Page 16 of Bruiser's Reckoning

“Yeah, you do, Bruiser, and you know it. She isn’t the one to blame for your mom,” I state. “She did her job. Yeah, sure, she was there. It was her call. And she did everything she could. I know what Dagger told you, just as he also was on that call. He witnessed it. Said himself that it hurt her to lose Lissa. That woman didn’t even know she was your momma, and yet it still hurt her.”

Bruiser shrugs and takes the shot. “What do you expect me to do, Prez? I just buried my mom yesterday.”

“I expect you not to wallow. You know damn good and well Lissa would slap you upside the head for doing this. And she’d be the first to tell you not to fuck things up when it comes to Gwyneth,” I growl, taking both the bottle and shot glass from him. “Also, so you know how much this is fucking with the woman who could be yours, she’s barred Colt and Carbine from her apartment as of today. Spent hours at the gym sparring and running. From what Colt reported, he doesn’t think she’s eaten. I also know from Grady, she called and asked for vacation time. He gave it to her. Doesn’t know how much she’ll actually take. Told her to just come in on shift when she was ready to get back to it. If she didn’t show, then he’d mark it down as vacation time rather than taking her off shift completely.”

Taking a breath, I allow what I said so far to sink in before delivering the final snippet. “If she’s not going to allow us to protect her, we can’t do anything about it. She doesn’t want the protection, she’s not an ol’ lady, or a part of this club. Means we’ve got to respect her wishes. Colt and Carbine are still there for the time being. I’m gonna go over and talk to her, but if she denies it then, I’ve got to pull them.”

It’s a lie. I wouldn’t pull them from her protection, though Bruiser doesn’t think about it in his drunken state.

Instead, he narrows his eyes and curls his lip in fury. “The hell she’s going to deny protection. She damn well better think again.”

And how did I know he was going to say that? He’s going to go to his woman. Hopefully, they’ll be able to sort their shit, and we can get back to business. We’ve got a monster on the loose to find still.

CHAPTER TEN

BRUISER

The damn woman actually thinks she can deny protection, she better think a-fucking-gain.

I stagger to my feet a bit drunkenly. Since getting back from the funeral, I’ve done nothing but drink. I figured I’d get shit-faced and fuck, but last night I wasn’t able to do shit. It’s what I was going to use Clover for, but Hammer intervened. I don’t know if it was a good thing or not.

Either way, it doesn’t matter. The slobber crawler wasn’t doing anything for me. All I keep picturing is a woman who isn’t even here for me to touch. She’s somewhere else, barring those who would keep her safe. Gwynethseriously thinks she can bar my brothers from her place. Oh, she’s in for it when I get to her.

Shaking my head, I do what I can to sober just the slightest to get the hell out of here and to Gwyneth’s apartment. There’s no way I’ll be able to drive.

“Prospect, take Bruiser in one of the cages to Gwyneth’s place,” Hammer orders and slaps me on the back. “Don’t fuck up a good thing, brother. Your momma wouldn’t want you to.”

Those words slice right through me. I intended to introduce them to each other the day after Gwyneth’s shift at dinner, but it was too late.

This whole thing is fucking with my head. Losing my mom was the last thing I ever wanted. Granted, I knew a day would come when it would happen, but I didn’t think it would be this soon. The doctors she’d been seeing had said she’d been struggling as of late with her blood pressure. They stated there was no stopping the heart attack. That doesn’t mean I’m not feeling every bit of it.

One thing Hammer said, though I know deep down, is that my mom would be pissed with me if she saw me right now. Drunk off my ass and blaming a woman who was just doing her job. Hell, three other people had been on that call, including Dagger. I didn’t blame one of them. Maybe it’s because I thought . . . damnit, I don’t know what I thought.

If I hadn’t been watching Gwyneth, I could have been there for my mom and been able to spend just one more day with her. Who am I kidding? The woman who raised me would surely kick my ass knowing what was going on in my head right now. She’d be the first person to push me in Gwyneth’s direction and tell me if I didn’t claim what I wanted then she’d beat me with a baseball bat.

Following the prospect out of the club, I make my way to the cage the other man will drive to get me to my destination. On the way, I need to figure out how exactly I am going to deal with the woman who I’m damn well claiming.

Her putting herself out there without protection is not going to happen. She’s not about to put herself in danger when we can protect her.

The moment of truth comes far too quickly when the prospect comes to a stop in front of her apartment building. I look in the direction of her apartment, seeing not one light shining through the windows. She’s in there, though, I know it. Hopping out of the passenger seat, I’m lucky not to fall flat on my face. Seeing both Colt and Carbine sitting on their bikes, I give them a chin lift acknowledging them, and head toward the door of the apartment.

I don’t bother with knocking. Instead, I reach into my pocket and pull my keys out, finding the one I’m looking for. The one I snagged the first day I was put on her ass.

Unlocking and stepping into the apartment, I’m met by an eerie silence. As quietly as I can, I close the door and lock it. I make my way through the apartment, focused on getting to Gwyneth. I don’t bother being quiet when I open her bedroom door. I slam the damn thing open to find her jerking up off the bed, wearing nothing more than a towel wrapped around her.

Fuck me if it ain’t a damn good sight. One that has my dick hardening instantly.

“What are you doing here?” she asks, clutching at the towel, keeping it from opening.

“What am I doing here?” I snarl, moving toward her, taking my cut off, and setting it on top of her dresser. “I’m here because your ass isn’t barring my brothers from being able to do a job they were given.” Toeing off my boots, I strip my shirt at the same time. “The fuck do you think you’re doing ignoring their protection?”

“I don’t need their protection,” she snaps and shoots up off the bed on the other side. “How did you get in here? Wait, you know what. it doesn’t matter. You can just go back the way you came.”

“You know I’m not about to just leave,” I state, taking a nice, long look at her sweet, delectable body. Gripping the belt, I unbuckle while meeting her gaze once again. “Might as well drop the towel, Princess.”

“I think not.”

The way she juts out her chin, looking all defiant, goes straight to my dick.She’s about to learn one hell of a lesson. One that will surely end with both of us getting something very pleasurable out of it.

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