Page 18 of One Night with the Biker

“I’m sorry,” I said quietly, not knowing what else to say. We couldn’t bring up Carol’s name at the club, so Boom Boomprobably prohibited Nova from discussing her mother, leaving an open wound inside her. “Remember how we once talked about moving in together?” I waved my hand around the room. “I want a bigger place, but you can move in sooner. It might be easier if you weren’t surrounded by memories of your mother.”

“Why the fuck would I want to live with you when I have my own trailer on club grounds? Daddy isn’t always the best, but he looks out for me and makes anyone who crosses me suffer.”

That almost sounded like a warning, but I knew my overwrought emotions made me feel that way.

“Enough about me,” Nova said briskly. “Let’s get back to you and Lou Lou’s friend.”

“There’s nothing to get back to. I felt a connection to him but it wasn’t mutual.” I glanced away, still inexplicably hurt over his treatment. “I’ll survive.”

“Are you going to eat the soup I toiled in the kitchen to prepare?”

“I’m not hungry,” I said hoarsely.

Sighing, Nova took the tray and set it on my dresser, then she sat next to me and took me in her arms. “This isn’t you talking, Ains. It’s your pussy. He must’ve fucked you so good that you can’t bear to give up his cock.”

I smiled. Leave it to Nova to cheer me up.

“That’s what kept drawing me to Lou Lou at first. Even when I hated that motherfucker, my kitty was willing to sayhelloto his cock anytime he asked.”

“You’re so silly,” I said around giggles, but instantly sobered when I remembered what Reese revealed about Lou Lou.

My muscles tautened and I tried to pull away.

“Okay, what now, Miss Ma’am?” Nova demanded, tightening her hold on me.

One thing about best friends. You couldn’t hide from them.

“How do you feel about Lou Lou now?”

She separated us and frowned. “You know how I feel about him. He’s my world. He’s the one. I’d lose my mind if we break up.”

“You’re twenty-three. He’s forty-two.”

“You’re an ageist now?”

Though it was a coward’s way out, it was the easier route. “You don’t know anything about his life outside of the fact that he’s a Royal Bastard. Your father’s enemy. My brother’s enemy. Fuck, the enemy of the entire fucking club.” I grabbed her arms and searched her face. “Suppose he just got with you to thumb his nose at the Bloody Scorpions? Suppose he’s just using you?”

Jerking away, she got to her feet. “Just because you’re so fucking miserable doesn’t mean I am. Shame on you for trying to ruin my happiness.”

“I’m not! Reese said—”

“One minute you’re sobbing behind his dick and the next minute you’re quoting him?”

“Louisiana ismarried, Nova.” What kind of a friend would I be withholding the information when she was in so deep? “You’vegot to tell him to kick fucking rocks before he sends you away.”

The more I spoke, the angrier she became. Her glare cut through me, so I didn’t see her fist until it landed on my jaw.

“Fuck you, Ainsley,” she snarled in a wobbly voice. “You’re my best friend and I expected better than you carrying hearsay and falsehoods back to me.” She turned, stalked to my dresser, and swiped the tray off. On its way to the floor, the soup spattered on my wall and rained on the dresser before the bowl shattered.

The noise didn’t drown out Nova’s furious slam of my front door.

Beer in hand, I stood outside the Devil’s Pit. The early August evening was warm and slightly humid, with the golden hues of the sun casting shadows on the asphalt. A light breeze rolled off the nearby rivers, offering some relief from the heat.

Ironic our tail gunner had bike problems and needed assistance back to the club. Cursing, Bolt finally freed the chain that had snapped and then twisted. He was a lucky motherfucker not to have eaten asphalt.

He got to his feet and wiped his fingers on his jeans, trailing motor oil over the denim.

“Have yet to hear about your hot date,” he said, studying each chain link. “You seeing her again? It seemed to have worked. You’re out amongst the living instead of cooped up in your room.”

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