Ignite (The Disciples #4) - Cassandra Robbins Page 0,76

look away.

“What?” My eyes dart back and forth at them.

“Nothing, princess. My only concern is… Axel might not be able to be monogamous.” He sighs.

“Doug. Don’t sugarcoat it.” Cindy slaps him. “And you guys say I’m the big mouth.”

Flashes of last night and this morning replay in my head. Am I being an idiot? Axel is a master at making you feel good and special.

My eyes swing to Doug’s almost begging for him to make this better, which is crazy. Because what can he do? It’s not his fault Axel is a womanizer and has probably fucked hundreds of women.

He holds up his hand and sighs. “Axel is… How flexible are you if he happens to fuck someone, but it doesn’t mean anything to him?”

I blink at him. “You’re joking, right?”

“Let’s not worry about all this now. I want you to go put on that sweet little dress I saw on the chair and I’ll get Cindy ready.”

“You know what? I’m not feeling so good either. You guys go along, and I’ll be down later.” I blink back the tears because I have no right to cry. Axel is what Axel is, and I need to toughen up. Just because I could fall in love with him doesn’t mean he can do the same. Except he must have been in love at one time. He has MJ tattooed on his hand.

“Christ.” Doug closes his eyes for a second, then looks at both of us. “We’re all going to be calm and fantastic. This is a welcome home party for Dolly, remember?” He looks at Cindy who rolls her eyes.

“Second. No one is hiding.”

Doug grabs my arm and walks me into the bedroom, sighing as he looks at me.

“Look, they’re men, Antoinette. They think they’re gods but they’re not, and I’ve seen firsthand how my girls bring those bikers down.”

He grins. “But don’t do what Eve or Dolly did…” He takes another sip and hands the bottle to me.

“What did they do?” I take a huge sip, needing the liquid courage, and instantly choke.

“Oh my God, is this gasoline? My mouth and chest are burning.” I wheeze and glance around for water.

He calmly walks to the refrigerator, grabs a bottled water, and dumps it into my hand.

“Eve got pregnant and Dolly stabbed Edge.” With that, he walks back into the bathroom to help Cindy.

ANTOINETTE

I sit down on the edge of the bed. What is going on? Everything was perfect last night and this morning, yet now I’m not so sure about anything, including Axel.

“Okay, let’s do this. Eve and Dolly are here, and the party is starting.” Doug comes out looking at his phone.

Cindy walks out like Barbie herself. Her hair is back to being perfect and her coloring appears somewhat normal.

“I have to be honest,” I say. “No one will miss me today.”

Music infiltrates the bedroom. I can’t make out the song, but the beat is making the pictures on the wall vibrate.

“Um, no. Dolly is already asking for you. See, we all need the woman who has stolen Axel’s heart and moved into his room.” He grabs my hand, pulling me up.

“To be honest, he did it to help me. It’s not like he wanted me to move into his room.” Both of them are staring at me like I’m crazy. Rolling my eyes, I continue. “What I’m saying is… it’s not like were dating.”

“Jesus, Antoinette, let’s go.” Doug swings the door open.

I bite my lower lip suddenly wanting to be anywhere but walking down the stairs heading toward God only knows what.

“Can I have another sip, please?” I whisper.

“Small one. And no, Cindy, you have to drink water.” He hands me the tequila. This time it goes down easier, still burning, but at least I don’t feel like a fire-breathing dragon.

Downstairs, the scene is crazy, and the number of bikers is staggering. In the game room, people are packed close together, drinking and smoking. The snap of the pool tables and dinging of video games echo in the background along with some song by Ozzy Osbourne.

It’s like the clubhouse has come alive, not only with Disciples but with tattooed women of every size, wearing tons of makeup and bikinis or short dresses.

“Am I being paranoid or is everybody looking at us?” I say into Doug’s ear as my eyes scan the room. “How many Disciples are there?”

“Probably three hundred, maybe more,” Cindy says. She must have overheard me, but her real focus is elsewhere, her eyes locked on