Page 57 of Manny

“Very funny. Expect lots of visits from me, and I’ll bring food and make sure you have crosswords and sudoku to do while you recover,” I say.

Charles grunts a thanks, his eyes closing.

“We should let him rest,” Riot says. “We can come back in the morning.”

I’m reluctant to leave. I’ve never liked hospitals. The last time I was in one, I was twelve years old with a gunshot wound. The trauma of that night will never fully leave me, but I’ve learned to cope.

I lean over and kiss Charles on the cheek. “I love you, daddy,” I whisper. “Be back tomorrow.”

He opens his eyes and smiles, mumbling something incoherent.

Riot’s already standing, his hand on my shoulder. “Let’s let him rest.” A few tears leak as Riot pulls me into a hug. “I know this is hard for you.”

“It never gets easier,” I admit. “But it was a hospital that saved my life, well, after you and Charles got me there.”

“Let’s not go there.”

A pained look crosses his face. He never talks about it, and I never push the issue. Some memories are best left in the past.

12

JONAH

The minuteI hear about Charles, I drop Eli at my sister’s and take off for the hospital. She hasn’t read any of my texts. I don’t know much about Charles, other than he helped the club out a little while ago when Riot was in trouble. I also know he’s not their father, but he raised them and he’s someone they both look up to.

Not caring how it looks, I storm through the hospital until I find the right ward and, just as I do, I see Lace and Manny hugging in the hallway outside the room. I stop in my tracks. Okay, he’s her roommate, and he’s the one who most likely drove her here, but still. Acid washes through my veins when he plants a kiss on her forehead, then he pecks her on the lips chastely. I squint.

Manny?

Is she for fuckin’ real? I mean, I know we had a conversation about it and she liked someone else. Someone who I said I’d think about sharing her with, but not Manny. No. I never agreed to that. Maybe I’m getting ahead of myself, but the way he smiles down at her tells me all I need to know. I try to rein in my temper. Not only seeing her wrapped around him, but seeing herhands on him. Wait a goddamn minute… Am I jealous over them both? And that I’m not in the fuckin’ middle of their embrace? I shudder at my own ridiculous thoughts, wishing I could shut my brain off.

But I can’t deny the obvious. Not only has Manny starred in most of my homosexual fantasies, but I’ve jerked off to his face and body more than once. Shame washes over me. This isn’t who I am, and I don’t know how to control this… this…fear?I used to think I wasn’t afraid of anything and that was very well nearly true until I lost Jill. That’s a different kind of pain. It’s grief and suffering that will never go away. Ever. I can’t be glued back together. I also can’t compare that to this, but I also know that she’d be horrified if she knew the deep, dark secrets inside me. That I long for so much more. Even when my mind denies it, my body reacts in ways that shock me. My dick hard, my jaw tight and my heart racing like a runaway freight train.

When I approach, they jerk apart like kids caught with their hands in the cookie jar.

“Lace?” I accuse. I can’t help the haughty tone to my voice. My eyes shift to Manny. He runs a hand through his perfect hair. Seriously, does his hair ever look like shit? He even has the nerve to look sheepish.

“Bandit?” she stammers. “W—what are you doing here?”

Right. I hadn’t really thought this through, and now it’s gonna look really fuckin’ obvious to Mannyexactlywhat I’m doing here.

“I heard the news and I wanted to see how you were.” The words rush out, and I realize that Manny is assessing me dubiously. Fuck what he thinks. “How is Charles?”

“He’s, uh, he’s gonna be fine,” her voice is barely a whisper. “He fell, hit his head and broke some bones. Other than that, he seems in good spirits.”

Manny looks from me to her, one eyebrow piqued. It looks like he’s already put two and two together, but as I stretch for another excuse, Lace grabs me by the arm. “We need to get out of here before Riot comes out.” She points to the door behind her. “We can’t really explain why you’re here without Riot getting suspicious.”

That’s probably a good plan, but I still see red. Manny kissed her. He kissedmygirl. While Lace might think she can skirt around the edges of the MC with no consequences, someone forgot to tell her that there are rules. If she thinks I’m just gonna bow out and let dickface Manny have his way with her, then she’s got another thing coming. She may not be my possession, hell, I don’t even think that way. I have a sister I adore, I don’t treat women like shit, but am I a protective son of a bitch when I want to be? Hell yeah I am, and I make no apologies for that.

A range of scenarios race through my mind all at once.

Have they slept together?

Has he touched her like I have?

Has he had his dick in her mouth?

Does she moan his name?

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