UnLove Me - The Angels Warriors MC Complete Trilogy Box Set (4 page)

“I’m sorry for this. I’m not usually so weak,” I tell him through my tears. I’m really not. I’m strong. My friends all say I’m feisty and stubborn, and with my size you would never think I had it in me, but with this crap with my father, I’m terrified. I’m not strong enough to go up against that sorry bastard—he’s the devil in the flesh.

“You’re not weak,” Jasper says, sounding angry. “I know you, Edie. You’ve never been weak. I already read your file, so if you don’t want to talk right now, that’s fine. The club and I will help you any way we can. I promise you that.” He places a reassuring hand on my knee, and I find his touch comforting.

I nod my head. “So you know everything?” I ask quietly, ashamed of what the man known as my father did to me. I take a tissue from the side table and wipe my nose.

“Yeah, darlin’, I do. We all do. Your father—that monster won’t come near you when he gets out,” he says with a tone that I can tell he means what he says.

I want to ask him why he hurt me all those years ago, but, at this moment, I just want to feel safe, be safe. I want Glenna to be safe. There will be time for asking those questions later.

“Who are the other two?” I ask him when my tears dry up.

He stiffens and removes his arms, moving to sit on the couch and looking at me. “You don’t remember them? We all hung out as kids,” he states, sounding hurt.

I try to remember back. “Wait, Vinny and Mason?” I ask, shocked. I can’t believe I didn’t place them or put it together before now. I guess I was just so taken by surprise at the sight of the only man I’ve ever loved to notice. Vinny is still tall and skinny. Mason is huge now, tall and broad shouldered, and still has that mean snarl on his face.

He grins at me. “Yeah, darlin’. Looks like the crew is back.” I hope he doesn’t think things will just go back to the way they were before. I’m not that naive little girl who thought Jasper was all there would ever be for me.  It was always Jasper, Vinny, Mason, Lilly, Hilary, and me. But that was then.

“Push me higher, Vinny, or when I get off of here, I will nut you!” I screamed, swinging on the swing set.

“Shut up, you little twerp,” Vinny growled out. “Jasper, why are we playing around with a fuckin’ girl again?”

“Cuz she’s Edie,” is all Jasper said with a shrug.

I stuck my tongue out at Vinny as he shook his head and glared at me. “Yeah, cuz I’m Edie.”

My thoughts get interrupted when Mason comes back into the room with plates full of the food I baked and three bottles of Coke Zero.

“You ain’t got no beer or rum,” he grunts, setting the stuff on my coffee table.

I shoved Mason to the ground. “What was that for?” he asked, spitting sand out.

“That’s for telling Hilary that she stinks,” I said, glaring at him.

“Well, she does. What, was I supposed to lie?” he asked, confused.

“Well, duh, dumbface! Of course!” I told him.

Coming out of that memory, I smile. “Hi, Mason,” I say hesitantly.

He lifts his chin. “Hilary’s doing amazing, by the way. I just talked to her last night. I’m trying to convince her to come home,” I say, tilting my head to the side, smiling sweetly. At the first mention of her name, his body goes rigid, but when he sees the look on my face, he relaxes. I know about what happened between him and Hilary, and, personally, I think both of them are morons. If she just told the truth, and he didn’t jump to conclusions, they’d probably still be together. Although, I think they’re still married, since I haven’t heard anything different.

His eyes narrow, and his lips twitch, trying to hold in a smile. “Still the trouble maker.”

After all these years, Eden still looks beautiful—short blonde hair, big blue eyes. I want to reach out and touch her, hold her, so she can’t escape me again. She’s lost weight since I saw her last. I guess that’s what nine years does, though. I can still see that fire hidden under her small frame. I know my Edie’s in there somewhere, and I will get that girl back. She still looks good as I rake my eyes over her body, a body I once knew and wish to touch once more.

I look at her face closely, seeing faint scarring covering most of her face. What the fuck?

Noticing her spacing off a few times, I wonder where her thoughts are, but I don’t say anything. Part of me wonders if she’s remembering how I made her mine back in high school.

After kissing her and claiming her against the locker, I didn’t let her out of my sight except for classes. The bullshit move she pulled when she came home from summer vacation wasn’t flying with me. Her mom told me, before I knew she went on vacation, that once she was in high school she could date.

It was her way of telling me to make my move.

Eden wouldn’t let me at first, but after a week of her bullshit, I wasn’t letting it go on any longer. Seeing her talking with that fuck face, Trent, made my blood boil. She was mine, and I’d be damned to let anyone else have her.

It wasn’t easy, especially once everyone found out that we were finally together. Most people weren’t surprised; I heard whispers of ‘finally’ and ‘about time’. The ones that were pissed were the ones that either wanted in Eden’s pants, which wasn’t fucking happening, ever, or the ones pissed they wouldn’t get a taste, or another taste, of me.

Roni was my biggest problem. I made the mistake of fucking her just before summer, after school let out, and the bitch has been causing problems ever since, her little cousin Monica too.

The first part of our relationship was hard. We were in new territory, and both Roni and Monica weren’t back to school yet—both having been away for a few weeks. But now, week three of school, they were back.

The guys, myself, Eden, Lilly, and Hilary were standing around in the courtyard just talking, my arm over Eden’s shoulders, when Roni came sauntering up. She rolled her eyes when she saw Eden with us, something she’d done a lot of over the years. She never understood our friendship.

Eden’s body went stiff as Roni walked up to me, moved away before Roni ran her over.  Before I realized what she was doing, Roni flung herself at me, planting a kiss on my lips.

“I’m back, babe. Did you miss me?” she asked.

I shoved her off of me and pulled Eden back into my body, where she remained stiff in my arms while Roni looked like she was about to completely lose her shit.

“What the fuck, Roni? We fucked once, never again. I’m with Eden now,” I told her then placed a kiss on the top of Eden’s head.

Roni’s face scrunched up. “What do you mean, you’re ‘with her’ now? You can’t seriously be dating,” she sneered.

“Actually, yeah, we are together. Go latch onto some other fuckwad that’ll want between your legs.”

We all turned around, so we didn’t have to see Roni make an ass out of herself. “It won’t last! I promise you that!” she screamed as she left.

I give my head a shake and look back at Eden. She’s stiff around me, and I can’t for the life of me figure out why. She left me. No note, nothing—just left. But if I have my say, not only am I going to make sure her father never touches her again, or her sister. She’s not leaving me again. She is mine, and I swear I’ll go back to my old ways if I have to achieve that. She doesn’t realize the affect seeing her has on me, and fuck, the way her shirt reveals the shape of her breasts makes me want to bury my face in them.

“So, how did you and Vinny get the nicknames?” I hear Eden ask Reaper.

“Don’t let Zippo hear you call him Vinny. He gets pissed when someone calls him that,” I tell her, trying to stop staring at her lips. Actually, he really only still lets Lilly call him that, but even then he gets upset because that’s the name Eden always used for him.

She shrugs and grins. “I’ll still call him Vinny.” She licks her bottom lip. Fuck me, I’m in trouble.

I shake my head, and Reaper shoots me a knowing look. “Vinny got his name because that idiot is always losing his expensive Zippo lighters. Every day he has to buy a brand new one. And Mason, well, it should be obvious.”

She frowns. “I would have thought his nickname would be Mr. Broodypants, or maybe even Cranky-ass. That’s more him. But then again, I haven’t been around him in, what, nine years? There is probably lots I don’t know anymore,” she admits.

I crack up laughing. “He’s still all that, Darlin’. Trust me.” I wink at her, and she blushes—still so fucking sexy. I’d love to taste her sweet lips again. I’d claim her in a heartbeat if it wouldn’t freak her out.

Reaper is sitting on the couch beside me, glaring at the two of us. “I feel like this is a fuckin’ time warp or something,” he mutters. His mind must be on Hilary.

“Except, this time, Jasper and I won’t be together,” she says, glancing at me for a second before switching back to looking at Reaper.

My eyes narrow on her. She’s got another fucking thing coming if she honestly believes that. I still want her. Finally, since she’s over eighteen, there’s not one God damn thing to stop me from putting a ring on her finger, making her mine in every way possible.

Reaper speaks up. “You tell yourself that, Eden. I bet you, before long, you’ll be on the back of his bike,” he says, sounding amused. His lips curl up in a menacing smile.

She slaps her palms down on her thighs. “Wanna bet?” she says, full of attitude—still defiant.

Reaper shakes his head. “Last time I bet you, you played dirty.”

I burst out laughing as my head takes me back down memory lane.

“I bet you that I can run to the bakery and back, naked, without getting caught.” Eden said to Mason.

“Bullshit! You would so get caught. But, whatever, I’ll take that bet, and I’ll do the same thing. We’ll make it a race. Loser has to eat the frog I caught last night down by the pond,” he said.

Eden looks at me and makes a gagging face. “Don’t worry, you won’t get caught. I’ll run alongside you,” I told her.

She nodded. “Okay, you’re on. Let’s do this,” she yelled to Mason.

Vinny, Hilary, and Lilly were all sitting on the grass, looking between everyone, laughing. I watched Eden walk over to Hilary and Lilly, pulling them aside and whispering. All three girls look like they’re up to something.

“Ready?” Mason asked, buck naked from beside me.

Eden quickly took off her clothes. She was only twelve, and I felt dirty for looking at her. “Ready,” she said, skipping over to us.

The two took off before I could even give the count. I looked back over to the girls and Vinny. “Be right back,” Hilary said with a big smile on her face as she walked into Martha’s house.

Vinny, looking amused just laughed.

A few minutes later, a cop pulled into the driveway with Mason in the back seat looking pissed. I saw Eden running down the road, still naked, clutching a box of donuts.

“That was a great day,” I say.

“Not really. That damn cop has had it out for me ever since,” Reaper says. He turns to look at Eden, thinking. “How about this for a bet? You and Angel here end up back together, you bake me that lasagna I smell in the kitchen.”

Eden grins at him. “Sounds easy enough, but if I win, I want to see that dick piercing Hilary always told me about.”

Hearing her say that, my blood boils. I look to Reaper. “You’ll be winning the fucking bet, bro, because she’s not seeing your dick.”

I hear Eden giggling. “I think, bet or not, I’ll still see it. If not, I’ll just Google it or something,” she says, smiling before it’s wiped off her face. “But don’t worry, Mason, you won’t win this bet, because there is nothing that could ever have me wanting
him
back.”

I gulp, her words slicing through me. What the fuck happened to her to make her hate me like this?

“Well, I guess we should start this?” I ask, breaking the bit of tension that’s worked itself into the room.

Jasper nods, and Reaper suddenly tenses. “Go ahead.”

“I know the police don’t believe me, but after the night, that um, I was with Jasper, I came home to my parents fighting. It was worse than ever before. I watched it happen- watched him stabbing her, watched her try and fight back.” I shudder as my mind returns to that horrible night.

I climbed through my bedroom window, hoping I wouldn’t wake up Mom and Dad. If Dad were to catch me, I would get the beating of a lifetime. I tried to be as good as possible around him, because it was getting harder and harder to explain the bruises to Jasper.

The night before had been incredible; the way his hands roamed on my skin, the gentle way he moved inside me. I didn’t want to leave that morning, but I knew that if I wasn’t home when my dad woke up, I would be in seriously big shit. Dad was only home to sleep, even if it was from an early hour in the morning. He’d come home, sleep, wake up and demand my mom make him breakfast, then take off again. Sometimes, he made time to beat the shit out of us while he was home, too. I had no clue where he went when he wasn’t home, but as long as he wasn’t home, I was okay with that.

Sliding the window down slowly, quietly, so it didn’t make a sound, I heard a crash outside my room.

“William, please, don’t do this!” I heard my mom scream out, fear evident in her voice.

“You were gonna fuckin’ leave me, huh? You had to have known I wasn’t going to let that happen!” Dad roared. Smack! I heard him strike her. The sound of his fists connecting with her tender flesh sliced through me.

“I can’t do this anymore. Please, don’t make me,” Mom cried.  Her sobbing pleas were unbearable, but it was nothing I didn’t hear often.

“Can’t do this anymore? Let’s end this then,” he threatened. There was a moment of silence, and curiosity begged me to make sure she was okay. However, I was certain it would be like the rest of their fights. He beat on her, bruised her and thumped her good, and then he passed out drunk while she cried herself to sleep.

I opened my bedroom door slightly, peaking out, and I saw my dad dragging my once beautiful, vibrant mom down the hall by her blonde hair—mom was screaming out in pain, kicking her legs out, while trying to keep a grip on his hand in her hair. When I was younger, my mom was so beautiful and fun to be around, but after the past few years, she had started looking worn and tired.

When they turned the corner, I tiptoed out, feeling dread come over me. My head was telling me to run, go find help, call Jasper, anything, but I did none of that. I peered around the corner, and that’s when I saw it—my dad, smiling an ugly smile of satisfaction, a butcher knife from the kitchen in his hand, plunging the blade into my mom’s stomach, repeatedly.

Her baby! I gasped, placing a hand over my mouth as tears streamed down my face. Mom met my eyes, her own tears and blood splatter on her face. I knew what her eyes were telling me, but at that moment I couldn’t move. I knew she wanted me to run, but my feet were planted.

“When I saw the light fade out in her eyes, I knew she was gone, but Dad didn’t stop plunging the knife into her.” Tears start streaming down my face as Mason comes over to me, holding me tightly. Angel is watching me cautiously.

“It’s okay, Edie. Take a breath, calm down, and continue,” Reaper says, kissing the top of my head.

I shudder in his arms. “Mom was pregnant at the time. No one knew. She told me the morning before, saying we needed to leave before Dad came home that night. She wanted to go somewhere he couldn’t find us, but I didn’t want to leave. I didn’t want to leave Jasper,” I whisper. “It was all my fault. If I hadn’t loved Jasper so damn much, we could have left, hidden out, or something, and she would still be alive.” I sniffle, wiping away at my fallen tears. I’ve carried the guilt of that night with me since.

“It’s not your fault!” Jasper shouts, waving his hand in the air before running it across the back of his neck. “Your father was a sick, twisted bastard. That’s not on you.”  I tense and shrink back into the chair at his words. He sounds angry with me.

Once Jasper calms down from his outburst, I continue. “When Dad realized I was there, he threatened me, said that if I ever told anybody I’d be next. After what I witnessed, I believed him. An hour later, he had a few guys, guys I didn’t recognize, come in and clean everything up. When everyone left, I was alone. I was only seventeen. I didn’t know what to do. I didn’t move from the spot I was sitting from on the floor after Dad backhanded me,” I say, avoiding their gazes and looking down at my hands as I twist my fingers in knots. I can still feel the whiplash a hit from him could cause; I almost throw my head back remembering the pain.

I didn’t know how long I’d been sitting there, rocking, but it must have been a while, because Dad was home again and it had gotten dark outside.  The house was dimly lit, the moon casting its glow through the thin lace curtains.

“Get up, Eden!” Dad shouted at me, kicking me in my side with his boots. “Start cleaning this place up.” I didn’t even hear him approach me. I hadn’t been able to move from that spot all day. I could only stare at the spot where my mother laid hours before, unmoving, unbreathing. I couldn’t believe she was really gone.

I got up from my spot on the floor and picked up the broken picture frames on the floor that had been knocked down while Mom and Dad were fighting. “Daddy?” I said hesitantly. I hated calling him my dad.

“What?” he said, irritated as he took a beer out of the fridge.

“Um, can I go see Jasper tonight, when I’m done cleaning?” I asked quietly. I had to get out of there, away from him, before he did the same to me. That night I planned to tell Jasper everything; about the abuse, about my mom. Maybe he and I could start over somewhere new.

He took a long hard drink then let out a bark of laughter. “I’d like to see you try. Saw him today, cozying up with Roni. They left town in that truck of his this afternoon.” He swallowed another drink and looked at me with an amused smile.

I frowned; Jasper wouldn’t have done that to me, not after the night before. “No,” I whispered, not wanting to believe Jasper would betray me like that, not after what we shared. He’d said he loved me. Jasper was the one man I thought could never hurt me. I’d trusted him with every piece of me. Well, at least I was about to give him the rest, the parts I kept hidden down deep away from him and the rest of the world.

Dad laughed again. “What? You think you were special to him? Fuckin’ stupid kid.” He shook his head.

I finished cleaning up, but then I was unsure of what to do... I had tried calling Jasper a few times, but his mom kept saying he wasn’t home. Guess my dad was telling the truth. Without Jasper, and now my mom gone, I had no reason to stay there. Once Dad went to sleep, I snuck out the front door with a bag full of clothes and some money I stole from his dresser. I didn’t know what Dad was doing to get so much money, but at that moment I didn’t care. I grabbed it and left.

I made my way to Lilly’s house, hoping she’d help me out. After knocking on the front door, Ann, Lilly’s mom, opened it and ushered me in the house. “What’s wrong, sweetie? Is everything okay?” she asked.

“I need help. Is Lilly home?”

“She went out with Vincent. She’ll be home later on, though,” she told me, which had me slightly confused. Why would Lilly be with Vinny? “I can help you, Eden. Talk to me.”

I told her everything, but left out the part about what I saw earlier that morning between my parents. “I need to leave. I can’t stay here anymore. Lilly told me you have a sister down in New Brunswick, and I was hoping I could hide out there or something?” I said hopefully.

Ann wiped the tears forming in her eyes. “Of course, baby. I’ll call Jillian now. I’m sure it won’t be a problem.” Ann might not have known the full reasoning behind my sudden urge to disappear, but she knew my home life was nothing to be desired.

“I left an hour later on the bus, and only talked to Lilly randomly sometimes on the phone.” I pause, and I feel anger hitting the room like whiplash.

“Lilly fucking knew this whole damn time where you were?” Jasper says through clenched teeth. He is gripping the arm of the chair, knuckles white. Anger is rolling off him in waves.

I bite my bottom lip and nod. “Lilly let me know some woman named Foxy dropped off a baby to my father, claiming she was his. I went back to my father five years ago. I couldn’t let Glenna be raised by him. I needed to protect her, so I went back. I ran away with her when she was three, but I made a mistake and he found us. ”

I bundled Glenna up, and we made our way to the daycare so I could get to work. So far, hiding from my father had been easy. It’d been a few months; I had hope we’d be safe.

I got to the daycare and froze on the spot.

“I’m sorry, sir, but we can’t release information about anyone in this building,” I heard being said.

“You better fuckin’ tell me where my daughter is, or I swear to God I’ll cut that fucking throat of yours,” my father replied.

He’d found us.

His eyes swung around and found mine, which wasn’t hard since we’d just walked in and Glenna was starting to get fussy.

“You little cunt!” he bellowed, moving toward us.

He grabbed hold of my arms and moved in close. “Say one fucking word, I dare you. Let’s move.”

He dragged me out of the building and down the street to his beat down, rusted car. I quickly buckled Glenna into the seat I was shocked to find he had, and climbed in beside her, but before I was fully in, I was yanked back out by my hair.

“Get in the front,” he growled into my ear.

I moved quickly around the car and got into the front, my whole body shaking.

As we drove off, back to his home, my face was suddenly smashed into the dashboard. “You cunt! Did you really think you could run off on me again, and I wouldn’t find you?”

“He threatened, if I left again, I would have a slow painful death while he made Glenna watch. But all those threats, all those beatings were nothing compared to the first night home. It’s how I got this scar,” I say, moving off the chair to stand, lifting up the back up my shirt hesitantly to reveal the long raised scar going across my back. I never told any of them about what happened to me growing up, and if I want these guys to help keep Glenna safe, I need to do this.

“Mother fucker,” Mason whispers out, horrified.