Chosen (Motorcycle Club Romance): Axel and Paige 2 (Fallen Idols Motorcycle Club Book 5) (3 page)

Fear gripped my heart. I had to find her, and figure out the truth, before anyone else did.

Rogue paused. “Alright then, that’s settled. Ryder and Rocco, you two take the first shift at the warehouse. Axel, grab Blaze for the second, and Rev and Ace the third. We’ll cap it off with Cruz and Trista. Twelve hours each. Let the prospects know. Got it?”

Everyone nodded.

“Pops, who do you want to talk to first?”

Pops sighed. “I’ll start with Axel and Ryder, since they were the last two in the warehouse before the parts went missing.”

Rogue looked at each of us, and we nodded. “Alright. Then let’s get going, and welcome Axel home like we promised.”  He banged his gavel, and people began standin’. I knew we were supposed to be in a party mood now, but with Paige on my mind, and the club’s problems heavy on my heart, it would take a whole lot of alcohol to get me to forget my problems.

“Larry!” I called to our bartender. “Two fingers of Jack.”

I’d better get started.

THREE

PAIGE

I banged on Gina’s door for the third time in ten minutes. “Get your lazy ass up! You promised you’d go shopping yesterday, and now we’re out of coffee. I need my coffee, Gina!”

“Ugh. Just go to Starbucks,” she moaned, still half asleep. “It’s the middle of the night, Paige. This isn’t cool.”

I rolled my eyes. “It’s nine thirty in the morning. Now get your ass out of bed.”

She didn’t answer, and I knew she was already asleep again. I swear it would take a nuclear bomb to get that girl out of bed. Seeing as my fate was sealed, I grabbed my reusable grocery bags, and headed to the store for some necessities, hitting up Starbucks on my way.

The drive thru line was wrapped around the building, so I found a parking spot in the very back corner, and then headed inside. After waiting in what seemed like an hour long line, I finally ordered, and went to stand with the rest of the caffeine addicts while we waited for the barista to work her magic.

“I’ve got a grande four pump mocha with an extra shot, no foam, no whip latte for Paige?” the barista called.

“Right here!” I stepped around, weaving through people gingerly to grab my drink.

“Paige?” a deep, sexy voice called, and it immediately sent a warm shiver down my spine.   

I pivoted to see Axel by the door. He stepped toward me, looking even more delectable in his street clothes. A sexy black, leather jacket over a plain white tee shirt that molded to his sculpted chest, dark blue jeans that hugged his ass, and big leather boots on his feet. His hair was knotted at the nape of his neck, tucked neatly behind his ears. Even just standing in front of me, he commanded the whole area, like he was the most important person in the room, and everyone knew it. It’s not that they feared him, but more like he owned it, and everyone knew. It was… overwhelming. Everything about him was overwhelming.

I swallowed hard as I took a deep breath. I couldn’t handle myself when he was a prisoner, but now, like this, I was doomed.

“What…what are you doing here?” I muttered, thrown off by how his nearness made me feel. I needed to take a step back, but moved forward instead, so close we were almost touching.

“I saw you from the parkin’ lot,” he explained, his hand brushing against mine, as he let someone by.  

“No,” I smiled. “I mean here and not…” I didn’t know how to say incarcerated without feeling like I was calling him out. I didn’t want to embarrass him in public.

He avoided my question, still standing close enough that I could feel the heat radiating off his body. “I’m glad I ran into you today, Paige. I’ve been thinkin’ about you.”

“You have?” My eyes widened, disbelieving.

He nodded. “I have.”

“Will you stay?” he asked. “Stay and have a coffee with me. I want…I’d like to talk to you, if that’s okay?”

I stood frozen for a minute. I knew from his file that he lived in Brooks Landing too, and I’d always assumed that I’d run into him one day, but I wasn’t prepared for today to be that day. “Um, I need to go to the store,” I said lamely.

His eyes locked with mine. “Ten minutes. That’s all I ask.”

His emotions were so open and raw, spilling out of his eyes. I could feel it in my gut. That undeniable attraction that I’d been stamping back down for weeks could no longer be ignored. I couldn’t say no. “Okay.”

He grabbed a drink, and led me to an empty table outside on the patio so we could have some privacy.  He smiled, almost shyly. “I had this whole spiel worked out in my head for when I saw you again, but it’s flown right out the window. All I can think about is how fuckin’ beautiful you look right now.”

I ducked my head as a smile spread across my face.

“How have you been?” he asked.

I tucked a stray piece of hair behind my ear, suddenly nervous. “Okay, I suppose.”

Axel sighed. “Can I just start off by sayin’ that I’m sorry about the way things happened… before? I shouldn’t have put you in a position to compromise your professionalism, or your job security. I was selfish and I’m sorry.”

“No, Axel. You weren’t the only one there. I take just as much responsibility for what happened, if not more. I should have known better. I should have been able to control myself, but…” I trailed off, not really comfortable at admitting just how out of control he made me feel.

He smiled, taking a sip of his coffee, before reaching his hand toward mine. I inched my fingers toward him until we were touching, which sent my heart racing. It was  dangerous territory, and I knew I shouldn’t be so willing to step into it, but the warmth of his touch ignited a fire inside me. “I know exactly what you mean. When I’m around you, Paige, it’s like my body is drawn to yours. A moth to your delectable flame. I want to touch you, even right now. Run my finger over your soft skin, glidin’ it along every nook and cranny as I explore every soft, buttery inch and –”

“Axel!” I couldn’t do this. I couldn’t think straight around him, and with the way his words made me want to… No. I couldn’t. “This was a bad idea.” I went to stand up.

He squeezed his eyes shut. “I fucked up again. Jesus, Paige, I don’t know what it is. I swear, I usually have my shit more together than this. I swear it’s like, when I’m around you, everything else just fades away—including my sense.” He paused, taking a deep breath. “Let’s start over. Hi. I’m Axel. I think you’re absolutely amazing, and incredibly beautiful. I’d like to take you out to dinner and get to know more about you.”

The yes was on my tongue, but catching a glimpse of his leather vest reminded me of exactly why I needed to say no. “I’m sorry, Axel. I can’t. My best friend fell down that motorcycle gang rabbit hole, and I won’t allow myself to join her.”

My heart sunk. “I don’t understand, Paige. What is it exactly that you think is so horrible about me ridin’ a motorcycle?”

I fiddled with the cardboard sleeve on my coffee cup. “It’s not that you ride motorcycles. It’s the gang thing.”

He set his cup down, and rested his hand under my chin, urging me to look him in the eye. My heart pounded as I took in every delicious inch of him, my resolve waning. He looked me in the eye. “Paige, I’m not in a gang. True, I belong to a motorcycle club, but that’s very different than a gang.”

I rolled my eyes. “Yeah, I’ve heard that before.”

His face scrunched in confusion. “I’m really lost here, Paige. Why don’t you start at the beginning so I can try to understand?”

I set my cup down, and smoothed my hands on my pants under the table. “Okay. A few years back, my best friend, Gina, met this guy who was in a motorcycle… club.” I resisted the urge to put the word club in air quotes. “He was some big shot in the club, and she thought it was great that people started treating her with respect just because she was with him.”

“She was his old lady?” His brows furrowed as he tried to connect the dots.

“I guess. I don’t know all the terminology. Anyway, it wasn’t respect. It was fear. And for good reason. Everyone feared Chubs because of his violent temper, and no one would stand up to him when he started hitting Gina.”

“Chubs Alvarez? From Las Almas?” he asked.

I nodded. “Yeah. Do you know him?”

“I know of him.”

I bit back the tears that threatened, reliving it all. “They actually defended him, Axel. They refused to let her leave. And he had cops on the payroll, so we couldn’t even file a restraining order. It took me years to convince her that it was safe enough to leave. And the harassment didn’t stop there. He would have his club ride past my house at all hours of the night until we finally had to move. I had to get a lease in my mother’s maiden name, just so he couldn’t find us again.”

Axel sat there, his fists balled and jaw tight, but his eyes were full of sadness. “And you think I’m like that? That I would hit a woman? Or allow a woman to be hit while I sat idly by just because he wears the same cut as me?”

I shrugged. “Everyone else does. Not one person had the balls to tell Chubs to stop. Not one person. In
four
years. They all saw him hit her, punch her, smack her, shove her. No one even looked up from their beer.”

“Paige, do you remember why I was locked up in the first place?”

“Yeah, because someone was selling drugs, and you beat the shit out of them.”

“That’s part of it,” he nodded. “Do you remember the rest of that story?”

I tried to think back, and when it dawned on me, I wanted to cringe. “He hit his girlfriend. I remember now.”

“Yeah. He did. And I made sure he never did it again. I also had
my
club see to it that she got to a woman’s shelter who could help her.” He reached across the table and took my hand in his. “I’m really sorry about your friend, Paige. But I’m not like that. My family isn’t either. Just because we both wear cuts doesn’t mean I’m anythin’ like him. Don’t stereotype me like that, please.”

He was absolutely right. I was stereotyping. He didn’t belong to the same club, and I should’ve known better than to label everyone into a box. “I’m so sorry, Axel. I have a blind spot when it comes to Gina, and automatically thought the worst of you. That was wrong of me.”

“So, does that mean you’ll take me up on my dinner invitation?” His finger caressed my own, reminding me of how amazing he made me feel.

I hesitated. My body was screaming, “Say yes already, you idiot!” but I still had so many questions. So many worries. I couldn’t just make them go away. I gulped. But I could at least give him a chance. “Yes. I’d love to have dinner with you.”

“Fantastic. How about now?”

I laughed. “Axel, it’s ten o’clock in the morning. And I have groceries to get.”

“Well, what do you know? It turns out I need to pick up a few things at the store too,” he smiled wryly, standing up and leading me out the door.

I turned back, watching his eyes staring at my ass, and knew I was done for. But damn, what a way to go.

FOUR

AXEL

I was happier than a dog in shit. I spent the entire morning with Paige. We played a hilarious game of Would You Rather while pickin’ up groceries at the farmer’s market by the bay, followed by a nice walk in the park. She somehow even convinced me to take off my shit kickers, and walk around the grass barefoot. I gotta admit, I kinda liked it.

I wasn’t happy to leave her after only a few hours, but my phone had been blowin’ up by the MC, and my shift at the bar was due to start soon. I knew Ryder would have my neck if I were late. He’d been blabberin’ all week about something special he had planned for Sawyer.

“Axel, you don’t need to see me home. I’m a big girl.” Paige got in her car, buckling her seatbelt.

“I know, but it’ll make me feel better. Besides, I want to meet this Gina that you’ve been tellin’ me all about. And I’ll need to know where to pick you up for our date tonight.” I promised her to take her to a late, candlelit dinner. I just left out the part where it would be at my place. With any luck, there’d be dessert too.

I hopped on my bike, and followed her back to a duplex on a quiet street in northern Brooks Landing. Her house was in a pretty decent area, and not actually all that far from my own. It had a brown brick façade with tan stucco, the windows had black shutters, and a bright red door stood at the center of a large screened in porch.

I knew somethin’ was wrong as soon as I cut my engine. I could hear screaming coming from inside. Paige was immediately out of her car, and takin’ the stairs up to the porch two at a time, with me right on her heels.

“You’re coming back with me, you fuckin’ slut. I don’t give a shit what some piece of paper says.” A glass broke, the sound of it shattering echoing through the quiet neighborhood.

“Gina!” Paige shouted, throwing open the door, and running inside.

“Wait!” I yelled, but she was too far ahead. I followed her through, findin’ the house in shambles. The couch was overturned, two broken lamps were on the floor, and the TV had a giant crack in it, like someone punched it.

The voices came from the back of the house. Paige was already headin’ for the kitchen as I tried to catch her, wishing I had my gun. Standin’ against a wall, holding a pale, frightened girl by her neck, was a large man who I assumed was Chubs. The girl already had a black eye, and a cut on her lip, probably from where he backhanded her. Her lip quivered as her eyes met mine, pleading for help.

 I bolted into action, rammin’ the dude with my shoulder to get him away from her. We crashed into the small wood table, each of us fallin’ to the floor. He jabbed my side with his elbow, causing me to wince, but I pulled back, punched him hard, and square in the jaw, twice.

Dazed momentarily, he didn’t move, which allowed me to strike again. I hit him as hard as I could in the center of his face, sprayin’ blood from his nose across the laminate floor. He moaned, and the girl, Gina, screamed, seeing the blood.

I sat up and turned back to the girls. “You guys okay?”

Paige nodded, holding Gina while she sobbed on the floor. “She’s okay. Call the police, okay? She has a restraining order, he shouldn’t be here.”

Chubs sat up behind me, using my distraction of tendin’ to the girls to his advantage. He picked up a broken leg from the table, and heat radiated through my head, as he hit me from behind with it. Pain exploded in my temple, and I fell to the floor, bangin’ my head hard against the laminate floor.

“Who the fuck do you think you are coming here and sticking your nose in my business?” he screamed, grabbing a fist full of my hair, and rammin’ my face into the floor. I heard the crunch, and knew my nose was broken.

“I’m the fucker who’s going to make sure you need to eat through a tube for the next month.” I spat blood from my mouth, blinkin’ the stars out of my eyes, just in time to see his fist coming at me, sucker punching me, and knockin’ the air out of me. He reached back again, but I rolled away, causin’ his fist to land on the floor.

He howled in pain, and I’m sure that impact broke a couple of knuckles.  I knocked him back down to the ground, and kneeled over him, landing one final uppercut to his jaw, knocking him out cold.

Standing, I kicked him in the ribs for good measure, making sure he wasn’t faking me out again. He didn’t move, but I didn’t trust him not to wake up and bolt. Or worse, go after the girls again. I patted him down, and pulled out his piece, tuckin’ it into the waistband of my own pants.

“You got any duct tape?” I asked Paige, wipin’ blood from my nose onto my sleeve. She nodded, fear raging in her eyes, as she retrieved a roll from a side drawer. Paige’s hands shook as she handed it to me, and I wished, more than anything, I could just wrap my arms around her, and reassure her that it was all over now, but I needed to take care of the asshole first. I bound his hands and feet, and then added a third piece to his mouth for good measure.  

“Get her out of here,” I told Paige. She nodded, leading Gina out of the room while I stood, catchin’ my breath. I pulled out my cell and dialed 911. “Yeah, I’m gonna need the cops out at three eleven Driftwood Lane. The resident has a restraining order that’s just been violated, and she was attacked.”

I didn’t give the operator a chance to respond or ask questions, and quickly hung up, dialin’ the club.

“Raven’s Nest,” Larry answered.

“It’s Axel. Who’s around?” I squeezed my already swelling fist, and went to the freezer for some ice.

“Hold on. I’ll get you Trista. She just walked in.” He set the phone down, and not even a minute later, she got on the line.

“You’re late for your shift, Axel. You’d better have a damn good reason.”

“Tris, one of the Almas attacked Gina when I was droppin’ Paige off. Police are already on their way, but—I…”

“Who the fuck are Gina and Paige?” she cut me off. “Wait, is that the girl from the note? You found her?”

“Never mind that now. Just send me out a prospect to keep an eye on the girls for the rest of the day to make sure no one retaliates. I’d do it myself, but I’m already behind on owing the club hours, and I promised Pops he could interview me today. Chubs will be locked up tonight for violatin’ that restraining order, so it should be all quiet but I’d rather have someone here just in case.”

“Axel, what the fuck kind of mess have you gotten yourself into already? You just got out of prison less than a week ago.”

“Honestly, Tris, it’s not even my beef. I just happened to be here when it went down. Paige is that nurse from the prison I told you about. Her roommate was an old lady who got out, and Chubs didn’t take it too well. Was chokin’ the shit out of her when I got here.”

She growled a little in the phone. “Oh, hell no. You put a stop to that?”

I glanced down at his listless body and sneered. “Of course. I knocked his ass out cold.”

“That’s what I like to hear,” she replied. “Alright, I can send Blaze over to keep an eye on things until your shift is over. But Axel, you gotta find out what’s up with those two. Though I guess we know how they’re connected now. Fuckin Almas.”

I loved how, even though she’d never even met the girls, she was willin’ to help while getting info for the MC. She always was smart.

I walked back into the living room to check on Gina, and help the girls clean up a little, while we waited for the cops.

“Axel, you’re bleeding!” Paige grabbed a few tissues from the end table, and began blottin’ my nose. “I think you broke your nose again.”

“I’m fine; it’s nothing.”

The nurse in her wasn’t convinced. “Sure you are, just like you were fine when you ripped out your own stitches to come see me.”

“Totally worth it.” I winked, as she tilted my head back and applied pressure at the bridge of my nose.  “How’s she doing?” I whispered. Paige tossed the bloody tissue in the trash while Gina sat on the couch, curled up tight, and staring blankly out the window.

              “Nothing broken or anything. Just gonna have some bruises for a few days.” She glanced over at her friend, a sad expression on her face. “She’s been through worse. She’ll be okay. I’m just glad we came back when we did.”

              I nodded in agreement. “Cops should be here in a sec. I’m also sendin’ one of my guys to keep an eye on you two until I get back.”

              “Oh, Axel, you don’t have to do that.”

              I took the base of the lamp, and threw it in the trash, before wrapping my arms around her, and kissing her forehead. “It’s not a problem. Honest. I just wish I could stay myself, but I’ve gotta take care of a few things with the club first. You can trust Blaze. He’s a good guy, and he’ll make sure you two are safe.”

              Sirens wailed, comin’ closer to the house. Paige went to the front porch to meet them, while I went back into the kitchen to make sure Chubs was still secure.

              Fifteen minutes later, Chubs was handcuffed in the back of a squad car, and Blaze was sittin’ guard on the front steps. Gina was getting evaluated by a paramedic, though she only had some slight bruising around her neck and a black eye; lucky no worse was done.

                            “Four hours,” I promised Paige, entwining our fingers. “I’ll be back in four hours. I’ll even bring dinner here if you’d prefer.”

                            Paige sighed. “I was really looking forward to that candlelight dinner you promised. But I really should stay with Gina tonight.”

                            “Absolutely not,” Gina replied, comin’ up behind us. “No way. I’m not letting that asshole take one more thing away from us ever again. He’s locked up, and that big strong guy is here to watch over me. I swear to God, if you two don’t finally get reunited, I will never forgive myself. So please, for me, go to dinner, and then get some dessert. Twice,” she winked at Paige. “And Axel?” She turned to me. “I don’t know how to thank you for –”

I held up my hand. “No need whatsoever. Honestly.”

                            Paige had turned bright red at Gina’s innuendo, and I laughed. “Are you sure?” I asked.

                            Gina nodded emphatically. “Absolutely. I just want to take a long hot bath, and curl up with Netflix. Honest. I’ve been through worse, and I won’t allow Chubs to make me—or you— live in fear ever again. He’s locked up, not you, Paige. So go!”

Paige threw her arms around Gina, and whispered something in her ear, making both girls giggle, before she turned back to me. “Pick me up at eight?”

I leaned in, kissin’ her long and hard in promise of what was to come. Her eyes slid shut, as her mouth parted, allowin’ my tongue to slide in, and deepen the kiss. Oh my God, I forgot how sweet she tasted. Her hands wrapped around my neck, pullin’ me closer. I was about to drag her back inside when a couple of throats cleared around us.

                            I gave her one final soft kiss. “We’ll continue this later.”

                            “Four hours,” she whispered back. “And we’ll do much more than just this,” she winked.

                            My dick stirred at her promise, and I strode back to my Harley with half wood and a giant smile on my face.