Defining Darkness (Royal Bastards MC Tampa Chapter Book 1) Read online

  “Void said she looked like she enjoyed herself.”

  “I think she did. You were always at the forefront of her mind, but she managed to relax and unwind a little.”

  Ivy sinks back into the sofa. “Good... that’s good.”

  Even with her wrist cuffed to the chain, she’s at home here. This woman is somehow at ease.

  “Ivy?”

  She turns to face me. “Yeah?”

  “How do you feel about being here?”

  Void tenses as Ivy shrugs. “Honestly, at first, I was cautious, wary of being here and of my surroundings. Of course, I’d love to go upstairs and mingle like Eva’s being allowed to. I’d love to be able to come and go. You don’t trust me, I get it, but honestly, Nycto, I’m not going anywhere. I feel safe. I’ve felt the safest here than I have for my entire life. I don’t want to give that feeling up.”

  My eyes meet with Void, and I give him a head bob. We both stand and walk out into the Bricking Room. He folds his arms over his chest as he peers back at Ivy. She keeps watching the television, oblivious to our discussion.

  “What’s going through your mind, Prez?”

  “You’re down here with her all the time, you tell me. Is she a flight risk?”

  He exhales. “I don’t think so. If she’s playing me, then she’s fucking good at it. I mean we don’t talk a lot, you know what I’m like, but she’s content, Prez. It hasn’t been much time to make a judgment call, but Ivy, I’m sure she doesn’t want to cause shit. She wants to meet everyone, feel like she’s part of something.”

  Rubbing the back of my neck, I exhale. “Uncuff her. Stay with her tonight. If she makes a run for it, deal with her.” Void’s jaw ticks to the side. “If she stays put, bring her up in the morning to meet everyone. Make it clear, though, she’s under your protection. She leaves the bunker, I won’t hesitate in having you hunt her down and ending her. Got it?”

  “Got it.”

  “I’ll make sure to have Eva locked away in the morning, so their paths won’t cross. If Ivy passes this test, then we might have a way ahead with this whole damn mess.”

  Void widens his eyes. “Wanna fill me in?”

  “Let’s just see if she passes the flight test first. Night, Ivy,” I say loudly.

  She turns to face us. “Night, Nycto! Say hi to Eva for me.” She smirks cheekily.

  “Smartass,” I grunt back as I turn, walking for the stairs.

  I have no idea if I’m doing the right thing with Ivy, but the key to getting Eva on my side has always been her sister. If making Ivy feel at home means she’s on board with being here, then I’m halfway there. I just have to have all the pieces of my plan fall into place.

  Step one begins—Ivy.

  Let’s hope she makes it through the night without fucking shit up. If Void trusts her, then I do too. I hope his trust isn’t misplaced in her giant breasts and gorgeous face. Ivy is stunning. While Void isn’t one to normally let a pretty woman impair his judgment, he’s never been confined to a cell with one before.

  Everything we’re all going through right now is new territory.

  We have two packages we’ve stolen from Andrés, and those packages are making me lose my damn shit. I’ve never been in a situation like this one before.

  Choosing a person, a living, breathing angel over the good of the club, it’s unheard of. And whether I’ve made the right call or not is yet to be seen. Just because Eva looks, talks, and acts like an angel, doesn’t mean she isn’t the devil in disguise. The thing about the devil is, it comes with your own personal hell.

  Eva has me trapped in the middle of a whirling inferno. Though it rages and ignites my soul like only the devil can do, she manages to calm the beast inside of me that no one else can.

  Angel or devil? I can’t decide.

  But time will tell.

  So for now, I’ll sit in my purgatory waiting to meet my fate.

  Will Ivy be the savior of my problems with her sister, or have I made a mess so big, not even divine intervention can save me?

  Exhaling, I make my way back to my bedroom where Eva should be sleeping. Stopping at my door, I take a deep breath, then unlock it, push the door slowly and walk in. Locking the door behind me, Eva still has her back to me, her slow breathing echoing around the room. I think she’s asleep.

  Every time I’ve been in here, I’ve kept it PG13. I’ve taken my cut off but slept in my jeans and shirt.

  But tonight, I want to be fucking comfortable. So, I shrug out of my cut placing it in my closet and kick off my boots and socks leaving them at the end of my bed. Unbuckling my belt, Eva whimpers a little, her arm moving slightly. I stop moving until she stills, then I continue getting undressed. I throw my jeans over my desk chair, then yank off my shirt leaving me in my boxer briefs.

  I don’t know how she’ll react to this, but I’m going with it. Walking to the end of the bed, I crawl up the other side. Eva stirs slightly as I slide under the covers. Rolling on my back, I turn my head to face her. She’s so fucking cute. A strand of hair lays across her cheek. Her eyes fluttering behind her closed lids. She must be dreaming. Reaching out, I swipe the stray strand behind her ear. She’s so calm. There’s no doubt she must be an angel.

  She whimpers in her sleep again. What’s she dreaming about? Her hand flops out from under her chin landing on my chest. My eyes widen as her hand splays out. Eva’s body reacts to me, instinctively shuffling closer. Her top leg loops around mine, pulling me to her as her body completely aligns itself against mine.

  My eyes widen as I lay flat on my back, my cock instantly hardening as I stare at the ceiling.

  How the fuck did I get here?

  Eva whimpers again, her hand on my chest lowers, my muscles constricting as she slides her hand down my abs, past my belly button. I have no idea what the fuck she’s doing in her sleep, or whether I should wake her, but as her hand reaches the top of my groin, I fucking tense. Her smooth fingers reach over the top of my briefs and clamp around my cock. I hiss between my teeth as her movements stop, and she settles back down, her body and hand not moving from its position. I’m stiff as hell as I lay here trying like fuck not to lose my shit.

  If Eva is an angel, she’s trying hard to dispel those rumors.

  My body trembles as I lay here wanting more than anything to take charge, to wake her up, and fuck her like the bitch deserves, but I’m in this for the end game. If I lose myself in this moment, I’ll lose the small amount of trust I’ve built with Eva so far.

  A slight snore resounds from her mouth, making the tension ease a little. Even if she does have her hand firmly on my cock, I guess it will be a nice way to go to sleep.

  So, I close my eyes, letting my body relax in her grip. And for once, I’m letting a woman hold me while I go to sleep.

  This is something new.

  Eva, what are you doing to me?

  Chapter Sixteen

  NYCTO

  My eyes slowly drift open. The warmth of Eva’s hands over my body is gone, and with it, a sense of loss washes over me. I won’t bring it up. Hell, she may not even know what she’s done in her sleep. Turning my head, she’s facing me, but she’s curled up into herself, her hands tucked up under her chin. Smirking at the distance she’s put between us, I can’t help but figure she woke up during the night, realized what she was doing, and retreated. She did it without waking me up, so now we can both pretend like it didn’t happen without shit getting fucking awkward.

  Without waking her, I slowly edge out of bed, making my way to the bathroom. Closing the door behind me, I look at myself in the mirror. “You’re in over your head, asshole,” I murmur to myself.

  Turning on the faucet, I splash cold water on my face. The frigid hit waking me up a little more as the droplets run down my tattooed chest. Grabbing the hand towel, I scrub my face dry.

  Glaring at myself in the mirror again, I know I need to pull my shit together. I hope this morning everything’s gone to plan with Ivy. If she tried to
make a run for it last night, the wheels to all this bullshit could start falling off. I slap my cheeks a few times to wake myself enough to get on with the day, then open the bathroom door to get dressed.

  As I walk out, Eva’s sitting up in the bed reading one of the books Trixie brought in for her. I hesitate in the doorway.

  She lowers the book, and her eyes focus on me and widen. “You’re wet,” she whispers.

  Water droplets still slide down my chest. I casually wipe them away with my hand and continue walking into the room. She lowers the book to the bed, her eyes taking in my almost naked body. She draws her bottom lip in by her teeth then clamps down on it, the sight almost giving me a coronary.

  Damn, this woman’s fucking sexy.

  “You gonna be okay for a while? I have to go deal with some shit.”

  Eva clears her throat. She brings her book back up trying to appear indifferent. “Got nothing better to do. Unless you’re finally going to let me walk around the clubhouse on my own? Otherwise, this is where I’ll be, right?”

  “You know I can’t let you do that.”

  “Then scurry out of here like you do every other day. I have my own things to do.”

  Whoa… there’s some attitude.

  Is she overcompensating because of last night?

  “You need to calm that fire in your tone, Chiquita.”

  “You need to get dressed and get the hell out.”

  “What the fuck’s wrong with you? You getting your period or something?”

  Her eyes grow wide as she slams the book on the bed.

  Shit, bad move.

  Eva throws the quilt off her legs, her face turning bright red in anger. Her feet stomp on the floor hard as she storms toward me in a wrath only seen by a raging stampede. I tense my muscles waiting for the impact as she lunges toward me and shoves me in the chest.

  “You’re a fucking moron. I hate you. I hate the sight of you. Get the hell out!”

  I stumble backward with the force of her push and at the shock of her words. She turns, grabbing my jeans and shirt from the desk, shoving them at me. As I grab them, she pushes me again. “I said… Get. Out!”

  “This is my damn room. You’d do well to remember that and some manners.”

  “So fucking what! You’re keeping me captive!”

  “Eva!”

  “Out!”

  My anger flares as I grab the key from my jeans and unlock the door. Eva’s eyes widen. The knowledge the key wasn’t on my person last night, and she had a way out if she truly wanted to take it, now sinking in. Her bottom lip trembles as she turns, stomping away from me, then she throws herself onto the bed like a toddler.

  The soft sniffling of crying comes next.

  That noise claws at my chest.

  I can’t stand to see her worked up like this. I don’t understand why. I don’t know what I did to cause this reaction, but I need to leave for both of our sakes. I can’t keep doing this shit to her.

  Walking out of my room, I lock it. Thankfully, I see no one when I take a deep breath while standing in the hallway in just my boxer briefs. Quickly, I pull on my jeans and shirt. My cut’s still in my closet, and it looks like I’m going barefoot this morning. My brothers are going to wonder what the fuck’s going on.

  They can wonder all they want.

  I ain’t telling them shit.

  Making my way out into the main room, I spot Void sitting at a table with Ivy next to him. A slow smile crosses my face as a sense of relief crashes over me. Taking in a steadying breath, I stride over to them. The brothers I walk past take second looks but keep their questions to themselves. I slide in next to Void.

  Ivy raises her brow at me. “Morning, Nycto… everything okay?” I hear the tone in her voice. She’s curious about her sister.

  Void stares at me as he sips his coffee, his lips turning downward as he takes in my appearance. “Where’s your fucking cut?”

  I crack my neck to the side. “None of your damn business…” I turn to Ivy. “I trust you’re feeling better about your arrangements?”

  She places her hands on the table showing them off. “No handcuffs. I’m a free woman. Though, honestly, being up here isn’t what I thought it would be.”

  “What were you expecting?”

  She shrugs. “I don’t know. I mean it’s nice and all. The people I’ve met are great, but I kinda like the Brick Cell. It’s like my own little piece of paradise.”

  Void and I glance at each other.

  Is she making a joke? Or does she really like it down there?

  Maybe Ivy’s as twisted as us?

  Void said she’ll fit in here well. Maybe she is made for this club.

  “Paradise, huh? Most people think Hawaii or Fiji is paradise, woman, not an underground cell with no windows that smells like mold and dead—” I stop my line of talking. She doesn’t know about the walls or what’s behind them.

  Ivy sinks back, relaxing. “I know it sounds weird. Maybe it is, but it feels safe. It feels like I belong. I can’t explain it.”

  Void widens his eyes, saying nothing as he sips on his coffee, the steam from the hot beverage swirling up from the mug. Exhaling, with this enlightening news, I can now move ahead with my plan.

  Ivy likes it here.

  She likes the people.

  She likes the atmosphere.

  She wants to stay.

  If I’m able to convince Ivy, then maybe this will all work.

  “Ivy, I want to run something by you.”

  “Shoot.”

  I need to word this carefully.

  “If Eva finds out you’ve been here all along, she’s going to fucking explode.”

  “No doubt.”

  “She’s gonna want to leave and take you with her.” Ivy stills, listening to me intently now. “I don’t want to lie to Eva, but at the time, I thought I was doing the right thing keeping you from her. It was a dick move, but Eva’s not coping. She needs to know you’re okay.”

  “What can I do?” Ivy’s expression turns somber.

  “I need you to lie.”

  She sits taller. “Explain?”

  She didn’t shoot me down.

  “I want to tell Eva we found you.”

  “That you rescued me?”

  I nod. “I suppose, yes.”

  “And you’ll let her see me?”

  “If I tell her we found you, but you make the point about wanting to stay, maybe she’ll want to as well.”

  Void shakes his head in obvious disapproval as I dig my grave, but he says nothing while continuing to sip his coffee. I ignore him as Ivy ponders my suggestion. “And what do I tell her about where I was?”

  “Just tell her a businessman had you locked in a room. We came in, shot the place to shit, and rescued you. Brought you here. Held you for a day to make sure everything was okay before your reunion.”

  “If I agree and she doesn’t want to stay, no matter what I tell her, what then?”

  Got to hope that’s not the case, but considering how Eva was with me before I came out here, I honestly don’t know where her mind is at.

  “Then I’ll have to keep you both confined here until she changes her mind. It’s too damn dangerous out there for the both of you and for us if you’re seen.”

  “I get that. I can turn her around. Don’t worry. I know how to work my sister.”

  Void chuckles. “I bet you do.”

  Her eyes fall to him in a mocking glare. “Don’t be so judgmental. You don’t know how our relationship works. What we’ve had to go through together. It’s been fucking tough.”

  Void draws his brows in tightly. “Lighten up, princess. Everyone’s been through shit in their life.”

  I sit back folding my arms over my chest. “What’s with the arguing? Fuck! You two sound like Eva and me. Sisters definitely cut from the same cloth. You get your backs up about the smallest shit.”

  “We’ve had to battle for everything in our lives, Nycto. It’s in our natur
e to fight to get what we want.”

  “There’s a distinction between fighting for what you believe in and carrying the fuck on for the sake of it. You both need to learn the damn difference.”

  She sits forward. “Do you fight for the sake of it, Nycto?”

  The question throws me. Do I? I guess so.

  I definitely bend rules.

  I absolutely push boundaries.

  I make decisions without thinking shit through.

  I try to do the right thing most of the time. I attempt to adhere to the guidelines as much as possible, but in all honesty, sometimes I just say fuck it to the wind and do what I want. It’s why Hatch and Jameson are always on my damn back because I’m a loose cannon.

  How can I reprimand Ivy for something when I’m guilty of it myself?

  I’m a hypocrite.

  But she doesn’t need to know that fact.

  “I’m going to see Eva. Gauge her headspace. When might be the right time to tell her about you?”

  Ivy sees right through my avoidance. “I’m going to mingle with the club girls. There’s too much testosterone in here for a girl to handle.”

  I turn to Void. “Keep an eye on her.”

  “Like I have a damn choice,” he groans out.

  I grip his shoulder as I stand, then turn, walking toward the hall. I have no idea if Eva’s mood has settled, but I need to gauge where her mind is at. Figure out why she hates me. Those three words cut deeper than I care to admit.

  If she means them, I honestly don’t know what my next move is going to be.

  Chapter Seventeen

  EVA

  As my tears finally subside, I wipe my face, sitting up on the bed. I acted crazy like a freaking mad woman. Kicking Nycto out of his own room was pure insanity. I don’t know why he left the way he did. Maybe it was out of shock at my very childish tantrum. I didn’t think he would be the type to give in so easily, but I was so embarrassed with myself that I turned into this hot mess and took my emotions out on him.

  Waking up during the night to find my hand gripping his cock was not only mortifying but highly arousing. Feeling the thickness of him in my grip instantly sent a wave of desire through me. The thought to press down and wake him up was so strong.