by Jade Kuzma
He looked over at me and gave me a nod.
“Aden,” he said. “How are things?”
“Same shit like always,” I replied.
“Ain’t that the truth. It looks like we made the right decision to hire you.”
“You could find plenty of grunts who are willing to smash heads at your pub.”
“That’s true. But none of them would fuck troublemakers up as bad as Aden Mercer.”
He looked at me with that same smile still on his face. A sort of arrogant confidence like he was so sure of himself. I guess when you were the vice president of a motorcycle club and ran your own pub, you could be kind of full of yourself. Not that I would’ve held it against him one way or another.
I didn’t know much about Roman Rock outside of the facts. He seemed like a straight man, as far as I could tell. Well, as straight as you could get in a town like Ivory. I was sure that if I gave a shit, I could find his police record.
Right now though, Roman was just a man who hired me to keep everybody in check at his pub. And his girlfriend was a woman who paid me well.
“Don’t worry about coming in tonight,” he said. “You can get your start tomorrow.”
“It’s Saturday night,” I said. “It’s the busiest day of the week for you.”
“That’s exactly why I don’t want you over there. The last thing I want is for you to cave-in some motherfucker’s skull on your first night working at the Pub.”
“They cause that kind of trouble at Hades, huh? I didn’t take Hades for a place like Finn’s.”
“People know their place at Hades. They respect the legacy. Most people don’t come to Old Town to start shit. But there’s always that one asshole…”
“Right,” I said with a nod.
“You’re still welcome to stop by and have a drink,” Mia said. “I saw you the other night. You looked like you were enjoying yourself.”
“I was having a drink. What’s not to enjoy about that?”
“Just having a drink?”
Mia raised an eyebrow at me. As much as I respected Mia, it still pissed me off that she had to be coy. Every broad could never be straight-up with me. Mia wasn’t an exception.
“Who’s the girl?” she asked.
I sighed, not wanting to humor her any longer. The truth was I might’ve been thinking about Danica more than I wanted to admit but I wasn’t about to give Mia the satisfaction of figuring it out.
“I don’t know,” I said. “But if you’re that interested, I fucked her and I came in her mouth. She swallowed every drop.”
“Ha!”
Roman reared his head back and cackled.
“You hear that?” Roman said. “An honest man. I’ve got more respect for you than I already did, Mercer. Good sex is good sex. No point in hiding it.”
Mia rolled her eyes at her boyfriend while he continued to laugh. I stared at her and smirked.
“Boys,” she said. “And I thought you’d be the mature one.”
“You asked, I answered,” I responded.
“Yes, that was my mistake. Come on, Roman. I’m tired and I need something to eat.”
“Gimme a second,” he said. “There’s something I wanna talk to him about.”
Mia raised an eyebrow at her boyfriend.
“Relax,” he said. “It’s nothing like that.”
Mia rolled her eyes again before leaving the gym. Roman kept staring at her until she was finally gone.
“What’s this about?” I asked. “You want the details or something?”
“I don’t give a shit who or what you stick your dick in,” he said. “That’s your business. Nah, I wanted to talk to you about something else.”
“What else is there to talk about?”
“You know I’m the VP of the Devils. We haven’t been around for very long but we’re legitimate. We’ve got a clubhouse. We’ve got a legacy. We’ve got three members.”
“I’ve never heard of an MC with only three members.”
“Maybe you haven’t. But that’s why we’re looking for more.”
I shook my head and shrugged.
“I don’t know where you can find more members,” I said. “I don’t know what it takes to wear the patch.”
“I do. And I think you’d fit right in.”
Roman was tall enough that he could look me right in the eye. The motherfucker just kept staring at me, his eyes unblinking. I squinted back at him and waited for him to tell me he wasn’t suggesting what I thought he was suggesting.
“Wait,” I said. “Are you telling me—”
“It’s not something you gotta do right now,” he said. “It’s not that serious. Just something to think about.”
“Why me?”
“You can handle yourself in a fight. Every club can use a little muscle.”
“Club members that don’t know how to defend themselves should be pretty embarrassed about it.”
“I never said we didn’t know how to fight. Between Roman, Joker and me, we’ve got enough scraps in our history to write a book. But it never hurts to have another set of hands.”
I considered what Roman said to me. I was still waiting for the bastard to tell me he was joking but he clearly wasn’t.
The thought of joining an MC never crossed my mind. I wasn’t sure what to make of it no matter how much I thought about it.
“You haven’t answered my question,” I said. “There are tons of guys in this gym who know how to fight. You could do the same at your bar. It’s a Saturday night. Tons of assholes who are capable and willing to throw down. I’m sure they’re more your style.”
“Maybe. Maybe not. But I ain’t asking them. I’m asking you, Mercer.”
Before I could think about it any longer, Roman patted me on the arm, a friendly smile on his face.
“Just something to think about,” he said. “You’re not interested, you can still make good money at the clubhouse. Never hurts to have a good bouncer around.”
Roman left me to think about everything he just said. I didn’t give it a few more seconds of thought before turning to clean up the place.
There wasn’t anything special about Ivory Blues. Just another run-of-the-mill gym that had what was necessary when guys wanted to get some work in.
I was just getting started with cleaning up when I heard someone walk in behind me.
“So… This is where you work, huh?”
Her voice was familiar but I still wasn’t sure until I turned to look at her.
Danica stood there with that impish smirk on the corner of her lips. A tight top that accentuated the curves of her petite figure along with a pair of jeans that did the same had me thinking about last night. Of course, it didn’t hurt that she was gorgeous. Long, flowing blond hair and a pair of blue eyes that stood out even with how pretty her face was.
She walked toward me with her hands in her pockets. The closer she got, the more I noticed just how tiny she was compared to me.
“You actually came,” I said.
“Yeah, well, it’s Saturday and I don’t have shit to do. I figured I would stop by and pay you a visit.”
She sniffed into the air and winced.
“It stinks in here,” she said.
“It’s a gym. People sweat. That’s what it smells like. You get used to it.”
“For your sake, I hope that you do.”
“Is that why you came here? To tell me how shitty my work conditions are?”
“Actually… I came by to say hello.”
“You wanted to say hello, huh?”
“And…”
She shifted her eyes away from me, almost like she was hesitant to say whatever the hell was on her mind.
“…I thought maybe you wanted to go out tonight. For a drink.”
“You’re asking me out for a drink tonight?”
“Yes, Aden. I’m asking you out for a drink.”
I stared at her, wondering if she was up to something else. I kept waiting fo
r her to say something more.
“Look,” she said. “I get it. It was a one-night stand. I know how these things work. Believe me. And if you’re okay with that, then I’m okay with it. You’re not gonna break my heart or anything. I just figured—”
“What did you figure?”
I widened my eyes at her.
She closed her eyes and let out an exasperated sigh even though she was still smiling.
“What am I doing?” she said as she threw her hands into the air. “You’re right. It was stupid. My mistake. I’m sorry for coming here. Goodbye, Aden.”
She marched out the door. I watched her through the window as she moved down the sidewalk.
What the fuck are you doing?
I was fucking hesitating and for some reason I was getting mad at myself.
What are you doing?
That damn voice in my head. I couldn’t ignore it.
I rushed outside and caught up to her.
“Hey!”
Danica ignored me as she kept moving down the street.
“Hey!”
I finally caught her and snatched her wrist in my hand. She turned around, her eyes wide as she looked back up at me. She tugged her hand free and raised an eyebrow at me.
“Yes?” she said.
I swallowed to clear my throat.
“Look,” I sighed. “I don’t want you to get the wrong idea.”
“And what idea would that be?”
“The sex…”
I looked around to see if anybody was near us but the streets were empty. That’s Old Town for you.
“…The sex was good,” I said.
“Just good, huh?” she said, arching her eyebrow even more
“It was better than good. But I’m doing you a favor, Danica.”
“You’re doing me a favor? Please explain.”
She crossed her arms and leaned back a bit as she tapped her heel against the pavement.
Danica was persistent. That much was obvious. I sighed again knowing that I had to explain it to her.
“I’m not the kind of guy you wanna get to know better,” I said. “If you’re around me, I’ll only want you for one thing. One thing.”
“And who says I wouldn’t want you for the same thing?”
I narrowed my eyes at her. That pixie grin of hers came back to her face.
“I know how it works,” she said. “This isn’t my first rodeo. I’m always looking for a new bronco to ride.”
The way she looked at me, I couldn’t help but smile.
“Don’t make promises you can’t keep,” I said.
“I haven’t promised anything. The sex was just good, remember?”
I nodded, knowing that there was no other way.
“Okay,” I said. “A drink. If you’re not doing anything—”
“My schedule is completely clear.”
“Hades. Tonight.”
“I’ll be there.”
She stepped into her car. Just before she drove away, she looked through the window and winked at me.
I watched her car drive down the street in the distance while I thought about tonight. I knew better than to let women, even one like Danica, distract me. It was gonna be a long fucking day until I saw her tonight.
Chapter 6
DANICA
I was never the type to get all ‘gussied-up’ for a guy. I was too old to try to dress to impress and be something I wasn’t. Even when I was younger, I never saw the appeal in something more than what was necessary.
Tonight… Tonight, I felt a little different.
That’s not to say that I was about to give Aden anything special to look at. Some flats, a tight pair of jeans and a top that accentuated my tits just right were all he was gonna get. No fuck-me pumps. No micro miniskirt with my ass hanging out of it. No red lipstick to remind him of how well I sucked his cock.
No, tonight I wore just the right outfit and the right amount of makeup to get him thinking but not enough to distract him from what I really looked like.
It was strange. I couldn’t remember a time when I’d actually considered having a second-night stand with a one-night stand. Yet here I was, walking down the sidewalks through Old Town, heading toward the gym where my date was waiting.
As soon as I got to the gym, I saw Aden standing right in front of it. He looked just as handsome as he always did. A baggy pair of blue jeans and a pair of sneakers. His v-neck shirt wasn’t anything special but the way it hugged the muscles on his chest and arms highlighted just how amazing his physique was underneath.
“Looks like I’m just on time,” I said.
He looked up at me, no expression on his face like always.
“Looks like it,” he said. “I was just locking up. Hades is only a few blocks from here. You mind walking?”
“I’m not in any hurry.”
I smiled at him but he was still stone-faced.
It was a warm night in Ivory. The cool breeze was blowing just enough to stop it from being annoying. The sky was clear and the streets in Old Town were mostly empty like they always were. Most people had enough sense to have fun in the more interesting parts of Ivory.
“How was your day?” I asked.
“Same shit,” he said.
“Right…”
He looked up at me.
“How about you?” he asked. “What did you do?”
“Me? I… I just sat around all day,” I said.
I started laughing and shook my head.
“What’s so funny?”
“Nothing. I’m a little embarrassed to admit that.”
“It’s your day off, isn’t it? Why would you be embarrassed about taking a day off?”
“I don’t know,” I said with a shrug. “I guess I just… was.”
“You don’t work Saturdays?”
“Sometimes, when I need the cash. Finn’s gets a little too crazy for me though, so I try to avoid it when I can.”
“We all can use a little extra money now and then.”
“Ain’t that the truth,” I sighed.
Aden walked next to me as we headed down the road. Even though it was so quiet and the alleys next to us were so dark it felt like someone was lurking in the shadows, I felt safe. I guess having Aden by my side gave me the security I couldn’t ever remember feeling when I was out walking alone. It was nice though I would never admit it to him.
Aden kept his head down and stared at the sidewalk.
“What’s on your mind?” I asked.
“What?”
“What are you thinking about?”
“I’m not thinking about anything.”
“You have to be thinking about something.”
He chuckled softly. It was nice to see the small smile on his lips even though I didn’t know why it was there.
“I’m not as interesting as you think I am, Danica.”
“Oh?”
“I’m just a regular guy trying to make an honest living. That’s it.”
“Oh, I don’t think that’s the case. I think you’re more interesting than you’re letting on.”
“And how do you figure that? Are you a psychologist or a detective?”
“Maybe I’m both.”
“If you’re both, you wouldn’t be wasting your time in a place like Ivory.”
“…Touché.”
I smirked at him and the smile on his face grew a little bit. But he didn’t say anything as we kept moving down the street.
I kept racking my brain, trying to figure out something to say to break the awkward silence between us. I was never at a loss for words, even when I was around men. But Aden was different for a reason I couldn’t figure out.
“You know, I—”
I cut myself off when Aden suddenly stopped in his tracks.
“What is it?” I said. “What’s wrong?”
“Do you hear that?”
“Hear what?”
I twisted my brow in confusion, wondering what he was get
ting at.
“Listen…”
I listened and could barely make it out.
“It sounds like… sounds like someone shouting,” I said. “A crowd or something.”
“I think it’s coming from over here,” he said.
Aden suddenly walked down an alley between a couple of abandoned buildings. In Old Town, every building was abandoned.
“Aden! Aden, wait!”
I called out to him but my words fell on deaf ears.
“Shit,” I muttered to myself.
I followed him through the darkness of the alley, making sure to stay close in case anything happened. As we moved through the alleyway, I could see the light in the distance. More noticeable than that was the noise. It was clear that there were men and women shouting at the top of their lungs.
“What is that?”
I squinted my eyes and saw a group of people standing around in a circle. They were all looking into the center where there was a wide-open space.
“Aden… Aden, I don’t think we should be here…”
He still wasn’t listening to me as he pushed his way through the crowd. He walked all the way to the front. I moved right next to it until I could finally see for myself what the crowd was looking at.
A couple of people were in the middle of a fistfight. Their faces were bruised and their fists were bloody. I hoped that this was all fake but everybody else was too focused to know what was going on.
A street fight in the back alley in the middle of Ivory. Now I’d seen everything.
“Aden,” I said to him. “What’s wrong?”
His eyes were focused on the fight in front of him. His eyes unblinking, Aden had a look that I’d never seen before.
“What’s wrong?” I repeated.
“I know him,” he said.
“You know him? Who?”
“Him.”
He pointed at one of the fighters in the circle of people.
“Isaac,” he said. “The guy’s barely 18. He’s gonna get himself killed.”
“If he’s 18, he’s old enough to make his own decisions.”
“Shit…”
If Isaac was 18, he certainly looked it. Through all of the blood and bruises on his face, there was just some young guy who was going through hell. He had his fists up though and was throwing hard punches at the man in front of him.
