A Very Venom Christmas - Kristine Allen Page 0,45
with a nip to my jaw. Then he swatted my ass and nudged me up. “I have work to do now.”
With a happy little grin, I crawled off him, straightened my clothes, and stood to go. As I walked out the door, he said, “Nice ass.”
With a scoffing laugh, I rolled my eyes and blew him a kiss. By the time I got to the common area, the girls were all waiting. Jasmine had on a puffy white coat that set off her rich, dark hair and golden-brown eyes to perfection. Too bad, she didn’t seem to be worried about what anyone thought about her.
I hoped that we might become good enough friends that she’d eventually open up to me.
“Let’s go do some shopping, bitches!” Kira announced as we poured out of the clubhouse and into the waiting SUV. Roscoe was driving, and Jigsaw was in the front passenger seat. Jasmine and I crawled in the very back seat, Kira and Korrie in the center.
We drove to the mall, laughing and talking about everyone’s plans for the holidays. We even got Jasmine to smile a little.
Once there, it didn’t take me long to find a white gold bracelet. It was thick and looked like a snake. The clasp was the snake’s head, complete with fangs. I’d learned that Decker’s road name was Venom because he’d been bitten by a venomous snake when he was in Afghanistan.
That was the other thing I’d had to learn. Road names and basic biker lingo. Who knew they almost had their own language?
“That’s going to be perfect,” Korrie said as she watched the lady take the bracelet to box it up. It was a little out of my price range, but I had my credit card, and I’d have to find a job and pay it off slowly.
Jasmine was looking longingly at some thick silver chains. “You should get one,” I encouraged. “Treat yourself.”
She shook her head. “Oh, it wouldn’t be for me.”
My head cocked, I studied her. “Who would it be for?”
She rolled her lips between her teeth and shrugged as she kept her gaze locked on the display case. There was obviously a story there. When a different saleslady stopped in front of us to see if we needed help, I thanked her. “The other lady is packaging my purchase up.”
When she was about to walk off, Jasmine stopped her. “Um, could I look at that one?” She pointed to a thick, flat silver chain. It reminded me a little of a dog chain. It was kinda cool.
Jasmine slid it through her fingers thoughtfully before she shot a nervous glance over her shoulder. Korrie and Kira were absorbed in one of the displays of pretties and weren’t paying us any mind.
“I’ll take that. If you can wrap it up without them seeing,” she said quietly. The lady gave Korrie and Kira a glance before she smiled conspiratorially toward Jasmine.
“I’ll be right back. You want to pay for it now or meet me at the register?” she whispered. Jasmine handed her a card.
The saleslady nodded and went to the back. I knew she thought Jasmine must be buying it for one of the girls, but if she didn’t want them knowing, I knew it wasn’t for herself. Which led to the question. Who was it for? A mystery I’d have to figure out.
The saleslady returned and discreetly gave Jasmine her box and card. She signed the receipt, then slipped the small wrapped package in her purse with a shy smile as I paid for my purchase. We left the jewelry store with the men following behind at a safe distance. Christmas music filled the halls of the mall, and we sang along like kids as we laughed.
After a stop at the coffee shop by the food court, we left the mall with smiles and steaming cups to head back to the clubhouse. Jigsaw was around the side of the vehicle, I assumed opening the doors.
Roscoe opened the back of the SUV for us to stash our packages and purses. He was about to close the door when a guy bolted past him, throwing his left arm back and burying a knife in his chest.
I started to scream when the guy dove at me, holding a second knife to my throat. The tip dug into my flesh, causing me to silence myself really damn quick. The other women were standing there silent and still as they waited to see what the man was going to