Page 6 of Dagger's Property
5
Wynter
The bikes came out of nowhere, barricading me in. I was going to make a run for it, but I couldn’t, which I guess Vale anticipated. There was no choice but to follow him up the mountain.
“You’re an ass, you know that?” I slam my door shut and yank open the back to grab my bag. This is absolute bullshit. I’m twenty years old. I can live wherever the fuck I want.
“What?” His head cocks. “You don’t want to spend some quality time with your big bro?”
His smirk pisses me off. And so is the fact that everyone is staring at us.
“Do you want to go grab some popcorn and pull up a chair?” I turn my eyes on the five who are watching with keen interest. They’re all strikingly good looking, and it’s angering.
“Guys, this is my sister Wynter. Wyn, meet some of my brothers: Link, Rogue, Cage, Bones, and Hawk.”
I’m never going to remember any of them, except Rogue. There’s something about his eyes. A coldness that resonates. It looks like he’s harboring his own hatred toward the world. He’s the only one not looking at me like I’m a temperamental child.
“Come on. I’ll show you around.”
Dagger grabs my bag and leads me inside. Honestly, this place is not what I expected. I pictured a sketchy motel sittin’ up on a mountain with massive motorcycles lined out front and a bunch of men with beer guts just hanging around outside. But this place is like a hunter’s lodge from outside. And inside is a rugged man cave, tastefully decorated with big screen TVs, brown leather sofas placed around the room, and a couple of pool tables off in the corner. They even have a full bar, just like you’d find in an actual restaurant. And it’s fully stocked. There are bottles too pricy for my wallet. I’m shocked that they have such a refined taste.
And none of these men have beer guts.
Every single one is over six feet tall and rippled with muscle. And all of that muscle is painted in ink. I’m sure every tattoo on their skin tells a story. I’ve yet to ask Vale about his tattoos, but there’s one that’s easy to understand. It’s the image of his mother’s name, scrolled around the vine of a rose, and the thorns sticking out are actually Roman numerals for the date she passed away from her cancer. I didn’t know the woman, but Vale used to tell me stories about her when I was laying in his bed. He said I was the only one he ever shared his secrets with. And I was the only one who ever got to see him cry.
“Dagger, baby! You’re back.” The female’s voice has me turning. A girl saunters up to him, dressed in a skintight leopard-print dress with heels that are way too tall for her frame. She’s the only thing that looks cheap in this place. Even one of her fake nails has popped off. “I’m bored. Any chance you want to come to my room and entertain me?”
She rubs her body up against him, dragging her hands down his chest. The entire scene irks me, making me want to go over and yank the girl by her hair and tug her off him. I turn toward the bar, heading over to get myself a shot while he flirts with the slut.
“Can I get a Glenfiddich on the rocks?”
The bartender looks up from the paper she’s writing on, and I’m a bit awestruck by how pretty she is. She looks like a badass biker chick from the way she’s dressed and the tattoos marked on her skin, but her face could be pictured on a billboard. She’s stunning. Soulful, dark eyes. Pouty, red lips. High cheekbones. And she’s not wearing an ounce of makeup. She personifies everything I wish I were. Strong and confident. Happy.
“You have good taste.” She winks, dropping her pen and pulling out a glass. She turns and reaches to the top shelf for the six-hundred-dollar bottle of scotch. I’ve only ever imagined what it must taste like. Now, I’ll get to try it. “Are you Dagger’s sister?”
Damn, word travels fast.
“She’s underage, Shay. You can fill that glass with a Shirley temple.” Vale’s deep voice is at my back, grating me with his overbearing attitude. He crowds in closer, and it’s like a huge cloud of tension descends, making my skin prick with goose bumps. The feelings that stir make me uncomfortable. For as much as I don’t like him treating me like a kid and telling me what to do, he makes me feel safe. He’s the only one.
“Shay, this is my stepsister, Wynter. Wyn, this is Shayna.”
“It’s nice to meet you.” She smiles, but I’m too irritated with Dagger’s comment to return it. He can’t tell me that he didn’t drink when he was my age. Besides, I’m four months away from being legal. It’s not like I’m twelve. “Dagger has told me so much about you.”
Her attention shifts over my shoulder and there’s a soft look in her eyes. They’re close. Bonded in some way. She could be hisgirlfriend. A thought that agitates me further. I no longer know anything about him or his world. He used to tell me everything. He’d share all his secrets with me. But since he left home and joined the club, he rarely even talks to me.
“Where’s the little girls’ room?” I hop off the bar stool in need of some breathing room. His hovering is starting to suffocate me.
“I’ll take you to my room so you can use the bathroom in there and then get your shit unpacked.”
“Where will you be staying?” I didn’t realize I was putting him out of his room. I never would’ve let him drag me here had I known that.
“We’re sharing a room. All the others are occupied right now, so you’re stuck with your big bro until something opens up. And this way, I can keep an eye on you. I mean it, Wyn. The drinking stops now. If I so much as catch you sneaking a beer, you’re gonna be in trouble.”
The dad complex is getting old.
“You’re not really one to talk, Vale. Look at this place and the men you call ‘brothers.’ Not exactly running with the law now, are you?”
“We build shit and fix shit, Wyn. Nothing more to it.”
