Page 114 of Choices

“I didn’t mean what I said. I don’t even know Michael,” she stammers, placing a hand over her stomach.

“You get one shot to be honest. And be grateful Cutter called me and not Pres. He’d have Monster pulling answers from you one tooth at a time.”

A wretched sob gurgles from her throat. “Rocco needs a mother, Liam. You can’t let them hurt me.”

“Calm the fuck down. No one is going to hurt you.” I blow out a frustrated breath. Scrubbing a hand across my forehead, I check my phone again.

Nothing.

“That’s not true.” Callan takes a step closer, folding his arms and tilting his head. “Do you really think Michael Carnell would let you keep his kid?”

Bristling, a crack of fear flashes over her features. “It’s my decision.” Her eyes dart between us like a ping-pong ball.

“Don’t be naïve, Claire. You fucking know better than to act ignorant. You’re a biker bitch who’s married and already has a kid. Michael Senior would never allow you to dirty his bloodline,” I say coldly.

Lips trembling, she angrily swipes a fallen tear. “I don’t have to tell him.” Her complexion turns almost green. She looks like she’s about to throw up.

“No, you don’t, but if he finds out on his own or through someone you’ve told, you’re still going to end up in a body bag.” Callan lays it out straight. No tiptoeing around her.

“Liam,” she says my name like a plea. “I didn’t fuck him without protection. He insisted on wearing a condom” I’m not surprised. Michael is stupidly rich and in the public eye. Bitches try to get pregnant by him just to claim a check. If I were him, I’d double-wrap my junk.

“You’re trying to scare me.” She pulls open my dresser drawer and yanks out one of my shirts, dragging it over her head like it’s a piece of armor that can prevent the words from penetrating. Vibrations shake her entire frame.

Take it off!my mind yells. Even though the paper says we’re married, her helping herself to my clothes pisses me off. If Kit does come and sees her in my shirt, it’s not going to go down well.

“You should be scared. And not just of the Carnells. You should be scared if Pres finds out about this kid’s paternity,” Callan informs her.

“Don’t tell Jericho about the baby,” she whispers.

“You’ve already announced it!” I bark, jabbing a finger toward the window. “Thinking it would bind me for another eighteen fucking years!”

“We don’t need to tell him about the father. This will all go away if you just say it’s yours.” She tightens her jaw. Spiteful eyes glare at me like I’m the one in the wrong here.

“Don’t put this on him. This is your mess. He’s cleaned up after you enough. Let’s not forget why the fuck Nicolas ended up dead. Do you really think you’ve been doing him a favor by not telling the Carnells about it?”

“I gave this club my loyalty. It’s a huge secret to keep.”

“It’s your huge fucking secret to keep. If you did loosen those lips, the Carnells wouldn’t thank you for it, they’d blame you, and anything Pres would do is nothing compared to what Michael Senior. He’d keep you alive as long as possible, inflicting so much pain and misery, you’d forget you ever had a life outside of the torture until you’re so far gone, you’d barely resemble a person.”

“I’d never tell anyone.” Her ass hits the bed, legs weak and body shaking.

“We can’t take that risk. You went and made shit way more complicated. Michael Junior is already asking questions about Nicolas being here. We need to stem the bleeding.”

“It’s not Michael’s,” she says, almost inaudible. “I was lying about that.”

I don’t believe my ears. A burst of anger rushes through me. “What?” I ask, fury making my voice shake.

Callan stills beside me, the killer in him speaking without words to the killer in me.She’s playing games. Challenging us.

“Are you even pregnant?” he asks incredulously, his face screwing up like the words taste bad in his mouth.

“Yes.” Hair falls around her face as she bows her head.

Music from outside suddenly gets louder, filtering through the vents as the party continues without us. I should be out there with Rocco and pining after Kit, knowing she’ll be waiting for me at the end of the day. Now, it’s all fucked.

“Why all the drama and lies?” Callan cracks his knuckles, asking the burning question.

“I was scared. Liam’s leaving me. He’s fucking your sister. Did you know that?” The words leave her lips like poisonous darts. If he didn’t already know, they might have stuck. But fuck her and everything I’ve done for her. She’s a selfish, toxic cunt who will take and take to get what she wants.

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