Page 110 of Outcast

Then there was Esteban. This kid was more complex than I gave him credit for. I’d never pegged him as anything other than a pretty face, but he’d already punched two holes in her living room wall.

Rita came out and raised one brow as she held some make up brushes in her hand. “You done?” Was all she’d said.

“Hell fucking no, not until I get my hands on thatcabrón,” was all he’d said before he’d fallen on the couch.

He was someone I never saw coming, but somehow hefit. Where Rita and I were strained together, he made us stronger.

Glancing at my phone screen, I worked to relax my clenched jaw. "It's after nine."

Esteban made a noise like he wasn’t sure what to do with that. Fuck, I think I was just making conversation.

Regardless of the tension of the coming fight, there was a calm in the air. We'd discussed exactly what we needed to do. And how we needed to do it.

"Let's go." Rita stepped out of her bathroom, and I swallowed hard.

She wore one of her signature skintight dresses, hugging her from her tits down to her knees. But it was made from stretchy material so it could be pulled up to her waist if she needed to run or ride…Or be fucked.

She'd always raved about how versatile they were.

I opened the door, glanced out in the hallway to make sure there were no threats, then stepped back for her to precede me.

Leading had never been my dream. I wasn't sure it had even been Rita's, but as I walked behind her, next to Esteban, two things stuck out.

She oozed confidence in a way I never had. Rita knew exactly what she wanted and as soon as she made up her mind, she let no time rest before she went after it.

The second? Her ass was so damn fine, I could never complain about the view.

I snickered and Esteban glanced at me, but I ignored it.

From blocks away we heard music thumping and the distant roar of bikes. Of course there was a fucking party right now.

At the bottom of the stairs, several Dirty Dogs lounged in a group of chairs. There was a small speaker by the wallplaying low music and a few of the gang's girls were there, draping themselves over the guys.

Joel and Ricco were among them.

When they noticed Rita, they both jumped up like they'd been waiting for her.

"Rita–" Joel marched toward us.

"It's been hours!" Ricco tried to push right into her space.

"Why do you want to lead Dirty Dogs?" Rita sidestepped Ricco, staring at Joel.

He pulled up short, then twisted around to look at the guys as if to sayis she serious?

"Why doyouwant it? Because you think you were born into it?" He shot back. He wasn't much taller than Rita. With her heels on, they were the same height. Though he tried to pull himself up and lean into her as if he needed to feel like the bigger man.

She didn't cower. Instead, her fingers twitched and I had to bite back my smile. I knewmi corazón, and she was itching to grab him by the balls.

"Because I love this gang. It's my entire life, my legacy, and I care about every man inside it. Now tell me why you want to lead it." Her voice took on a deeper, husky quality. Not sexual by any means. I was highly acquainted with those sounds and this was like none of them.

It was downright cocky in the best way.

He sputtered. "You think I don't love this club? I've been with Javier since almost the beginning, little girl."

"That's great and all, but that's not a reason why you want to lead the Dirty Dogs," she answered drolly.

"Rita," Ricco said as he stepped forward, trying to diffuse what could be an explosive situation.

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