Discovering Me (Breakneck #4) (3 page)

Piper. Piper. Piper.
All up in my head. Fuck. “I’m headin’ to bed.” I stand and walk my none-too-pleased ass right out of the clubhouse, out the courtyard, and into the live-in.

***

Chapter Three

Sniper

“I told Zig Zag he has a week to do whatever. The man lost his unborn child, and then the son he just found out about. Not rushin’ to have his ass back here when he has to mourn. Pyro didn’t ask for time. He took it. At least my Road Captain had the fuckin’ decency to ask me,” Prez hisses.

Always so damn uptight.

“And Pyro, if I catch you pushin’ Rap down again, your ass will be replacin’ one of the prospects and you’ll be scrubbin’ toilets. The man can’t wind up back in a wheelchair. He’s no use to us if he can’t ride or walk!”

The room erupts in laughter. Poor Rap. Dude made it out of prospecting, and then lost mobility in his legs.

“Shit is funny as hell. Stupid fuck should’ve left his casts on, but nope, he wants to wobble like a toddler. Don’t understand it,” Pyro says to the Prez while shaking his head back in forth.

“I’m right fuckin’ here,” Rap roars and the room goes silent. “I’m not a fuckin’ prospect anymore. Show me some fuckin’ respect!”

Everyone claps. “That’s what we were waitin’ on. You’ve grown some balls.” Prez chuckles. “We’ve been waitin’ for them to appear. All right, Pyro wants to address an issue, or rather, address somethin’ he doesn’t want to become an issue.”

Oh goody. The lesbian talk.

“Akela is gay, and she’s bringin’ her girlfriend back. Don’t tease her. Don’t you dare make her uncomfortable. As your VP, that’s a fuckin’ order, and Prez backs me on it. Capiche?”

My brothers all have ginormous sticks up their asses. I need some positive fun. Slinging threats and shit aren’t doing it for me.

“Wait, she’s gay, as in hates men?” Smokey asks.

What is so hard to believe about that? Gays pretty much even out the straights these days. Come on, sometimes I think this MC doesn’t know jack shit about anything that doesn’t revolve around the club.

“You don’t have to hate men to be a lesbian, Smokey,” I say with a sarcastic tone. “She loves fuckin’ women and not men. It isn’t that hard to grasp.”

Smokey flips me off.

“Fuckin’ fantastic. Church is adjourned,” Prez announces while smacking his gavel down onto the annoying ass, little plank of wood.

***

I stand there, taking in all that litters my bathroom, and scratch at my head, confused at what I’m seeing. I know we are close, but I never thought in a million years I would be staring at this shit. I shoot off a text, telling her to get her ass up here. I want an explanation, and I want one right now. I stop scratching my head and flick at the item closest to me. What in the fuck does that even cover?

“Yeah,” she says with a sweet, textured voice.

Oh, look at her trying to butter my ass up.

“Piper, what in the fuck is this?” I gesture around the room, indicating the lacy garments that appear to have eaten my bathroom alive. “Don’t you have your own bathroom for this shit?”

She smacks at my hand that fingers the delicate thong. “My bathroom is crowded with my whites that I can’t dry.”

I mean I am all for sexy lace garments, but shit. “And you couldn’t hang the whites in here and your frill in your bathroom?”

Piper laughs. “Where’s the fun in that? I knew you’d be all fucked in the head if I did this.” She gestures. “What? You can dish it, but you can’t take it? Since when?”

Oh, the little whore. “Bitch, it’s on,” I growl through a laugh as I jerk the nearest bra down and fling it at her. “I suggest you remove all this shit, or else you might find yourself without it. How I’d love to peer under your skirts and stupid dresses to find a bare ass pussy.”

She turns and walks away, and I’m not expecting that. I thought for sure she would rip it all down with quickness.

“Go for it,” she hollers over her shoulder. “It’ll be torture for you, knowing that my bare pussy is right there for the taking, and you can’t take it. You’ll be teasing yourself.”

Okay, frills in the trash. Got it. I might test my resistance with the thought of her wearing no undergarments, but she’ll be pissed they are gone. We both lose this round.

“Trash it is,” I chuck back at her while I rip each piece down.

“I’ll make sure I rub one out in front of you,” she tosses back.

Dammit! Fucking. Killing. Me.
Shit, these look familiar. I run my fingers over the bright red thong with a small rip in it. She did this on purpose, planting these in here. I have met my sarcastic match, and I love the shit out of it.

“She got you good this time.”

Ah, shit. Smokey.

“She sorta did, but she ain’t gettin’ this shit back,” I reply as I rip the bras and panties down.

Smokey laughs and I stop, turn, and look at him with a frown. “What?”

“If you think that she’ll be missin’ those, you’re wrong. Look at the colors, brother.”

My frown deepens while I turn around and a scowl replaces it. “That bitch hung up her darks!”

It is fucking on now. “Grab the staple gun and a permanent marker, Smokey. We’re gonna have some fun like we used to in high school.”

Shit’s getting started now. She’ll regret damn coming up against me.

***

Piper

I’m going to rip off his testicles and feed them to him, and then I am going to murder his ass. I can’t believe he did this shit.

“Sniper,” I roar, ripping through the clubhouse to find him at the pool table with Smokey and Rap. “For a good time, call Piper Lacy at 555-6329? Are you fucking serious,” I yell, dangling my underwear with my number scrawled onto the fabric. “You wrote my number on them and stapled them around town? Do you realize how many fucking calls I’ve got?”

There are no words for the anger seeping through my veins. I am all about pranks, but giving personal information out to the public when I have a screwed up history unnerves me. Tears spill from my eyes as I fling the underwear at him.

“I can’t believe you put my name and number on them! You could have left the number off and stapled them up without it!”

His eyes widen when he takes in the real tears. He tries to move towards me, and as I step backwards, hurt crosses his face. “Piper…”

I hold my hand up. “You know me, Sniper. You fucking know me! Personal line crossed that you know so damn well!”

Hurt. That is what I am. Downright hurt.

“Darlin’… I didn’t… shit… I didn’t think,” he rebuts.

“You think,” I cry out. “I can take pranks. I can dish and I can take, but you crossed the line, a big damn line with my number. I can’t talk to you.” I finish off with a whisper as I turn and walk out of the clubhouse.

Moments later the door slams behind me, and footsteps pound against the pavement of the parking lot. “Piper, stop. Dammit, stop!”

I shake my head, moving my feet faster.
My number with my name on it.
I don’t have the luxury of a fake name or a nickname. My real name is Piper, and he scrawled it, along with my number, for god knows whom to see. I was abducted years ago, sold into human trafficking, and healed from it, only to have the fear of someone looking for me thrown right back into my face.

“I’ll go remove the rest,” he yells when he realizes I’m not stopping for him.

The rest of them!
I almost laugh. “Damn right you will, and don’t talk to me again until they are all in the burn pile!”

This prank went too far. He knows it, and I know it.

There are certain things you don’t play around with, and my safety is one of them. He would never put me in harm’s way on purpose, if he was thinking with a clear head. My life is important to him, and I will have to figure out a way to get over this. He loves me and would never want anything bad to come my way. He got caught up in the fun, and so did I, and I cannot jeopardize our friendship by not being able to get over it. I walk into the live-in building and stroll up the stairs, my mind set on heading to my bed so I can wallow while he collects my panties.

***

Chapter Four

Sniper

For the life of me, I cannot figure out why the hell I posted her name and number all over the town. I get it was a prank, but I understand about her past. I can’t fathom why it did not cross my mind when I was doing it.

I’m an asshole. Point blank.

I toss the garments I’ve collected in the fire pit and head upstairs. I dread having to tell Piper some of the bras and panties were gone. I don’t know if they were thrown away or if someone took them for personal benefit. All I can do is offer a huge apology and pay to have her number changed.

My feet drag the steps one by one. You never want to disappoint those you are closest to. I’m respectful and knock on her door, and then crack it open when she doesn’t say anything.

She is curled up in a ball, fast asleep on her bed. Her eyes are puffy from the tears I caused, and my heart beat speeds up in anger. I’m angry with myself for taking our playful banter and joking too far. There are limits to everything and I have surpassed them this time around.

“She’ll be fine,” Winter says from behind me.

I turn around and give her the look. “You’re supposed to be in bed. Prez will shit his pants if he finds out you’re roaming the halls.”

A loud sigh escapes her. “She came to talk to me earlier. I came down here to check on her is all. I’m allowed to walk a little bit, but not much.”

I’m not going to pretend that I understand bed rest for pregnant women. I’m thankful I’m a dude. Women have those fucked up hormones and crazy pregnancies that make them immobile and shit. Fuck being a woman. Glad I was born with a dick.

“Are you going to stay with her,” she asks.

“I am. I’ll kick off my boots and cuddle her if you want,” I smart off. I don’t like to explain myself to anyone, not even our first lady.

Winter gives me a disgusted face and walks off, and I shut the door. I walk to the bed, sit and kick off my boots and shrug out of my cut before tossing it onto the chair in the corner. This won’t be the first time I will sleep in the same bed as Piper. Hell, we do it all the time. We get high or drunk and fall asleep as we talk bullshit life. When we’re alone, we don’t have to be Sniper and Piper, the pranksters. Yeah, we love to live life to the fullest and not to be serious all the time, but we do have brains and we do use them.

“I figured you’d come in here and make yourself at home,” she mumbles, half asleep.

Smartass.

“I’m sorry, Pipe. I’ll have your number changed,” I say as I lay down next to her and pull her body into mine.

“I know you are. You’ll fix it. Now go to sleep.” She yawns so hard, her jaw pops.

I bury my nose into her hair and sniff and she giggles and tries to jerk away from me. That giggle is how I can tell if we will be okay or not. I loosen my hold on her, bring a hand up to her nose, and squeeze. “Honk.”

She turns to face me and her eyes crack open. “We’re fine, Snipe. No worries.”

I study her face to make sure her giggle and her words are the truth.

“Stop it. You’re freaking me out a little. You get playful when you’re uncomfortable with something. You think it hides your discomfort, but it doesn’t with me. Stop honking my nose and don’t study me. We’re fine. Promise.”

I lean my forehead against hers and don’t take my eyes away from hers. “I’ll make sure when we’re pranking one another, I’ll think before I act.”

Her eyes close and she nods her head, and our foreheads rub together. “Let’s go to sleep.”

“You got it, darlin’.”

What a fucking day. It is messed up how you can go from a kickass morning, and then the afternoon can take a turn for the worse in such a short amount of time. I’ll have to grovel and buy her a new helmet and leather for when she rides with me. She has to know how sorry I am, and if I have to buy her stuff to prove the seriousness of my apology, I will.

Piper is one of a kind, and the thought of losing her is beyond any words I could come up with.

“Never go to bed angry,” she whispers. “My grandma told me that once.”

I’m confused. “Why?”

She snuggles into my chest. “Not just with your spouse, but with anyone. She said going to bed angry makes you a resentful person.”

Ah. “All right.”

I don’t know what else I could say to that. I guess it makes sense in a way.

My phone chimes in my pocket, and I groan as I dig it out. A text from Braxxon. Fucking peachy.

Prez
– Church. Now.

I lean back into Piper and kiss her on the forehead. She doesn’t stir, so I know she fell back asleep. I must have drained her mentally if she is that exhausted. It’s Monday night. Nothing’s happened, but the drama with Piper and me, so I wonder what the Prez could want.

I sit up, reach for my boots, and slide my feet in, not bothering to lace them. I walk over to the chair, grab my cut, and slip it back on before digging in my pockets for a smoke and my lighter.