Hailey
The first thing I registered was the taste of stale tequila coating y tongue, Then the headache, Sunlight filtered through the blinds, cutting lines across Logan’s sleeping form beside me.
I didn’t remember coming upstairs. The last clear memory was Scarlett pouring another round of shots, the tequila going down like water, the forced laughter while we waited for the guy to come home,
He must have carried me up. The thought should’ve been sweet but it just made my chest ache.
just lay there for a few minutes, watching him sleep. He shouldve looked peaceful… relaxed. But he looked like he was fighting demons in his dreams.
His jaw was clenched so tight I could see the muscle twitching in his cheek. One hand was fisted in the sheets. His breathing
was uneven.
I reached out slowly and brushed a curl back from his forehead, le almost felt feverish. A low sound rumbled in his chest, something between a groan and a growl. Not my name. Nothing sweet, Just pain.
This was what it cost him.
This constant vigilance. The price of violence and protection. He’d let me see a fraction of it when he told me about the Russians, but I doubted he would ever tell me what happened last night.
But watching him now, I understood the depth of it. Why he kept trying to push me away,
The clubhouse was too quiet. Normally by mid–morning there’d be the rumble of bikes, voices carrying up from the parking lot. But today there was only silence. Heavy, waiting silence.
Carefully, slowly, I slid out from under the sheets. I went to the window and peered out at the parking lot. This was the first time I’d ever seen the gates closed across the entrance. So, yeah. Something big happened last night.
I needed air. I needed *answers*. I slipped into sweatpants and a hoodie, socks and boots.
Logan shifted again as I was getting dressed, muttering something in his sleep. A threat? A name? I couldn’t make it out. I paused, watching him, half–expecting him to wake up. But he didn’t.
I needed to find Abby. Or Scarlett. Needed to hear a voice that wasn’t haunted by whatever ghosts were chasing Logan through his dreams.
I slipped out of the room and closed the door softly behind me, leaving him to his demons.
Downstairs, the main room felt like a ghost town. Empty bottles and half–finished drinks littered the tables from last night. The air smelled like stale cigarette smoke. A bunch of people were still passed out on the couches and pool tables.
No sign of Abby. No sign of any of the girls.
I pulled my phone from my pocket and typed out a quick text to Abby: **You awake? Where are you?**
The message showed delivered, but those three little dots never appeared. No response.
It was stupid
–
she was probably just asleep next to River somewhere, hungover like everyone else. But after last night’s black sedan, after seeing the closed gate, the barred front door….
The silence felt ominous.
20:47 Sat, Jan 3
Chapter 80
I went behind the bar and poured myself some hair of the dog, then sat down on a barstool.
I felt like I’d woken up in the Twilight Zone. I needed to hear a vice. I needed something normal.
Scrolling through my contacts, I landed on Stella’s name. It was rely 10:30, but Stella was always at the shop early.
She picked up on the second ring. “Conway. You’re alive!”
The familiar sound of a tattoo machine buzzed faintly in the background. Normal life. My throat tightened unexpectedly. “Hey, Stella.”
There was a pause on her end. I could picture her leaning agains her workstation, one eyebrow raised, the phone tucked between her shoulder and ear.
“You sound like shit, girl. What’s going on? You never called me about the Matt thing.”
Wow. The Matt thing. That felt like it happened a year ago.
“Shit’s been crazy, Stella,” I murmured. “Matt’s dead. I got shot by a detective. Now there’re these Russian mob dudes moving into the city, and-”
“Jesus Christ, Hailey… Russians? Wait, you got SHOT? Hailey.”
A long pause.
“You’re fucking with me, right?”
I was kind of glad she’d cut me off. The words sounded insane coming out of my mouth. Like some bad movie plot.
I ran a hand through my hair. How did I even begin to explain? Yeah, I’m just kidding. Kind of.” I glanced around the room. “The Russian thing is real. The club is kind of… on lockdown right now.”
Stella was silent. Her tattoo machine was, too.
“Hailey,” she said finally, and I could hear the worry. “Look, I’m not your mom, so I’ll spare you the lecture and I’ll just ask you this. I know he’s a fucking Adonis, and he’s probably an absolute monster in the sack, but… is he worth it?”
I felt tears welling up in my eyes, but I blinked them back. “Yeah. He is. I love him, Stella.”
“Okay… Okay.” Her voice was softer now. “Listen, the shop’s fine. Don’t worry about it. My cousin Hannah’s covering the desk while you’re gone. You just… be safe, okay? And keep me in the loop.”
“I will,” I murmured.
–
We talked for a few more minutes – shop gossip, a bitchy client she kicked out halfway through a tattoo, the new aftercare products she was thinking of stocking. Normal things. Mundane things.
They felt like artifacts from another life.
When I hung up, the silence felt heavier. The conversation with Stella hadn’t loosened the knot in my stomach. It only drew the lines clearer between the world I’d left behind and the world I’d chosen.
I downed my glass of tequila and only gagged a little.
Then I heard the faint sound of laughter coming from the kitchen, and I got up to investigate.
The smell of fresh coffee hit me as soon as I stepped through the door. Trina and Laura were at the island, with their heads close together as they murmured and laughed quietly. They both looked up when I walked in, their smiles softening.
2/3
20:47 Sat, Jan 3 0 =
Chapter 80
8%
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“Morning, Hailey,” Laura said, already pouring coffee into a mug and sliding it toward me. “You’re the first one up.”
“Thanks,” I murmured, wrapping my hands around the warm mug and taking a sip. “I’m just glad to see a sign of life around here. What are you two doing here so early?”
“Lockdown, silly,” Trina said, leaning against the counter. “Jake and Talon called us at the buttcrack of dawn. We grabbed a few things from the 24–hour grocery store on our way over. Never know how long these things are gonna last.”
Laura nodded, and I noticed her eyes were the exact same shade of blue as Scarlett’s. “Safer to have us all here under one roof.”
Trina glanced at the clock on the wall. “I was just about to start making breakfast. You’re not picky, are you?”
I shook my head, a small smile tugging at my lips. “I will consume literally anything right now that isn’t tequila.”
They both laughed, the sound filling the room. “Fair enough,” Trina said. “Eggs and bacon, hold the tequila.”
Laura grabbed a stack of egg cartons from the fridge while Trina heated up the skillet. I watched them work together, the way they moved in sync like they’d been doing this for years.
“How’s Logan?” Laura asked as she cracked eggs into a giant bowl. Her tone was casual, but I could hear the concern. underneath.
I shrugged, staring into my coffee. “Still asleep. He had a rough night. I have a feeling he’ll be shutting me out again today.”
Trina chuckled, shaking her head. “Men. Always trying to protect us from things we’re more than capable of handling. They think we’re the weaker sex. Trust me, you’re not the first woman in this club to deal with that.”
Laura smiled softly. “And you won’t be the last. Just… be present for him, Hailey. When he sees you’re not gonna run, he’ll open up.‘
“Wild horses couldn’t drag me away,” I muttered, meeting her eyes. “Whether I want them to or not.”
Laura laughed. “I’m glad to hear that. You’re good for him.”
Her words finally loosened the knot in my stomach, just a little. wanted to ask her if she knew what happened last night but
part
of me knew she wouldn’t tell me if she did.
Another part of me knew I needed to hear it from Logan.
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Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.
