Reaper's Claim

ABBY

The booming laughter came from the lounge in the clubhouse, and could be heard from my room two floors up.

I closed my bedroom door and walked up the hallway. Kim popped her head out of her room.

Red hair…

I couldn’t help the evil grin.

Serves her right for not controlling her boyfriend and letting him loose; Trigger knew it wasn’t Kim the night before.

But Kim, in her rage, wouldn’t hear of it.

Instead, she’d ranted about how he would have done me a favor finally popping my cherry.

She was disgusting at times, but I knew she’d said it out of rage: she didn’t mean it.

She was more hurt that Trigger couldn’t tell us apart when we were complete opposites. He could damn well tell us apart now; I’d made sure of that.

“Are you going out tonight?” Kim asked, walking next to me.

“Yep.” This always happened. We would have a major fight, and then hours later we would pretend it didn’t happen. It was easier than saying sorry.

“Trigger is meant to be breaking away from Dad later. I was hoping you could stay home and make sure we weren’t missed.”

She had the guts to ask for a favor. God, she knew how to outdo herself.

“Just give Dad a few beers. He will soon forget about where his VP is. He was looking for you this morning.”

We took the stairs two at a time.

“Yeah, well, he found me. Stupid school. Honestly, they have it out for me. Please, Abby.” She grabbed my arm, stopping me. “Please do this for me. Come on, my hair is fucking red for God’s sake!”

After a few seconds of tossing the idea around, I sighed. “Fine, but you better warn that boyfriend of yours. If he comes near me again, I’m telling Dad.”

“Yeah, yeah.” She waved her hand, making light of it.

“Not ‘Yeah, yeah,’ Kim. I mean it.”

We walked up the hallway and into the bar. The lounge and bar were an open space; it was huge and completely filled with bikers.

The girls weren’t wearing much, and the blokes weren’t hiding their lust.

Many of them had hands up the shirts of the whores and had them pinned against walls, against the bar, on the couch, on the pool tables.

It was funny how I was so used to it that I didn’t even look twice.

“I’ll see you later,” Kim whispered in my ear before stalking off, making fuck-me eyes at Trigger.

God, those two make me sick.

Within five minutes, I watched Trigger disappear out the club door after Kim.

I swiped a beer from the counter and made my way over to a pool table.

Gitz and Cameron were attempting to play, though I was sure it wasn’t all that easy with women under their arms.

“Are you heading out, Abby?” Gitz asked me, holding a pool cue and leaning up against the table, some woman’s hands all over him.

He seemed a lot better since last night. He was either putting on a brave face or he really was over Lilly.

“It’s your turn, Gitz,” Cameron shouted before driving his lips onto a brunette’s.

I sighed and slumped into a nearby couch.

The music was pounding and so was the laughter; everyone seemed to be having a great night.

Then there was me, sitting alone, bored shitless.

I scanned the crowd and spotted Dad leaning against the bar, laughing and talking to the Satan’s Sons Western Charter’s president, Dane.

If he was still here, I wondered if Reaper was too.

I walked across the room, and when Dad was within arm’s reach, I swooped in under his arm.

He kissed the top of my head and wrapped his arm around me, all the while keeping up with the conversation.

I could hear his heart beating through his leather cut, and I loved it. It reminded me of my childhood—all the times I’d fallen asleep by his side after having a nightmare.

“Are you all right, darling?” Dad looked down at me.

I nodded my head and just held on to him a bit tighter.

Most guys in the room had a whore clinging to them, not their daughter, but I knew Dad didn’t mind. He never minded.

Dane and Dad kept talking, laughing, and joking. The hours slowly ticked by.

I let go of Dad and yawned. “I’m going to get a drink.”

He nodded his head and let me go.

I leaned across the bar and poured myself a drink.

“Should you be drinking that, sweetheart?” Reaper’s voice whisked across my ear, and I could feel him standing behind me.

His chest pressed against my back, and he reached over me and wrapped his hand around the glass in my hand. “Or should I be taking that off ya?”

My eyes were glued to his hand. It engulfed mine, and the metal of the reaper ring he wore pressed into my skin.

“I’m allowed to drink.” My heart was pounding faster than a jackhammer, and I was sure my voice wavered with nervousness.

His laughter was deep and thick, and it rumbled through his body, sending chills through mine.

“I’ve been waiting for ya to leave ya dad’s side.”

I slowly turned around and looked up into his deep dark eyes. He kept his arm behind me, pinning me between him and the bar.

Not a bad place to be pinned.

“Why would that be, Kade?”

“Wanted to see if you were all right after last night. Did you tell anyone about what happened?”

“I told Kim.”

“Bet she didn’t believe ya. Nice work on the hair, by the way.”

A smile twitched on my lips. “Thanks.”

“Seems those two aren’t anywhere to be found.”

“Hence why I am trying to make sure that Dad doesn’t pick up on that.”

I sipped from the plastic cup—Dad made sure the bar only stocked plastic cups after so many incidents with glasses.

“You’re covering for her even when she is a complete bitch?” He frowned. “You are twisted, woman.”

Woman.

“I’m sure she will do the same for me when I need her to.” I swallowed the whiskey quickly. It burned my throat on the way down.

Kade’s eyes went darker for a moment before he pulled away and scanned the crowd.

“Ya old man looks busy. Can we split for a bit?”

Did Kade really want to go somewhere with me alone?

For an instant, I thought I knew how a heart attack must feel.

Swallowing sharply, I ordered myself to keep my shit together.

“Okay.” I glanced at Dad, who was still busy chatting with Dane. He didn’t seem to notice that I wasn’t around. “Where do you want to go?”

A dangerous smile spread across his face—one that would be sure to scare a smart woman away. “Only one place a biker wants a girl.”

“In his bed?” I raised an eyebrow, teasing him. Why I felt relaxed around him, able to flirt with him, I didn’t know.

Being around him brought out a confidence I didn’t usually have around men, but at the same time, he had the ability to make my confidence crumble.

What do you call that?

“Nah, babe.” He leaned closer, dipping his head to the side, his eyes not leaving mine. “On the back of his bike.”

He pulled his keys from his pocket and shot me a wink. Then it happened. It wasn’t Kim following the biker out; it was me.

How many times had I promised myself I wouldn’t be that girl?

I wouldn’t be like her, but there I was, following Kade, aka Reaper, out into the club’s car park.

I’m supposed to be the smart one.

REAPER

The road was dead, the night sky as black as the sea, the air whipping through me.

Her thin arms were wrapped around me, clinging to my back, holding on tightly.

I had an angel on the back of my bike.

Sure, she was young, and there was no fucking way anything was going to happen, but still she was on my bike.

I had gotten her out of the club party, stealing all her attention.

The bike gripped the road as we climbed the hill, turning into the corners. The park was dimly lit, but the view was as good as I remembered.

I pulled the bike to the curb and cut the engine.

“The view is amazing,” Abby gushed. She was quick to get off my bike to admire it. “I haven’t been up here in years.”

I didn’t like the fact that she wasn’t holding tight to me anymore, but I would deal with it.

I had to deal with it.

She unclipped my helmet and handed it back to me.

“How did you know about the Black Hill Lookout?” she asked, walking off into the car park.

The city lights were below us, and I was quick to put the kickstand out and lean the bike down to follow her.

“Not my first time in town, baby.”

I pulled a cigarette from my leather vest and lit it, not taking my eyes off her back.

Damn, that frame.

So bloody perfect.

She whipped around, her blonde hair swiping across her face.

“How come you haven’t been to the club before if you’ve been in town?”

“The clubs weren’t always brothers.”

I smirked at her innocence. She had too good of a soul for the likes of me.

Her mouth formed an o in understanding, and then slowly, a smile spread across her lips.

“So you were the enemy once.”

“I suppose, darlin’.”

Before the charter was patched over to the Satan’s Sons, our club was known as the Widowers.

Now I rode for a club name that I once shot up; it was just the way the brotherhood worked, I guess.

“I really know how to pick them,” she muttered to herself, shaking her head before turning back around and looking at the city lights. “How long are you in town for?”

“Ride out tomorrow.”

“So tonight’s your last night in town?”

“What are ya getting at, babe?”

“Nothing.” Those opal blue eyes stared up at me. She let out a long sigh.

I moved to stand behind her, placing my hands on her small hips.

She froze at my touch, and my heart rate quickened.

Fuck.

I shouldn’t have touched her.

But I did.

And now I wasn’t sure if I would be able to stop.

Abby relaxed under my touch and slowly turned around.

“Why did you bring me here?” she asked.

“You were bored; I could see it in ya eyes. Thought ya might like to get away.”

I played it smart. I wanted to steal all her attention, and then she might not think I was a complete stalking prick.

“Thanks.” She smiled.

“So, Kade…” she slowly bit that juicy bottom lip of hers, amusement flashing across her face. “You going to kiss me already or are you going to just keep staring at me?”

I took a sharp breath.

“What the fuck did you just say?”