“Come again?”
“Your little incident with that boy. You about broke his jaw for getting a little grabby.”
“Yeah, so what?” I shrug. It’s who I am. I’m hotheaded and won’t hesitate to put someone in check real fucking quick. I fire first and ask questions later.
“You should have seen the look on her face, Lip. You better bury that shit and quick, or you will fuck this up.” He blows out a puff of smoke, and I grit my teeth at his tone.
“I agree,” Shadow adds, sitting down beside Bull. Shadow is a prospect, too. He has dark hair and crazy blue eyes; when he looks at you just right, they are freaky as shit. He’s always kissing up to Bull. It gets irritating sometimes, but I understand it. He and I are a lot alike. He grew up without a father, and my dad was a prick, so getting approval from Bull is something we both aim for.
“What the fuck do you know about women?” I sneer at Shadow. He doesn’t fuck with many girls and hasn’t been in anything serious since I’ve known him, but now he’s giving me advice about landing a chick?
“That girl is pretty—hot, even. They don’t want damaged men who can’t control their temper.” Shadow shakes his head and takes a sip of his beer. “Nah, they want romance, all that fairytale bullshit,” he continues.
Bull nods, and stands. “See,” he clips, pointing at Shadow.
“What were you talking about with her?” I raise a brow at Bull. His mouth turns into a sly grin.
“She was asking about you, what you did here and all.” He shrugs, and I can’t help but smirk. She asked about me, well damn. Knowing she was talking and asking about me makes me a little giddy, like a fucking teenager or some shit.
“Yeah, she likes you all right. But it’s up to you if it remains like that.” Bull slams his cigarette in an ashtray, and my brows dive inward with his remark.
I open a beer and take a big gulp. How do I keep a girl like that from running off? Fuck, this just got a whole lot harder. I’m not a gentle kind of guy. I beat my dad with a steel pipe the first time he put his hands on my mother, landing him in the hospital. When my brother Zeek would tease me growing up, I would get so angry I would black out. One time, I came to with my mother screaming and pulling me off Zeek. He was blue and unresponsive from me choking him. He was okay, but it just goes to show how screwed up I am. My father was proud, my mother prayed. I walk through mayhem with ease and leave a tide of crimson behind.
“Now you see why I don’t fuck with anyone ‘cept club hoes.” Shadow laughs. I flip him the bird and walk back down the hall.
“Hope that pussy’s worth it!” Shadow hollers, making the guys cheer in agreement behind me.
CHAPTER THREE
CHERRY
My fingers grip the side of the mattress, and my lungs burn to keep up with my harsh breathing.
What am I doing in here? What the hell am I doing?
I shake my head and stand on shaky legs. I need to get out of here. Lip is hot, he’s sexy, and I know exactly why he wants me in here. I’m attracted to him, and not sure I’m strong enough to resist him either. There were a lot of beautiful women eyeing him out there. One in particular who had her paws all over him. They seemed more than acquainted, which makes me think he’s a player. There were a couple of guys who were with one chick one minute, and when I’d turn my head they were with another. I’d never seen anything like it before. They live so freely, so open.
I bet he goes through a different girl every night. I don’t want to be a notch on his bedpost. I can’t handle that right now. I’d better get out of here then.
I blow out a determined breath and stand. Looking at the dirty posters that have half-naked women on them one last time, I step toward the door. My hand is nearly inches from the doorknob when it opens as Lip walks in. I retract my hand and draw in a sharp breath. He smiles and shuts the door behind him. He’s so big, so rugged; he makes a flare burn in my chest and sizzle all the way down my abdomen and between my thighs. My eyes sweep up his tattooed arms, one bicep holding a woman praying, so vibrant and beautiful. His muscle flexes and my gaze continues to trail upward, finding a sexy smirk across his face. I blush; he just caught me checking him out.
“Thought you weren’t going to take off on me?” He chuckles and I smile, my heart beating against my ribcage. I rest my hand on my hip, the other on my forehead.
“Lip, I can’t. I can’t be in here,” I respond on an exhale, my body defying my mind. It’s hard to think clearly with him standing in front of me.