Warlords MC: Book 5 – Joker : Chapter 2

As the sun rose in the eastern sky a few hours later, Joker woke up with a frown on his face. There was someone in bed with him and they were curled up next to him. He snapped his eyes open and peered down at his chest. His eyes widened as he saw a mass of dark hair laying on his chest. He saw the bandage on her upper arm and he had to wonder when she moved over from her side of the bed.

He must have disturbed her somehow, because her head lifted from his chest and he found a pair of green eyes staring back at him. He saw the confusion in her eyes and then he saw the fear as she tried to move away from.

“Whoa, take it easy.” He tried to soothe her but she was still struggling to get away from him. He had to clamp down on her body to stop her from hurting herself. “Please stop,” he whispered softly. “You’re safe here. I’m not going to hurt you, I swear.”

She stopped and held herself away from him. “Why am I in bed with you then? Where is this place?” She gazed around the room and found the room was clean, a little messy but it even smelled good compared to her last place. She looked back at him and asked, “Who are you and how did you get me out of that place?”

Joker frowned as he studied her for a moment. “I didn’t get you out but you were brought here by a friend of ours. He bid us to watch over you as he and his friends were going to take out whoever did this. Oh, and I’m Joker by the way…” He paused to stare at her before he asked, “What’s your name?”

“My name?” She frowned, as she appeared to be confused. “My name is Rowen, I think?”

“Well, good morning Rowen.” He smiled then his smile faltered a bit. “How do you feel this morning?”

“I hurt all over and I think I’m running a fever but otherwise, better than I thought I would be which was to be dead by now.” She seemed surprised by this then she shook her head. “Why would I feel better?”

“My brother cleaned you up a little last night. He also gave you a shot of penicillin to combat the infection in your shoulder.”

She hung her head and he felt her tears soak his t shirt. He gently held her closer. “Hey, please don’t cry. I promise you are safe here. We won’t hurt you.”

She shook her head. “You don’t understand, the Eagles will come after me. They will find me then kill everyone here and take me back to their den of hell. You saw the brand didn’t you? Their president branded me for himself.” She shuddered. “Grinder wanted to claim me but I kept saying no. His men began to laugh at him and he got so pissed. He thought I should be happy to be his slave and then he told me no woman did that to him, so he decided he wanted to break me. He tried his best, believe me he did.”

Joker sat there and let her talk. She needed to tell her story about what happened to her. But before he let her go, on he had to know, “How long were you with them?”

“What’s the date today?” she asked while looking lost.

“August 8th.”

“They grabbed me July 30th,” she stated. “So I guess they had me nine days.”

“You said they would come here, how do you know that?” Joker frowned.

Rowen began to tremble. “Grinder told me he would always know where I was. He said he could find me anywhere in the world and even if I did manage to escape, he would come for me.”

“Does he have you tagged somehow?” Joker frowned.

“I don’t know. I was unconscious for some time, then I was in so much pain, I couldn’t care less about anything he was doing to me.” She shook her head.

“I need to fill my brothers in on this. If we got soldiers coming our way, we need to be prepared,” Joker claimed.

“Are they going to hurt me?” she asked softly.

Joker gazed down at her. “Oh honey, my brothers aren’t going to hurt you. You were brought here for your protection, so the Eagles couldn’t find you.”

“Can I take a shower before I meet your brothers? I hate being this dirty.” She shuddered. “It’s been so long since I was clean.”

“Sure.” Joker got up and carefully helped her up. She seemed a little unsteady on her feet at first but he stood beside her until she got her bearings. Then he helped her to the bathroom. “Are you going to be okay on your own? Or do you need some help?”

Rowen flushed red and shook her head. “I’ve never showered with anyone before but right now, I’m too weak to do much.”

Joker chuckled. “I’ll restrain my baser needs honey, don’t worry.”

She laid against him for a moment then pushed away. “Ok let’s do this. Then we’ll meet your brothers.”

Joker started the shower and helped her strip off her clothes. He left them in a pile on the floor, as they were dirty. Each piece of clothing hid even more bruises and when she was bare, he could see the extent of her injuries. She was bruised from head to feet.

Rather than look at her too long, Joker stripped off his t shirt and jeans, leaving his boxers on, then he helped her into the shower. The warm water bathed them both and Rowen grabbed his arms as she just stood there, letting the water rush over her. She wouldn’t look at him as the dirt and grime she was covered in washed down the drain.

Rowen didn’t know if she was more embarrassed by being naked or the amount of dirt on her. She ducked her head under the spray and groaned at the feeling she got when he began washing her hair.

“Oh, man that feels so good.” She sighed.

He pushed her under the water again to rinse then he handed her a soapy wash cloth to wash her front. He took the soap and began running it over her back. His touch was gentle as he washed her back then squatted down to wash her legs and feet.

She finished up then he helped her out and handing her a towel, neither of them could look at the other.

He left her standing there, and when he returned, he wore a pair of jeans and a clean T shirt. Handing her a pair of his workout shorts and a t shirt, he replaced the bandage on her shoulder before he helped her put the clean clothes on. Then he lifted her in his arms, carried her out of the bathroom and out to the kitchen.

Rowen couldn’t believe how strong he was but she did enjoy the experience.

When he sat her down at the table, they could see the early morning sunlight light up the outside.

Joker went over and got the coffee going.

When he sat a cup down in front of her, Rowen just stared at it for a moment.

“What’s wrong? Don’t you drink coffee?” he asked.

“Yeah, it’s just that I haven’t had a cup since the morning they took me,” she whispered. She picked up the cup slowly and brought it to her mouth. Sipping the hot dark brew, she groaned. “Oh, I have missed that.” Just then, her belly growled.

Joker chuckled. “How about some toast? I know Charli will make breakfast in about an hour and you don’t want to miss that.”

Rowen nodded. “I could eat.” She sipped her coffee again, before she asked, “Who’s Charlie?”

Joker smiled. “Charli is my sister in law. She’s with my older brother, Ace.”

“Oh.” She worried. “Will she mind my being here? I mean I do come with a MC following me. I don’t want to bring trouble here.”

Joker peeked over the rim of his coffee cup. “You seem to be afraid of the MC part of this. Why?”

Rowen shrugged. “I don’t know, I’ve never been around an MC before. They look like they could be a rough crowd. They are big and loud and more than a little crude.”

“Not all bikers are like them,” he protested.

“Well, they are all I know, so how can I judge anyone else?”

“Do I look that bad to you? Have I hurt you?” Joker asked.

Rowen froze then turned her head slowly. Staring at him she dared to ask, “You? No, you haven’t hurt me.” She paused then asked, “Are you a member of an MC?”

Joker nodded. “My brothers and I are the WarLords.”

“Oh,” she whispered.

Joker didn’t like the look that entered her eyes just then. “Rowen, look at me,” he commanded her. When her eyes snapped over to him, he softened the look on his face. “You have nothing to fear from me or my brothers. You have our protection now, and we won’t let you down.”