Outlaw MC Bear (14 page)

S
abrina was
sure something was up. The whole clubhouse was humming with tension. Everyone was busy and so much less rowdy than her first night there. All that edginess had a life of its own around the place. They were bracing for something to come to them. She intimately knew that feeling, like waiting for the boogeyman to appear from out of nowhere.

I suppose being bombed last night could do it.

Unsure what she could do about it, she let it go, opting to curl up on the edge of the bed on top of the covers and relax. For all the action and lack of sleep in the last almost thirty hours, she should have been dead tired. So far, this recent clubhouse stay consisted of being put to hide out in a random room, and minimal interaction with anyone in the MC, except for Jenny. It would have been great to get some rest and forget everything going on, at least for a couple hours.

That’s not gonna happen.

This situation was a disaster waiting for her to let down her guard long enough to send her reeling. No one would say a word to her. Anytime she asked Jenny, the woman would avert her eyes and back away as if Sabrina had the plague. She was probably feeding off the president’s vibes. Silas wasn’t exactly thrilled with her at the moment, but in a sense, the feeling was mutual. But then again, how would any two people feel after angry sex? Angry, unprotected sex which was mind-blowing as hell and temporarily suspended any resentment between them, at least until they came crashing back down to reality. On the other side of a session like that, she soon remembered that the man—who also could turn into a bear at will—was involved in business with her father. She couldn’t overlook either fact for very long, no matter how much he’d rocked her world in the shower.

“Yeah, hot wild sex with a guy-slash-bear I can’t be with…because that totally fits into this Bizarro world of mine,” Sabrina scoffed, grabbing a pillow and hugging it to her chest. “Not that I’d even want that in the first place.”

The truth was that being embroiled in secrets, crime and violence was in her blood. She was not new to the shady business dealings of underground gangs or illegal activities, so accepting Silas as a lawbreaker was a whole hell of a lot easier than accepting that he turned into a beast at will. She hadn’t probed for any other specifics about what he was, mainly because they’d been a little busy in the shower together, and since then he had given her the silent treatment. Jenny had shown her the guest room, talked pleasantries, and here she was now holed up in a tower like a movie princess waiting for her prince to get a wake-up call.

Screw this.

Screw all of this!

Sabrina bolted up from the bed and walked over toward the door. No matter what anyone else in the MC thought, she was still going to live her life—even in captivity. If they were going to judge her for bringing hellfire to their parade, she could take the damnation much better with some alcohol in her system. She turned the doorknob and was halfway through the door when she bumped into a familiar chest steamrolling her backward into the room.

“We need to talk.” Silas didn’t waste any time stepping into the room and slamming the door behind them.

“Do I get to have an opinion for this talk, or will it be one-sided again?” She crossed her arms over her stomach and licked her lips, eyes narrowed and ready for battle. “We can’t keep screwing each other’s brains out every time there’s a problem. That doesn’t solve anything.”

“We can’t keep screwing each other period, doll, but that doesn’t mean it ain’t gonna happen again.”

Sabrina blinked, knowing full well that conclusion was inevitable, and was really hoping to get one or two more good ones in the books before she retired for the rest of her life in a sexless marriage with Lorenzo Giovanni. All roads led to the one outcome she hated, but there was no getting out of it.

I might as well admit it.

My fate is sealed.

Maybe if she played the part of the dutiful wife, he’d be more than happy to let her keep her job at the law office.

“Sabrina? Are you still here with me? Too busy fantasizing about me deep inside you, or all the hot sex you’ll be missing when you’re gone?”

She blinked and forced herself back into the conversation. “Wait, did you say gone? As in, out of the clubhouse and walking on my own in daylight kind of gone?”

“More like tied to another guy until kingdom come kind of gone.” Silas leaned against the wall and ran a hand through his hair. Was it her imagination or did he look a little upset about her leaving? “Your fiancé made some nasty threats. He wants you back before a meeting with your father in two days. I don’t exactly want him to make good on his bullshit. So you’re going with us.”

“Great. Back to being chattel again. How lovely.” Now she really needed that drink. Or a few. “Why aren’t you acting as if I should know something about this meeting? Where’s your usual suspicion?”

“I left it back in your bathroom with the goon squad.”

Sabrina cocked her head and studied his vacant, slightly stressed expression. “So that’s it?”

“Just about. We’re all leaving in less than twenty-four hours, at which point you’ll no longer be my problem. The way I see it, there’s no sense not trusting you, when you belong to business people I have to trust in order to do my job.”

“I don’t belong to anyone, Silas. I’m a person, not a thing.”

“Think again, because if you stop for a second, you’d realize you want me to own you. In fact, I already do, where it counts.”

“You own me?”

“Where it counts, yes.”

“And where’s that?”

He stepped forward and ducked his head to her ear, tapping lightly on her temple. “In there,” he whispered. “Admit it. When you close your eyes and picture the life you really want, it’s me you see protecting you.” He lightly slid the back of his hand down her cheek and neck, across her shoulder, and down her arm. “And there, when you think about who you want touching you all over.” His hand moved around her waist to her back, pulling her into his chest until she could feel his hardness against her belly. “And here, when you imagine what it feels like for a real man to swallow you whole. Face it, Sabrina. I. Own. You.”

That spiel left her breathless and longing to agree with him, but she had to stop herself. Only a minute ago he was turning her over, and now he was telling her he’d own her mind, soul and body for the rest of her life?

She forced the logic to re-enter her brain. “When are you ever going to realize that women aren’t playthings or commodities for you to collect and trade?”

“Funny, you didn’t have an issue with it a little while ago in your shower. I’m sure you’ll remember when you beg this bad boy to fuck you again, sweet cheeks. It is what it is. Accept it.”

She didn’t want to admit it, but her blood went hot from the tips of her fingers to her toes. “Why are you here, Silas?” she breathed out, taking a shaky step back.

“Here.” He dug through his pockets and pulled out her phone, holding it out towards her. “You can have this back. Kind of pointless to hold onto it when the only people you could tell already know you’re here.”

She took it without a word, then she took another step back. “Thank you.”

“Sure.” He eyed her up and down. “Well, that’s it.” Silas made to leave the room and for obvious reasons, she didn’t want to see him go—and hated to admit it to herself.

“Wait. Silas?”

He turned and shoved his hands in his pockets. “What?”

“I was born into the lifestyle. I get it, but you don’t have to do it this way…what I mean is, there are better ways to run an MC than working anywhere near my father.”

His eyes narrowed. “What are you getting at, Sabrina?”

“I have an idea.”

“
I
don’t know
that it’s a good idea to take advice from someone so close to my bread and butter, babe.” Silas shot her a look. He probably thought it would pacify her, all gentle and playful. “Thanks for the offer. I’ll keep it in mind.”

He gave her a wink and turned to leave the room.

“Please don’t dismiss this so quickly, Silas. It could turn out to be a godsend.”

When he came to a dead halt, her chest squeezed tight as she fumbled for the right words to convince him this proposal was solid. It would be a surefire way to get his club out of the arms business and a heck of a lot safer. They still needed to have some ties to her father so no one went to war, but it was one hundred percent legitimate. Thoughts rattled around in her head on how to best get her point across before he dismissed it altogether. The benefits needed to be clear as day to ensure he wouldn’t blow her off.

If he could be realistic, he’d see that the business he ran put him squarely in the middle of high-risk indentured servitude, never mind that it was profitable. All of a sudden, making him see he had a way out of the lifestyle became immeasurably important to her. Or maybe she just didn’t want to see Lorenzo or her father win again. Right now she wasn’t in the mood to examine the reasons why she’d come to that conclusion.

Silas shook his head before she could say another word. “I don’t know what game you’re playing, Sabrina, but I’m out.”

“Are you hell bent on ignoring me just because I’m a woman?”

“Christ. You’ve known me for less than two days and you already see me as some pet project.”

“That’s not true. I—”

“Stop talking. I don’t need you to fix me, or to tell me how to live my life.”

“Oh, that’s rich, coming from you!”

“Everything I did for you was to protect you. If you don’t believe it, that’s not my problem.”

He never raised his voice, and he didn’t look over his shoulder. He just stood there, facing the door, and with every second that he remained unmovable, she wanted to scream at him more so he’d get over himself and stop being so stubborn.

“You won’t even listen to what I have to say, will you?”

She could tell that yelling at him was the worst thing she could do right now, but it was hard keeping her frustration under control.

I should have known.

It figures we’d be combustible in and out of the bedroom.

“Why do you want to help me so much anyway, Silas? What’s in it for you?”

His fingers twitched at his sides. “I protect my investments.”

“I wasn’t your investment when you helped me on that elevator. You didn’t know who I was then. So why did you take time out of your precious life to help? Tell me why, Silas. Maybe you’ll figure out why I want to return the favor.”

He rolled his shoulders and cracked his neck. It was anyone’s guess whether he was actually considering what she’d just suggested. For all she knew, he could be thinking about what chick he was going to screw next downstairs. Sabrina grimaced at the idea. They’d never talked about exclusivity, but the idea of some girl’s claws in him made her want to set them on fire.

Sabrina heard the sound of footsteps approaching and held her breath. Cole stuck his head in the open doorway. “Having another lover’s quarrel, are we?”

“What’s up?” Silas asked.

“You’re needed downstairs.”

Sabrina glared at Cole, positive this well-timed interruption was to help Silas get away from her for whatever reason. Cole half-shoved Silas out of the room and he went willingly. Even her chest deflated from the release of tension when he left the room. Except sooner or later, they would run out of time to be alone. She was about to go back to being under her father’s control. Shortly after that, Lorenzo would take his place. Silas had a lot to figure out, and they’d get nowhere if people didn’t start getting out of their way.

Cole didn’t follow behind him. He just stood there, studying her with a sideways glance, eyes narrowed as he chewed on the end of a cigar.

“Can I help you?” she asked.

“I’m going to level with you, honey, and I need you to listen good and hard. Got it?”

Sabrina cocked her head, ignoring the rush of anger filling her veins again. Was everyone around her bent on giving her a piece of their minds? She walked over to the dresser and leaned on it, looking at him. “Just say what you want, then get out and leave me alone.” She’d already learned it was better to hear him out and do whatever she wanted to do.

“You two?” Cole pointed down the hallway and then back at Sabrina. “There’s no future there. Everyone knows it. You’re too much of a good girl and not enough of a rule breaker for him, even with your sketchy family ties. And I’m telling you right now, you can’t change him, so get that idea out of your head. That kid was destined for more than whatever you’re thinking. And either way, he’s as good as taken.”

She frowned and took an abrupt seat on the edge of the bed. Taken? What, by the she-bitch twisted claw who jumped her in the hallway earlier? That couldn’t be right. He hadn’t mentioned…then again, why would he mention it? Sabrina clutched her stomach while trying to keep her face neutral.

“I see I’ve got your attention now. Good. Silas belongs to no woman, but if he were, it would not be to you. The man’s been promised to someone else. Kind of like you and your Mafioso in training, Lorenzo Giovanni.”

“But… who?”

“It’s not your concern, but for the sake of getting you off his back, I’ll fill you in. Cindy and his old man made a deal with another the president of our Texas charter club. He and the guy’s daughter have been a thing…” He held his left palm down to around hip height. “Since he was yea-high. Why do you think he won’t settle down? He’s already got someone on lockdown. Besides, I just called their charter to help us out if things go south with your dear old Daddy. So that complicates matters, doesn’t it? If I were you, I’d stay out of the way and leave Silas alone until we can ship your petite little ass back home where you belong. Otherwise, you’ll be playing with the big girls, and they have claws. Literally. You won’t win.”

“Thanks for the heads-up and the warning, Cole,” she muttered, only half paying attention to the words coming out of her mouth.

He hesitated in the doorway, and she sensed his gaze on her as she sat there in shock. So much of what he’d said made perfect sense. She’d been so busy both trying to get into Silas’s pants and to help him out of this underground life, she never bothered to question why he was so sure there was no chance for them. She was his, but the converse was not true.

A rush of nausea took over her stomach, and she had to swallow hard to keep that bitter bile down. He’d essentially turned her into one of those dime-a-dozen twisted claws downstairs. God, she’d been an idiot, blindly sleeping with this guy she knew nothing about and assuming…what…that after giving up the pussy, he’d jump on board with a neat little plan to get out of gunrunning so they could live happily ever after? That he’d smuggle her out from under her father’s nose, and Lorenzo would be fine with it and her best friend, Addison would simply be let go?

Addison was right.

I really am naïve.

For all intents and purposes, Sabrina needed to accept that both she and Silas were engaged. Maybe she was unhappy about her life, but for all she knew he was thrilled about his fiancé and living as an outlaw.

That thought was all she needed to point her in the right direction. She didn’t belong here. Silas had his own motivations, and there was no sense daydreaming that his attention had more to do with her being a pawn. Again. She needed to figure out how to free Addison on her own. She needed to forget about her soul-deep desire to be seen as a person, not a convenient poker chip. Most of all, she needed to get it through her head that the handful of times when Silas made her feel she was more, he was simply between her legs, fucking her over. It didn’t count.

“Christ,” she breathed out, putting her head in her hands.

“Reality is a bitch, ain’t it?”

Her head jerked up. Cole was still there. Fuck. She’d totally tuned out. He smiled, giving her a little head nod. “Makes sense that he didn’t tell you about the whole engagement thing, eh?” Cole gave her a knowing look, taking a long puff on his cigar. “Then again, you didn’t exactly tell us you and the padrino were kin.”

“True.”

“None of it matters anyway. You weren’t sticking around even if you were some random chick. Plus you’re a human. Add that to the mix and you get a goddamn mess. Get yourself some rest. You’ll need it for the next forty-eight hours.”

There wasn’t an argument for anything he said, so she let him leave without one. Soon, she’d be back to her old life and everything else would be a nightmare of horrible choices.

She only had herself to blame.