Marcus (Savage Kings MC – South Carolina Book Series 9)

I’m not sure what the hell is going on with Marcus, but I need to find out. I’m feeling so…vulnerable after getting his name on my ass and having him run off.

So, after he leaves, I get dressed and then climb on my bike, riding to the one place I expect Marcus would go.

Surprisingly, there are only two motorcycles in the parking lot of the Savage Kings bar this late, and neither of them look like Marcus’s.

Still, maybe he’s been by, or they might know where he went.

I walk inside and am immediately met with a tall man with curly auburn hair. A quick look down at the president patch on his leather cut and I know who he is –Roman McNamara.

“Well, I’ll be damned,” he says as he stares at me. “Looks like Marcus changed his mind.”

“What?” I ask in confusion.

“You must be T.J. I’m Roman, the president of the Myrtle Beach Kings,” he says while holding out his hand for me to shake.

“Ah, it’s nice to meet you. I thought you all were normally assholes to prospects.”

“We are,” he agrees. “And you won’t be getting a special pass just because you’re a former president’s daughter.”

“Marcus told you about my dad?”

“No, our IT guy is very good. We’ve known from the beginning. Anyway, you can keep the cut, even though you’re not officially a prospect until we take a formal vote of all members without a single objection.”

“I’m not official?” I ask in confusion while still trying to process the fact that Marcus has known about my father, probably since before I told him.

“No. Not yet. In fact, I didn’t think Marcus would cave and let you, the first woman, in. I have to say I’m surprised he of all people was so worried about your safety. You deserve a shot, so I’m glad he finally came around.”

“I’m sorry, I’m still confused. I’m not really a prospect yet?”

“No, but we’ll vote at our next Thursday meeting. No one objected except for Marcus, so you’ll be in.”

“Marcus voted against me being a prospect?” I repeat just to make sure I’m understanding him correctly.

“Yes, he was the only one opposed. I’m sure you can probably guess why…”

The words are swirling around in my head, but I can’t make sense of them. He’s not really saying that the man who gave me the prospect cut is the same one who is preventing me from actually being a prospect. Is he?

“He gave me this cut nearly three weeks ago,” I remark.

“Huh,” Roman mutters as he eyes the leather.

That’s when I realize exactly what’s going on. “He was just pretending, apparently and still is I bet, even though I deserve this opportunity more than anyone. No wonder he wouldn’t let me come in to meet you or anyone else!”

“Marcus told you that you couldn’t come in here?” the guy behind the bar wearing a baseball cap questions.

“That’s right. The asshole! Have you seen him tonight?” I ask the two men.

“Not since earlier in the day,” the bartender responds. “When he was giving the potential prospects hell…”

“Holy shit,” I whisper. “That’s where he’s been going, why he wouldn’t tell me when I asked. There wasn’t another woman. No, this betrayal is even worse!”

“Betrayal?” Roman repeats. “He’s been lying to you?”

“Yes, lying to me and fucking me for weeks!”

Roman winces. “Shit, I’m sorry, T.J. I had no idea. I mean, he admitted to us that he slept with you, but he didn’t tell us the rest. Hell, I don’t even know what to say about that. I guess he was just worried about you.”

I scoff at that. “No, I don’t want to hear that shit. Say I can prospect no matter what happens with Marcus. That’s the whole reason I came here; he was just supposed to be a bonus!”

“Yes, absolutely,” Roman agrees. “As long as no other member has grounds for an objection. It takes courage to want to be a part of this world after it took your father. That can’t be easy.”

“It’s not. It wasn’t, I mean,” I say as I comb my fingers through my hair. “Losing him was hard but living with him, it was maybe worse.”

“Why do you say that?” Roman asks.

“Because the MC was his one true love. He cared about it more than anything, even my mom and me!”

“I doubt that’s true,” Roman says. “That’s not how it is for me with my wife.”

“It was true for Roy,” I assure him. “That’s why I wanted to prospect, to patch into the Kings, to see why it was so important that it was worth dying for.”

“I get it,” he says. “You thought it would bring you closer to him too, didn’t you?”

“Yes.”

“You ride a Harley?”

“Yes.”

“Did your dad teach you to ride?” he asks.

I nod and swallow around the knot in my throat, remembering those weekends with him. “He did. I was too young to get my license at the time, but he wanted me to learn.”

“What else did he teach you?”

I shrug. “How to protect myself.”

“Then it sounds like maybe he cared about you more than you think he did.”

I open my mouth to disagree with that statement but stop short.

Is Roman right?

Did my father love me the only way he knew how? By teaching me about Harleys and guns and all the things that were important to him? Or did he do it because he was worried about me and wanted me to be tough enough to handle myself? I guess it could be a little of both.

I may have started out only pretending to care about motorcycles, but over time I came to love them.

“Fine, forget my father,” I say with a sigh and wave of my hand. “Now I just have to deal with Marcus…”

Speaking of the devil, the bar door opens and the man in question comes strolling in. He rests his elbows on the bar and orders a beer from the bartender before he even glances around and sees me.

“Teagan?” he exclaims as he straightens. “What the fuck are you doing here? That was your bike…”

“You knew how important this was to me, and still you weren’t going to let me have it!”

“She is going to be our prospect, so she should be coming into the clubhouse every single day to see if any of us need her to help out,” Roman remarks.

“No,” Marcus says with a shake of his head. “She is not going to be the club’s bitch!” he adds in a roar, slamming both of his palms on the bar.

“Oh shit,” the bartender murmurs softly as he slides a glass of beer in front of Marcus and backs away.

“You don’t get to tell me what I can and can’t do anymore!” I yell at him as I march right up to get in his face. “You lost that privilege when you lied to me! Were you going to ever tell me the truth – that you only gave me the cut as a bribe so you could keep fucking me and beating me whenever you wanted?”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa. Beating?” Roman says as he comes up behind us.

“I didn’t force you to put up with any of it, did I?” Marcus replies. “You only tolerated it to manipulate me!”

“Would you have really let me leave if I wanted to?” I ask him.

“Yes.”

“Yes? That’s why you took my bike key with you all those days when you left?”

“Marcus, what the hell have you been doing?” Roman asks.

“Being an asshole!” I answer for him. And then, without even thinking, I grab the beer from the counter and throw it in his face.

“Jesus! Slow down there, woman!” Roman says. “That’s not how prospects are allowed to behave. You can’t disrespect a member…no matter what they may have done.”

“Forget it,” I tell him. “I don’t want to be a part of anything that lying son of a bitch is involved in.”

Marcus

“What the fuck is going on?” Roman asks right after Teagan runs out the door.

I don’t chase her, because, well, I think she’s made her feelings about me pretty goddamn clear.

Leo hands me a towel to mop up the beer that’s still dripping down my face.

“Thanks,” I mutter as I rub the cloth over my eyes first so I can see again.

“Marcus, answer me!” Roman demands.

“You knew I was fucking her, so don’t act like it was some secret. I remember it being said that there’s nothing in the bylaws about fucking prospects!” I remind him. “She’s been staying with me, screwing with my head, fucking me. Hell, she even got my name tattooed on her ass, and I…”

“You’ve been lying to her – telling her she’s a prospect when she’s not because you voted against letting her be a part of the club?”

“Yeah, so I lied! So did she. All she wanted from me was to become a prospect. And when I gave that to her, really gave it to her, then she would’ve left me.”

“Well, you’ve royally fucked things up now,” Roman says. “The good news is that at least you know how to fix it.”

“No,” I reply with a shake of my head. “I won’t let her be part of this club in any way, shape, or form! Think about it, Roman! Kings from other chapters coming in, not respecting her or our relationship, saying crazy shit to her…”

“Then you’re definitely going to lose her,” Roman assures me.

“I can’t let her prospect, Roman. I would go crazy worrying about her. Hell, I already do!”

“That’s love, man,” he says as he puts his hand on my shoulder. “It can hurt, but it’s worth it. T.J needs this. Don’t you understand that?”

“She doesn’t know what she’s getting herself into.”

“Doesn’t she? Her father was shot to death by the MC’s enemy. I think she, of all people, knows what she’s sacrificing. And if you don’t give her this opportunity, then she’ll hate you and she’ll never understand why her father was willing to die for the club. Besides, you’re underestimating her. She stood up to you just fine, and I have absolute faith that she’ll be able to hold her own in the club.”

Dammit.

I hate when Roman sounds all logical and shit.

But there’s no way I can let her do something so fucking dangerous.

I don’t like being the bad guy in this situation. Someone has to do it, though, to keep Teagan safe. If her father was here, I bet he would do the same.

Doesn’t she understand why I’m so against her prospecting?

I’ve been falling for her from the second she rode off on her bike the first day I met with potential prospects. Then, when she showed up at my house, I knew I was a fucking goner.

She’s different from every other woman, and I don’t want to lose her.

And maybe, just maybe she cares about me too, since she went and got my name tattooed on her ass.

So, if she loves me, won’t she at least hear me out when I tell her why she shouldn’t prospect?