Page 201 of Malice and Surrender
“Hey, Snake! Um…isn’t that your old lady on the television?” Kickstand yelled over the noise, and just like that, the room fell silent. “Holy shit! It is. What the hell is she doing on that guy’s arm? Isn’t he some rockstar or something?”
Oh, this was my worst nightmare. If there was a God, he knew how to fuck with me in all the worst ways. I lifted my head to the massive television that typically showed sports or a car restoration show, but nope, not tonight. Of course, someone had to turn to the awards show, and there they were, Jace and Raine, smiling for cameras.
She looked fucking stunning, and my mouth fell open as I soaked her in. She was wearing a shimmery blue dress the same color as her eyes that sparkled under the lights and clung to every one of her delicious curves. It was cut so low in the front that there was a perfect V that left very little to the imagination. The dress was long with a slit up the side, exposing one leg, and showed off the matching shoes. Her hair was styled in an adorable look that showed off her neck and the jewelry I had no doubt Jace bought for her. My mouth ran dry, the shock of her perfection leaving me speechless.
She looked like a queen and as magical as the nickname I’d given her years ago. My heart beat faster in my chest, my breathing harsh as I tried to draw a deep breath. In the bright lights on Jace Everly’s arm, she looked like she’d always belonged. And the fear of not being enough tried to claw its way to the front of my brain.
“Let’s kill him!” Kickstand yelled, setting off a chain of hollering.
“Yeah, no one touches one of our old ladies and gets away with it.” The crowd of a hundred or more stood in a single motion and headed for the artillery room like a wave coming into shore.
“Shit, shit, shit,” I mumbled under my breath and slid off my stool.
“Wait!” There were still a few calls for murder, one unsurprisingly coming from Tanner. “I knew she was going to be there,” I said and hoped they would leave it at that. I walked around a few tables and turned to face the room, making sure the exit was right behind me for when this hell was over.
“Does that mean she’s no longer your old lady,” Tanner asked. “Is she fair game?”
I was going to kill him.
“No,” I growled in his direction and slowly turned to glare at the massive group staring at me. This felt very much like my drunken dancing on the bar night…what I could remember of it anyway.
“Raine is still my old lady.” The group blinked like they were hooked to the same remote control. Fuck they were going to make me say it.
“Well, don’t leave us hanging, Snake. What’s going on,” Chase asked from where he was sitting playing cards.
This felt worse than everyone staring at me on my first day in prison, and that was saying something. I cleared my throat and rolled out my shoulders. My eyes found Roach and then Mannix.
“I’m in a relationship with Raine and two guys,” I said, and no one moved.
Roach’s mouth hit the floor, and I felt the heat creeping up my neck. It wasn’t that there weren’t guys in the clubhouse that liked other guys. It was the fact that this was me. I was a jealous, possessive asshole, and I’d made a very loud statement by fucking Raine in here. It was the kind of statement that said my hands only, and that went for inside the club and out.
“So, you’re fucking that hot ass woman and fucking the hot ass rock star,” Tanner asked, and I rolled my eyes in his direction. “Holy fuck, you are. You’re my mother fucking superhero. I want to be you when I grow up. Damn! Where’s my foursome ladies and gents,” Tanner yelled, and for the first time, I was happy Tanner was crazier than I was because the tension diffused like a balloon popping.
“To be clear, you’re good with this,” Chase asked, pointing at the television showing Raine and Jace kissing. I may still murder him when they got back for kissing her like that and putting me through this, but I sighed and nodded.
“Yes, sorta, but….” I paused as my feet vibrated. I looked around the room. “Did you all feel that?” There was a soft rumbling sound, and I turned my head to listen. Was this a gas leak?
“Feel what,” Chase asked, standing from the table.
“He looks like his head is going to twist right off his body,” Tanner joked.
“Not the time Tanner,” Chase said before I could. “What do you feel, Snake?”
“There is an intermittent rumbling and….” The floor vibrated again, but this time so did the walls and dirt sprinkled down from the ceiling. “That.”
Pulling my gun, I turned and ran down the stairs, taking them two at a time. The entire room was on the move and following behind me. At the next church meeting, I would bring up how this place was a death trap waiting to happen. We needed a second or even third set of stairs.
The sounds were louder down on the lower level, and it definitely seemed like explosions. I pushed open the metal door just enough to peer out and not get shot if this was an ambush.
“What the fuck is going on out there,” Mannix asked at the sound of gunfire.
“I’m not sure. Be ready for anything,” I said and darted out the door.
When the door wasn’t pelted with a rain of bullets, I turned toward the sounds which were coming from the amusement park. That wasn’t normal, but it seemed fitting. With Wilder, anything was possible. I stopped in my tracks as an explosion erupted from under the old Teacups ride and watched a screaming man that seemed to be chased by a flying pink teacup. I cringed as the man and the teacup slammed into an old upright support of a rollercoaster before crashing to the hard concrete below. As if to add insult to injury, the ride groaned and bent in half, the top landing on the already still man, effectively squishing him like a bug.
“Wow, that was….”
“Gnarly as fuck,” Tanner said. I couldn’t even be bothered looking at him.
