“I’ll do just that, Rachel,” Stoney proclaims as he sits on the bed facing me. “I’m not good at this shit, so I’m goin’ to do my best to explain it for you to understand me. When it comes to women, I don’t trust them, none of them besides the ones I allow myself to. Marie, Horse’s mom, she’s a real bitch who left us because she decided partying was more important than raising her son. I swore then and there, I’d never take an ol’ lady or anyone on who wasn’t a clubwhore or some random pussy.”
Stoney holds his hand up when I start to open my mouth. “Let me finish this, Doll,” he says.
“When you mentioned Boss earlier, yeah, it pissed me the fuck off but not for the reasons you think. She’s the Prez of the Iron Vex MC and we’d agreed on an alliance. While we may still have that alliance, she and I, we’ve never gotten along, never will. Yeah, we fucked, but it was a hate fuck, nothing more.
“At first, I didn’t have a very high opinion of Boss. She’s a woman in a man’s world trying to show she has more balls than everyone else. But at the same time, I wanted to commend her for her strength in being able to handle what she does. She and I fucked twice, that was it. Both times were nothing more.” The way he stares directly into my eyes, I know in my gut he’s telling the truth. I still think he had to have felt something for her, but that may just be me being jealous because this man is my fantasy man. The one I’ve always wanted.
“Now you, Doll, you’re completely different. When I claimed you as property, I meant it to be the same as ol’ lady but I’ve always swore I’d never have one. Trust doesn’t come easy and during the past several weeks while I was at Twister and Horse’s charter, my mind kept coming back to you and I couldn’t think of anything else. I want you as my ol’ lady. I want you in my life.
“But you doing stupid shit, like you did leaving the protection of the clubhouse, when I’m not here to protect you stops,” he growls the last words.
Speechless, I let his words sink in as my heart pounds against my chest. Licking my lips, I take a deep breath. “I get you have issues with women, and I’ll agree with you, some women can be vindictive, manipulating, conniving bitches. My own mom was one, so I get it,” I murmured.
“Yeah, Rachel, your mom was one of the biggest bitches any of us here met,” he grumbles. “What I’m trying to say is you are what I want in my life. I watched my son all but crumble this past month yet at the same time stood strong for his ol’ lady in a time that was stressful for the both of them. As I saw the two of them deal with all that, I swore it would be the end for them. Never thought almost losing their son would bring them even closer. I’ve seen men break under that kind of pressure. Same as women. But the women always seemed to want to blame everything on the men.”
“Wait, what are you talking about they almost lost their son?” I ask in confusion.
“Shit, you don’t know, do you,” he says stiffly. “It’s the reason I left the way I did. Hades’ sister, Ally, and Kenny were attacked. Kenny ended up hurt really bad and had to have an emergency c-section. Caden was born way too fuckin’ early, but he’s a fighter and he fought. Came home right before Shadow called, telling me you’d escaped.”
“Oh my God, I wish I’d known. I’m so sorry,” I whisper.
“No one told you,” he asks.
Glancing away from him, I say, “No, because I’m only your property.”
20
Stoney
Rachel’s words gut me. I don’t need to hear any more to know exactly why she didn’t want to answer any of my calls and dodged me. I can’t even be pissed at my brothers— they were just doing what they’d do if it were any other brother who claimed someone as property.
Motherfucker, I’m a dumbass.
Still though, some of the other shit shouldn’t have happened. That’s another thing I don’t need nor want her to tell me about. The clubwhores will learn when we go to the clubhouse later where their place really is, and that’s beneath Rachel. She’s goin’ to be what she was always meant to be— my ol’ lady, my woman, and the fuckin’ queen over those bitches. They don’t like it, they can get the fuck out.
“Doll, I’m sorry,” I say, reaching out and gripping her chin to bring her eyes back to mine. “I swear, I’ll make it up to you.”
Shrugging her shoulders, Rachel tries to act as if it doesn’t bother her, but I can see the hurt behind the tough exterior. “There’s nothing to make up for. I listened to what you said. But still, it doesn’t change anything,” she whispers.
What the fuck? Did she not get what I said, that I want her?
“Rachel, it does change things. It changes everything,” I murmur, leaning in to press my forehead to hers. “You want to know something?”
“What?” she asks quietly.
“If I’d known you had a crush on me before you’d left, I might not have let you leave for college,” I say.
“I highly doubt that,” she mutters as her body draws taunt under my touch.
“Doubt me? How so?” I ask.
“Because you never once saw me. And you were and probably still are enjoying all the women who surround you,” she
