Blood & Bone - Easy (Blood Fury MC 12)

He didn’t pursue her. He hadn’t even hinted he was interested. Before that first night she opened his door, he had treated her like anyone else on the “do not touch” list. So, she shouldn’t expect him to go the extra mile to stay in contact.

He owed her nothing.

Absolutely fucking nothing at all.

She shouldn’t expect more than what she already got from him. Which, basically, was sex. Even though he wanted her to go on some secret midnight ride with him on his new sled.

She hadn’t been expecting that. Just like it shocked the shit out of her when he had offered to approach Trip.

Going on a ride with him wouldn’t be smart. But then, sneaking into his room night after night wasn’t, either.

But being his backpack, even in secret, would make it seem so much more than what it was, wouldn’t it? That spot was usually reserved for someone the guys were serious about.

Well, besides Reilly.

Before becoming Rev’s ol’ lady, she had insisted on going on every damn run and usually would ride with whoever she could convince to take her along and had an empty seat behind them. But then, Lee had balls of steel and went after whatever she wanted. She usually got what she went after, too.

Including Rev.

Reese’s younger sister had been the only one to get away with going on the runs before becoming a Fury member’s “regular” or ol’ lady. Tessa, Saylor and the sweet butts did not get that pleasure.

Liz used to ride with Ozzy all the time but they always had gone off on their own and the former sweet butt had never joined them on a club run. At least until she became Crash’s ol’ lady and it came out that she was Crazy Pete’s daughter and Stella’s half-sister.

But that made sense since Liz and Oz had a thing at the time. Kind of like Tessa and Easy. Only theirs wasn’t secret, it was “in your face.”

While hanging in The Barn earlier, she heard Syn’s band member Nico mention that Easy was supposed to be back late Sunday morning. He was also saying he was pumped to get Easy’s old sled so he could start clocking in his time as a prospect.

However, Tessa hadn’t seen Easy. But that didn’t mean he wasn’t around since they avoided each other whenever possible.

As she headed across the grass, she pulled out her key since the bunkhouse’s back door was usually locked after dark. Usually The Barn itself was left unlocked, but the steel door between the clubhouse and the bunkhouse was kept secure, too.

A habit everyone had gotten into with the threat of the Shirleys.

Even though that clan was now dealt with—hopefully for the final time—it would be a hard habit to break. Maybe it was best if they continued to take precautions.

She’d leave that up to her brother, the self-proclaimed ruler of his damn kingdom. She was simply a pawn, simply going along to get along.

A damn cog in the Fury wheel.

Did she appreciate her brother giving her a place to stay and somewhere to belong? Hell yes.

Did she appreciate her brother acting like he was her father instead? Not quite.

It seemed as though from the moment she stepped onto the property, Trip stepped into the role of her father, along with Stella as her mother and Cage as her over-protective brother. It was both appreciated but frustrating at the same time since she was a damn adult.

Even though she couldn’t deny she sometimes didn’t act like one.

It wasn’t like she had good role models growing up. But then neither did Trip and if anyone could be considered winning in life, it was her older brother.

What he had done with the farm, with rebuilding a solid club from nothing but ashes, with building a tight-knit family, was damn impressive. Tessa did not possess half of his drive. She did not have half of his determination, either.

Because of that, she understood his bossiness came from his heart. She might get annoyed with him and Stella, but they truly loved and cared for her. Just like Cage and Jemma did.

It wasn’t simply empty words. That meant more to Tessa than they’d ever know.

She also couldn’t ignore that she was way better off now than she’d ever been with her parents back in Wisconsin. A million times better. From being around people who really didn’t give a fuck about her existence to now being surrounded by people who gave so many fucks it could get smothering.

At first, it had been hard to get used to. People actually worrying about her. Caring about her. Making sure she had everything she needed. It was overwhelming. For her whole childhood, she and her brother Tucker had fended for themselves and looked out for each other.

Birthdays went ignored. Christmas? Fsst. Non-existent.