The Bad Boy's Biggest Mistake (3 page)

They nodded in her direction and then left. Zoe was
coming around to have a girly night with her. The older woman still worked at
The Dugout. Tonight Zoe was spending the evening with her even though her three
men didn’t like Zoe being out of their sight.

In no time at all she was alone with Stefan. The
other man stared at her. His arms were covered in tattoos. From the prints on
his arms Vicki was reminded of the tattoos decorating Tristan’s arms.

“What do you need from me?” Vicki asked.

“I had a party last night. Several of the guys are
still sleeping.”

“When they wake up I’ll change the sheets.” She
usually went around with a rubber glove on in case of any used condoms.

Stefan moved closer until she was trapped between
his body and the wall. “I know what you do, Vicki. How can working for me
picking up used condoms and spending time in this place be any better than The
Dugout?” Stefan asked.

She liked Stefan. He was huge, but she’d seen
kindness inside him. When it came to his sister he was very protective. Vicki
liked his protectiveness, and it also made it hard for her to lie to him about
her thoughts. Also, he was good friends with her father as they were in the
same club.

“I lost my baby at The Dugout, Stefan. You know
this.”

“It’s not the only reason. I know you’re a strong
woman. What else makes you work for me?” he asked.

He rubbed her arms, and tears filled her eyes.

“When I’m here Tristan won’t come here. He doesn’t
like you, and I need the peace I get here,” she said.

Anger flashed across his face to be instantly
replaced by sympathy. Stefan pulled her into his arms. “Baby, this place is
open for you whenever you need it,” he said.

She wrapped her arms around him and wished she felt
something more than brotherly love for him. Stefan was like a big brother to
her even though they were not related.

“You’re a special woman, Vicki. Tristan is an
asshole for not seeing it.”

No one knew about his marital status. She’d slept
with him and hadn’t known he was taken. Tristan would never be hers. He was
taken by another woman. A woman she’d never met and didn’t ever want to.

“Thank you, Stefan. It means a lot.”

He dropped a kiss to her head and then moved away.
“You’re like a sister to me. I don’t like to see you hurt.”

Nodding, Vicki made her way upstairs. The first room
she came to was immaculate. There was no mess, and she knew Cheryl was
responsible for this room. She walked into the room, opened the window, and
gathered up the washing left in the laundry basket.

She worked her way through the house while also
taking phone calls for Stefan, who’d popped out for the day.

Several of the club members greeted her in passing.
She ignored them, but when she walked into the game room she could no longer ignore
their raw masculinity as their conversation played around her. Letting out a
sigh, she emptied the bins and moved around the room. They paid attention to
her, smacking her ass as she passed. She didn’t hate it. All of her life she’d
grown up with it. They didn’t mean anything bad by their attention. They were
men who were used to getting what they wanted. Tristan was more like them than
he liked to admit.

Chapter
Two

Tristan waved at his deputy. The boy, Kevin Thomas,
was in his early twenties and wished to serve as a deputy throughout the day.
Law Castle didn’t really need a deputy, but Tristan placed him on night watch
just because he liked the kid. He saw the way Kevin looked at Marla, and part
of him wanted there to be a happy ending between the two, even if it was a
cougar romance.

He walked out into the warm night air. The heat
irritated him, and he’d paid a lot of money to have air conditioning in his
home.

“I wondered when I was going to see you,” Stefan
Jackson said. The other man was leaning against his bike, the same bike Vicki
liked to ride on when there was an event taking place in town. He’d watched her
many times laughing and holding onto Stefan as he rode her around.

“What can I do for you?” Tristan asked.

“You can start by telling me what’s going on between
you and Vicki. She got shot last year and lost a baby.” Stefan stepped away
from his bike. “I’ve known Vicki a long time, and she doesn’t spread her legs
for anyone.”

Anger coursed over him. Tristan didn’t like anyone
talking about his woman like that.

“Get to your point,” he said.

“She quit working at The Dugout to get away from
you. Her working for me guarantees you won’t come to find her. What did you do
to her?”

“None of your business.”
He
didn’t like the other man’s protective attitude. Vicki was his responsibility,
not Stefan’s.

“Actually, my town, my business.”
Stefan stepped right up to him. “Vicki’s been part of this town a lot longer
than you. I don’t want her to be rushed off because of you.”

“Vicki’s not going anywhere.” Tristan gritted his
teeth to stop himself from lashing out. Seeing Stefan’s protective side was
making him annoyed. No one told him what to do. “And this is my town. I protect
this town and its citizens.”

“Yeah, you were doing a stand-up job last year.”

Stefan referred to the incident where a local drug
runner almost killed Vicki. Unable to hold back his anger, Tristan stepped up
closer. “You’ve got a problem with me?”

“Yeah, I’ve got a problem with the guy who somehow
broke Vicki’s heart.”

“If it bothers you so much, why don’t you take her?”
Tristan asked.

“
Ew
,
gross.
That girl is the same age as my sister, which is just fucking disgusting. I
like my women my own age.” Stefan glanced down at his watch. “Speaking of
sisters, I got to go and pick mine up from The Dugout. A couple of aliens were
hitting on her.”

Aliens were what the locals referred to as
non-locals or out-of-towners.

Tristan shook his head. He stood outside the station
watching as Stefan climbed back on his bike.

“I don’t know what happened between you and Vicki.
All I know is she’s saving up enough money to get out of Law Castle,” Stefan
said, gaining his attention once again.

“What?”

Vicki couldn’t leave this town. He wouldn’t be able
to handle never seeing her again. No, it wasn’t possible. Tristan refused to
accept Stefan’s words.

“I got a call from her parents to keep an eye on
her. The Law Castle Bad Boys club sticks together, Tristan. Her dad used to be
one of us until he upped and left. Dude asked me to keep an eye on his girl
until he can come and get her.”

Tristan had seen her parents at the hospital when
she’d been discharged. She’d gone to stay with them to recover instead of
staying in town. He’d missed her like crazy. When she’d been gone he spent a
great deal of time in the bar where she worked hoping to get a chance to see
her. Steve, the owner of The Dugout, didn’t tell him until he’d spent a great
deal of money in the bar that Vicki no longer worked for him.

He’d done the same in the diner until he realised
Vicki worked for Stefan. Once he saw she was back in town he arranged his
Sundays to be back in the station to see her whenever she brought in her baked
goods.

Lame.
You’ve got it bad
.

“I’ve got to go,” Tristan said.

“Well, her dad happened to mention an apartment had
already been bought for her in the city. Vicki is moving out of Law Castle for
good, and from what I hear, she’s got jobs lined up and may even go back to
school.”

“Why are you telling me this?” he asked. The pain
bloomed inside his chest at the thought of his woman leaving him. How was he
going to survive without seeing his woman again? The instant he took Vicki’s
virginity she’d become his woman.

You
did a shit-load more than take her virginity.

From the moment he felt her sweet cunt gripping him
Tristan had been hooked.

“Because there was a moment sometime last year
before all the shit happened when Vicki looked happy. I guess you and Vicki had
more than a
moment
together.” Stefan
rubbed his eyes. “Look, you can do what you’re doing, and that’s fine by me, or
you can admit you’ve got feelings for Vicki and give you guys a chance. Either
way, I’m not letting her leave town until you make a decision. If you haven’t
approached her by next week,
me
and the boys are
taking her to her dad.”

The bike roared to life as Stefan turned it on.
Tristan watched until the bike was driving in the distance in the direction of
the only bar.

Vicki was leaving him. She never talked to him or
smiled, but at least she was around. What was he going to do when he wouldn’t
even see her on a Sunday?

Running a hand over his face Tristan set off in the
direction of her house. He didn’t have a plan of any kind. He needed to see her
with his own eyes and hear her say the words that would take her away from him
forever.

****

Vicki filled Zoe’s glass with water while she had
another tall glass of red wine. Zoe was pregnant and couldn’t drink.

“Okay, you’re going to have to tell me what has
caused this sudden girlfriend-drink event. I know you, Vicki. You’re not one to
drink.”

She drained the glass of red wine. They’d worked
together at The Dugout, and it had taken everything Vicki possessed to get Zoe
to open up. Zoe was older and was currently in a relationship with three men, Jake,
Brent, and Connor were all friends and with Zoe.
 

“There’s something I’ve got to tell you, and I don’t
think you’re going to like it all that much.” Vicki poured more wine into her
glass. She wasn’t alcoholic or anything. The wine helped give her the courage
to tell her friend she was leaving. After finishing work at Stefan’s place her
father had phoned to confirm an apartment and college course.

“You’re scaring me. I don’t like this. You’re
drinking, and that’s never good. I know about the baby and Tristan. Tell me.”

Licking her lips, Vicki placed her glass on the
coffee table. “I’m leaving Law Castle.”

After everything she’d done to befriend this woman
Vicki couldn’t believe she was going to leave her. Zoe didn’t handle friendship
all that
well. She’d been in the foster system, and
connecting to her was hard.

Vicki connected with her, and now she was going to
leave it all behind.

For
the best.
Leaving town and starting a life somewhere else is for the best.

“What? No, you can’t leave Law Castle. You love it
here,” Zoe said. Her glass of water joined Vicki’s on the coffee table.

She shrugged. “I’ve got to go.”

“Is this because of that pig of a Sheriff?”

“He’s not a pig.”
Why am I still defending him after everything he’s done?

Zoe gave her a pointed look and snorted.

“This is not about Tristan. It’s about me.”

“Tristan is the one who got you pregnant. The town
don’t know about his involvement, but he also claims to be a married man.
Where’s his wife?”

Again, Vicki shrugged. There was nothing else she
could do.

“No, you don’t get to shrug something like that
off.” Zoe grabbed her arms and shook her. “You’re not leaving. You’re my best
friend. Outside of my men you’re my only friend. Yes, I chat with Cheryl and
Chloe, but they’re not like you.”

Tears threatened to spill over, and Vicki forced
them away. She stood, taking hold of her glass and the bottle of wine. Moving
to the window she stared out at the dark street. The pain was apparent in Zoe’s
voice.

“Tristan showed me a picture. I told him I loved him,
and he told me to get over it. I was a quick fling.” Vicki laughed remembering
the incident. She’d gone to the station to pay him a visit. The deputy got
chocolate cake, and Tristan sent him out. She’d spent the morning sucking
Tristan’s cock and taking him deep inside her body. Even as she thought about what
came after his claiming
,
her body still melted for a
touch of him. She’d wrapped her arms around his neck and whispered the words.
Instead of getting the same emotion spoken back to her, she got a frozen brick
wall of asshole. Sipping the drink she turned back to Zoe. “He didn’t tell me
his wife’s name. I only know she was blonde and perfect and everything I’m
not.”

Zoe gazed up and down her body. “When was the last
time you ate?”

Shaking her head Vicki tried to remember but drew a
blank. Food held no appeal to her. She couldn’t stomach sitting down and
eating.

“I don’t know.”

“Vicki, you’ve got to eat. You can’t go on
pretending nothing is wrong. You’re not eating, and if you’re not careful you
will really hurt yourself.” Zoe stood in front of her.