as messed up as I was, I liked it. Had craved that from him all my life.
I hated myself for that.
And I hated him for fucking me up so bad that some part of me still wanted his approval.
He zipped up his leather jacket. “The club’s gone soft. With you in a position of power, we could get things back the way they were, make decent money again. None of this going-straight bullshit.”
We? Seriously?
In that moment, I knew for sure he’d had something to do with what Trip had done. More than likely he was the driving force behind it. But I had no proof, and until I did, there was nothing I nor the club could do.
“You’re fucked in the head if you think I want anything to do with you, and if you ever step foot on my property again, if you go anywhere near Sofia again, I will end you.”
The fucker grinned and climbed on his bike.
I stood at the door as he rode away.
It wasn’t over. I knew it deep down.
He’d never leave me alone.
Chapter Thirteen
Lila
Jesse was avoiding me.
His messages were still frequent and he was sweet and funny and dirty, but I hadn’t seen him in three days since he left for Black Stone. He kept coming up with excuses why he couldn’t come home, and maybe I was reading too much into it, but something felt off.
Eves pushed the door open to Rocktown Ink and I strode in behind her. Dane was at the counter when we walked in.
My best friend’s boyfriend rounded the barrier between them and kissed her, then offered me a welcome smile. “Hey, Lila. You heading to Black Stone tonight?”
I frowned. “Um…”
“For the party,” he said, distracted by my best friend’s butt. He seemed incapable of keeping his hands off it.
“Oh, right.” Jesse hadn’t once mentioned a party, and he’d had plenty of opportunities. Why hadn’t he told me? “I haven’t decided yet,” I lied, feeling like a fool.
Dane nodded. “It can get kinda wild, but they always have a bit of a blowout when another chapter’s in town.”
He’d stayed in Black Stone…for a party. One he hadn’t told me about. My belly squirmed. “Right, well, I better get back to work. Catch you later.”
“Later, Lila,” Eves called after me.
I pulled my phone free as I walked down the street.
Lila: You up to much tonight?
Jesse: Nah, just club shit to deal with. Miss your mouth, Bambi.
I stared down at his text and the squirming in my belly turned into something else, something ugly, something that I didn’t like. He was lying to me for some reason. I hated lies. If he didn’t want me to go to his club party, or if there was some other reason he didn’t want me there, I deserved honesty.
I went back to work, but the afternoon dragged. By the time I locked up I was running on nervous energy and anger. When I climbed back in my car, instead of heading home, I ended up at Trix’s trailer. It was parked in Quinn’s driveway, well, her old family home.
Quinn had moved into Bull’s place when they married and when Trixie needed somewhere to park her mobile home, Quinn had offered her the empty house. But Trix preferred the trailer, so she’d claimed the backyard. It was cool, though. She’d inherited it from her gran and Trix said it gave her a sense of freedom. That she could hit the road whenever she wanted, and no matter where she went, she’d always have her home with her.
I knocked on the door.
She pulled it open, and as soon as she saw me, frowned. “What the hell happened?”
“Is it that obvious?”
Jimmy Chew stuck his head out, giving me a sniff. “Girl, you look ready to tear shit up.”
“Sounds about right.”
“Get in here and tell me everything.”
I grabbed Trix’s arm. “I’m not sure this is such a good idea.”
After filling Trixie in, we’d riled each other up, picked up Addie, and driven to Black Stone. Now we stood outside the Ramblers’ clubhouse, looking in through the chain-link fence. There were bikes lined up across the front, a lot of bikes.
A massive converted warehouse sat in the middle of a huge concrete lot. There were a couple of four-bay garages and a bunch of other smaller outbuildings dotted in rows along either side and across the back from what I could see.
People were scattered all over the place, talking, laughing, dancing. Music pumped from the back, and going by