Smolder: A Devil Chaser's MC Romance (6 page)

“I’ve got nothing to say to you,” Gage roared.

“Gage, stop! Just go!” I yelled.

“I’ll leave, but I want you to think about something. Where was he when your brother died, and you were crying yourself to sleep every damn night? Where was this asshole when you were moving into your new apartment and starting your new job?” Gage asked as he reached for my hand. “I was there for you when you needed someone. I’ll always be here for you.” He sounded so sincere as his thumb brushed over the knuckles of my hand. I almost believed him.

Before I realized what was happening, Gage’s hand was ripped from mine as Renegade grabbed him by the throat shoved him flat against the wall. Gage’s face turned bright red, and the vein on the side of his head started pulsing as Renegade tightened his grip.

“She
said
it was time for you to go, dickhead. You need to leave now while you can still walk out of here!” Renegade said as he released him from his grasp.

Gage inhaled a deep breath, visibly relieved he could breathe again. He glanced back at me before he walked out of the room. Renegade quickly removed his cut and laid it on the chair before he followed him out the door.

My heart was racing, and I felt like I was going to have a panic attack. I could only imagine what was happening outside. Renegade had never been one to control his temper. I could still remember the day when some guys tried to jump Ace in the old Quick Mart parking lot. The three men were obviously drunk and looking for trouble. They were talking shit about his DC cut, and one of them took a swing at him. Renegade had two of the guys tackled and on the ground before they ever had a chance to throw a punch. He kept hitting them over and over. He almost killed the bigger guy, but Ace pulled him off before it was too late.

There was no one to stop him today. I knew he wasn’t going to let Gage get away without a fight. I could see the rage in his eyes when he grabbed him by the throat. I just hoped that he wouldn’t take it too far. I didn’t want him to get arrested just because Gage was an idiot.

This is all too much for me to deal with right now. Gage actually seemed sorry for hurting me. I don’t want to seem like one of those girls that just forgives the guy that abused them, but I can see how it happens. I’m not stupid. I could never go back to him, but he did bring up some valid points.

I need to get out of this damn hospital, so my life can get back to normal. There’s only one problem. Things aren’t going back to normal. I’m going to be staying with Renegade for the next few weeks. He’s going to be “taking care” of me, and I look like a damn chipmunk on crack. I know the swelling around my eyes has finally gone down because I can finally open my eyes all the way. The bruises on my arms have turned dark purple, so I can only imagine my face looks the same. It doesn’t hurt as much when I take a deep breath, so maybe I’m healing fast.

The sooner I can get back on my feet, the better. I’m not looking forward to being an invalid around Renegade. I don’t want him feeling sorry for me. I’ve been through worse than this, and I don’t want him to think that I’m weak or needy. I don’t want to be a charity case for Renegade or the DCs. I’ll have to prove to him that I can handle things without him.

Chapter 9

Renegade

That motherfucker had a lot of nerve showing up here today. He was talking all that shit to Taylor, and I could tell she was actually starting to buy into it. He’s a smooth talker, but that shit is not going to fly with me. I can’t wait to give him a taste of what he gave her. Maybe next time he’ll think twice before he raises a hand to a woman. The last time I sought revenge for someone I cared about, I ended up killing him. I want to beat the life out of this motherfucker, too, but I can’t let that happen. Bishop would have my cut for taking things that far without his consent.

I removed my DC cut before I left Taylor’s hospital room. I wanted Gage to know that this fight was between him and me. Right now the Devil Chasers had no part in this, but if he caused any more problems for Taylor, he would have my brothers to deal with too.

When Gage made his way out the front door, he turned to face me. “I don’t want any trouble with you, man. This is between me and my girl. There’s no reason for you to get involved.”

“She’s not your fucking anything, and I became involved the minute you laid a hand on her. Taylor is off limits. You don’t see her. You don’t call her. You sure as fuck don’t touch her! You don’t even think about her. This thing between you and her is
over
!”

“Whatever. You don’t know a thing about it. Taylor is
mine
. She’ll be back. She knows you’re no good for her. The bitch will be crawling back in no time.”
      
The minute those last words came out of his mouth, my fist connected with his face. I hit him with such force, I was sure I had just broken his jaw. Before he could react, I hit him again with an upper cut to the chin. His body began falling back, so I punched him in the side close to his kidneys. When his body fell to the ground, I pulled his head up by the roots of his hair. I gave him three more blows to the nose and the side of his head. When I loosened my grip, he dropped to the ground. I gave him two swift kicks to the gut before I lowered myself to the ground. He grimaced as he turned to face me, expecting another hit.

“Think of this moment the next time you think about hitting any woman, especially
my woman
. Stay clear of Taylor. Next time I won’t leave you breathing.” I punched him in the gut one last time before I walked back into the hospital.
My woman
. Fuck me.

Several people watched me with curiosity as I walked up to the elevator. I’m sure they saw me beat the hell of Gage, but no one tried to stop me. Just before the elevators closed, I saw him stand up in the parking lot. He was wiping the blood from his nose and the corner of his mouth. I didn’t hurt him as bad as I wanted to, but he’ll think twice before he makes the same mistake again.

Taylor was sitting up in the bed looking pretty freaked out when I walked back into the room. She didn’t say anything. She just stared at me with wonder like she had just seen a ghost. She looked tired. I knew she hadn’t been sleeping well. It was hard to get any rest when nurses were always coming in and out of the room all day and night.

“You okay?” I asked.

“I’m fine. Are you okay? Did you get in a fight with him?” she asked with concern. I couldn’t tell if she was worried about me hurting him or what.

“We had a conversation. Everything’s fine. He was leaving when I got on the elevator.”

“Thank God.”

“Are you worried that I hurt your boyfriend, Taylor?”

“Seriously? You think I give a shit if he’s okay? I was worried about you. I know that you’re a hot head, and you didn’t have Ace there to get you to back off. I was worried that you might kill him or get arrested!” she shouted.

“I didn’t kill him, and obviously, I wasn’t arrested. Well, at least not yet.”

“It’s official. You are the most frustrating man on the planet. I never know what’s going on in that head of yours.”
      

“I like to keep ‘em guessing.” I can’t help but laugh. She’s so damn cute when she’s pissed. “Doctor should be in soon with the release papers. You wanna get changed? We’ll head out as soon as he comes by.”

“Yeah. Courtney brought me some clothes. I’ll need a little help getting out of this bed, but I should be fine after that.”

I walked over to the side of the bed and slipped my hands under her, gently picking her up from the bed. I could feel her body tense as I lifted her. A deep sigh escaped from her chest as I set her feet on the floor.

“I didn’t mean for you to pick me up. I just needed a little help,” she huffed.

“That was a little help. I’ll give ya a little
help
changing clothes, too, if you need me to,” I told her, raising my eyebrows up and down as I gave her a big smile.

“Not a chance. I’ll change in the bathroom…by myself,” Taylor said as she hobbled to the bathroom and shut the door. I could hear her cursing under her breath as she tried to change her clothes. I knew she was having a hard time getting her clothes on with that cast, but I decided to give her time to figure it out. When she finally came out of the bathroom, she was dressed in black knit pants and a light pink t-shirt that showed off her tits. It was obvious she wasn’t wearing a bra. I must’ve been staring, because she immediately started giving me hell.

“Seriously? Eyes up here! Are you twelve? You look like you haven’t ever seen boobs before,” she said as she rolled her eyes. “I can’t get my damn bra on. This stupid cast is going to drive me nuts!”

“You just have to wear it for a couple of weeks, and then they’ll give you a brace to wear. In the meantime, I plan to enjoy the view.”

Taylor rolled her eyes again and walked over to the bed to gather the rest of her things. I held her bag open so she could shove everything into it.

“I think that’s everything. Courtney said she put the rest of my stuff in the truck. What time are they planning to pick me up?”

“They should be here in a few minutes. Just be patient. It won’t be much longer.”

“Okay, whatever you say,
Renegade
,” Taylor said sarcastically. She crawled back into her bed and rolled on her side facing away from me.

I decided to just leave her be. I knew she had a lot on her mind, and I figured she needed to rest. Neither of us knew what to expect from the weeks ahead of us, but I’d have to do what I could to make the best of it. Once she started feeling better, I’d take her to a party at the clubhouse. She’d mentioned that she was missing the guys, and that would be a great way for her to spend time with them. She hadn’t seen any of them since the funeral.

I’d need to see if I could get Tessa to help Taylor out for a few days. The more she could help, the better. Taylor was going to need some help taking showers while she had that cast on.

The doctor came in and gave Taylor her release papers. She signed everything and got her prescriptions before the nurse came in with the wheelchair. She didn’t want to use it, but they said it was a requirement. She had that cute pissed off look as they pushed her down the hallway to the exit. Bobby had already pulled up to the front door when we made our way outside. Courtney and I helped her get into the SUV. She was quiet as she fastened her seatbelt and got settled in her seat. She had a worried expression on her face, and I could tell she was having doubts about coming home with me.

I walked over and opened her door. When her eyes finally met mine, it really got to me. I didn’t know what to do with all those emotions she was carrying inside. I leaned in the truck, and pulled her as close as I could with the restraints of the seatbelt confining her. I quietly whispered in her ear, “It’s going to be okay. We’re going to take good care of you, and you’ll be back to your old ornery self in no time.” I gave her a kiss just above her ear before I released her.

Chapter 10

Taylor

I’m screwed. That’s all there is to it. I’m absolutely, 100 percent
screwed
. For the past half hour, I’ve been sniffing the hint of Renegade’s cologne that he left on the collar of my t-shirt. I can still feel his arms wrapped around me and the warmth of his breath as he whispered in my ear. I’m a total mess. I can’t let myself get all worked up over him right now. He doesn’t feel that way about me, and I’m setting myself up. I’ve been with Gage for months, and he has never made me feel the way I feel when I’m around Renegade. I just can’t seem to help myself. I’ve wanted him for so long, but he’s made it clear that nothing’s going to happen between us. I need to put on my big girl panties and just let it go.

My anxiety level was off the charts as we drove into Paris. I’d always loved coming to Tennessee to see Ace. We used to spend the day out on the lake swimming and hanging out at Budweiser Beach. I loved seeing people we knew and spending the day talking to one another. He was always in such a good mood, and he never met a stranger. People were drawn to him, and he always found a way to make you laugh. He had a dark side, but I rarely saw it. He saved that side of himself for his club.

He was always my gentle giant. He was at least a foot taller than me, and I always felt so safe when he would wrap his long arm around my shoulder. He had this deep baritone voice that would grab your attention the minute he would say “Hey” with his long southern drawl. I wanted to pick up the phone and call him so I could hear his voice one more time. There’s such an emptiness deep in my heart knowing that I’d never see or talk to him again. A tightness grows in my throat and it gets hard to swallow every time I think about Ace. I want my brother back. It’s not fair that I had to lose him. He didn’t deserve to die like that. He was a good man, and he had the world at his fingertips.
      
The truck lurched to a stop as we pulled into Renegade’s driveway. It was a small house, but it looked nice on the outside. There was a small porch with two old rocking chairs by the front door. The vinyl siding was tan with a white trim around the frame and windows. There were no shutters, and the grass was a little overgrown. I guess none of the guys volunteered to mow his yard while he was gone.