Page 26 of Hidden Desires (Bikers of Mayhem #2)

ACE

“ Y ou’re a fucking asshole!” Ace shouted, stomping around Marcus’s motel room. “How could you? You’re a beast, and a bully, and a motherfucking jackass who is going to die alone and unhappy because he can’t keep his nose in his own fucking business!”

Marcus was drinking a whiskey, staring out the window. Hopefully, planning his own beating.

Ace was pissed.

The way his gorilla brother pummeled Blade. Tossed him around like he was some sort of worthless piece of trash, instead of the friend he’d been for nearly fifteen years.

“How could you?” Ace sobbed, grabbing a glass and filling it with whiskey. His hands were shaking as he spilled the amber liquid on the cheap wooden table.

“I was protecting you.”

“Bullshit!” Ace shouted, spinning around and spilling half his drink. “You were doing what you always do and bullying guys into staying away from me!”

Marcus glanced up at Ace. “Bullying? I take care of you,” Marcus snarled, jumping from his chair and stomping toward Ace.

“Ever since we were kids, all I’ve ever done is look out for you.

I’ve kept you in clothes, made sure you had food to eat, took care of you when you were sick.

I even made sure that you went to fucking school to get an education!

Our so-called parents never gave a shit whether you lived or died.

It was me who made sure you had medicine when you got the flu.

It was me who made sure you got your vaccines and measles shots.

If it weren’t for me, you would have been malnourished and probably left for dead in your own waste. ”

Ace glared up at his big brother. He knew that he owed his life to the stubborn bastard standing before him.

He knew that it had been Marcus who sacrificed everything to make sure that he grew up safe and loved.

He knew that everything he was now was a direct result of everything his brother had done for him.

But Blade? Blade didn’t deserve any of what his brother had given him. He had been nothing but a loyal and good friend to both Marcus and himself. He took care of the crew and made sure that everyone was safe and protected.

This had to end. This overprotective cycle of his brother’s.

Ace took a seat on Marcus’s bed and slowly took a sip of his whiskey.

“Look. I know that I owe everything in my life to you. I’m your stepbrother. I’m not even your own flesh and blood. You should never have been forced to bear the burden of having to raise me because our parents were shit. You have been an amazing big brother, and I love the fuck out of you for it.”

The fiery rage that had surrounded Marcus only moments ago slowly dimmed, until there was nothing but love and compassion in his eyes once more.

Marcus shook his head, then sat down on the bed next to Ace and placed a hand on his shoulder.

“I wouldn’t trade any of it. Not in a million years.”

It was nice hearing his brother say those words. Sometimes he wondered if Marcus resented him for robbing him of a carefree childhood. Listening to his brother talk, he knew that was not the case.

“I know, Marcus. And I love you for it. But I’m not a kid anymore, and you need to loosen your grip on me.”

Ace looked up at the big biker. Now it was time for him to be real.

“I’m lonely, Marcus.” Marcus’s body jerked slightly, clearly uncomfortable with this revelation. “I’m twenty-five. I want a man of my own. I want a stable relationship. But right now, that’s impossible.”

“Because I’m smothering you?”

“No, because you scare off every potential guy I meet.” He looked up at his brother.

Good, he was still listening. “Most guys I go on a date with either are using me to get close to you, hoping that they can get in with the Shadow Vipers, or they run off screaming when they find out that you are my big brother.”

“What?” Marcus asked, his voice cracking just a bit.

“People know that you have a bit of a temper and that you are very protective of your younger brother. Most guys are too afraid of what you might do to them if they even try to touch me.”

“Like how I beat the shit out of Blade today.”

Ace nodded. “Yes. But what made today so much worse was that Blade and I are in love with each other.”

“What? What are you talking about? The dude is straight. He was only using you to get himself off, probably because his latest hooker left him with blue balls or something. The guy is a pig,” Marcus argued. He took another sip of his whiskey and turned to face the window once again.

Outside, the guys were trying to look busy, checking the bolts on their bikes while lingering way too close to Marcus’s room. They were probably trying to figure out if their leader and friend was being murdered by his younger brother and whether or not they should step in.

Loyalty and family were strange.

Do you protect your leader from the crazy younger brother trying to gouge his eyes out? Or do you step in and try to get both your brothers to see reason, and then try to convince them to bring back your other brother?

Nothing in life was simple.

“No, Blade isn’t. I won’t get into who he is or isn’t because that’s his story to tell, when, and if, he is ever ready.

All I know is that he loves me. He has for quite some time, which is amazing because I’ve been in love since I first laid eyes on him.

With Blade, I know that his feelings are genuine.

He’s not using me to get to you, and he’s not going to run off just because you are my brother.

In fact, he’s been hiding his feelings for me out of fear of losing you and this crew if you didn’t approve. ”

Marcus stood up and began pacing the room. He looked agitated and conflicted. He was battling that voice that told him to protect his little bro at all costs, and the other voice that said he was being an idiot.

“I guess a part of me always feared that whoever tried to date you would only end up breaking your heart. By me getting in the middle, I was saving you from that heartache.”

“But in the end, you only added to my loneliness and unhappiness. You drove away the one man I have been pining over all these years.”

“Please. That douche was never going to be good enough for you. Even if he is bi or questioning, or whatever. You need someone smart and rich and powerful. Someone who will treat you like a queen and never do anything to hurt you.”

“That’s where you’re wrong. I found someone who is exactly like my big brother. He is kind and sweet, and oh so fucking funny. Plus, he’s got a huge dick and knows how to plow my ass.” Ace ducked as his brother threw a scrunched-up sock at his head.

“That was way more information than I needed. And also a little disturbing.”

Ace chuckled.

“The point is, all I really need is someone with a good heart who will always be there for me when I need him. Blade has always taken care of me. He’s even followed me on a few dates, just to make sure the guys weren’t total creeps.

One guy, he actually punched the shit out of.

It was kind of hilarious. And totally something you would do. ”

Marcus sat his ass on the corner of the table and crossed his arms against his chest.

“Damn, he really does sound like me.” The corner of his lip turned upward in a half smile.

Ace could tell his brother was proud of Blade, but didn’t want to give in so easily.

“So, will you please give him a call and tell him that you’re sorry? That he can come home and you’ll butt out of our lives?”

Marcus huffed as he continued to pace the room.

“I need to think about it. I still don’t like the fact that he was inside you. Makes me want to shoot him in the face every time I see him in my head.”

Ace chuckled.

“What?” Marcus asked, shooting Ace a glare.

“Blade always said that you seemed like the type of guy who would shoot him in the face if you ever found out about us.”

Marcus smirked. “Well, the man was right. Can I shoot him first, then forgive him later?”

Ace shook his head.

“No. I kind of like his face the way it is.”

“Oh, come on! It will give him a nice scar on his face. I hear all you gay boys love beefy dudes with scars.”

“Nope. Still like my men pretty and with all their teeth.”

“Fine. You’re no fun,” Marcus said, his muscular shoulders slumping slightly in defeat.

Jesus, who knew that his brother was so into rearranging his dates’ faces?

Ace got up and gave his bro a hug. The man would always be his big, burly bear and protector.

There was a knock on the door.

Marcus let out a huff, then reached over and opened the door.

“Everything okay in here?” Lucas asked, peeking his head through the doorway.

“Jesus, Luc. Give the guys some space,” Ace heard Caden call from somewhere behind the door.

“No. I’m checking to make sure that my best friend is okay. And that his big gorilla brother hasn’t ruined his sex life forever,” Lucas shouted back over his shoulder.

“I’m still your boss,” Marcus said, taking a step back from the door and letting Lucas into the room.

“Yeah, I’m fine. Marcus and I needed to hash it out. Now dufus is going to find Blade and apologize. Aren’t you?” Ace asked, giving his brother one of his “you better do it or die” stares.

“Still thinking about it,” Marcus answered, walking back over to the table to refill his whiskey.

Then a thought occurred to Ace.

“Hey! Did I see you come running out of your room in a teddy bear onesie?”

Marcus’s head looked up at Lucas.

Lucas rolls his eyes.

“Um, yeah. Caden and I were trying out a new role-play. Lumberjack versus teddy bear. You’re lucky I even remembered to put the ass flap back up before running out of the room.”

Ace laughed. “You guys are wild. I need your sex life.”

“Still your brother,” Marcus spoke up, turning his face in disgust.

“If Marcus hasn’t killed Ace, can we go back to the room and finish our…” Caden shouted before cutting himself off.

“Yoga session?” Ace asked, shouting out into the open door.

“Kinky sex game?” Marcus tried.

“I hate you both,” Lucas whispered, before turning to exit the motel room.

“You told them?” Caden asked once Lucas was within earshot.

“They saw me run out in that teddy bear onesie that you bought me. Of course they asked me about your freaky sex fetishes,” Lucas responded, teasing his boyfriend, most likely hoping to illicit a reaction once they were alone in their bedroom.

Ace and Marcus chuckled.

“Blade. Phone. Apologize,” Ace said back to his brother.

It was early in the evening when Ace finally headed back to his room. The guys had all decided to go out for some pizza, but Ace wanted to hang back instead.

They had been trying to reach Blade all afternoon, but the man’s cell phone kept going straight to voicemail.

The man was hurt. Probably out drowning his sorrows somewhere, and Ace wanted nothing more than to find him and cuddle him in his arms.

He had decided to take a walk to try and clear his head. It didn’t work. All it did was remind him that he was alone and that the love of his life was sitting around somewhere, thinking that no one loved him.

It broke his heart.

They needed to find him.

Marcus passed on dinner as well. Instead, he decided to go for a ride to clear his head.

The man was stubborn. Part of him hated any man who put his hands on his little bro, and add to that the fact that the guy doing the touching just so happened to also be one of his friends.

It was all too much for Marcus to take in.

Pissed and worried, Ace returned to his room.

He pulled his cell phone from his pocket and tried Blade’s number once again.

Nothing. It went right to voicemail.

“Fuck,” Ace huffed, tossing his phone down on the bed. What was he going to do?

He walked into the bathroom, turned on the light, and closed the door behind him.

Glancing at the mirror, Ace nearly jumped out of his skin when his eyes landed on the man standing behind him in the shower. The man grinned at him before leaping out and throwing a cloth over his mouth.

Ace tried to scream, but was muffled by the cloth pressed firmly against his face. He kicked and struggled, terrified that the man was going to kill him and his crew.

A sweet, fruity smell filled his nostrils.

The room around him went fuzzy, and his legs beneath him began to buckle.

Chloroform.

He was being taken.

A moment later, the world around him went dark.