Marek (Knights Corruption MC #1) (13 page)

“Well, you must have done something.”

“I . . . I just . . . was trying to convince her to kiss me. That’s all. I . . . I swear.” Shoving him back down to the ground, I abruptly turned toward my entire club, most of the men still present after our little retaliation trip.

“Hear me now,” I roared. “If anyone so much as touches a hair on Sully’s head, you’re gonna have to answer to me. And it won’t be goddamn pretty. Trust me on that shit!”

Kicking Zip in the leg on my way back toward my room to check on her, I heard a few of the men grumble under their breaths. I didn’t care if they thought she was gonna be passed around for their own amusement. She’d been through enough.

The evidence was scarred all over her body.

Sully

I heard shouting in the hallway, and I thought I heard my name, but I’d shut the bathroom door soon after I’d defended myself against one of the club members. He wasn’t doing anything different than any other man in my life had done—always wanting to touch me, to taste me—but, for some reason, I’d snapped. Again. The only explanation for my bouts of bravery must be that I was still in shock, not in my right frame of mind. Because if I were, I would have never done any of the things I had since I’d been kidnapped.

There was no way I was going to get away with fighting these men as much as I had been. Maybe they were gearing up for something awful, counting my insolent acts up to warrant the attack which was surely coming at me.

Maybe I’d finally fought back
because
I didn’t know them. I had no frame of reference of how they would react, therefore leaving me to my own self-justified—or delusional—world of denial.

The bathroom I was now trapped in boasted nothing special. A cream color washed over the walls of the small room. There was a silver rack next to the toilet, a beige towel hanging haphazardly from it. A single vanity with an accompanying wooden mirror was set in the middle of the intimate space.

Like I said, nothing to write home about, but it was the most enticing room to me. It allowed me a sliver of solitude, and after being ripped from the only life I’d known, it was comforting to be alone.

Turning on the shower, I waited patiently while the water heated up, steam quickly fogging the small mirror. Stripping off my shorts, I slid the shower door open and stepped inside, instantly feeling a smidge better. The power of hot water cascading all over my tired, worn-out body was the best therapeutic release. All my demons were put to rest, all my self-loathing taking a backseat to the warmth I suddenly found myself enveloped in.

Reaching for the combined shampoo and conditioner bottle, I squeezed a healthy size into my palm before massaging it into my tangled hair. The soft repetition of my fingers on my scalp was quite relaxing, making me forget for a brief moment just where I was.

In the Knights Corruption’s compound.

Naked in the president’s shower.

My captor.

Once my long hair was rinsed free, I grabbed the shower gel and spread an ample amount on a washcloth, scrubbing my body clean. The masculine scent filled my nose and while it should have put me on guard, I noticed it had the reverse effect. The aroma calmed me. I’d smelled it before . . . on
him
. I first noticed it when he was standing behind me, guiding me toward his bedroom. Then again when he was inspecting my body, his hands holding me close to him as if he feared I was going to flee. And why shouldn’t he think such a thing? Any normal person who’d been stolen away from her family—no matter how abusive and dysfunctional—would try and run given the opportunity to do so.

So, why wasn’t I devising a plan to escape?

Focusing back on the task at hand, I almost didn’t hear the bathroom door open, then close; the soft click of the handle was swallowed by the heavy flow of the water.

My head was immersed under the spray when I suddenly heard a gruff voice slice through the otherwise silent air.

“If you stay in there any longer you’re gonna turn into a damn prune.”

His deep voice startled me, my body’s reaction completely involuntary. I jumped and slipped on the shower floor, my arms bracing myself against the tile so I didn’t fall on my ass. Before I could reply, he quickly slid the door open and stood in front of me, a brief worried look passing over his handsome features.

I’m learning there’s absolutely no sense of privacy when it comes to this man.

Reaching to take my hand, he pulled me toward the edge of the shower, keeping his eyes on my face and not my naked body. Not in the beginning, at least. His touch was soothing, but he also made me extremely self-conscious. Not simply because I was nude, but I felt he could see into the deepest parts of my soul. His blue eyes entranced me, blinking in slow motion as he seemed to memorize every aspect of my face. He stared so intently at my mouth that I could do nothing but lick my lips out of nervousness, biting down on the corner to sate my thumping heart. A low growl erupted from his throat, his hand tightening over mine as his gaze flew back up to meet my own.

Soon, he raked his eyes over the rest of me, being sure to take in his fill rather quickly.

“Are you all right?” he asked, licking his own lips while he waited for my answer. But I’d become mute all of a sudden. The chill of the room hardened my nipples, making them painfully erect. An ache shot through me while my heart pounded against my chest. But all I could focus on was his eyes . . . and that delectable mouth of his. He had the most perfect Cupid’s bow, his lips full and inviting. A neatly trimmed beard coated his strong jaw, and the flare of his nostrils told me he was excited, although it was the only reaction which indicated so.

Instinctually, my fingers traced over the scar on my stomach, shielding the ugly, puckered skin from his view, in case he chanced a look down there again. But instead of hiding, he saw me—
all
of me—and it was quite unnerving.

“I still want answers,” he demanded, quirking his brow while he continued to stand in the open doorway of the shower.

“About what?” I mumbled, knowing damn well what he was talking about.

Leaning closer, he said, “About who did that to you.” He gestured toward my body with his finger. “I’ll give you the night to settle in, seeing as how this is your home now. Then we’ll talk, and you’ll tell me everything I want to know. Got it?” he asked.

I remained silent, trying to process what I knew to be true, but it was somehow different when the words were spoken out loud.
This is your home now.
It couldn’t be further from the truth, but I didn’t know quite how to voice that without angering him. I’d been through such a whirlwind that evening; all I wanted to do was finish washing up and crawl into bed.

His
bed.

But I didn’t have another choice.

Did I?

His posture became rigid, as if he expected a fight, but I said nothing. I simply nodded, hoping he would close the door and leave me in peace.

Peace. What a funny word, one which had never pertained to me a day in my life.

Finally, after giving my body a once-over again, he closed the door and it was seconds before I heard another click, indicating he had vacated the one small room I wanted to spend the rest of my life in. I had no desire to ever see another person for as long as I could stand it, although the man who’d kidnapped me was different. I saw something in his eyes, a nature he tried his hardest to hide from people. Maybe it was because he was the leader of a notorious biker club, making sure no one questioned his power—hell, maybe even his sanity. Or maybe it was for a different reason altogether, but I knew I wasn’t going to stick around long enough to find out.

While I had no set plan of escaping, I knew I had to do something eventually. I mean, who just gives up when kidnapped, complacent to remain with their captor, no questions asked?

Stepping from the shower, I dried my body before slipping on the shorts and T-shirt he’d given me earlier. Slowly opening the door, I stepped into his bedroom, but only once I deemed it safe . . . and abandoned. I crawled under the covers and pulled the material to my nose, strangely comforted by the scent which suddenly wrapped around me.

Drifting off to sleep, something I surely would have thought impossible, I envisioned a life where I wasn’t a victim. Where I hadn’t been snatched from my ‘family.’ Where I wasn’t used as the most intricate part of a pawn played between two clubs who’d been at war for as long as I could remember.

My fantasies consisted of a life where I lived a simple existence, one which didn’t involve constant fear and self-loathing.

At least you’re away from your father and Vex
, my inner voice screamed. The thing was I had no idea what kind of devil lurked in the darkened hallways of my new ‘home.’

Marek

I had every intention of leaving her alone, allowing her the night to herself, certain she was overwhelmed and probably scared out of her mind. Although, depending on the answer she gave me about who’d desecrated her body, she might be thankful to be away from the Savage Reapers.

Her family.

As I opened the door to my room to check on her before I left for the evening, I heard faint whimpers drift through the air. Stepping inside, I moved closer to the bed and noticed her spread out, jerking in her sleep and pushing at the air as if she were shoving someone away from her.

Who haunts your dreams?

While I made sure to remain as quiet as I could so as not to scare her, my eyes drifted down her body. She’d thrown the covers off and was lying in the clothes I’d given her, the sight of her in my shorts and top stirring up a possessiveness I’d never felt before. The bottom of the shirt rode up enough that I saw her stomach, the scar prevalent enough to fuel my anger all over again. Her full breasts pressed against the fabric, and it was everything I could do not to rip it from her body. My shorts, the ones she was wearing, hung so low on her hipbones that if they were any lower, I would see all of her. Not that I hadn’t already, of course, but the slight tease of her pussy made my dick push against my jeans.

The longer I invaded her personal space the more she seemed to fight her nightmare, a scream suddenly erupting from her perfect mouth. Before I realized what I was doing, I rushed forward to wake her. For some reason, her thrashing around pierced my heart, but I had no time to dissect why I even cared.