The Aces MC Complete Collection

  “Eh, I’m always tired!” she stepped toward the counter then turned around with a flourish. “Strawberry shortcake!”

  “Holy—” I ducked as her hand came flying toward my head. “You remembered! Thank you!”

  I bounced on my toes until she’d set three bowls down, then wrapped my arms around her waist and lifted her off the ground. “You’re really great, you know that?”

  “Sweet girl,” she murmured into my hair. “Now, put me down so we can eat.”

  We sat around the table, talking and laughing like we always did, but there was a significant difference with Patrick there. It was hard not to stare at his mouth as he told us stories about school and the mechanic shop where he worked, and it was equally hard not to groan in mortification every time Peg glanced between us with a small grin on her face. I’m not sure what she saw when she watched us bantering back and forth, but whatever it was had her acting like she knew something I didn’t.

  “It’s five, Amy.” Peg warned me suddenly, as I smiled at Patrick. Wait, what?

  I jumped up hastily, tangling my feet in the legs of my chair and barely catching it before it tipped backwards.

  “What de hell?” Patrick asked in confusion.

  “Her parents get home soon, son.” Peg replied quietly.

  “So?”

  “I’m supposed to be home before they get there,” I explained hurriedly.

  “Why?”

  “I don’t know, I just am.” I slipped the chair gently into its spot against the table, and carried my dish to the sink where I began to rinse it out.

  “Yer not allowed to have friends?” He persisted, following me to the small sink.

  “Yes, I am…”

  “Name one.”

  “Peg.”

  “Dat doesn’t count, does it? Yer racin’ home so yer parents don’t know ye’ve been spendin’ yer time here.”

  “That’s not it at all!” I huffed, quickly drying the bowl in my hands. “I just have to be home when they get there.”

  “So dey know ye come here after school, den?”

  I clenched my jaw as my irritation grew. Why was he pushing this?

  “No.”

  “Well—”

  “Patrick, leave it alone,” Peg warned from the table as I moved to go around him.

  “Why don’t yer parents know ye come here? Why de big secret, eh?” he asked again, ignoring his mom completely. “Ye ashamed?”

  Frustrated tears began to form at the back of my eyes as he moved with me, refusing to let me past him. “Don’t want yer American parents to know ye’ve been spendin’ time wit’ de poor mick t’ree houses down?”

  I reached out and shoved him hard in the chest, taking his second of surprise as an opportunity to slide past him.

  As I reached the doorway and freedom, I spun back toward him.

  “My mother’s Irish, you prick.” I said, lifting my chin. “And I didn’t know you before, but now I don’t like you.”

  I tore my gaze away from his and met Peg’s over his shoulder. “I’m sorry, Peg. Thank you for the shortcake. It was amazing. I’ll see you later.”

  It was a good thing he didn’t try to follow me home, because I was livid by the time I crawled back through my bedroom window. The telephone was ringing in the living room, and I ran as fast as I could to answer it, picking up just as the answering machine message began to play.

  “Hello?”

  “That’s not how you answer the phone, Amy.”

  “Hi, Mom. What’s up?”

  “Why are you out of breath?”

  “I was working out.”

  “Oh, well that’s good. You don’t want to get fat.”

  There was an awkward silence as she waited for me to agree with her. It wasn’t going to happen.

  “Well, I was calling because your father and I have decided to spend the night out tonight. He met some friends through work and they’ve invited us over.”

  “Okay, well, what time will you be home?”

  “Honestly, Amy? I just said we wouldn’t be home tonight. We’ll be back tomorrow mid-morning. You’re almost eighteen. You can spend one night alone, for Christ’s sake.”

  She’d used the Lord’s name in vain as if it was nothing, and it reminded me of the house I’d just ran from. Suddenly, I didn’t care if they never came back.

  “Oh, okay. I’ll see you tomorrow then.” I mumbled.

  “Speak up!”

  “Okay, I’ll see you tomorrow,” I enunciated obnoxiously. I was feeling brave, knowing that I wouldn’t see her for almost twenty-four hours.

  “You’re such a fucking brat.”

  The line clicked and she was gone.

  “Bye, Mom! Have a nice time!” I called sarcastically to the dead connection.

  I set the phone in its cradle and looked around the house, suddenly unsure. It was really quiet, and I’d be there all night by myself…

  I smiled huge and pumped my arms wildly above my head in jubilation. Then I carried my boom box to the living room and turned on some music, changed into a ratty pair of sweats, and went to the kitchen to make myself some dinner. I rarely had use of the kitchen for any length of time, so even though we usually had all the vegetables and fruits I could want, I never got to make anything elaborate or fun. My night was going to be awesome.

  By the time I was done making beef stew from scratch, I was practically giddy. I couldn’t wait to have my own place one day, to not have to worry about making too much noise or filling the house with ‘food’ smells—which was one of my mom’s pet peeves. I was thinking about running over to Peg’s to see if she’d like some stew when I heard someone knocking on the front door.

  I wondered who it could be, maybe Patrick or Peg? I didn’t really know anyone else. When I opened the door though, it definitely wasn’t anyone I’d ever met.

  I recognized his voice, though.

  Chapter 5

  Amy

  “Hey, Allie, right?” the man said with a smile, crowding me back into the house before I could get a word in edgewise.

  He wasn’t huge, and he was good looking, but his voice made my skin crawl. I didn’t mean to let him into the house. I really didn’t want him anywhere near me, but he stepped so close that my immediate reaction was to take a step back, followed by another, and soon he’d crossed the threshold.

  “What are you doing?” I asked, trying to hide the panic in my voice. I was practically an adult, and this was my house. I needed to just tell him to get lost and he’d leave.

  “Yer mum gave me a ring, said ye’d be home tonight. Wanted me to check in, make sure ye were safe, eh?” he answered, raising his hands in front of him, palms up.

  “Well, I’m fine. You can go.”

  “No hurry.” He shrugged, then turned his face toward the kitchen, “Somet’in’ smells good.”

  “I was actually just getting ready to leave, so…” My natural politeness kept me from yelling at him to get the fuck out, but my hands had begun to tremble in uncertainty as he looked me over.

  His smile was charming, and I knew he was trying to seem as unthreatening as possible, but the fact that I remembered his voice had me choking back my revulsion. He needed to leave. He needed to get out of my house.

  “Hey, hey, no need to be nervous, darlin’,” he cooed gently, stepping toward me. “Yer mum told me it was yer first time. We can go slow.”

  He reached out to lay a hand on my shoulder, and I made a strangled sound in my throat at the implication, jerking away.

  No. My parents were neglectful, sure, but she wouldn’t send a prostitute to our house when they weren’t home. They’d always made sure I was safe. I shook my head in denial. He was wrong. He was lying.

  “I want you to leave. Right now.” I ordered quietly, my voice trembling.

  “Let’s talk a bit first, eh?”

  “I don’t want to talk. Leave.” As he stepped closer, I braced myself, refusing to step any farther back for fear he’d
follow me and move even deeper into the house.

  “I’ve been paid for de whole night, love,” he assured me, “So we’ll just do dis at yer pace.”

  Oh, God, he’d been paid?

  My eyes began to water as he came closer, his persistence making me feel like a cornered animal. I didn’t want him near me. Why wasn’t he leaving like I’d asked him?

  I don’t know why I didn’t fight harder, why I didn’t scream at the top of my lungs and run for the front door. Maybe it was because I’d never before been in a position where I had to fight. I’d never imagined myself in that scenario, so I hadn’t had time to prepare. And in all honesty, I didn’t believe that he’d actually force me to do something I didn’t want. I was in complete denial, even though my gut was screaming for me to do something.

  He’d just wrapped his fingers around my hip when I heard a noise from the front door.

  “Amy, me love, is dinner ready?”

  I’d never been so happy to see someone in my entire life.

  Patrick swung the front door open as if he owned the place and stepped inside, his body seeming even larger than the last time I’d seen him just hours before. He’d changed too, wearing old slip-on sneakers, baggy jean shorts and a white tank top that highlighted the defined muscles of his chest, shoulders and arms. Holy hell.

  “I’ll t’ank ye to take yer hands off me girl,” Patrick growled ominously as he took in the scene.

  The man’s hand pulled away so quickly it was as if I could feel the air shift with his movement.

  “It’s just business, mate,” the guy replied, taking a step back.

  “Well, I know she doesn’t need any of yer business, so get de fuck out.” Patrick’s voice had become even darker, and I could see his hands clenching and unclenching as they hung at his side.

  “Yeah, okay. No problem.”

  The man scrambled for the door, practically tripping over his own feet, but before he left Patrick called out to him again.

  “Ye take yer money and ye don’t say a fuckin’ word.”

  “Alright.” He nodded.

  He was gone within seconds, and I felt my whole body begin to shake as the door slammed behind him.

  “De fuck was dat?” Patrick roared at me, his voice echoing against the walls.

  “I don’t know!”

  “Ye don’t know?”

  “He just showed up!” I was trying to keep it together. I wanted to yell at him for being such an asshole…but I couldn’t. I was just so grateful he’d shown up when he did. And I didn’t care if it meant I was a wimp, or weak, or a complete idiot, I wanted him to fucking hold me so I could physically feel that everything was okay.

  “Why de fuck did ye let him into yer goddamn house?”

  “I didn’t! I just—he—and then—” I was trying to explain it. I could hear the words in my head very clearly, but I just couldn’t get them out. And then, finally, the damn broke and my teeth began to chatter as my eyes overflowed.

  “Aw, sweetheart.” Patrick sighed and came toward me, wrapping his arms around me tightly with one hand at my back and the other at the nape of my neck. “Shhh, it’s okay now, love. Yer okay. Shhh.”

  “He scared the crap out of me!” I screeched into his chest. “Fuck!”

  I felt him huff a small laugh into my hair at my outburst.

  “I bet.” He mumbled, “Fuckin’ manky bastard.”

  I took a deep breath and leaned back. “I’m done. Holy shit. I’m fine, I’m okay.” I laughed self-deprecatingly. “It’s not like anything happened. Right? I’m such a fucking whiner.”

  “Ye know him, baby?” he asked gently, smoothing my hair away from my face with one hand as he kept me secured against him.

  “No, I mean I recognized his voice, I think…”

  “Den ye’ve no reason to be embarrassed for bein’ a bit frightened. Mum told me about yer folks. He’s in wit’ dem, ye’ve got good reason to be worried.” He warned, “I could fuckin’ kill ye for lettin’ him in de door.”

  “He just sort of pushed his way in…”

  His head turned toward the door and he stared at it silently for a moment, before completely changing the subject.

  “Ye cooked?” he asked with a quirked brow, his dimple peeking out as his lips tipped up.

  “It’s just beef stew. It’s one of the recipes I know by heart.” I pulled out of his arms and walked toward the kitchen. “But you don’t get any.”

  “Why de hell not?”

  “You were a total dick earlier!”

  “Ah, was gonna come over and apologize… again. Was plannin’ on doin’ it in a bit, but den yer man showed up.”

  “He’s not my anything.”

  “Sounded like he wanted to be yer first,” he argued with a snicker.

  “Oh, my God! Now you really can’t have any, you asshole.”

  “I’m kiddin’ wit’ ye, girl. No need to get yer knickers in a twist.”

  “Has Peg eaten? I was going to see if she wanted some of this. I’m not sure how to cut the recipe down far enough to feed less than four people,” I replied, completely ignoring the knickers comment. I turned the burner off and grabbed a couple dishtowels to lift the heavy pot off the stove. “I can just carry it over there.”

  He moved in behind me as I was talking and before I could grasp the handles, he was pulling me away. “Ye’ll not carry a heavy pot of hot stew all de way to me mum’s, ye eejit.” Then he lifted the stew as if it weighed nothing and motioned with his head to get me moving.

  When we got outside, I locked the front door while he waited patiently. He was watching me like a hawk, but his face was completely relaxed. It was odd.

  “Do I have something on my face?” I asked, wiping at my mouth and cheeks as I joined him on the sidewalk and we began to walk. “Why were you just staring at me?”

  “Just glad I was dere, is all,” he answered in a low voice. “I’ll keep an eye out, alright? Ye won’t be bot’ered again.”

  “Thank you.” I swallowed loudly. “I mean, I don’t think he’d come back. Do you?”

  “No tellin’. Ye’ll stay at our place tonight, no reason for ye to sleep in dat house alone while yer folks are gone—”

  “I’d like to argue, but I don’t really want to stay there by myself,” I confessed sheepishly.

  “Wit’ good reason. Dose locks are shite.” He shook his head as I climbed the steps ahead of him and opened Peg’s front door.

  “I can’t stay here forever, though.”

  “I’ll make sure yer safe, even if I’m not here,” he said, passing me carefully so he wouldn’t burn me with the pot. Then he paused and turned his head to meet my eyes. “I’ll not let anyt'in’ happen to ye,” he promised.

  I nodded slowly, my eyes never leaving his. It was an asinine promise; he was away at school most of the time and my own parents were the ones who put me in that situation in the first place. But even though it had been only hours since we’d met and most of that time I’d spent completely pissed off because he was an asshole… I still believed every word he said.

  “Are ye alright, dear?” Peg asked, hopping off the couch as we made our way inside.

  “I’m fine, I made dinner—”

  “What happened, why was that man—”

  “Leave it, Mum,” Patrick cut her off sternly.

  “But Patrick—”

  “I said to leave it.” He stared at Peg in some sort of silent communication that I didn’t understand. Then, to my surprise, she relented. Just like that.

  “Well, I’m glad yer here,” she said with a smile, “And ye brought dinner!”

  She ushered me into the kitchen, chattering about nothing in particular, and I felt myself beginning to relax. There was just something about her that automatically put me at ease—as if nothing bad would happen as long as I was with her. As we sat down to eat, things grew more and more comfortable. They didn’t bring up anything that had happened that evening, choosing instead to tell funny
stories and local gossip. It was the best dinner I’d ever had.

  “Well, do ye want to go or not?” Patrick asked as I stared at my empty bowl.

  “What?” I’d been so lost in my thoughts I hadn’t even heard the first question.

  “I’m goin’ to meet up wit’ some lads to play basketball. Ye want to come?”

  “Basketball?”

  “Dat’s what I just said. Ye a parrot?”

  “You’re such a dick!”

  “Jesus Christ—fuck, Ma!”

  “Don’t ye use that language in my house, Patrick Gallagher!” Peg scolded as she tried to flick Patrick in the head again.

  “Fine!” He stood from the table. “Let’s go.”

  “To play basketball?” I still didn’t understand. He was the least likely person I could see playing the game. I mean, he had a silver chain clipped to a belt loop on his pants that hung in an arc to the wallet in his back pocket… a chain, for God’s sake.

  “Kevie goin’ to be there?” Peg asked as she took our bowls to the sink.

  “Yeah, should be.” He was still freaking looking at me.

  “Go, then,” she said to me with a smile. “Get out of here for a bit, yeah?”

  Chapter 6

  Amy

  The neighborhood had an outside basketball court that I’d never noticed before. It was only four blocks away, but it wasn’t on my route to school so it wasn’t surprising that I hadn’t seen it. I barely left the house unless I was going to the grocery store or school. God, that was pathetic.

  When we got there, I was surprised to see just one guy waiting for us, dribbling a basketball between his hands. He was shorter than Patrick, but not by much, and he had blonde hair that was cut conservatively short. He was dressed for the game in track pants and a grey t-shirt, and when he saw us coming, his face lit up in a bright smile.

  “Trick!” he yelled happily, walking quickly toward Patrick and wrapping his arms around him in a tight hug. I heard their murmuring, but couldn’t make out what they were saying as I followed slowly behind Patrick, and by the time I’d caught up to them, they’d turn to face me, one of Patrick’s slung around the other guy’s shoulders.