Handcuffs

Chapter Two - Anger

His eyes stared back at me until Diesel cleared his throat, and then he looked away, walking off to the far corner of the room. I broke my gaze away from him, but I could feel his eyes return to me and not look away.

“I repeat, what happened to your back, Ashley?” Diesel ground out through gritted teeth.

I shrugged a little. “It doesn’t matter.” I glanced to where Hunter had returned to his spot leaning against the door, “How do you even know my name?”

“You’re not as invisible as you seem to think you are,” Ryder’s deep voice sent shivers down my spine, and I had to clench my jaw so I didn’t swoon. There was just something about him - maybe it was the long hair, I don’t know - that had my insides boiling in a good way.

“Well obviously I don’t think I’m invisible,” I snapped. The rest of my sentence was mumbled under my breath, “Fuck knows I’ve got the bruises to prove it.” Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Ryder tense up, and immediately I flinched away from him. This only made him tense up even more, of course.

His fist clenched, and his knuckles turned white. “Who the fuck hurt you,” he growled, his heated stare pulling my eyes to his.

A very unladylike snort left my mouth. “Who the fuck hasn’t?”

It was amazing, really. I hid and stayed quiet around people who bullied me night and day, but when people come along who actually can hurt me seriously, I decide to open my big mouth.

“With a mouth like that it’s no fucking wonder everyone’s out for your head,” Ryder snapped back, his glare intensifying.

Anger boiled in my stomach as my eyes narrowed in a glare at him. “They hate me because I’m too fat, or ugly, or I look too much like my father. They do not hate me because I can’t keep my mouth shut around them! This is more than I’ve said in the past four years.”

Everyone in the room froze, the air becoming deathly silent.

“What did you say?” Hunter spoke up quietly, his eyes hidden from my view as his shoulders heaved with heavy breaths as his anger levels rose.

“I’m afraid you’ll have to be more specific,” I snapped, my anger boiling. I knew I should watch my mouth, I knew it was dangerous, but I couldn’t help myself. They just made me so angry.

Suddenly, Ryder lunged forward, and I was on my back, his hand next to my head, his face inches above mine. His eyes were an icy grey, and his breathing was harsh as he glared at me. “You know damn well that’s not all you said.” At my silence, he punched the pillow next to my head. “Why are you protecting them?!” he screamed in my face, and I flinched away, further into the mattress because I had nowhere else to go.

And suddenly there were hands, pulling him away from me, and smaller hands crushing me to a firm chest, and I couldn’t help what I did next. My emotions were haywire, I didn’t know any of these boys, but as tears streamed down my face, I was pulling away from the brother that was holding me, and I was reaching, reaching for the brother who looked hell bent on killing something - probably me. His struggling stopped as he stared at the tears in my eyes and on my face, and now he was struggling again, struggling for a different reason. And then he was lying on the bed next to me, and my face was buried in his neck, clinging to him as if my life depended on it.

I could feel the shocked looks of his brothers as they looked on at the sight of us, but I didn’t care.

My tears had stopped, but I was still clinging to him. Slowly me shudders stopped, and before I could compose myself, he had pulled away. Ryder wouldn’t look at me as he once again retreated into the corner of the room.