Chapter 45
Declan
“Gimme another one, Cherry Bear,” I say when she leans into the cooler to grab a beer. She smiles and grabs me out another.
“You ok, Dec?” she asks as I pop the top off and take a long pull.
“I’m ok. You havin’ a good party?” I ask her. The guys went all for her. This is one hell of a party. They always do for her, though. Cherry may be a club whore, but they respect her for what she does for the club. She keeps it cleaned and in order. She deserves a good night.
“Yeah. It’s nice. I wish she was here, though. I miss her,” she says, picking at the label of her bottle.
“I didn’t mean for shit to turn bad between the two of you,” I admit. When Brooke left me, she left us all. Except for Tic, of course.
“It wasn’t your fault, Declan, and I get why she doesn’t come around. I can’t say that I blame her. It has to be hard on her, too. I just miss her is all. She was always nice to me.” I pull Cherry into my side before I sigh.
“I know. But you know she just lives down the road. You can always go see her.” Cherry shakes her head before looking up at me.
“No. It feels like I’m betraying the club somehow. Does that even make sense?” Cherry has always been this way. She never liked feeling like she did something that could piss someone off here. This is different, though. My phone rings in my pocket. I slide it out and see it’s Mouse.
“What?” I growl into the phone.
“We got a problem out here at the gate,” he says. I tip my head back and let out a breath.
“I’m comin’.” I click the end button and look down at Cherry. “Got a problem at the gate. I’ll be back.” I kiss her cheek and jump off the table I’d been sitting on.
Walking toward the gate, I get a strange feeling in the pit of my stomach. Mouse stands there with his arms crossed over his chest, and I lift my chin when he looks back over at me.
“What the fuck is goin’ on?” I ask him. He shakes his head, stepping to the side. I watch his face as I walk out of the gate and see her standing there.
“This little girl here is tryin’ to get a beer,” Mouse says. I can sense the smile on his face as I stare at her.
“That so?” I cross my arms over my chest.
Brooke stands there looking as gorgeous as ever.
“Yeah. She said it was some kind of dare,” Mouse chimes in.
“Go up to the cooler and bring me a beer, Mouse.” I don’t move as he walks away. I stand there, watching her like a hawk.
“What are you doin’ here?” I ask her. God, how I want to grab her and pull her into me. Kiss her like she’s never been kissed before. I fucking want her pinned up against the wall taking my dick like she’s never taken it before.
“I was dared to come get a beer from the bikers,” she says shyly.
“You gonna do that thing with your tongue if I give you one?” I ask her. She gives me a slight smile before taking a step back.
“I’m sorry, Declan. I really am.” She turns on her heel and starts to walk away. Her ass moving so fucking deliciously in her skin-tight jeans.
“I didn’t tell you to leave,” I growl.
Brooke stops walking and lets her head drop forward. I move toward her, my heart thundering inside of me. I feel like I might pass out, like a fucking kid about to get a piece of candy.
“I didn’t want to fuck your life up any more than I already did, butterfly.” I rest my hand on her shoulder, and God help me, that’s all it takes. I want her. I want inside of her. I want her next to me. It’s always like this with us.
“How could you? I’m the one that fucked up your life. I brought all my bullshit to your doorstep,” she says. I don’t miss the sob that escapes her, either. I spin her around so she has to look up at me.
“I wanted your bullshit. I craved it, Brooke. You made me tick. You made me want to fuckin’ breath. Then you were gone. It was like everything I’ve ever felt was ripped away from me.” She wipes at her eyes.
“I feel the same thing, Dec.”
“You with Tic now?” I asked needing to know.
“What?” She looks shocked when I ask her that.
“You two been spendin’ a lot of time together. He always comes back here lookin’ happy.” Her face looks surprised by my statement.
“Are you kidding me? She’s been after him behind my back and didn’t say anything? I thought those two were acting a little funny together. It certainly explains a lot,” she says more to herself than me. I’m a little lost here, having no idea who or what she was referencing.
“Is that a no?”
“No! Declan, I don’t want Tic. He’s been a good friend, and he’s helped me so much with the club. That’s it! Oh my God, I can’t even believe you’d think that I would fuck Mayhem before I would Tic.” She laughs.
“I’ll take you up on that!” I glance over my shoulder and see Mayhem standing there with two beers in his hands.
“The fuck you will!” I roar. The laughter from Brooke stops, but Mayhem has a smile plastered across his face.
“Mouse said you wanted a beer.” He steps around me and passes one to Brooke. She takes it with a smile. A smile I want to be mine.
“I can’t do this shit,” I mumble. I can’t watch her being happy with someone else. It’s fucking killing me. She smiles at him and cries with me. It’s too much.
I turn to walk away when she says, “I love you, Declan. Only you. I like the feel of hard steel between my legs.” Those words. Those are the words she said to me that first night. I slowly turn to look at her. She smiles before passing her beer back to Mayhem. She closes the space between us quickly. Her hands rest on my chest.
“You’re all I’ve ever wanted, Declan. From the first time you touched me, something felt real in my life. You were real.”