Page 40 of Could Be Worse
“So am I. Have a good life.” I slammed the door shut, locked it, and left.
On the way back to the compound, I cried, yelled, and cursed like a sailor. I went through a multitude of emotions: sadness, fury, confusion. But right now, I was frustrated with my brother for following me.
I don’t need a bodyguard. I need privacy!
Once word got out that I wasn’t babysitting Bryce’s girls because his ex-wife returned, I’d get a million questions… Unless Zane didn’t tell our parents what he had seen. I could make up excuses for why I stopped watching the girls, maybe go to California until the blackmailer wasn’t a threat anymore. Stay gone for weeks, so I could forget I ever met Bryce Nelson.
“Dammit, I’m so pissed at you, Bryce!”
Slowing down at the gate, Max, Uncle Boxer’s son, came out of the guard shack. “Hey.” He jerked his chin. “Didn’t expect to see you so early.”
“It’s almost nine.”
“Anything before midnight is early.”
“Only to bikers.” I rolled my eyes. “I’ll see you later.” I drove forward.
“Yeah.” He didn’t smile much and looked every bit like an MMA fighter, a carbon copy of his dad: blond hair, frigid ice-blue eyes, handsome, muscular, and brutal. Max had gotten all the girls in high school and had competed with Chase and my brother to be the top dog with the ladies. And he had succeeded, having more notches on his belt than Chase and Zane put together.
Zane had been much too busy with hockey to screw around with every girl that crossed his path, unlike Max. My little brother had been straddling the fence of being a biker or a professional hockey player. Instead of choosing one over the other, he was doing both; prospecting and being the best centerman. His dream was to get drafted and play for the Minnesota Wild.
Hopefully, his dream would come true as mine had, getting the lead in the Nutcracker. Until I was forced to give it up…
I groaned in frustration as I drove straight home, not bothering to stop at the clubhouse, even when I’d do anything to numb my emotions with a bottle of tequila.
It was ridiculous how I felt stabbed in the heart after Bryce let me leave. He had chosen his ex-wife over me. Was it wrong to be crushed, after only being with him for less than a week? I couldn’t fault him for wanting to restore his family. Cat and Tori deserved to have a mom and dad under one roof.
Selfishly, I wished he’d picked me.
Stop it! Think of Cat and Tori. They need their mom.
I shook my head, so done with myself.
Turning my attention to my quiet surroundings, I felt at a crossroads. I’d missed Manhattan’s bright lights, high energy, swarms of people. It was the sort of place a person could blend in and not be noticed.
But Minnesota was my home and where my heart resided. I couldn’t hide at the compound. Eyes were everywhere, even if the property appeared to be an abandoned ghost town underneath the inky sky. The high moon illuminated the tall trees on the border of the property. I felt safe in the fortress Storm had created.
Though it was calm and peaceful, I knew better…
Evil lurked outside the confines of the compound.
Depravity ran amok in the world.
Not far from my parents’ home, improper and lewd activities were in progress.
In my rearview mirror, I watched Zane park beside several Harleys in front of the clubhouse. A golden glow filtered out of the wooden shutters that covered the bulletproof windows. All kinds of fuckery were playing out in the bar: loud music, drinking, and wild, filthy sex. All of it sounded amazing at that moment.
My bottom lip quivered. I was sad and green with envy.
I almost got laid tonight.
My pussy tingled as I remembered how ravenous Bryce had eaten me out.
But there was no one I could call on in Bastion Township to hook up with. Hell, I didn’t want anyone but Bryce.
I parked in the driveway and turned off the engine. My phone chimed just as I opened the driver’s side door. I’d gotten a text from Bryce. Sucking in a deep breath, I read it…
Bryce: Did you make it home safely?