Page 57 of Bound by Family
He doesn’t.
“We have a meeting and need to figure out what to do with you,” Pops says with a small smile tipping his lip. His long, black beard has some gray mixed in, the same as his hair. His eyes, though, are powder blue and stand out intently. He appears strong, yet under it he looks a bit tired.
“Can’t I stay here?” I look over my shoulder at Cooper.
“Yeah, but I don’t want you here alone until we figure out what the fuck is going on. We have our own mess to deal with, with the Red Devils. Now we’re in a deeper mess until we figure out what trouble Wolf has put you in.”
“You really don’t think he singled me out or anything, do you? I mean, he wanted me to be part of the club and … you know.” I can’t say the words. The thought of having sex with Sterling or anyone in that club makes my stomach roil.
“What do you think?” Cooper responds.
That roil turns more.
“Bristyl, are you okay?” One of the guys who looks a lot like Cooper comes up to me. “Son, she’s turnin’ pale.”
My head feels light. I shake myself clear. No way in hell am I passing out or doing something stupid.
I suck in a deep breath. “Can I please have some water?”
The big guy beside me twists off a cap on a bottle and hands it to me.
“Thanks.” Taking a few sips, my equilibrium comes back on track. Focus, that’s what needs to be done right now.
The guy smiles, and it reminds me so much of Cooper. “Are you Cooper’s dad?”
The man laughs. “That obvious, huh?”
“The smile. It’s the same.”
The arms around me tighten. “That’s my ol’ man. Cruz, they call him.”
I look at his cut and see it has no other title on it, so his rank is just a member, like Cooper.
“Hi.”
These men have to think I’m the most pitiful thing.
“Got some color back in your cheeks,” Cruz says, rising. “Coop, you’ve gotta come. No choice. We can have Ryker, Green, and Jacks stay back with her.”
“Babysitting duty?” Ryker whines, and my eyes cut to him.
“I don’t need a babysitter.”
“Good, because I’m not the sittin’ type,” Ryker fires back.
“Low man on the totem pole. Left the prospects back at the club,” the guy who hit on me at the rally says. His cut readsDagger. Geez, I wonder if that means he’s good with a blade. I sure as hell don’t want to find out.
“Seriously, you’re pullin’ that card?” Ryker retorts. He must have balls of steel, because the scary man, whose cut readsRhys,doesn’t look happy.
“Not pullin’ shit. It is what it is. Get the fuck over it,” Dagger fires back.
“Alright, cut the bullshit,” Pops interjects. “This is what’s happenin’. Coop, you come with us. Derek, Jacks, and Ryker are stayin’ here, watchin’ your brother’s woman. And if you got a fuckin’ problem with that, thenwegot problems.”
The tension in the room gets thick, so much so that the hair on my arms raise. It makes me wonder how often Ryker has an opinion that the guys don’t like and if they’re tired of his shit.
“Fine, but I get a shot when we figure out what the fuck’s goin’ on.”
Cooper chuckles behind me, and I wonder what the “shot” means. A bullet? I don’t want to know.
