Page 11 of Viper (The Dark Angel’s MC #4)

Lake

“Hi, can I get one black coffee and a vanilla latte, please?” I ask the cashier behind the counter, and she nods as she rings up my order.

I look down, not wanting to look around the café, not wanting to make eye contact with any brothers that may be in here and try to get my card out to pay.

I’m currently eight hours into a twelve-hour shift, and getting upset right now will do me no good, especially after I spent hours crying last night.

Did he take her home?

Are they together?

I shake my head to try to squash the thoughts, not needing to go over them again and again, especially while at work, before my phone rings.

“That’ll be $8.95,” the cashier says, and I smile as I tap my card to the machine while grabbing my phone, and she turns to make my order.

I sigh, seeing it’s my dad, and I answer, “Hey, Daddy,” with a chirp in my voice so he doesn’t worry.

“Hey pumpkin, I was wondering if you wanted to get dinner tonight?” he replies, and I half smile.

Spending the evening with my dad sounds like a good plan to me, and hopefully, he can help bring me out of my funk, which has gotten worse since last night.

“Sure, Daddy, that sounds good to me,” I answer him, and he chuckles, “Perfect, dinner is at five.”

“Okay, I’ll see you then, love you,” I say, and he replies, “Love you too, pumpkin,” before he hangs up, and I swallow hard, the chirpiness gone.

I can feel myself slipping.

I’m barely sleeping, just scraping by in school, the classes now overwhelming me, along with the stress of everything else. With the club and Viper, the lawsuit, and I’m not eating properly.

The anger I felt at how he spoke to me, how he accused me of crap, and lied about being a brother, is gone, and in its place is pain and heartbreak that is swallowing me whole.

I feel like I’ve lost half of myself.

“One black coffee and a vanilla latte,” the cashier says, and I reply, “Thank you,” as I pick the cups up and turn to leave as the door to the café opens.

My stomach tightens seeing the ring girl walk in wearing a tiny crop top and high-waisted shorts that show off her ass cheeks. Her hair is half up and curled, her makeup is on point, and of course, she’s tanned.

She’s pretty.

Damn.

Taking a deep breath, I continue my trek to the door, passing them as the girl gloats, “I’m telling you, Cassy, it was amazing.

I walked into his office, undressed before laying on top of his desk and without a word, he bent over me and licked my pussy so goddamn good,” and I scrunch my nose up in distaste.

Ugh, vulgar much?

Wait…

My breathing picks up, realizing who she may be talking about, and I plead, ‘Don’t be Viper, don’t be Viper…’ but my pleas aren’t answered as the girl Cassy says, “I thought Viper had a girl?”

The woman snorts, “No, he doesn’t they were just rumors, and I’m telling you, I can’t wait for tonight.”

Tears brim, and I quickly rush out of the door before I can hear anymore, leaving the last piece of my shattered heart behind me.

Guess he has moved on, huh?

I walk over to the rig, trying to control my breathing before I climb in, handing Callum his coffee, which he groans, “You’re a fucking godsend,” and I snort, hiding my pain.

My heartbreak is probably getting old for people now, especially when everyone seems to think I need to get over the crap said between Viper and me and give things another go. So I’m trying not to show it. I haven’t spoken to the girls in the past two days either.

“You’ve got to stop staying up so late,” I joke before I take a sip of my latte, and he grins as he replies, “But the blonde was really good at head…”

Seriously?

I scrunch my nose up in distaste and admit, “I could have gone my whole life not knowing that Callum, especially from a guy I see as a brother.”

He laughs before our radio crackles and dispatch calls, “This is dispatch, a man in his eighties has fallen down some concrete steps and is unconscious on Butchers Elm.”

Crap.

“This is 8921, copy that, ETA Five minutes,” I reply, putting my mouth to my device on top as I place my coffee in its cup holder and Callum mutters, “Here we go again.”

Putting the rig in drive, he activates the sirens and speeds off from the curb. Everything in my mind silences, just as it always does when I work —my pain, my past, the lawsuit all disappear.

Let’s hope this guy doesn’t try to sue me as well…

***

I stretch before climbing out of my truck, then sigh, looking at the home I grew up in six hours later, the flower boxes underneath the window sills full like always.

Considering my dad’s a mechanic, he has quite the green thumb, something I definitely didn't inherit from him. I’m beginning to think I didn’t inherit anything from him.

And there goes my thoughts yet again.

I twitch my nose before taking a deep breath, knowing I need to put my chirpiness back on for show. I don’t want to worry him, especially when I know he’s already uncomfortable at the garage.

He wants to stay there, but his morals are with me despite my telling him otherwise, and he’s adamant to go back to Gary’s Motors as soon as Anna is back on her feet. I think she is already, but Blade’s begging her to stay on bedrest so he doesn’t lose my dad.

Sighing, I walk down the path towards the house, my mind going a million miles an hour, and as always, Viper is at the front of it.

Am I being pathetic, being this hurt?

Was it really as deep as it felt, finding out he was a brother, that he slept with my egg donor before he even met me?

Am I being overly emotional about a failed relationship?

Maybe I am…

Shaking my head, I reach for the door handle when my phone beeps, and I frown, pulling it out.

I know it’s not the girls, they messaged after not hearing from me that they’ll give me a week space before they start calling me again.

Dad’s only behind the door and there is no way it’ll be Viper, he’s made himself clear, we’re over.

I’m a patch chaser like Cherri, I used him. He has a girl now.

I tense when I see it's from my lawyer, the one appointed by the hospital.

Cornelius Hunters: She’s agreed to drop the lawsuit if you pay her $150,000. She knows she doesn’t have a case and is grasping at straws. I suggest we continue on the path we spoke about and out her in court.

My eyes tear up and I sniffle before blinking several times, not wanting to worry Dad.

She wants money…

She lost her daughter, and her sole focus, instead of grieving and laying her to rest, is to sue the person who tried to save her, and it is a shitty thing to do, especially because now I am questioning my career path.

I quickly type back.

Me: Whatever you think is best.

Pressing send, I put my phone in my pocket before walking into my dad's house, and I call, “Daddy?”

He instantly replies, “In the kitchen, pumpkin…”

I swallow hard before shaking my body out and pasting on a happy smile as I walk through the light gray living area and into the kitchen. Dad comes into view, dishing up what looks like a stew, and a genuine smile comes out.

Growing up, a stew would always bring out a smile, and I’m glad that hasn’t changed.

“Hey, Daddy,” I whisper as I walk over and kiss his cheek.

“Hey pumpkin, why don’t you set the counter for me?” he replies, and I nod, grabbing some utensils, napkins, and glasses to set on the breakfast counter. I then retrieve the water from the fridge and fill the glasses.

Taking a seat after putting the jug to the side, Dad puts a bowl in front of me, then takes a seat, and I pick up my spoon, taking a small bite as my stomach grumbles.

Crap, when did I last eat?

I know I had my latte, wait, no, that went cold after we saved an elderly man.

Double crap.

“This is good, Daddy,” I whisper before taking another bite, and suddenly, the sensation of feeling full takes me, and I try not to wince, knowing I have to eat at least half of this without causing suspicion.

Guess my stomach has shrunk…

“How’s work, pumpkin?” Dad asks after a few minutes of silence, and I hum.

“Good,” I lie before taking another bite reluctantly, and he asks, “And Med school?”

I clear my throat and lie again, “Also good…”

I somehow think explaining that I’m thinking about quitting may be best as I walk out the door.

Do I want to leave? No, but I don’t have a choice, my head is all over the place, my emotions are out of control, and I can feel myself failing at it.

I’d rather stay as an EMT for now until I can sort myself out.

My mood and emotions are declining every day, and no matter what I do to improve them, nothing seems to work.

Dad hums before he’s quiet for a moment, then states, “I’m worried about you,” and I still.

Guess I haven’t been hiding it as well as I thought, huh?

“You’ve lost weight, you're not speaking to the girls, Ivy is hurt the most over that, even if she understands, and you seem like you’re becoming depressed, pumpkin,” he finishes quietly, and I swallow hard, not looking at him.

I lie, “I’m fine.”

“No, you are not,” he replies instantly, “You’re hurting and you’re not letting yourself feel it.”

I can’t have this conversation. I’ll fall apart, and I’m not ready for that yet. It’s bad enough that I’m feeling the pain of everything with Viper, and my anger is no longer in place.

I shake my head and deny, “I’m not, I swear I’m alright, Daddy.”

“It’s okay to hurt, Lake, you loved him,” my dad tries as I slowly move my food around in my bowl, my appetite truly gone now, and instead of feeling full, I’m feeling nauseous.

“Is it really love, though?” I question as I look at my dad, whose eyes show concern. I ask, “If we managed to fall apart so quickly, to give up on each other so quickly, was it really love to begin with?”

“The harder you love, the harder you break when you get hurt, sweetheart. You both have said stuff you don’t mean, you’ve both accused the other of being insincere, but you can come back from it, sweetheart,” he whispers, and I look away.

“If he loved me, Daddy, why did he sleep with someone else last night?” I ask quietly, and he sighs, “Dammit, Viper!” huffing with disappointment he replies, “Because he’s hurting and you’re broken up.

He’s running from his hurt, pumpkin, just like you’re running from yours through your anger towards him. ”

My nose twitches as my eyes water, and I quickly take another bite of my stew even though I’m not hungry.

It feels like he’s sticking up for him…

“Just think about what I said, Lake, don’t go losing someone you love with your whole heart. You both can come back from this and maybe even become stronger,” he tries when I don’t answer him, my mind not able to absorb what he’s saying.

He slept with someone else, and I get it, we’re not together anymore, but still, if he loved me, he wouldn’t have touched her, right?

I don’t think there's any coming back, too much hurt surrounding us, but I don’t say that. Instead, I change the subject and ask, “Have you given in to Fury yet and taken your old job back?”

Dad sighs, not happy with my tactics, but he relents and begins to explain how Fury chained his toolbox to the garage wall, making me smile.

They want him to stay, and he should. He used to love working there until he found out about the crap the brothers used to say about me. He doesn’t need to speak to them or work on their bikes.

He needs to put himself first, not me, because, well, I’m on self-destruct mode, and I’m not worth losing a lifetime of friendships over.