Page 38 of His Flawed Ride (Sons of Lost Souls MC #16)

Chapter Thirty-Six

Annie

T he sun set a while ago and the moon shines brightly over the club.

I would normally enjoy it, but I can’t hold my attention longer than thirty seconds without glancing at the gates.

I ventured outside a couple of hours ago, not wanting to miss Shane when he returned with the club.

They left hours ago and there hasn’t been any word on where they have gone, how they are getting on, or when they’ll be back.

There’s a chill in the air and I pull my jacket tighter together.

I keep my eyes on the prospect at the gate.

“Hey, you’re Shane’s woman, right?”

Cutting my gaze from the prospect to a beautiful woman sitting beside me, I smile. “Right.”

I’m Shane’s woman.

“I’m Harper. JJ’s old lady.”

I know who she is, but again I smile, and say, “Hi.”

“Are you waiting for Shane?”

“Am I that obvious?”

She laughs but it’s shrouded in sadness. I look closer and there’s not much else than sadness about her. It’s not a good time for her to be Lily’s daughter with the suicide. Her lack of hiding away to grieve tells me she wasn’t close to her mom, and I force myself not to wonder who Lily truly was.

“I’ve heard a lot about you,” she says. When she sees my frown, she adds, “Old ladies talk. We like to know who’s around us.”

“I get that, but I’m sure you haven’t heard anything great.”

She shrugs. “We don’t tend to judge. Okay, so most of the time we do, but not this time.”

I laugh. She isn’t competition. Her husband is easy on the eye but doesn’t have a patch on my Shane.

I dare to ask, “What have you heard?”

“You’re pregnant, you didn’t want to stick around, but you’re also sick. So yeah, it’s quite varied.”

“All of it is true, but things change.” I turn and angle my body toward her. “Can I ask you something?”

“Sure.”

Taking a deep breath, I ask, “Is Shane true to his word?”

“I don’t know him all that well but from what I do, he’s a stand-up guy.”

It doesn’t really answer my question so I’m going to have to rely on my own judgements.

“How do you feel about him?”

“I fell for him the minute I saw him but there’s no point telling him because it wouldn’t be fair on him to care when I don’t know how long I’ll be around for.”

“Is there nothing you can do?”

I shake my head and look back to the prospect. He still hasn’t moved. He’s still on his damn phone. Shane didn’t say why he had to go but I can work out it’s not for a good reason. I didn’t miss the amount of guns the brothers were rounding up before they rode out.

“I’m sorry this is happening to you. Life certainly has a way of shitting on you when you least expect it.”

I agree whole heartedly.

“I know I don’t know you, but I was sorry to hear about your mom. I lost mine when I was a kid, and it still haunts me now.”

“Thanks, but I’m sure I had quite a different relationship with mine than you did with yours.”

“Were you not close?” A split-second later I spit out, “I’m so sorry, that is none of my business. Please forget I ever asked.”

She stares at me for a long minute and then laughs. “I’d forgotten what it was like to be around people who recognise boundaries. Don’t worry, no offence was taken.”

I glance back at the prospect, and he’s still sat on ass on his fucking phone. I should give Harper my full attention. I want to be on friendly terms with the old ladies once Shane officially makes me his old lady but the need to see Shane return is more powerful.

I can see it, the prospect will open the gates and Shane will ride in.

He’ll see me sitting here and smile. He’ll park his motorcycle and stride toward me with lust in his eyes and a mind of dirty plans for the two of us.

He’ll kiss me like it’s our first and last time.

He won’t care who’s around to see us. I’ll giggle and wrap my arms around him…

The prospect jumps up and my fantasy is gone. He slides the gates open. Leo is the first to ride in, followed by JJ.

“Why is my husband bleeding?” Harper groans.

I check him out and true to word, blood stains his jeans across his thigh. She pulls herself up and I watch on for Shane. A van is the last in and the prospect closes the gates.

Where is he?

I check over the men and Shane is definitely not with them. The pounding beat of my heart drowns out the noise around me. I stand as Harper walks over to her husband and that’s when I see Shane. He shuffles out the back of the van, holding his arm.

I go to go over to him but stop. Leo walks over to him, says something and then the prospect is opening the gates again. A car drives in and the gates are closed again.

A guy with a medical bag gets out and heads toward Shane. JJ still sits on his bike. The doctor guy looks over Shane’s arm then JJ’s leg. He must deem Shane to be in worser condition. He leads him into the bar. I’m stood right here but I might as well have been invisible.

JJ limps by me next with Harper at his side.

When the brothers have entered the bar, I walk in and stay by the door.

It feels like forever and no time at all that he fixes up Shane’s arm.

Excitement laced with fear courses through me.

He could have been shot dead today and I never would have had the chance to be happy.

The fact he isn’t dead and is rising to his feet has me biting down on my bottom lip.

A few stitches and a bandage and he’s right as rain, breathing, and making me horny.

“It’s just a scratch,” the doctor guy mumbles.

“A scratch? Prez, you hear this?” Shane snaps. “A fuckin’ scratch, he says.”

“A big scratch?” the doctor guy adds.

Leo’s laughter is manic. I don’t know what has happened today to put him such on edge, but I look away and JJ is taking Shane’s place.

Harper waits till he is comfortable and slaps him around the back of his head. JJ glares up at her. “What the fuck, babe?”

“What did you get yourself shot for? You think I don’t have enough going on?”

He rolls his eyes and then flinches when she goes to slap him again.

While the doctor guy works on his thigh, JJ grabs Harper’s hand and turns it over to lay a kiss on her palm. “It’s not like I planned it.”

He pulls her to his side, and she leans over to kiss him. Jealousy ripples through me at the sight. I glance over at Shane and he’s staring my way.

He juts his chin, wanting me to go to him but I shake my head, and he comes to me. He’s the one who ignored me on his way in. Harper doesn’t strike me as the type of woman who has to chase her husband down.

“Let’s go outside,” he suggests.

My head is spinning. He could have been killed today and I would have been left all alone. I would’ve had to start over again. I squeeze my eyes shut, to shut out the repetitive thoughts.

We sit at the picnic table, and he lights a cigarette while wincing using his arm.

“I expected you to panic when I got back, you know, at the blood,” he says, exhaling a long stream of smoke.

I dare to look at him as I ask, “Do I have the right to panic in public when you’re shot?”

This stumps him and he narrows his eyes. His cheeks suck in as he inhales on the cigarette. The wait for his reply is agonising, long enough that I take the lead.

“Look, I fell for you the night we met. I don’t know how you feel about me, if anything, but…”

He cuts me off. “While we’re being honest, I can’t let myself fall for someone who has no hope. How I see it, the future is fucked up. I can’t… I won’t, sit around and try to build something while you slowly die without a fight.”

If that’s what is holding him back, I jump in, “What if I promise I’ll try? Having this baby… I want us to be a family, or at least give it a go. I just worry that it will all be for nothing.”

He flicks his cigarette behind him and slides around the table to sit beside me.

Cupping his hand to my cheek, I lean into his warmth. I’m always looking for one of those special moments and deep in my soul, this feels like one of those moments.

“If you try it won’t be for nothing. If the worst happens, I want to know we did everything we could, that I’ll be able to tell our kid that you did all you could.”

This is it.

I’ve got him.

It’s finally happening.

“I’ll make you my old lady. I’ll do right by you and our kid.”

“I’ll fight. For you, I’ll fight.”

I don’t know who leans in first, but regardless, our lips meet, and I wrap my arms around his neck, fully aware of his wounded arm.

“To be clear, we’re together?” I ask.

He nods.

“And that means you’re mine?”

He nods again.

“Always mine, and no one else’s?”

“I’ll be good to you, Annie. I’ll be at your side whenever you need me.”

This is what life is about. This is how my life is supposed to be.