Mace (Untamed Sons MC: Birmingham Chapter #1)

15. Mace

FIFTEEN

MACE

Maylie takes so long to come down that I almost go back upstairs to collect her. When she finally emerges, clutching a jacket in her hands, only her brother is with her.

She also looks amazing. Her long brown hair is pulled into a ponytail, and she’s wearing faded blue denim shorts that show off her legs and a billowy shirt that covers her arms, including the swollen bruising. She’s paired it with black flip-flops and a light dusting of makeup that’s so different from what she usually wears for work.

Desire builds inside me, urging me to claim her mouth. If her brother wasn’t standing next to her, I would wrap my hand around the back of her neck and pull her in for a kiss.

I had no idea about her family situation, and I can tell she thinks it’s going to put me off, but she couldn’t be more wrong. I would have given anything to have an older sibling take care of me after my mother died. Instead, I was subjected to the horrors of the foster care system before Maggie took me in. It gives me a newfound respect for Maylie.

Toby is chatting away as they approach, but the moment he clocks my bike, his eyes widen. “Whoa! Are we going on the back of that?”

He reaches out to touch the saddle, but before he can, Maylie tugs him back. “Look, don’t touch.” The chastisement is given with a smile so natural that I understand completely why this kid looks at her like she’s his saviour.

Toby clasps his hands behind his back, as if he doesn’t trust himself, and he bounces his gaze along the length of my Harley. “This is sick,” he exclaims.

“Thanks.”

“As sick as it is, you’re not getting one until you’re at least thirty. In fact, make it fifty.”

He rolls his eyes at her, but his mouth kicks up into a smirk. “No bikes… yet.”

Maylie glares at me, folding her arms over her chest. “Do you see what you started? All I’m going to hear about now for the next month is motorcycles.”

“You’re welcome to come down to the clubhouse any time and look at the bikes.”

I say this only because I know she would come with him, and for some reason, I really want her in that part of my world.

“Don’t encourage him.”

“Ain’t ever going to squash someone’s passion for riding, Maylie. But we’re not going on the bike. There’s a little place I know just around the corner.”

Her expression is soft, and her eyes say a thousand things. “Lead the way.”

“Your sister not joining us? ”

Her mouth moves from a smile to a grimace. “No.”

“She ain’t here, but even if she was, Ivy doesn’t like doing anything that ain’t her boyfriend,” Toby says.

“Be nice,” Maylie warns before turning to me. “Shall we go?”

“Sure.”

“You know what, I’ve just remembered I promised Damien I’d play co-op with him today. Sorry,” Toby says.

“Blow him off,” Maylie grinds the words out, like a parent trying to tell their kid off in public without yelling.

“I can’t. Friends are important, May. Why don’t you two go together? You shouldn’t miss out because of me.”

“Toby.” Warning cracks through her voice.

“Thanks for the invite, Mace,” he says to me, grinning before he steps back into the building, ignoring his sister’s protests.

Sneaky little shit. Maylie watches him go before she turns back to me with disbelief written on her face. “I’m so sorry.”

I’m not. “Come on. We’ll grab some milk on the way back.”

Her gaze bounces to the door her brother just disappeared through before her shoulders relax. “Lead the way.”

We fall into step together as we head down the street. People stop to stare at the colours on my back, but I only have eyes for the little brunette at my side. Except for Maggie, I’ve never had anyone treat me with respect or kindness in the way Maylie does.

“So, how did you know where I live?” she asks.

“Employee records. ”

Her brows lift up her forehead. “Isn’t that some kind of violation of privacy?”

“Probably.”

“You’re not a serial killer, are you?” A group of people walking towards us split to step around us so we don’t have to part. “Because I watch a lot of true crime and I’m telling you now, I will make sure even in death everybody knows you killed me.”

I snort. This girl is unlike anyone I have ever fucking met. “It’s a good thing you’re doing.”

Her gaze bounces towards me. “What is?”

“Taking care of your brother and sister. Foster system ain’t a good time for any kid.”

“I just did what anyone would do. I’m no hero.”

Does she really believe that? “You’re wrong. You are a fucking hero. Your siblings would’ve had completely different lives if you hadn’t stepped up.”

Her gaze moves to the street in front of us as we walk, and I’m not sure whether I’ve made her uncomfortable with my praise or if she’s thinking about past incidents that led to her becoming a guardian. “It was a selfish action on my part. I’d lost my mother, and my father was nowhere to be seen. I was eighteen and didn’t want to be alone.”

“I got up close and personal with the foster care system when I was younger. Trust me, nothing you did was selfish.”

She stops walking, the empathy lining her face so open like a book. “I’m so sorry you went through that. It’s not fair the things life throws at us sometimes.”

It’s not even a pretence. This woman I’ve known for such a short time genuinely feels sad for me. I’m not sure what to do with that, but I can’t deny how it makes me feel.

“Are they why you need the extra money?” I ask, not wanting to get into conversations about my tragic past.

I blamed my mum for a long time for leaving me, for never being the parent I needed, but Maggie helped me understand that she was sick. She had an addiction, a disease that had ravaged her mind and body as thoroughly as the cancer that killed Maylie’s mother.

The slight twitch of her face instantly puts me on alert, especially when she turns to me and that forced smile she has perfected is in place. Does she know I see the mask she wears?

“Of course. It takes a village to raise a family, but they don’t have a village, they just have me. Just keeping a roof over our heads is expensive. I thought I could dance and earn more, but you didn’t seem to agree so…”

Fuck . I don’t want her to feel as if she failed. I stop walking, snagging her arm. My grip is gentle but insistent in a way that also brings her to a halt. “Your dancing was fine.” A little too fucking fine. “But, sweetheart, going up on that stage night after night and taking your clothes off for dumb, horny men, it’ll change you in ways you won’t even contemplate.”

“Well, I don’t really have the luxury of choice, Mace. I need money, and if you won’t let me dance at Temptation, I’m sure there are other bars in the city that will.”

The growl that spreads up my throat is almost feral. “That ain’t happening.”

“My bills are piling up. I’m getting behind on everything.”

I understand her desperation. I’d lived through the utilities being cut off and no food in the fridge. I experienced the fear of being kicked out of the only place I had to call home.

“How much do you need?”

She stares at me. “I don’t want handouts, Mace.”

“I don’t doubt that, but it’s not what I asked. How much do you need to get back on an even foot?”

“You are not lending me the money. I can manage on my own. Is this why you brought me to breakfast? To buy me?”

I’ve offended her, which was not my intention. “I brought you to breakfast because I want to spend time with you.”

People pass us on the pavement, watching our interaction take place. I block them out, focusing only on Maylie.

“You do? Why?”

She seems genuinely confused by the concept that I might like her enough to want to take her out, and I can’t understand that. She’s a pretty girl, and a kind one to boot. How does she not have men lining up at the doors for her?

I step into her space and dip my head towards her. Heat rises in her cheeks as she glances at me from under her lashes. Every part of me wants to dip my head so I can claim her mouth.

“Mace…” I wonder if she sees the need and heat in my eyes.

Kiss her. Fucking kiss her.

I hold back that voice by sheer force. She ain’t ready for me to take her like that. She ain’t ready to let those walls tumble down just yet.

“It’s just breakfast. Don’t make me eat alone.”

Appealing to that kind side of her works. “Okay.”