The ties that bind 3, p.33
The Ties That Bind 3, page 33
part #3 of The Ties That Bind Series
“Man, that’s a relief to finally get off my chest. Do you feel like the wind was just knocked out of you? Because you take my breath away, and I feel like an idiot half the time that I’m around you, Billy.”
She managed to regain her composure with his use of her name. “You’re two minutes are up. Listen, I’m going to take off—”
“I don’t care. I’m not going to get another opportunity, so I’m putting it all out there, Billy. Why not make this even more uncomfortable than it already is, right? I can’t seem to control my impulses around you. Being around you is the best part of my day. I’ve got close to a hundred students that I can interact with effortlessly. And then there’s you. We engage and I go a little haywire and get sidetracked.”
Nick’s expression and laugh were rueful. “I hate it because we’ve got a solid team going here. I’m also sorry for not knowing how to adjust or manage my expectations with you,” he finished, seamlessly inserting his apology into the conversation.
Billy was hyperventilating at his raw admission and the realness written all over his face. He was watching her as if ready to dismantle her in ways she’d only experienced with Ransom. Retreat! Retreat! Her body was urging her. She obeyed and took a step back, shaking her head in denial.
“We’re done here, Professor.”
“Not quite.” He pointed at his injuries. “I deserved this. My conduct was reprehensible. I provoked your boyfriend, and that’s the only reason I’m not pressing charges. I know that I haven’t been here that long, and as much as I am enjoying the semester thus far, I had to give my notice.”
“Your n-notice?” Billy sputtered. “Professor, this is crazy! We can salvage—”
“No!” Nick was on his feet in a flash, pacing behind his desk. Rubbing at the back of his neck, he kept his eyes on the floor. “It’s impossible. I want to stay because I believe in the work we’re doing here, but my attraction to you has only grown and will continue to hinder what we’re trying to accomplish. I’ll be staying until my replacement arrives at the end of the month.”
Billy felt compelled to try again. “Professor, you revamped the program and breathed life into it! Won’t you please reconsider?”
Nick steeled himself against her pleas and somehow found the strength to compartmentalize his feelings and put on a professional mask.
“Thank you for your time, Ms. Stanton. That will be all.”
“What’s wrong with Billy?” Shakes questioned suspiciously. “Little mama’s normally a great big ball of sunshine.”
Ransom followed his gaze across the bar to where his woman was standing at the pick-up counter, waiting for their order. She had been strangely subdued since coming home from school. His concerned inquiries had been met with a wan smile. Not even Shakes’ unexpected arrival had drawn Billy completely out of her funk. Usually, every thought she entertained was reflected in her expressive face, making her an open book. Today, Billy was making Ransom work for it.
“I’m not sure. No doubt, I’ll get to the bottom of it by the end of the night. How long are you out here for?”
He’d been happy as fuck to get his best friend’s call this afternoon, letting him know he was in town helping the No-Cal chapter out. After swooping Billy up from campus, they’d met in this grubby dive bar near Half Moon Bay that Cane had introduced Ransom to. It was frequented by bikers and fishermen, alike, which meant foul language galore. However, Billy was game after Ransom swore they had the best hot wings he’d ever eaten.
“I’ll know when I swing by the clubhouse after we eat. I called Jackal and let him know I already hit town. Hopefully, it’s not longer than a month. Tawny sent me off right and promised my homecoming would be even better.”
Shakes glanced down at the rickety table and concentrated on flipping the condiment bottles upside down. Ransom watched him shrewdly, contemplating the red staining his friend’s cheeks.
“What gives?” he asked.
“What? Nothing. I’m just hungry,” Shakes responded, glancing over to where Billy was still waiting. He glanced back at his best friend then down at the condiments and righted them. Underneath his breath, he griped, “Damn, did we order wings or a seven-course meal? What’s taking so long?”
“It hasn’t even been ten minutes!” Ransom laughed. “You never could keep a good secret! Spit it out, fool!”
“I asked Tawny to marry me before I left,” Shakes revealed bashfully, his blue eyes shining bright.
“Well alright then, brother!” Ransom clasped him on the shoulder and shook it with a wide grin. “I’m happy for you! Is it safe to assume she said yes?”
His friend’s smile dimmed slightly. “She wants to say yes but needs me to be sure about it. Tawny calls me the ‘Panty Piper’. As in, everywhere I go, a trail of panties follow.”
He glared at Ransom’s chuckle. “Knock it off! You know I’ve been faithful to her.”
“Actually, that’s pretty fucking funny.”
“Okay, chuckle it up then, asshole. Not gonna lie, your parents’ breakup has stirred shit up around the club. Motherfuckers are walking the straight and narrow. The bitches at Flex might as well be fully dressed for all the attention they’re garnering from the MC.”
“Here you go.” Billy set the food on the table. “Be right back. I got some sauce on my shirt.”
She made her way to the restroom, and Ransom watched the heads that lifted and followed in her direction. No sooner did she disappear from his view when the door opened, and a familiar face walked in. Ransom rose and by that time, the newcomer had zeroed in on him.
“Brother, how ya been?” Cane pulled Ransom into a bear hug that practically lifted him from the floor. “Why didn’t you drop a line about coming here?! We coulda hooked up! Leslie still asks about you.”
“I haven’t been in town that long, but I would have reached out for sure, Cane.”
Cane jerked his head back, clearly puzzled by that answer. “Damn straight you would have! I’m surprised Jackal let that shit slide. Have you changed your mind about aligning with our chapter? Slade ain’t said shit to Jackal about it.”
Ransom and Shakes exchanged a look, their lips twisting cynically as understanding dawned. “Jackal would have been fine had he known. I left the MC.”
“You what?!” Cane barked. “The fuck you mean by that? You left the Immortals and went nomad? Why? You’re here and we already offered you a home last year!”
“Brother, I meant that I left the MC completely in December. Slade and I had a falling out, and it was best for everyone. Then Harley committed suicide, and here I am working on a fresh start.”
Cane was frowning as he listened. He winced hearing about Harley’s death, a stamp of sorrow appearing on his weathered face.
“Damn, I’m sorry to hear that. I can’t believe Slade never said nothing. Jackal talked to him and Blaze not too long ago to get this little knucklehead squared away,” he replied, grinning at Shakes and extending his arms to him.
“It’s good to see you, man! Shit, you’re a dead ringer for Blaze but the eyes are Lucy’s all day!”
“Likewise, Cane. Yup, I’m their pride and joy,” Shakes bragged.
“Say, mind if we join y’all? We just came off a PNW run and figured we’d stop for a bite and beer to celebrate a smooth finish.”
“I don’t have a problem with it. Who’s ‘we’, though?” Ransom scanned the sea of faces and found no one else with an Immortals cut on.
Cane rolled his eyes. “We borrowed from the So-Cal chapter after you left. An arrogant hothead who never knows when to shut up named Bones. He had to go to the can and should be here in a minute. He’s alright if you can get past his ego.”
“Doesn’t sound familiar.”
What did sound familiar was a female’s scathing voice that exploded into the air.
“Regret what? You think I’m supposed to be scared of your punk ass? I wasn’t sweating you in the dollar store, so why would I now?”
“Don’t test me, spook bitch! You know who the fuck I am? I’m a motherfucking Immortal!
“What did you just call me?!”
“Ah! You fucking cunt! You’re about to get your ass handled!”
Hearing Billy’s voice galvanized Ransom into action, and he sprinted toward her location. Shakes was right behind him as customers craned their necks in the direction of the altercation.
“Oh shit!” Cane hissed. “Goddamn you, Bones! Fuck! I’m too old for this shit,” he complained. He followed along and arrived in time to see the asshole having his ass handed to him by Ransom.
“Billy! Are you okay?” Shakes demanded, drawing her aside while his brother put in work. He put a protective arm around her and made sure to keep her out of the way.
“Wildthing, you straight?!”
“I’m good, Ransom!”
To Shakes, she answered dispassionately, “He caught me by surprise. I think he must have seen me go in and decided to wait for me. He jumped in my face with insults and slurs, and here we are.”
“Well, if it ain’t the stuck-up black bitch from the store,” he drawled, a sinister glint in his muddy eyes. “Remember me? You wouldn’t share them decorations with me. Pitched a fit and everything about it!”
“I’m sorry,” she smiled apologetically. He relaxed that chip on his shoulder, swayed by her friendly manner until she added, “A piece of shit like you just isn’t that memorable.”
His eyes iced over, and he grabbed her upper arm when she tried to pass him. He squeezed it painfully, making her wince. Billy used her other hand and jabbed her thumbnail in his eye and dug in until he let her go. Immediately she went for her blade, reaching it just as he grabbed her by the hair.
“Bitch, you’re gonna regret that!”
“Yeah, I’m afraid Bones is dumb like that,” the older biker offered.
Billy also recognized him from the store that night as the one who intervened before things got uglier. He acknowledged her with a polite nod and returned to watching Ransom pulverize his douchey friend, wincing at a particularly nasty blow he was dealt.
“Sorry about this shit, miss. If he makes it out alive, we’ll get him straightened out at the clubhouse.”
“If you don’t, I will, Cane. Every single day until that fucker sees the error of his ways,” Shakes coldly volunteered. “This motherfucker ain’t built for the type of bullshit he was popping off.”
Bones had to regret instigating with Billy by now, and that was the only the beginning of his troubles. She’d sliced his finger, and he released her again, just as the cavalry arrived in the form of her enraged boyfriend. Billy shifted out of the way in time for Ransom to grab him by the shoulder and spin him around. She actually heard the crunch when his fist connected and sent Bones sprawling to the floor, blood filling his mouth. Instinct had him curling into a fetal position that did little to protect him from the boot-stomping and kicking that Ransom delivered. Billy was positive she heard something crack (maybe a rib?) and almost felt sorry for the idiot. Almost. Ransom reached down and lifted him by the hair.
“What’d you call my woman, you racist sack of shit?!” The words seeping between his gnashed teeth were laced with vitriol that made even Billy tremble.
“Say it again! On everything, I want you to repeat that motherfucking bullshit and then try to ‘handle’ my ass too!”
Bones spit out a mouthful of blood and a tooth. He was winded trying to catch his breath to respond. His good eye was swelling and his ribs and scalp were on fire. Feebly, he reached for Cane who held his eyes but made no motion to help him.
“I-agh!”
The asshole was going to die. Billy saw it in Ransom’s eyes. They were frenzied with a combination of rage and thirst for revenge on her behalf. He was vibrating with the effort to encompass the volatile emotions but failing poorly.
Cane spoke up, albeit half-heartedly. “Hey, brother? You got a right to defend your woman’s honor no questions asked, but I’m gonna have to insist you let that dipshit go now. Fun’s over. Whether he meets his maker is club business. You know the rules. Do you really wanna break them?”
Shakes gave him crazy eyes. “Since when have we ever given a shit about rules when it comes to protecting our loved ones?”
Ransom gave Bones a knee to the ribs, and his high-pitched scream shattered the bar’s silence. “I’ll let this bitch go when he apologizes to my woman properly.”
“I’m sorry!” he blubbered on cue. “I didn’t mean any of that shit! It won’t happen again!”
“You don’t have to accept a damn thing from him, wildthing,” Ransom reminded her in a lethal tone. “As a matter of fact, I’d prefer if you didn’t.”
“He’s right,” Shakes confirmed harshly. “This shit can end right here. I’ll even bury the fucking body for him.”
Billy lifted her gaze to Ransom’s and knew that was true. His savagery made him more animal than man in this instance. He was suspended on the edge, ready to do the unthinkable if she gave the go-ahead. Billy’s adrenaline was still zigzagging from her confrontation with this prejudiced scumbag. He’d dared to call her out of her name and put his hands on her. She wanted to tell Ransom to annihilate him. Instead, she stepped forward and peered down impassively into the asshole’s face.
“Tomorrow you’re going to wake up and feel like shit. Then you’ll recall how close you came to actual death. If you’re able to grasp that concept, just make sure you’re properly grateful to this Spook Bitch who just saved your pathetic life.”
Ashamed, Bones lowered his head, unable to look at Billy. Ransom snatched it back up, forcing him to maintain eye contact. “Look at her! You didn’t have a problem staring into her face when you were busy insulting her, did you? Show some goddamn respect to the woman who holds your life in her hands!”
“I’m sorry! I don’t know what else…I’m so sorry,” he gasped. “Please, miss…”
She nodded her consent at Ransom, and he contemptuously flung Bones to the floor. Billy squeezed Shakes’ hand and inclined her head toward Cane before regally exiting the bar to wait for Ransom by his bike.
“That’s one helluva woman you got there,” Cane remarked admiringly.
“Yeah? You feel a little ‘jungle fever’ coming on?” Ransom challenged menacingly, remembering his comment at Kent’s basketball game last November.
The older man held his hands up defensively. “I’m old-school, kid. I didn’t mean nothing by it. As soon as I get a free moment, I’ll enroll myself at the local college for a crash course in racial sensitivity,” he quipped, attempting to break the building ice.
“Quit being a dick!” Shakes snapped with a frown.
“I’m just telling it like it is. What I was actually referring to was an incident that was the catalyst for this. Me and Bones were out Christmas shopping and stopped at a local dollar store. Your woman and her friend had purchased most of the decorations. Bones got it in his head that they were gonna share with us. She stood her ground and her mouthy friend backed her. He wasn’t too happy, but I recognized her from the basketball game and diffused the situation.”
“They were for the children’s cancer ward that she volunteers at, asshole,” Ransom spoke directly to Bones. “She wanted to do something to make their Christmas a little brighter.”
Shakes clapped Ransom on the back and smiled proudly. “Get on outta here and take care of ‘Little Ms. Sunshine’. I wanna see a full-blown smile on her face next time we get together. We’ll get this mess cleaned up.”
Ransom glared down at Bones who was finally showing signs of a resurrection. “Keep an eye on her for a sec. I need to wash my hands right quick. Also, somebody let him know that Billy may have said no, but I’m still on the motherfucking fence about killing him. Make sure you tell him to ask about me too.”
“Don’t worry, Ransom. That well-earned reputation of yours precedes you. He just didn’t plan on tangling with a fucking legend today,” Cane sighed. “Hope it sticks though. He’s a hardheaded cuss. Good to see you again, brother. Wish it had ended in better circumstances.”
“Likewise.”
In the bathroom, Ransom’s insides were charred from suppressing his fury. His jobs for the MC were accomplished impartially. He could take his emotions out of the equation and approach any situation with order and logic, maybe even have a little fun with it. Not if it involved his Billy, though. Murder and mayhem ensued in the blink of an eye. A hard shudder steamrolled him, and Ransom kicked the garbage can viciously, putting a dent in it and sending trash flying all over the small space. He wanted to rip Bones’ goddamn tongue out with his bare hands and choke his ass to death with it. Ransom turned the faucet on and splashed cold water on his face, attempting to regain his sanity, not that it helped. By the time he made it outside, Billy had her lid strapped on and was sitting on the bike, ready to go. She held his helmet out to him, but he didn’t take it. Ransom simply looked at her, his eyes still feral with rage and his nostrils flaring. He glanced back at the bar, and his hands curled back into fists, his objective clear.
“Don’t, Ransom!” Billy warned, grabbing his arm. “We’re lucky this is the kind of place with good ol’ wild, wild west rules and the cops aren’t on their way. Let it go.”
His eyes snapped back to hers and they were filled with harsh incredulity. “Baby…I’m sorry, but I don’t think I can. Fuck that! Not after…Nah, I don’t even know how to let—”
“You think that I’ve never encountered racism before? You honestly think that jackass will be the last person to try and get crazy with me?” Billy’s pitying laugh sounded like talons screeching down a chalkboard to Ransom.
He lowered his head, moss eyes brimming fire and growled, “I know that you better pray none of this ever happens again because I’ll drench this fucking world in crimson before I—”
Billy fisted his sweatshirt then reached up and tugged him down to meet her lips, effectually muzzling Ransom. It was meant to distract him and did the job too efficiently. When she pulled back, he orchestrated a territorial swoop that had Billy clutching at the front of his black hoodie for balance as his lips kept moving and tasting. The kiss intensified, serving its two purposes of feeding his incessant hunger for Billy and clarifying to all eyes on them, if it wasn’t already, that she was his. Disrespect toward her would not be tolerated and he, Ransom, was judge, jury, and executioner of anyone suicidal enough to try.
