CHAPTER4
I swallow hard.“What the hell? Are you saying that you are going to war with another mafia? Did you learn nothing from what happened between the Thunder Crows and Savage Reapers?”
Mr. Slade left Sinking Springs after he killed his wife and Erika ran off. He went to California, where Erika had gone, not just because of his daughter but because he had a vendetta against a rival motorcycle club, the Thunder Crows. With Mr. Slade now dead, Erika basically inherited the Thunder Crows, and the leader of the Savage Reapers is Brett Russo, one of her four guys. Yes, my best friend has a reverse harem. She and Brett combined the two clubs together, ended any legal shit, and now they're just the Savage Reapers. She wanted no ties to her father at all.
But only some of the Thunder Crows came to California with Mr. Slade. The rest became my father’s.
And now, apparently, there's another mafia involved?
“Another motorcycle club?”” I ask.
“If you are going to ask me some questions, don’t you think you should answer some of mine? If not, then I have no reason to answer any of yours.”
I snort. “I’m going to shower. When I get out of the bathroom, all sobered up, my teeth all brushed, mouthwash and all, if you’re still here, I’m going to call the cops.”
He eyes me skeptically, but I ignore him and grab some clothes. I take my time in the shower, hoping to give him more than enough time to leave. Of course, I brought my phone in with me and locked the bathroom door so he couldn't snoop around on my phone, and he can't get on my laptop either because that's password protected, and there's no way he'll be able to figure it out because it's a bunch of random numbers and letters.
Sure enough, when I leave, he’s gone, and better than that, nothing looks like he messed with it. Trust me. I can tell when my stuff has been touched. As it turns out, one of my suitemates is a klepto, so I’ve become adept at discovering if something has been shifted.
But that he would come here and drop that bomb on me… He wants to drag Mom back home to what? Help him with some kind of mafia war? Why the hell would he want to do that?
You know what? I don’t know, and I don’t want to know. I don’t care. He can either get his shit together or not, but that is all on him. I’m done. Peace out.
Beyond pissed that my father thinks he can control me, I grab my purse, my phone, keys, and even my wallet, and I leave, locking the door behind me.
I march, walking faster than normal to Rob’s. That’s how upset I am. I just want to make things right with Rob. It’s not that I want to use him. Nothing like that. Seeing my father in person just gave me some clarity. For right now at least, I need Rob in my life. I don’t want to fight.
I knock on the door and wish I felt at ease enough to just walk in like I own the place. The feeling of unworthiness only grows as no one answers. Not wanting to be alone right now, I knock again, even though it’s pretty clear no one’s here.
I’m ready to turn away when the door opens. Gabe Pendleton stands there, yawning. He’s not wearing a shirt, and I get the impression he just rolled out of bed.
“Did you just get up for the day now?” I ask.
“I’ll have you know that I was taking a nap,” he says, “which would imply that I was already up and about for a bit.”
“I suppose that’s acceptable,” I joke. “Is Rob here?”
“You don’t know his schedule, huh? He’s at class.”
“Class. Right,” I say dully.
Of fucking course.
“You want to come in?” Gabe asks. “It’s just me here right now.”
“Uh…”
"I don't bite." He winks. "Not unless I'm asked to. Then I can go all Dracula if you like."
“Oh, yeah? Good to know, I guess.” I rub my arm, feeling more than a little uncomfortable in my own skin. Why is it that I feel so awkward around him? It wasn’t like he and I accidentally kissed like I had with Ace. Sure, Gabe used to bully me like the others, but things are different now. Better.
And worse. So much worse.
“You look like you need a drink,” he says.
“It’s not even noon,” I protest as I relent and step inside.
“What does that matter? It’s five o’clock somewhere.”