Tomorrow, I’d have a drink before bed.
Chapter 3
Tate
My new favorite place in all of Mayhem was my shop, GET INK’D. This time of day, when the guys were probably still sleeping from a long night of drinking and fucking at the clubhouse, the place was quiet. I was alone to survey this thing I’d built with my hands. And the government’s money. Looking around the deep red chairs, the shiny chrome tattoo guns and the disinfecting station. Yep, this was all mine and no one could take it away.
As I unpacked the alcohol pads and bandages, I thought about my brother’s life with Jana. They’d gone through some shit to get together, but somehow they’d come out the other side stronger and happier. Never in my life would I have imagined that lovey-dovey shit would appeal to me – marriage and ankle biters.
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Hell, before I’d gone to prison I was a playboy through and through. There was a different girl, sometimes two, in my bed wherever and whenever I wanted and I was fucking proud of it. But now, that shit felt like a waste of time and I couldn’t see why. I was sure some headshrinker would tell me it had to do with a need to make shit count and not waste my time since so much of it had been stolen from me.
Cross’s words had pissed me off too, like I didn’t want to get laid. What red-blooded man with a working cock wouldn’t want to bury himself into a warm, willing cunt? But the Reckless Bitches weren’t doing it for me and the last thing I wanted was to go be a freak show at a bar or restaurant. Teddy was interesting, but I couldn’t shit where I ate. She was like family and that meant she was off limits.
So, it was just me and my hand, like it had been for the past six years.
And that thought made me angry all over again. I’d give anything to get over the fucking anger. It didn’t help shit and I worried that it might land me back to a fucking cage. I needed to deal with it, but I couldn’t bring myself to see a shrink, no matter how much Max pushed. He’d given me the number of his doctor, but I wasn’t ready to bear my soul to Dr. Singh. Not yet.
The bell chimed and I looked up, a groan following nanoseconds later as one of the Reckless Bitches sauntered in wearing a skintight mini-skirt and one of those bustier tops that showed off her leathery skin from too many hours in a tanning bed. “Hey, Golden Boy,” she cooed, doing her best to sound like a woman half her age.
“What do you want, Sheena?”
“You,” she said, her gaze as straightforward as her words.
I sighed and clenched my fists. “I don’t have time for your games. State your business or leave.”
She pouted and came closer until her tits rubbed up against my arm, pushing up on the balls of her feet in an attempt to nibble my ear, but I stepped back and she nearly fell. “I’m here for you, Golden Boy. For anything you want.”
I took several deep breaths and counted back from ten, the way one of the students who’d help free me had taught when my anger got the better of me. I put three feet between us and crossed my arms. “I’m not fucking around with you, Sheena.”
She flicked her brown hair full of too many acid-blonde streaks behind her shoulders and closed the gap between us, sliding the tips of her fingers into the waistband of my jeans. “I said anything, Golden Boy. You’ve been locked up a long time,” she began and licked her lips.
I started counting back from twenty.
“Unless, maybe you love cock now.”
My hand wrapped around her wrist and pushed her back until she stumbled. “Get the fuck out of here.”
“But Golden Boy,” she began, long red nails sliding up and down my chest.
“I said, get the fuck out! Now! Or I swear to fuckin’ God I will put you out.”
She frowned, a look of hell in her brown gaze. “Damn, Tate! You used to be fun. Hot and always up for a good time. But now you’re just a boring piece of shit and I’m not the only one who thinks so.”
I laughed, like that was supposed to hurt my damn feelings. “Yeah and you’re still the ugly bitch you always were. Now get the fuck out and don’t come near me again!”
She gasped and hurried out, nearly bumping into Max as he pulled open the door.
Max stepped back to let Sheena pass with an amused smirk on his face. “What the hell was that about?”
I shrugged. “Same old Reckless Bitch bullshit.” I smacked the wall beside me with more force than I intended, making a small dent in the wall. “Fuck! This is why the fuck I haven’t been around the clubhouse. I can’t get a fucking moment of peace there! Shit!”
“You need to calm down Tate or you won’t be able to focus on your business. Don’t let some stupid shit distract you. This is your shot. Keep your eye on the prize.”
I nodded, flexing my hands to stop from punching a hole in the goddamn wall. Max was right. I had a to-do list as long as my arm. It kinda pissed me off that he had to remind me of what was important but that was why Max was the man. He had my back no matter what. Losing it over a piece of trash like Sheena? What was I thinking? She was nothing to me. But I couldn’t let Max think he had the upper hand with me.
“What would you know about starting a business? Think you’re my fuckin’ boss now?”