Page 59 of Double the Dilemma

Karissa sighed. “Look, do you want me to apologize? I will, but you and I both know I won’t mean it. And Razor is right. I’m not part of the team anymore, so getting pissed at me isn’t going to help anything.”

Simba let out a low growl and his nostrils flared. Karissa’s eyes widened, but she still held her ground. Razor admired her, because Simba looked a lot like Rogue did when he was about to lose his shit, and that normally had the rest of them running for cover. He heard someone groan and murmur, “She’s stepped in it now. Everyone get ready for the bomb to go off.”

Simba stepped up until he towered over Karissa, his body brushing hers, hands on his hips in clenched fists, and lowered his head until it was only inches away from hers. If Razor saw them from anywhere other than where he was standing, he’d have thought the man was trying to kiss her, but he knew that wasn’t the case. He clenched his own hands to keep from reaching out and pulling her back. She wanted to handle this, but if the man put his hands on his woman, all bets were off. He glanced at the other men surrounding them, and saw they had scowls on their faces too. Even Ursa, whose nose was still bleeding a bit from where she had kicked him. It wasn’t broken, but he was definitely going to have some black eyes.

“Let’s get one thing straight, Karissa,” Simba said in a dangerously calm voice. There was enough power behind it that he felt each word, and Karissa swallowed hard as she held his gaze. “I don’t give a flying fuck what you’re doing now, or how badass you think you are. You will always be a part of this team. I did not put all my fucking time and energy into getting you trained and taking you on missions to have you up and quit. When we were disbanded, that didn’t goddamn mean we were done and you would never see us again. You think I didn’t keep track of you over the years? Did you miss the part where we dropped everything to come and help you as soon as you called? Or is this your way of saying that none of that, none of those times meant shit to you? They were just something to pass the time? Because if that’s how you feel, that we’re nothing more than a convenience to you when things go FUBAR, then you’re right, you’re not part of our team. Because we are a fucking family, and we’re there for each other. Always. Not just when it’s convenient.”

Karissa’s lips trembled before she pursed them tightly. “I’m sorry, that’s not what I meant,” she said stiffly, but he heard the pain in her tone. “You guys created an MC and I never knew, so I thought you didn’t want me to be a part of it. The whole boys club and all that. I mean, I get it, because that’s what’s happening here. But you guys are my family, and I’m sorry if you feel that I didn’t show it.”

Simba held her gaze, but it was Jag who stepped forward, his scowl dark and annoyed. “Just because we gave you space doesn’t mean that we wouldn’t welcome you into our MC if you wanted to be there,” he told her firmly. “Or do you think that we only keep Glitch around because we feel sorry for her? Use your damn head, girl.”

“No one gets to feel sorry for me,” Glitch announced, heading toward the group, head bandaged where Sena hit her with the gun. She looked pale, but her eyes were sharp as she glared at Karissa. “What, you thought I was going to let them go on with their lives and form their little boys club? Are you sure that bitch didn’t hit you in the head too and knock a few screws loose in there?” Karissa rolled her eyes.

“When we ended our mercenary career, we knew you needed to go, Xena,” Simba told her. “And we didn’t stop you because we thought you would be back. It’s on us for not checking in and following up, but since we never heard from you, we thought you were fine. That you were making a new life for yourself, one you needed, and one that didn’t include us. We were okay with that. You were always the one that needed to keep moving. But we will always be there if you need us. Just because we’re not going on missions or seeing each other every damn day, doesn’t mean we’re not family.”

Karissa’s eyes were wet, but she blinked her tears back quickly. Razor’s heart clenched, because he knew she hated to cry or look weak in front of anyone. “I’m sorry,” she said so softly that Razor had to strain to hear her.

The anger and fight went out of the men’s faces, and Simba sighed. Razor wanted to reach out and pull her into him, but he forced himself to stay still. Though he did scowl when Simba pulled Karissa into his arms and hugged her hard. The last thing he wanted was another man’s hands on her. It was his job to comfort her. The rest of the men stepped forward, smirking and grinning at him, because they all knew he wouldn’t be able to say shit without insinuating he didn’t trust her or them. He didn’t care about them, but he did care about Karissa’s feelings, even if he was pissed at her for pulling that stunt.

“I’m sorry we ever made you feel like we didn’t want you. You’re always a part of our family, Karissa,” Simba said softly as he let her go. He grinned slowly at Razor. “And if this one messes up, you’ve always got a place with us. We’ll just have to teach you how to ride a bike first.” Razor glared at him.

Karissa laughed. “Thanks,” she said, accepting the hugs from the other men. When it came to Ursa’s turn, she winced. “Sorry about that,” she apologized.

He glared down at her. “If we were in the field I’d have punched you back,” he grumbled down at her. Razor let out a low sound of warning. He didn’t give a shit how they used to do things, he wasn’t about to let this bastard hit her. Ursa ignored him. “Since we’re not, I won’t, but as soon as we get in the ring, all bets are off, got it?”

Karissa laughed. “Got it,” she said, hugging him.

When it was Glitch’s turn, Glitch didn’t hug her. She hauled off and punched Karissa square in the face. Karissa’s head snapped back, and she let out a groan of pain. “Fuck,” she hissed, and Razor could only stare at Glitch. The men behind her all stared at her in shock. “I probably deserved that,” Karissa said, swiping at her now bleeding nose with the back of her hand. He pulled a rag from his pocket and handed it to her, which she accepted with a grateful smile.

“You think?” Glitch replied, shaking out her hand. “You don’t go out and do that shit on your own. It was handled.”

“She took you down!” Karissa reminded her pointedly. “Was I supposed to let her kill you?”

“No, you were supposed to trust that I knew what I was doing and I could handle myself. And if I couldn’t, well, then you could go all superhero, and the rest of the group could shoot her ass. You are not the only one here that can handle herself, babe.”

Karissa sighed. “Sorry.” She pulled Glitch into her for a quick hug. Glitch hugged her back. “How did you get outside anyway? I thought you were with Code.”

Razor looked over at Code, who was glaring furiously at Glitch. Glitch grinned back at him. “She said she had to grab something from her room that would help, then things went to shit and I thought she was out in the common room,” Code said tightly. “If I had known she was out trying to play hero, I’d have tied her ass to the damn chair.”

“You lot sure are kinky,” Glitch remarked. “Not that I’m complaining, but we both know that you wouldn’t have been able to do shit to me.”

“So you went out and tried to confront her on your own?” Simba asked, scowling at her. Looked like Glitch was about to be on the receiving end of his anger.

“No, actually, I noticed one of the cameras was offline, and I wanted to go out and check it without this one hanging over my shoulder,” she replied, indicating Code with a toss of her thumb. “I didn’t hear her or see her until she was already on me. She got me in the back of the head with the gun or I would have been able to disarm her before she got the upper hand.”

“You know if you weren’t injured already I would be punching you in the face right?” Karissa replied mildly.

Glitch rolled her eyes. “Difference is, you purposely stepped out to confront her. I went out to check on a camera and get some peace and quiet. I didn’t go out there to confront the psycho killer. So you can’t hit me for that. I was an innocent bystander.”

“She has you there,” Taz agreed. “Still, I won’t complain if you two want to fight again. That was hot. This time, though, we need jello or mud or something. And preferably you two in some bikinis. Or not” he winked.

“I second that,” Jax called out.

“How about we all agree that two of them were idiots, they’ve taken their lumps, and we focus on the clean up and fallout?” Savage suggested.

“Excellent idea,” Glitch agreed, smiling brightly at Savage. “I almost feel bad for pointing a gun at that big brain of yours.”

A few snickers filled the room as Savage glared at her. “Don’t make me regret letting you in here,” he warned her. She just smiled wider and moved down to take a seat next to Simba.

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