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I people-watched as I did my job. Everyone seemed to be really enjoying themselves. I saw Daisy leaning over to run her red fingernails up the arm of a biker I had never seen before, who gave her a salacious grin at her blatant flirting. Kara was doing her own bit of flirting, but she passed it around to everyone, more like she was just highly enjoying herself as she served the bikers. There were a few other girls from the club whom I worked with frequently, and a couple that I knew were club girls who didn't work at the bar but often hung around. I was curious to know if they worked in other businesses I'd heard the club owned or if they just spent time as a club girl when they could. I hadn't noticed any of the guys in serious relationships. I couldn't help but wonder if they kept their wives or girlfriends at home. Surely, at least a few had to be in a relationship.
A loud ringing had my head whipping around to face the center while I was heading back to the bar to fill another drink order. Everyone else grew quiet as they waited for the bald man in the center of the ring holding a microphone to speak. It was when he welcomed everyone back to the fight night and a deafening cheer went up from the huge crowd, that my eyes caught on the tall, imposing man walking my way.
ChapterEight
SALLY
Bones walked straight up to me, invading my space. I swallowed hard as his intense eyes bore into mine. His hand went up to my throat, the same way he had done in his office, but this time, he didn't push me into the wall. His eyes weren't filled with rage. His face was as impassive as always, not giving a single emotion away. But deep inside his black eyes, I saw what looked like concern. And a hunger that he seemed to be winning a battle against.
His thumb swept over my pulse as it fluttered wildly in my neck before his hand tightened with just enough pressure to make me stiffen without causing me to panic.
"Stay on this side of the warehouse." His words were stiff and gruff, an order given and expected to be obeyed. Since I had no desire to wander into a group of unknown horny bikers, I nodded. Or I tried to. His hand tightened more. "Say the words, little girl."
"I will stay on this side of the warehouse." My voice was quiet, barely above a whisper, as I met his stare with wide eyes, but he must have heard me because his fingers flexed then loosened, lightly resting on my skin as his thumb once again swept over my racing pulse. His eyes left mine, wandering over my face as he seemed to search for something. His attention to what I knew was my scars had me swallowing hard and shamefully lowering my eyes to his chest. I heard a rumble that almost sounded like a growl coming from him, causing my eyes to fly back up to meet his again. After another long moment, he grunted and stepped back before turning away from me and striding over to the table Kara had indicated was reserved for him.
I quickly turned back to the bar, ignoring the probing eyes of the bikers and the girls around me. I gave the prospect my order and waited as I stared at the bar. I had always struggled with having the attention of others. I had no clue why I thought I could be an actress, but with the damage that had been done to me, I couldn't stand the stares of others anymore.
Behind me, the bald guy was making announcements that I was barely paying any attention to as I waited patiently for the drinks I would need to return to the table with. But when I heard Bone's name being called out and another deafening cheer, I couldn't resist glancing over my shoulder toward his table.
Bones had a mug of beer gripped in his hand while Daisy stood just to the side of him, trying to gain his attention. But like every other time I had looked toward him in the last month, his eyes were locked on me. I gave him a small smile with just the barest tilt of my lips, but his blank expression never wavered. I let my smile drop and turned back to the bar when the prospect grunted out my name.
I thanked him, quickly loaded my tray, then headed back over to the table with their order. Through their laughter and playful shoves, I managed to get everyone settled with their fresh beers and pocketed the money they gave me. I was sure that they had massively overpaid, but each of them waved me off when I offered them their change.
As I approached the next table, the first two fighters were called to the ring. The night continued just like that, with roars of excitement and even some jeers from the crowd as each round of fighters entered the ring, bare-chested and full of testosterone. Most of the fights lasted several minutes as the guys pounded each other's faces until they were bloody. A few times, the fights ended up on the floor of the ring as the men grappled for dominance until someone finally surrendered or was knocked out. The club the defeated biker belonged to always dragged the unconscious man away, and I couldn't help but worry. There didn't seem to be any medical personnel in the warehouse to help if anyone got seriously injured.
Often, after a biker won his fight, a girl stood waiting for him at the edge of the ring. One girl had climbed inside and thrown herself into his arms as he had been roaring to the crowd in victory. I had thought they were going to start fucking right there for everyone to watch until the bald guy laughed and pushed them toward the ropes, ignoring the snarling man as he tore his mouth from the girl and pulled his hand from inside her skirt.
I patted my heated cheeks at the display and couldn't help but let my eyes wander back to Bones. His face was just as stoic as always, but there was no denying the heat in his eyes as he stared back at me. I was beginning to realize that, though the Devil's Nightmares president was outwardly impassive and unemotional, there were hints of what he was feeling in the depths of his black eyes if you looked close enough. I was beginning to think he just never let anyone that close. The only reason I could see anything at all was because his eyes were always on me.
I had a tray full of empty glasses when his name was called to a roar of excitement from the entire crowd. My breath caught in my throat, and my full tray nearly toppled over as my body jerked convulsively at the sound of his name. Excitement swept through me, and right on its heels was a healthy dose of fear. I had seen how brutal the fights were. There was a reason why the mat of the ring was stained. There were already fresh splatters of blood covering the surface that I knew wouldn't wash out whether they attempted to clean it or not.
My eyes flew to Bones, and I watched as he squared back his broad shoulders and stood up slowly from the bench he'd been sitting on. His eyes met mine, and he raised a head to gesture to me, crooking one finger in a come here motion. Without stopping to think, I left my tray where it was on the edge of the table and walked to him as if in a trance.
He methodically took his vest off and folded it carefully. When I reached his side, he held out his vest, which I took in my arms without thinking. I pulled it close to my chest, knowing it was a significant move on his part. My mind was too overwhelmed to give it too much thought, but I knew it was essential to keep it safe. Then he reached behind the back of his neck with one hand and, gripping the collar of his black T-shirt, he pulled, taking it off in one swift motion.
I barely noticed when he dropped the shirt onto the top of his vest in my arms. My eyes were taking in every inch of his chest. The same ink covering his arms and neck covered every inch of his torso. I knew then there was no doubt that the ink would be everywhere else on his body. He looked like a walking skeleton, but under that black and white was the body of a god.
When I was finally able to tear my eyes away from the muscles that formed the deep V disappearing under the edges of his black jeans, I saw the barest glint of humor in his eyes. With unspoken words between us, I promised to keep his vest safe. He grunted, then turned away, stalking over to the ring. In one smooth move, he slid under the bottom rope, quickly jumping back to his feet. Then I watched with my tummy clenching as he cracked his neck from side to side.
"Wow, girl, the sexual tension between you two is enough to get every girl in this building pregnant." Kara's words, coming from next to me, had me yanking my gaze away from the sight of Bones' dominating presence in the ring. I glanced over to see her waving a hand around her face, pretending to cool off.
"It's not like that," I muttered, pretending her words weren't lighting up my insides and having bubbles fizz in my gut.
She nudged my shoulder with hers, a smirk covering her face as she smoothed her hand over her slick blonde hair. "I think you're in denial. But, girl, if you have a single shred of smarts in that brain of yours, you'll take that cock for a ride. You do realize that he's never been seen with a woman, right?"
I jerked my eyes back to the ring to see another man sliding into the ring from the other side. He was huge, one of the largest men I had ever seen. Bones was tall, six-foot-five, if I had to guess, based on how my neck had to crane back to look up at him as he towered over me, but the other guy had at least a few inches on him. I hadn't thought about who he would have to fight, but seeing the man who was as big as a tank flexing his arms and pounding his fist into his other hand dramatically had worry slamming into me. I looked over to Bones, who seemed completely unfazed by the guy's muscled bulk, shaved head, and the spider tattooed on his face. I thought about what Kara said. "Maybe he doesn't like women?"
She snorted as she played with a strand of her hair, curling it around her finger before smoothing it back out over her ample chest. "No men, either. The man is like a robot when it comes to fun of any kind."
"I should hold those." The obnoxious voice came out of nowhere, and hands suddenly reached out to snatch away the leather vest and T-shirt from my arms.
I jerked back, holding the items tightly to my chest. I glared at Daisy. "No. He gave them to me. If he wanted you to hold them, he would have called you over instead." She would have to pry them out of my cold, dead fingers. I didn't know why it mattered to me so much, but, well… here we were.
"You're not even a Nightmare girl."
She spat the words at me with a sneer, much louder than they needed to be. My mouth dropped open in a shocked gasp, and I quickly glanced around nervously. I knew Daisy didn't like me, but spreading that kind of information could put me in massive danger. The Devil's Nightmares knew I was an outsider but respected me anyway; other clubs wouldn't have that same compunction. I didn't like that there seemed to be quite a few unfamiliar eyes on us.
"You need to shut the fuck up and back off before I tell Bones the kind of shit you're trying to pull, bitch." Kara took a menacing step into Daisy's space. I had always thought of Kara as sweet and kind. I certainly hadn't thought that she would have the side of her that I was seeing now. Somehow, she had morphed into protective mode over me, and I had to swallow back the grateful lump that developed in my throat. Not even my parents would have tried to stand up for me, instead letting me fight my own battles with the excuse of it making me stronger or some such bullshit. Maybe they were right, but it also taught me that I couldn't rely on them for anything.
