Saving Dallas 2 Making the Cut(62)

“Why did he change?” I asked, wondering what my limits were with Brooklyn.

“It happened over the course of a few years. People got hurt, people went to jail and then Maddie came along. She was the one that pushed him over the edge.” I leaned up further in my seat, silently begging her to continue. “When she got pregnant, he somehow felt responsible. He knew the guy she was with was no good, but you couldn’t tell Maddie anything. She was young, dumb and horny. She didn’t really like the guy either, but since Luke hated him, she wanted to rebel.”

Brooklyn saw the confusion on my face and smiled, “Luke was like a big brother to Maddie. He was closer to her than anyone. Some people thought that they would end up together, but Luke thought nothing more of her than a sister. After the baby was born, she began coming around less and less. No one really understood why. Luke was so deep in the club that he didn’t have time to check on her regularly, like he once did. He was in another state on a run, doing shit he had no business doing, when he got the call that Maddie had been beaten, almost to death. The baby tested positive for marijuana and crystal meth. The sick prick she was with was smoking it and blowing it in the kid’s face. Luke rode all night on his bike to get to her, he was the only one she asked for.”

There was a faraway look in Brooklyn’s eyes and I was sure that mine mirrored hers. I felt sick knowing that Maddie had endured such trauma in her life. At nineteen, she was lying in a hospital, beaten to a pulp and I was getting drunk at frat parties. Life really wasn’t fair.

“What happened when Luke got there?” I asked, not knowing if I really wanted the truth.

“He went crazy. He blamed himself for letting it happen. When she told him that she screamed for him, and he didn’t come; he went ballistic.” My heart pounded out of my chest as I stared at her.

“Sound familiar?” she asked, taking a pull from her beer. She leaned closer to me, staring me down. “That man would give his life for anyone he loves. That includes you. If he could have stopped Frankie from hurting you, he would have. The man has a lot on him. He is gonna fuck up. That’s when you step in and stand behind him, no matter what. That is your man, Dallas. Your superior, your lover and your soul mate. He has protected you, loved you and waited for you. He has the hardest job of them all. If you can’t handle it, get out now, but I’m warning you, if you do leave, we will lose the brother we love.”

I wanted to say so much. I wanted to tell her that I didn’t need anyone convincing me that Luke loved me. I knew that he did. I knew he fucked up and I knew that he was forgiven. I didn’t want to be without Luke. Instead of saying these things, I nodded my head in agreement. I wished that I could take those words back. Luke was already living with the fact that another man had put his hands on me and he wasn’t there. I didn’t have to tell him that I screamed for him. I could only imagine what he must have felt. Not many people have to live with something like that, and Luke had dealt with it twice.

“Drink up,” Brooklyn said, clinking her bottle against my full glass. “I’m leaving in the morning and I want to be shitty tonight. We will flip a quarter when we leave; heads I drive, tails you do.” Shit.





Chapter 12





LUKE





I had been without Dallas for seven full days. That’s over one hundred and sixty-eight hours since I had touched her soft skin or smelled her sweet pussy, not that I was counting. My cock twitched just at the thought of her. It would be another night with Rosie Palm and a cold shower. Our search for War had ended up with nothing. I was beginning to think that my brother was dead. Another death was not something that I wanted to deal with. Everyone kept telling me to stay positive, but I wasn’t stupid. He was gone; his bike chopped up and sold to the highest bidder. There would be no finding him. It was a search that was fucking pointless, but something we had to do. I wouldn’t stop until I found something. We were getting closer to Frankie, maybe we could beat the whereabouts of War out of him, but it didn’t seem likely. He would fucking suffer for the blood that he had spilled.

None of the guys could stand to be around me anymore. The cheap ass hotel that we were staying in didn’t have enough rooms for all of us, so we were doubling up. Crash was stuck with me and he wasn’t happy about it. I still had to keep my cool around him. I don’t like people touching my girl, and his hand fit just a little too perfect in hers for my liking. I stripped down and stepped into the shower. I put my hands on the cheap tiles and let the cold water beat down my back. I was fucking up. My club was becoming suspicious of my actions and I knew there was talk about whether or not I could keep my shit together. I hadn’t spoken to Regg since we left, and my pride wouldn’t allow me do it now. He was my brother; one of my best brothers. He was my right hand man, the one that answered only to me, and now I felt like I couldn’t trust him. He was wrong for keeping shit from me, but I knew why he did it. He was fucking right. I would have murdered Jeff and anyone else that stood in my way.