Page 27 of Wick
My shoulders sag. Turning, I face him. Why do I feel so awkward? This is Malik for crying out loud. My brother's best friend. My friend. "Thanks for taking me to the dance tonight. I had a great time with you." I pause for a split second before adding, "and my brother." I nervously twist the leather straps of my heels in my hands. Butterflies fill my stomach when Malik brushes my hair from my face.
"I forgot to tell you earlier; you look beautiful tonight, Vayda." His eyes fall to my lips, and I think he is about to kiss me.
A magnetic force is pulling me toward him.
It's the moment everything changes. That's when I know. My entire perception of Malik shifts. Not that I've never noticed how attractive he is.
My heart drums against my chest.
I want him to kiss me.
My eyes popopen on a gasp with my heart pounding just as hard as it was while I was lost in my dream. Squeezing my eyes shut, I slow my breathing and shake off the lingering effects.
"Hello? Vayda?" I hear Josie's voice echo through the empty house.
"Great," I mumble to myself. Sitting up, I swing my legs over the edge of the bed. Still agitated that Malik would send Josie over to help me out while he's at the clubhouse dealing with club business, I slowly stand and shuffle across the bedroom and out the door. Before I come to the end of the hall, Josie appears.
"Oh, there you are." She smiles at me. "Were you sleeping?" she takes in my appearance. "Um, would you like something to eat?" she points her thumb over her shoulder. "I bought a few things to stock Wick's fridge and a few pans to cook in. I can fix you something." At the mention of food, my stomach growls. "I'll take that as a yes," Josie giggles. "Do you need help getting down the stairs?" she asks, and I'm quick in rejecting her offer, my words sharp when I say them.
"I don't need your help." I watch her face fall with the bite of my words. She forces a smile.
"Okay. Well, I'll be in the kitchen if you need me." She turns to leave, looking back one more time as I stay motionless before she descends the stairs.
Sighing and feeling a little bad for being such a bitch, I slowly make my way down the stairs, the pain in my side pinching with every step I take as I find my way to the kitchen.Who does Malik think he is anyway? I'm a grown-ass woman. I don’t require a damn babysitter, especially a woman he seems to be cozy with.Anger bubbles inside me, as I walk into the kitchen, past Josie, ignoring her while I sink down onto the chair at the kitchen table.
"I've never slept with him." Josie says with her back to me as the smell of onions and peppers fill the room.
"What does that have to do with me?"
"More than you want to admit." I watch as she cracks open a few eggs, whisks them in a bowl with a fork, then pours them in the pan. "Wick and I are only friends. It's been that way since I joined the club. I've never warmed his bed." Grabbing a couple of plates from the cabinet, she plates some food, then walks in my direction. Setting the plate in front of me, she settles in the chair across from me. I stare at the food she prepared. "He's a good man, Vayda." She pauses. "Can I call you Vayda, or should I call you Tequila like the guys do?"
I pick up my fork. "Vayda is fine. Listen," I look at her as she lifts a bite of food to her mouth. "I'm sorry about before. I appreciate the help. I do. It's just..." I don’t finish my sentence.
"He only wants one woman, and that woman is you. Never seen a man so hungry for another person like he is for you, Vayda."
I let her admission sink in for a moment. "This is really good." I compliment her on her cooking, mostly to deflect any further talk of Malik. Judging by the smirk on her face, she's on to my game and goes with the flow of the conversation.
"Thanks. I'm not the best cook in the world, but I can fix a mean omelet."
The two of us fall silent for a few minutes. "So, how did becoming one of The Kings' club girls come about?" I ask out of curiosity, and she laughs. "Feel free to tell me it's none of my damn business." Finished with my meal, Josie stands, taking our empty plates to the sink.
"I don't mind. I find your forwardness refreshing. You keep it real. More people should unapologetically be themselves like you." She walks back to the table with two glasses of sweet tea, sitting one in front of me. "The MC life is familiar. I grew up around a bunch of bikers, Tartarus MC, from North Carolina." She takes a sip of her tea. "I can remember my mom hanging around them as early as when I was two years old." Josie taps the side of her glass with her black painted nails. "As I grew older, I felt stuck, like I was suffocating. Not that I didn't have a good relationship with my second family, I just wanted to go out and see what the world had to offer beyond Blowing Rock."
"So, you left," I state.
"Yep. I supported myself for over a year by singing at biker bars and lending a hand behind the bar when needed. Then I wondered into New Orleans." Josie's face lights up. "I fell in love with the city and the people in it. Riggs offered me a job one night after a gig at the Twisted Throttle, singing and waitressing."
Knowing how MC members can be about other clubs, I ask, "How did your mom, and the MC you grew up around feel about your associating with The Kings?"
"To tell you the truth, they were okay with it. Reputation and respect go a long way in the MC world, and The Kings are much like Tartarus in many respects."
"Your mom was okay with you sleeping with men—with being someone else's property?" I ask.
"I know what you're thinking, but it's not like that. I'm not King's property. Not like that. And I don't sleep with all the men. I've only actually slept with Nova and Fender. That's another reason I like it here. They respect women. Who we do, and what we do is our choice. Not all clubs work the same way The Kings do. Riggs only gave me the opportunity after I approached him. And it wasn’t until after hearing my story and who I've been associated with in my past that he said okay and took me on. My mom, for many reasons, doesn’t like my choices, but it's my life."
"I misjudged you, Josie."
She waves her hand dismissively. "Don't worry about it."
