Thor (Sinful Warriors MC #4)

Chapter 8

Chapter Eight

THOR

I can’t believe she agreed. I thought I would have to beg and plead, but I’m happy she didn’t put up a fight. Part of what I said was true. It is safer for her to be at the clubhouse, but I also want to be close to her in any way I can. I know there’s no chance in us ever being together again. Too much turmoil has been done, but maybe we can at least rebuild a friendship.

As I’m staring into her eyes, a sense of peace comes over me. It’s good to have her back in my life. I don’t know how long I’ll have her but I’m going to soak up every second I can. After a few awkward minutes of silence, I stand and offer Madison my hand, again.

“Come on, we need to go get your things.”

“Okay. Let me grab my keys.”

After she grabs her purse and keys, I lead her back to the clubhouse where a few of the brothers are waiting to help escort Madison to the hotel. We don’t want to take any chances of running into my uncle’s men. I walk Madison to her car and open the door for her. “Some of the guys and I are going to follow behind you,” I tell her once she’s seated.

Madison turns and looks over my shoulder to see Dice, Doc, Gunner, and Ink already mounted on their bikes. Turning back to face me, her mouth is hanging open in shock. “Jonah, is all this really necessary?”

“Yes. When it comes to your safety, I will not fail again.” Madison’s eyes gloss over, and she opens her mouth to say something. I know whatever it is, this is not the place for the conversation. “Buckle up. I’ll be right behind you.” I shut the door and race over to my bike.

Once we leave the compound, I keep my eyes on my surroundings to make sure we aren’t being followed. When we make it to the motel she’s staying at, my stomach drops. This place is completely unsafe. She could have been robbed or hurt by the bums who linger in the area.

I hop off my bike and race over to her door when she gets out. “Maddy, why are you staying in this dump? It’s completely unsafe.”

Madison frowns and glances around to make sure none of the brothers are around. “Well, I can’t stay in places that only accept credit cards. He can easily track me that way. I’ve been paying for things in cash since the day I left home. Less of a paper trail,” she says, shrugging.

I’m going to kill this bastard. She had to uproot her entire life because of him and even then that wasn’t enough. He’ll pay for his sins. I won’t rest until he does. Madison leads me to her room, and the guys follow close behind. We stand just outside the door while she packs her things.

“You know if your girl is looking for work, there’s an opening at the hospital,” Doc tells me.

“Not my girl…. anymore. I’ll ask her if she wants it, but you know she’s a traveling nurse. She won’t be there permanently.”

“I know. One of the nurses is going on maternity leave. She’ll be out for three months. I can talk to HR and recommend her for the job. If she takes it, she would start next week.”

“Okay. I’ll talk to her later tonight and see if that’s something she wants to do.”

I hate the idea of Madison leaving the compound, but knowing she’ll be at work with one of my brothers calms me a bit. After about fifteen minutes, she comes out of the room with a suitcase and a duffle bag. Taking both out of her hands, I follow behind her as she goes to the front desk to return her room key.

“So, do you know where you want to stay when we get back to the compound?” I ask as I put her bags into the backseat of her car.

“Umm, I guess Cara’s. I’ve spoken to her more than the others. Is she going to be okay with that? I know she has four kids at home and I’m sure having a surprise guest is a bit inconvenient. Really, I can just go wherever as long as?—”

“Maddy, take a breath,” I tell her, putting a stop to her rambling. She only rambles when she’s nervous. I need to rectify this because I need her to know nobody is looking at her as an inconvenience.

Palming her cheek, I stare into her eyes. “Cara offered her guest room to you, okay? She was more than willing to let you stay with her as was Sara and Bianca.”

She nods and takes a breath. I watch as she visibly relaxes and I smile, dropping a kiss to her forehead. When I hear her inhale sharply; I scold myself for getting too comfortable.

"Sorry." I get ready to walk away when she grabs hold of my wrist. I turn around, but she doesn’t say anything. Her cheeks are pink and she offers me a shy smile. When she lets go and closes her car door, I head over to my bike. During the ride back to the clubhouse, my head swims with hope after seeing the blush on her cheeks. I wonder if after all these years, she still feels something for me.

Before I can even think about taking things into a romantic relationship, we need to rebuild our friendship. Our friendship was one of the main things that made us work so well when we were younger.

When we pull up to Cara and Viper’s house, I carry her bags and lead her inside. Holding the door open, I say, “After you.”

Madison smiles and walks into the home. As soon as I shut the front door, Cara comes barreling out of her bedroom, walking backward. “Jace, no. We don’t have time. I’m cooking at the clubhouse tonight and I need to get that started, like now.”

“Well, if I can’t fuck you, I’m going to eat your pus?—”

“Hey, guys! We’re here!” I quickly interject Viper’s dirty talk.

Viper has gotten on to me so many times about walking into his house unannounced. Now I’m wishing I had followed those rules. I’m sure Madison was not expecting to get an X-rated experience living here. She’s standing next to me with wide eyes, completely speechless.

Cara turns around and face palms herself while shaking her head. “Sorry about that Madison.”

“N-no its fine. You guys are married. I get it.” Madison won’t even look at them. This is totally awkward.

Viper doesn’t seem a bit ashamed or embarrassed. Grinning, he slaps his hand down on Cara’s ass and heads for the front door. “See ya later, Hellcat.”

Cara narrows her eyes at him before she turns her attention back to us. “Let me show you the guestroom, Madison. You’ll have the entire upstairs to yourself. The triplets’ room is down here along with the nursery and playroom.”

Following Cara upstairs, she gives Madison the tour before opening the door to her room. “You also have your own private bathroom. Make yourself at home. Dinner at the clubhouse is in a few hours so I’ll see you guys then.”

Once Cara is gone, Madison burst into a fit of giggles. “Oh… my... God. Are they always like that?” she asks, laughing.

“Pretty much. Don’t worry, you won’t hear anything. They had their room soundproofed a while back.”

“Seriously?”

“Yeah. Those two can get pretty loud.” That’s truly an understatement. Back when those two first got together, you could hear them throughout the clubhouse. Blade and Torch had to resort to earplugs just so they wouldn’t hear their sister telling Viper to fuck her harder.

“So, are you sure you’re okay with this? Staying here? I feel like I pressured you a little bit.”

“I’m more than okay with this. I’ll be safe and that’s something I haven’t had in a long time.” Maddy smiles at me before walking over to her suitcase.

Anger courses through me all over again. Maddy is one of the sweetest people I know. How could he terrorize her this way? Make her run from her home?

For a decade, she has lived in fear and I will never forgive myself for being a coward and running instead of staying and getting the truth. All I can do is try and redeem myself to her for my mistakes.

We stand there for a few seconds, neither one of us saying anything. I don’t know if I should leave or stay. “Do you have work or anything?” she finally asks.

“I took the day off.”

“W-would you like to hang out for a little while I unpack?”

“Love to, Maddy.”

She smiles and waves her hand to the bed, telling me to take a seat. I prop myself up on the headboard and watch as she begins to unpack her clothes. “So, tell me how you joined the MC?”

“Umm, after I left, I kind of just went where the wind took me, you know? One night I was at a bar and Smoke was there, drunk off his ass.”

“Who’s Smoke?” She scrunches up her nose.

“He’s the founder and original president of the club and Viper’s dad.”

“Oh okay. So, you met him at this bar, and he asked you to join?”

Chuckling, I shake my head. “Not quite. It was the anniversary of his best friend’s death and he got completely hammered. After he left, something told me to make sure he took a cab and didn’t try driving himself home. I followed him out and two young punks were out there, trying to rob him. I helped him and he gave me his phone. Told me to call Viper. The rest is history.”

Maddy nods while still placing her clothes into the dresser. The next few hours go by with us catching up. We keep things light, but it feels good to be talking to her again. When I left all those nights ago, it was like I left a piece of me with her.

My phone beeps and I pull it out to see a text from Cara.

Cara: Dinner will be served in ten minutes.

Placing the phone back in my jeans, I sigh and get off the bed. I’m not ready to leave this room yet, but I keep reminding myself I have to take this slow. I don’t want her to feel pressured. “Dinner is almost ready at the clubhouse. You hungry?”

“Starved,” she says, hopping off the bed and grabbing her shoes. We walk to the clubhouse in silence but this time it isn’t awkward. As soon as we step into the dining hall, Madison groans beside me. “Oh my God, it smells so good in here.”

I nod with a grin. “Anytime Cara, Sara, and now Bianca get into the kitchen, we all know we’re about to eat good.”

Bianca is a professional chef and Cara and Sara had years of cooking, learning from their mom and nana. The girls run the two restaurants the club owns and we’re making a killing. I take Madison’s hand and lead her to the line where the brothers are piling their plates. Looking over at the whiteboard, I read the menu the girls made. Herb roasted chicken, mashed potatoes, macaroni and cheese, roasted carrots, sautéed brussels sprouts, and homemade dinner rolls.

“I’m in heaven,” Maddy whispers beside me. Laughing, I let her go before me to make her plate. Once we’re finished, I walk us over to a table where Dice, Gunner, Big Red, Doc, and Capone are sitting. Once I’m seated, I feel like I have made a big mistake sitting here. All of them have mischievous grins and I know they’re about to fuck with me.

“So, got any embarrassing stories about Thor?” Gunner asks.

The guys laugh and Madison watches me with a teasing smile. “You remember that night at the lake?” she asks me.

I gasp and sit back stunned at the audacity of her. “Woman, you promised to take that night to the grave!” I scold her.

Madison starts to giggle, and I can’t help smiling back at her. That was not my finest night. We were sixteen, playing truth or dare. Maddy dared me to jump in the lake. It was the middle of February, and it was forty-five degrees outside. When I came out of the water, my dick had shrunk to the size of a cocktail shrimp. I panicked and thought my dick wouldn’t grow back. Needless to say, Madison laughed until tears fell from her eyes that night. I swore her to secrecy that that moment would never be repeated.

The guys watch us with knowing smiles on their faces. Once Maddy stops laughing, she places her hand on my shoulder and smiles up at me. “Your secret is safe with me.”

“Oh, come on, you have to tell us now,” Gunner whines.

“Sorry, if you want the story, you’ll have to get it from Thor.”

When Gunner turns to look at me, my answer is immediate. “Not a chance in hell, brother.”

The guys at the table break out into laughs and Gunner promises to get me drunk enough to tell the story. The rest of dinner is great. I never thought Maddy would be here but now that she is, I don’t know if I’ll be able to let her go again.