29. Ghost

29

Ghost

We spend the majority of the day making noise in the heart of Vegas. From breakfast on the Strip to circling Zane’s hotels and the Iron Sinners clubhouse, we make sure they know that their attempt at taking us down failed.

I’m sure Rick Zane thought he was smart calling in a favor with his buddies at the ATF, but the Twisted Kings aren’t dumb enough to store anything that can get us in trouble at the clubhouse. Every gun on the property is registered, and every computer has a tamper feature to wipe the system if anyone but those with a code tries to break in.

Most of what we do might be illegal, but we keep it away from where we live—from the brothers’ families.

After spending the morning in the city, we drive out to the lake and waste time. We wait until the sun is ready to dip below the horizon before heading back. Between Havoc checking in with prospects back at the clubhouse and me keeping an eye on the security systems, the rest of the men relax.

Now, we’re back at the clubhouse with beers flowing and burgers grilling.

I glance around the patio, and it sinks in how much has evolved over the years.

When I was a kid, I looked up to the cut—to Legacy’s dad and the men who came before us. They were a symbol of everything my father wasn’t. The cut represented loyalty and family. It protected the person wearing it. I wondered what it was like for people to have your back, while I was constantly on the other end of my father’s drunken aggression.

It’s ironic that I didn’t have a family until mine died.

Legacy’s parents took me in, and I learned what it truly meant to be a Twisted King. I’ve indulged in every phase of being a biker, from being a reckless prospect to gaining rank and taking on the responsibility of protecting my brothers. I patched in with my brother at my side, and I accepted the weight that comes with wearing the crowned skull on my back.

So many kids are drawn to the club because of sex, drugs, and violence. But those of us who prove ourselves know the burden we carry around weighs more than the perks.

It’s why kids looking for fun or an escape burn out before they’re patched in. To become a brother, you have to hand your soul over. You give up your life for the good of the club. You don’t become a Twisted King; the Twisted Kings become you and everything you represent .

It’s lonely and hard, and that’s why relationships rarely survive it.

Looking down at Luna, tucked against my side as we sit at one of the picnic tables, I wonder why the universe decided I should be so lucky to get something more. Someone who understands this world and doesn’t ask me to choose between my cut and her. I already got my second chance in life with Legacy’s family, so I don’t deserve another.

Why does this girl who outshines the sun want to be mine?

I shouldn’t think too much about it, or the world might take this away.

“Who wants to play a game?” Soul drops into one of the empty seats across the table next to Legacy.

“Can’t you just chill?” Legacy sips his beer.

“Speaking of chilling…” Soul reaches into his pocket and pulls out a joint, lighting it up and taking a drag. “Come on, you could use it.”

He hands the joint to Legacy, who takes a hit. On nights when Legacy has Bea, he barely finishes a beer, but she’s with Pearl and Austin tonight, so his eyes are already a little hazy.

“What should we play?” Soul rubs his temples. “Truth or dare? Never have I ever?”

“You’re serious?” Legacy chuckles.

“Are you surprised?” Luna smirks. “Soul can’t resist a bet, game, or challenge. Even if we all know he’ll lose…”

“I never lose.”

“The blackjack table says otherwise. ”

“Buzzkill.” Soul grabs the joint and takes a hit.

“She’s saving you from yourself, brother.” I shake my head. “If not your wallet, then liver failure. Never have I ever? Really? What haven’t you done?”

“Things.” Soul grins.

Luna’s eyebrow hitches. “Really? Never have I ever fucked three girls at the same time.”

He chuckles, lifting his beer to his lips. “Point taken.”

“You’re disgusting.”

His smile widens at her grimace, and I’m sure he sees that as a compliment. “You think I’m bad because you’re seeing your man’s good side. Ghost was worse than me once.”

“Stop being an asshole.” Legacy knocks Soul on the arm, stealing the joint back.

“It’s fine.” Luna shrugs. “We all have a past, and Ghost knows I don’t judge him for his. If anything, I benefit from his experience.”

I look down at Luna sitting next to me, and her hand grips inside my thigh. She’s so fucking confident and secure. She has no reason not to be, but still, it knocks me on my ass sometimes.

“You’re right.” Soul takes a drink. “If I had a chick that cool maybe I’d settle down too.”

“On a cold day in hell.” Legacy laughs.

Soul leaves the joint with Legacy when he sees Havoc walking by. “I’ll be back.”

Luna watches him go. “Does he ever sit still?”

“No,” Legacy and I both answer at the same time.

“Remember that time in Des Moines?” I ask .

Legacy laughs. “You were still on life number three, and somehow, that asshole had already made it all the way across town to fuck that stripper and come back.”

“Life number three?” Luna’s eyebrows pinch.

“Oh shit.” Legacy takes a hit, standing up. “Sorry, thought your girl knew how you got your road name.”

Legacy gives me an apologetic smile as he walks to where Chaos and Venom are standing at the barbeque.

“That sounds ominous.” Luna looks up at me. “I always thought they called you Ghost because you keep to yourself, and you’re pretty quiet.”

“That’s probably where it started.” I rub the back of her shoulder with my thumb. “But that’s not all of it.”

She watches me take a sip of my beer, and as much as I want to tell her everything, part of me wants to keep it to myself. She sees me as a safe space, and she knows I’ll do anything to protect her. But I’m not sure she’s ready to face the extent of what that means yet.

“Will you tell me the rest?” she asks.

I drag my hand down my face, debating if she’s ready to hear it. But one look in her eyes and I know there’s no lying to this girl.

“The nickname came from King.”

“Legacy’s dad?”

I nod. “A ghost is what’s left of the dead. It’s the shit that haunts us. And that’s what I was when I moved in with them—haunted.”

She frowns.

“It’s not as depressing as it sounds.” I brush the back of her hand with my thumb. “I was carrying around a lot of shit after my parents died. He said I could let it haunt me, or I could let it be my weapon—where I found my strength. So that’s what I did. King reminded me I still had fight left.”

“Sounds like you were close with him.”

“I was.” I tighten my grip on her shoulder, taking another sip of my beer. “But road names are like people; they change over time. Sometimes, I think the name made me, and other times, I think I made it. For a while, I thought it was all I was.”

Luna turns her body toward mine, tracing the letters tattooed across my knuckles.

Death .

It’s my single truth. What I was born from and what I bring to this world.

“You’re more than Ghost to me, Marcus.” She runs her fingers over the letters. “So much more.”

“I appreciate that.” Cupping her jaw in my hand, I graze my thumb over the apple of her cheek. “You make me feel like a person again, and I didn’t think that was possible.”

The smile that peeks from the corners of her mouth is so pure and sweet. Leaning in, I steal a kiss.

A hum radiates through her chest, and my body vibrates at the feel of her in my arms—at her lips on mine. Brushing her cheek, I look down at her and see all the good in the world that I’ve been missing out on.

“What did Legacy mean about the third life?”

“That”—I release her jaw, sitting back—“is another story.”

“One you’re going to tell me, or not? ”

Luna’s one of the least judgmental people I’ve ever met, but I don’t want her to see me differently. Or to think that just because I have a dark side, I could hurt her.

“I promise I can handle it, Marcus.” She scoots closer, resting her hand over mine in her lap. “I know more than you think I do.”

“Now who’s being ominous?”

She bites the inside of her cheek. “I was going to say something when you got back from your run, but then that whole raid with the ATF happened…”

“Talk to me, Luna.” I turn to face her, suddenly worried about what could have gone down when I was in New Mexico.

We were on the road two out of the three days, so even if I tried to keep tabs on her, that’s impossible on my bike.

“I found the phone in your desk.” Her words rush out, and her cheeks blush. “I didn’t mean to. But Venom said you needed the coordinates sent, and it was taking a while to upload. So while I was waiting, I messaged Rider to check in. But then the phone in your desk pinged.”

Fuck . “That’s not quite—”

“I also saw the cameras. The ones around the club. The one in my room…”

She trails off, and I know exactly what camera she’s talking about. The laptop she has aimed at her bed. There’s no good explanation.

“You’ve been watching me.”

No use denying what she already knows. “I have.”

“And you were talking to me as him… as Rider. Did you know I was Snowy Owl, or was it an accident? ”

“I knew.” And I fully expect her to hate me for it.

Or fear me. After all, she found out the extent to which I’ve been stalking her for this past year. Which is why I can’t figure out why she’s still sitting here holding my hand.

“Why did you do it?” Her eyebrows knit.

The lies form a lump in my throat, but I swallow them down. She deserves honesty when she’s handed me her faith, regardless of how this conversation ends.

“At first, it was because I needed to be sure I wasn’t missing anything when you moved to Vegas. I couldn’t find any ties to the Merciless Skulls, but I had to be certain.”

I’m treading carefully, gauging her every reaction.

“So you messaged me through my game?”

“It was the easiest way to get to know you without you suspecting anything. You let your guard down for him because we were just talking. I knew you were innocent, but I needed proof for my club’s sake.”

“So you pretended to be Rider?”

“Technically, I was Rider already.” I shrug. “I resurrected an old gamer tag from when I played as a kid. We started talking, and the plan was to stop when I confirmed nothing fishy was going on. But I couldn’t.”

“Why didn’t you just tell me then? Why did you let me think you couldn’t care less about me even if you knew I liked you? I admitted that to Rider—to you. But you still ignored me.”

“Because I had so many walls up; I’m still working my way around them, Luna. If I let you in, I risked you getting hurt by the secrets I was keeping from the club. At least if we kept it online, there was no risk of that. It was a way to keep you close while keeping you safe. And that’s all that mattered.”

“What about the cameras?”

If only that explanation was as simple as my reasoning for messaging her.

“I don’t have any good answers for that. Nothing you’ll like anyway.”

“It’s crossing so many lines.”

“I know.”

“It’s an invasion of privacy.”

“It is.”

“I shouldn’t like it.” Luna’s cheeks burn with her blush, and her neck colors with excitement.

“You shouldn’t,” I agree.

She nods, swallowing hard. “What if I do?”

I take in her expression. I thought her rosy cheeks were anger or irritation, but now, I sense something else.

“Do you?”

Her eyes dart off as her cheeks warm. “I didn’t want to. At first, I was embarrassed thinking about what you might have seen and all the things I admitted to you. But you know all of that—you’ve seen all of that—and you still want me?”

“Of course I fucking want you. You’re the only woman on the damn planet worth wanting. I can’t take my eyes off you. Literally.”

Her cheeks redden .

“That’s why I didn’t say anything,” she says. “Because you weren’t the only one watching, Marcus. I saw you too. I’ve wanted you since the first time I looked up at you, standing in that coffee shop, totally out of place. I want your quiet side, your protective side. I want your light and your dark side. You see me—all of me. And you’re still here.”

I cup her jaw in my hands, looking down at her. “I promised I wasn’t letting you go, remember? I’ll always be here for you.”

“Then tell me the rest of the story.” She angles her chin up. “I already know bad things you’ve done, and you haven’t scared me off yet. Please tell me what Legacy was talking about.”

“Because I’ve hurt people, Luna,” I admit. “I’ve killed people.”

“I figured.”

“It’s not pretty. I drag it out. I make them hurt just like I do inside. And when they’re almost gone—on the brink of death—I bring them back and start over. I give them all nine lives just so I can take each one. Just so I can make them suffer.”

Her blue eyes stare into mine, and I wait for her to pull away, but she doesn’t.

“Does that scare you?” I ask her.

“Would you hurt me?”

“No.”

She rubs the back of my hand. “Then no, it doesn’t. If anything, I feel like it makes sense now.”

“What does?”

“Do you know why my gamer tag is Snowy Owl?”

I shake my head.

“Because they represent a fresh start.” She trails her fingers down my cut. “They’re a symbol of something new. We don’t all do it right the first time, or the second, or the third. But if we’re lucky, we get enough chances to fix it. That’s what you gave me, Marcus. When I met you in Albuquerque, and you talked about starting over, you gave me another life without realizing it. So everything you do isn’t bad or hurtful. Sometimes, you heal, and that’s what you did for me. You gave me a second chance.”

“You’re too sweet if you’re trying to see good in me.”

“Or you’re too stubborn to see it yourself.”

She might be right. This might be wrong. But when she doesn’t pull away, I draw her in. I plant my mouth on hers, and she gives me more than a new life and a fresh start. She baptizes my tarnished soul.