Lucky Ride (Men of Valor MC)

“He’s not my boyfriend. He’s my boss, who didn’t like me being insulted by your boyfriend.”

“Insulted? Please. You’re just not used to men pointing out that you’d do better at the club where I work.”

“Listen, Cara. I don’t want to have a problem.”

“Fine, but stay away from Carl. He told me you were creeping on him in the shower, just standing there staring at his cock.” I want to argue, but it’s clear she’s not going to believe me. Cara jabs her finger into my chest, leaning in and hissing violently, “He’s mine.”

“No problem. I don’t want to date anyone,” I say with a straight face so I can get Cara off my case. If I date, only one man comes to mind. Logan’s been all I can think about during my drive home.

Once I get her to cool her attitude, I go around cleaning up the house until Cara leaves for the strip club. By nine, I’m exhausted. I’m not scheduled for the restaurant tomorrow, and that makes me sad. Like a pathetic schoolgirl with a crush, I’m wondering if I have a reason to stop in the diner. Do the waitresses stop by on their days off? Probably not, since they spend four days a week there. I have two days until I see him again. I close my eyes and hope to have sweet dreams of Logan.

I don’t know what time it is when I wake up to a commotion. “That’s the little bitch right there,” a gruff voice snarls.

“What?” I groggily say, opening my eyes fully to see Carl glaring at me with another guy next to him.

“What? What?” Carl mocks me. He’s the asshole cop and Cara’s man. I scramble off the couch just in time as he swipes at my legs. “You need to learn how to put out, you stuck-up princess.”

“Leave me alone,” I cry out, trying to get away from him. I barely pick up my phone before ducking his arms. I back up and slip on my shoes.

“Come on—relax, Carl. She’s a little virgin,” Cara pleads with him.

“Bitch, all the better.” He rakes his tongue over his lips like the serpent he is.

“You can’t fuck her,” Cara hisses, tugging on his arm. His hand comes across her face before she knows it. Cara falls back onto the sofa, and I’m floored. Her father didn’t raise a weakling and I know she’ll challenge him, which is a real fucking bad idea.

“I think you should leave,” I say to the dirty cop, while the friend who’s with him stays quiet, watching the scene before him.

“Bitch, we aren’t leaving until you’ve lost that cherry and are working our dicks like a pro. We need fresh whores, not washed-up ones.”

I move around the table and snatch my purse. “If you’re not leaving, then I am. Come on, Cara.” I call to her, but she’s ducking her head down at the table with five white lines. Son of a bitch.

They laugh because my cousin doesn’t even care about getting knocked around. “Relax. See? Cara knows her place and how to party right.”

“I can’t believe this.” I shake my head.

He blows something in my face, and I start choking. “Hey, that’s my shit,” Cara shouts because they wasted her drugs on me. Remembering my old self-defense class, I kick the fucker in the jaw, then throw the door open and run out, barely snatching up my keys off the hook. The walls seem to spin, but I keep going. I hope they don’t hurt her, but I can’t stay there.

I make it out to my car and jump in before they can catch me. They expect a kick to the balls, but one to the chin always takes them by surprise. I speed through the town as the lines and lights blur. I don’t know if it’s the drugs or that the windshield is frozen, but I can’t see shit. The temp in my car is thirty degrees, so it’s probably a mix of both. I have no idea where I’m going, and I can’t call the cops. In two days, I’ve learned that the police around here are shady as fuck.

“Logan. That’s who I can call.” I reach over into the passenger seat and dig in my purse, coming up empty. “Shit,” I mutter, remembering that the number’s in my coat, which regretfully is still in the apartment. The heat in my car is shit. I’ll run out of gas before it gets warm, so I use the adrenaline and the drugs I’m on to get me through this. Holy shit. The lights are blurring into one big mess, so I slow down, hoping I’m out of danger. I look through my rearview, and there’s no car following me. My attention turns to the road, and I nearly collide with a tree.