Page 52 of Outcast

Then her gaze met mine and I pulled up short. No matter who her thoughts were on seconds ago, now that she saw me, I was the center of all of her anger.

"Rita cannot be President," Ricco argued.

"Why fucking not?" Esteban returned.

Joel, another VP, tried to wade between them. He'd always been passive. A peacekeeper for when the Dirty Dogs got their shit in hot water.

"Calm down. We have options. There's no harm in letting her be part of the vote."

"You're just sure you're going to win." One of the guys in the crowd shouted. "You've wanted the top spot since Javier started talking about stepping down."

Joel jutted out his chin. "We need a leader who's not hotheaded like Leo or Damen."

"He's right," Ricco growled, still nose to nose with Esteban. "Which is why I called Matías here."

Rita shot up out of her chair and Esteban had some kind of sixth-sense, reaching behind him and cupping her wrist, tugging her to him. She went grudgingly, though her gaze was still locked on me.

I couldn't feel the shock of his words through the vision of Esteban and Rita together. Now that Parker's poisonous words were stuck in my head, I could see it all too clear.

Maybe I'd always seen it.

Esteban just hadn't been on my radar. He was young. Almost a decade younger than me, and a flirt. That asshole had just been biding his time.

He glanced back at Rita and his eyes softened in a way that spoke of history.

I'd never considered myself a jealous man. Yet, right at that moment, if I had had my gun in my hand, Esteban would be on the ground. As it was, I had to curl my fists to keep from reaching for it.

Then he followed her gaze to where I stood and a fiery hate burned in his eyes that was clear to see in the light of day.

He also sported bruising around his mouth and eye. Good. I was glad I wasn't the only one with a physical reminder of that shitshow last night.

"Matías, I called you here for Javier," Ricco said as he took the opportunity of Esteban's distraction to step back.

That brought me crashing back to reality.

The Dirty Dogs quieted down, though some still murmured.

"We need to vote for the next President. Joel wants a shot. Tiago does too." He nodded to one of the officers standing in front of the table facing the crowd. "And Rita wants in. But you have always been Javier's pick."

Esteban's face purpled as a few Dirty Dogs clapped meon the back. Some yelled for me to leave. A few called for Ricco to step up. There was no consistency. They were divided into too many corners.

"Why do you need to have this vote now?" I asked, soaking in every inch of Rita, avoiding the places Esteban now touched as he molded himself to her back.

How had I never noticed them together before? When did it start?

"Because, you fuckingcabrón," Esteban spat, none of the light-hearted flirt I'd seen before. "We got a note ten minutes ago from Matthews, the leader of the new club in town. Their man died. He doesn't give one fuck about Leo's head. Either doesn't trust us or believes that we're responsible as a whole."

Rita's eyes widened. She hadn't known that.

"You don't need a vote for president. You need to plan on how you're going to protect yourselves."

"The best way to do that is to have a leader." Ricco glanced out across the men in the room. "The Dirty Dogs need a president. Otherwise, we'll have just as much in-fighting as planning."

Some of the men started to form around me, like a show of support. Hope.

What the hell was this? I wasn't a Dirty Dog. I had been a stray Javier had taken in from time to time. I didn't want this either. If I did, I would have stayed with my brothers to run their new business.

"Why do you think Javier wanted me to lead?" I couldn't help but ask. It was ridiculous.

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