I chuckle. “Yes, I’m well aware.” I’ve always been shy; I can’t help it. I live vicariously through the books I read.
“I’ll see you tomorrow,” she says over her shoulder as she walks away.
“See you then,” I reply and walk over to my car.
A new town, a new job, and an unspoken hope for a new beginning.
Three
The Bet
Axle
Viper,Cash, and I are hanging out at the clubhouse bar. The music is pumping, and one of my favorite bands, Motionless in White, is playing. I join in, singing to the chorus.
“Shit, you sound terrible,” Viper says, smirking.
I sing louder just to spite him, using my hand as a microphone. I scream at the end until he throws a dirty tea towel at me and scores a direct hit to my face.
I gag, rip it off, and throw it back at Cash, who’s standing behind the bar. “That stinks!”
He laughs. “It shut you up, didn’t it?”
Viper’s squinting at me. “Can you hear your own voice?”
I nod. “Sure can.”
“Then you must hear how shit you sound.”
I gasp dramatically. “You must have a hearing problem then,” I say to Viper, fighting off a grin.
He shakes his head as he chuckles.
“Did I just hear something dying?” Reaper, the president of our club, is walking toward us with an expression of disgust on his face, which makes all of us laugh.
“You mean the sound of an angel,” I clarify.
“If the angel was being brutally murdered,” Demon chimes from the pool table, where he’s playing a game with Twitch.
I roll my eyes. “Well, I’ve got to entertain myself somehow.”
The other men return to their conversations. Grace sashays over to me, giving me a flirtatious glance. I groan. Prime example number one of why I’m bored—no more casual sex with the stage-five clinger. I shake my head. “Not now,” I call out to her over the music, loud and clear.
She pauses, but then keeps walking toward me while Viper chuckles next to me. I grit my teeth and plaster on a smile, trying not to lose my shit at her.
“Oh, come on, baby,” she coos, pushing up her boobs, which are about to burst out of her bra-like top.
She’s hot... amazing body, but she needs a big fucking wake-up call. We will never be anything but fuck buddies. My nonexistent patience vanishes. I raise my voice and stress, “I said,not now.”
Her eyes widen. She fakes a tight-lipped smile and retreats.
I blow out a breath. “Fuuuck! I’m trying my best not to be a dick because she’s a sweet butt and lives here, but she’s making it really fucking difficult.”
Viper looks at me with a raised brow. “What’s up with you lately?”
“She’s in full stage-five-clinger mode. Even started asking me if I would ever get married.” I shake my head while Viper laughs.
He cringes. “That’s heavy. She realizes she’s living at a motorcycle club, right?”
