Don't Do Me Wrong: Reapers MC: Conroe Chapter, #1

By Bijou Hunter

HEAT ღ HUMOR ღ HEA

 

Life's been trying to break Sissy Mullen since the day she was born. Though her violent father nearly ran her into the ground, she's finally free.

 

Nathan "Butch" Davies doesn't like people. Bailey Johansson and Nick Davies' quiet middle son is better at busting heads than making conversation. The Reapers enforcer will need to leave his comfort zone if he hopes to show Sissy that he's the man she needs.

 

Unfortunately, claiming the woman he loves means pissing off his older brother and stirring up trouble between the Reapers' local chapter and Conroe's former overlords.

 

Trigger warning: Don't Do Me Wrong contains details of past child abuse, graphic sexual content, violent situations, and extreme profanity. The book is only appropriate for adult readers age 18+.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Bijou Hunter
• Release date: May 14, 2019
• ISBN: 9781393285557

Bijou Hunter

Romance Author of Contemporary, Suspense, and New Adult ~ Find me at www.bijouhunterbooks.com ~ Join my mailing list: www.bijouhunterbooks.com/mailing-list

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DON’T DO ME WRONG

BIJOU HUNTER

Copyright © 2019 Bijou Hunter

No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

Publisher’s Note: This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are a product of the author’s imagination. Locales and public names are sometimes used for atmosphere purposes. Any resemblance to actual people, living or dead, or to businesses, companies, events, institutions, or locales is completely coincidental.

Cover Design

Photographer:4pmphoto

Source: Depositphotos

Cover Copyright © 2019 Bijou Hunter

Dedication

Thanks to Luca who is my own little Butch;

My mom who tries to make sense of my writer’s brain;

My betas—Sarah, Sheri, Carina, Cynthia, and Debbie;

&

Judy’s Proofreading

TABLE OF CONTENTS

NOTE TO READERS

THE CHAPTER WHERE THE STORY BEGINS

SISSY MULLEN, AKA THE DUMMY

NATHAN BUTCH DAVIES, AKA THE MUTE

THE CHAPTER WHERE LIFE DISTRACTS FROM THE LONGING

THE DUMMY

THE MUTE

THE DUMMY

THE MUTE

THE CHAPTER WHERE NO ONE SAYS THE RIGHT WORDS

THE DUMMY

THE MUTE

THE DUMMY

THE MUTE

THE CHAPTER WHERE WATCHING ISN’T ENOUGH

THE DUMMY

THE MUTE

THE DUMMY

THE CHAPTER WHERE NOTHING’S FREE

THE MUTE

THE DUMMY

THE MUTE

THE CHAPTER WHERE SCARS BURN TO THE CORE

THE DUMMY

THE MUTE

THE DUMMY

THE MUTE

THE DUMMY

THE MUTE

THE CHAPTER WHERE A BIG DICK AWAKENS A RETIRED PUSSY

THE DUMMY

THE MUTE

THE DUMMY

THE MUTE

THE CHAPTER WHERE MOTHERS DO THEIR BRAND OF MOTHERING

THE DUMMY

THE MUTE

THE DUMMY

THE MUTE

THE DUMMY

THE MUTE

THE CHAPTER WHERE THE MUTE AND DUMMY TAKE A STAND

THE DUMMY

THE MUTE

THE DUMMY

THE MUTE

THE DUMMY

THE MUTE

THE CHAPTER WHERE ELLSBERG COMES TO CONROE

THE DUMMY

THE MUTE

THE DUMMY

THE MUTE

THE CHAPTER WHERE BEST INTENTIONS CRAP OUT

THE DUMMY

THE MUTE

THE DUMMY

THE MUTE

THE CHAPTER WHERE LIFE AND DEATH TANGO

THE DUMMY

THE MUTE

THE DUMMY

THE MUTE

THE DUMMY

THE MUTE

THE DUMMY

THE CHAPTER WHERE THE STORY ENDS

THE MUTE

THE DUMMY

OH, BY THE WAY, FROM THE MUTE

A FINAL WORD FROM THE PROUD DUMMY

A FINAL WORD FROM THE MUTE

FAST AS YOU CHAPTER ONE

BIJOU BOOKS READING ORDER

ABOUT BIJOU

NOTE TO READERS

This book takes places directly after My Perfect Drug (Lily/Dash) and before Promise Me Heaven (Colton/Stella).

The Road to Conroe

There was once a great man who founded a motorcycle club, the Reapers, and built up a town, Ellsberg, for his young bride (Sunday Morning).

Kirk and Jodi Johansson had four children. Their third-born and first daughter, Bailey, fell deeply, madly in love with a man living inside the law. (Damaged and the Dragon)

Eventually, Bailey and Nick outgrew Ellsberg and moved with their three adult sons (Bubba, Butch, and Buzz) to Conroe. Two of their boys joined the Reapers’ new chapter with Bubba as the president and Butch as an enforcer.

This is Butch’s story.

THE CHAPTER WHERE THE STORY BEGINS

SISSY MULLEN, AKA THE DUMMY

I wish I were someone else. I don’t have to be crazy smart and easy beautiful like Lily Johansson. My best friend comes from good stock. Whatever that means. My brother, Dash, says we’re from crummy stock, but he’s smarter than me. He even got Lily to love him, so he must be more than smart.

I’m not anything. I made pretty babies that I love with all my heart. But I worry every day they’ll be like me and not like Dash. They’re already messed up because I didn’t do something about my father sooner. Topher hurt my babies’ hearts and made them weird. Or maybe I made them that way. I don’t know. They seem so perfect to me. But I think the rest of the world probably can’t see they’re angels.

When I was little, people said I was pretty. I don’t think I’m so pretty anymore. My monster of a father hit me in the face too much. Pretty doesn’t last. Smart is better. Old people, ugly people, anyone can be smart, but not me.

I get lost all the time, and loud noises always startle me. I never know where I put anything. I have to write notes to remember everything, and then I forget where I put the notes. I only have my job because Lily and Dash love me. No way would anyone let me be a manager of anything. Lily’s aunt Bailey hired me because she wanted her niece to join her company, and my best friend always watches out for me.

Dash and Lily help me when I get stuck with an assignment. They remind me to pay my bills. Lily is teaching me to cook better food so my babies will be healthy. They keep me from failing, but I still manage to mess up a lot.

I wanted so much to be different in Conroe. But I’m not. True, I have a nice home in a duplex with Lily and Dash next door. I have a good job and money in the bank. My babies are safe now. Things should be good.

But I’ve already messed up. Not like how I mess up with work or remembering bills. That stuff can be fixed. I’m lucky I have people who care enough to put up with me.

But I can’t fix what I did with Bubba Davies.

I wasn’t ready for him to ask me on a date. I need time to get ready for stressful moments. Lily said she asked her cousins—Bubba and Butch but not Buzz because he’s married—to leave me alone about dating. They said they would. That’s why I didn’t get ready.

But Bubba lied. Or maybe I misunderstood what he told Lily. I don’t know. Either way, when he asked me to dinner, I said yes because I wasn’t ready to tell him no.

I’ve never been good at disappointing men. Most of them won’t hurt me if I say no. Enough will—and have—for me to freeze up and agree when put on the spot.

My father was always screaming at me. He hated everything I did. He was always saying how he should have put me down before I started breeding.

Stop the stupid at the source! he barked. That’s how Topher sounded to me—like a big dog barking in my face.

Some men don’t stop with yelling. Their frustration makes them hit me. A slap isn’t so bad. A punch is worse. Other times, they hit me so much that I don’t know if they’ll stop. I have babies to take care of, so I can’t die. That’s why I avoid making men angry.

I know Bubba isn’t like my father. Lily’s cousin would never hit me if I said no. But I wasn’t ready for his question, so I said yes.

Except I didn’t want to say yes to him.

Bubba is handsome, and he’s nice, but he isn’t Butch.

That’s who I wanted to say yes to, but now he’ll never ask.

Lily promised I could be anyone I wanted in Conroe. In our old town, Ellsberg, people hated the Mullens. Even the Johanssons hated us. That’s why Lily didn’t tell anyone for a long time that I was her friend. Her family wouldn’t like her spending time with someone like me.

Topher wouldn’t have liked it either. He hated the Johanssons as much as they hated him. Mostly, I think he was just jealous of Cooper Johansson who is bigger and stronger. Lily’s dad is so much more handsome too. Cooper has a beautiful wife who loves him. Farah went to college and has a respectable job. Topher always wished he had a woman like her. Instead, he fucked mean, trashy sluts who stole from him. My mom was one of those women. She took his money and cheated on him and ditched me with him. He hated her until he died. I don’t think I blame him for that.

Topher had more reasons to be so jealous of Cooper who has four beautiful children who love him. Topher just had me, Dash, and Cy. None of us are smart. Not even Dash really. He’s just smarter than Cy and me, but most people are. I know Dash isn’t so smart because he wanted Lily for a long time, but he still let her date that dentist. I told my brother that Jay was a dud. I used that word and everything, but Dash said Lily needed someone better than him. That’s probably true, but he had a chance to be with the best woman in the world. If Lily loved him, why care if he was good enough? She’s smarter than us anyway. If she thinks something, it’s probably right.

So, yeah, Lily said I could be anyone I wanted in Conroe. People here don’t care about my last name. She was right about that part. I just had to pay attention and know what to say.

But I got confused when Bubba asked me to dinner. I couldn’t understand why he was breaking his promise to Lily. Then he frowned when I didn’t say anything, and I got scared. I forgot he wouldn’t hit me, so I said yes.

Now I can’t have Butch, and he’s the one I really want.

He’s the only one I’ve ever wanted.

People say Butch and Bubba look the same, but that’s not really true. They both have light brown hair—halfway between their mom’s blonde and their dad’s dark brown—and eyes that change from blue to green. They’re both tall and have lots of muscles and tanned skin covered in tattoos. They look similar, sure.

But Butch is special. He smells like pinecones, and he helped me when I ran out of gas, and it was raining. No one else would help me back in Ellsberg. They thought I was trash and might rob them. When he stopped to help, I remember thinking he was so handsome up close. He had a black eye just like me that day. I got mine from Topher, but Butch was fighting at his uncle’s Thunderdome. He always won. I remember thinking he had to be smart to win. It’s not just about being strong.

Butch has the most beautiful eyes of any man ever, and I really liked it when they looked at me that day. But he wasn’t even eighteen yet. Big and strong but still a baby. And it was Ellsberg, and his mama loves him too much to let him date someone like me.

But I never forgot about him after that day. No one except Lily was ever nice to me like Butch was, and he didn’t ask for anything in return.

Then he was here in Conroe where I got to be anyone. He wasn’t a baby anymore either, and Lily said in this town that I could have a fresh start.

But I messed up because that’s what I always do. I don’t think. I make mistakes. Topher was bad to hit me, but I don’t blame him really. I messed up all the time back then. Even now when he’s dead, I can’t get my act together.

No way do I deserve to have Butch Davies. I don’t deserve to have anything good.

But my babies do, and Butch is real sweet to them. He built their bunk beds with the slide. I cried so much when he made those beds. Maybe that’s why he never asked me to dinner.

Or maybe he didn’t want to break his promise to Lily. I always keep mine. She’s my best friend, and she takes care of me better than anyone else. I take care of her now too. Not so much back in Ellsberg since we had to keep everything a secret.

But in Conroe, I finally get to help her. She’s scared about having a baby soon. I’ve had two babies. It’s the only thing I know more about than her. I was doing so much better in Conroe until I told Bubba yes.

And now I can’t fix what I messed up. I don’t want to kiss Bubba, so I keep pretending I’m sick. He doesn’t believe me. Bubba might break promises to Lily, but he’s not dumb. He knows I’m scared. He thinks it’s because of Topher, but it’s because he’ll never be Butch. I’d rather be alone forever, but I can’t tell anyone that. I can’t even tell Lily that I messed up. I promised to be smarter in Conroe. If she knows I’ve messed up already, she won’t trust me to help her with the baby.

But pretending to be sick won’t work for much longer. Bubba is an alpha, and that means he gets what he wants. For whatever reason, he likes me and thinks I like him. I do, I guess. I like him as Butch’s brother or Lily’s cousin. That doesn’t mean I want him kissing me. I especially don’t want him inside my body. I just want to be left alone if I can’t have Butch.

And now I can’t.

I don’t know what to do next.

But I would know if I were someone else.

NATHAN BUTCH DAVIES, AKA THE MUTE

I’m a man good with his hands. Whether I’m building houses or busting heads, I can do no wrong.

I’m not so great with words. I don’t particularly like people and talking to them never interests me. I know my way around a blueprint. I can hurt a man just right. Those are my skills. Expressing what I want from another person leaves me tied in knots.

Growing up, I never needed to say much. I watched other people, figured out how they got what they wanted, and then went about getting it with as few words as possible.

My parents have always had a sixth sense about what I needed. My father isn’t very outgoing either. My mother talks enough for them both. Dad refused to let me disappear into a crowd even though I’d prefer to. Mom says the words for me when I can’t do the talking myself.

Not once have I lost out on something I wanted because I didn’t speak up.

Not until now.

And it’s fucking killing me.

My brother, Bubba, isn’t much older, but we’re like night and day. That’s what people say anyway. He’s a leader. I’m not so much of a follower as a lurker. I’m always in the shadows, watching and waiting to make my move. He storms into a room and won’t take shit from people.

It’s always been that way. He inherited Mom’s loud, stubborn streak. He also copied her way of getting louder and ruder when insecure. The best way to make our mother insane is to get her to second-guess herself. She will cut a bitch rather than lose face. Only at home with Dad can she embrace her weaker—aka softer—side.

That’s Bubba. Loud and rude, he exudes power. Stronger men back down when he faces off with them because he seems capable of fucking up anyone. He sells strength.

Bubba’s made my life easier in a million ways. He spoke for me when I couldn’t find the words. He pushed people out of the way when I got stuck in a crowd. He even asked out a girl for me once.

Oh, the fucking irony with that!

Because now he’s taken what I’ve wanted since I was a stupid teenager.

I thought she and I could never happen. When I moved to Conroe with my family a few years ago, she remained in Ellsberg with her dumpster-fire clan. Fate was against us.

Then Lily moved here and brought along her best friend. Suddenly, I had my shot with my dream girl. What were the chances of her falling into my lap this way? One in a million.

That’s Sissy Mullen.

The blonde’s been on my mind since I found her on the side of the road, out of gas years ago. I wasn’t even eighteen while she was a young mom with two kids, a dangerous father, and a sordid reputation. The Mullens and Johanssons don’t mix, and my mom grew up hating Sissy’s family. It’s bred into our DNA to stay away from them.

But she painted a pathetic picture that day—drenched from the storm and passing cars ignoring her attempts to flag down help. I should have kept driving. I knew who she was. Her brothers were assholes, especially Cy. Despite my reputation for being shy, I’m not a particularly soft-hearted man.

I drove past her with no intention of going back. But like a fish snagged on a hook, I had no choice. Something primal forced me to turn around.

Despite her desperation, Sissy flinched when I pulled up behind her run-down sedan. She struggled to put together a single coherent sentence the entire time I helped her. Her fear had more to do with my mother’s maiden name than the black eye she was sporting that day. Everyone knew Topher Mullen beat his kids. I heard later that a few of Sissy’s boyfriends liked to smack her around too. She dated men like her father.

But she feared me because I had Johansson blood running through my veins. I wanted to hate her for having Mullen blood running through hers.

Sissy isn’t an easy woman to dislike, though. Her smile is a glorious thing to behold. Only once that day did she whip up a grin for my benefit. I made her too nervous to do more than mumble and nod.

Instead, her smiles were reserved for her kids. When the blond moppets stared at me in horror, Sissy made a funny face to get them to relax. Once they grinned, she did too. It was like they fed off each other.

That day, watching the soaked blonde act like a fool to make her kids laugh, I found myself holding my breath. I couldn’t take my eyes off of her. Sissy wasn’t like anyone I’d ever known.

And I wanted her.

I couldn’t do anything about it back then, but I never forgot that feeling. The urge returned when she moved to Conroe. Sometimes, I swear she wants me too. Sissy tends to stare a lot. She barely blinks, never nods, and rarely gives any clue to what’s happening in her head.

Why do you assume something is happening between her ears? Mom asked when Bubba mentioned how Sissy was difficult to read.

My mother will likely never let go of her old way of thinking about the Mullens.

Their conversation took place before Lily begged him and me to back off and let Sissy settle into town.

Don’t hound Sissy for a while, Lily said after ambushing us one day at the office. She’s learning to stand on her own. Be gentlemen and keep it in your pants.

Bubba swore he’d give Sissy a wide berth. No worries, he promised, smiling effortlessly as usual.

But he lied because Bubba’s never been any good at depriving himself. If he sees something he wants, he takes it. For whatever reason, I hadn’t really considered he would do the same with Sissy. His interest in her seemed superficial. She was beautiful. He was horny. She came with two kids and a suitcase full of trouble. He was lazy. Staying away from Sissy should have been easy for him.

But he asked her out, and she said yes. Now, I’m fucking miserable.

Why didn’t it occur to me to ask her first? I’m not much nicer than Bubba. I’m selfish too. I take what I want. I just do it with less fanfare than my brother.

So why am I now sulking like an asshole because I want to say shit that can’t be said? Why don’t I out-alpha Bubba and take the girl I want?

There are times when I catch Sissy looking at me as if she hopes I’ll steal her away. It’s possible she does, but it’s just as possible that I’m looking for an excuse to fuck over my brother for a girl who doesn’t want me.

In the end, something’s bound to happen soon. Every date they have makes me a little crazier. If he fucks the woman I want, I think I might go insane enough to do something that can’t be undone.

I might be bad with words, but hiding in the shadows is no longer cutting it.

THE CHAPTER WHERE LIFE DISTRACTS FROM THE LONGING

THE DUMMY

Lily’s aunts—Bailey Davies and Sawyer Todds—hired us to work for the family’s business in Conroe. They offered us a house too—a big Victorian like Lily loves. The house was full of apartments, and I didn’t understand how we could make it like Lily’s duplex in Ellsberg. I still don’t understand how it went from one floor plan to another. Lily tried to explain what walls were coming down and which ones were being moved. Like usual, I got confused and just nodded like I was following along.

Then the house was suddenly a duplex, and the right side belonged to my babies and me. We have three bedrooms so Haydee and Hart can have their own. Except they don’t want to split up, and the other room is empty for now. I have my own room too, but I stayed in their room for the first few weeks since they were scared. I was scared too. I’m not used to being alone in a new place. I’d always lived in Ellsberg, and Dash and Cy were usually around.

Haydee and Hart aren’t scared anymore, but I still sleep on a small couch in their room.

Mama likes our room best, Haydee told Uncle Nick.

Nick is actually Lily’s uncle and Butch’s dad. He’s also the principal at the elementary school. I like how he protects my babies. Nick is always nice to me—even the time when I knocked over a stack of books and papers at his house. Rather than yell or even seem angry, he said everyone’s clumsy. I'm not sure that’s true, but I still liked how he said it.

When fixing up my side of the house, my babies and I picked everything. I love light, pretty colors. Lily calls them pastels, but I just know they make the house feel happy. In Ellsberg, I lived in two houses—Topher’s and the white house by the car lot. Neither of them was happy. They were dark and ugly. I wasn’t allowed to paint the walls or make anything nice for my babies. Dash said he’d help me paint my old room, but then Topher came over and dumped the paint in my bed. He hated anything nice.

But he’s dead now, so I got to paint my house light colors. Hart picked a pale blue couch and Haydee wanted a pink kitchen table with white chairs. I let them pick stuff because I don’t hate them like Topher hated me and my brothers. I want my babies to be happy. Most days, I think they are. I remember how they jumped up and down when I told them that Topher was dead. They’re smart kiddos.

In the kitchen, I picked a stove with a vintage style like the one Lily got. Vintage just means it looks old. Sometimes, old is nicer than new. That’s what Lily says. I don’t care as long as it’s pretty. My stove is pale purple. Dash says my house fits me. I think he meant that as an insult, but he was smiling when he said it, so I don’t know.

Maybe my favorite part of fixing the kitchen was when Butch let me help him install the tile backsplash. I was watching him because he’s so handsome. My heart hurts not to touch him sometimes, and it hurt a lot that day. Then he saw me watching him and asked if I wanted to help. I didn’t really, but I said yes. That way, he wouldn’t know why I was staring at him.

Like his daddy, Butch is a patient teacher. He showed me how to do every step. When I dropped the tile, he didn’t yell. He just handed me more, and I tried again. I think I fell in love with him that day. He treated me better than anyone except maybe Lily. Dash loses his patience with me a lot, but he also had to deal with me for twenty-seven years. That’s a long time to tolerate a dummy. If Butch has to put up with me for that long, he might lose his patience too.

That day, he was so calm, though. He talked about how he learned to do construction from his uncles, Cooper, Tucker, and Jace. Back in Ellsberg, they did work around the house in the summers, and he’d tag along.

I like building shit, he said and smiled like he was embarrassed.

I should have said something nice to make him feel better, but I couldn’t think straight by then. He was wearing a black wife beater, and his sweaty skin was close enough to touch. His eyes were green that day, and he hadn’t shaved. I nearly reached out to run my fingers over his stubbled jaw.

But I controlled myself. I have good self-control about some things. Like when I stopped smoking. I just decided I should stop because the Johanssons didn’t smoke and I was staying in their house. Once I told myself to stop, I never smoked again.

So, I can control myself like how I didn’t rub all over Butch that day when he taught me to install the backsplash. Instead, I focused on what he was teaching me. I loved working with him so much that I asked if I could help him with Lily’s kitchen. When he said yes, I thought maybe he liked me too. For one thing, he smiled a lot.

Butch doesn’t smile like his brothers. He seems mad a lot, and I heard one of the girls at the club’s bar—Morty’s Pub—say he’s mean, but I don’t think he is. I think maybe he’s just shy. Being that way in a biker club makes him seem weak. So maybe he just frowns a lot, so people will think he’s tough. I don’t know. I’m probably wrong about him like I am about everything else.

No, I sure wasn’t wrong about what looked pretty in my house. My kiddos and I love it here. Sometimes, I’m so happy that I forget all about Ellsberg. I don’t think about Topher’s brains on the wall or Cy maybe being dead. I don’t think of all the bad stuff