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She’s heading for the door, and I grab her arm, just a hold, stopping her from taking another step. I release her but don’t pull my hand away. I move it up and tug on her hair. The short, soft locks that fall to her shoulders are a drastic contrast to what I’ve always seen on her.

“Why?”

She turns her head just enough for me to see her eyes. “Tired of it.”

I tug once, calling bull on her quick answer.

Her eyes shut, but only for a moment before opening again. This time, she doesn’t look at me, even though her face is turned to me.

“My family had a tradition. The women didn’t cut their hair. I followed that same tradition because it was the only thing I had of my mother’s that they couldn’t take away from me. They could change my name, where I lived, and even say I was something other than what I was. But they never asked me to cut my hair. In fact, they praised me for keeping it long. But….”

She trails off as she seems lost for words.

“But you’re tired of following their traditions.”

Natalie lets out a sigh and finally looks at me. “I’m tired of it all. Being someone for someone else. Trying to fit into something I don’t get. So I quit. I quit it all. And with that came this.” She points to her hair as I continue to rub it between my fingers.

“I like it,” I say before turning away and going to the bathroom. As I shut the door, I see her still standing right where I left her.

The party is in full swing two hours later, and most everyone is outside shooting the shit. It’s a nice day for spring, and the weather is holding up. We still have the firepits going, and the kids are running around on sugar highs from all the s’mores they’ve eaten.

“Surprised more Crazy Eights aren’t here,” I say as I take a long drag from my beer, looking around the group and recognizing every person in attendance.

“How do you know they aren’t?” Jack says with a smirk as she joins me and King at the cooler.

Girl has a point. The Crazy Eights only appear when they want to be seen. And sure, we’ve got some issues between the two groups. Mostly that Jack doesn’t talk to us and is only here for her girl, Billy. And Billy, who I think quit C8, pulled out of any and all group allegiances between us because one of their operatives, Abigail, was killed. Billy evidently doesn’t feel as if the Hounds didn’t protect Abigail like C8 expected.

I’m not surprised that Jack came to support the woman she calls her sister on a night like tonight. I am surprised that she’s so close to King. In her eyes, he was the one who got Abigail killed. Her and their unborn kid. Not that King knew about the kid.

They share a look, and then he wanders off with a curse, muttering too quietly for me to hear.

“You got a talent for making men walk away?” I say to lighten the dark mood that seems to have followed her over here.

“Usually.”

I laugh at her honesty as I catch sight of Natalie. She’s closer to the screen than me and Jack.

We’re toward the back, away from the gathered crowd as the slideshow gets started. Most everyone is watching it and laughing their asses off. Not only are they pictures of Billy and Casper, but the boys put in some random ones of almost every member of the club.

Even Natalie is in some. In the background and not doing anything but glaring, but she’s part of it, whether she likes it or not.

“Think they’ll make it?” I ask.

“Sure. As long as Casper realizes who’s in charge.” She grins and lets out a laugh that seems rare for her as a picture of Billy sleeping comes up on the screen.

I watch with her, and then the screen goes dark. The crowd whistles and applauses, only for the group to go quiet as a video comes on. Looks like a home video of sorts, the camera moving around as if someone is walking.

Hoots and hollers sound from all around, including me.

“All right! Casper’s going to show us the good stuff,” Jumper shouts.

“Not me,” Casper says with a smile as he watches the video like the rest of us, but from the small stage the boys set up for him and Billy to stand on.

Light pours in from windows, and I can make out that it’s a warehouse from the rafters. When a naked woman’s backside comes into view, the boys go wild, not even caring that her hands are above her head and chained together. We all know Casper has a dominant streak in him that he lets out to play with his girl sometimes. Having a woman chained and naked seems on par for his taste.

But based on what I can see out of the corner of my eye, Jack isn’t a fan. Not sure if it’s the BDSM angle she protests or the fact that her best girl is on the screen, clearly naked, from the back—though with the way the camera is moving closer, we might also see the goods from the front.

I guess I would stiffen too if it were one of our brothers up there and I was about to see his junk. I love my club, but I’m not in love with any of them, and seeing them with their dick out isn’t on my list of things to do.