Payback (Dueling Devils) (8 page)

The whispers grew louder
as she approached the kitchen. She reached the doorframe and her heart ached. The woman standing too close to D was gorgeous. From her slanted hazel eyes to her flowing hair and petite frame, along with flawless caramel skin she reminded her of Rihanna.

The woman glanced
up and gave her a slow once over.

The slight twitch at the corners of her lips and the narrowing of her eyes, immediately set Ardy on red alert. Ardy cleared her throat.

Demon glanced up and smiled.  “Hey baby, I thought we’d let you sleep in.”

“I’m awake now.” She glanced at the mystery woman, schooling her features to show nothing. “Who’s this?”

“This is Gia. She’s a friend of mine who needs a safe place to stay right now. Gia this is Ardy.”

The pride in his voice made her heart melt, but she didn’t dare let
it sway her. “Mm-hmm.”

“She
has issues with the Sidewinders too. It’s kind of my fault. So, you understand why I brought her in.”

“
Oh yeah, I understand,” she answered dryly.

D’s brow furrowed
at her remark.

Arty
rolled her eyes.
Clueless.
“How do you know one another?”

“We first met a few years back when we went into business together, we co-own a club,” Gia said.
“Nice to meet you.” She held out her hand.

Ardy did the same. The tight
black, sequined dress hugged Gia’s every curve and told her they weren’t talking about a country club. “Oh, my family runs a business that’s exciting. What kind of a club is it, Jonah?”

Gia’s draw dropped
.

Ardy almost smirked.

“A strip club. You’re new here, so you haven’t heard of it, but Taffy’s is pretty much a staple around here. We bring in a lot of good money.” D walked over and wrapped an arm around her waist.

She grinned, staring Gia down.
That’s right, back off bitch.
“And you…dance?”

“Not anymore. Now I own. I’m an
entrepreneur I might start at the bottom, but I always end out on top, exactly where I want to be.”

The hidden message wasn’t lost on Ardy.

“Knock that shit off, Gia. I’m not deaf or fucking blind. I bring your ass in here to keep you safe and you want to fuck with my old lady?” His tone turned cold.

“Oh, it’s okay, Jonah.” Ardy squeeze
d his arm. “I’m sure such a beautiful woman would never make such a desperate attempt get what isn’t hers.” Ardy smiled, barring her teeth. “Right,
Gia?
”

“
You’re right. I wouldn’t attempt to take something that didn’t’ belong to me. That’d be rude and sloppy.”

Her suggestive words hit Ardy like a slap to the face. She’d
fucked Demon, more than once and she felt she had some sort of ownership. The slight burned up her insides. Not because he had a past. Because she was looking it in the face. Determined not to let her inner turmoil show, she kept her smile in place. “I’m glad everyone here understands each other. I’m going to get breakfast going. The kids will be waking up soon.” Unwrapping her arm from around Demon’s, she walked to the sink and washed her hands, ignoring the gazes burning holes in her back.
Fucking Judas.
Anger flowed through her veins sparking the need to clean and bake. The sound of heels on wood told her the bitch was making a retreat. She continued to ignore D as she moved around the house gathering flour, sugar, eggs, butter and the necessary spices for cinnamon muffins.

“You’re not going to talk to me?” D asked.
He came to stand behind her at the counter.

Continuing to measure out
the ingredients, she shrugged. “What for? I mean it’s none of my business, right? That’s how this works.” She cracked the eggs, tossed them in the garbage and began to vigorously beat the yolks.

“It’s obvious
you’re pissed.”

“You blame me?”

He placed his hands on her hips. “Whatever you’re thinking…stop.”

“Stop what? Thinking she know
s what you look like naked and how good your dick feels inside her?”

“That shit ended a
while ago and she knows it ain’t never happening again.”

Her stomach turned. “Funny. She didn’t’ seem to act like it.” She poured the ingredients together and continued to whisk. “
You owe me more respect than this.”

“I was backed into a corner. What did you want me to do, Ardy?”

She paused in mid stir, jerked away from the hands at her waist and spun around. “Show me that I’m number one. I get that the club comes first, but I’ll be damned if I come second to bitches who shouldn’t be here in the first place.” He opened his mouth and she shook her hair. Curls obscured her vision as they swung around her face. “No. I have limits. You can’t ask me to leave everything I know, enter this world and just take it like a little bitch because you’re
Demon President of the Dueling Devils
. I didn’t get with you for a title. I got with you for the man I thought existed behind the public persona. Maybe I was wrong. “

He stepped forward and pinned her to the counter with his hips. Placing his arms on either side of her body
, he caged her. Anger flared in his dark eyes.

“Don’t touch me.” She whispered.

“I will touch you, because you’re mine and you got this shit twisted. Yes. I know it wasn’t the best idea, but this is a life or death matter. Despite her sudden round of bitchiness, Gia is a good woman. She’s had Dueling Devil’s back and for the most part, I trust her. I’ll set her straight again if it makes you happy. But you can’t be doubting me every time a skeleton jumps out of my closet. ‘Cause baby they are many. Most of me is ugly, Ardy. The things I have to do, the associates I keep company with…I never pretended otherwise. I do my best to keep a lot of that shit away from my family, but there are times when the two worlds will collide. I need you to be able to process it and move forward.”

“That’s a lot, Jonah,” s
he whispered.

“
Baby, you offered yourself up to pay your fathers’ debt without batting an eyelash. I know you have it in you. The only thing you need to know when it comes to bitches from my past is they meant nothing. It was a quick, easy release. Even Natasha was no love match.”

“But I’m different. Why? It hasn’t been that long.”

“Baby, it doesn’t matter. From the first time, I looked at you and felt more than I should. Watching you with my kids and living with you day in and day out, just made that spark grow.” He pressed his forehead to hers. “I don’ t have a filter with you Ardy. I’ve never felt this way about anyone. I didn’t plan on it. Relationships rarely pan out in this life. But this shit between us is right. I’m not going to let you go. I can’t—you...” His voice warbled.

Shock splashed her like a bucket of cold water.
“Jonah?” She brought her hands up to cup his firm jaw.

“Every day you bring me back into the light a little bit more. I was in a dark place before you. Too much happened too fast. The blood on my hands won’
t ever rinse off, but with the kids and you, I can manage it.”

She lifted his face. The horror in his eyes frightened her. “What’s going on?”

“Now’s not the time. But soon, I’ll tell you. I’m capable of shit that’ll turn your stomach Ardy. I knew that when I asked you to commit. I should’ve—you don’t belong with a man like me.” His hands shook a little.

“You’re scaring me.”

“You should be.” His serious tone painted violent depictions of violence and gore in her mind. Streets ran red with blood and bodies littered the pavement. She wasn’t ignorant to what he did. People who lived by the gun, usually died by them and the ones left standing were tough as shit.

“For a
long time my only thought was survival. So, when I say I lived like an animal, I mean that.”

The sound of little feet on
wooden floors killed the moment and D stepped back. “I’ll run interference, so you can get breakfast going.” A shutter came down over his face as he stepped away.

Arty
wondered if he revealed more than he’d intended to.
Damn you for sucking me further into the black hole of Jonah.
Forcing herself to return to cooking, she vowed to find out more about this man she couldn’t walk away from, even when logic dictated it might not be the wisest course. She loved Rocket and Harley, but this was about more than that. The more Demon showed her of Jonah. The harder she fell. He spent his days saving others. How could she walk away from him, when it was clear beneath that gruffness he was hurting something fierce?

On route, she compl
eted the task of making muffins and moved on to cutting up fruit for a salad. With the kids up, they’d have to play nice, but that didn’t mean she wouldn’t get her pound of flesh. She’d never been the type to back down when it was truly important and it was clear Ms. Gia needed to be put in her place. She ran a business with D and one thing Ardy understood was you didn’t fuck up money flow. She wouldn’t be that woman, but she would make it clear. Being a President’s old lady required some serious ass kicking when necessary. Common sense told her that. There were certain women who lusted after men in power and D was high on that totem pole.

“Good morning, Ardy.”

The sound of Rocket’s voice took away the irritation and she bent to receive his hug. “Morning Rocket, did you have a good sleep?”

“Ye
p. I like it out here. I told Dad how you took us to the river and we skipped stones and saw the big fat toad.” He burst into giggles that put a vice grip on her heart.

How had this little boy come to mean so much to her so soon?

“Yeah, it sounds like you guys have been having all the fun without me,” D said.

Rock
et glanced over his shoulder. “Don’t worry Dad, you can come with us next time. Right, Ardy?”

“Absolutely. Why don’t you and your Dad go watch some television while I get breakfast together
and wake up Harley?”

“Okay. Daddy told me Aunt Gia is here.”

“Yes, I’m sure Aunt Gia will be out soon.”

“Yay.” He flashed her a quick smile and pulled away
, running out of the room toward the couch.

The boy had lost enough in his short lifetime. If he liked
Aunt Gia
, she wouldn’t run her off entirely. She took a deep breath and leaned against the stove. It wasn’t a matter of fighting. She’d already won. Now wasn’t the time for unnecessary stress.

Chapter Five

D
emon stalked over to Gia who stood smoking on the front porch, grabbed her arm, spinning her around. “What the fuck was that in there?”

She blew out a stream of smoke and smiled. “What? The little conversation with your girlfriend? Does she know
, less than six months ago you and Lefty were fucking me at the same time on a damn near daily basis?”

Disgusted
, he shoved her away and shook his head. “What the fuck is wrong with your brain? I haven’t touched you in months. You can’t be that hard up.”

“You think it’s okay to just toss me aside like a piece of garbage?”

“No one even thought that shit. You’re fucked up in the head, same as all of us. I don’t fault you for that. But when your crazy starts to leak out and affect my family, you get shut down. You were never going to be my old lady. You knew that. I never wanted anything more.”

“And I didn’t a
sk you for it. But I was yours, wasn’t I? I had a place to belong and people who gave a shit.”

“I still give a shit, but
there are boundaries now.”

She laughed and shook her head. “That’s why I picked you. I knew you were like me. We didn’t do deep. We fucked, got comfortable and stayed with the person who knew what we liked. I watched you for a long time. But I never counted on someone coming along who got under your skin.”

“What the hell, Gia. You don’t think you deserve more?”

“I—
I.” she opened her mouth and closed it, shaking her head. Her eyes were large and haunted.

At her expression, h
is heart ached a bit. He didn’t know her full story, but he knew she’d lived a life of modern day slavery for most of her twenties.

“I don’t know. I just felt comfortable with you.”

“And what Lefty’s an asshole?”

“No. I like him, I do, but you were a gateway to him. I never thought of you as anything but a package deal.”

“Maybe you should start.” Demon inclined his head. “Look, I came out here to tell you to stop fucking with Ardy. She’s got enough on her plate and if I see anything else, your ass is out of the house. Hell, you’ll be lucky if she lets you stay. This shit is her domain. She’s the one who holds it down here. I have to respect her wishes.”

“God, how can you just…
?” She snorted and took a long drag off her cigarette.

“Just what?” He raised an eyebrow.

“Surrender your emotions like that?”

“I didn’t
. I gave them to her because I trust her. When it’s right you know and no amount of denial is going to keep that shit from happening. If you resist, you only risk losing the one person you actually want to be close to. You might want to think about that.”

“What the fuck are you looking at me for with those knowing eyes, D? You got something say?”

“I don’t think it needs to be said.”

“Listen,
Jonah
.” She sneered. “Don’t go reading into shit, because you found your boo thing.”

He stepped closer and
gripped her wrist, hard.

She dropped her cigarette and whimpered.

“Don’t you ever call me that.”

“Jesus, you fucking crazy?”

“I need to know that you understand me.”

“Yeah, I get it,
Demon
. Fuck. Sometimes, I forget why you’re named that way.”

He released her and stepped back.

“You can be a real asshole when you want.” She ground out the cigarette, rubbing her abused flesh.

“Only when you make me.”

“I get it okay. Play nice with Ardy. It isn’t fucking hard. I mean shit, she’s like Betty Crocker or something, all pretty and sweet. The last person I’d pick for you.”

Gia
’s grumbling made him chuckle. “Yeah, she’s the shit, isn’t she?”

“
Ugh, just go in the house before you make me sick.” She waved him off.

Now,
he knew they’d cleared the air. She didn’t want him. It’s the security he provided she craved.
Better make your move soon, Lefty, before she does something fucking stupid.
Pleased with their conversation he left her on the porch. He stepped in the house and found Ardy alone on the couch watching a cooking show. “Where are the kids?” he asked, glancing around.

“It’s nap time.”

“Shit, you got them on a schedule?”

She glanced up at him and scowled. “Yes, little people need that
shit.”

“Don’t they need
to free to be their mini selves?”

“Umm
…No, there lies the path of anarchy and I ain’t having it.” She crossed her arms beneath her breasts.

The corners of his mouth t
witched. “Awhhh shit, little mama is getting riled up.”

“Do not call me that, I’m not a rapper.”

He plopped down on the couch and rested his head in her lap. “No, but you are little and a Mama now.”

She blinked. Her hazel eyes grew unfocused.

Demon tensed. “You don’t like that ideal.”

“No, I do.” Her voice wavered. “I like it too much.”

“Don’t you turn on the water works. You’ve been more of a mother to them in the past few months, than their mother has her entire life. When I get my way, that shit will be official.”

“Wait, what?” Her eyes practically popped out of her head as she gawked at him.

“Come on, you can’t be surprised.”

“Did you—
is that a proposal?”

“No baby, that’s a notice of intention. When I ask you, you’ll know.”
He closed his eyes and enjoyed the softness of her body and her sweet scent as he allowed himself a few moments of peace before he announced he had to leave. “You’re going to be okay while I’m gone, right?” he asked while eyeballing Ardy who’d been silent since he announced he needed to head out.

“I don’t do cat fights, Jonah.” She huffed.

“No, you’re more the bar type. That’s what worries me. Don’t bust my place up okay, Irish?”

“Shut up.” Her accent thickened
.

He
grinned. “Can you talk, Irish?”

“What? Irish isn’t a langu
age,” she snickered. “And yes, I can speak some Gaelic.”

“Come here.”
He wrapped his hand around her neck, underneath the heavy curtain of her hair he’d come to love. Leaning in, he whispered in her ear, “Lay a suggestive phrase on me.”

She giggled.
“What do you want me to say?”

“A
nything you want, baby.” He kept massaging her neck.

“Alright then.”
She rose on her tiptoes and whispered a few lyrical sounding words in his ear.

His muscles contracted and he shuddered. “Yes to everything you just said.”

She laughed. “You don’t even know what I said.”

“I’m good at reading between the lines.” He winked. “Give me.” He tapped his lips and she moved closer. Their mouths met and clung as h
e poured every ounce of emotion he held in his chest for her. With the way things were shaping up, this might be all the last moment they had together. The thought made him increase his efforts.

Arty
moaned and wrapped her arms around his neck, resting her weight against him.

They parted and he nipped
at her bottom lip, breathing heavily. “Don’t forget who makes your knees weak.”

She gripped his cut. “Impossible
, when you’re in every other thought.”

“Only every other? I better work on that.”
He winked.

S
he slid her hands down, releasing him. “Be safe?”

“Always. I’ll call you when I can.” He stepped back and walked away without looking back, tucking her in the back of his head as he donned his President persona. There was no room for kisses and cuddly thoughts now. He had an asshole to kill
and traitors to bring down.

An hour later, h
e walked into the clubhouse and all eyes turned to him. “What the fuck you got for me? The time is ticking down gentleman.”

Hack stood up. “Last I could tell they were living about two hours away in the city of Rolly. They set up
a club and shit was good. Well…in their minds. They were into all kinds of shit, flesh peddling, gun trading and drugs.” He shook his head. “The exact opposite of what Dueling Devils stands for.”

“So
, why the fuck did they migrate?”

“I’m not sure what happened. Reef got killed, the club got shaken down and shit went quiet. They must’ve crossed the wrong person.” Hack shrugged.

“So, this fucker wants to reclaim a crown that he thinks should’ve been his.” Demon shook his head. “Any word on why they’re moving now?”

“Because the sky is blue? This dude is fucking nutt
ier than a jar of peanut butter. He’s got a rap sheet as long as am I tall. The dude just goes into berserker rages unprovoked. Most of the people in the reports never even saw it coming. The dude took offense to something they may or may not have done and unleashed,” Hawk paused. “I don’t think he’s right in the head, Pres.”

“Well
, no shit, we knew that,” Demon said.

“No…
Reef wasn’t very nice after the break, according to what I read. He fucked him up, probably bred him to hate you. Way I hear it, no matter how much territory they claimed, or how much money they made, it never compared to Dueling Devils. They had members going Nomad left and right before shit went dark for them.”

“You think it was an inside job?” Demon guessed.

“Very likely. You treat people like shit long enough, they’re going to rise up and revolt on you.”

“And his son was probably leading the group with a fucking torch in his hand.” Demon scowled in disgust. “The shit just keeps getting more fucked up at every turn.
We got anything on him that’s going to be useful?”

“Actually
…yes. He bought a warehouse a few months ago I think we should check out.”

“After we create a little diversion.” Demon grinned.

“You got an idea.” Lefty said. “And judging from the serious case of crazy eyes you’re rocking, it’s likely to get us all killed.”

“No, I’m saving those for the battle.”

“Fucking fantastic,” Lefty said laughing. “What you got?”

“They wanted to start a war and run back like little bitches. Let’s call them out. We cocktail their ass and while they’re scrambling to put out fires and try to figur
e out what the fuck is going on…another team checks out the warehouses. I want to know what the fuck he’s sitting on.”

“You planning on this
in broad day light?” Lefty asked skeptically.

“I’m bold, not stupid. I figure it’ll take us that long t
o get set up. Let’s get the blue prints for the warehouse, so we have the layout. I want to be in and out. Strider, go gather some cocktail makings and figure out who you’ll be taking with you.”

“Yes
, Pres,” Strider answered and walked to the bar. “Rusty, Sphinx, come with me.”

The club filled with motion as Demon continued to give orders and they pulled together to execute the new plan.