Page 23 of All's Fair in Love & Chaos
“Brother, that is one fierce woman. You’re gonna have your hands full if she falls for you.”
“Wouldn’t have it any other way.”
Rogue and I walk to the back of the clubhouse until we get to my room, our heavy steps echoing down the hallway, announcing our approach. Kinsey opens the door right before we get there, her face lighting up like she hadn’t just seen him a few minutes ago. Fuck, I want Saige to look at me like that.
“Thanks, Kinsey. I owe ya one,” I tell her.
“I’m happy to give back where I can, Camden. It’s nothing.”
“Did she, uh, did she open up to you?”
“Nope. But I did to her, and it made her contemplative, quiet. So maybe it helped some.”
“Appreciate you.”
“Call if you need anything, brother,” Rogue tells me as he slaps the back of my thick leather cut.
I walk into the room, finding Saige brushing out her long black hair with her fingers. She’s wearing an all-black T-shirt that is way too big for her body, hanging to about mid-thigh, and a pair of socks that she’s pulled up around her calves. It takes me a moment to realize she’s wearing my clothes, and hell if that doesn’t do it for me.
“Fuck me, you look pretty. And you smell like me.”
“There was only one soap option, so of course I’m forced to reek of you.”
“Reek? Don’t pretend like you’re not enjoying being surrounded by my scent.”
“I think you’re projecting what you want to be true. Life doesn’t work like that.”
“It does if we make it that way.”
“Never worked that way for me.”
“Do I need to pat you down, check to see what weapons you’ve hidden to kill me with later?”
“Does it look like there’s any goddamn place to hide anything worthwhile?”
“Baby, I bet you could find a way to hurt me with a paperclip. I don’t trust you.”
“Probably never will.”
“Why don’t we test that theory, huh? Tell me who you are.”
“Saige. I told you that already.”
“Woman, I am so tired of this shit. Fucking talk. Or you’re never leaving.”
Saige spins on me, her damp hair whipping around her face, her eyes piercing, a violent rage simmering just below the surface. She moves quickly, fast and focused, the flat of her foot connecting with my stomach, the force causing me to stagger back, a lungful of air puffing out of me with a forceful grunt. I barely have time to prepare to deflect the hard punch aimed at my jaw that would have snapped my head back.
“You looking for a fight, baby? I’ll give you whatever you need,” I say between clenched teeth, dodging another one of her haymakers. She doesn’t answer me, instead throwing a tight combination of jabs that connect with my forearms as I block her. I register the pain, but I can see the laser focus in her eyes, angry, determined, and so full of hate. She wears it on her shoulders, a heavy weight that blankets her. I can practically taste her disdain for me, and I don’t know why. I know we’ve never met before, I’d remember her.
“Tell me why you hate me so much, hate clubs so much.”
She swings around with her leg up high, a roundhouse that I stop by grabbing her ankle, twisting us so that she’s in my arms, her back against my front. Her head comes quick, bouncing hard against my mouth.
“Fuck!” I yell as the metallic taste of blood coats my tongue. Saige doesn’t stop, driving her heels into my shins, digging her nails into the skin of my forearms. When her teeth come down on my bicep, breaking the skin, I release her.
She looks fucking feral as she spins on me, her wet hair wild around her face, emotions pulsing beneath her veins, and I realize this isn’t just a fight to hurt me, it’s a fucking purge. She needs this. That’s fine. I’ll give her whatever she needs.
“Come at me, baby. Show me what else you got.”
