Cookie delivers my beer. She looks like she wants to linger, but my finger-point sends her trotting off.
When it’s just us again, I continue, “Michaela said when she was four years old the club came by Mooney’s Pub the Sunday before Christmas. Beat the crap out of her ol’ man. Cullen made her hide in the closet, but she watched the whole damn thing through a crack in the door.”
“Fuck.” Bouncer breathes the word, his brows knitting together. “Must have traumatized the poor kid.”
My eyes flick up to lock with North’s. “You ever hear about that?”
“No, but wouldn’t surprise me. Those guys were hardcore assholes with shit for brains.” He twists to glance at our president who is leaning against a post. “No disrespect, Chaos.
“None taken.” Chaos cuts his eyes to mine. “Those days are gone for fucking good, bro.”
“I know. I get that. But she’s having a hard time trusting me. Now I know why.”
Chaos huffs out a laugh. “Women and trust. Now there’s a fucking subject.”
I get what he’s saying, but I’m not in the mood for any belittlement of what had happened to Michaela. I want to beat the shit outta the men responsible, but I can’t, because they’re all long fucking gone. We’re what remains—the six of us. So does that make me just as guilty? I wasn’t a member of the MC back then, but Vic and those assholes ran things when I put that patch on my back. I signed up for everything the MC stood for. Maybe I was naïve back then. Maybe I didn’t understand to the fullest extent everything I was signing up for, or maybe I was just desperate to belong someplace, anyplace back then. But does that make me guiltless? Do I not bear some of the fucking blame?
It’s all eating at me from the inside out, and I suddenly can’t sit here and pretend it’s all good now that leadership has changed. I surge to my feet and snap, “Goin’ out to smoke.”
I walk across the clubhouse and shove through the doors. The night air feels reviving as I pull a pack of smokes from my pocket, shake one out and dip my head to light up.
As I blow the smoke heavenward toward the starry night sky, the door behind me swings open and Bouncer and North stroll out. They stand beside me, lighting up smokes of their own.
They don’t say anything at first, but I know why they’ve come out here—some kind of brotherly support. I’m not sure I want it right now, so I say nothing and keep smoking.
Finally, Bouncer speaks.
“Look on your face, I thought you were going to shoot Chaos.”
“The night’s not over,” I say calmly, eyeing the sky.
“Brother.”
I know he’s talking to me. I take another hit off my smoke and twist my head toward him, but say nothing.
“She’s gotta know you’re not responsible, right?”
“I don’t know what she knows.”
“Yeah, but I’ve seen the way you are with her. She’s gotta know you’re not that man.”
“Aren’t I?” I jerk my chin towards town. “Some other business falls behind on payments, think we’ll go easy on ‘em?”
“We work with them. We protect them. It’s not the same fucking thing as Vic and his bunch. You fucking know that, bro.” North lets me have it.
Maybe I don’t want to hear it.
“She’s really got to you, hasn’t she?” he asks.
“Yep.” I’m not going to deny it.
“Then make her understand. If she’s worth the wait, she’s worth the trouble.” North squints at me through the smoke.
I huff out a laugh at that and drop my cigarette, grinding it under my boot. “You sound like my ma.”
Bouncer gets a chuckle out of that one until North cuts him a look and snaps, “Shut the fuck up, Bouncer.” North stares back at me. “Look, it finally caught up to them—the lies, the secrets, the manipulations. Vic’s reign as king has been long over. They went too far. And they went down for it. Done deal.”
Bouncer agrees. “What Vic did to Cullen was a dick move. The kid seein’ it makes it even worse. Ain’t a brother in this club who doesn’t agree with that.”
“You think she sees me as any different?”
North shakes his head. “Damsels in distress. You never could resist ‘em.”
“Okay, love our little talks.” I drain my beer and toss the bottle in the rusty fifty-gallon drum with all the other empties, and the glass shatters loudly.
“Fixin’ relationships when you’re a fucking biker—yeah, there’s no handbook for that,” Bouncer murmurs.
“No shit,” I agree.
“We’re brothers. When one of us is hurt, we close ranks.” North slaps his hand between my shoulders and gives me a shake, a smirk on his face.
I shove him off. “Now you’re just trying to piss me off. You hug me and I’ll punch your pretty face, you pussy.”
North laughs. “You can’t catch me. I’m too fast for you.”
“Wanna bet?”
He grins and makes a kissy face at me.
I turn to Bouncer. “Sorry you came out here?”
He rolls his eyes and says sarcastically, “No lingering regret at all, bro.”
We all chuckle at that.
“Let’s cut this crap. Time to ride.” He lifts a chin at me. “Come on, Sly. You jump on that bike, hit the throttle, and all this shit melts away.”
I turn to Bouncer. “Best idea you’ve had. Think you just earned a merit badge.”
He throws his leg over his motorcycle and works the strap under his helmet. “Lets open these babies up.”
“If you ain’t first, you’re last.” North follows, climbing on his and turns to look over at me, growling over the thunder of his engine. “You’re goin’ down, dude.”
I fire up mine, blasting the throttle in neutral and letting it roar. “Eat my dust, North.”
I pop it in gear and we peel out onto the highway, gunning it. The Harley’s engine shudders beneath me, begging to be cut loose, so I give her what she wants.
Fourteen
Sly—
I’ve been busy with the club all week, and haven’t had a chance to make any time to stop by Mooney’s and see Michaela.
I didn’t even realize it was deadline day until Bash’s ol’ lady started talkin’ about Easter Sunday bein’ the day after tomorrow. Then it hit me, today is Good Friday.
Now I’m standin’ by my bike outside the clubhouse, knowing I’ve got to go collect that money from Michaela. I run a hand down my face, wondering if she’ll even have it, and what the fuck I’m gonna do if she doesn’t.
I can’t say I haven’t lain awake nights, starin’ at the ceiling and trying to figure out the answer to that very question. Usually that leads to me thinking about Michaela, and then my mind always drifts to what it’ll be like when I finally fuck her. I already know it’s gonna be phenomenal. The electricity bouncing between us is a sure enough sign of that. I glance down at my phone to check the time. It’s past midnight and they’ll be closing up soon. I can’t put this off any longer. I can either cover the debt to the club myself or offer her an arrangement for part ownership of the place.