Chantal Fernando (11 page)

“Only that he's behind you,” she whispers, looking over my shoulder. I let go of her and spin. Eric is standing at the door, watching us quietly. How did I not hear him? Probably because of all the loud fury blazing around my head.

“Eric.”

“Faye.”

“Picking up women you know are friends with the club. Who knew you had it in you,” I say, smirking at him.

“I got you once, didn't I?” he fires back, making me cringe.

“I was young and stupid. I'm allowed to make one mistake in my life, right?”

“That mistake would be fucking Dex after we broke up, not being with me,” he says, looking at Steph. “I like you. Don't listen to anything she's said. She just hates me because I cheated on her years ago.” He brings his eyes back to me, then adds, “Don't you think it's time to let it go, Faye?”

It hits me.

“You're never going to stop, are you? Stupid plan after fucking stupid plan, you're making it your life goal to hate people who don't even spare you a second thought because we're too busy being happy. Or maybe that
is
why you hate us. Feeling a little left out, Eric? Like you're a nobody? That's probably because you are.”

He takes a step forward but stops. He probably remembers what happened the last time he tried to fuck with me. “I let you live, Eric.”

“And that's your weakness,” he sneers, gritting his teeth. “And I'll use it against you, over and over again. You can't kill me, Faye, and neither can Dex. But I have no problem taking the two of you out. I have nothing to lose, and the two of you have everything. Guess who has the upper hand here?”

Is he on drugs? I feel like he might be.

“I don't understand why you hate us so much, Eric,” I say, pursing my lips. “I get it, you lost your mom, but so did Dex. Yes, you were closer to her, but she was his mom too. I know the two of you never really got along, but you're still brothers. That should mean something.”

“Didn't care he was my brother when he stole my girlfriend,” he snarls, gritting his teeth.

In this moment, I realize something in Eric has snapped. I don't know what he's been through, but he's not in a mentally stable place, and somehow he's decided that we're the cause of his misfortune. Maybe because from the outside it seems like we do have everything—family, power, each other. What does Eric have? Nothing worth anything, as far as I can see. I don't know how to fix this. I don't think I can. This has nothing to do with us. These issues are his, and I've had enough of him trying to make them ours.

I decide to knock him out and take him home for Dex to deal with. I don't want to kill him in Steph's house, and to be frank, I don't want to deal with this shit right now. I came here to be a good wing woman to Ronan—the last single man in the MC besides Ranger—and ended up in this situation.

I swear this shit only happens to me.

“I'm going home,” I announce, walking toward the door. When I pass him, he steps away, but I grab his head and smash it into the wall. Steph screams. I ignore her. One punch to the back of Eric's head and he crumples to the ground.

Casual as ever, I turn to Steph and say, “Can you help me carry him to the car?”

Dex stares at his brother, then scrubs a hand down his face. “Tell me again, Faye, exactly how this happened?”

“He was starting some new diabolical plan! Getting Steph to infiltrate the squad, then he was going to use her for information and shit. He was at her house. I was at her house. I knocked him out and brought him here for you to deal with. But to be honest, it's a lost cause. I think I should put him in jail. It's the only way.”

“And what exactly are you going to pin on him? Your own kidnapping that you never reported?”

“I'll pin something on him, don't you worry,” I murmur, looking down at Eric in disgust. “How could Steph choose him over Ronan?”

“You know Eric; he can be charming if he wants to be. He probably gave her attention and compliments and all that other shit women love.”

“Dexter Black, romantic of the year,” I grumble.

Arrow and Irish walk into the room, and Irish whistles. “What have you gone and done, Faye?”

“Just a little fishing,” I reply, pushing my hair out of my face. “Caught myself something. But now it's the men's job to figure out what to do with it.” I dust off my hands. “I'm going to have a shower, then cuddle in bed with my kids. Good night.”

I go and do just that.

Let them solve the fuckup that is Eric Black.

FOURTEEN

Faye

“I
DON'T
wanna go on a fuckin' blind date,” Ronan growls, moody, as you would be if you found out a girl chose Eric over you. “If I wanted a woman, I'd go out and get one. Do I look like I need your help?”

“She's a babe.”

“Don't care.”

“She's a gymnast,” I add, winking at him. “Very flexible.”

She isn't really, but he doesn't need to know that until he's on a date with her. He stares at me a moment, sighs, then leaves the room. “Forget Steph! She's stupid!”

“Smooth,” Arrow says, grinning.

“Shut up.”

“I had my date last night.”

“And?”

He just smiles in reply.

“Good work, Arrow,” I say, planting a sloppy kiss on his cheek, which he wipes. “I'm sure Anna can't walk right today.”

He shakes his head at me. “Thanks for the ideas.”

“What are friends for if not to help them get laid and plan their sex clothes?”

“What?” he asks, looking confused.

Keep up, Arrow, keep up.

I went with Anna to Victoria's Secret, and we picked out some cute lingerie for her to wear for Arrow. With Arrow, I helped him pick Anna's present, a diamond bracelet with a turtle charm on it, although don't ask me why, because I have no idea.

“Never mind. Did you do the candlelit dinner?” I ask him, genuinely interested.

He nods. “She loved it.”

“Winning.”

I lift up my fist; he bumps it.

I walk out of the kitchen, but not before saying, “Remember that time I saw your penis and thought that was why they called you Arrow? Good times, right?”

I leave before he can reply.

When I walk outside the clubhouse to see where Colt is, the next person I come across is Irish. I forgot to ask him what happened with Tina in the end, about the whole Darren thing, even though they obviously managed to make up over it. “So is Darren no longer a name we can't mention?” I ask him. “Or is he still our very own Voldemort?”

He lifts his head from where he's working on his bike. “We talked it out. She was pissed. Whatever you said to her, it helped though. Your mouth should be labeled as a weapon.” He pauses, cringing. “Fuck, that's not what I meant. You have the gift of the gab, is all.”

“Maybe I kissed that rock in Ireland. What's it called?”

“Blarney Stone,” he says, looking amused. “Yeah, maybe you did.”

“I'm glad all is well in your world, Irish,” I say, crouching down and kissing his cheek. He looks a little surprised, but then smiles back.

“You know I love you like a sister, right?”

I nod, stand, and walk back inside, bumping into Tracker. I smile up at him and ask, “How did everything go at the book signing after I left?”

He shrugs and puts his hands in his pockets. “Okay, fine. I like going to them. I like the attention. Fuckin' sue me.”

“Don't say that to a lawyer.”

“You're the sketchiest lawyer I've ever met, Faye,” he replies, blue eyes dancing with mischief.

“You're the sketchiest book-cover model I've ever met.”

“True.”

“Tracker?”

“Yeah?”

I hug him. “I adore you. Always have. You know this, right?”

He places his hand on my back, then asks me softly if I'm dying.

I'm about to reply, when Rake walks up and hugs me from behind so I'm a Tracker and Rake sandwich. “What's going on?”

“Faye's telling everyone she loves them. I think she's dying.”

“You haven't told me you love me,” Rake says, sounding offended. I let go of Tracker's waist and spin in the sandwich so I'm facing Rake and my back is to Tracker. “I love you, Rake. I'm happy you found Bailey and Cara and stopped fucking random whores.”

“I love you too, Faye,” he says, clearing his throat. “But why does it sound like you're saying good-bye? We're all growing old together, and we already know how much you care about us. Fuck, don't think any woman would put up with our shit with a smile on her face. And you're everything to us too, to this club. Ever since you walked through that door, pregnant, with that mouth on you, fate decided. You're a Wind Dragon. Now stop this mushy shit. Let's go get drunk before the kids get home from school.”

He steps back, freeing me. I kiss him on the cheek. Rake has his random sweet moments, and I just experienced one.

I see Vinnie later that evening, and I run over to him as he pulls up on his bike. As soon as he gets off the bike, I give him the biggest hug. I remember the first time I saw Vinnie. A prospect I remember thinking was too much of a nice guy to be in the life. I remember his bravery on the night Mary was killed. We've always been close, Vinnie and I. To the rest of the men, he's Wolf, but to me, he will always be Vinnie.

“Is everything okay?” he asks, hugging me back. “Faye?”

“I was just thinking about when we first met,” I say, pulling back and smiling at him. “You know there's nothing I wouldn't do for you, right?”

“Faye, I know,” he says gently, kissing the top of my head. “We're family. No,
family
is too tame a word for what we are.”

“We're Wind Dragons,” I say, smiling. “Did Dex tell you about Eric?”

Dex got Eric the help he needed. He is now seeing doctors and being treated for a mental breakdown—resulting from the loss of his mom—and needs to go on meds, as well as having therapy sessions with a shrink. I don't know what will happen from here, but I'm hoping that Eric either sorts his shit out, or never comes back. Harsh, but I don't want to be looking over my shoulder for the rest of my life.

“That he's getting help,” Vinnie says, nodding. “In some medical facility. Yeah, we all heard. At least you don't have to worry about him anymore; he won't be coming back. I don't think they'll let him out of there. Dex told them that he was self-harming and that's why he was so banged up, because he kept hitting his head on walls and shit.”

My eyes widen, and I feel impressed. Dex never told me that part. “Dex can be a sneaky bastard when he wants to be.”

“Bet he learned from the best.”

I laugh at that. “He was devious before he met me, okay?”

“Not as,” he replies, then places his arm around my shoulders. “Now what has you feeling so sentimental today?”

“I don't know,” I admit, shrugging. “It feels like the end of an era. Everyone is settled down, and we have no more enemies out to get us. We just get to enjoy now, you know? Live peacefully. Our version of peaceful anyway.”

“Yeah, Ronan and Ranger are the only bachelors, aren't they?”

“They'll both find women eventually.”

“Apparently with you trying to set them up on blind dates,” he says, barking out a laugh. “You don't even have any other female friends.”

“Do too.”

“No you don't. You probably only just met them. Fuckin' found them on the street or in a café or something.”

“This isn't an episode of
Friends
,” I mutter, making him laugh harder. “I have a life outside of these walls, you know.”

“Really? Because last month you asked me to come and talk with you while you got your nails done, because you had no one else to go with.”

“That happened, like, one time. All the girls were busy!”

He laughs loudly. “You're fuckin' something else.”

“I'll take that as a compliment.”

“I meant it as one.”

“How cute are we right now?” I say, stopping at the kitchen. “I have to start cooking for tonight's dinner.”

“Do you want any help?” he asks, surprising me. “By the way, have you looked in the freezer recently?”

“No. Why?” I ask, walking over to the freezer and opening the door. Inside are two tubs of my favorite ice cream. “You got me ice cream!”

“You're a hard woman to say no to, Faye Black,” he says, smiling and continuing down the hallway. I take out one tub and hug it against my chest, grinning.

I always get my way.

Dex walks into the kitchen, spots me hugging my ice cream with a huge smile on my face, and shakes his head, his own lips kicking up at the corners.

“All of them fuckin' spoil you,” he says, but I can tell by his tone that he loves it.

He loves that they love me.

We could change the Wind Dragons motto: Love the woman, love the club.