“It's not like that, mister. I'm just hanging out to protect my property. Hell, I'll put my eyes on the ground. You pay up, and you can do anything you want to her –“
“And I'm telling you I want some goddamned privacy. Don't make us turn this place upside down more than we already are, asshole.” My jaw dropped as I watched two huge tattooed arms shove Ricky against the wall. “You're a clueless little shit, aren't you, pimp? There's a lot you don't get if you're not following what's going down here today. I fuck the way I want and take whatever I need, and so does every other man in this club. Yeah, yeah, I know you've got Deadhands' protection. Your first mistake was thinking any of us gave a shit the minute we walked in here.”
They scuffled again, spilling their noise into the hallway.
“Hey!” Ricky let out a yelp and desperately grabbed for the man. The biker ripped his gun out of his hands first.
I backed into a corner, my mouth still hanging open, watching as the stranger's hands flung Ricky's handgun around like a toy.
“Play nice. Go mop the toilets or some shit like a good little boy, and maybe you can have this back. Give all the brothers some peace and quiet, stay the fuck outta our way, and you'll walk outta here today without a hole in your head.”
“Skin, you're making a big mistake. I didn't know this was a fucking shakedown. I thought you guys were just here for the regional fees or some shit. We can work this out. Just let me talk to your chief and explain –“
The sickening slap of metal on thin skin cut him off. I pinched my eyes shut, wondering if this was just another bad dream.
No, of course not, I'd never been so lucky. Not since this became my life. Ricky whimpered, staggering in the narrow hallway in a circle, the same way he sometimes did when he got really drunk. Except this time there was pain glowing in his eyes, hurt and terror, something I'd never seen before on his nasty face.
Why does that look make me feel so excited and scared simultaneously?
“Get the fuck outside, Ricky,” the stranger growled. “Stop crying and listen. I don't waste my time saying the same thing twice. Next time you give me any bullshit, pretending you've got everything under control and we're just here for a tea party, I'll break your fucking jaw. You'll lose teeth. Now, outta my damned way.”
Ricky hit the wall again with a loud thud. Other sinister sounding male voices filled the hallway, just as a huge shadow stepped into the doorway.
My heart came to a total stop when I stared at him. It was dark and dingy, the only dull light coming through the blinds, turning my world into a canvass of shadows.
Tall, dark, and handsome didn't begin to describe the giant about to enter my world, and probably my body too.
Shit, tall didn't do him a bit of justice.
He was so big he had to duck when he finally stepped through the frame, into my room. Instinct forced me to walk backwards, pressed me against the wall. I froze, running my eyes across his leather vest for telltale signs of the demon red lettering and severed hand symbols the MC always wore.
But he didn't have that at all. His cut looked...cleaner, somehow. I didn't recognize the symbols either. Smoking guns, skulls, and neon yellow one-percent signs plastered his chest, flanking the patch with his name.
I looked and looked, and I couldn't believe what I was seeing. This was another club, another man, another dangerous predator ready to rip me to shreds.
The fear and shock broke my protective wall. We locked eyes, and I trembled, saying his name.
“Skin? Seriously?” I instantly regretted the words.
I lost my smart mouth the first few times Ricky slapped me across the face. I couldn't comprehend why it suddenly came back the second I was staring at a man ten times as dark and powerful as my brutal pimp.
He stopped less than a foot away from me, painfully close. His smile distorted the long scar across his cheek. All I could think about while I watched it was how it complimented his warrior look, like he'd just walked into the real world from the Norse legends I read about in college.
His huge, tattooed arm rose up to his chest, and he tapped the name patch with two fingers. “That's what they all call me, babe. Don't wear it out before I fuck you ragged.”
Oh, God. My brain shut down. I couldn't understand why he was here anymore. Skin was too vicious, too strange, too devilishly good-looking to be in a whorehouse like this one.
I knew I'd just met my ruin.
Six Months Ago
Becky laughed in the driver's seat, taking the mountain curves way too fast. I was too drunk to care that we might go careening off into the nearest ravine, right through the flimsy guard rails.
Tonight was ours. We were out to conquer a new set of boys like we always did and drink ourselves stupid.
If only those damned heels would've stopped digging into my ankles...