Zero (7 page)

Each word she spoke hurt, but it didn’t feel like the end of the world. Prue’s face entered his mind, calming him.

“You don’t need to say anything more,” he said.

“No, I need to. This is never going to happen. I love Nash. I’m the mother of his daughter.” She pressed a hand to her stomach. “I’m going to be giving him another child very soon.” He watched her swallow, tears in her eyes. “Find the woman meant for you. Don’t wait for me. Stop wanting me. I’m never going to be yours to have.”

She took another step back.

“I will,” he said.

“Good.” She took several steps away, turned around and left him alone.

Entering his room he saw Nash was sitting on his bed. “What the fuck do you want?” Zero asked. “Your woman has just told me how it’s going to be.”

“Are you going to listen this time?” Nash asked. He looked hurt, depressed even.

“Yeah, I’ll listen. Sophia is in love with you, and I shouldn’t have tried to think of having anything more. I’m sorry.” He tugged his jacket off throwing it on the nearest chair.

“I’ve watched you for a long time. I know you want her, and denying yourself must be fucking hard. I know I wanted her for a long time before I took her,” Nash said.

“Look, you don’t need to do—”

Nash wouldn’t let him finish.

“Sophia is mine. You tried to kiss her last night, and I heard what you said. You would have succeeded in kissing her.” Nash stood. “I’ve fucked up in the past, but that gives you no right to try and steal my woman. While we were in Piston County Sophia and I talked about you. She promised she wasn’t trying to lure you in or give you the wrong impression.” Nash stopped, laughing. “She really thought you were friends. She didn’t see your desire or what you wanted to do to her.” Zero was slammed against the wall with Nash’s arm over his windpipe. “I will not lose her to you. Get over your fucking crush, and get over her. She’s not leaving me, and I won’t let her leave.”

He didn’t fight Nash’s hold. Zero knew he crossed the line, and if anyone tried to do this with his woman, he’d have flipped long ago. Nash had shown a great deal of patience and restraint.

“Next time I won’t hold myself away from the fight,” Nash said, referring to the night before when Zero needed to rid himself of the anger. “It will be you and me.”

“I get it. Do you want to cut my junk off as well?” Zero asked. “I’ve got shit to do, and this is boring me.”

Nash jerked back then slammed his fist into Zero’s jaw. Collapsing on the ground he heard the other man leave his bedroom.

Without saying a word, Zero stayed on the floor until he could focus on something. When he could, he got to his feet and walked into the bathroom. He was going to have a nice bruise on his face in the next few hours.

****

Steven was sweet. He didn’t know what to say, and the conversation tended to be about nothing at all. They talked about everything and nothing.

“Have you never talked to a woman before?” she asked, smiling. Prue was charmed by his attempt to keep her company. Within a few minutes of being alone with him, she’d relaxed. He didn’t scare her, which made a change from how she’d been feeling recently.

“Erm, talking is never really been necessary. I mean, I’ve talked to Angel and Tate, but they’re, erm, they’re taken. Other women, they’re not hard, and conversation is the last thing on our minds.”

Giggling, Prue grabbed her water and sucked on the straw. The blonde nurse hadn’t made an appearance into the room yet, surprising Prue. She’d expected the other woman to be all over The Skulls, even Steven.

“They’re women you’ve got no chance of fucking?” she asked.

“For a woman your language isn’t all that great.” He sat on the chair beside her bed.

“I grew up with my brother and Zero. He’s not changed since joining The Skulls. Zero has always had vulgar language, and I picked it up from him.” She sipped more water, smiling at the other man.

“He’s never spoken of you.”

“I don’t expect him to. We’re friends, but we don’t have an impact on our lives. He came to me when he needs help or if it’s a certain time.” Zero hadn’t visited her the last time she’d taken the time to remember Trevor. For the first couple of years after Trevor’s death, Zero was always there. All of a sudden he stopped turning up, making excuses. Putting her glass down, she stared at him. “What about you? Any woman on the horizon?”

“No, no woman. I like to take what I like. There’s something about variety I love.”

He was blushing, and Prue couldn’t help but laugh.

“It’s charming seeing a man who blushes easily. How did you survive being a prospect?” Prue asked. “I’m sure they gave you more than your fair share of embarrassing jobs.”

“I did just fine.”

“I’m sure you did.” She smoothed out the blanket covering her legs.

“You’re not freaking out,” he said.

“About what?” She tucked some hair behind her ear, looking at him. Steven was a handsome man. He was younger than Zero, possibly younger than she was. She was twenty-nine years old and been through her fair share of pain.

“Getting shot. I imagined you’d be freaking out.”

She touched the cover that hid her scar. There were stitches binding her skin together. “I grew up with a brother who was always hurting himself. He actually shot himself in the leg.” She chuckled, remembering the anger their parents had at Trevor hurting himself. Hanging out with two boys intent on adventure, Prue had ended up in all kinds of scrapes and accidents because of the boys’ dares. “I don’t know. I’m happy to be alive, and I’ve got company. It’s nice not to worry. I’d be freaking out if I was alone. I’m pretending to be a big girl.” Prue rarely lost control. Looking after young children who fell down and scraped their knees had trained her not to freak out at the littlest thing.

“You’ve been shot.”

“It’s not the first time I’ve seen someone shot. I was there when Trevor got shot. He didn’t aim properly and was pissing about with a gun thinking he was some hotshot. Zero had to carry him all the way home, and I applied pressure to his leg. My brother squealed like a girl as if he was dying or something. We were all friends growing up. Trevor, Zero, and me. They didn’t mind me hanging out with them, strange I know.” She’d been a tomboy, rarely wearing dresses and preferring jeans to skirts.

“Your parents are dead?”

“Yeah, I’m the only one left of my family.” She smiled even though she didn’t feel like smiling. “Zero was part of our family, but he’s not a blood relative. We’re just friends.” Prue was pleased. Her thoughts had nothing to do with brotherly love when it came to him.

“I’m sorry. I’m usually better at conversation.”

“Yes, he really is,” a woman said, entering the room. Glancing up, Prue saw a beautiful woman carrying a basket with a child on her hip. “Hey, honey, I’m Eva, Tiny’s wife. I’ve come to say hi and to give you something a lot nicer than the hospital crap they serve up. I should know, there have been too many visits to this place. We should demand a refurbishment if we end up here again. I for one am getting tired of the stained walls. This is my daughter. Her twin brother is with his father.” The basket was placed on the floor as Eva embraced her.

“It’s lovely to meet you,” Prue said.

“She won’t let you starve,” Steven said. “She’s an amazing cook. All of us at the club are grateful for her skills. She left us once for a few weeks, and I had the shits for ages.”

Eva clocked Steven around the head. “Don’t talk like that.” Steven laughed, rubbing at the part Eva hit. The basket was brought to the bed as her daughter sat on the bed “You don’t mind Joanne being there, do you?” Eva asked, pointing at her daughter.

“No, I don’t mind. It’s fine.” She smiled down at the girl then returned her gaze to Eva.

“Right, I’ve got enough food to sink a ship,” Eva said, passing her a clear tub with a large sandwich. “Get dug in. Here you go, Steven. I brought you food as well.”

For the next twenty minutes, Prue forgot about everything as she listened to the people around her. She ate the food given to her and smiled as Eva talked about family life and Zero. The club was a family, she soon realized. They were all there for each other, and if they didn’t accept it they had to leave. Prue felt relieved that Zero had found people who took care of him. The thought of him being alone scared her. Losing Trevor had hit the other man hard, and she’d noticed the change within him the moment he collected her. Eating the food, she watched as a woman with long blonde hair entered. A large man covered with ink stood behind her, and his hand was on her shoulder, holding her close. On her hip was a boy. The woman looked like an angel. Her face was so beautiful, innocent almost.

Looking at them, Prue saw how protective the man was over his woman.

“That’s Lash and Angel,” Eva said. “With their young son.”

“Hello,” Angel said. She held up a sack. “I brought some clothes for when it’s time to take you home. I didn’t know what size you were going to need, but I also brought a belt in case they’re too big.”

Lash leaned down whispering to her. Angel blushed and glanced at the floor. “Sorry about that. I hate it when she puts herself down,” Lash said, entering the room. “We thought we’d come and see Zero’s little secret.”

Laughing, Prue glanced at all of them. “Are you sure you’re a biker club? You don’t look all that scary to me.” She smiled at each of them feeling part of their world. Since Trevor was taken from her, she’d been fighting every step of the way to make her life work. Teaching stopped her from being lonely, but when the nights came, she was always lonely. There was only so much lonely a woman could take.

“You’ve not been on our bad side,” Lash said, holding onto his woman. “Wait until you piss us off, and then we’ll terrify you.”

The banter went around the room, and she settled back, enjoying the show.

Another two people entered. This time the man was larger than Lash and the woman fuller than Angel. “This is Killer and Kelsey. They’re expecting their first child and have not long been married,” Eva said.

Nodding at them, Prue was embraced by Kelsey. “You’re part of the family now,” Kelsey said.

“I doubt Zero will want me interrupting your time.”

“You’re not going home,” Killer said. “You’ll be part of the club for a while, at least until this fucker is caught.”

Once again she watched them all. Steven drew her into a conversation. She answered his questions. Prue didn’t know how much time had passed. Someone clearing his throat brought her attention toward the door. Zero and Tiny stood in the doorway. Smiling at them, she watched Tiny go to Eva and tug her close. The chemistry she saw between the couple made her heart pound. What would it be like to be part of such need? She’d fucked, sure, but never had she experienced such heart-stopping passion.

Glancing at Zero, she saw he was staring at her.

“You look clean,” she said.

He chuckled, moving toward her side. She looked up as he landed a kiss to her cheek. “I had a shower.” The whole room was watching her.

She felt her cheeks heat at having an audience. “It’s about time.”

Zero stepped away, and the talking resumed. Steven stood, giving Zero his chair. She frowned as there seemed to be a silent message passed between the two people. The other man excused himself leaving the room. Frowning, she looked at Zero, who had a smirk on his face.

“What the fuck did you say to him?” she asked, glaring at Zero.

“Nothing.”

“Don’t give me that. I know you, Lucas Blakely. You and Trevor used to do the same kind of shit. What did you do?”

“Nothing.” He held his hands up in the air.

She knew they had all of the others’ attention on them. Prue didn’t care. She’d never been afraid of giving Zero a piece of her mind.

“Steven has been nice to me. Don’t think to throw your weight around or do some dominant man bullshit on him.” Prue pointed her finger at him. “I know your game, don’t.”

“I’m protecting you,” Zero said.

“You’re protecting me from a weirdo you created, not from Steven.” She folded her arms underneath her breasts, glaring at the other man. “He’s been nice and doesn’t deserve you being a bastard to him.”

“Fine.” Zero glared back at her.

She heard the snickers around the room.

“I like her,” Tiny said. “It’s about time someone put him on his toes and bossed him around a little bit. It’ll save us a job.”

Zero raised an eyebrow at her, smiling. “She’s the only woman I’ll ever let talk to me like that.”

“You couldn’t stop me even if you tried. I’d kick your ass,” she said.

“Remember who taught you how to hit. I let you win.”

“In your dreams, asshole.” Prue remembered Zero spending his afternoons teaching her how to defend herself. In school some of the guys had taken pleasure in bullying her over her weight and the fact she had large boobs. Prue hated it and refused to let her parents get involved. She could fight her own battles and often did. Zero wouldn’t let her out in the world. Between him and Trevor, she learned how to hit back. Once she started defending herself, the bullies backed away.

“We’ll see.” He leaned, over ruffling her hair, and she slapped his hand away.

“Stop it.”

She stared at him as the others started to talk. Zero was smiling at her, and when she felt heat pool between her thighs, she was so shocked that she turned her attention back to Eva. No, she wasn’t going to let her feelings go there. Zero was her friend. He would never be a man in her life.

Staring down at her lap, she felt his gaze on her, and her nipples tingled in awareness. She would fight every response her body demanded.

****

“Please, let me go. I won’t say anything. Please.” The woman begged and pleaded for her life. Alan had her tied to a cross in the center of the forbidden warehouse. The economic downturn was good for something as it created available buildings for him to do whatever the fuck he liked to do. Staring around the room he listened to the woman snivel. He hated the sound of females moaning, begging. They were all whores, and he was tired of dealing with the low-lifes of this world.

Picking up the chef’s knife, he’d sharpened it with a knife-sharpener, making it a deadly weapon. It was amazing how many weapons people could buy in any ordinary shop.