The Joker (The Soldiers of Anarchy #3)

by Nikki J. Summers

patted my knee and rose to stand, I felt a little lighter. Today, I was thirteen years old. My dad had tried to destroy that, destroy me, but not anymore. I wasn’t a kid now, and that lesson in being a man he seemed determined to give me would come, only not the way he wanted it to. It would happen on my terms.

“No more fake smiles, or half smiles. You give a big smile, okay? The bigger the smile, the more you’ll feel it.”

“Smiles lead to laughter, and believe it or not, laughter can heal a lot of hurt. It makes you forget for a while.”

“Laughter is like the windscreen wipers on your car. It might not stop the rain from falling, but it does a damn good job of keeping you going forward… now, go. Tell him whatever you want to tell him, and then smile because you know the truth. He doesn’t control you and he never will. You’re your own man now, Colton.”

The name King was like a dark, dirty cloud, a black stain on the town of Brinton Manor, but I was determined to change that. I wanted to create my own legacy, something I could be proud of. His legacy? I wanted no part of it. I despised it, and I despised him too.

The others agreed, and I smiled, satisfied in the knowledge I was doing something to help my brothers. Something I wouldn’t ever tell a soul; I’d take it to my grave. The Soldiers of Anarchy were on the way up, and this was just the beginning.

Life was ours for the taking. No looking back. No regrets. All who come here abandon all fear, because when the soldiers were in attendance, all bets were off.

“You might think you’re The Masters,” I whispered to no one except Derek. “But I’m a king, and no one sits on the throne that I made for me and my friends. It’s ours.”

“Some people come into our lives as a blessing, but you? You’re a fucking curse. Even the devil himself will be begging for a break when you land in hell.”

Seems we both got the last word after all. We were a match made in heaven.

“You’re the kind of girl that wants… no, needs a man to work for it. Make the effort. Because in the end, you are worth it. You’ve fought for everything in your life, you want someone who’s going to fight for you. Fight with you. To show you the kind of strength that proves he’s in it for the long haul. You need a man that’ll stick around, not a boy who runs. Someone who can handle the heat. And you know what? I’ve lived my whole life in the flames of hell.”

else. “–I’m in this for the long haul. No games. No bullshit. If we argue, and we will argue… you’re a bomb and I’m the detonator, and that’s never going to change, but when we fight, there’s only three things you need to do; either kiss me, fuck me, or fight back, but you can’t walk away. I’m going nowhere and neither are you.”