Chapter 20

20

A s soon as Elijah and I emerged downstairs, his wife walked in the door. A dark growl sounded from Elijah’s chest as he moved towards her. She shot a dark look at me, but Dawson stepped up to my side, crossing his arms over his chest.

But we weren’t dumb. She wouldn’t dare do anything with Elijah in the same room. Problem was though, she now had evidence that Elijah and I were fucking since we’d come downstairs together in the middle of the day.

It was the exact kind of drama I hadn’t wanted.

“Church in five,” Elijah ordered before he shoved Whitney in front of him and slammed the doors behind them.

It didn’t take long for their argument to reach our ears. With a heavy sigh, I moved behind the bar and snatched up a bar towel, beginning to wipe down some clean glasses so we could put them up.

“Got a feeling shit’s going to hit the fan soon,” Tanner said, leaning her hip against the counter as she regarded me. “You sure you’re ready for that shit storm?”

I shrugged. “Doesn’t matter if I am or not. It’s going to happen regardless.”

She shook her head. “I don’t envy your position. Fucking the prez was fun for one night, but you’re walking on very thin ice, and I can already hear that ice cracking.”

I blew out a soft breath. “You’re not the only one,” I told her. I’d begun feeling that crack long ago. “I can feel the cold water beneath my feet.”

Tanner gently squeezed my wrist and walked into the kitchen, most likely to start doing inventory on food. It was that time of the week. Food shopping on Tuesdays. Liquor and beer run on Thursdays.

Kane walked over to the bar, eyeing me appreciatively. I hadn’t seen him in a while. He was a bit of a drifter.

I aimed a smile at him. It was a friendly one, but not flirty. I’d dialed back on my flirting to basically nonexistent since Elijah had staked a claim on me in his own weird way.

“Feel like I don’t see your cute ass around anymore,” Kane said. “Let me get a beer, darlin’, and maybe a good view of your ass while you’re at it?” He winked.

I turned, and my attention immediately caught on Elijah. His eyes were narrowed at me and Kane, and his fists were clenched at his sides. I swallowed thickly. He made a move towards us, but Dawson – ever the peacekeeper – stepped in front of him, talking to him quietly.

“Might want to yank the plug on that flirting, brother,” Jax told Kane. “She’s spoken for.”

Kane arched an eyebrow at me. It made sense he wouldn’t know. He was more nomad than an actual member, though he wore the patch of this charter.

“By who?”

“Prez,” Jax told him.

I flinched when the clubhouse door slammed. Kane frowned and stood from the barstool. “I’ll go talk to him, darlin’. Don’t worry.”

I offered him a weak smile in return as he grabbed his beer, heading for the clubhouse doors. Jax gave me a small smile. “They’ll sort it; don’t worry. You weren’t in the wrong.” He shrugged. “Besides, shit’s got to be confusing for you. Prez has claimed you, but he’s still got you down here working, serving all of us.”

“Glad I’m not the only one a bit lost,” I muttered. “He says he’s protecting me.”

“From that crazy fucking wife of his, I assume,” Jax said. He tapped the bar. “Elijah knows what he’s doing, even if what the two of you are doing is a bit fucked up.” I frowned, casting my eyes to the counter. “But trust him, yeah? Prez is a man of his word.”

With that, he strode away, leaving me to my thoughts. I stared at the clubhouse doors for a moment.

Was Elijah really that good of a man, though, or was I just setting myself up for heartbreak in the long run?

He hadn’t promised fidelity to his wife, so what would make him promise fidelity to me? Not only that but even after they divorced, there would be nothing tying Elijah to me.

He would be a free man in a world full of available pussy.

And that shit stung more than I wanted it to.

Truth of the matter was, I was in deep, and despite Elijah’s words to me, I didn’t trust them one hundred percent. He’d cheated on his wife with me. Not a damn thing would stop history from repeating itself even if he did claim me.

I wanted to believe in the exact opposite, but I wasn’t a little girl. I’d seen and heard way too much working for this club. As an old lady, yeah, you moved up in the ranks, but your man’s word and orders were still all that mattered. And if you were ordered to shut the fuck up and deal with what he was doing behind your back? Well, that’s just what you fucking did.