Biker Saviour: The Lost Souls MC Series (16 page)

CHAPTER TWELVE

Pope

“Everything has changed so much.”

“Why aren’t you happy about it? You got the job you wanted.”

My daughter is finally doing what she should have been doing for the last two years and got herself a job as a dental assistant. She has took one step in the right direction to achieve her dream of being a dentist. I don’t get why she wants to go poking around people’s mouths but I’m proud her nonetheless.

“I am happy, who says I’m not?” she says, defensively.

I stare at her until she admits what’s gnawing at her.

“Okay, I spoke with Ricky like you said and I’m thinking,” she shrugs.

“Thinking doesn’t seem to be making you happy,” I point out.

“I want to be with…”

She stops and remembers who she’s talking to, her cheeks flame a deep red and I squash the flight urge and tell myself her talking things over is good for her.

“You can talk to me, Ky, just leave out the stuff a father doesn’t need to hear about.”

She walks over to the fridge and pulls out a beer for me and a bottle of water for herself, coming back over to the table she hands the beer over to me and takes a long drag of her water before speaking.

“I like Ricky, dad, I like him a lot. Him being a part of the club doesn’t bother me, it’s the possibility of losing him that bothers me. He’s seen me at my worst and hasn’t seen me at best, yet he still likes me. He told me I was worth the risk and I think he is too but if he ends up going back to prison? I don’t know if I’ll be able to go through it alone.”

There isn’t anything I can say to tell her that won’t happen again because it is always a possibility.

But I do say, “Kyla, Ricky is a good man. He is loyal and he will do anything he can to protect you if you give him the chance to. Every man in the club could end up in prison or in the ground, it’s a chance we all take every day. I will say though, if you really do like him you’ll take a chance on him because not being with him will be a regret you don’t want to live with.”

What the fuck am I saying? I can’t deny what’s happening between the two of them as much as I want to, but until Ricky himself comes to me, I can. Until then, I know my daughter will think this through and take her time.

“Thanks dad, I’ll think about it,” she smiles, and it warms my heart, “I want you to know I am happy, I’m complete here in Willows Peak.”

With nothing left to be said, I say goodbye and leave her to finish her lunch and get back to work.

Arriving back at the club it happens to be Ricky is the brother I see and he doesn’t look happy.

Nursing a beer at a table in the corner of the bar, I begrudgingly join him and signal I want a beer for myself from the prospect.

“What’s up with you?” I grunt, tapping my fingers on the table.

He looks up from his beer and tries to discreetly move his chair further away from mine. The prospect slides a beer across the table to me and I scoop it up and drink long and hard.

“I’m not going to sit here and tell you what to do, but my daughter is thinking and she is thinking too much. It isn’t making her happy.”

I leave it at that and leave him to it. I track down my president and find him with Alannah and Leo outside.

Kyla is settled in her new job, and I need to be back doing something. Having too much time to myself isn’t working for me.

Ricky

Two weeks.

Two fucking weeks, how long does a woman need to think? Surely this is just taking the piss. I’ve seen her twice when she’s come to the clubhouse with Pope but she remained a safe distance away from me. Everyday I’m not with her only intensifies my need to be around her. I’ve kept tabs on her, not caring if she finds out or not. She got herself a little assistant job at the dental office last week, I took that into account for the first few days, settling into a new job and finding way but now I’m itching for her to get her head straight.

Pope’s word in my ear is why I’m sitting in the waiting room ready for a check-up, she has no choice but to see me now.

I made sure to get the last appointment of the day too.

The overweight receptionist is getting ready to go home and I’m the only one left waiting. The sound of the drill pounding away in the next room causes the bile in the pit of my stomach want to erupt through my stomach lining.

“Ricky Simmons, you can go through to room three now.”

I pray like fuck this doesn’t turn into a pain fest that I wasn’t prepared for. Once when I was a kid, I ran my tongue across my teeth and felt no cavities, yet when I sat in the torture chair I ended up with two fillings and a whoop ass from my mom for not brushing my teeth properly even though I did twice a day.

Ever since then when I sit in the dental chair I shit myself until I’m out of it. Kyla better recognise what this is doing to me.

She doesn’t look shocked to see me walk in the room, in fact, the smile on her face tells me she knew I was coming and better not be the one she gives to everyone who walks in here.

“Mr Simmons, sit in the chair and we’ll see what’s going on.”

I cast my eyes on the man who wants to poke around in my mouth for a ridiculous fee and I want to stab in his eye with his own drill already. Taking my own time to sit in the chair of pain, I look back to Kyla and her ass looks tight in her blue scrubs.

This is no time to be getting a twitch.

A phone rings and the dentist guy answers and leaves the room, apologising and telling me he will be back shortly.

“Why are you here?” Kyla asks, when the door closes after the dentist.

“I wanted to see you, it feels like you’ve been avoiding me.”

“I haven’t been avoiding you, I’ve been busy with this new job.”

“You left my room two weeks ago telling me you needed to think and I haven’t heard from you since, am I waiting for nothing?”

The prick of a teeth hacker decides to pick this moment to come back into the room and Kyla goes back to her station and preps the instruments I hope I don’t need to be used on me.

“Sorry about that Mr Simmons, I believe you’re here for a check-up.”

“Yeah, make it quick,” I warn him.

It takes less than two minutes for him to give the all clear and beam me a bright white smile, pleased how I keep my teeth in good condition.

“Until your next check-up,” he smiles again and leaves the room.

“When do you finish?” I ask Kyla, before she has any notions about leaving too.

“You were our last patient so in about fifteen minutes.”

“I’ll be waiting outside for you,” I tell her, before exiting the room.

Twenty minutes later Kyla and the receptionist walk out of the door, say goodnight to each other and Kyla heads in my direction while the receptionist heads for her car on the other side of the lot.

“You know you look hot in that outfit, much sexier than the pawn shop,” I grin at her when she reaches me.

Her blushing reaches my balls and they squeeze tight.

She freely walks into my arms and I lock her down tight.

“You’ve had two weeks to think, you must know by now if you want to be with me.”

“I want you, I never needed time to think about that, but I have been thinking we could take things slow, like you said we’re both a risk.”

Stepping back I look down at her, she looks tired but happy.

Progress, that’s what I want to hear.

“Hang on, let’s get this clear, we’ll be exclusive right?” I hedge.

I’ve seen women want to take things slow with a guy before and what they really mean is, I don’t know if I like you that much so I’ll carry on playing the field until I figure it out.

“Of course we will be, why? Do you plan on seeing anyone else?” her body immediately tenses against mine with jealousy at the prospect.

“Fuck no, and this means you’re not going to avoid me anymore?” I say, making sure.

“No.”

“Okay, and I’ll talk to your dad when you’re ready to go public.”

Although I think he knows.

“Sounds good.”

I can finally say she’s my girl, my girl. This is what falling in love feels like. My dick goes from twitching to rock hard when she kisses me and wraps her arms around my neck.

I deepen the kiss between us and slam her against her truck. It strikes me that taking it slow could be damaging in a whole new way.

Ripping my mouth away from hers, I breathe rapidly, “What about sex? I gotta say, I’m in pain as we speak having not been inside you for two weeks.”

Her response is to laugh at me, not the answer I was looking for but hearing her laugh like this is heavenly.

“Why don’t you come back to mine and find out,” she says, quirking one eyebrow my way.

“Get in your truck and don’t stop for anything,” I warn her, cheekily slapping her on her ass.

Taking things slow my ass, she is my fucking girl and the only obstacle in our way is Pope.

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Kyla

Between my job beating down my body inch by inch with the long hours and Ricky assaulting my body in a completely other way last night, I could do with a hot bubble bath and a full body massage. I’m pretty sure I need a tetanus too, the bite mark on the top of my thigh felt good at the time but now it’s kind of sore.

I’m starving too, at least I can relax while having lunch with Kristen. She called last night to arrange a catch up today, it will be the first time we’ve spent time together since the ring incident. She thought lunch would be a start to clear the air.

Heavy, dark clouds cover the sky and rain looks imminent. Having finished work for the day, all I have to do is get through lunch and get home before the storm begins where Ricky said he will meet me.

“Good to see you, darling.”

To my right is Dean. I turn around and try to make it back to the dentist’s office but he catches up to me and backs me against the bench and forces me to sit.

He looks terrible and wreaks of sweat and cigarettes and him having his hands on me makes want to vomit.

“You’ve become untouchable, I’ve been waiting weeks to speak to you and you want to run off,” he almost sounds hurt.

“You shouldn’t have bothered, we don’t have anything to talk about anymore,” I mutter.

He makes that awful sound I couldn’t stand when I was with him by kissing his teeth and hissing out his breath.

“But I’ve missed you, baby. When I came to see you, your family wouldn’t let me near you. You never told me your dad belongs to a biker club.”

He edges closer next to me and puts his arm around my shoulders, when I try to move away he pulls me back in again.

“I never knew he was a biker and you only miss my money, not me,” I spit at him.

“That’s not true, the first time I saw you sitting at that party all by yourself, I knew you were the one for me. I had to keep you close.”

“By getting me hooked on heroin?”

I can’t believe he is saying this.

“I gave you a taste, you’re the one who came back for more. Come home, you don’t belong out here. You need city lights not a town in the middle of nowhere.”

As soon as the words are out of his mouth I know I don’t need the city anymore, my life is here with my father and Ricky.

“I’m not going anywhere, Dean. I’ve got myself clean, I’m not going down that road again.” Having him touch me repulses me.

“You are looking good, Ky. I can’t deny that, come home and help me too. We were good once, we can be again.”

I stop myself from bursting out laughing at him.

“We were nothing more than dealer and punter who had sex every now and then.”

Being addicted to heroin had its disadvantages in the sexual department, I was so focused on getting my next hit and then enjoying the high, my sex drive vanished.

Gone is the light, easy going manner and in its place comes rage, rage covered up by a fake smile to anyone who passes us by.

I can see it though, I remember times he would play nice with a punter who couldn’t pay up and he would lull them into a false sense of security before he went postal on them.

His arm wrapped around my neck tightens and he makes out he’s kissing the top of my head.

“You’re hurting me,” I whimper.

“I’m not going to let you go, you’re the best thing to happen to me. Do you think you’ll be happy working nine to five in a small town like this? You know you want me.”

I want Ricky and I wish he were here right now.

“Kyla.”

Both of us turn to see Kristen jogging across the street towards us and while I breathe a sigh of relief, Dean growls angrily.

“Who’s this?”

“A friend.”

His jaw ticks as he thinks over his next move and his hold loosens when Kristen gets near.

“This isn’t over,” he promises and bolts in the opposite direction to Kristen.

Five seconds later she reaches me but keeps her eyes on Dean’s departing back.

“Are you okay? Who was he?” she asks, giving me the once over.

“I’m fine, he was Dean…my old dealer.”

“What’s he doing here?”

“He wanted me to go back with him.”

“I’ll call Slade, he’s with your dad today,” she says, rooting through her purse for her cell.

“No, don’t do that, I’m fine,” I urge when she begins dialling.

Her finger hovers over the call button and she frowns at me. I don’t need to be a rocket scientist to know this frown is going to be because she isn’t going to listen to me.

“I have to, Kyla. If your dad finds out I knew that guy was here and something happens, Slade will have to get involved for my sake.”

When she puts it like that I don’t want to stop her.

“Tell them I’ve gone home then, can we reschedule lunch?”

“Sure.”

She’s pressing her cell to her ear before I can head for my truck. I’ve got a feeling the hot bubble bath I craved not a half hour ago is going to be a dream till tonight.

Ricky

If we were taking things slow why did she ask me to meet her at her place after she had lunch with Kristen? Everything is happening fast, just the way I want it to.

I reckon I’ll be talking with Pope by the end of the week, that’s how confident I am. I just hope I’ll be confident when I talk to him.

Slade’s cell rings out for the third time in a minute and he’s still nowhere in sight. As usual his cell sits by his laptop at the bar.

“How’s Bonnie and JJ? I haven’t seen them in a while,” I ask Sparky.

“They’re doin’ good, brother,” he smiles his goofy grin whenever he talks about them.

Slade’s cell rings again and Sparky leans over to see who wants him so bad.

“Slade,” he yells, “Kristen wants ya.”

At the mention of Kristen’s name, he comes out the back room and immediately calls her back. His eyes flick to me then around the room as he listens.

“Okay, thanks for the heads up. I’ll see you later,” he says before hanging up.

Sliding his cell into his back pocket he walks over to Pope and whispers something in his ear. Watching the fast transformation of content to anger I know it has something to do with Kyla.

“That doesn’t look good,” Sparky grunts, watching the same scene as I am.

Pope throws his sandwich back on the wrapping and scrapes his chair back. Standing tall and with a face like murder I stand myself, ready for anything.

He slaps Slade on the back in thanks and walks out of the bar.

“What was that all about?” Sparky asks Slade as he nears us.

“That Dean was with Kyla just now and it didn’t look friendly...”

I’m gone before he can finish talking. Pope has only just got his bike started as I jump on mine. I nod once at him letting him know I’m coming with and he nods back in understanding.

“Wait up ladies,” Sparky calls out, jogging to his bike, “Someone’s gotta keep an eye on ya both,” he laughs.

Pope doesn’t hang around and pulls out onto the main road, I follow and Sparky catches us up within a minute.

Her truck is in the drive when we pull up and block it in when we stop. The street is quiet and the house looks fine.

Pope takes the lead and jogs up the steps and bangs on the door. It shocks me he doesn’t have a key, then I grin cause it means he won’t ever walk in on us.

My heart beats heavily as the locks unbolt and the door opens. She looks absolutely fine, nothing to show Dean hurt her in anyway or shook her up. If anything she looks pissed that we are turning up on her doorstep.

“I expected you sooner,” she mutters sarcastically turning away, leaving the door open for us.

She has changed from her blue get up to a pair of shorts and tight tee and now my jeans feel too tight.

“What did he want?” Pope jumps straight in.

Sparky hangs back in the doorway, I sit at the table opposite Kyla and Pope leans against the counter.

She nervously looks at me and back to Pope.

“He wanted me to go back with him,” she admits.

“Did he hurt you?” he asks her.

“Let me rephrase, did he touch you?” I ask myself.

I can see with my own eyes she isn’t hurt, I want to know if he touched her at all because if he did then I will snap every one of his fingers. She looks down at her hands, it’s an act I’ve seen her do when she doesn’t want to talk.

Pope notices this too and sweeps across the kitchen and hovers over her.

“Did he touch you, Kyla?” Pope repeats my question.

He’s scaring the crap out of her but his tactics are working.

“Tell me,” he roars so loud the veins in his neck bulge.

“He put his arm around my neck so I couldn’t move,” she tells him shakily.

Motherfucker, it’s hard enough to deal with knowing he had his hands on her for the last three years. She’s mine now and living in a whole new world. This is a different ball game.

I should’ve shanked him on a main artery when I had the chance on the inside.

“Tell me where he lives,” Pope orders her trying to reign himself back in.

“You don’t need to know that, he won’t come around here again.”

This isn’t what he wants to hear, myself included.

“Kyla Flynn, you owe him no fuckin’ loyalty. Do not try to protect him in front of me, not after everything I watched you go through. Once again, I’ll repeat myself, I’m cleaning up your fuck’ mess. Give me his address so I can end this. I should’ve gone after him by now and fuck me, if I had he wouldn’t have been in town today.”

When she still keeps her mouth shut, Pope is seconds from losing his shit. Flipping open my cell I hit up Slade’s number.

He answers on the fourth ring and I maintain eye contact with Kyla.

“I need Dean Gibson’s address.”

I can’t work out the look on her face when I hang up.

“He should never have come back, he needs to learn you don’t exist to him anymore,” Pope informs her, Sparky adding, “When he came back to town, he did knowing full well who you are connected to. If we let that slide it shows we are weak, it shows we don’t care for our own.”

His input calms her down and she stops scowling at me. My cell pings with a message and we have an address for Dean.

“Got it,” I tell Pope, causing Kyla to scowl at me some more.

“Dad, please,” she begs.

“Shut up,” he shouts at her, “You don’t understand how hard it was not to track him down when I knew he was the one who peddled that shit to you. I told you this isn’t the world you’re used too, as your father I have to step in and fix your fuck ups. If you don’t want me cleanin’ up your shit, I suggest you don’t fuck up in the first place,” he bellows.

Even I take a step back. If she were publicly my old lady I could step between them and stop her next move, but she isn’t and Pope as her father has every right to handle her the way he sees fit.

She jumps out of her chair when Pope turns to leave and grabs onto his arm.

“Please don’t do anything stupid because of me.”

His head slowly looks over his shoulder at her and she shrinks away. He shrugs out of her weak hold and storms out, quickly followed by Sparky giving me twenty seconds or less to quickly talk to her alone before they leave.

“Stay here and don’t leave until we come back,” I tell her, hating how scared she looks.

“Take away the fact he is your dad, he is fucking Pope and Pope does things his way, not yours. Live your life not questioning him, I’m happening to be falling in love with you and I’d kinda like it if you were on good terms with him to make my life easier.”

Call me selfish but it’s true. A goofy grin covers her face and her eyes shine bright.

“You’re falling in love with me?”

Tucking a few loose hairs behind her ear giving me a full view of her beautiful face, I cup her cheek and smile.

“Yeah and when we get back I’m telling your dad you’re my old lady and then I’m taking you to bed.”

I walk out leaving her in stunned silence, feeling good and high on life, knowing when I start my bike my focus will be on the violence I want to inflict on Dean.

“When we get back I think we’ll have that chat while I’m already in this mood, get everything out in the open,” Pope informs me.

Sparky tries to hide his amusement while I try to hide my fear.

It’s the third time my cell has vibrated in my pocket in the last two minutes. Sparky up in front of Pope pulls over and we follow suit. He reaches in his pocket for his cell and I do the same. Looks like Pope has some missed calls too.

“Yeah,” Sparky speaks into the phone, calling back Cas I presume going by the reason for my missed calls.