I pressed my hands down, glad to find they were willing to hold my strength, moving to stand.
"Th-th-third?" I asked, watching with a smile as she planted one hand, pushed, and pretty much just flopped onto her back. If there was ever a satisfying sight for a man, it was a woman who had no bones after he fucked her properly.
"Well... um... when West was going through the freezer earlier... I... am... well, there was a tub of brownie avalanche ice cream. I mean, it's probably someone else's. But on the off-chance that it is just communal ice cream, I was thinking maybe we could share it?" she asked, eyes bright at the idea.
"Y-y-you g-got it," I told her, heading to the bathroom, cleaning up, slipping into pajama pants and a tee, then heading back out.
She was scooting up the bed with motions resembling a sloth, flicking the blankets over her naked body as I opened the door to go grab her food.
As anticipated, West and Vance had invited Huck to hang back. As there always was when young and interested bikers seeking them, pretty girls were easy to find and bring back to the clubhouse. The place reeked of whiskey and beer and the sickly sweet mixer someone had opened on the bar.
Music thumped from the speakers, something the women put on because I knew West and Vance - and I imagined Huck - were not the biggest fans of that hip-hop/pop hybrid style of music. But the girls liked it. And the girls were shaking around to it. Which was likely the only thing keeping the guys from demanding they put something else on.
I jerked my chin at them as I moved into the kitchen, grabbing the ice cream and two spoons.
On my way back out, I could hear Huck's distinct gravel-like voice mumbling, "I'm considering it. It's a lot to think about. Hey, sugar, why don't you come over here?" he asked the redhead, giving her a slow, lazy smile that - by the looks of things - melted her. She practically ran over to him.
West was already pulling the blonde over onto his lap.
And Vance, well, he was giving the black-haired woman an almost sad look.
"Hey," West called as the blonde stroked his beard. "That's my ice cream."
"N-not a-a-anymore."
I didn't even think about it.
It just... came out.
Naturally.
Without the gut-punch of insecurity I believed would accompany it.
Huck had no reaction.
He didn't know me from Adam.
It wouldn't faze him that I stuttered.
But West and Vance both stared at me, their mouths parted slightly.
It was then I knew for absolute certain that Reign and Roan and Liv and Roderick hadn't shared my story, hadn't let everyone in on why I didn't speak.
If I ever doubted their loyalty as brothers - and best friends - it all fell away with the knowledge that I could trust them implicitly, that I was maybe a bit of a fool to have ever doubted it.
West was the one who recovered first.
"Fine, but you're replacing it," he said, letting it slide.
For someone who could sometimes be somewhat insensitive, it never ceased to amaze me how he handled some heavier things with care and tact. It all added to the mystery that was West.
"W-will d-d-do," I agreed, figuring now that the secret was out, there was no use moving backward.
I wondered when - or if - the truth would have ever come out had Annie not walked into my life.
As I moved back into our room, finding her sitting up in the bed waiting for me, eyes dreamy, smile soft and sweet, hair sex-messy, I knew the the answer.
It never would have.
She was the only reason it did.
That, well, that was pretty fucking huge, wasn't it?ELEVENAnnieOnly one of my clients gave me an earful for taking off without warning, for inconveniencing them, going on and on about leaving me a bad review online.
My stomach was in my throat through the entire tongue lashing. But I could at least smile at the end of the call.
I didn't have an online presence for my business.
The others, though, actually offered me their well wishes, told me they hoped everything worked out alright, were eager to get back on the schedule for dog walking and guitar lessons.
As much as I genuinely did enjoy spending time at the clubhouse, meeting the men, hanging out with some of the women who popped in and out between work or errands or dropping kids here or there, it had been almost a full week, and I found myself antsy to get back to real life.
Time at the club felt something like a vacation instead. And, well, there wasn't a whole lot of privacy.
It was never until the sex was over that I seemed to remember we weren't exactly alone. Sure, while we were all adults and we all had sex, it still felt undeniably awkward to walk into the kitchen the next morning to find some of the guys there. Especially some of the older club members who I hadn't really interacted with as much as I had with Vance and West and even Colson and Cyrus.