Nikolai
"You look just like your mama," Nina says, the adoration clear in her voice as she watches Zuri sitting on the counter, happily munch on the French fries she just made.
I can't even imagine the shitshow going on upstairs right now. Knowing what Gray was about to show our sweet girl, I had to get Zuri out of there. Alyssa definitely needs some time to process her emotions.
Gray claimed he had received the videos last night from a private investigator he's had tailing Isaac for weeks. He asked while we were in his office if Alyssa could mentally handle seeing them. Of course, we told him yes. Alyssa needs to know the truth-that her pathetic-ass excuse for a husband married her, cheated on her, and abused her, all because he's ashamed of who he is.
I know I've questioned my own sexuality more times than I can count, but from what I saw in those videos, there is absolutely no fucking doubt in my mind that Isaac is gay.
"She's real attached to you, isn't she?" Nina asks, pulling me back into the moment.
I smile, glancing down at Zuri still enjoying her food. "Yeah, she is."
"I wasn't talkin' about the baby. Alyssa. You'd have to be blind not to see that there's somethin' going on between you four."
Four? I blink. Oh, she means Mason.
I don't respond, though. Nina isn't stupid, and I'm not about to give her anything to work with. She knows how to keep her mouth shut, but I refuse to say anything about our relationship here.
Suddenly, my phone buzzes-a text from Gray in the group chat: "Church. Meet in 5."
When I walk back into the meeting room, Alyssa's sitting beside Gray at the large, round table. Her face is calm, but her eyes are puffy and red. She's been crying. And I know all King could do was watch. That shit must've been torture.
Mason's sitting on her left, and King is seated across from them, leaning back with his arms folded across his chest. I pass Zuri to Alyssa, and I immediately see the tension in her body lessen a bit. I take my seat next to Gray, and as the rest of the members in the group chat file in, I catch them eyeing Alyssa-some more boldly than others.
Possessive heat courses through my veins, but I manage to keep my expression blank. King isn't doing as good as a job hiding his rage. He looks ready to kill every single one of them, and given the current tension with the Iron Serpents, no one would think twice if he snapped. They know he wears unhinged violence like a second skin.
"I know shit's starting to get around, so I want to address the rumor before the wrong people hear about it," Gray begins, his commanding voice cutting through the room. "I do not plan to engage in a war with Bones and the Iron Serpents. I've reached out to set up a meeting, and we're just waiting on a response. When they agree to it, we're not rolling in deep, so I'm only bringing a few of you. Niko, King, Luther, and Joker."
There are a few murmurs, but no one openly protests. It's the right call, anyway. We don't want a turf war, too much innocent blood will be shed.
As Gray keeps talking, their stares linger on Alyssa. I can feel the primal urge to break something, or someone, rise within me, but I'm not impulsive like King is. However, if they keep this shit up, they won't have eyes left to see anything else ever again.
Gray notices too. He stops mid-sentence, his voice a low growl. "Anyone looking at my sister right now has about two goddamn seconds to stop before I blow their brains out all over the wall."
Dave, our road captain, smirks. "Maybe we're just trying to figure out when you got a twin, Pres."
"We're not twins," Gray says, through gritted teeth. "She's significantly younger than I am."
"Wow, didn't know four years was 'significant,'" Alyssa mutters under her breath.
Gray's jaw tightens and he turns to her. "When you have a room full of men, most of them older than us both, looking at you like they want to eat you alive, it is."
Alyssa blushes, but she doesn't back down. Her gaze sweeps the table, meeting every man's stare. "Well, let me clear it up. Hi, guys. I'm Alyssa, I'm married, and this is my baby." She gestures to Zuri, who's now asleep in her arms, her pacifier snug between her lips.
The room falls silent for a moment before Dave chuckles. "Shit, I don't have a problem with that. You look like you could take care of an old man like me."
Alyssa's nose scrunches in disgust. "Um, no thank you. The heart attack you're going to have on top of me isn't worth the two minutes."
The room erupts in laughter, and even Dave can't help but grin. My girl might be hurting right now, but she's enjoying being here. The guys aren't stupid enough to cross Gray, but they're testing her-seeing if she's one of us. I wish they'd lay off the sexual jokes, though. I can tell King's barely holding it together, and if they keep this up, someone's getting a bullet to the brain.
Explaining why to Gray won't be easy.
But damn, I'm so fucking proud of her. She's not the innocent little girl Gray still sees her as. She belongs here with us.
"Alyssa," Gray hisses, but I place a hand on his shoulder, calming him.
"She can handle herself," I murmur.
Gray grunts in response, his jaw still tensed, but he doesn't push further.
Suddenly, the door bursts opens and Christine sashays in, wearing a tight black dress that reveals too much of her breasts. "Afternoon, boys," she says with a smirk.
"Hey, babe." Gray pulls her into his lap, and a spike of jealousy rips through me. I want Alyssa on my lap like that. Hell, I'd be satisfied with just watching her on King's lap. It'd let everyone know she's ours. I wasn't kidding when I told her that I wouldn't mind just King claiming her publicly. Because, in the end, we're still gonna share her.
I steal a glance at Mason. He's been my brother just as long as King and Gray have, and for years, I've never really seen him show much interest in women. But even Nina noticed his feelings for Alyssa. I know for sure I'm not imagining it now. Could I ever be willing to share her with him? Would King?
And more importantly, would Alyssa want that? To be in a relationship with all three of us?
Fuck. I need to talk to Mason first. Find out exactly what he feels for her before I give this any more thought.
"Niko!" I snap my head in the direction of Gray's voice, finding him staring at me, impatience written on his face."
I blink. "Huh?"
"Anything else we need to add?"
I clear my throat, pushing my thoughts aside. "Don't forget, at the end of the month we're riding for charity. Luther has all the details if you need them."
Alyssa's eyes light up at that, surprise flickering across he features. Yeah, we break the law, but we also give back. This month, we're raising money for domestic abuse survivors. I suggested it, and the club voted unanimously.
"Okay, everyone's dismissed," Gray says. The room begins to empty, everyone going back to whatever the fuck they were doing before.
"Gray, I can't believe everyone was looking at your sister like that, even after she said she was a married woman," Christine says, feigning concern. "They definitely need to be watched. What if they try to come onto me next?"
I fight the urge to roll my eyes.
Another thing I've learned about Gray's wife is that she seems to love to stir shit, especially when the attention isn't on her. I bet she didn't like that the guys were looking at Alyssa, and not her. But that's mostly because they don't want that death wish.
Christine, though? She'd love for Gray to kill one of his brothers over her.
"That would never happen, babe," Gray reassures her, kissing her cheek.
Alyssa snorts, loud enough to turn everyone's heads. "Why would you be worried about that? I'm technically single, and you're not."
Christine's eyes narrow, her tone dripping with judgement. "Wow, like I get that you're going through...whatever with your husband, but it would be a real lack of morals to allow other men to flirt with you until you either divorce him, or they...deal with him."
Alyssa's jaw clenches, her eyes burning with rage. "I'm sorry...but who the hell are you to judge me?"
Christine flips her hair. "Of course, I'm not judging. Just, from one married woman to another, your image matters. No real man wants to be with a woman who cheats, no matter what her husband did."
Alyssa lets out a bitter, humorless laugh. "That's rich, coming from someone who dresses like a-"
"Nee-koo!" Zuri suddenly calls out, lifting her head from Alyssa's chest.
Thank fuck for that. Alyssa was ready to rip Christine's head clean off. She deserved it, but still.
I step in, scooping up Zuri before the tension snaps. "Hey, princess. You have a good nap?" I bounce her lightly on my hip, grinning. Alyssa's eyes are still shooting daggers at Christine, so I nudge the conversation away from the edge. "Let's get you ladies home. I think Zuri's ready to crawl around after all that rest."
King stands, cracking his neck as he stretches. "Yeah, and I need some sleep. Got a long night of hunting ahead."
Gray looks at Alyssa. "I want you to start coming by a few times a week."
Alyssa raises an eyebrow, completely unfazed by the tone in his voice. "Is that some kind of command you expect me to follow, or are you asking me if I want to?"
Gray's lips twitch. "Fine. Would you like to come?"
She nods once, her expression softening. "Yeah. I think I could get used to the vibe here."
Gray actually smiles-just a little. "Great."