Addictive (Houston Defiance MC #2) - K.E. Osborn Page 0,48
Cherry, he told me to give you a message. I wasn’t going to give it to you until something happened because who knows? He’s a tough fucking asshole.”
“He really is. But just in case… what did he say?”
Fuck, I hate this.
“He said to tell you he loves you. You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to him… he said it with so much fucking gusto it made me want to puke… that you mean everything to him.”
She lets out a stifled laugh at the same time a fat tear falls down her cheek. “Thank you, Wraith. Thanks for not sugarcoating it. Thanks for being honest with me. As the first lady, I need to be able to handle shit like this.”
This woman is what first lady material is made of.
“You’re gonna be okay, Rayne. We’ll take care of you. It doesn’t matter if you’re an Old Lady for an hour or a lifetime. Once you’re an Old Lady, you’re a part of this club. We look after our own.”
She reaches out grabbing my hand over the table. “I know, but just like you’re all gonna take care of me, I’m gonna take care of you guys, too. We’re all going to be hurting if the time comes. We’re a family now.”
I turn my hand over, giving hers a squeeze. “I’m not going to tell Prinie about this. I think it’s best after the discussion we just had.”
“She’s not in a good way.”
“She’s in pain. Being here… all this place represents for her is loss. I’m not sure how to change that.”
A lump is caught in my throat because I am part of that loss too. I’m not helping her, only hurting her. “I wish I knew an easy way to ease her pain.”
Cherry chuckles. “Whiskey?”
If I smiled, I would now. She’s funny. “I know I need to keep clear of her.”
Cherry clicks her tongue to the roof of her mouth. “Honestly? You need to do just the opposite. But I understand you’re trying to do what your president and best friend wanted. Why, I’m not sure. I don’t know the reasons behind Zero wanting you to stay away from Prinie, everyone’s keeping it close to their chest.”
I raise my brow at her. “She hasn’t told you?”
“You thought she had?”
“Yeah, I just assumed with you being her friend, she would have confided in you.”
“No. Whatever happened between you two is locked up tight.”
I tense a little knowing our secret really is just between Prinie and me. Somehow that makes me feel like maybe she’s too intimidated to admit what happened between us to someone else.
Maybe she’s scared for me.
Of what might happen to me if someone found out.
It confirms my thoughts—I am no good for her.
WRAITH
The Next Day
Yesterday was a big day. I’m mentally drained. Lying in bed all night all I wanted was to go to Prinie’s room and check on her. I spent the night awake wishing she was here, in my arms. The night, even though it was humid, I would have been fine with the warmth of Prinie’s body pressing against me making me too hot. I would have taken that any day rather than lying here by myself all fucking night waiting for a phone call which never came.
My eyes are heavy. I know I need to get up, but honestly, I’ve never dreaded a day more in my life.
Who knows what today will bring?
Shit with the Baron.
News about Zero.
More drama with Prinie.
I’m not sure I want any of it.
I think of Zero and how he saved my ass four years ago. He brought me into this club without a second’s hesitation. Took me under his wing. Gave me a life to fight for—a family to fight for. I owe him every-fucking-thing.
I’d prospected in officially as part of the club a couple of months ago. The brothers all thought I was a loose cannon, but Zero and Frenzy saw something in me. It seems the Walker’s liked taking in stray mutts. I was trying to find my feet, but my addiction kept rearing its ugly head.
The club girls were off-limits to me. The guys knew I could go too far, and the women were more than just whores to them and were treated with respect.
So, I found my fix in other ways, but it was starting to get out of hand, and Zero knew it. It was, after all, the reason he took me in. His project, even though he kept saying I wasn’t, I knew