Harper and Ivy are sitting together and as soon as Ivy sees Kace her face flashes with anger. I laugh and turn to him. “Damn, what the fuck did you do?”
“Nothing, fuck. I told her it wasn’t safe and she needed to come with us. She started screaming, trying to hit me, and shit,” he says, crossing his arms.
“Well, you need to come make nice.”
We get to the table they are sitting at and I lean down, pressing a kiss to Harper’s soft lips. “Hey, babe.” I lean over and kiss Ivy’s cheek. “Hey, sweetheart, sorry we had to get you outta there so fast. You alright?”
“Hey, Zane, I’m doing alright.” Her eyes flash to Kace and pure hatred fills them. “I’d rather be at home, but someone dragged me out.”
“What the fuck are you so pissed at me for? I’m trying to help you,” Kaces growls.
“You always drag women out of their homes when they tell you no? Isn’t that what you guys are good for, showing women no respect?” she yells.
“Hey, that’s a fucking stereotype and it’s a bullshit one. You’ll never find guys more loyal or respectful of women,” Harper says.
Ivy stands up and waves her hand around the club. She’s pointing out all the men hanging around the stage. All the chicks on stage with their tits out, shaking their asses. “Oh yeah, it’s extremely clear.”
Finn drops off a couple of beers and I sit down, wrapping my arm around Harper’s shoulders. “A strip club is a legitimate business. The girls make great money and they aren’t forced to be here, they want to be here. Just because this is our business, doesn’t mean we don’t respect women.”
“Just drink your beer and relax,” Kace says, pushing a bottle closer to Ivy.
“I’m good,” she retorts, pushing it back.
I look over at Harper and she shrugs. “We’re gonna order some food, do you want to wait until you eat?” I ask.
“Nope,” she says.
Harper laughs lightly and reaches out to touch her hand. “Do you want something else to drink?”
“Do you not drink?” Kace questions, throwing back his beer.
Ivy turns her heated eyes to him. “I drink, I just don’t take free drinks from men in a strange bar after they’ve kidnapped me,” she hisses.
We all laugh, but she finds no humor in the situation. “I didn’t fucking kidnap you, fuck,” Kace growls.
At that exact moment Riley pulls a chair over. “Hey, why’s the chick you kidnapped look so pissed?”
“I didn’t fucking kidnap her,” Kace yells, getting up to go to the bar.
We are all laughing, until Harper hits me and Riley. “Alright guys come on. Kace is pissed and Ivy is scared.”
“Why the hell are you scared? We didn’t really kidnap you, I was fucking around,” Riley says.
“Shut up, Harper,” she whispers.
My muscles tighten and I pull Harper closer. What the fuck are they hiding? Did more happen and she doesn’t want me to know? “What the fuck is going on?” I ask, looking between them.
Kace comes back with shots for us all, except Ivy. I toss mine back, but my eyes never leave Harper’s.
“This isn’t a world or life that Ivy wants to be around. It’s different and scary for her. She had a normal life,” Harper says, giving Ivy an apologetic face.
“You’re scared of us?” Kace asks, frowning.
“Yes, alright? Is that what you want to hear?” Ivy replies as her brown eyes narrow at Harper.
I look at Kace and Riley. They have the same look, like she slapped us. “Why the fuck would we want to hear that? We don’t want you scared of us,” Kace says.
“We aren’t bad guys, Ivy. We have a club that makes us family, it’s no different than your family,” I say.