CRASH: An Evil Dead MC Story (The Outlaw Series) (25 page)

Red Dog disengaged from the woman that had been hanging on him most of
the night. “Rosalie, let loose. I gotta take a piss.” He pecked her on the
forehead and walked off.

Shannon watched him wander away from the pool tables and head toward the
back hall. Then she sidled up to Rosalie. She had long dark hair in tight curls
that hung to her waist and dark eyes. “Have you known Red Dog long?”

Rosalie looked her up and down. “Long enough. What’s it to you?”

“You know he’s married, right?” Shannon asked.

“Who the fuck are you? His ol’ lady?”

“No.”

“Then what the fuck’s it to you?”

“He’s got a wife and a kid.”

“Yeah, so?”

“So? So maybe you should leave him alone.” Shannon couldn’t believe this
girl’s attitude.

“And maybe you should mind your own goddamn business, slut.” Rosalie got
right in Shannon’s face

“Slut? Who are you calling a slut, you little skank!” Shannon’s control
snapped, and she shoved Rosalie back. Rosalie went after her, going for her
throat with her long nails, and suddenly Shannon was in a cat fight with this
girl. They shoved and slapped and scratched at each other.

The next thing she knew, both their heads were being yanked apart by the
hair. Trying to twist her head to see who had a hold of her, she only managed
to get the hand fisted in her hair to tighten and jerk, separating them
further. She heard Cole growl, “Crash, come get your girl.”

Uh-oh.

Crash
was leaning against the next pool table over, talking with Jake and Shane. He’d
heard the scuffle behind him about the same time he heard Cole growl his name.
Twisting his head to see what was going on, he was stunned and pushing off the
table in the next moment. What the hell did Shannon think she was doing?

He
gritted his teeth as he moved around the table. She was testing him, the little
minx. She probably didn’t have a clue that she was, that the gauntlet had just
been thrown down in front of all his brothers, but it had. She was acting out
in a way that was not tolerated here, and now he had to do something about it.
Was expected to deal with her. The crowd in the immediate area around them went
silent, stepping back as he strode to her.

“Come here, troublemaker.” Crash’s big warm hand closed over her bicep
and pulled her around as Cole released her.
He forced her a few steps back. Her chin went up,
defiant.
Crash’s
eyes landed on the wicked looking scratch that cut across her throat. He took
her jaw gently in his hand and tilted her head back. “Shit, sweetheart. You’re
bleeding.”

He knew Shannon saw his eyes lift, going over her head to connect with
Rosalie, where they stayed while he asked, “Cole, can I get your keys?”

“Yeah, man.” Cole dug in his pocket, pulling out a set of keys and
tossed them to Crash. Crash snagged the keys from the air.

He stared down at Shannon, and
tenderness
for her tore through him. He tried to remember that she was so out of her
element here. But anger quickly followed. She could have been hurt badly. Some
of these bitches wouldn’t hesitate to use a weapon, a blade, a broken bottle,
he’d seen it all. Holding the keys out to her and leaning in, he got in her
face, his voice low, his tone unmistakable. “Get the fuck up to Cole’s room,
and wait for me there. You got me?”

She
stood frozen in place.

He
raised his brow. “I am not fucking with you, Shannon. Do as you’re fucking
told. Now.” Her eyes slid to his brothers surrounding them, all staring at them.
The muscle in his jaw ticked as he waited for her compliance. Finally, she took
the keys and hurried off.

When
she was gone, Cole started, “Crash-”

“This bitch do that?” Crash growled to Cole, cutting him off, his eyes
burning into Rosalie.

 
“I think it was pretty much a
toss-up who started it. They had words. Shannon shoved Rosalie. Rosalie
retaliated.”

Crash’s head swiveled, eyes searching as he bit out, “Where’s Dog?”

Red Dog was pushing through the crowd and stopped in front of them.
“What the hell happened?”

“That slut hit me!” Rosalie snapped.

Crash glared at Red Dog with a look that packed in a lot of meaning.
“See to your latest bitch,” he growled.

Red Dog looked from Crash to Cole, who barked, “Keep her in check. It
ain’t
her
ass she’s putting on the
line, it’s yours.”

“I’ll get her out of here.” Red Dog grabbed her arm.

“Why do I have to leave? Make his girl leave!” Rosalie gestured toward
Crash.

Red Dog didn’t bother to stop to answer that. He just hauled her toward
the door.

Crash headed upstairs.

Shannon paced the floor of Cole’s room, waiting. What the hell had just
happened? Things had gotten out of hand so quickly, and then Crash had been
standing there, looking amused, and then concerned, and then angry.

Suddenly the door was thrown open. She whirled and found herself staring
at the hard set of his face. His eyes flared, his jaw tight. He was still
angry. No, more than angry.
Maybe
she deserved it, maybe she’d started this, but holy hell he looked pissed. The
door slammed.

He took a step toward her, but he froze when she backed away. A black
look twisted his features as he shook his head. “Don’t.”

She stared back at him with big glassy eyes.

He took another step, measured and watchful this time. “Don’t back away
from me like you think I’d hurt you. You know better. You fucking know better,
Shannon.”

“Then stop scaring me.”

“I’m not.”

“Yes, you are.”

He ran a frustrated hand through his hair and strode past her. He went
into the bathroom, and she could hear him rummaging around the cabinets. He
returned a moment later, a wet washcloth in one hand and a small tube of some
type of ointment in the other. He stopped about six feet from her, and his eyes
dropped to her throat, eyeing the scratch. “That looks bad, Princess.”

Her hand lifted to her throat.

“Come here. Let me look at it.”

Apparently the anger had gone as quickly as it had come. She relented
and stepped over to him. He dabbed at her throat, wiping the small amount of
blood away and then applying the ointment. His touch was gentle. She stared
into his eyes as he ministered to her. Then his eyes lifted and met hers, and
she saw nothing but tenderness there. She watched his eyes crinkle with the
start of a smile, and he murmured, “Well, you’re a real handful. What the hell
did I get myself into when I took you on?”

“I
admit things got out of hand, but it wasn’t my fault.”

“You
take the first swing?”

She
bit her lip. “Maybe.”

“Then
it was your fault.”

“But,
Crash-”

“I don’t do drama, babe.” He cut her off, his voice low, his tone
unyielding.

She closed her mouth. Oh, my God. Was he telling her goodbye? Was he
done, fed-up, washing his hands of helping her? A cold feeling formed in the
pit of her stomach. She couldn’t let that happen. She’d come to need him too
much. “I…I’m sorry, Crash. It won’t happen again.”

He frowned, a shocked look crossing his face, as if he couldn’t believe
he’d just heard an apology coming out of her mouth. He stared at her a moment,
and then nodded. “Okay. But you’ve gotta understand something, Princess. That
crap downstairs just now, that doesn’t fly. Not in my world.”

“I…I noticed all your brothers watching.”

“Exactly. You know why?”

She thought she did, but she kept her mouth shut.

“They were waiting to see what I’d do. How I’d react. How I’d deal with
it. How I’d deal with
you
. And
believe me, baby, there was only one way they expect it to be dealt with. Quick.
Firm. And without hesitation.” He paused to study her. “I’ll let that slide
once.
Once
, Shannon. Don’t let it
happen again. We clear?”

“Yes.”

He reached up and tucked a strand of hair back from her face. “This is
too much for you, say so. We can figure something else out for you. Otherwise,
this is my world. Women got a place, but it sure as hell ain’t causing trouble.
You need to understand that. You need to be right with that or this,” he
gestured between them. “Isn’t going to work.”

 
“I understand.” She looked at the
floor, hating that she’d disappointed him.

“Do you?” He lifted her chin and looked in her eyes. “I’m layin’ it out
for you as plain as I can. I tell you to do something, you back down, and you
do it. Only way this works.”

They stared at each other a long moment. It was a pivotal moment. She
felt like it was a ‘speak now or forever hold your peace’ moment. She nodded.

“C’mere, babe.” He pulled her into his arms. She leaned into him, and
hard muscle absorbed her. There was a strength in Crash, a masculine confidence
that said he knew who he was, and it called to the female in her. She laid her
head against his chest, tucked under his chin.

Crash liked the feel of her holding onto him, burrowing up against him.
It was starting to become a tendency of hers, and he was starting to become
addicted to how it felt when she did it. “So what the hell started all this?”
He murmured the question into the top of Shannon’s head.

She pulled back and looked up at him. “Rosalie. She said some stuff that
pissed me off. Not really what she said, but her bitchy attitude.” She
shrugged. “I can be moody.”

“Hadn’t really noticed,” he teased, fighting a grin.

She closed her eyes, trying not to smile and shook her head. “Right.”
When she opened them, a grin pulled at the corner of his mouth. It was sexy as
hell.

“So, a catfight. Hadn’t really figured you for the type, Princess.”

“I was driven to it. That bitch made me go temporarily insane. What’s
the story with her anyway? I thought Red Dog was married to Mary. What’s he
doing with her?”

Crash blew out a deep breath. “What goes on between these guys and their
women, Shannon,” he shook his head. “Not your concern.”

“So Red Dog is screwing around with Rosalie?”

He just looked at her, not answering her, which was an answer in itself,
he supposed.

“And you? How many of those women have you been with?”

His brows went up. “Not answerin’ that one, babe.”

“Have you been with Rosalie?”

“Fuck no!” he declared emphatically.

“So all these guys, they’re all fucking around on their wives or ol’
ladies or whatever you call them?”

“Not all of ‘em.”

“But most?”

His hands dropped from her hips as she pulled away, stepping back. His
arms hung at his side, his hips canted out. “Look, some things never gonna
change, darlin’. The male animal? That’s just the nature of the beast. Not all are
gonna be faithful. Maybe you want to blame it on the MC, but it’s no different
out there.” He nodded in the general direction of outside the clubhouse. “Men
are men everywhere. The rest of the world is no different. You want to believe
it is, but it’s not.”

“I know it’s not, Crash.”

“But that’s not me, Shannon.” She looked up at him, and he could see the
doubt in her eyes, but something else, too. Hope. She wanted to believe him. He
smiled a small smile. “I’ll get you there. You don’t believe now, but I’ll get
you there, Princess.”

She broke eye contact with him. He’d read her too closely, and she
wasn’t comfortable with it. She didn’t want him to see how much she wanted his
words to be true. He frowned. Another wall. He’d tear that one down too. One
day.

“I’m sorry,” she stated again.

He grinned. “I’ll accept your apology over pancakes and bacon in the
morning,” he stated, indicating she should make him breakfast, then he lifted
one shoulder in a half shrug. “Or, you know, you could just give me a blow
job.”

“Crash!”

“Apology sex is the best kind, you know,” he teased, watching her turn
red.

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

He laughed, hooked her around the neck and walked her toward the door.
“Come on, let’s go back down.”

They walked out of the room and could immediately hear whoops and
hollers from the guys downstairs. Shannon frowned up at Crash. He grinned.

“Sounds like the show’s started.”

“Show?”

“Sonny’s girls. I heard the limo had pulled up before I came up here.”
Crash took her hand and nodded toward the other end of the dimly lit hall toward
the stairs. A shudder moved through Shannon. Could he feel her tremble?

“So, strippers come put on a private show? And this kind of thing
happens a lot?”

“Most Fridays, the ones who aren’t on shift.” He shrugged. “It’s how Mack
keeps the guys happy.” He urged her ahead of him with a hand at the small of
her back. “The girls get free booze and make some extra cash. It’s a win-win.
Especially since Sonny likes to keep a large stable so the acts don’t get
stale. Keeps them all working.”