Riding Darkness (Back Down Devil MC #4.5)(15)

“That’s dumb.”

“I don’t care what you think.”

“Wait a second,” Brooke said.

She moved at Ares. If it were a man moving like this, Ares would have knocked him out. Hell, if it were a woman he wasn’t interested in, he’d put his hands out and guide her somewhere else. But Brooke left him frozen for a few seconds.

Brooke grabbed the bottom of Ares leather cut. He quickly grabbed her hand and squeezed. “You don’t touch someone’s cut, darling.”

“I was f*cking grabbing it a little while ago,” Brooke said.

“Different circumstances,” Ares said with a grin.

“There’s a hole in the bottom of it. My finger was locked in there when we were… you know…”

Ares let go of Brooke’s wrist and stripped himself of his leather cut. He walked it to the bed and tossed it down. He saw the hole at the bottom Brooke had been talking about.

“Yeah. That’s a bullet hole.”

“From tonight?” Brooke asked.

“Yeah. It happens.”

Brooke grabbed his arm. “That could have killed you.”

“I know how bullets work, darling.”

“Doesn’t that scare you?”

“No. Why?”

“What if you got shot?”

“Like Gunner? He’s dead and I’m not. I got lucky. The bullet hit my cut. I also had my f*cking eyes open the entire time, assessing. It’s not just about shooting, it’s about surviving.”

Brooke looked visibly shaken again. That told Ares even more that Brooke was not really involved with the illegal gambling and what transpired tonight.

“How many times have you been shot at?” Brooke asked.

“More times than I’ve been hit.”

“Why doesn’t your leather cut have the name on it like the other guys?”

“I’m not patched in,” Ares said.

“What does that mean?”

“It means I don’t get to wear the patch. They’ve tried giving it to me, but I always refuse.”

“Why?”

Ares looked at Brooke. “Do you ever stop asking questions?”

“Sorry. You kind of forced me to come with you. The least I could know is why. Where I am. For how long.”

“Coming from the woman who had a gun pointed at my gut,” Ares said. “You’re lucky you’re beautiful and were wearing that damn dress.”

“I hated that dress. That’s not who I am.”

“I know,” Ares said. He turned and put a hand to Brooke’s face. “You’re just as beautiful right now, darling. It’s driving me f*cking mad. We better get some sleep.”

Ares walked to the light and turned it off. A second later a small light came on next to the bed. He watched as Brooke climbed into the bed and quickly wrapped herself up in the covers. He stood for a few minutes, just watching. His mind replayed old memories that were far from dead. There was only one other time he felt a little uneasy around a woman and that cost him his patch and damn near his life.

“Ares?” Brooke’s soft voice called out.

“Yeah?”

“I’m scared right now. I don’t want to talk about it though. I just want you to come and hold me. Nothing else. Just hold me.”

Ares should have said no. Ares should have told Brooke to f*cking deal with it. Ares should have just left the damn bedroom and went for a couple shots of whiskey and the eager mouth of a reliever.

Instead of all that - doing the right f*cking thing - Ares walked to the bed. He sat down and kicked off his boots. He then got right next to Brooke and put his arm around her. She moved and pressed her body closer to his. She reached up and touched his hand.

“Thank you for saving me,” she whispered.

Ares gritted his teeth. He might have saved her today, but that didn’t mean shit for tomorrow.





eleven.



At the bar, Gaige and Erik were holding mugs of coffee to their lips. There was something to be said for the silence of the morning. It always reminded Ares of the calm before the storm. Before the day got going and got out of control, the silence of the clubhouse wanted to echo with the wildness from the night before.

Blaine was on his back on a pool table, black sunglasses on his face, a lit cigarette in his mouth. Ares watched and wondered if he’d fallen asleep, but every few seconds, Blaine took a drag of his smoke and blew it out.

Behind the bar, Ares moved, hating this part of it all. The bitch work that needed to be done. To cook and clean for the patched in members. A couple of the guys were in the kitchen making a big breakfast. Ares had snuck out of the bed without waking Brooke. That was good. If she woke up when he did, he’d still be in the bedroom with her.

“Ares, come here, bro,” Gaige said.

Ares threw a towel over his shoulder and walked to Gaige. “What do you need?”

Gaige leaned forward. “First off, take that f*cking towel off your shoulder.” He grabbed the towel and threw it to the floor. “Second, come around here and sit. We have to talk.”

“I’m behind the bar, Gaige.”

“And I’m f*cking VP.”

Ares looked to the other prospects as they worked. He knew he didn’t belong behind a bar like the rest did. These were guys - some of them barely over legal age – who were here because it was cool. Because having a leather cut was fun and exciting. A way to pick up chicks. To ride a motorcycle and tell people they were part of Back Down Devil. Almost like some kind of f*cking game. Some of these guys would end up dead. They were the lost ones with no real purpose in life. Some of these guys would end up disappearing and handing their cuts back in. They’d get a handshake from Miller if it was honorable. If they were pieces of shit and kicked out, they’d get beat up.