Draven Read online

  Not only did I want her for my own, but I wanted the rest of the world to know she was mine, too. I wanted the rest of the MC to see her as such, even if I wasn’t sure I wanted her to be considered my old lady at this point. That was a title I wasn’t sure I was ready to give, and one I wasn’t sure she would want to take.

  There were still a lot of things Jade was learning about the MC, including what it meant to be working with us and what it meant to be working for us. I wanted her to know she was on the partner level, as far as I was concerned. We weren’t having her do our dirty work so we could blame her and run if things got rough.

  No, I saw a lot of value in her, and I wanted her to know that I did. I wanted her to feel like she belonged with the rest of us – to see how important it was to belong to the rest of us, too. There was a lot of good that came with being one of the MC. And, I wanted her to know that.

  I told her to put on something casual to join me, and I had to admit, I was more than a little turned on by the slinky dress she’d chosen. It wasn’t anything fancy, there was no debating that, but it certainly was a step up from most of what I saw down at the bar.

  There were a lot of really short denim shorts and cropped tops to go along with them. There were bare midriffs everywhere, and next to nothing left to imagination on the sheep. But then, those were the sheep, and their goal in life was to get us to sleep with them.

  They were always looking for their next lay, and for the longest time, I had been the primary target of what they were looking for. But, things changed when Jade came into the picture – and long before I had actually slept with her, too.

  I was still the main object of affection when it came to the sheep, but I hadn’t had as much interest in them as I once did. They were more work than I wanted to put forth, which was downright comical considering the fact I didn’t have to do anything to get one to go home with me.

  But, taking them back to the bar the next day, or dealing with the normal drama that came with them was more than I wanted to do at any given time, and I hadn’t been in the mood for quite a while.

  Now, however, with Jade there to take all my attention, I hardly noticed the sheep. In fact, the only thing that I did notice about them was the fact they seemed to be incredibly intimidated by Jade. They looked at her like she was some sort of foreign threat they had to be careful of.

  They knew better than to act like they were jealous of anyone, but I knew women well, and I knew how to read jealousy in the face of one when she saw her world being threatened. It was the case with each of them, that was for sure.

  They didn’t like Jade, there was no doubt in my mind about that. But, I didn’t care. I didn’t have the time to worry about them, and they all knew better than to say anything to her, at all.

  No, it was the other women who were actually tied to the MC who I cared about – the women who had fallen for Jett, Blade, and my good friend Ryder. Those were the women who were in it for the long haul.

  They were the women who were worth our time, and the women we would stand by through the thick and thin. They were much more valuable to us than the sheep, and their opinion would be the ones I would care about far more than anyone else.

  I was glad to see they were all very intrigued by Jade at first. Intrigued, but more than that, they seemed to like her. She had followed me into the bar, intimidated by the music and all the other members of the MC wandering around, but she seemed to relax when Callie, Jett’s girl, came over.

  The two hit it off almost immediately and were soon chatting away like old friends. It was nice to see her fitting in. She even looked the part. And, it wasn’t long before the two women were joined by the others, as well.

  Alexis and Taylor came wandering over, both looking curiously at who the new girl was. There was no doubt in my mind they had at least heard about her, but this was the first either of them had the chance to meet her face-to-face. And, just as Callie had, they both seemed to take an instant liking.

  Jade was used to meeting new people through her job, and she seemed to settle in easily. At least outwardly, that is. I didn’t know what was going on in her head, but I hoped she was having a good time.

  Drinks were flowing around the room, and there was plenty of laughter to be heard. There were a lot of the members of the MC there that night, and a lot of other faces from around town, as well. Everyone was having a good time, and it was one of the few nights I felt I could completely relax and just enjoy myself.

  At least, I did for a while.

  When the doors opened and two unfamiliar men walked in, there was a sudden hush that fell over the room. It was as though everyone could sense that these two strangers didn’t belong, and no one knew what to do with them now that they were there.

  The marks on their arms and the patches on their badges screamed they were part of a rival MC. Hell’s Crusaders, from the looks of things. We had recently gotten into quite a bloody battle with them, and I was surprised to see two members of that MC back on our turf.

  But, there were a lot of them, and they were all over the place. Just because this was our territory, it didn’t mean they weren’t allowed in the area. For all we knew, they could be just passing through. But, I wasn’t about to take my chances.

  Jett watched them coolly, making sure they didn’t do a single thing that was over the line. I watched them, too, but with a slightly different motive. With Jade not being part of the MC or really officially tied to any of us, she was fair game for them to hit on her without us being able to use it as a political ploy.

  But, that wasn’t going to stop me from stepping in. I didn’t care who it was. No one was going to flirt with my girl, and no one was going to even attempt to give her any attention I didn’t approve of.

  I deliberately sat next to her, forcing anyone else to sit on the other side of me if they were to be at the bar. Of course, she was right in arm’s reach, and now no one could talk to her without having me right there to step in and intervene if need be.

  I wasn’t in the mood to make a scene if I didn’t need to, but I wasn’t going to risk them doing anything to Jade – or word getting out about how we were making our money now, either. Part of me wondered if that was why they had come in, to find out where the pills on the street were now coming from.

  But, if they were going to do that, they’d have to be smart about it. I wasn’t going to share the information with them or anyone, and neither was anyone else in the MC. No, they were on thin ice, that was for sure, and they better watch their back.

  One wrong move, and they would have the entire Steel Wings MC coming down on them, more than happy to let them know the error of their ways. We didn’t pull any punches, and we weren’t about to let anyone else get a hold on our land.

  I didn’t care what they were doing there, they were going to behave or deal with the consequences.

  And, I would be more than happy to be the one to teach them that lesson.

  Chapter 11

  Jade

  I spent most of the night hanging out with Draven as much as I could. I loved spending time with him. In fact, I really couldn’t get enough of it. The more time we spent together, the more I wanted to spend time with him. He was like my drug, and there was just no getting enough of him.

  But, there was also a thrill that came with spending time with the other women who were joined to the MC. I noticed none of them had patches and none of them wore the same vests or jackets as the men, and I soon learned they weren’t patched in members.

  “That’s the thing the men do,” Callie told me. “But we are joined to them. Like, we’re the old ladies, and we get a lot of the same perks that come with being in the club, just without having to be in the club.”

  Alexis laughed at Callie’s explanation. “I think we end up doing a lot more than the guys do, even if they are the ones who are always ending up getting in the fights and everything.”

  “They look like they get in a lot of fights,” I commented as
I looked around the room. The men were all rough. They looked like a group of badasses who weren’t afraid to do anything. Some bore battle scars on their faces as well as their arms, and some of those scars were very clearly bullet wounds.

  Even Draven had his fair share of battle marks, and I had a feeling he was fierce on the battlefield. It came as a bit of a shock that the others would talk about this as though it was the simplest thing in the world, and I couldn’t help but wonder what it would be like if this were my life altogether.

  I still felt like something of an outsider looking in on the members who were clearly close, and I wished I could be part of the group that way, too. Although my father and I had a great relationship, it had always been him and I against the world.

  Ever since my mother died, he and I had been there for each other, and that was about it. I never had many friends, and those that I did have I couldn’t hang out with a lot because I was busy working or helping my father. From a young age, taking care of him had been my priority, and now I wondered what it would be like to have a group like these people had.

  It was a family in its own right, and to think that it was possible to have that made me shiver with excitement.

  “Another?” Callie asked as she ordered a round for the table. I glanced over toward Draven. He was talking with a few of his friends and seemed to be having a good time. He wasn’t far from me, but far enough away that he wasn’t paying much attention to what I was doing.

  “Sure, why not?” I said with a shrug. I might as well make friends with these girls as much as I could. If things were to continue with Draven, then perhaps the day would come when I would be part of this group, too.

  Maybe I would be referred to as an old lady, and Draven would be my man. For as much as I wanted that to happen, I had to admit, it still seemed like a crazy idea. But still, I wasn’t going to complain. I wanted to fit in with these women, and they were all having just as much fun as the men.

  They were in a more central location in the bar than those who were called the sheep, and they seemed to be respected within the MC almost as much as the members themselves. I felt like I was able to ride on the fringes along with them simply because of where I stood with the MC right now, but I wondered how long that was going to last.

  I hated to think that this was all temporary, but I was afraid to let myself relax and fully be part of this, too. I didn’t want it to come to an end, that was for sure, and I wondered what was going to happen if it ever did.

  “Great!” Alexis was already talking to the bartender, getting his attention and ordering us another round. I took the opportunity to slip from my stool.

  “What’re you doing?” Callie asked. “You’re not going to run off, are you?”

  “I’m going to run to the bathroom for a minute,” I said with a grin. “I’ll be right back.”

  “Hurry!” Taylor laughed. She was doing another shot, and she and Alexis were gossiping about something that had happened in the club. I wanted to hurry. I wanted to be back and in the group with them without missing anything. For as much as I felt this wasn’t going to last, there was still part of me that wanted to go along with the idea that it might.

  After all, there had been a time when I wasn’t sure if I would ever get the chance to even kiss Draven, let alone that he would take me home with him. Fucking each other had become something that was so normal for us, it was as though we really were a couplepills.

  I was so caught up in the heat of the moment, I let my guard down when I was in the bathroom. There was a part of me that wanted to believe that this was how my life could be. This was my bar, and this is where I was safe.

  To think that I could be there and not have to worry about hanging onto my drink. To not have to worry about what was going to happen when I walked through those doors because everyone had my back. It was strange. It was unlike anything I’d ever been part of before, but with the way those other women were acting, I got the feeling that’s how it really could be.

  I was so happy when I headed back through the door and headed toward the bar, I didn’t notice the two men who had come in earlier slipping over to me. I knew they had put the Steel Wings on edge when they entered, but I had forgotten about them the more I talked to the other girls at the bar.

  Now, they were suddenly on top of me, pushing me back toward the bathroom and away from the bar.

  My immediate reaction was to scream. I didn’t know what they wanted, and I was sure I didn’t want to find out. With the way everyone had acted about them, I got the impression from everyone they weren’t supposed to be there.

  But, they quickly made it clear to me it was a better idea to keep my mouth shut.

  “Come on, you don’t want to cause a scene, do you? We just want to talk,” one of them said.

  “What do you want?” I asked.

  “We just wanted to ask you a few questions,” he continued.

  “I don’t want to talk to you,” I replied.

  “It’s about your business,” he said.

  “I don’t have a business.” I wasn’t sure what it was, but there was a small voice inside me that said to avoid talking to them at all cost. I didn’t want to share too much with them, and I already feared that I had spoken too much as it was.

  “Sure you do,” he said with a laugh. “You’re the one who’s been getting the pills for the Steel Wings. And don’t worry, if you play your cards right, this is just going to work out better for you. We want in.”

  There was something about them I certainly didn’t trust, and with the way they were looking at me, I had a feeling they were after something bad. I didn’t want to be the one to tell them anything about the Steel Wings that they wouldn’t want these men to know. And, I really didn’t want them to know I was really getting the pills that were ending up out on the streets.

  I could get in a lot of trouble for that, and I didn’t want the MC to have to deal with that, too. Hell, I wasn’t sure what would happen if they were to find out I was the one who was providing the pills. It made me sick to my stomach to think of being a convicted felon, and it didn’t matter to me that these men were likely the same.

  If they let the cops know what was going on, I was in a lot of trouble, and that would be the end of that. My father would lose not only his treatment, but I would be on my way to prison, and that was the last thing in the world I wanted. He needed me. The whole reason I had gotten into this in the first place was to help him. And though I liked the taste of what life was like with Draven, I had to think about Dad first.

  Panic started to set in as I realized they could say or do whatever they wanted. I worried they were going to force me into doing something for them, so I felt the best thing to do would be to play dumb. After all, if Draven were here right now, that’s what he would want.

  He wouldn’t want me to get scared and start giving them anything they wanted. No, he would want me to be dumb about what they were doing, and focus on getting myself out of the situation.

  I took a deep breath.

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about, and you’re keeping me from my group, so if you’ll get out of my way, I would like to get back to them,” I said. I tried to be as calm as possible, making a point to push past them and get back to the bar, but one of the men put his hand on the wall, penning me in.

  It was then that I really started to get scared. I didn’t want to scream, but I was starting to think that was the only way I was going to get out of there. But, before I had to take matters into my own hands, it was as though Draven and Blade appeared out of nowhere.

  I wasn’t sure how they knew I was back by the bathrooms, but it didn’t matter. They grabbed the two men by the collars of their vests and shoved them off me, letting them bounce off the walls.

  Both men were on their feet again in a second, but they thought twice about throwing a punch at either of the Steel Wings. The other members of the club had once again stopped what they were doing to get a be
tter view of what was going on over at the other side of the room, and if they were to continue with the fight, they were going to get beat.

  They exchanged a glance as Blade spoke.

  “Is there a problem here, gentlemen?” he asked.

  “No.” Both men shook their heads, but I didn’t see fear in their faces. It was more like they were angry and wanted to take it out on someone smaller than them. Draven turned his attention to me.

  “Do you need us to do anything?” he asked. I realized he was leaving it up to me whether they attacked the two men, so I shook my head. As much as I wanted them to just go away and leave me alone, I didn’t want them to get beat up in the process.

  Draven gave them a shove. “You know where the door is,” he said.

  They didn’t say a word, leaving without causing any other trouble. But, as I put my hand on Draven’s arm and let him take me back to the bar, I couldn’t help but think about the knot forming in the pit of my stomach.

  I didn’t know how they would know about the pills, and I didn’t know what they would do about it now that they did know.

  I just knew the entire thing made me feel sick to my stomach.

  Chapter 12

  Draven

  I was incredibly worked up over what had happened at the bar. After the two men had left, I tried to relax, but it was hard for me to think about anything but what I wanted to do to the two of them.

  My initial reaction was always to beat the shit out of them. I didn’t understand why Jett was so passive when it came to the other MCs using our turf. Sure, he knew better than to be ruthless. It was the ruthless men who always wound up getting themselves murdered. But still.

  If I were in charge, I would make it clear where the boundaries were, and I would make any MC in the area understand if they came onto our turf, it was for the sake of passing through and that was it. I wouldn’t allow them in just any bar they pleased, and they would have to be damn careful about who they spoke to, as well.