Taming Blade (Kings Reapers MC Book 5) by Nicola Jane (mini ebook reader TXT) 📕

but it’s too late Tillie is already handing her jacket over and signing in. I groan, and Eva smiles awkwardly as she rushes over to say hello and no doubt explain that she messed up.

Tillie looks just as pissed to see me as I am to see her. Her friend is giving me evil eyes, so I spend the next hour dodging them, but everywhere I look, Tillie seems to be there smiling or laughing and just generally looking amazing.

TILLIE

“I’m so sorry,” Eva apologises, again.

“Please stop apologising. It’s a big club, we can avoid each other,” I say.

“So how did you and Blade meet?” asks Hannah. She’s heavily pregnant and I can’t help but worry this is no place for her.

“I don’t think she wants to discuss Blade right now, Hann,” says Gia, rolling her eyes. “She’s just told us she’s avoiding him.”

Hannah shrugs. “Sorry, I have baby brain.”

“Are you with one of the guys?” asks Sara, and Hannah presses her lips together to suppress a smile.

Gia also smiles. “It’s a complicated one,” she says. “Hannah’s pregnant with Blu’s baby. She also has another kid with him.”

“Okayyy,” says Sara, exchanging a worried glance with me.

“That totally makes me sound like a whore,” snaps Hannah, and Gia laughs. “Long story short, I was with Blu and had Molly. We split. I got remarried, to a woman, and Blu agreed to give us another child. We used IVF and, ta-dah, I’m pregnant.”

“That’s when it gets complicated, cos Blu met me,” says Gia.

I raise my eyebrows and take a drink. “And you guys are friends?” I ask.

“We all sleep in the same bed. It’s cosy,” answers Hannah, and my mouth falls open in shock, causing them to crack up laughing. “Joke,” she adds.

“We’re friends. My wife, Alice, died a few months back,” explains Hannah, her face suddenly serious. “So I stay at the club and get in Gia’s business whenever I can.”

Gia nudges Hannah gently and fakes a scowl. “Lucky for us, we live away from the club.”

“It’s great that you can be friends,” says Sara.

“We’re all one big, happy family at the club,” adds Eva. “That’s why I was gutted when you and Blade didn’t work out. You’d fit in.”

“I thought he was interested,” I admit, glancing over to where he’s chatting to some of the guys. “Turns out I was wrong. He used me.”

“He seemed really into you,” Eva continues. “I don’t understand.” At that moment, Anna stumbles over, almost spilling her glass of wine. “You okay?” Eva asks.

“I have been on that dance floor for far too long on my own. Not one man even looked in my direction. It’s like they can smell my kids’ scent. No one wants a dried up, old hag with a vagina as baggy as an old pair of tights.” I snigger and Anna wails. “It’s true. Tillie, Sara, don’t have kids.”

“Anna,” Eva gasps, and Anna rolls her eyes and sits on Eva’s lap.

“I love my babies, I really do, but I want to feel beautiful again. I want a tight, pretty vagina. I want to go for a full wax and not have that gorgeous model bitch waxer look at me with pure hate because even she hates looking at my vagina.”

“Sweetie, no one hates looking at your vagina,” soothes Eva, gently removing the full glass of wine from Anna’s hand and placing it out of reach. “Maybe people aren’t looking at you because they see your wedding ring,” she adds, tapping Anna’s wedding finger.

“Or it could be that huge, brooding biker glaring at you from across the room?” suggests Leia, tipping her head in her brother’s direction. “Riggs looks pretty pissed right now.”

Anna scowls in his direction. “Fuck him. I’m not allowed to have fun or drink too much. I can’t even dance,” she slurs.

“You can, just not with other men,” Eva points out. “That’s a reasonable request from your husband.”

“You know what’s not reasonable?” yells Anna, taking us all by surprise. “That I’m tired. I’m exhausted and Riggs doesn’t want to have any fun. He brings me to a fun place but wants me to stand beside him and be miserable.”

Riggs marches over, looking even angrier than before. “Let’s go,” he snaps.

“I’ve a few glasses of wine. It’s been ages since I drank and it’s hit me hard. Relax,” she huffs.

“Anna,” he says with a warning tone to his voice, holding out his hand.

“I’m not really feeling it tonight actually,” says Leia, standing. “I’ll make sure she gets home.”

“I’m not a kid,” Anna snaps, getting to her feet and swaying slightly. “And I’m not Michelle! I am allowed to drink alcohol,” she hisses.

Riggs doesn’t wait for her to speak another word. He grips her upper arm and removes her before anyone can protest. Leia grabs her coat and follows. Hannah also stands. “I’m tired too. I’ll catch you all back at the club,” she says, and Gia nods in agreement.

“I’ll come too.”

Once they’re gone, I turn to Eva. “Will Anna be okay?”

“Yeah, Riggs wouldn’t hurt her. Things are just . . . strained, I guess. Riggs is going through a bad time. Secrets were kept and Anna’s struggling. It’s been a tough few months on them, but they’re coming through it, and when she isn’t drunk, they’re almost back to how they were. She just wanted to let her hair down, I don’t blame her.”

BLADE

Lake drinks his whiskey, then announces, “I think I’m gonna talk to Sara.”

“Shit, brother, leave her alone. You aren’t interested and it ain’t okay that you keep using her.”

He scoffs, laughing in my face. “I’d probably listen to you if you hadn’t done the same thing with her best friend.”

“Me and Tillie are different,” I snap.

“Quit bitching,” mutters Cree, his eyes fixed to Eva just like they always are whenever she’s in the room.

“If you don’t leave her alone, I’ll start to think you’re turning into Cree,” I say. “Obsessed.”

“She’s my fucking wife. I wanna make sure she’s okay,” Cree hisses defensively.

“Man, she’s in a room full