Chapter 2
Zoe
It’s not exactly every girl’s dream to work at a strip club, especially one run by the Chosen. Actually, it’s a nightmare—a nightmare I can’t seem to escape. I had big plans for myself. I was going to go to college to be an accountant. I wanted a career and a family. I couldn’t imagine anything better than coming home after work to find my kids waiting for me. I had it all planned out, but my father dying put an end to those pipe dreams. When I was just a toddler, right after my mother died, my father got a wild hair and decided to form a motorcycle club with a couple of his friends. I think when it came down to it, he was lonely and needed something to occupy his time. The guys named themselves the Chosen Knights, and my father, Lucky, was the obvious choice for president. What started as a small group of friends riding and enjoying the camaraderie of brotherhood quickly turned into something more. It didn’t take long for others to become interested in joining their small group, and in a matter of a few years, they’d managed to acquire a clubhouse and a real name for themselves. Most of them worked blue collar jobs like mechanics, welders, and line workers. Eventually, they decided to pool their resources and open up a shop of their own. They were a family who worked hard and played even harder.
Going to the clubhouse with my father was one of my fondest memories. The guys were good people, nice and respectable, and they treated my father like he was king of the mountain. I felt proud to stand next to him, like I was part of something special, and I never wanted that feeling to end.
Unfortunately, it did. All it took was one bad seed, and everything fell apart. As soon as Gunner was patched in, things started to change. He was greedy, and his hunger for money quickly became contagious. Even though the club was doing well with the shop, he convinced several of the brothers that the club needed to venture out, to find new ways to make more money—legal or illegal. My father opposed the idea, thinking the club was doing just fine, but the others wanted more. Each time they gathered for church, a new proposal came across the table: drugs, weapons, and even prostitution. Each new idea was instantly shot down by my father. He wanted no part of anything illegal whatsoever.
But they weren’t going to let it go.
I’d never be able to prove it, but in my heart, I knew Gunner had something to do with my dad’s accident. He’d been riding his whole life, and there was no way in hell he would wipe out in a patch of sand on the road. He knew the rule—slow in, fast out, and he’d never make such a rookie mistake as to hit any kind of gravel at 90 miles per hour. I always knew Gunner wanted him out of the picture, but I didn’t realize he would be willing to kill to get what he wanted. Before I had a chance to question him, Gunner was in a wreck of his own, dying much like the way my father had. I’d hoped with him gone, the club would lose interest in their lust for money, but I was wrong. In a few short months, greed took over the club, and the brothers quickly found new ways to make money. They bought a strip club a few miles from the clubhouse, which eventually led to prostituting their girls. Soon after, they started selling drugs and illegal weapons. The whole thing sickened me. I wanted no part of it, but I didn’t have a choice. All of my father’s money was wrapped up in the club. If I wanted to continue taking my classes or have a place to live, I’d have to stay and work for them. I was stuck, forced to watch my father’s greatest joy crumble in front of me, and there was nothing I could do to stop it.
While I hated the idea of working at a strip club, I made the best of it. My best friend, Kat, was there, which made things tolerable. We’d been friends since we were kids, and she was like a sister to me. Like me, she’d also lost her mother. While mine had died, hers ran off with some guy, leaving her behind with her father. I couldn’t imagine what it would be like to have my mother ditch me, but Kat never let it get to her. She was the life of the party and always had a way of making me laugh, even when we’d been working all night. I loved having her around, so things weren’t all bad with the club. And out of some mediocre form of respect, the brothers left me alone, at least for the most part. Tank, the new president and one of my father’s oldest friends, told the brothers I was off-limits and enforced the rule he’d set. Sadly, time passed, and his priorities changed. With everything going on in the club, I’d been all but forgotten, and the brothers knew it. That’s exactly why I’d found myself pinned against the wall by a douchebag they called Slider.
I looked up at him, all muscled up on steroids and reeking of cheap cologne, and I was completely repulsed. The man was an arrogant asshole, but that wasn’t the reason I hated him. Deep down, I believed he had a hand in my father’s death. He’d never admit it, but in my gut, I knew it was true. The way he was ogling me like he wanted me to be the next notch on his bedpost made my stomach turn, and it was all I could do to keep myself from punching him in the throat. To make matters worse, the hot guy I’d seen sitting at the bar must’ve heard me yelling at Slider. The last thing I wanted was for a guy like him to get involved, but whether I liked it or not, he was coming our way. He was only a few feet away when he asked, “You okay?”
“I’m fine.” My voice shrilled high, making me feel like a complete idiot. Even from afar, I could tell the guy was hot, but having him so close took my breath away. He was the kind of guy that put meaning to the phrase “tall, dark and handsome”—tall and broad with dark brown hair and even darker eyes. My eyes quickly roamed over his muscular build, and I found myself wishing he was the one pinning me against this damned wall instead. As much as I didn’t want to, I had to get him to walk away. I knew what would happen if he didn’t, so I tried to reassure him that I was okay. “Really. I’m okay.”
“You sure about that?” His voice was deep and seductive, making every nerve in my body tingle. I’d never had that kind of reaction to any man, and seeing the way he was looking at me made my heart race. Unfortunately, I didn’t see lust or desire when he looked at me. I only saw concern—or worse, pity. Seeing the expression on his face just made me even more mad at Slider.
“You heard her, asshole. Now, get the hell out of here before you and me have a problem,” he barked.
“See… that’s where you’re wrong.” My stomach did a somersault when I saw the way he was glaring at Slider. If looks could kill, he’d already be dead and buried. Unfortunately, I knew that wasn’t going to happen. It would’ve been different if it was just Slider he was up against, but as soon as the others overheard them arguing, they’d jump in and take things to the extreme. That’s just how they were—about everything. It’s like they couldn’t function independently. It was to the point where you’d think the douchebags shared a damned brain, the way they behaved. The man’s eyebrows furrowed as he growled, “We already have a problem.”
“No! There’s no problem.” I tried once again to get the guy to leave. “My friend and I were just having a bit of a misunderstanding, but that’s settled now.” I wasn’t one of those small, fragile types. I had curves, and they weren’t all in the right places, but I wasn’t strong enough to get away from Slider. I tried to slip out of his hold, but he just pushed me back, slamming me against the wall with a thud. “Damn it, Slider.”
In an instant, Slider was yanked back when the guy grabbed him from behind. He stumbled for a moment, but quickly regained his footing. Slider stormed towards the man and bellowed, “You got a death wish, motherfucker?”
“Slider, stop!” I reached for his arm, trying vainly to restrain him, and ended up getting thrown into the wall once again.
“Stay out of this, Zoe!” he shouted. Before he knew what was coming, the handsome stranger plowed his fist into his jaw, and then before Slider had a chance to recover, he rammed his knee into his gut.
The man looked over to me and winked. “You better get going while you can. Something tells me this might get a little messy.”
The words had barely left his mouth when Slider reached for a chair and slammed it into his side. Seeming unfazed by the blow, the man charged forward, butting his shoulder into Slider’s gut and tackling him to the ground. Chairs and tables toppled over, drawing attention from everyone, including the brothers. I stood there frozen in fear as they got out of their seats and rushed over to the fight. Once they saw that Slider was on the ground and the man pinning him to the floor wasn’t wearing a cut, it was done. Skull reached for the man, pulling him off Slider, and held his arms behind his back. He tried to pull free, but he couldn’t break from Skull’s grasp. Slider crawled to his feet and walked over to the man, standing inches from his face.
“Not so tough now are you, motherfucker?”
His lips curled into a devilish grin as he rebutted, “I’m not the one who needs backup, asshole.”
When I saw the glimmer of the gold shining from Skull’s brass knuckles, I charged forward, forcing myself through the crowd. “Let him go! This was all Slider’s fault, and you know it! I told him to leave me the hell alone, but he wouldn’t listen. This guy was just trying to help.”
Hawk, the club’s enforcer, and biggest asshole, stepped forward. “That was his first mistake. The second mistake was laying his hand on my brother. Now, he’s going to pay for that shit.”
“But, Hawk… it wasn’t his fault!”
“Maybe next time you’ll think twice before giving Slider a hard time.” He smirked. “Give the guy some pussy and this kind of shit won’t happen.”
“Is that what it’s going to take?” I shouted. “Fine. I’ll do it. Just let him go!”
“No!” the man growled as he tried once again to break away from Skull’s hold on him. His eyes locked on mine with an intensity I couldn’t explain as he barked, “Just walk away. Now.”
“This is insane!” I’d never hated the brothers more than I did in that moment. My face grew red with anger as I glowered over at Slider. “Just so you know, I’d rather die than have your hands on me.”
“We can arrange that, princess,” Hawk spat.
I glanced over to the stranger, and as soon as our eyes met, I had to fight the urge to cry. “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be. None of this is on you.” He motioned his head towards the bar. “Now go.”
Knowing I couldn’t bear to watch, I headed over to the bar. When I heard the sounds of their fists hitting him over and over, my blood ran cold. I reached for a bottle of bourbon, and my hand trembled as I poured myself a drink—then another. I was about to make a third when Kat came up behind me. “You okay, darlin’?”
“No.” I poured the third drink just as they started to drag the man towards the door. They continued to hit and kick his wilted body as they threw him out into the parking lot. “I can’t do this anymore. I’ve gotta get out of here.”
“You and I both know that’s not going to happen. They’ll never let you leave.” Kat looked over at the men and shook her head. “Besides, this will pass. It’s just all that testosterone they’ve got pumping through their system. It makes them crazy.”
“This is more than crazy. He was just trying to help me.”
Kat gave me one of her looks. “He was a good-looking thing, but there’s no telling what he’ll look like when they’re done with him. That is… if they don’t kill him.”
Panic washed over me. “You don’t think they’d go that far, do you?”
She shrugged. “You never know with them. They’re foaming at the mouth like a pack of wolves, and the fact that they’ve been drinking all night doesn’t help.”
I started rushing towards the door as I said, “I’ve gotta do something.”
Kat reached for my arm, pulling me back behind the bar, and gave me a firm look. “Leave it. There’s nothing you can do for him now.”
Seconds later the door flew open, and the guys started filing back inside. They were hooting and hollering like a bunch of hyped-up teenagers as they made their way back to their tables. “I need to go see if he’s okay.”
With an aggravated sigh, Kat turned and looked at me. “And what’s going to happen when Slider or one of the guys sees you helping this dude? Think, girl. You know it’s only going to piss them off even more, and if he isn’t already dead, you can be sure they’ll finish him off.”
“Then what am I supposed to do?”
“I’ll go around back and see if I can find him. You stay put and act like nothing’s wrong.”
“Thank you, Kat.”
The next ten minutes were torture as I waited for her to return. I couldn’t stop thinking of the worst. Images of him lying on the ground dead kept flashing through my mind, making me a nervous wreck. I tried to distract myself by wiping down the counters and throwing away the empty beer bottles.
I’d just finished cleaning when Kat walked up. I could tell by the look on her face it was bad. “What?”
“I found him.” She reached for a bottle of tequila and poured herself a shot. “He’s in the back by the dumpsters.”
“How is he?”
“It’s pretty bad, Zo. They really did a number on him, but he’s alive.”
“Oh, God. What should I do?”
She downed her shot. “We wait until closing when everyone is gone, and then we’ll get him to the hospital.”
I looked up at the clock and saw that we still had twenty minutes until closing, and it would be at least thirty more minutes after that before everyone was gone. I hated that we’d have to wait that long, but Kat was right; if they saw me helping him, the brothers would kill him. I couldn’t take that chance, so I had to do the only thing I could: wait.