Breaking the Rules (Roaming Devils MC #1) (20 page)

Ryker sat back. So the fucking police were watching him. Or maybe her father was grasping at straws to make him admit to some conspiracy theory he’d drummed up in his head.

“I’ve already asked him,” Ella commented.

“And what did he say?”

Ryker clenched his fists.

“He said he was doing club business.”

“Do you know what that means?” Her father finally took his attention off Ryker. “It means that he went to New Orleans to find his father and then he killed him.”

The room fell silent. Ella’s hand was still on his chest and he leaned forward to kiss her arm. He was far from being a good man, but it never seemed to bother Ella. He could simply be himself around her and she loved him for it.

“Did you kill Razor?” Ella asked him.

Their conversation about him lying to her floated through his mind. If he lied to her, then he lost Ella for good. So Ryker didn’t say anything. Her father didn’t want her with him and he’d do whatever he could to stop them from being together. If telling her that he’d cheat on her didn’t do the trick, why wouldn’t he disclose how Ryker murdered people? He should have seen that truce bullshit as a trap from the beginning.

But he hadn’t. He wanted to be civil with him for Ella’s sake. He didn’t want her to feel like she had to choose.

“I need to go.” Ryker stood from his seat and stared at Ella. “Maybe you should stay here for the night.”

“Why?”

Ryker caressed her face, brushing his thumb along her chin. “Because I’m not going to make you choose between us. He can tell you about how many women he thinks I’ve slept with and how I’ll cheat on you because that’s who I am. He can tell you how he thinks I’m a criminal and did heinous crimes without any proof to back it up, just to get you to hate me. He can tell you whatever the hell he wants about me. I’m not playing that game. You know who I am and if you’re that easily swayed, then you need to stay here for the night.”

“Don’t manipulate her.”

Ryker clenched his jaw. “I’m not the one manipulating her.”

“Please stop.” Ella fisted Ryker’s shirt in her hand. “I’m not a hapless female. I can make my own decisions.” She looked at Ryker. “You and I still have a lot we need to talk about.” She glanced over at her father. “And you… You don’t get to make decisions for me. I asked you for information and you gave me what I wanted. You don’t get to tell me how I feel about someone based on your own feelings for them.”

She shook her head. “I love you both.”

Ryker pulled her to him, kissing her temple. “I love you too, Ella. More than you could ever know.”

Stepping away from her, he went to the door. He thought about saying something polite to her mother, but getting out of that house seemed more important. He left, heading down the sidewalk to his bike. Tonight proved to him that they came from different worlds. Ella would always be better than him and he would always be a glutton for punishment with her.

He started his bike. Maybe sleeping at the club was a better option for him. He didn’t know if he was welcomed to stay with Ella any longer, and maybe he needed his distance as well. She didn’t trust him, and that was a serious issue between them.

He didn’t know how to fix it either.

Chapter Fourteen

Ella unlocked the door to her apartment and went inside. The place was empty and it didn’t appear that Ryker had been there at all. She’d decided not to stay at her parents’ house. She wanted to talk things through with her missing boyfriend. She set her stuff down, exhausted from the day. Her phone was in her pocket and she reached for it, dialing Ryker’s number.

“Yeah?”

“Where are you?”

“The club.”

“Oh.” She rubbed a hand over her face. “Are you staying there tonight?”

“Why?”

She glanced around the messy apartment. “I thought we’d talk.”

“Talking isn’t something I want to do tonight. I’ve been out of town. You’ve been working all day. You can get some sleep and we’ll talk tomorrow.”

“Okay. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.” Confused, she disconnected the call. There was only so much that she knew about his life in the MC. She’d seen the way his father acted and that fit the bill of what her father had told her about the Roaming Devils, but she couldn’t imagine Ryker doing the same thing. She couldn’t picture him holding a gun to some woman’s head and pulling the trigger. Or demanding that someone else pull the trigger. He wasn’t that cold. He wasn’t that vile.

But her father was convinced that he’d killed Razor. She didn’t think he was capable of taking another life, but she wasn’t stupid either. She didn’t know what he’d gone out of town for. She didn’t like the evasiveness either. He wasn’t going to tell her what club business he dealt with. She’d done some research on her own and the MC wasn’t just a drug-loving orgy of men and women alike. There were some serious crimes that went along with wearing the patch.

The thought of Ryker being that person wasn’t something she easily accepted. How could he really be a different person with her? Was he that good of an actor? Which side of him was the real side? Thoughts swarmed in her mind about the entire scenario and she didn’t know what to do about it.

Ella rubbed her eyes and decided to take a long, hot shower before she went to bed. It didn’t matter in the moment. She’d contemplated it enough as it was. Going to the bathroom, she turned the water on and undressed. He never talked about his cravings anymore. He never seemed to need cocaine like he had nearly a month ago. She didn’t understand that either.

In so many ways she felt like she knew him. In other ways, she felt like he was a complete stranger. Ella let her hair soak in the water before she reached for the shampoo. A noise sounded in her living room and she paused, listening. The bathroom door was open and a shadowy figure passed in her line of sight. Ella froze and reached for a towel. She wrapped the terrycloth around her and stepped out of the shower, looking for her phone. Before she could find it, the intruder caught her.

Steely arms closed around her and pulled her out of the bathroom. He shoved her to the couch, hovering over her while two of his friends collected what little valuables she had. They made lewd remarks about her nudity and one threatened to rape her before his friend talked him out of it. She clutched the towel to her chest, her hands shaking. She studied as much of them as she could. Muscular physiques. One had brown hair with a diamond earring in his ear. The other had a tattoo of some kind of symbol on the back of his arm. When the one that had caught her in the bathroom saw her studying them, he backhanded her across the face.

Ella gasped at the pain, clutching her cheek as she glared at him. He came toward her and ripped the towel from her body. He stank of stale sweat and beer. She struggled, trying to keep him off her as tears streamed down her cheeks.

“Come on. We’ve got to go,” the brunet said.

The guy on top of her stared at her while his hands roamed along her thighs. “Next time, bitch.”

Ella waited until they were gone before she got up to call her father. Her hands shook so badly that she barely found his number.

“Dad, please come over.” She half sobbed. “Some guys broke into my apartment.”

“Are you okay?” he asked. “Did they hurt you?”

“Please come over.” She sniffled and hung up. Her door remained wide open and she was naked in the middle of the floor.

Ella stood and went to the couch to get the afghan she kept there. She wrapped herself in it and lay back on the sofa. Her heart still thumped against her ribs. Her father would be there soon and he’d take care of everything for her. Ella grabbed her phone from the floor and dialed Ryker.

“Yeah?”

She swallowed. “Some guys just broke into my apartment.”

“What?”

“I was in the shower. They made lewd remarks about raping me and then one tried.” She sobbed, unable to stop the tears from rolling down her cheeks. “Can you please come over?”

“I’m on my way.” He hung up. Ella curled up on her side, lying on the sofa. She couldn’t stop shaking.

Her father was the first to find her. He and her mother came into her apartment unannounced and bent down to her.

“Oh, honey.” Her mother put her arms around her. “Are you okay? Did they hurt you?”

“I’m okay.”

Her father made himself busy with calling the robbery in. She knew they’d have a million questions to ask her. She didn’t feel like talking to them either.

“Mom, can you turn the shower off?”

Her mother looked at her. “Of course. Were you in the shower?”

Ella nodded. The unmistakable roar of a motorcycle engine sounded next and Ella’s nerves calmed a bit. She didn’t really care what illegal shit he did at the moment. She wanted him to wrap his arms around her and hold her tight.

Ryker came in and walked straight to her.

She looped her arms around his neck and held him tight. Ryker held her against him. She closed her eyes and breathed him in. Everything about him made her feel safe.

“Babe,” he stroked his hands along her back, “talk to me.”

“I’m okay.”

“Did they touch you?” He pushed her away slightly to look in her eyes. He studied her face, then spotted what was obviously left by the guy backhanding her. “Did they hit you?”

“Ella, the police are on their way.” Her father glanced at the afghan wrapped around her. “You might want to get dressed.”

She grabbed some clothing and took Ryker into the bathroom with her, closing the door behind them.

“He backhanded me when he caught me studying them. He took my towel and tried to push my legs apart.” She stared into Ryker’s eyes. “He didn’t do anything but he promised to finish next time.”

He brushed his fingers along her swollen cheek. “There’s not going to be a next time.”

Ella leaned against the door, tears streaming down her cheeks. “I was so scared.”

Ryker pulled her to him. “It’s okay. It’s over now and nothing bad is going to happen again. Put your clothes on and give the police your statement. I’m going to the building manager’s office to get you some ice for your cheek.” He leaned in to kiss her. “It’s going to be okay.”

He left her in the bathroom and she took her time dressing. She’d picked out a pair of shorts and a tank top, her regular attire for nighttime. She didn’t know how they expected her to stay in her apartment. They had to have been watching her. They had to know that she was alone.

She went into the living room and glanced around. “Where’s Ryker?”

“He went out with his friends.” Her father came to her. “It’s okay, sweetheart. You can give a statement to the police and come home with us. You don’t have to stay here tonight.”

She pulled away from him and walked outside onto the balcony. Ryker’s motorcycle was still in the parking lot, but he wasn’t around. She swallowed hard and leaned against the banister.

“What are you doing out here?” Ryker held an ice packet in his hands, coming up the stairs.

She went to him and wound her arms around his neck. “I thought you’d left.”

“I’m not leaving you.” He held the ice to her cheek and kissed her forehead. “I’ve got you.”

Tears rolled down her cheeks as she gripped his hand to her face. “I don’t want to stay here anymore.”

“We’ll move someplace else tomorrow.” He leaned in to kiss her. “I’m not going to let anything happen to you, babe.”

She pushed the ice pack away and laid her cheek against his chest. They stood that way until the cops got there. Ella gave them a statement and they took inventory of what had been stolen.

“You can stay at our house.” Her mother rubbed Ella’s arms. “You know that.”

“I do.” She glanced over at Ryker, who’d kept himself out of the way while the cops were there. “I want to be with Ryker, though.”

“He can stay too,” her father commented. “I just want to know you’re safe. If that means he’s staying over, I don’t give a shit.”

“He’s not going to go for that.” Ella shook her head. “We’ll be okay. We can get a hotel room or something.”

“Ryker?” Her mother moved past her and walked over to him. “Will you please tell Ella that you’d stay at our house tonight? No fighting. No macho turf war. We want to know that she’s safe and it’d be best if she was at our house.”

She didn’t look at him. She knew it pained him to even think about staying under the same roof as her father. She thought it’d pain him even more to see the sadness on her face.

“I’ll stay.”

Ella glanced up at him.

“If that’s what Ella wants.”

She nodded. Her mind was a mess. She’d fought junkies off of her before but this was different. Ryker drove her car to her parents’ house. Her nerves had yet to calm and the idea of sleeping, even as exhausted as she was, didn’t sound promising.

“Do you know those guys?” Ella asked. “When I gave the description, you had a weird look on your face.”

Ryker didn’t look at her. “Maybe.”

She swallowed, knowing that he most likely wouldn’t tell the police. “What are you going to do to them?”

“I’m with you tonight.”

“But Superman and Vampire aren’t.”

“Do you want them here?” he asked, arching an eyebrow at her. He pulled into her parents’ drive and parked her car.

“Please tell me how your MC works.” She swiped at her wet cheeks. “Apparently I don’t understand.”

“Will there be retaliation? Hell yes.” He pulled out her keys and handed them to her. “Torture? Probably. Murder? Depends on my mood.”

“So you do kill people?”

“It’s not that simple, Ella.”

“Did you kill Razor?”

He scoffed. “Why are you so worried about him?”

“I was there too.” She turned in her seat. “The least you can do is tell me what happened.”

“And make you an accessory to any potential crime I’ve committed? Not going to happen.”

“So you’re going to keep me in the dark?”

“For your protection, yes.” He opened the door and walked around to the other side. He opened her door and stood there, waiting for her to get out. “I love you, Ella. Nothing will change that. And I’m not going to put you in a position where you could potentially go to jail for anything I have done or will do.”

She stood and he closed the car door. “I feel like you’re two different people. There’s the Ryker that I know and then there’s the Ryker that the club knows.”

“The one you know only exists because of you.” He stared at her. “You make me a better person. I love you and I need you in my life. I’ve never said that to anyone. I’ve never felt it with anyone but you.”

The neighborhood was quiet. Her parents were inside and the lights were on downstairs but Ella didn’t want to go in just yet. Ryker didn’t push her. He probably didn’t want to go in either.

“Do you think we can have a life together?” She stared at him.

“I’m trying.” He leaned against the hood of her car. “I’m willing to do anything for you to make us work.”

“I know. Coming to my parents’ house was a dead giveaway.”

He smiled. “You mean more to me than a few uncomfortable hours with your parents. Plus, I’m counting on them sleeping downstairs and away from me.”

She reached for his hand. “You’re with me tonight, bud.”

She led him into the house. The large foyer was big enough to be a room itself, with a staircase that led up to the second level. The dining room was off to the right and she walked that way. “Are you hungry? Dad cut off your dinner time earlier.”

“Sure.” He pulled her back against him and kissed her. “As long as you eat with me.”

She fixed him another plate of beef stroganoff and some rolls. Her parents had apparently gone to bed, which gave them time alone. She never really thought her father would be okay with Ryker staying in his house, but sometimes he could surprise her. They sat at the dining room table, with him at the end and her beside him. She still felt on edge about everything. Of course, she wasn’t exactly comfortable with Ryker staying at her parents’ house either. Not after the whole scenario when they were younger.

“You okay?” Ryker asked.

“I’m tired.”

Ryker scooted his seat out. “Come here.”

She went to him and sat in his lap. There were a lot of things she’d never understand about him and probably some that she didn’t want to know. She leaned in to kiss his cheek.