Jace sits up and swings his legs around. He crosses his arms, and I stand, heading to the sink, ripping off my latex gloves, the same kind I used to finger her. I stare at the chair two feet away. A sudden memory of her crying my name in that chair flashes through my mind.
I wash my hands, needing a cigarette. I pull one out of my pocket, along with my matches, and light it, craving the pure nicotine. “We can finish the rest later.”
Jace doesn’t react, but he also doesn’t get up. He doesn’t leave the way I need him to. He waits me out. Patient fucking bastard. It’s one of the reasons I became friends with him. I liked him the moment I met him. Thought he would fit right in with the Legion. But his life wasn’t meant to be a biker, a killer. He grew up in a world I know nothing about.Just like his sister,my subconscious adds. “You tell me, Park. How is your sister?”
“She was wearing your jacket a few months ago.”
I shrug, dismissing the fucking thrill in my chest and the twitch in my cock that she kept my jacket. An image of her wearing it over her naked body while she waits for me upstairs runs through my head. I squash the image and blow the smoke to the ceiling. Fuck. Onyx is going to get on my ass about it. “She went outside without her jacket,” I say it so nonchalantly. As if my draping my jacket on her narrow shoulders that night was just courtesy. As if I can’t still feel the satiny texture of her cheeks and the wetness of her tears.
Jace stands, his tall, powerful frame an equal match for mine. The only other man taller is Onyx, at nearly seven feet tall.
He looks at me through the curling smoke. Those green eyes silently denouncing my words. He knows me too well. I don’t give women my jacket. I don’t do courtesy or cordial.
“She’s not like the other women you’ve been with, Stefan.”
Anger flares at his invocation of my legal name. It’s a call to our bond. A call on the day I went to him for help.
His words also call forth the same fucking thoughts that have been circulating in my head since I saw her across his pool last year. The same conflict I’ve felt comes back.
I may want her desperately. I may stalk her and crave her, but she could never really be mine. Not in the light, at least. Not for keeps. She can only live in the shadows and in my mind. I push the anger aside. I want to hurt him for the truth. Honestly, I want to punch him in the throat for voicing what I already know. “What kind of women would those be, Park?”
“Women who know what it means to be involved with men in the Legion. Women who can protect themselves. Women who don’t mind what you do.”
“And your sister can’t do those things?” I challenge him.
His shoulders slump before he picks up his shirt and pulls it over his head.
“I’m not saying she can’t. She can do anything if she puts her mind to it, but I’m not sure if she should have to. She’s 24 fucking years old, Stone. She’s just starting her dream. Is she going to learn how to shoot a fucking gun in case your lifestyle decides to take revenge? How will she manage in your club, huh? I’ve seen what goes on there.”
Every word punctures me, but it also enrages me. He doesn’t know much about her if he thinks she is some sort of woman in need of rescue. From the times I’ve been around her, she’s sensitive, but strong. “She is stronger than you think, Park.”
“Maybe, but I’m not willing to test it against the shit you have going on. It’s not worth the risk.”
I close my eyes against the accusation I feel in my heart, my mind. My sister and niece weren’t prepared for the world that Onyx, Riggs, and I inhabited. They paid the ultimate price for our choices.My choices.I open my eyes and stare at him.
“Have you told her?” Jace demands, studying me.
“Have I told her what?” I drag on the cigarette, pulling in as much smoke as possible, needing to suffocate that pain in my chest.
“Don’t play stupid. Have you?”
Have I told her that I’m a psychopath who enjoys bleeding a woman while I fuck her?Have I told her that I’ve killed more people than I can count?“There is nothing to tell her. She doesn’t factor into my life.”Lies.
“I’ve known you for years, Stone, and I never told you how to live your life, but I’m asking that you stay away from my sister.”
“How am I supposed to do that when you keep inviting me to your shit?” I look him in the eyes, daring him to tell me to stay the fuck away from him, too.
He doesn’t take the bait. “I can’t fathom losing her to your lifestyle. To your enemies.”
Me either.A voice whispers through my mind. An image of Ivory and Angel comes to mind, along with the guilt.
“I’m your friend. I always will be. Friendships mean something to me, but she comes first. Keep your distance. Please.”
I hear his plea. I hear what he’s asking me, and my mind accepts it while every other part of my body rejects his request.
“Will I see you later?”
Oh. Yes. His BBQ. The invitation to go back to his house that I accepted last week. The invitation I accepted so I could see her. So I could torture myself. Again.
