Viper (Hell's Handlers MC 9)

Silence. He needed silence and a moment to think.

“Cassie, go the fuck upstairs!” Viper yelled. “I will deal with you later!”

She froze for a moment, then her arms dropped to her sides and her posture sagged in utter defeat. The look of shock and betrayal in her eyes nearly slayed him. Never had he spoken to her in such a caustic tone and never had he ordered her around like she worked for him.

Without a word, she turned on her heel and marched out of the room. Each stomp of her feet on the stairs felt like a punch to the gut.

Fuck.

“Damn, brother,” Sarge said, as he slapped Viper on the back. “That’s how it’s done. You let that woman walk all over you. Time to take back the power and show her who’s the fucking man.”

“Shit, I gotta talk to her.” Viper rubbed at an ache in the center of his forehead. “Can I catch up with you tomorrow?”

Sarge considered him for a moment then nodded. “Think about my offer, okay?”

“Yeah, I will.” Viper led Sarge to the door then opened it for his brother.

“Hey,” Sarge said, as he walked toward the open door. He cocked his thumb in the direction of the stairs. “Don’t stress over that shit, okay? It’s good for her.”

Good for her? Thank God Cassie hadn’t heard Sarge spew that one or she might have castrated the man. He owed Cassie an apology and was eager to get upstairs, so he nodded. “Yeah. I’ll see you tomorrow, brother. You okay to drive?”

“Cin’s napping in the truck. She can cart my ass home.”

That marriage had failure written all over it, but he’d never say that to Sarge. It’d have to play out on its own. “All right. Get some sleep.”

“Yup.” Sarge lifted a hand as he jogged toward his idling truck.

After locking back up, Viper trudged up the stairs with a heavy heart and a muddled head. He found Cassie sitting on the edge of their bed, staring out the window.

“Cass,” he started.

His voice brought her head around. “Please tell me you’re not taking his offer seriously.”

He’d expected her to lay into him over yelling at her so the question had him drawing to a stop. “What?”

She stood, eyes spitting fire. “The offer to be his VP. Please tell me you aren’t considering this.”

Christ, he’d barely had time to process his president’s death let alone Sarge’s offer. “I don’t know, babe, let’s talk about it in the morning. Okay?” He extended a hand toward her.

Instead of taking it and joining him in bed, she stared at it as though it were a snake ready to strike.

“Viper, he’s fucking crazy if he thinks he’s going to be the president. And if by some insane twist of fate he is, you should not be his VP.” She began pacing the room, each step making the T-shirt she wore ride up her creamy thighs.

Why couldn’t they be in bed enjoying each other instead of discussing things they didn’t even know anything about?

Wait…

“Why don’t you want me to be his VP? You don’t think I’d do a good job?”

“What? No. Because he’s fucking crazy. He barely treats Cindy better than a club whore—I have no idea why she married him—he’s volatile, unpredictable, and dangerous for the club.”

“Cassie, don’t you think you’re being a little harsh?”

“Uhh, do you remember the night in Marco’s bar?”

Well, no one could deny that shit show. “That was years ago. He’s never done anything even close to that since then. You know this. He’s made the club a ton of money.”

She grunted. “Because it makes him look good.”

“Cassie, he’s my brother. You gotta stop talking shit about him.”

“Oh yeah? Why? You gonna take his side over mine again? You gonna order me out of the room next time he comes over?”

And now they were getting to the meat of the problem. She was pissed. Rightfully so, but now he was getting pissed as well. He’d had every intention of apologizing, but she’d taken this in so many directions he could barely keep up. “Look, you know how this works by now—”

“You have never spoken to me like that before,” she continued as though he hadn’t spoken. “Is that what life would be like if you became his VP?”

What? What was she even talking about?

“Would I be the little woman who had to keep her mouth shut and leave the room when the men were present?”

“Cassie, don’t be ridiculous.”

“Because that’s not me, Viper. I may ride on the back of your bike, but I’m not riding behind you in life. I will not do that. Especially not in my own home. That is not what I signed on for. That’s not who we are.”

What the fuck was her deal? “Then why the fuck are you here? You know who I am. You know how the club works. Why the fuck are you here if you don’t want to be a part of it?”