Acid (Black Hearts MC #7)

Chapter 16

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

RHEA

I eventually give in to sleep, my body too tired to stay awake. One thought had been plaguing me; my biggest concern being that we may have crossed the line of friendship and that we won’t be able to come back from this.

I look to my left and see Acid still fast asleep. He has his arm draped over my stomach and as I carefully lift his arm and attempt to try and crawl out of his bed, I somehow manage to land on the floor with a thud.

“Fuck,” I hiss. Pausing, I wait to see if I’ve disturbed him. When I hear no sign of movement, I crawl along the floor and grab my dress. I shove it on as fast as I can and get to my feet. Looking behind me, I’m relieved that Acid is still laid there peacefully asleep.

I open the door and creep out, quietly shutting the door closed behind me. I run back down to my room and quietly slip inside. Oliver is still fast asleep, tucked up in his bed. I grab my tank top and cotton shorts and make my way to the bathroom. I switch the shower on and step under the scorching hot spray. I close my eyes and memories of last night immediately flash behind my eyes.

“What have I done?” I whisper to myself. They must think I’m a complete slut.

I wash my hair and scrub at my face, washing away last night’s make up. I step out of the shower and wrap a large towel around me. Reaching up, I wipe the condensation off the mirror and look at my reflection as I brush my teeth. I notice a few little marks along my neck and shoulder, and I wonder if that was from Scar or Acid. I roll my eyes at myself at how much of a slut I sounded and continued to brush my teeth.

I quietly walk out of my room and head down to the kitchen for some coffee, my mind whirling with thoughts of last night the whole way. Even though it was only 7am, there was no way I would be able to fall back asleep, and God knows what time I fell asleep. After making my coffee I take a seat outside in the early morning sun, just sitting there and enjoying the silence.

“I’m surprised you’re up so early,” a deep voice says from behind me.

I jump and turn around to see Scar stood there, coffee in hand, his eyes on me. I feel my cheeks burn at the memories of last night, the memories of his mouth on me, of him in my mouth. I wanted to run, to just get up and run and hide.

He smiles, sensing my unease. I watch as he strides toward me and takes a seat next to me. “I’m guessing I am the last person you want to be seeing right now.” He smirks.

“No.” I shake my head. “No,” I repeat, trying to make myself sound believable.

He laughs. “Darlin’, last night was fun. There is no need to feel embarrassed about it.” He shrugs.

“Er, but er, did I do something wrong? I mean, you left. I’m sorry if I did. I’ve just, I’ve never done anything like that in my life,” I apologise.

He smiles a soft smile before reaching up to tuck a strand of hair back behind my ear. His hand lingers on my jaw, his thumb stroking my cheek. “You were perfect, Rhea.” His eyes flicker to my mouth briefly. “You are perfect,” he says softly before placing a kiss on the top of my head. He drops his hand from my face and turns away, clearing his throat. “You know me darlin’, sex is just sex. I’m just glad I could be of service.” He smiles, but the smile doesn’t reach his eyes. I open my mouth to say something, but he shakes his head. “I’m fine darlin’, everything is fine,” he assures me.

I nod, although I am feeling like everything is not fine. I drink my coffee, and we sit in silence for a moment. “For what it’s worth, you and Acid are the only men to ever give me an orgasm,” I blurt out.

Scar chokes on his coffee and I laugh at the way his eyes dance with amusement. “Now I feel like a fucking champion of the world.” He winks.

I laugh and shrug. “I just thought I’d let you know. I’m sorry you didn’t get yours, but you certainly saw to mine.” I wink.

Scar’s mouth hangs open. “Who is this woman before me? Shit, we’ve woken a sex demon. Darlin’, last night you couldn’t even say the word hole, and now here you are at the butt ass crack of dawn telling me about your orgasms,” he teases.

I laugh hard, holding my belly. As my laughter dies, I place my hand on his. “Thank you. Thank you for last night, and for making it so easy this morning. I’ve not slept too good thinking about it.”

He lifts my hand to his mouth and places a soft kiss to my palm. “Anytime, and now that you know I’m so cool with it, feel free to finish me off another time.” He smiles. I look at him, and even with his scar on his face he’s a good looking guy. He looks at me. “What?” he asks.

“I think you are incredibly handsome, and I think if you stopped sleeping around, you would find someone that could make you happy,” I tell him truthfully.

His gaze warms as he shakes his head. “Maybe I’ve found them, but they haven’t found me.” His eyes come back to mine and my heart sinks.

“Scar I—” I begin but then a voice cuts in.

“Scar, what are you doing up so early?” Queenie’s voice calls out from behind us. Scar gives me a small smile before standing and placing a soft kiss on top of my head before he walks to Queenie.

“You know me, darlin’. Had to drop off last night’s conquest,” he jokingly brags while I sit there, my thoughts reeling even more.

Breakfast was awkward, for me at least. Star, Nova, Maggie, and Josie are all sat there looking a little pale, each of them with sunglasses on, suffering through their hangovers, sipping water, and not making much conversation. Ghost sits there with a shit eating grin he wasn’t even trying to hide. When Acid had come and sat down next to me, I stiffened. I avoided eye contact, not sure how I was to behave. Acid talked to his brothers like it was just any other morning. I couldn’t look ahead of me because Scar was sat there, and I could feel his gaze on me.

“Mom, do we have to go shopping for school stuff today?” Oliver asks, saving me from the awkwardness.

I exhale a relieved sigh. I had forgotten we were doing that. “Yes, in fact, let’s go right now,” I say as I stand.

Oliver complains and follows me. I move quickly, giving a brief smile around the table.

“Wait,” Acid calls out. I freeze and slowly turn around to face him, forcing a small smile to my lips. “I will grab the keys to the truck and take you.”

I’m about to decline and make up some excuse but Oliver beats me to it.

“Yes! Can I ride up front?” Oliver asks excitedly.

“Sure.” I smile down at him before glancing back to Acid, but his blue eyes are already fixed on me. I pause to clear my throat. “We will wait for you outside,” I say, gesturing with my thumb to the door.

I was thankful that Oliver was sat in the front, because he was doing enough talking for all of us, but once we were at the store he ran off, looking at various things. Walking along absentmindedly, Acid grabs hold of the cart stopping me, forcing me to look at him. He opens his mouth to say something, but Oliver suddenly returns, cutting him off.

“Can I go to the arcade?” he pleads. There was a small arcade section within the store, a place to keep the kids occupied while also rinsing the parents’ wallets.

Acid answers before I can. “Sure, here you go. Don’t leave there until we come back around for you,” he warns.

Oliver nods, practically snatching the money from Acid’s hand. “Hey, manners!” I yell after him.

“Thanks Acid!” Oliver yells over his shoulder.

I roll my eyes and shake my head as I look at the stationary. I pick the cheapest option. Until Ghost has the studio up and running, I had to be tight with what money I had left.

Acid once again stops the cart, forcing me to look at him. “You can’t keep avoiding me,” he states.

“Last night,” I begin saying but he cuts me off.

He steps closer, keeping one hand on the cart and with his other, he reaches up and cups my cheek. “Last night was good. I had a good time, and I know you did,” he says, a smile playing on my lips.

“Acid, I’m not sure what I want, or what this is,” I state honestly.

Something flickers in his eyes briefly before he nods. “There is nothing to worry about. As promised, our friendship will remain the same, no matter what. There is no need to avoid me, and no need to hide from what happened last night,” he states. He strokes his thumb across my cheek. I nod and give him a small smile. His eyes flicker to my mouth and before I can say anything, his mouth is on mine, kissing me. His lips are tender against mine, lingering just for a moment before he pulls back.

“Acid, what?” I breathe.

He grins at my bemused state. “I had my cock buried in you last night, as well as my tongue. You left my bed this morning before I could kiss you or fuck you again.” He shrugs. “Who knows?” My cheeks heat and I quickly look around, making sure that Oliver hasn’t seen us. His hand moves to grip my chin, forcing me to look at him. “I know you don’t want a relationship. I don’t, either.” I feel my stomach lurch at his words. “We’re friends. I want to keep it that way, but I also had fun last night, and I wouldn’t object if you wanted to do it again sometime. Think of me as your safe place. You can even just use a word if you wanted to, so you don’t have to ask me directly. You say the word and I’m there.”

Part of me thinks this is a dangerous idea, one that could backfire, but truthfully, I’m not ready for a heavy relationship right now. Oliver isn’t ready for that. He must come first.

“One word and we could have a night like last night, no questions asked, and not feel awkward in the morning?” I ask, nibbling anxiously on my bottom lip.

“Exactly that, although I’m not sure I could share you again,” he states.

I nod, thinking. “Okay, but I don’t want anybody knowing about this,” I assert. He nods. “So, if I want you to know while I’m still staying at the club, I will say something like, I have a headache and I’m going for a lie down. When I move above the studio, it will obviously be easier, but under no terms are you to touch or do anything in front of Oliver. Hiding it is more for him than anything else. He’s been through enough, and I don’t want to be that mom that just brings guys into her kid’s life. He needs to know he’s the one that is the most important thing in the world to me. I’ve messed up his life enough by falling for a man that was not good for either of us. I won’t do that again,” I state. “Not that I think you’re anything like him, it’s just...”

Acid takes my hand in his, giving it a gentle squeeze, his eyes soft as he gazes at me. “You don’t need to explain all of that to me. I know what you mean,” he says softly with understanding. He places a soft kiss on my temple. “Now, I’m more than happy for you to get a headache tonight. My door will remain unlocked.” He winks. “Oh yeah, and I like the little heart tattoo.” The tension eases as he drapes his arm over my shoulders. “Now, let’s finish this school shop, and stop picking the cheap shit. I’m paying for it. The kid deserves the best,” he states before taking the stuff I’d already put in the cart and places it back on the shelves.

We finish up shopping, and we are laughing and joking now that the awkwardness has dispersed. As we hit the checkout, I go to get Oliver from the arcade but as I walk in and look around, I can’t see him anywhere. My heart starts to beat faster.

“Oliver?” I call out. I walk up to the guy who is stood at the entrance. The whole idea is to make sure no child leaves without an adult, and Oliver knows not to leave with just anyone. “Have you seen my son? He was in here. I can’t find him,” I say, panicked.

“What does he look like?” the guy asks.

“Brown hair, he’s around five feet, brown eyes... He was wearing a blue T-shirt and jeans,” I rush out, still looking all around me.

“Oh yeah, he left about five minutes ago with his dad,” he states. “I checked that the kid knew him, and he said he was his stepdad,” the guy explains.

My eyes go wide as I run to the exit. I hear Acid yelling after me, but I don’t stop. I run out through the mall and out to the parking lot, screaming for Oliver. “Oliver!” I yell again, my heart feeling like its being torn from my chest.

Acid appears beside me. “What is it?” he asks.

“Joe’s got him,” I cry out.

“What does he drive?” he asks.

“Er, he doesn’t. He lost his licence.” I sniff.

“You stay here. I’m going to go and look. Take my cell and call Ghost now,” he orders. Unlocking his phone, he places it in my hand. My hands shake as I take the phone. I nod and hit call on Ghost’s number as he goes looking.

“What?” Ghost answers sharply.

“It’s Rhea.” I sniff, my voice trembling. I hear mumbling in the background. “My ex, Joe. He’s taken Oliver. Acid told me to call you,” I sob.

“Where are you?” he asks.

“The mall. Acid is running to search,” I rasp.

“We are on our way. Keep looking and tell the security guards. Get them looking,” he orders. “We will find him, don’t worry, darlin’,” he assures before disconnecting.

Acid comes running back. panting. “He ain’t out here. He’s got to still be in there. You go to the second floor, and I will check the food court,” he orders. I nod, thankful he has a clear head, because my panicked mind can’t think clearly.

I run into each store, stopping every security guard I pass. They each go in search of him. I call his name repeatedly, hoping and praying that he will hear me. Instead, there’s nothing. One of the security guards tries to get me to go into the office while we wait for the police. I refuse because if I’m in the office, then he can’t find me. I stand there turning on the spot, my eyes darting everywhere. Think, I need to think. Where would Joe take him? A bar! He can’t go long without a drink, and if he found Oliver in time, then he would have seen the money that Acid had given him. There’s a bar by the food court. I run, pushing past people, not caring if I knock them over.

“Excuse me, I need to get past.” I mutter as I run up the elevator, squeezing past various people. I reach the top and see the bar, and as I run towards the entrance, I see Acid stood there. Right in front of him is Joe with a hand wrapped around Oliver’s neck.

“And here she is, the woman of the hour,” Joe slurs.

“Oliver,” I whisper. “Joe, let go of him, please. It’s me you want, not him,” I beg.

Joe sneers as he picks up a glass of amber liquid and knocks it back. I step forward to grab Oliver, but Acid holds his hand out, stopping me. “You ain’t going anywhere near him,” Acid growls.

“I don’t care. I just want him safe,” I argue.

“He is safe, aren’t you, buddy?” he asks Oliver, but it’s more a statement to calm Oliver.

I hear footsteps behind me. “Oh god, I don’t know if I can’t handle the smell of alcohol right now,” I hear Star mutter. I turn around to see everyone stood there and the sight of them all here for me, for Oliver, makes my heart reel with love.

“Oliver, go with your mom,” Ghost orders. Oliver goes to step forward but Joe’s grip on his neck tightens, holding him back.

I step forward again, but Acid holds me back. “Olly, low blow,” Acid says in a deep voice. Oliver stares at Acid and Acid gives him a slight nod. Suddenly, he clenches his hands into fists and slams one straight into Joe’s crotch. Joe lets go of Oliver’s neck and groans before falling to the floor. Oliver runs to me and I wrap him in my arms, holding him so tight I’m afraid I will lose him again. Acid comes straight to us and runs his hand over Oliver’s head. “You good, kid?” he asks. Oliver nods. Acid cups the back of my head while placing an affectionate kiss on my temple. “Take the kid back to the club. I will be back later,” he orders.

I look up at him and see pure fury swimming in his crystal blue eyes. “What are you going to do?” I whisper.

“I’m going to do exactly what I told him I would do if he came back,” he growls.

I don’t respond. I just nod. As I turn to leave, Star is sliding knuckle dusters onto her fingers. She gives me a smile. “I will catch you up in just a second,” she states.

“Jerry, close the bar for 10 minutes,” Ghost orders the barman. The guy nods without a word and leaves.

Maggie wraps her arm around me and guides me and Oliver out of the bar. The sound of the shutters closes behind us, but I don’t look back.