“And this is why I stick to the vamps. Am I right?” Lucky chuckles and elbows Bane, who grunts and full-on shoves him into one of the curtains.
Bane actually smiles when he sees Lucky bump into one of the makeshift tables that has a person on it. As do I when the girl on it grabs Lucky by the collar and punches him so hard he stumbles into another curtain room. But before he can get hit again, Mickey is pulling him out by the back of his vest.
“Easy, Casanova.”
“Did I win?”
The rest of the guys, including Tommy, chuckle at that. Lucky might need a change in road name if this keeps up. Guy is having a helluva time with the ladies. If I didn’t see him getting it on with the new vamps at the clubhouse, I’d be worried. Seems he’s got a type. Or should I say, there’s a type that isn’t into him.
No problem for me as long as I’ve still got some skin in the game when it comes to one girl in particular. I kind of regret saying my piece earlier, but I also don’t. I want her to know I care for her. I’ve never cared much for a girl before. It means something to me. And it sucks that it doesn’t mean something to her.
I rub the ache in my chest and ignore what that means. Probably just too much caffeine or indigestion or something. Can’t be more than that. I might be willing to put a small claim on her, but that doesn’t mean other parts of me are involved. A brother can claim a woman and like her well enough not to deal with shit like love and marriage and all that stuff connected to it.
At least that’s what I tell myself a second before I see her. She’s stunning. Even with the swelling and blood from her opponents. She’s a fucking wet dream. Especially with her heaving like that, in her skimpy-as-shit outfit that’s more bikini than sports bra and biker shorts. I swear, all that’s missing is some Jell-O, and every guy out there would have a boner. Hell, they might already.
I shake my head to shut that thought down. Last thing I need is a blackout-rage moment. The whole place would end up in a pile of rubble, and I wouldn’t give a fuck about the number of casualties.
I say nothing. I can’t. My brain has short-circuited somehow. Maybe all those explosions really did fuck me up. I just never expected such a delay.
Mack coughs and then steps in front of Viv, who’s just staring at me, and shakes Tommy’s hand. “Sir.”
“Always a pleasure, Mack. Menace.” He nods to Viv but, to his credit, doesn’t get closer. Not sure if he’s cautious of her reaction to him or mine to his movement.
My phone rings, and despite my desire to ignore it, I pull it out of my pocket and see it’s Rooster. “What’s up?” I answer.
“Got a situation.”
I pinch my nose in frustration. “We keep having those and we might as well take an ad out in the paper for someone to do something about it.” What’s the point of having a clubhouse full of scary bikers if we keep getting fucked with?
“Might be a good idea. Make sure the person is able to dig a grave.”
I still. “Come the fuck again?” I feel everyone’s eyes on me, and I don’t care.
“Guy watching over Viv’s place was found dead.”
“On my way.” I hang up before he can say more.
“Got a brother down at Viv’s. Let’s go.”
Surprisingly, everyone listens. Even Viv, who turns, grabs her stuff, pulls on her sweats, and then steps in line with me. When I get to my bike, she hops on as if she belongs there, and I’m not complaining.
“We’ll meet you there.” It’s not a request from Tommy, and I nod in agreement. If the mafia wants in on this, I’m not about to decline the backup.
The ride goes by fast. I don’t have time to enjoy the feel of Viv at my back with the news that weighs heavily on my brain. I’ve killed a few people before. Had no issues about it. I’ve never had a person killed because of some command I gave.
I pull up right in front of her building, not even stopping at the clubhouse first. The brothers pull in beside me, followed by Tommy’s ride and Mack’s. Rooster greets us at the bottom of her stairs with a grim face. A few of the other brothers are there too.
“What happened?” I ask.
“Asyou know, we set guard duty to only one brother at a time, since we were only hoping to get eyes on the place. Don’t think anyone saw it going south like this.”
I nod at Rooster’s words, conscious that he’s saying this to ease my guilt, but it won’t. Words are just that. Time and action are what will get me through this. And finding the person who killed my guy will definitely appease the vengeance running through my veins right now.
“Grim came by to switch shifts and noticed the truck was empty. He called Link immediately to get a recording of where he went, but the system was down.”
I look at Link in disbelief. “And you didn’t know?” What’s the fucking point of having a tech guy who doesn’t notice when our cameras go down?
The guy looks mad, but he mans up and tells me what happened. “Had to take a leak.”
