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Honestly, it meant a lot that she cared. She could never replace my mom, but my banter with her helped me more than she knew. My mom would have loved Everly. They had the same quiet strength.
“I don’t feel like patching your ass up again. Be careful,” she said with authority. She wasn’t kidding this time.
The bikes around me roared to life as riders lined up for the races.
“I better go find some sucker looking to lose money,” I said.
I gave Everly another quick hug before climbing onto my bike and starting it. The engine rumbled, and all eyes landed on me.
I looked around to see who I could race. Trooper nodded at me from across The Strip, letting me know he wanted to run me, so I started in his direction. When I lined up beside him, we reached out and bumped knuckles. I warmed up my tires in the staging area as racers flew down The Strip. Smoke billowed behind me, filling the air around us with the smell of hot rubber.
When it was our turn to pull up to the start line, I smirked at Trooper. I felt good about the night. My impromptu trip to the coast had been precisely what I needed to clear my mind. I revved my engine and cracked my neck, readying myself for the race, but when I looked over at the side of The Strip, I saw her.
Victoria fucking Walsh.
Why couldn’t she take a goddamn hint?
Didn’t she realize she didn’t belong in the same place as me? She knew The Strip was my house, yet there she was, fucking with my head without even trying.
I revved my engine, my fist tightening on the throttle, and I waited for the gunshot, signaling it was time to run. Still, my eyes were glued to Tori when they should have been on the road before me. Already, she fucked with my game.
I rode hard when the gun sounded, leaning low over my bike as my tires tore through the gravel of The Strip. I was in the lead, and I could hear Trooper’s engine building behind me, but as I passed where she stood, I turned my head to look her way. When I faced the road again, Trooper was in the lead. His taillights smiled back at me seconds before he crossed the finish line. Just like that, I lost a grand.
Trooper thrust his fist in the air at his win, and when he pulled his helmet off, his expression was full of joy. I cursed as I pulled up beside him and pulled my helmet off. Reaching into my back pocket, I pulled out my wallet and snatched the bills. I didn’t bother looking at him as I slapped the money into his palm.
“Enjoy your moment, fuckface. It’ll never happen again,” I said.
His expression cleared, and he nodded.
As I rode back to the Son’s spot, I knew I was about to catch hell.
“What the fuck was that?” Joker asked when I pulled up next to my crew and shut off my engine.
“Fuck off,” I answered, pushing down my kickstand and climbing from my bike.
When I reached his side, I snatched the joint he held and sucked down enough smoke to fill my lungs. I held it, the burn in my throat filling me with even more anger before I exhaled and felt relaxation slowly seep into my muscles.
Fucking Victoria Walsh.
“How the hell did you lose to Trooper? He’s the slowest motherfucker here,” Crow asked, his deep voice shaking my frazzled nerves.
I didn’t respond. There was no need. It wasn’t like I could tell my boys I lost because I was too busy looking at what Tori was doing instead of keeping my head in the race. She had made me lose a thousand dollars, but I was part of why she lost her entire family. Still, as the night grew later and I filled my stomach with liquor and my lungs with dope, I didn’t see things that clearly. Two hours later, I was drunk, high, and pissed off that I had lost such an easy race.
As far as I was concerned, Tori was the reason I lost. She had no business at The Strip, and as I stomped my way over to where she stood, those exact words burned on my tongue.
Her eyes settled on me from across the way, and her shoulders stiffened. She was preparing for a fight, which was a good thing since that was precisely what I was bringing her way. When I reached her small group, she had her arms crossed and her leg kicked out to the side, ready for a confrontation.
“You don’t listen, do you?” I snarled.
Her group didn’t respond. They knew better. The Sons owned The Strip, and if they even thought about going up against me, they would get the boot, too.
“Not when it comes to you,” she snarled back.
Fire licked at my stomach with her words. I was usually a pretty chill guy, but not when it came to her. The rage from losing a race, the drugs, the alcohol, and the past had me moving into her space. A guy from their group moved forward as if he was going to protect her, but the look I gave him and the growl that vibrated the back of my teeth told him to know his place.
She had to bend her neck to look up at me, and I liked that I was so much larger than her. She needed to know how small she was in my world. Even if everything she stood for was my memory's most prominent black spot.
“I think you should leave,” I said through my teeth, trying to keep my wrath in check.
