Betrayed (Soldiers of Darkness MC Book 2) (10 page)

Mack

I pull the bike up outside
Laney’s
and climb off, pulling my gun out of my jeans before I stride inside, I ain’t hanging around here.

I go straight over to the bar where a pretty young blonde I don’t remember being here before, so I’m guessing Odi done some new recruiting since I left town, is busy drying some glasses. And maybe it’s best she’s someone who don’t recognize me. ‘Odi around?’

She looks up and smiles and, yeah. I still got it. But whereas the old Mack Slayer would’ve played on this attention, the new one just ain’t interested. ‘He’s out back. In the yard. Do you want me to let him know you…?’

‘It’s OK, sweetheart, I’m an old friend. He’s expecting me.’

I head straight off down the corridor that leads out into the yard, and the door’s open so I take a couple of steps outside, and there he is, standing by the trash cans dragging on a joint, I can smell it from here. He’s all arrogance and shit-for-brains as he laughs into his phone, and I can’t help thinking how fitting it is that he’s gonna take his last breath out by the trash. And I could just end him now, stick a bullet in his back and get outta here without him knowing it was me who snuffed him out. But I kinda want the bastard to see my face. He needs to know you don’t do this shit to me. I may have been weak, and I may not have turned out to be the President this club ultimately needed, in the end; I may have let a woman change me to the point where I don’t know if I even want this life anymore, but this – he needs to know.

‘Hey. Odi.’

He throws his joint down onto the ground and slowly turns around. But he really should be more careful. He really should learn to realize that, in this life, you make enemies. And sometimes, just when you think those enemies have forgotten all about the crap you dealt out, they come back. And they finish the job. And I don’t even give him time to say my name, I fire twice, and I stop only to make sure he’s dead before I walk away, climb back on my bike and head straight back to New Mexico.

It’s over.

And I gotta whole new life to start planning now.

Zeb

She knows what she’s doing, and I also know she’s doing it for
my
benefit, but I already told her. I ain’t interested. Sure, she’s hot, she’s got a pretty enough face, and if I didn’t have Izzi I’d be on her like you wouldn’t fucking believe. But there ain’t no rule saying I gotta ignore the show. And she’s putting on one hell of a show, man, she must really wanna be an old lady, to someone, anyone, because right now I ain’t sure she cares whose bed she wakes up in. But it sure as hell ain’t gonna be mine.

I turn away from watching Kit throw herself at any brother who shows her the slightest bit of attention and look around the clubhouse. I ain’t seen Izzi for a while, but then I catch sight of her coming out of the kitchen, laughing and talking with a couple of the other old ladies. She looks happy. She looks relaxed. And as she glances over at me and smiles I feel that surge in my gut take over again; that dangerous, dark need to keep her by my side. And she comes over, and she kisses me, and I slide my hand into the small of her back and push her against me. And then she pulls away, and she smiles again before she goes back to the other girls. I take a deep breath and look down at the floor, and then I raise my gaze and Kit’s beside me, the smell of her perfume turning my stomach slightly. She wears too much, it’s distracting.

‘You OK?’

I narrow my eyes and the corner of my mouth twists up into a smirk. ‘Why’d
you
care?’

She lays a hand on my shoulder, her fingers slowly trailing down over my cut until I catch her wrist and gently pull her hand away. ‘Everything all right with you and the beautiful,
young
Mrs. Zebrowski?’

I laugh quietly and take a long draft of beer. ‘You saying she’s too young for me, huh?’

‘She’s half your age. Or do you like ‘em that way?’

‘You wanna learn when to stop talking, darlin’.’

‘Wouldn’t a man like you prefer a woman with a little more, I dunno, experience?’

‘Like you, huh? You been around the block more times than all our Harleys put together, sweetheart, which means I ain’t going nowhere near you.’

‘You saying I’m some kinda whore?’

‘You ain’t exactly playing the Disney princess, are you?’

She smiles and moves so she’s in front of me, and she reaches out to touch my cut again, and again I gently remove her hand. ‘I can
be
that, if that’s what you want.’

‘I’m sure you can, darlin’, but that ain’t gonna work on me.’

‘You don’t know what you’re missing.’

‘I think I’ll survive.’

‘One day, Zeb…’ She starts to walk away, but then she stops and looks over her shoulder, throwing me the kinda smile that means business. ‘One day you’ll want to find out, what you’re missing.’

Izzi

I’m only here, at
Six
, because there’s something I need to do. Yeah, I like to hang out with Cora now and again, but tonight there’s something I need to put a stop to. Zeb may have just threatened to kill Mack and once more made me wonder just what kind of world I’ve pushed myself into here, but he’s my husband. He’s
my
man, and
she
needs to know that. I can still be the cold, hard bitch with balls; I can pull her out when I need her, and she’s about to come out to play right now.

Cora joins me at the bar as I down a vodka shot. ‘Everything all right, honey?’

‘Everything’s just fine, Cora.’

She raises an eyebrow as I slam my glass down onto the counter. ‘You sure ‘bout that?’

‘Kit around?’

‘I think she’s just gone out for a quick smoke. She’s on her break…’

‘OK. Thanks.’

‘Izzi…?’

I head outside and watch for a second as Kit smokes her cigarette and wanders between the lines of Harleys all lined up out front of the bar, but it’s when she starts running her fingers over the leather seat of my own bike that I make my move.

‘You might want to leave what isn’t yours alone.’

She swings around and her face breaks into a grin as she takes another drag, and I lift a hand and swipe the cigarette from her grasp. She drops her gaze as the cigarette falls to the floor, and then she slowly raises her head, her eyes meeting mine. ‘You got a problem?’

‘These men, this world, it might lead you to believe that they can do anything they want
with
anyone they want, regardless. Married, single, engaged, you might think they’re all fair game. Maybe some of them are, I don’t know. But Zeb, he doesn’t want you, Kit.’

‘Not yet, maybe. But he will. After all, you’ve still got the hots for Mr. President, haven’t you? And I don’t really blame you, if I’m honest, I mean, I’ve been there. I’ve had Mack. And he is
good
…’

I grab her neck and push her back against the wall, lifting her chin so she has no other option but to look at me. ‘You don’t touch him, you quit with the doe-eyed flirting and you never, ever tell my husband that, one day, he’ll want to know what he’s missing. I heard you, bitch, I heard it all. So you’ll understand why I’m feeling just a tiny bit aggravated right now.’

‘You know what he
really
wants, huh?’

I shove my hand harder against her throat because I’m pissed off now. I’m angry. She thinks she can win this one? I’d welcome the challenge. ‘He wants
me
.’

‘He needs a woman, you’re just a child…’

Once more my grip tightens on her neck, I can feel my fingers digging into her. ‘And you’re an irritation that’s really starting to fucking grate on me now, so here’s the deal, OK? You keep the fuck away from my husband, you got that? You don’t touch him, you don’t flutter those fucking eyelashes anywhere near him and you don’t, ever, tell him he doesn’t need me. You don’t even talk to him unless you have to. And if you want to challenge me, you go right on ahead. You try it. I fucking dare you.’

‘You think I’m scared of you?’

‘You should be.’

She laughs, and I yank her head upwards. I’m so over her now.

‘Zeb doesn’t need you, he doesn’t
want
you. Take your pick of the others, sweetheart, because I don’t give a shit what you do to them…’

‘Even Mack?’

It’s my turn to laugh, but there isn’t an ounce of humor in there. ‘You want to test me, Kit, you keep right on going. But remember this – I could end you, in a fucking heartbeat.’ I let go of her neck and throw her back against the wall. ‘Oh, and one more thing before I leave you to think things over. Don’t ever, ever assume you know anything about me and Mack.’

I leave her outside and head back into
Six
.

‘I have to say, honey, that was actually quite hot.’ Cora’s leaning against the doorpost, arms folded. She’d obviously followed me outside. Do I mind that she saw all that? No. Not really. ‘You’re incredibly sexy when you’re all up in some poor bitch’s face.’

‘Yeah, well, she isn’t gonna be a problem anymore. I’ll make sure she’s gone and out of here by the end of the night. Come on. I need a drink.’

She follows me back inside. ‘Defending your man, huh?’

‘Something like that.’ I order a beer from the bar and take a long, welcome draft. ‘Aren’t you supposed to be dancing tonight?’

‘I’m on in a minute.’

She moves a little closer to me and I breathe in her perfume, the same stuff she used to wear when we worked together, and I’m not sure dredging those memories up is such a great idea right now. I’m feeling more than a little wired, and I’ve forgotten what it feels like to be touched by another woman. I just know that I liked it.

‘And I’m gonna dedicate tonight’s performance to you, honey. ‘Cause you sure got me all wet right now.’

She throws me a loaded smile and sashays over to the stage in the corner of the room, and when she drops her robe, leaving her in nothing but the tiniest pair of bikini panties, I feel my thighs start to tingle, and I wish Zeb was here because I’m really going to need him. Soon.

I don’t take my eyes off Cora as she slides up and down the pole, her incredible tits all pert and hard as she sinks to the floor and arches her back, lifting her hips slightly as she slides off her panties. And when she opens her legs and touches herself I feel that burn in my thighs intensify.

Jesus, Zeb, where the fuck are you?

I head into the rest room, taking a second or two to get my head straight, and I resist the urge to bring myself off, even though I really, really want to.
 
Zeb isn’t here, so that’s the next best option. But I don’t really want to do that here. I want to go home, run a bath; I want to wait for Zeb and let
him
take away my frustration. I fought for him tonight, the man who threatened to kill Mack if either me or him show even a hint of what we may or may not still feel for each other. He did that, and still I want him to fuck me until I come, over and over again.

I step out of the stall and wash my hands, looking up as the door opens and Cora walks in. She’s got her robe wrapped back around her but I know she’s naked underneath. I can see her nipples pushing against the thin material. And, Jesus, I really want to touch them.