Page 7 of Savage Bond

Storm and Chopper watch me carefully. They can tell I'm livid, but they’re clueless on why.

“What’s going on, Roxy?” Storm asks slowly.

I grab my leather jacket off the couch, where I left it when we got home, and I slip it on. I don’t bother answering them, instead I go straight to the door and open it.

Before I can get it open all the way, it slams shut in my face.

“Let me leave, Chopper,” I hiss. There’s no way Storm would do something like this, but Chopper would. He’s the only person I know who isn’t afraid to stand in my way no matter how angry I get.

“Nah, babe. You’re going to tell me what’s going on.”

“And what if I don’t want to?”

“Then you’re not leaving this house,” he whispers in my ear, leaning in close.

“Please, Chopper. I need to handle something.” I lean my head against the door feeling the moisture gathering in my eyes, but I won't let myself cry. I won't let Darren’s actions affect me like this. Not with an audience.

“I’ve got your back, you know I always do,” he whispers, just like he always does, he’s able to calm me down a little bit. “Storm, we’ll be back. I’ll pick up dinner on the way home.”

Chopper tugs me into his side and pulls me out the door. He guides me over to his bike and once I'm on the back, he secures a helmet on my head.

The first tear slips down my cheek even though I'm trying so hard to blink them away. His brows knit together as he stares down at me. He doesn’t say a word, but he swipes away the tear before climbing on his bike and bringing it to life.

I wrap my arms around him right away and hug him tightly. I let my tears flow, knowing Chopper can’t see me. I can’t believe Darren would post something like that. What was it all for? It doesn’t make sense.

The bike stops at a red light and Chopper places his hands over mine on his stomach. He squeezes them softly, letting me know he’s here for me no matter what. Just like he always is because he’s Chopper. He’s the one man I know I can trust with my life and he’ll never let me down.

A few minutes later, Chopper pulls onto a dirt road and stops at the edge of the tree line. He climbs off the bike and helps me off. Once both of our helmets are off, he tugs me into his arms. He buries his face in the crook of my neck, mirroring the position I'm in.

“You can talk to me, babe. You know I'm always on your side. I always want to help you, but I can’t do anything if you keep me in the dark. Ok?”

I nod my head as a sob tears through me. I’ve never had a man treat me the way Darren did. It feels like he took advantage of me without even touching me. The comments on the post were awful. They were all cheering on Darren, while they belittled me.

I'm livid that less than an hour ago, I was telling Dixie she should date someone like Darren. That he was a nice guy and exactly the type of man she needs in her life. How can I be so stupid and blind?

The guys from the club might be scary, tough, and they fear nothing, but they’d never do something like this to a woman. Chopper, Storm, and Dad would never allow it. If one of the club members pulled a stunt like this, they’d end up dead on the side of a road and no one would even blink an eye. There’s an order within a motorcycle club. There’s a chain of command and no one goes against the president because they know what that means for them. It’s a consequence they don’t want to deal with.

I give myself a few moments to break, then I pull away from Chopper and hand over my phone to him. His features turn dark as he takes in the post and all of the comments.

“Babe…” he murmurs.

“It’s not real,” I hurry to explain. I don’t know why, but I need Chopper to know I didn’t do this. “I’ve never… Not with Darren, and not with anyone else.”

“Where were you going when you tried to run out the door?” He glances up at me and there’s concern mixed with barely contained rage painted all over his face.

“I was going to Darren’s house.”

“For what?”

“So I could beat him up.”

“Nah, baby. That’s my job. No little boy gets to talk about my girl like this and get away with it.”

“I'm not your girl, Chopper!” I can feel the tears gathering again and I hate myself for it.

I'm not an emotional woman. I don’t like to cry. I don’t like to show any sort of emotions other than anger or happiness. I push everything else down deep and pretend it doesn’t exist.

“You can pretend you’re not mine all you want, but we both know the truth. You’ll always be mine. I’ll always protect you and I’ll fight as many battles as you’ll let me. You just need to let me in.”