Page 11 of Ginger

“Take her back to Bronx and Reno. Those men downstairs are pissed as fuck. We need to do some damage control and get them out of here. We can handle the rest of the mess later. Right now, we just need them gone with as little fuss as possible,” Vegas said.

“I’ll drop her off at their room and head downstairs.” Houston stood with me in his arms and walked back down the hall. He kicked the bottom of the door with his booted foot, refusing to set me down even long enough to open the door.

I heard a growl and cussing on the other side and hoped we hadn’t interrupted Bronx and Reno. I buried my face against Houston, hoping the men wouldn’t be pissed he’d brought me back. When Bronx yanked the door open, I heard him growl.

“What the fuck did you do to her?” Bronx demands.

Chapter Six

Bronx

We’d followed when Houston brought Ginger upstairs. Hearing what that man said had made me sick. I’d known she had to have a bad life before coming here. It never occurred to me she’d have been hurt, even as a young girl. The man hadn’t come right out to say it, but I’d understood what he meant. The fucker liked young girls. How old had Ginger been the first time he touched her?

Then to find Houston outside my door with Ginger in his arms? I’d wanted to snatch her away from him, and had barely held back. What the hell had he done to her? She hid her face against him, and I knew it couldn’t be because she was scared of me. I’d never done anything to make her fear me. Unless Houston said something to her while he’d had her in his room?

Shit. I fucking hated this.

“First, fuck off. I’m your VP and you will damn well treat me with respect or I’ll put you in your place. Second, I didn’t do anything to her,” Houston said. “But I need to handle a situation downstairs and she’s not safe around our guests.”

No fucking shit. I nearly ripped Ginger from Houston’s arms. I cradled her close and kicked the door shut, not caring I’d closed it in Houston’s face. Then I carried my sweet girl over to the bed. “It’s all right, little mouse. No one will hurt you here.”

Fuck. Now I was referring to her that way. I didn’t think Houston had meant it as an endearment, even if it did seem to suit her.

Reno leaned up on one elbow. He’d reclined on the bed while I paced, pissed as fuck Houston had run off with Ginger. He eyed the two of us.

“What’s going on?”

I’d put some of the pieces together, but I wasn’t sure how right I was about any of it. The fact Houston brought her to me, and wanted to go talk to the men downstairs meant I was probably right. The man had done a one eighty when it came to Ginger. Instead of acting like he hated her, it sounded like he was about to go off and defend her. What the fuck was going on? Did I dare ask her?

The last thing I wanted to do was traumatize her even more.

She licked her lips and refused to hold my gaze. “The men downstairs were ones I knew. From before I came here.”

Reno got up and came closer to us. He reached out and cupped Ginger’s cheek. “The ones who hurt you.”

He didn’t asked. No, he simply stated a fact. It seemed I wasn’t the only one who’d pieced a few things together. Did everyone downstairs know what happened to Ginger? I didn’t think she’d like it. No, she wanted to be strong. To stand on her own two feet. Anyone who met her would know that much. She exuded a confidence most young women lacked these days.

“The scar on my stomach is from an abortion,” Ginger said. “My uncle would give me to different men to pay off his debts. The men downstairs… they hurt me the most. And they didn’t always use condoms. The medical clinic tested me before I came to the clubhouse. You don’t have to worry about me having given anyone a disease or something.”

I urged Ginger to the center of the bed and slid in next to her. Reno took the other side, and we caged her between us again. He pulled the blankets over us and we cuddled Ginger. I wasn’t sure who needed this more right now. Her or us. She was our missing piece. The one woman meant to stand between us, to love us the way we’d love her. Knowing how badly she’d been hurt tore me up inside.

“We won’t let them hurt you,” Reno murmurs, running his hand up and down her arm.

“You may not have a choice,” Ginger said. “I’m club property, which means Vegas will decide what to do with me. I doubt he’ll want me to stay. He’s never liked me. You saw him earlier. He laughed at me.”

Yeah, I’d noticed. I’d wanted to knock his teeth down his throat, which was why I’d chased after Ginger instead. It had seemed to be the safer option.

“Why would he kick you out?” I asked.

“I’m not like the other women here. Vegas will realize I’ve been faking it. He won’t want me around, and neither will your brothers.” Ginger sighed and turned her face into me, breathing me in. “At least I had a place to stay for a little while. I got a reprieve from the monsters in my past. It’s more than I’ve ever had before.”

I kissed her forehead. “Try to sleep. We’ll keep watch. No one will take you away, or hurt you.”

It took a few minutes before Ginger could relax. Once she did, her eyes slid shut and within moments, she was asleep. Not once did she stir. Reno held my gaze, and I knew he was thinking the same thing as me. It didn’t matter what the club thought. We would make her our old lady. No one in the Dark Wrath had one. Vegas had started this club when he’d gotten out of the military. That was more than two decades ago. He’d only recruited single men, which meant the only women at the clubhouse were the whores.

“She’s ours,” Reno said.

“Yeah, she is. Not sure what we’ll have to do to convince the others. Or her for that matter. I don’t think our Ginger thinks very highly of herself. None of this was her fault. Not what she’s been through since she came here, and not what happened when she was younger. Her uncle should have protected her.”

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