She froze when she glanced up after coming through the kitchen doorway.
“There she is now. How have you been, Bliss?”
Bliss’s fingers trembled. She didn’t feel the hot liquid scalding her fingers or care that it dripped to the carpet they had just cleaned for the holidays. Her attention was focused on the man sprawled comfortably on the couch, making himself at home.
She had to clear her throat a couple of times to force the strangled greeting out.
“Hi, Stark.”
Chapter 11
“You’re burning yourself!” Ginny jumped up from the couch where she had been sitting next to the biker Bliss had hoped never to see again. She took two of the cups, gingerly handing one to Stark then setting hers on the end table. “I’ll get some paper towels and an ice pack for your hand.”
Bliss didn’t try to stop her.
Moving farther into the room, she sat down on the chair across from the couch, setting her mug on the coffee table.
“Why are you here?”
“To see you, of course. I heard you’re not with The Last Riders anymore. That true?”
Bliss wildly thought about lying for a brief second, but she knew he wouldn’t be there if he wasn’t already sure of his facts. “Yes.”
She wanted to scream. She was nailing her own coffin closed.
The grin on his smug face confirmed the fears churning in her stomach.
Before either of them could say anything else, Ginny came back into the room, handing her some ice.
Bliss carefully wiped her sticky hand off before placing the ice pack on the angry red burn.
“Are you okay?”
“Yes,” Bliss lied. She needed to get Ginny out of the room before Stark showed his true colors. “If you’re still in the mood, do you mind running to the diner and picking up some burgers?”
“All right. Would you like me to get you one, Stark?”
“No!” Bliss forced herself to calm her panicked voice. The last thing she wanted was to alert Ginny that something was wrong, or Stark wouldn’t let her leave. “He told me he can’t stay long.”
“That’s a shame. He told me while you were in the kitchen that you’re old friends.”
Bliss wouldn’t call what she and Stark had shared a friendship.
“I’ll be right back,” she promised, picking up her purse.
“Take your time.” Bliss gave her the only warning she could without making it obvious.
Stark coldly watched the two of them with calculating eyes, and she tensed. If he so much as made a move to try to stop Ginny, she would throw the mug of cocoa at him, giving the other woman enough time to hopefully get out the door.
He sat still, a smirk on his mouth as if he could read her mind.
She didn’t break eye contact with him until she heard the door close behind Ginny.
“You afraid I’ll hurt her?”
“I know you would.”
He shook his head at her. “You’re still the same stupid bitch you always were. You should know I do my homework better than that. She works for The Last Riders. Best friends with Lucky’s wife.”
He had done his homework. The only thing that had kept her safe from the Devil’s Rejects had been their fear of The Last Riders. Ginny fell under the protection of the club, while hers had been withdrawn. She was a sitting duck.
She should have run as soon as the club had thrown her out; however, she hadn’t been able to bear the thought of being away from them without even the possibility of catching glimpses of them. She had also hoped she had been with The Last Riders long enough that Stark would have lost interest and quit checking up on her. That weakness was going to cost her the very freedom she had gained when The Last Riders had helped her escape from Stark in the first place.
“What do you want?”
“What do you think? I’m going to make it a no-brainer for you. I’ll give you five minutes to grab what you want to take with you. If that sexy bitch comes back before we’re out of here, both of you will be leaving with me.”
Bliss didn’t doubt him for a second. She was sure he wouldn’t have shown up at her front door without backup waiting outside.
To Stark, she was a possession, like his boots and bike. He had told her one time, when she had come to after one of his chokeholds, that she would never get away from him.
“If you die, bitch, I’ll burn your fucking body and keep your ashes on my bedside table. When I die, the brothers will bury your ashes with me. You’ve been mine since you were fifteen, and you’ll fucking die that way.”
Bliss stood, going to the steps. She wouldn’t take a chance with Ginny’s safety. Hell was waiting for the young woman if Bliss didn’t follow his order.
Her foot was on the first step when the doorbell rang. Thinking it was one of Stark’s men, she answered the door to find Drake on the doorstep.