At that thought, she decided to take an extra couple of days.
Chapter 23
Ice wanted to smash something. He was seriously thinking about picking a fight with Max just to get the anger building inside of him out.
Grace had fucking disappeared. He had gone to her house on Friday to find her gone and the men he’d had watching her house had reported she hadn’t returned.
He went behind the counter to get his own drink, glowering at Rita who skittered out of his way. Her eyes were red and swollen from crying, but Ice didn’t give a fuck that the bitch was upset because Lizard didn’t want anything to do with her.
As he was opening a bottle of beer, Colton came in to the club.
“Got one for me?” he asked, studying Ice’s grim visage.
Ice handed him one before going back around the bar and taking a seat next to him.
“Thanks for calling me and telling me where Grace was. I owe you one.”
“You don’t owe me anything. I owe you for all your help when Vida was in trouble.”
Ice nodded.
Colton cleared his throat. “Did you clear up your problems with Grace?”
“No, she took off. I don’t know where she is or when she’s coming back. If she’s coming back,” Ice said grimly, “I thought I told you I didn’t want to see your fucking face?”
Rita sat down the beer she was giving Max then made a hasty retreat from the room.
“Max told me what happened. Seems to me you’re blaming Rita for something you did.”
“She knew Grace was my old lady. The cunt should have kept her mouth closed. She betrayed me.”
“Like you did Grace?” Ice turned angrily on Colton, who held both hands up. “I’m just saying it how Grace would look at it. Believe me, I’m not throwing stones, brother. I was a stupid ass when I first met Vida.”
“You fucked around on Vida?” Ice was surprised. Any time Colton had stopped by the clubhouse, he hadn’t taken any of the women to the back rooms.
“It was before we got together. I showed her a side of me she didn’t want anything to do with. It took me a while to make her understand she was different.”
“How’d you accomplish that?”
“I quit fucking around.” Colton smiled.
“That’s not so easy with all the pussy hanging around here,”
“Had any since she left?”
“No,” Ice admitted.
“Brother, it doesn’t matter how much pussy is around if it’s not the one you want.”
“I’m finding that out.”
“She gave Vida her phone number. Want me to get her to call and find out where she is and if she’s coming back?” Colton offered.
“You do that, and we’ll be even.”
Colton called his wife while Ice sat next to him, sick to his gut. He didn’t know what his next move would be if she wasn’t coming back. Maybe he could kidnap one of her dogs. Snake had said a friend of hers had stopped by to pick up some dog food, so he had followed her back to her house. Snake had seen her taking the dogs out, but no Grace. He could ransom the one he took to make her come back and talk to him. Ice debated it while Colton waited for Vida to call him back, but ultimately, he gave the idea up.
Daisy was too fucking big to kidnap, and one of the brothers would kill the little shit when he went for their boots. He was trying to come up with another plan when Vida called back. Ice waited impatiently for Colton to find out where Grace was,
He finally ended the call. “She’s in Florida. Her parents were there, but they left.”
“Is she coming back?” Ice asked, dreading his answer.
“Yeah, next week.”
A smile, which hadn’t been on his face since Grace had left, returned. Ice smacked Colton on his back, nearly knocking Colton off his stool.
“Crush, get Colton another beer.”
Crush, with a tentative smile, hurriedly did as he said.
“You’re not out of the woods yet,” Colton told him. “She called Alec and told him not to tell her family about the fight at the benefit, but she’s still mad at you.”
Ice had wondered why her father and brother hadn’t called to threaten him bodily injury to stay away from Grace.
“She called you a bunch of names.”
“Like what?” Ice asked.
“Brother, you don’t want to know.”
Ice suspected he didn’t as he glowered at Fade and Griffin.
“She made you a birthday cake?” Colton asked.
“Yeah.”
“How was it?”
“I don’t know. The brothers ate it all before I could get back.” Ice had definitely had some shitty birthdays in his life, but that one had been the worst. He hadn’t even been able to drown his sorrow in the chocolate cake. He had knocked Max across the room when he found out he had eaten the last piece.
Colton’s shoulders shook. “You could make Rita make you one as punishment.”
“It wouldn’t taste the same.” Ice felt like a fucking pussy complaining over a fucking chocolate cake, and from Colton’s laughter, he made no attempt to hide that he thought so, too.
“Now that you know where your old lady ran off to, I’ll tell you why I stopped by. I was going to give you a present for your birthday but didn’t know what you wanted. How about another tattoo? I left my kit in the car.”
“No, thanks. I don’t have too many places left. The only place left is my neck and Grace told me she doesn’t like tats on the neck.”
“How does she like the piercing?”
“That, she loves.”
“I could give you another one,” Colton suggested.
“Fuck, no.”
“You sure?” Colton said, getting up from the barstool. “If she likes what one barbell does for her, imagine what two will do.”
“Crush, hand me that bottle of tequila.”
He threw a threatening glare at Colton. “When I wake up in the morning, I better have just two.”
Griffin sat down on the barstool next to Ice while Fade stood to his side.
“Sorry, Ice. I tried to stop Rita, but I should have tried harder,” Fade admitted. “It’s… just… Brother, she’s going to cause you a lot of grief. She’s not the kind of old lady we expected you to find. You have to admit, she’s too classy to hang out with a bunch of outlaws like us.”
Ice turned on his stool to face Fade and saw the whole club was watching and listening.
“Not only that, but her entire family keeps a media circus around them. What if a nosy reporter decides to investigate her love interest?” Fade’s face grimaced at his own words. “Brother, women like that pussy-whip you before you know it. Shit, she probably wouldn’t marry you if you begged her. Women like her use men like us to fuck with then settle down with a loser who doesn’t even know how to find her pussy in the dark.”
Ice surveyed the brothers all nodding their heads in agreement.
“If and when I ever become pussy-whipped, you have my permission to beat the shit out of me. Fade, you and Jackal were in the solitary cells across from mine when Jackson and his men worked me over. Did I seem weak to you?”
Chapter 23
Ice wanted to smash something. He was seriously thinking about picking a fight with Max just to get the anger building inside of him out.
Grace had fucking disappeared. He had gone to her house on Friday to find her gone and the men he’d had watching her house had reported she hadn’t returned.
He went behind the counter to get his own drink, glowering at Rita who skittered out of his way. Her eyes were red and swollen from crying, but Ice didn’t give a fuck that the bitch was upset because Lizard didn’t want anything to do with her.
As he was opening a bottle of beer, Colton came in to the club.
“Got one for me?” he asked, studying Ice’s grim visage.
Ice handed him one before going back around the bar and taking a seat next to him.
“Thanks for calling me and telling me where Grace was. I owe you one.”
“You don’t owe me anything. I owe you for all your help when Vida was in trouble.”
Ice nodded.
Colton cleared his throat. “Did you clear up your problems with Grace?”
“No, she took off. I don’t know where she is or when she’s coming back. If she’s coming back,” Ice said grimly, “I thought I told you I didn’t want to see your fucking face?”
Rita sat down the beer she was giving Max then made a hasty retreat from the room.
“Max told me what happened. Seems to me you’re blaming Rita for something you did.”
“She knew Grace was my old lady. The cunt should have kept her mouth closed. She betrayed me.”
“Like you did Grace?” Ice turned angrily on Colton, who held both hands up. “I’m just saying it how Grace would look at it. Believe me, I’m not throwing stones, brother. I was a stupid ass when I first met Vida.”
“You fucked around on Vida?” Ice was surprised. Any time Colton had stopped by the clubhouse, he hadn’t taken any of the women to the back rooms.
“It was before we got together. I showed her a side of me she didn’t want anything to do with. It took me a while to make her understand she was different.”
“How’d you accomplish that?”
“I quit fucking around.” Colton smiled.
“That’s not so easy with all the pussy hanging around here,”
“Had any since she left?”
“No,” Ice admitted.
“Brother, it doesn’t matter how much pussy is around if it’s not the one you want.”
“I’m finding that out.”
“She gave Vida her phone number. Want me to get her to call and find out where she is and if she’s coming back?” Colton offered.
“You do that, and we’ll be even.”
Colton called his wife while Ice sat next to him, sick to his gut. He didn’t know what his next move would be if she wasn’t coming back. Maybe he could kidnap one of her dogs. Snake had said a friend of hers had stopped by to pick up some dog food, so he had followed her back to her house. Snake had seen her taking the dogs out, but no Grace. He could ransom the one he took to make her come back and talk to him. Ice debated it while Colton waited for Vida to call him back, but ultimately, he gave the idea up.
Daisy was too fucking big to kidnap, and one of the brothers would kill the little shit when he went for their boots. He was trying to come up with another plan when Vida called back. Ice waited impatiently for Colton to find out where Grace was,
He finally ended the call. “She’s in Florida. Her parents were there, but they left.”
“Is she coming back?” Ice asked, dreading his answer.
“Yeah, next week.”
A smile, which hadn’t been on his face since Grace had left, returned. Ice smacked Colton on his back, nearly knocking Colton off his stool.
“Crush, get Colton another beer.”
Crush, with a tentative smile, hurriedly did as he said.
“You’re not out of the woods yet,” Colton told him. “She called Alec and told him not to tell her family about the fight at the benefit, but she’s still mad at you.”
Ice had wondered why her father and brother hadn’t called to threaten him bodily injury to stay away from Grace.
“She called you a bunch of names.”
“Like what?” Ice asked.
“Brother, you don’t want to know.”
Ice suspected he didn’t as he glowered at Fade and Griffin.
“She made you a birthday cake?” Colton asked.
“Yeah.”
“How was it?”
“I don’t know. The brothers ate it all before I could get back.” Ice had definitely had some shitty birthdays in his life, but that one had been the worst. He hadn’t even been able to drown his sorrow in the chocolate cake. He had knocked Max across the room when he found out he had eaten the last piece.
Colton’s shoulders shook. “You could make Rita make you one as punishment.”
“It wouldn’t taste the same.” Ice felt like a fucking pussy complaining over a fucking chocolate cake, and from Colton’s laughter, he made no attempt to hide that he thought so, too.
“Now that you know where your old lady ran off to, I’ll tell you why I stopped by. I was going to give you a present for your birthday but didn’t know what you wanted. How about another tattoo? I left my kit in the car.”
“No, thanks. I don’t have too many places left. The only place left is my neck and Grace told me she doesn’t like tats on the neck.”
“How does she like the piercing?”
“That, she loves.”
“I could give you another one,” Colton suggested.
“Fuck, no.”
“You sure?” Colton said, getting up from the barstool. “If she likes what one barbell does for her, imagine what two will do.”
“Crush, hand me that bottle of tequila.”
He threw a threatening glare at Colton. “When I wake up in the morning, I better have just two.”
Griffin sat down on the barstool next to Ice while Fade stood to his side.
“Sorry, Ice. I tried to stop Rita, but I should have tried harder,” Fade admitted. “It’s… just… Brother, she’s going to cause you a lot of grief. She’s not the kind of old lady we expected you to find. You have to admit, she’s too classy to hang out with a bunch of outlaws like us.”
Ice turned on his stool to face Fade and saw the whole club was watching and listening.
“Not only that, but her entire family keeps a media circus around them. What if a nosy reporter decides to investigate her love interest?” Fade’s face grimaced at his own words. “Brother, women like that pussy-whip you before you know it. Shit, she probably wouldn’t marry you if you begged her. Women like her use men like us to fuck with then settle down with a loser who doesn’t even know how to find her pussy in the dark.”
Ice surveyed the brothers all nodding their heads in agreement.
“If and when I ever become pussy-whipped, you have my permission to beat the shit out of me. Fade, you and Jackal were in the solitary cells across from mine when Jackson and his men worked me over. Did I seem weak to you?”
