Chapter Seven

Ghost

T ODAY HAS BEEN long as fuck. Taking Alana to Phantom Ink with me was the best and worst day and it definitely took a toll on me that I wasn’t expecting. Every single guy who walked through the door only had eyes for my girl and I staked my claim so much as they all laughed and teased me. Not to mention Crab and Beckett. They smirked in my direction and watched me stake my claim each and every single time. Alana smiled up at me and gave me a knowing look. For the first time, the sparkle Alana used to have in her eyes was back. Terrence took that from her when he started abusing the woman I vow to ensure sparkles and shines once again. However, it didn’t take me very long to realize Alana didn’t need me to help her figure out the system we use in the shop.

When we left this morning, I could feel Alana’s body trembling in fear with every step she took towards the door and then to my truck. Yes, I’d love to have Alana wrapped around me on the back of my bike, but it’s too cold out for that yet. We’re just in January and I’m sure we’ll be getting snow very soon. So far, we haven’t had much more than a dusting on the ground so we’ve all been in our cages instead of riding. Anyway, Alana kept her head held high as she tried to control her breathing. When I helped her in my truck, I put her in the center of the front seat instead of leaving her in the passenger seat. I want my girl right next to me so I can help her combat the fear filling her at the thought of being away from the compound and out in the open when she knows Terrence is still a free man and no one knows where he is.

As I drove through town, I kept my hand rested on Alana’s thigh. She laid her hand on top of mine and I could feel it shaking and how clammy it was. Leaning over, I press a kiss against her temple and whispered that I had her and nothing was gonna happen to her. As long as I’m with her there is nothing I won’t do to protect her when she’s away from the clubhouse. It helped ease my girl a little as she leaned more against my side and accepted the strength and comfort I was offering her.

As soon as we got back to the clubhouse, Alana disappeared up to her room. Ever since Doc examined her, she’s been a little bit distant. I have a feeling it’s because the small group of us that were in the common room yesterday saw the injuries she never wanted anyone to see. The scars are red and raised. This is going to be a long road of recovery for her and Geek and I will be there every single step of the way because she needs us. Alana is going to want to keep us at arm’s length and last night we showed her the scars don’t bother us. No, we didn’t have sex or touch her, but we held her as she tried desperately to fall asleep and escape the sight she allowed herself to see in the bathroom and then Doc showing Terrence’s handiwork in the common room. While I respect her for not hiding away from this in front of the few people in the clubhouse, I know it was one of the hardest things she’s ever done. Alana is strong as fuck and doesn’t see that strength in herself.

I’m sitting at the bar with my back to the room. This isn’t something I normally do because the mirror only allows me to see so much of the room. I’d rather see the entire room and know where everyone is and what’s going on around me. Today, my only thought was getting a drink in my hand and knowing that every single day Alana is at the shop I’ll have to stake my claim on her so the assholes coming in for work know she’s off limits and they will never have a shot with her. Especially when that fucker Mark came in to get his tattoo done. He flirted with Alana and didn’t take the subtle hints of me claiming her. Even when I told him she was off limits and my woman, Mark still fucking flirted with her and had the balls to hand over a business card with his number on it. I took it from my girl and ripped it to shreds right in front of him. Mark smirked and Alana laughed. Not my best moment, but I’ll do it every fucking day if that’s what it takes.

Vault and Valor make their way in the room and take seats on either side of me.

“Geek still at work?” Valor asks me even though he should know since he’s the boss of the security company.

“As far as I know. Don’t you know where your employees are?” I return, the frustration of the day filling my voice.

“I do know where they are. Didn’t think the job I sent him out on would take this long. It was a simple installation for a house at the edge of the city. New occupants of the house wanted an updated and upgraded system from what the previous owners had. I figured he’d get the job done and be back here to see how Alana’s first day of work went,” Valor responds, accepting the beer from Kian as he works behind the bar.

“Haven’t heard from him in a while. He was checkin’ in with Alana and me all day long though,” I state, taking a large gulp of my drink as Vault smirks before speaking up.

“So, how was Alana’s first day of work? Did she learn the system already?” he questions me, the tone of his voice letting me know my President already knows all about how today went.

“She’s a quick learner and didn’t need my help after the first hour. It seemed we got slammed with walk-ins on top of all the appointments on the books today so that made everythin’ easier. I love havin’ her in the shop with me,” I tell him truthfully as his smirk only grows larger.

“Yeah? Heard the guys walkin’ in certainly like havin’ her at the desk and that you staked your claim on her so many times today the guys are surprised you had time to actually get any tattoos done,” Vault says, laughter filling his voice as Valor can’t hold back.

“Fuckin’ funny,” I grind out as I watch Alana walk down the stairs and head for the kitchen where I know the ol’ ladies are already working at putting dinner together.

The smells coming from the kitchen fill the clubhouse and make my mouth water. I’m not sure what they’re making for us to eat tonight, but I can’t wait to dig in.

“I know King has been diggin’ into her ex. Has anyone found him in Clifton Falls? Does anyone even know if he’s still in Clifton Falls at this point?” Valor asks me, making the rage fill me every single time I think of Terrence and what he’s done to my girl.

“Cage hasn’t said anythin’ to me. I’ll call him later tonight to find out what’s goin’ on with that situation. Honestly, I’m not sure if the asshole is still in Clifton Falls or if he’s managed to somehow follow Alana here to Pine View. I know Cage and the guys checked her car for any signs of a tracker and didn’t find anythin’. Somehow he always managed to know where the hell she was though. Pops let me know when I talked to him for a few minutes the other night that Alana confided in him about him randomly showin’ up when she was out. Unless she was at the clubhouse. He never stepped foot there because Terrence knew he wasn’t welcome there,” I inform the men sitting on either side of me. “Didn’t call Cage to check in yesterday because it was hard for Alana. I think everyone here seein’ her scars and what Terrence did to her broke somethin’ inside.”

“She’s got nothin’ to worry about from us, Ghost. We’re family and that means we’ll protect her with every piece of us. The same as we’d do for any ol’ lady here. Yeah, I hated seein’ those marks on her body because none of us could protect her from that douche canoe. It doesn’t mean it makes us think any less of her. Alana fuckin’ survived and she will only end up stronger than she already is because Geek and you will ensure she gets stronger. When does she meet with her counselor for the first time?” Vault states, his voice hard and cold because he’s pissed off about what we saw.

“She sees her tomorrow. Honestly, I thought she was gonna have a harder time bein’ away from the clubhouse today than what she did. Alana hasn’t left the safety of a compound since the attack. Literally the only times she’s left was to drive to the Fallen Brethren clubhouse and to go out to dinner with Savage and Reagan once when she was there. Then she left to go to Cedar Bay and then here. When we were in Cedar Bay with Haley, Alana refused to leave the Wild Kings compound. I know she was dyin’ to go to the diner to work with her sister, but she couldn’t bring herself to actually go there. I thought she’d have a panic attack when we left this mornin’, but she showed once again how strong she truly is,” I tell the guys sitting on either side of me as I catch Liz sauntering through the common room out of the corner of my eye.

“Good. You and Geek can take her to her appointment. I won’t schedule anythin’ for Geek because she’ll need you. Maybe not durin’ her appointment, but she’ll need you after she’s done talkin’ to her counselor. Your girl will be in rough shape and that’s a simple fact of the matter because Alana is gonna be talkin’ about shit she doesn’t want to,” Valor says, thinking of the experiences he’s had with Savannah being in counseling along with her sisters after what they went through when they were younger and first came to the Phantom Bastards clubhouse.

“Baby, you’re finally back. Where did you disappear to?” Liz asks me, her voice grating on my nerves as she tries to step up close between Vault and me where we sit at the bar.

“Not your fuckin’ baby, Liz. Don’t know how many times I have to tell you this shit. Where I disappear to is none of your fuckin’ business either. My life has nothin’ to do with you and I didn’t tell you I wanted you to touch me,” I growl out, knowing my girl is close by and the last thing I need her thinking is that I’m fucking around with one of the Phantom girls because it’s not the truth of my situation.

Liz has been here for a while now and it’s clear to all of us that she’s trying to sink her claws into an officer of the club by any means necessary. After the first month of her being here, none of us have touched a hair on her head. The only reason she’s still in the clubhouse is because she hasn’t given anyone any trouble. She tries to push up on the guys and usually backs off when we tell her no. Now, she’s not backing down and I know it’s because she’s seen Geek and me with Alana. If she gets in Alana’s face, I can guarantee she won’t have to worry about getting kicked out of the clubhouse because my girl will fucking beat the hell out of her.

“Don’t be like that, Ghost. You know you’ve been wanting a taste of me. I don’t see why you keep denying yourself when I’m more than willing to give you everything you want,” she purrs while pouting as if she believes she’s being sexy right now. She’s not at all.

Before I can say a word in response to her, Alana walks out of the kitchen and her eyes take in the scene before her. I watch as her face transforms with a sexy smirk as she fluffs up her hair and saunters over to where I’m sitting at the bar. Right now, I’ve never seen my Tink look sexier. She’s got no make-up on her face, her hair is down around her with soft waves from being up in a messy bun all day long, and the sweats she’s wearing are loose and covered by one of my tee-shirts. Sexy as fuck.

Alana walks up to where I’m sitting at the bar and pushes past Liz, moving her out of her way before resting her hands on my chest and looking deep into my eyes.

“Kaden, I missed you,” she says, her voice low and raspy in ways I’ve never heard from her before. “Is Geek gonna be home soon?”

“He should be, Tink. And I just saw you at work all day long until we got back here,” I tell her, leaning closer to her as she runs her hands up and down my chest making my cock instantly hard in my jeans.

“I always miss you when I’m not with you, baby ,” she says, emphasizing what Liz just called me before leaning in and pressing her lips to mine.

Alana deepens the kiss and I get lost in the taste of her as our tongues battle for dominance. Placing a hand on her neck, I make sure my girl can’t get away from me as her body melts into mine the best she can with the stool separating us as everything else fades away to nothing.

It doesn’t take long before Alana is ripped from me. My eyes snap open and I watch on as Liz tries to step up to Alana. Liz’s face is red as fuck and I can see her pulse beating rapidly in her neck. For several minutes, neither woman says a word. Alana isn’t speaking because she’s waiting for Liz to make her next move and say whatever she thinks is gonna make this situation better. It won’t.

“I don’t know who the fuck you think you are, but Ghost is my man. You can have Geek because I don’t want that fucking pathetic waste of space,” Liz states and I know Alana is even more pissed than she already was.

“Are you fucking kidding me right now?” Alana asks, taking her eyes off Liz to look between the three of us sitting at the bar and showing that the girl in front of her isn’t a threat. “Geek is one of the best men I’ve ever had the privilege of meeting in my entire life. And if you knew anything about Ghost, who you’re trying so hard to fuck it reeks of desperation, then you’d know him and Geek share their women and that’s how they are. You don’t get one without the other. And, both of them are mine. You don’t look at them, touch them, or even think you can speak to them. You’re fucking nothing in this clubhouse and everyone here knows it but you. Ghost doesn’t want you and will never make you his ol’ lady. None of the men here will ever make you an ol’ lady.

“The desperation is rolling off of you and it’s easy to see your endgame is manipulating some unlucky bastard into making you his. No one has ever given you a wake up call and let you know that won’t be happening. If I ever see you near my men again, I won’t hesitate to throw your skank ass out of the clubhouse and ensure no one ever touches you again,” Alana says, her voice low and lethal in the way Cage’s usually is when he’s doing club business.

“You can’t talk to me like that!” Liz screeches, her voice echoing off the walls of the common room. “You wanna talk about being nothing here in this clubhouse, that would be you. You’re just the flavor of the day and Ghost will get rid of you as soon as he’s been balls deep. He always comes back to me and when we’re finally together, no one will rip us apart. Geek doesn’t mean shit to me and I will never touch that man. Ghost doesn’t need him and I will ensure he’s warming my bed by the end of the week.”

Alana doesn’t hesitate to throw a punch. I’m glad Cage and Joker taught their girls how to fight and use both of their hands since her dominant hand is the one that’s broken. Liz immediately hits the floor of the common room and starts crying and screaming as blood pours from her nose. Alana doesn’t let up. She bends down and proceeds to beat the absolute fuck out of the skank. Liz can’t even get a chance to cover herself from the hits my girl is raining down on her.

We let Alana do her thing for a few minutes before Vault nods at me to break it up. Standing from my stool, I pull my girl away from the skank and keep my arms wrapped around her while resting my chin on her shoulder with a bright smile on my face. Alana stares down at Liz who’s beaten and bloody at our feet.

“Don’t you ever fuckin’ talk about my men again. Geek is worth more than anyone you’ve ever been with times a million. You will never be lucky enough to have someone as good as he is. Stay the fuck away from the guys here or I’ll save Vault and the guys voting your ass out. I’ll fucking gut you and bury you in a shallow grave with your used up ass and pussy in the air to ensure even the animals don’t go near the trash,” Alana says, spitting on Liz before I manage to pull her away far enough she can’t touch her again.

“Fuck!” I growl out so only she can hear as I grind my hard cock into her ass to let her know how fucking sexy that was. “You’re fuckin’ feral, Tink.”

“No one’s gonna talk shit about Geek or get close to either one of you,” she states, her body trembling as I notice Geek standing just inside the door of the clubhouse with a smile on his face. “I’m gonna go back in the kitchen. You might want to have one of the Prospects take out the trash so it doesn’t stink the clubhouse up.”

Alana turns in my arms and gives me a chaste kiss before walking away. Vault and Valor look down at Liz for a minute before they both burst out laughing as Geek walks up to my side and we join them. Liz’s face turns a darker shade of red under the blood covering her skin as she glares in our direction. Deegan makes his way over to her and drags her off the floor before taking her into the room she has here. Hopefully we won’t have to see her again for the rest of the night. Geek blows out a breath and says how fucking hot that was as we join Vault and Valor at the bar where Kian gives us both a drink.