more body is just another man to back us up.

I'm ready to absolutely end these fuckers.