Sassy Little Thing

  “I’ve never seen you cry like this, Saskia. Never. And we’ve been friends for a long, long time. So, start talking, I’ll be here planning my revenge.”

  I take the bottle and have another sip, and then I tell her everything. She knows some of it already, but she doesn’t know much more from after I helped Theresa. When I’m done, I take another sip, and slowly, my body finally becomes warm.

  It feels good.

  Even if just for a moment.

  “Holy. Fuck.”

  I nod, wiping any remaining wetness from my cheeks. “That about covers it.”

  “So, Theresa and Yolanda set it all up. They went to such lengths to get that jewelry.”

  “Yeah, and to make it look like it was me. What a perfect plan. If it wasn’t for the fact, that I got the chance to tell Scarlett and she let me out, I wouldn’t be sitting here right now, I’d still be tied up at that clubhouse, with all those angry bikers accusing me of something I didn’t do.”

  “Firstly, when I see them again, I’m going to punch every one of them in the balls, because fuck them for ever thinking you’d do something so awful.”

  “To be fair, we’re twins, I would have probably thought the same thing ...”

  “I don’t care!” she snaps. “I don’t care, they should have, at the very least, told you everything and let you speak, instead of accusing you, not telling you why, and chaining you up like a dog.”

  She makes a valid point.

  “And as for Mason ...”

  Hearing his name hurts, right in my heart, and I don’t like that. Not one single bit.

  “Mason can go to hell,” I whisper.

  “Yes. Yes, he can. Right down with your sister, because when I get my hands on her, I’m going to ring her filthy neck.”

  “I don’t care about her anymore,” I say, my voice devoid of emotion.

  “I’m so sorry you had to see Mason with her, it was bad enough when it was Enzo, but to see Mason, a man who is so good to you, a man who you’ve gotten so close to, in the same position is hard, honey.”

  “Yeah,” I whisper. “I know he didn’t know, but you’re right, if he had just told me what was going on right from the start and let me talk, none of it would have ever happened. He didn’t let me speak, he didn’t even give me a chance, and because of that, I don’t think I can forgive him.”

  She nods and reaches out, taking the bottle. “You deserve a lot, Saskia, a lot. And, it pains me this is happening to you because Mason is a good guy, and I guess with club life, comes, I don’t know, them living the way they do and behaving the way they do, but they should have believed in you.”

  I swallow, and nod. “I don’t know what I’m going to do from here, Chan. Where do I go? I have no job ...”

  “You stay here, I have a spare room. When you get a job, you can find another apartment. We’ll get your stuff shipped here, you don’t have to go back there. I’ll make sure you don’t have to see them again, if you don’t want.”

  The thought of not seeing them again actually hurts a whole lot more than I thought it would. I like the club, and the ladies, and everyone I met through it. I liked living with Mason. I liked the job. I was actually happy for the first time in such a long time, and now that’s all gone, all because of Yolanda.

  It’s always because of Yolanda.

  My heart aches so hard it hurts.

  “It’s going to be okay, honey, I promise.”

  I meet my friend’s eyes. “I need to be distracted, I really do. I can’t think any more about this tonight, it hurts far too much, and I just don’t think I can deal. Tell me something, how are things with Boston?”

  She frowns. “Are you sure?”

  “Yes. Please.”

  “Well, he kept calling, and I ignored it. He showed up here yesterday, all angry and broody because I hadn’t answered his calls. Those bikers are a whole different kettle of fish, aren’t they? They really know how to take a situation and get all twisted up about it.”

  I snort and take another drink. “That they do.”

  “Anyway, I didn’t let him in. I told him I wasn’t going to be his play thing, that even though we had fun, I had more self-respect than that. I didn’t need to come second while he chased another woman. He told me that wasn’t what I was, and got all angry, and sexy, and told me Penny is just a friend and she needed him.”

  I snort. Because bullshit Penny is just a friend. Right now, that might be all she is, but if he didn’t care about her, he wouldn’t have gone running after her. He would have made sure she was okay and that was that. I think Boston is very confused, but I also think he does actually really like Chantelle, too. He isn’t the using type. Which means he’s highly conflicted.

  “I told him,” Chantelle continues, “that I’m not stupid, and he needed to wake up to himself, that he most certainly did care about her slightly more than friendship. To which he got all hot and grabbed me, and kissed me, and dammit I couldn’t stop myself from enjoying it, for a few seconds, at least.”

  I smile, and she flushes.

  “But, I pushed him off and told him I’m not into love triangles. He left but, honestly, I’m weak, Sas. I’m weak when it comes to him. I want him to keep coming back. I want him to call me. I want him to want me. And I hate that. It feels like a competition now, like the stupid insecure part of my brain is telling me I need to win, and I need to be better than her. And I hate that. Because, she’s lovely, and I don’t want to get involved in this.”

  I understand that.

  Feeling like you’re less than someone else is a gut-wrenching feeling. But, what she doesn’t see so clearly now is that if she doesn’t stop this and he does happen to develop deeper feelings for Penny and goes off with her that her insecurities will eat her alive.

  It’ll be something she’ll struggle forever to get over.

  And I don’t want that for her.

  “I get that,” I tell her. “Honestly, I do. But please, Chan, keep reminding yourself of how it will feel if he does go deeper with Penny and you’re left hurt. Your insecurities will be a whole lot worse then.”

  She exhales and takes the bottle, drinking another big gulp. “You’re right, I know you’re right, which makes me angry at myself for struggling to stay away from him. And I am struggling, so damned bad. I keep telling myself how much it’ll suck if he chooses Penny, but then that little part thinks, what if he does actually want me and what he has with her isn’t what I think it is? What if they are just caring friends.”

  And maybe that is the case, but I still think it’s risky. No matter the situation between all of them.

  “Maybe,” I say softly. “Just be careful, Chan. That’s all I can tell you. You’re a smart girl, and you’re well old enough to know what’s right and what’s wrong, so just go with your gut. Always trust your gut.”

  She looks to me, and then nods. “Thank you, I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

  “Ditto,” I murmur.

  “But there is something I’m going to say before we drink the rest of this alcohol and wipe ourselves out.”

  I nod. “Hit me.”

  “I think you should go to the club, and I think you should say what you need to say, before you end all of this. Not just to Mason, but to all of them. Let them know what you think. I think, in the long run, it’s going to help you so much.”

  She’s right.

  And I will do that.

  Just not right now.

  Right now, I’m going to drink this pain away for a little longer.

  ~*~*~*~

  MASON

  “You found her,” Malakai says when I walk in, dragging Yolanda by the shoulder.

  She’s protesting and has protested the whole way here. I had to tackle her into my house to get my truck keys, because I couldn’t bring her here on the bike, and then up the stairs so I could find some cuffs to keep her still. Saskia and her are nothing alike, that much is for certain, but when it comes to their willpower,
they definitely share the same genes.

  Yolanda hasn’t backed down yet.

  Not once.

  “Not her,” I mutter, shaking Yolanda a little to try and stop her little song and dance.

  “Huh?” Malakai says, shaking his head.

  “This isn’t Saskia, it’s her twin fuckin’ sister who had the fuckin’ balls to set us all up to think it was Saskia so she and my motherfuckin’ sister could get away with robbin’ me to pay off that piece of shit’s debt.”

  Malakai stares at the girl for a long minute. “No fuckin’ kiddin’.”

  “So, I’m keepin’ her here. It wasn’t personal for me before. It fuckin’ is now. That piece of shit in prison had the utter fuckin’ nerve to set up a plan to rob me and get my girl in danger, so now he’s messin’ with not just Saskia, but me, too.”

  “And us,” Malakai says, glaring now at the girl who looks so much like Saskia, right down to the hair style, it’s hard to believe it isn’t her.

  “Yeah,” I growl. “And the club.”

  “Saskia paid for what she did,” Malakai runs his hands through his hair. “Way to make us feel like shit. Poor girl did fuck-all.”

  “Yeah, and it gets fuckin’ better ...”

  “You found her,” Koda says, coming into the room followed by Maverick.

  “Twin sister,” Malakai informs them for me. “Long story, but Saskia didn’t do fuck-all, which is why Scarlett let her go.”

  The two men stare at Yolanda. “Fuck me.” Koda shakes his head. “Spitting image.”

  “That’s what twins are, you jerk off,” Yolanda spits finally, squirming again.

  “Anyone got somethin’ to stuff in this bitch’s mouth?” I snap. “Can’t stand to look at her for a second longer, let alone hear her.”

  “Didn’t stop you from putting your fucking fingers in me earlier.” She grins, eyes ... empty. They’re empty.

  Saskia’s hold so much promise, and love, and sass, and everything good.

  Yolanda’s contain a coldness that’s alarming.

  “Didn’t fuckin’ know it was you, bitch, and if you open your mouth once more I swear to fuckin’ God I’ll put my fuckin’ gun in it. You think you know who you’re dealin’ with, you do not. We’re not like the little boys you dance with.”

  She opens her mouth and then closes it and her eyes get a little wide. “You can’t manhandle me,” she decides to say, stupidly. “I’m pregnant.”

  “Don’t care what you are. I ain’t hurtin’ you, I’m just goin’ to shut you up. And if you think I care about a child made with that piece of shit sitting behind bars, you’re sadly mistaken.”

  She huffs and glares at me but, smartly, doesn’t say anything more.

  “Chalk and cheese, completely different,” Maverick mutters.

  “Yeah,” Koda agrees. “Makes me feel like shit for gangin’ up on Saskia, poor kid. Didn’t even give her a chance to defend herself.”

  Those words punch me right in the chest, because he’s right. We didn’t give her a chance to defend herself. We didn’t even tell her what we had seen. If we did, she could have told us about her sister. Instead, we just treated her like scum, without even hesitating to believe that something might be off. Hell, we didn’t even consider, at the very least, that she could have been blackmailed into it or threatened.

  We just assumed she was the worst kind of human being.

  And that makes me sick to my fucking stomach.

  Because she is the best woman I know.

  “Where is Saskia?” Maverick asks. “She safe out there? Because seems to me like this situation is spiraling out a little. I’m guessin’ she was goin’ to trade that jewelry for cash, to get her boyfriend off the hook, but she didn’t do that, so high chance someone out there is lookin’ for her ...”

  I look to Yolanda. “Speak. Fuckin’ now. Is someone expectin’ cash?”

  “Yes, you fuckin’ moron!” she hisses. “That’s why I need that jewelry.”

  “You mean the fuckin’ jewelry that isn’t yours?”

  She flinches. “I’m three hours past the time I was meant to deliver the cash for Enzo, which means not only is he going to be in danger, but so am I! They’re bad people. They want their money. And they’re probably going to kill people until they get it.”

  My blood runs cold.

  I have Yolanda, but Saskia is still out there. Unprotected. Looking exactly like the woman they’re looking for.

  I shove Yolanda at Koda, who catches her with ease.

  “Gotta find Saskia,” I say, clenching my fists, because fuck, the girl is in danger and she doesn’t know it. “She looks exactly like Yolanda, they get hold of her, and she’s as good as dead.”

  Malakai nods. “Comin’ with you. You called her?”

  “Phone ain’t with her. I’ll check home, Chantelle’s, anywhere she might be.”

  “We’ll do a scour of the local areas, see if we can see her,” Malakai nods.

  “I’ll take care of this one.” Koda grins, that devilish smile saying he’s not going to be nice about it.

  I couldn’t give a fuck.

  I just need to find my girl.

  Now.

  ~23~

  SASKIA

  It’s midnight.

  I think.

  I have no idea.

  All I know is Chantelle and I ended up at a bar in town, drinking and dancing, both of us trying to forget the day’s events. We went utterly crazy, and I drank way, way, way too much. Chantelle, last time I checked, was still dancing the night away. That girl will go until three in the morning, but not me, I’m exhausted. Emotionally, physically, and mentally. I want to go to sleep, and I’ve had well and truly enough to drink.

  My vision swims a little, and my steps are wobbly.

  I got her spare keys and told her I’m going; she assured me she’ll be done soon. She’s a big girl, I’m not going to drag her out. She parties harder than most men I know, she can handle her own.

  I am now out front of the bar, waiting in the line for a cab.

  It’s long.

  It’s a busy night tonight. Some live band playing, so everyone is out and about.

  I rub my arms—it’s cold

  So freaking cold. I should have brought a coat with me. By the time I get a cab, I’ll be freezing, no doubt.

  I glance down the street. If I walked five or six blocks, I could flag one down up there a lot quicker. It would save me waiting in this line.

  Shrugging, I make sure I’ve got cash in my pocket, thanks to Chantelle, and then I step out of the line and start, very slowly, making my way down the street, toward a quieter area. I’m tired, and I want to sleep. I don’t want to wait.

  I walk, or sway, depending on how you look at it.

  It’s cool, but the walking helps, warming my body up, no doubt making the alcohol work even stronger. Marvelous.

  I’m three blocks down and into the more congested area of town when a car slows down beside me. There are a few people around, but a good majority of them are drunk, paying zero attention to me, wobbling down the street on my own.

  “Hello, Yolanda.”

  I turn and stare at a blond man who is climbing out of a dark-blue truck. Did he just call me Yolanda?

  “Pardon me?” I mutter, rubbing my hand down my face because, damn, I’m drunk.

  “You didn’t think you could just get away, did you?”

  I shake my head. “Listen, buddy, I’ve had about enough of this shit to last me a life time. I’m not Yolanda.”

  The man grins. “Well, that’s a new one. Most people are running and screaming by now.”

  I grunt. “Well, considering I’m not Yolanda, I have no reason to go running and screaming, now do I?”

  He grins bigger, and it’s creepy. Two other men climb out of the car, and it’s only then that I realize this is not good. It’s really not good. These people actually think I’m Yolanda. And they clearly want her. Probably for cash. Probably for reve
nge. God knows, but I’m not taking another blow for that girl.

  I reach for my purse, only I don’t have my identification on me, because my money and phone are still at Mason’s house. They didn’t give me a chance to take it when they cornered me and dragged me out. I only have cash. I had no problem getting into the bar, because, well, I don’t look under twenty-one.

  But, this means I can’t prove I’m not Yolanda.

  “Listen,” I say, backing up. “I’m not Yolanda. I swear to god. I’m her twin sister.”

  The man bursts out laughing, and the other two men climb out of the car and stalk toward me.

  “That’s the best thing I’ve ever heard, but we have your photos, and your information, so now you’re going to come and take a little ride with us.”

  “Oh, hell no I’m not,” I snap, putting my hands up. “I’m not Yolanda!”

  “Now—” the blond man grins “—you are.”

  He grabs hold of me, and I screech, as loudly as I can. “Help! He’s kidnapping me! Help!”

  Two people stop, a young male and female, and their eyes bug. People over the road have turned to look now, too.

  “Is ... is uh, everything okay?” the man asks, stepping closer to me.

  The man, holding me with one, big beefy hand, pulls his jacket open to show a gun. “You keep walking, boy, or I’ll blow your brains out over this sidewalk.”

  The young man’s eyes widen, and he starts walking.

  “Coward!” I screech as I’m dragged to the car and shoved inside.

  I see people starting to walk over from the other side of the road, but none of them make it to the car in time before it drives off.

  I’m in the back with two, very big, very angry men, gripping me so hard there is no chance of escape, none whatsoever. I start to panic, because this situation just became very, very dangerous. These men aren’t messing around, that’s apparent, which means I’m in a very dire situation right now.

  And nobody knows where I am.

  Chantelle isn’t even going to figure out I’m gone until morning.

  Oh, God.

  This is bad.

  Really bad.

  “I’m not Yolanda,” I try again, pathetically.