AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Fuck…
The tears really did start flowing then. Gina was still pretty Goddamned fragile, and I completely got it. I hadn’t meant to cause her more distress, but I think maybe she needed to hear that she meant something to someone. What better way to show he cared than painting his bike pink just to make her smile? Yeah. Falcon owed me. Big fucking time.
It took everything in my power not to pat her shoulder and say, “There, there, dear,” and hope she quit crying. I would not be the old granny woman taking care of everyone. I might at some point be able to pass for the motherly type, but I doubted it. There was no Goddamned way in the whole fucking universe I would ever be the grandmotherly type.
Thankfully, Gina finally sat up and wiped her nose with a tissue from the box on the coffee table. “I’m sorry.” She sniffed and dabbed at her eyes. She wasn’t a pretty crier, but she tried to keep the snot to a minimum. “I’m still a bit of a hot mess.”
“Nothing to be sorry about. If you feel the need, you can make it up to me by making every single man in this compound who ever touched you take you on a ride on that bike. It will be the highlight of my day.”
She gave a watery laugh. “Yeah. I think I can do that.”
“You believe me when I tell you they won’t hurt you?”
“Yes.” She nodded and dabbed at her nose again. “I do. I had the feeling there was something not right, and none of them ever hurt me or got as rough as I’d heard some of the girls here mention.”
“What do you mean?” I tilted my head, wanting to make sure I understood anything she was about to say.
She shrugged. “A couple of the guys -- Falcon being one of them -- always asked me if I was good. Like before they had sex with me. I knew better than to answer in any way other than yes because saying no meant someone confronting Hammer. If he got the best of them, then Hammer would’ve hurt me worse. So, it’s not the guys’ fault.”
I sighed. I had to be careful here. What happened to Gina had been a tragedy. No woman should have to surrender her body to anyone if she didn’t want to. I got how the guys missed that she wasn’t willing, especially if they’d asked her and she’d said she was good.
“That whole situation was fucked up, Gina. I’m not saying it wasn’t their fault because you don’t seem to think it was. You’re scared and I get why. But I’m not sure I’m willing to say it was entirely their fault either. Hammer did a number on everyone. Because of him, the guys are finding it hard to trust each other without there being some standoffishness.” I omitted the part about how they’d never been a really open bunch, holding everything close instead of trusting their brothers to have their backs.
“I never thought about it that way,” she said. “I guess Hammer took us all for a ride.”
“I can’t tell you to give them a chance to make it up to you. If you don’t feel safe, you don’t feel safe. This is your home. You don’t have to be social with anyone you don’t want to. But I can promise you that none of them would ever hurt you intentionally. I’m not asking you to take my word for it, though. You test them out any way you like. Or not at all. I’ll do anything I can to make you more comfortable, Gina.”
“No. I believe you. Like I said, I knew they weren’t aware. I didn’t trust them not to rat me out or, worse, laugh or tell me it didn’t matter. I think that would have broken me.”
“If you want to get out of here, I can talk to Brick at Iron Tzars for you. It’s a long way from home, but the Iron Tzars are a good club.”
“No. I’m really OK here. More than anything, I think I’m embarrassed. Over all of it.”
She paused for a moment, looking down at her hands before finally meeting my gaze again. “I just… I don’t know. It’s like I’ve been living in this constant state of fear and it’s hard to shake it off.”
I nodded, understanding her struggle. “It’s hard. I know. Just remember I’ve got your back. You need something, you call me. Anytime. Day or night.” I smiled before standing. “Besides. Us girls gotta stick together. There’s entirely too much testosterone in this fuckin’ place.”
That got a genuine laugh from Gina, and I almost sighed in relief. I wasn’t a typical girl with my emotions. Being careful didn’t come easy to me. If I had a problem, I faced it head on. My sisters, Apple and Danica, were kind of the same way, just more subtle about it. I was more like a steamroller. So not what Gina needed.
“Good.” I grinned at her. “You have my number. Use it.”
“Thanks, Lemon.” Gina stood, leaned over and hugged me tightly before letting go and wiping her nose again. “I’m not sure I’d have made it through this without your help.”
I waved her off. “It’s the least I can do after everything you endured at the hands of the club. Keep your chin up. And remember, no one here is gonna hurt you. They do and they answer to me, and by extension, Rocket. And let me tell you, that man wouldn’t hesitate to kill a motherfucker if he ever hurt you.”
That seemed to be what she needed to hear. Gina’s shoulders relaxed and she smiled. “I appreciate you taking my side. I think the guys are more than half afraid of you.”
“Nah. They’re afraid of Rocket if they retaliate when I attack. Puts me in a really good position overall. I know how to take advantage of that shit to get what I want.”
“What do you want here, Lemon?” She cocked her head, genuinely curious.
“I want this place to be a fuckin’ family instead of a bunch of people coexisting in this compound. Right now it’s like an apartment building of introverts. I want them to support each other in everything they do. It’ll make the club stronger for it.”
“Good luck. I hope you succeed. Outside of Hammer, I really don’t think the guys here are bad. I just have no idea what to do with any of them now. I don’t know how to not… remember.”
Crap. That fuckin’ sucked. “Yeah. I get it.” I cleared my throat. “You’re a strong woman, Gina. Hold your head up.”
She smiled again, but it looked a little sad. “I will.”
