AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I roll my eyes, climbing inside the SUV. Chase yanks my seatbelt into place, making sure I’m secure. It’s unnecessary. I’m not a child in need of assistance, but his gesture is sweet all the same.
He gives me a measured look. “I’m buying you jeans.”
“I don’t need them,” I retort.
“You’re dating a biker—you’ll have them when you ride with me.” He closes my door before he leans into the open window. My heart flutters deliciously at how close his face is to mine. “And soon you’ll be wearing my property patch.”
Just when he was saying all the right things, he had to ruin it with his caveman talk. “That shit is chauvinistic and degrading,” I chide him.
Chase gives an evil smirk, nipping at the tip of my nose. “It’s club culture. Get used to it, baby.” He stalks off toward his bike, his ass looking mighty fine in tight denim.
“Way to make him all grouchy, Priss.”
“I kind of like it when he gets all growly,” I admit, with a shrug.
Punk barks a laugh, turning over the engine of the SUV. “Well, you certainly bring it out in him.”
* * *
Eight hours in a SUV is a long flipping time when you’re stuck in a vehicle with Punk. We bicker the entire way. We fight over the radio, the air-conditioner, the speed we travel, the snacks we buy along the way—everything is an argument.
The only thing we seem to be civil about is gossip regarding the Mercy Ravens crew.
“Tank asked Eb to go on a date with him this weekend,” Punk says.
“Noooo! When? What did she say?”
“Yesterday. She told him ‘maybe.’”
Wow.“Why is she holding herself back? The guy is gaga for her. He’s such a romantic.”
Punk snorts. “That may be the problem. Eb grew up in a one percent MC. She doesn’t understand romance when all she knows is men who take what they want. She promised herself a long time ago to never be claimed.”
“I understand her distaste for the property status. However, to not have a romantic relationship seems like a lonely life.”
Punk glares out the windshield. “I’m not entirely sure, but I guess it has something to do with being powerless while at the mercy of men who don’t give a shit about her. She and I have been close over the years, you know. We connected because like recognizes like.”
I’m not following. “What do you mean?”
“We both came from fucked up homes,” he answers tentatively. “I came to the club when I lost Nat to my half-brother. Eb came to Mercy Ravens when her brother betrayed her. What he did, I have no clue, but something happened in her old MC, something dark. Not sure what, but I know well enough to not press when something’s painful.”
“That’s heartbreaking. Maybe Tank can change her perspective.”
“We can hope.”
We’re silent for a moment, each of us staring ahead out the windshield. Punk has mentioned his ex to me twice, each time with a hitch in his voice.
“Do you miss her?”
Punk breathes in deep through his nose, letting it out slow through his mouth. “More than I should, and a fuck-ton more than she deserves.”
It hurts hearing Punk longs for a woman he’ll never have again. When I recall Trent and his betrayal, it burns, but I don’t pine for him or thewhat ifs. Trent may have checked all the boxes I previously found suitable in a partner—aside from the lying adultery part. Yet our relationship lacked the embers to stoke the flames of desire. Perhaps Trent’s embers for me cooled long ago. But if I’m being honest, mine had been fading for him as well.
My love for Trent is gone. No residual burning coals. For Punk, his lost love still burns.
I have nothing to compare with him. Well…I guess I understand, in a way.
With Chase, my feelings are intense. Have been since the moment I came to the MC. Two nights of romance with him a year ago showed me how strong our chemistry is. When we went cold turkey, those feelings never dimmed—they were as strong as they had been our first night together.
