“You do.” Dawn waved down the bartender. “And it’s ’cause your man is Jagger, president of the Sinner’s Tribe MC and expert scowler.”
“He’s not my man,” Arianne grumbled. “If it’s a relationship, it’s the most confusing one I’ve ever had. We’ve never had a date. We don’t hang out like normal couples. When we’re together, we’re either having sex or being shot at, chased, or attacked. No one can figure out where I fit into the club hierarchy, so they say things like, ‘So how’s the little blood price today?’ or ‘Yo, blood price, fix my puncture.’ I don’t even know where I stand with him.”
“He claimed you.” Dawn gave her a nudge. “Possession doesn’t get more primitive than that. Not many people would understand what that means in the biker world, but I do. And you do, too. You just can’t accept it.”
“If I accept it, I’m staying in Conundrum.”
Dawn laughed. “If you didn’t want to accept it, you would have contacted Jeff already and made your trade.”
Arianne cringed inwardly. Should she tell Dawn she’d been in touch with Jeff? Dawn ran hot and cold with Jeff depending on how drugged up he was when he showed up at the bar or her apartment, but how could she not share with her bestie?
“I did.” She waved the bartender over, not daring to look Dawn in the eye. “I texted him the phone number Bunny gave me, and he offered to drop off the passport with Jeft. But I wanted to see him again. I just need to know, whatever decision I make, he’s going to be okay.”
“I hope you decide to stay,” Dawn said softly. “More than anything. For you and for me. You and Jagger are good together. You’re different since you met him. More confident. More determined. Happier.”
“Safe.” Arianne twisted her mother’s ring around her finger. “I feel safe when I’m with him. But that’s a problem. He wants … no, needs … to protect me. And if I stay in Conundrum, I need to be able to protect myself.”
They ordered their drinks. Free, of course. She hadn’t been certain Jagger would actually give in, but when the bartender told them girls’ drinks were on the house, a warm feeling had spread through her body.
“I think you’re right that I’ve changed in the last few weeks.” She stirred her Long Island Iced Tea. “I don’t spend every minute of every day thinking about ways to escape or what Viper is going to do to me next, or even what life would be like after I leave Conundrum. For the first time, I’m kinda liking my life here.”
“You have changed.” Dawn sipped her margarita. “In a nutshell, you’ve become badass. You walk, talk, strut, ride, and shoot like a badass biker chick. I would blame Jagger, but I think you had it in you all along. You just needed a bigger badass to set you free.”
Arianne laughed. “What about you and Cade? He’s hunting for you. I’ve been watching him since he came in. He’s tapped pretty much every blonde in the place, and he’s heading this way.”
“He’s trouble.” Dawn bit her lip. “We wound up in bed together again that night he showed up at the pool hall. But I told him it had to be the last time. I mean … our sexual chemistry is off the charts. The minute I’m near him, all I can think about is getting his hot ass into my bed. But after we do the nasty, all I can think about is getting him out. I can’t have anyone in my life right now. I have two little girls who need their mommy and I need to focus my energy that way.”
“Dawn…” Arianne gave Dawn’s hand a sympathetic squeeze. “You have to look out for yourself, too. The girls wouldn’t begrudge you a little happiness.”
Dawn’s voice hitched, and she gave the bartender a wan smile when he slid another drink across the counter. “Cade is a distraction. One night was good. The second night … okay, it was epic. But I don’t want him thinking there’s more where that came from. How am I going to say no?”
“Like this … ‘No.’”
“Easy to say.” Dawn gave a wry laugh. “Not so easy to do. You think you could say no to Jagger?”
Arianne blushed. “Actually, last night I said no. Several times. But that’s just because I didn’t think I could come that many times in a row. Really, he’s everything I’ve been running from: a biker, living in Conundrum, an MC president, dominant, possessive, aggressive, prone to violence … but he’s also everything I ever secretly imagined. I can relax with him, be myself, laugh. He makes me feel safe. He’s devastatingly gorgeous and amazing in bed. He’s a great leader, and the whole protective and possessive thing—”
“My girl’s stayin’ in Conundrum.” Dawn grinned and then turned to chat with a couple of her friends who had spotted them at the bar.