Page 54 of Courting the Consequences

Her heart was broken. She’d fallen in love with her three men in the course of the last two months. It had been a whirlwind romance from the start, but there was no way they could last long-term. Not if they didn’t put in any effort. And the past week only went to show that they couldn’t be bothered.

She was a grown-ass woman. She didn’t need to wait around for some men to decide she was worth their time.

She made her decision. She resolved herself to the consequences and set about showering and getting herself ready.

Kevin texted while she was in the shower, and she had to shake her head at the universe’s timing.Hey, baby. Sorry we’ve been MIA this week. We’ll explain when we see you. Why don’t you come by the clubhouse tonight after work?

It was two in the afternoon. She decided to bite the bullet and head to the clubhouse early. Hopefully there would be fewer people around to witness the fallout.

An hour later, dressed in a suit for the office, she pulled up into the yard of the clubhouse, with its multiple buildings and lines of bikes. There were more bikes than usual in the yard, and the gates had been closed when she pulled up. Thankfully Vagabond had been at the gate and let her through without a fuss.

The air was charged, and everyone seemed on edge.

She looked around and only saw unfamiliar faces loitering around. She headed into the clubhouse building and had to wait for her eyes to adjust to the dim lighting.

“There she is,” Derrick called out from across the semibusy room. He was playing pool with a couple guys she didn’t recognize, but she saw Johnny and Kevin through the open double doors to church.

Johnny looked weary, but Kevin smiled when he saw her.

Kara headed toward them, scanning the patches on the men who loitered around the room. San Jose, Oakland, Las Vegas, Salt Lake City, Cheyenne, Boulder, Omaha, Cedar Rapids. She took it all in quickly as she moved toward church.

Something was clearly going on. She felt guilty for what she was about to do to them.

Kevin walked around the long conference table, passing Johnny, and met her in the doorway. He leaned down to kiss her. Last minute she turned her head so he kissed her cheek instead. “Oh, you’re pissed.” Kevin chuckled. “Got it.”

She waited until Derrick walked in and closed the doors behind him. He wrapped his arms around her from behind and pressed an open-mouthed kiss to her neck. “God, I missed you,” he breathed into her skin.

She closed her eyes and reveled in the warmth of his touch, but she didn’t lean into him like she usually would. She kept her hands on the back of the chair she stood before and willed herself not to cry.

Her heart pounded in her chest. Breathing was hard, but she had to get through this. When Derrick pulled away and walked around the other side of the table, Kevin spoke up. “We’re really sorry about this week. Let’s sit and we’ll tell you all about it.”

Kara watched Johnny sit at the head of the table while Kevin and Derrick took the spots on either side of him.

She slowly took the seat next to Kevin, the one she was standing in front of.

“What’s going on, Kara?” Johnny asked as she sat down. He had been watching her warily, his blue eyes guarded. She didn’t miss the fact that he purposely used her name and not his nickname for her.

She steeled herself and met his hard gaze. “I’m sorry,” she started, “but I have to end things.”

Johnny immediately shook his head in disbelief while Derrick hissed. Only Kevin sat there emotionless and stared at her. “What, we didn’t give you enough attention this week?” Johnny goaded. “Little whore not get enough?”

Kara ignored his comments. “My father is stepping in to take over the Granger case against your father,” she continued. “I can no longer help Mac with the case.”

“Can’t or won’t?”Johnny growled.

Kara closed her eyes briefly and braced herself for the final blow. “I won’t go against my father,” she answered plainly, meeting his steely gaze.

“JesusfuckingChrist,” Johnny spat and got to his feet. “You really are just like every other loose pussy out there.” He flung his hand out toward the clubhouse. “Maybe I should have just let the rest of my brothers have their way with you. You really would be just like the rest of the sluts then.”

Kara didn’t respond. Her heart broke watching him lash out. She slowly got to her feet.

Kevin and Derrick stared at the table until she stood up. They both looked resigned and angry but didn’t say anything. “I’m sorry,” she said to the room.

“Yeah, go on, git!” he shouted at her. “Just another whore to walk through these halls. You’re a dime a dozen.”

Kara let his words wash over her as she opened the door and walked out. She ignored all the club members that looked over when she exited church. She was grateful for her decision to wear a business suit. It felt like a layer of armor against the hungry stares.

She didn’t know how much they had heard, nor did she care.

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