Page 32 of June 7

Chapter Thirteen

Bane knocked back another beer and tossed the can toward the trash bin. Jagger finally had a room behind the shop, and the club area had Bluetooth piped in and music playing.

There were at least a hundred people in the building. Half of those were women who'd heard about a club party once word got around and had asked for admittance. The members were enjoying their free time off.

It was a long time coming.

Jagger walked out from the back, where his bedroom was now located, and looked over the crowd. Spotting Bane, Jagger headed his way.

"I figured you'd be one of the first to grab a woman. You've worked harder than everyone." Jagger held up his bottle.

"Rather spend my time drinking," he muttered.

Jagger gazed around. "It looks like Seaglass Cove won't be a disappointment to the club. Word got around fast."

There were women everywhere. From the looks of things, the females had waited for a motorcycle club to move in for years. They'd emptied one keg already, and the hard liquor bottles were going fast.

"Looks that way." He had no desire to join the others and a hell of an itch that needed scratched.

But none of the women appealed to him. None of them wore a red swimsuit. None of them wore an innocent smile when they looked at him.

They were all there for one reason. They were looking for dick.

Normally, that wouldn't bother him. If they were looking. He was giving. But not tonight.

The scent of marijuana hung heavily in the air. Bane took out a cigarette and lit the end. He couldn't get his mind off Daisy.

All week, she'd avoided him. He'd finally seen her Thursday as she hurried to her Jeep a half hour before she normally left. Before he could reach her, she waved out the window and sped down the driveway.

He'd gone over to the pool twice. One time Liz told him to fuck off. That wasn't unexpected. Another time, a teenage girl told him he couldn't enter the pool during private swim lessons.

He had a feeling Daisy had other people making up excuses for why he couldn't see her. He was pissed on Monday. It was now Saturday, and he was angry.

He nudged Jagger's arm. "I'm going to take off."

"Are you coming back?"

"Nah." He clasped Jagger's hand. "I'll leave the women for you."

"All I need is a couple." Jagger slapped him on the shoulder. "Watch the pavement."

"Yep." He headed toward the back door.

Outside, Dio lifted a woman onto his motorcycle. She squealed, rubbing the handle as if jerking the bike off. Bane walked past them. At one time, he would've fucked her, too. He would've shown her a good time on his bike.

But he was at the point in his life where the force of the woman's laughter. The flirting. The outfit. The hair. Everything was fake. Hell, her tits were even fake.

He swung his leg over the seat of his Harley and started the engine.

It took him ten minutes to reach the duplex. Instead of going to his side, he went to Daisy's side and pounded his fist on her door. If it took all night, he'd stand outside and beat on her door until she answered or called the cops on him.

"Come on, Daisy." He knocked again. "Open up."

He studied the house. There were only two ways inside. Through the front door and the sliding door in the back. Since she'd run away from the shop and then tried to tell him they enjoyed a one-night stand, and that was all it would be, she'd kept the patio door locked and the curtain closed.

Approaching the door again, he banged his fist against the wood.

After thirty seconds of continual knocking, he hauled back his arm to punch a hole through the fucking door when Daisy opened the door.

---