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“I’m good,” she whispered, then spoke to Copper. “I was with Shark for a little over a year. It was a long time ago, but I was his girlfriend. Or I guess you guys would have called me his ol’ lady.”
“No fucking way,” Zach broke in. “An ol’ lady is a term that denotes respect. Shark doesn’t know the meaning of the word.”
If she’d found him hard to resist before, this caring and protective side of Zach made it impossible to even think of walking away from him. Instead, she felt herself falling. So stupid considering she was dealing with the fallout of her last dysfunctional relationship.
“Whatever,” she said shaking her head. “That doesn’t matter. What matters is that I was really young and really stupid. Things went…bad and I had an uncle pull me out of a really terrible situation. I haven’t seen or spoken to anyone from the Gray Dragons since I was eighteen.”
Copper frowned and rubbed at his bearded chin. “How did you get out?”
“My uncle literally walked in, picked me up, and left with me. I was uh…” Her face flamed. “I was really high at the time and don’t remember it. I woke up in my uncle’s house about a day later. To be honest, I’m not sure how he found me. I think he had a PI tailing Shark.”
Zach mentioned respect. None of these men were going to have an ounce of respect for her. They’d think she was nothing better than a junkie whore.
“Breathe, baby. You’re doing great.” Zach pressed a kiss to her temple and warmth filled her chest.
“There’s no fucking way they just let you leave.”
“Huh?”
Zach’s hand landed on her thigh again. “I had the same thought. It was too easy.”
“What do you mean?” She frowned and looked between Zach and Copper.
“There are two ways out of the gang. Death or a beat out,” Zach said.
“A beat out?” Was that as horrible as it sounded?
“Yes.” Copper said as though reading her mind. “They literally beat you bloody. If you survive it, you’re out. But you keep your mouth shut about anything gang related when you leave or they’ll kill you. And very few people are even granted a beat out. Most of the time you’re in till you die.”
A chill ran down her spine. Zach must have noticed her tremble because he pulled her from her chair onto his lap. Normally, she’d have shoved him away, but today she allowed herself the comfort of his body. Nothing about the day was normal. Tomorrow she could repent for her weakness.
“But I wasn’t in the gang. I was just some whore they used.”
Zach growled, but it was Rocket who spoke first. “No!” he said with so much vehemence, Toni gaped at him. “Don’t wanna ever hear you describe yourself that way again, babe. You were a kid that was taken advantage of. They fucked with your head and your body. That’s all on Shark. And he’ll fuckin’ pay for that. None of it’s on you.”
“Holy shit, was that the most you’ve ever spoken in your life?”
Laughter broke out around the table cutting the tension down a few notches.
“Women are treated to the same rules as the actual gang members,” Copper said.
“So why did they let me leave?”
“I’m thinking money,” Zach answered as he wrapped his arms around her and locked her against his chest.
Copper nodded. “Makes sense. Her uncle must have paid a pretty penny for her.”
“What?” Someone was going to have to scoop her jaw off the floor at this point. “Paid for me. Like Shark sold me to my uncle?” In what was now becoming a familiar sensation, her stomach flipped. “This is mortifying. I-I’m going to be sick,” she said.
Zach cupped her cheek and turned her to face him. “Hey,” he said in a soothing tone. “It’s just me here. No one else. Just focus on me.” He pressed his lips to hers in a kiss that was so tender it brought tears to her eyes.
As Zach kissed her, in a room full of rowdy bikers, the world faded away. The past wasn’t important any more. Old shame disappeared. All that mattered was the way he made her feel in that moment. Important, cherished, wanted…dare she say, loved.
It wasn’t love. Couldn’t be. But it sure worked to chase away the pain.
“Better?” he asked when he pulled back.
Her eyelids fluttered open and she sighed. “Better.”
“I know it sounds bad, but your uncle did the right thing. He got you out of there without any further trauma. Who gives a shit about the money?”
She nodded. It wasn’t about the money, though she felt guilty as hell that Mark had parted with his hard-earned cash for her. It was the principle of the matter. That some man, some vile piece of shit, thought he owned her and had the right to demand money for her freedom.
