Awaken The Beast: Snakes Henchmen MC Page 6

  Sophie

  I stare at him from across the room, the man I can’t stop thinking about. He’s so handsome it makes my heart ache. He’s six-foot-three, full of muscle, dark hair, brown eyes, and stands with such confidence it would make Dracula jealous.

  I’ve lusted after him for years — my brother’s best friend. You’re not supposed to want your brother’s friends, my big sister; Nova told me there’s some law or something that forbids it. Not a real law, but an unspoken one.

  I guess that’s why I have never made a move on him.

  He’s never made one on me either.

  However, I know that he’s finally noticed me.

  This past year, he’s looked at me differently. He’s noticed the woman I have become. All the working out I do has shaped my body, my boobs aren’t big, but they never have been. My ass is big, though, my thighs a little on the thick side. My waist is slim, and I’m not short. I’m five-seven without heels.

  I first realized he’d noticed me a couple of months ago. We were at a hog roast here at the clubhouse, my Daddy’s last as president. I’d brought a guy with me, a guy who was nothing but a friend from school, a gay one. No one yet knows Philip is gay. He was the school jock, and they would have crucified him.

  I brought him to the hog roast because he needed a friend. He’s one of my best, and I’m one of the only two people he confessed to about his sexuality. The other is Julie, our best friend.

  Anyway, I was laughing at something Philip said, his arm around my shoulder when my eyes caught Bones. His eyes were narrowed, his hand so tight around his bottled beer that I thought it would shatter. He visibly ground his teeth. He was angry that I’d brought a man here. My fucking heart was pounding, my pussy along with it.

  He had to know that Philip was just my friend. I made it clear enough to everyone there that day. I wanted to talk to Bones, explain who Philip was, but I blinked, and he’d disappeared. He’s avoided me every day since, and it’s crushing me because I don’t know how much longer I can go on like this. I don’t know how much my heart can take.

  He’s been deliberately flaunting women in front of me. It fucking hurts seeing them wrapped around him, his hands on them. I stopped coming around the clubhouse because of it. Bones wanted to hurt me, and it worked. That’s why I’ve been looking at moving away with Julie.

  My family is so close-knit that I had decided not to go to college out of state. I wanted to stay here and go to a local college for cosmetically, which I have been for over a year, but I’m not sure I can stay here anymore when my heart hurts like this.

  He’s looking at me again as I sit here in my jeans and a white blouse, drinking lemonade all alone. I’m not in the mood to talk to anyone. I’m happy my brother is home, I wouldn’t have missed VJ’s homecoming for anything, but I want to go home now.

  I abandon my lemonade and walk over to where my mother is standing with Willow, my eldest sister, nineteen years, my senior. “Mom, I think I’m gonna go. I have a headache.”

  “Oh, sweetheart. Are you going to be okay to drive?”

  I nod with a smile on my face.

  “You sure, Soph? I can take you if you’d like?”

  “No, it’s okay, Will, you know what Hilly is like if you leave her.” Hilly is Willow’s four-year-old daughter, and she’s extremely clingy to my sister. Hilly is also the image of her mother in every way. Like me, Hilly is much younger than her three older brothers. Noah is thirteen, Conner is twelve, and Curtis is ten.

  I kiss my mother’s and my sister’s cheek and leave. I wish I had somewhere else to go right now. I still live with my parents, but at almost twenty years of age, I don’t feel ready to move out just yet. That probably makes me sound childish, but I like living at home. Living by myself does not appeal to me right now.

  “Sophie, wait!”

  What the hell?

  I turn and almost smack right into Bones as he rushes after me.

  What the hell does he want?

  “I need to speak with you.”

  “About what?”

  He doesn’t answer me. He looks around to see if anyone is watching. No one is, so he grabs my arm and drags me into the alley at the side of the building.

  Again, what the fuck?

  Bones pushes me against the wall. “I’m sick of this, Soph.”

  “Sick of what? Have I done something wrong?” I watch him raking his fingers through his hair. I want to reach out and comb my fingers through that long hair as I pull him against my aching body.

  “I’m a bastard, Soph. I’ve done such bad things in my life.” I know this; he’s a biker, they’ve all done bad things. However, Ethan – Bones – Kallas, my half-Greek, half-American God is not as bad as he makes himself out to be.

  I’m not naïve to the world these men live in; I grew up in it; it’s the only life I know. So all what, they do, is normal to me. I’m the strong woman, and I am because of the men and women of this club and the things they’ve taught me. However, I am still a woman, and I hurt as much as anyone else. Hearing Bones bash himself is hurting me.

  “I don’t deserve anythin’ good in this world, but fuck if I don’t want you.”

  My mouth hangs open in shock.

  Did I fall asleep inside the clubhouse, bang my head, and now I’m dreaming?

  “Ethan,” I whisper his name, it draws his stare on me.

  He comes closer, hands against the wall either side of my head, trapping me. “That name belongs on your lips, panemorfi.”

  “What does that mean?” I ask him breathlessly.

  Bones smiles and slides his hand to my face. “Beautiful. It means beautiful.” The way he speaks the Greek language is beautiful. “You’re my beautiful rose, Sophie. For the past few months, you’re all I think about.”

  “I find that hard to believe when you flaunt all those women in front of me.”

  He chuckles, making me want to punch him out. Not that I could, but he’s making fun of me!

  “Don’t look so mad, Soph. I’m sorry I did that. I wanted to make you jealous. I had to know how you felt. I knew you wouldn’t tell me yourself.”

  “So, you sleep with any woman you can get your hands on? Smooth, Bones.” I fold my arms around myself and roll my eyes.

  “I didn’t sleep with any of them, Soph. Fuck, I haven’t been able even to think about fuckin’ anyone else but you for months.”

  Oh. My. God!

  “Tell me you don’t wanna be mine, and I swear to God above, that I’ll never bother you again.”

  I search his eyes for the lie, the joke he’s pulling on me. However, I see nothing but the truth. God, I could cry with how happy I feel right now!

  I slam my mouth against his, catching him off guard. I grab the back of his head and hold him to me. Bones kisses me back, kissing me as if his life depends upon it. It fucking feels like mine does right now.

  He pulls away gently, his forehead against mine. “Does that mean you...”

  “Yes.” I cut him off with a chuckle. “I have wanted you for so long, Ethan. I want to be yours. I want you to be mine.”

  “I am yours, beautiful, and you are mine... God, VJ’s gonna kill me. Not to mention your Dad, and...”

  I press my fingertips to his lips. “We’ll talk to them together. We’ll make them see that we want this. I’m safe with you, the man I have known for most of my life.”

  “Damn right, you are. I’ve spoken to Jett.”

  “You have?”

  Bones nods his head. “I spoke to him this morning. I told him how I feel, and that I wanted to claim you.”

  “And he agreed?” I swallow the lump in my throat. I know the answer already because there’s no way Bones would be doing this if Jett warned him off. However, my stomach still churns in case.

  “Jett told me to tell you how I feel, and if you feel the same way, then he won’t stand in our way.” I smile wide with excitement. Not that my big brother should have the right to tell me whom I can date, but he can force Bones to stay the hell away from me. “It ain’t gonna be easy, baby. VJ won’t understand.”

  “Maybe not, but I’ll make him understand. I want to be with you, that is all I have ever wanted. No matter how hard things seem, please don’t give up on me.”

  “Never. You’re worth the fight, Sophie. You’re worth it all.”

  The fight is going to be brutal. Of all the males in my family, it’s VJ that we have to worry about. He is literally the most dangerous man I have ever known. My own brother is a dangerous man on another level. Bones knows as well as everyone else just what VJ is capable of. I only hope somewhere in his cold heart that VJ loves me enough to let me be with the man I love.

  And I do love Bones. God, do I love him.

  Chapter Nine

  Chloe

  I cannot believe that bastard did that!

  How dare he fuck me like that and then tell the whole club that I am his woman!

  I thought Max was going to kill me!

  He didn’t come home with me; he stayed at the clubhouse. I just hope he didn’t confront VJ and get hurt. Not that I think VJ would harm Max, but I’m not sure Max wouldn’t do something to antagonize VJ over this.

  God, Max was so angry with me, so mad that his brother was the one I slept with last night. I mean, how the hell was I supposed to know who VJ was?

  All right, maybe I should have known, I’ve seen pictures of him. However, when I saw him in that club, he looked so different. Being in prison will do that to you, I suppose. He’s enormous, covered in ink and scars, and he’s beautiful in a very rugged kind of way.

  I don’t regret sleeping with VJ; it was the best night of my life. He made me feel things I didn’t know I was capable of, and he took away my fear of being with someone
like that again. Then when he took me against the wall in that room at the clubhouse... Oh my god! It was beyond amazing. I feel so different since it happened. I can’t explain it, yet I feel so good inside.

  It’s scaring me, though, I shouldn’t feel like this about a man I’ve known not even two days — a man, like VJ.

  Then there’s Max. As I said, he wouldn’t come home with me. He told me to go alone because he needed to speak with his brother about a few things. I asked Max not to make a big deal out of it, that VJ claiming me in front of everyone was just his way of trying to protect me from everyone else in the club. Maybe somehow VJ realized that I’m scared in case... Oh, I don’t know why the hell he did it. Max certainly believes he did it for his own gains.

  I know Max loves his brother, but I also know he thinks VJ is the worst kind of dangerous. However, I don’t feel scared of VJ in that way. Yeah, I’m scared that he could draw me into his world, make me fall for him, and then break my heart and not give a damn that he’s done so. However, I’m more scared of the fact that I don’t think I can fight this attraction between us.

  I want to fight it, but the thought of not having VJ in some way scares the shit out of me.

  After a long hot shower, I change into pajama shorts and a tank top, blow dry my hair, and then tie it up in a bun on top of my head. I’m creaming my face when the lights flicker in my room, letting me know the doorbell is ringing. I’m not too good at hearing the door, that’s why Max had this light system hooked up. He didn’t have to, but I was touched that he did.

  I look through the peephole. It’s Daisy, Max’s girlfriend. She only got home an hour ago from her trip to Europe, that’s why she couldn’t come to the clubhouse with us to welcome VJ home. Why is she here?

  Regardless, I smile because I could use some girl time.

  I open the door to her smiling face and usher her inside. I can’t hear what she’s saying because I don’t have my hearing aids in, without them, I am completely deaf. I always take them out while I’m showering, I learned early on that getting them wet sends loud white noise down my ears for hours after. I couldn’t stand it. It hurt my head way too much.

  “Just a sec, babe, I need to grab my hearing aids.”

  She nods at me with a smile on her face.

  I love Daisy, she’s amazing. She’s so pretty, dark hair that touches her ass, and it’s all real! Big brown eyes, slim but not in a too-skinny way. She has big breasts and a big butt, and she’s always dressed like she belongs on a catwalk, makeup and all.

  Daisy is one of those women who look polished even in sweats. Unfair is not the word. I couldn’t look that good if I tried, and believe me, I’ve tried.

  I envy her body shape like you wouldn’t believe. My breasts aren’t big, but my butt and thighs are. Okay, my backside isn’t big like Daisy’s, but it’s not small either.

  Although Daisy has told me more than once that she envies my shape, I always roll my eyes at her because I don’t see how she can when she looks the way she does.

  I love her and the way she loves Max. He loves her just as much. I watch them with each other sometimes and the way they’re so considerate of each other, and it makes my heart burst with love for them. Because their relationship is strong, there is nothing and no one who could ever tear them apart. They’ve loved each other since middle school, even if it took them a while to get together. They’re the two halves that make one whole.

  I doubt I’ll ever find a love like that; I’m not that lucky.

  “Drink?” She asks me that, but she’s already poured us both a glass of white wine.

  I nod and smile while attaching my right hearing aid. That’s better, I can hear her now.

  I take the glass from her and sit down on my super comfy couch. I freaking love this couch, huge and gray, soft and comfy. I often fall asleep on it. It’s like it has superpowers and sends me sleepy each time I’m sitting on it, which is probably a bad idea right now, but still.

  “Why didn’t you use your key?”

  “Well, I left my suitcase in the trunk of my car. My keys are in the suitcase, and I couldn’t be bothered to go back and get them.”

  I laugh out loud because that was the definition of lazy!

  “So, why are you sitting here with me? You just got back from your trip. Aren’t you tired?”

  She shrugs. “I am, but I wanted to spend the night with my man doing whatever he wants. I missed him. I’ve been away just over a week, and it felt like forever without him.” Well, that explains that. “So...” Here we go. Max called her and sent her here to talk to me about VJ. I just know it. “VJ, huh?” Yup, I was right.

  “What about him, Daisy?”

  “I think you know what. I get that you didn’t realize who VJ was the last night, but today? What the hell got into you?”

  “He did,” I mumble with a smirk behind my wine glass.

  “Chloe!” We both burst out laughing. It’s good to laugh; I don’t do it enough. “Girl, really?”

  “I know Max is pissed with me about this, but I can’t seem to control myself around VJ, Daisy. It’s like he has these voodoo powers that just suck me in.” I sigh and lean my head back against the couch for a second.

  “I’m not here to tell you that you can’t have fun, Chlo. In fact, I think fun is just what you need. However, do you know anything about VJ and what he’s really like?”

  I do know what he’s like. Max explained just what VJ was like, we sat one evening drinking and talking about his big brother in prison. I won’t lie, when Max told me how VJ felt nothing, cared about nothing, didn’t even know what the hell love was all about, I thought to myself that he must be a complete monster. Especially after hearing how he beat that guy almost to death.

  I mean, what kind of man does that?

  Bikers, I suppose.

  However, I wondered how a person could go about their life, not feeling the things regular people feel.

  How could VJ never feel hurt the way others do?

  How could he never feel, love the way others do?

  It boggled my mind because I’ve never met a person like that before.

  Max told me that VJ saw the world completely different from everyone else. He didn’t understand how his siblings could get married and show their other halves love the way they do. He didn’t even understand how they could become parents and idolize their child.

  Then Max drummed it into me again outside the clubhouse. It’s not that I didn’t believe him before, and he didn’t need to tell me again. However, I guess meeting VJ for the first time; Max wanted me to know it was all very true and very real.

  VJ is so detached from feeling anything other than rage and anger, even obsession in some ways, that Max feared his brother would never live a normal life. VJ would never fall in love because he isn’t capable of understanding the emotion. The only thing he is capable of is being possessive of people, his family mainly.

  That told me that VJ feels love. He cares about his family, even to the extent he’d kill for them. He may think he isn’t capable of love, even those around him may feel the same thing, but I don’t believe it for one second. All VJ needs is one particular person to show him that he’s more than whom he thinks he is, just one person to show him that they understand him and he’ll be able to show it in return.

  I’m not saying that I’m that person, in fact, I know I’m not strong enough for that, but I do hope VJ finds that person soon. Every person deserves to know love, even if they don’t fully understand the emotion.

  “I know what VJ is like, Daisy, Max told me everything about him.”

  “I’m a little offended VJ thought Max had finished with me and was with you.” I’m trying not to laugh at her. She’s not really mad about it, but I can understand why Daisy’s a little offended. “VJ knows how much Max and I love each other, how much we’ve always loved each other.”

  “Maybe he just doesn’t understand why you two have been together so long. You said yourself that VJ doesn’t feel those things. Perhaps he doesn’t know how to get his head around it.”

  “I know.” She sighs. “That’s why Max and I are worried about you hanging around VJ.”

  “I know you think I’m stupid just as Max does for what I did today, but I couldn’t help it.”