“We can’t kill Lancaster yet, Link,” Rex muttered tiredly.
I knew why too. Link argued for the bastard’s death every church.
“I know that, and I get it. After seeing what he’s letting us in on? I totally understand now.” He sucked in a breath. “With Maverick and Lodestar focused on tearing down the Famiglia’s operations from the inside out, I figured we might need a hand with the books. Lily’s an economy major. If anyone could handle it, she could.”
Silence fell at his words, then Nyx muttered, “I’m down for that. She’s a smart little thing, and it seems a shame to waste brains like that.”
Rex scowled. “I don’t know—”
“What’s not to know?” Nyx argued. “You use Rachel and Stone—”
“They’re home grown.”
“Lily might be new to the MC,” Link argued, his ears growing pink with his annoyance. “But she has more reasons to be loyal to us than anyone. We kept her safe, and we brought home her bastard father. She owes us a blood debt, if you even need to phrase it like that.”
Rex grunted, and seeing his dubiousness, I decided to help. Link was right—Lily was solid—so I murmured, “He’s right, Rex. Maverick has a lot going on.”
I cut my brother a look and saw that he wasn’t freaking out, which told me he wasn’t averse to the idea.
That was a good sign.
For a long time, the books and keeping the MC’s financial records straight had been the only thing keeping Mav going. But now?
It seemed he had more to live for than facts and figures.
“I think she can do it,” Mav said slowly. “And I’ll help her, apprentice her, see if she can handle everything.”
“She ain’t a brother,” Rex countered wearily. “You know that will sow distrust among the men.”
Mav shrugged. “Then don’t tell them.” He cut Link a look. “Does she know you’re asking this?”
“No.” He sighed. “I didn’t want to get her hopes up.”
Mav grunted. “If she does it, she has to know that if she so much as squeals once, we’ll kill her.”
His hard tone didn’t even make Link flinch. “She won’t let us down,” he rasped. “She’s loyal. To the MC, but even more so to me. She’d never do that to me.”
“Relationships break down,” Rex grumbled.
“No. This is a loyalty that goes past that.”
“She ain’t married to you yet—” Rex added.
Link’s mouth firmed at that. “It’s just a matter of time.”
Nyx heaved a sigh. “What the fuck are you waiting for?”
“There’s no rush now, is there? Fieri is fucking dead!”
Rex rubbed his forehead. “I don’t want to know what’s going on in your head, Link, but this is on your shoulders. You’ll be the one who has to pay the price if she fucks up and goes squealing to the pigs.”
He straightened said shoulders and ground out, “I trust her with my life. Even more importantly, I trust her with my family’s life.”
Rex stared at him long enough for any sane man to squirm, but like most of the council, Link wasn’t exactly sane.
Eventually, Rex muttered, “Okay. Mav, get her started on the ropes. She shouldn’t find it too hard, but we juggle a lot of pies. Start her with the legit stuff first. The West Orange businesses. Get her interested in the micro-brewery and managing the investments. She’d probably get a kick out of that. Then, when she proves herself, get her involved in the other stuff.”
Mav dipped his chin in agreement. “Got it.”
Rex grunted. “Is that everything? Or do you fuckers want a pussy to sit in on the council next? Already got more bitches running around my home than ever before—”
I snorted. “Just wait until Stone hears you called her a bitch.”
Rex bunched his shoulders. “If you fucking tell her—”
I grinned at him. “You’ll what?”
When he just glowered at me, I smirked.
My ball buster had a rep, and I was fucking proud of it.
Twenty-Five
Keira
Stone snorted when Jingles did her thing—jingled—as she flew ass over tits on her back.
I guessed it was mean to laugh, but the woman was so busy trying to get her T-shirt wet so one of the brothers would sweep her away to a bedroom to fuck rather than have to do her chores, that it was just satisfying to see her felled.
God, I hated the club snatch, and I loved that Giulia was making them do all the miserable shit. Loved even more that Rex had given her power over them.
Sure, she was lording it over them. Or I guessed, in this instance, ladying it was more fitting, but damn, it was wonderful to behold.
These bitches had ruined my marriage.
They had.
Storm, too, but I wasn’t going to attribute none of the blame to these sluts.
I’d seen how hard they worked to get the men to cheat. I’d seen what they’d do to brothers who were trying to stay loyal to their girlfriends… Anything and everything was on offer.
Sure, the men should resist temptation, but even I’d cave in if I was that way inclined when I was given access to all fucking areas.
Every single one of them, ironically enough, wanted to be us.
And us?
We just hated the ground they walked on.
When Jingles glowered at us for snickering at her tumble, I didn’t even care about the malice prevalent in her eyes. What could she do to me?
Ruin my marriage?
Oh, wait, she’d already done that, along with all the other sluts who worked here.
“You look pretty evil right now, K.”
My lips curved at Giulia’s comment, and I shrugged at her. “Feeling that way.”
I loved Giulia. God, I wished I’d been like her back when I was her age. Maybe things would have worked out differently.
Maybe my Old Man would still be my Old Man, and maybe my daughter wouldn’t hate me because her daddy was hundreds of miles away in a different state.
I bit down on my lip and confirmed, “I feel evil.”
She snorted. “You’re too good to be really evil.”
Stone nodded, but her gaze was kinder when I caught her eye. Giulia was gutsy and brash, unafraid of anything, but Stone was in possession of a warm heart, and she was usually careful with what she said, unless she was blurting something out and reaming the brothers a new one.
I wasn’t saying Giulia didn’t have a kind heart too, because she did. She just didn’t wear her heart on her sleeve like Stone did.
Giulia had helped nurse three women back to health, while Stone was a healer, empathetic to her core. Was it any wonder I liked both of them? They were Florence Nightingales just like me.
Because I liked them both, my mind wandered. I pursed my lips, wondering if their men would stay true to them, and I hoped against hope that they would.
I truly wanted no one to go through what I was dealing with right now. I never wanted that for any woman.
“You okay, darlin’?” Stone asked me softly.
Again with the warm heart… My eyes blurred with tears, and I shook my head. “Another argument with Cyan.” Ever since we’d moved into the bunkhouse, sharing it with a woman called Lodestar and her foster daughter, Katina, things had been hard going between Cyan and me.
Giulia hissed out a breath. “Oh, sugar, I’m sorry. I was glad when Mom took us away from Dad, it was just the club I missed.” She winced. “It’ll get better with time.”
It was clear she wasn’t about to start wearing funeral blacks for Dog’s death. The news of his mugging had been all around the kitchen this morning, and she’d looked bored by most of the whispers.
“He’s a really great dad,” I said mournfully. “I don’t think she’ll ever forgive me for not agreeing to go down there with him.”
“She will. Giulia’s right. It just takes time.”
“I don’t know if I have time. She’s never been so
moody or so unhappy. I know she was being bullied at school, but I thought I had that under wraps, but all this—it’s just a lot to deal with right now.”
Stone peered at me. “Steel mentioned money was tight.”
I heaved a sigh. “He said he wouldn’t talk about that with anyone.”
She shrugged. “I’m not anyone, and he was worried about you.”
“You don’t think he’ll tell Storm, do you?” I whispered fiercely. “I don’t want him to know!”
“To know what?” Giulia asked.
I grimaced. “It doesn’t matter.”
She sniffed. “I smell secrets, and that means it’s juicy. Come on. Give it up.”
I bit my lip. “I-I’m saving up to go back to school.”
Stone’s brows rose. “That’s why you’re working so hard?”
I nodded. “I know that it will be tough at first, so I was doing all the work now so I’d have a cushion when I was in school.”
Giulia blew out a breath. “Well, that’s a lot less fun than I expected.”
I snickered. “Sorry to disappoint.” When she blew me a raspberry, I just grinned at her.
“What do you want to study?”
I ducked my head, feeling embarrassed when Stone was a doctor. What did my stupid dreams matter to someone like her?
“I want to be a nurse.”
Her eyes widened. “You do?”
I nodded.
“That’s brilliant. Hell, you should tell Rex! He’ll help fund your studies.”
Whatever I’d expected her to say, it wasn’t that. My mouth dropped open. “Huh?”
But Stone was nodding at me, her enthusiasm clear as she sat up, leaning toward me with barely a grimace as she explained, “He paid for me to go through school. If it’ll help the MC along the way, he’ll invest in you.”
“But how can a nurse be an investment for the MC?”
She shrugged. “You know how many times these fools get shot up.”
I grimaced. “True.”
Giulia hummed. “That really true? He paid for your education?”
Stone nodded. “He did. Rachel Laker’s too.”
Giulia’s surprise was clear. “Rex paid for her to become a lawyer?”
“No way!” I sputtered.
“Yes way.” Stone looked amused. “With me, and Rachel too, his dad had a lot of say in it because he was Prez back then, but Rex was the one who finally convinced Bear for us both. Instead of running yourself ragged, go and ask him for help. I bet he’ll give it to you.” She winked at me. “And if he doesn’t, tell me and I’ll have a word. Every doctor needs a nurse.”
Giulia laughed. “Didn’t know you swung for the same team,” she cackled.
“She doesn’t,” Steel muttered grumpily, striding out from the clubhouse, his focus pinpointed on Stone.
His hand slid over Stone’s shoulder, and I wanted to sigh at how happy she was, how the tension on Steel’s face lightened just a tad as their fingers tangled, bridging and settling close to her throat.
Storm and I had been like that once upon a time.
What the fuck had gone wrong?
Why had things gone downhill all the way until they were in the crapper?
In my defense, I’d tried. I’d never wanted Cyan to be apart from her daddy, but also, I wasn’t about to stand for him treating me like dirt. I had to make her see that she was worth more. That no man, not even her daddy, could treat a woman like he did me.
In all honesty, I’d only left him with the hope he’d wise up. I never wanted them to be apart for long. But he’d just gone back to his old ways, and here we were, me at the clubhouse and him at the chapter in Ohio.
I bit my lip as Giulia asked, “Steel?”
“What?”
“Is it true that if you want a career that might help the MC, Rex’ll fund it?”
He snorted. “I dunno if I’d call it the Satan’s Sinners’ Grant, but yeah, if he thinks it’s needed, he’ll invest in you. Why?”
“Keira wants to be a nurse?”
His gaze dropped to me, and instantly, I hunched my shoulders.
I’d never had the relationship with Storm’s brothers that Giulia, Lily, Tiff, and Stone appeared to have, and to be honest, I was jealous.
It was like they would all go to bat for them, go on a rampage to keep them safe. While me? I just felt like a hindrance sleeping in one of their bunkhouses.
But his eyes were kind as he looked at me, and he murmured, “I don’t see why he wouldn’t help with that. You could help Stone.”
“That’s what I said.”
I cut her a grateful look, muttering, “I might not be any good at it.”
Giulia sniffed. “Well, you’ll never get anywhere with that attitude, will you?”
I chuckled despite myself, appreciating how she always knew what to say to help me get over any shyness. I didn’t used to be timid, but something had changed, and I was annoying myself. Giulia didn’t exactly allow for that, and even though she was younger than me, and though Stone was older, the pair of them always seemed to level me out after another fight with my eleven-year-old.
“You should ask him,” Steel prompted. “Is this why you’ve been so short on cash? You’re going to school?”
“No, she’s smarter than that,” Stone replied proudly. “She’s been saving up for school.”
“Running yourself ragged isn’t exactly smart, Stone,” he grumbled.
“I wasn’t. I—” My nose crinkled, ashamed to admit what I’d been about to say.
“What is it?” Giulia questioned.
“Cyan’s happy with Jenna.” I shrugged, talking about one of the Old Ladies who minded some of the brothers’ kids for a little money on the side. “She’s happier with her than she is with me right now, so I might as well work.”
Giulia grunted. “I think that kid needs a talking to.”
My eyes flashed wide. “No!” And I had to laugh because Stone and Steel bellowed that at the same time.
Giulia huffed. “I wouldn’t scare her. Not too much anyway.”
“She doesn’t need to be scared,” Stone grumbled.
“Fuck, scare her if you want Storm riding up from Ohio to come and tear you a new one,” Steel retorted. “Jesus. Giulia, leave it to her mom.”
“She’s being mean to her,” Giulia argued, like I wasn’t here. “I hate that shit. It wasn’t like Keira asked her Old Man to fuck that bunch of skanks!”
She yelled the last word so that each of said skanks could hear her opinion on them, but before anyone could say shit back to her, Nyx appeared, perfect timing for Giulia’s sake, and the bunnies instantly ducked their heads and got on with the job at hand.
The irony was, in all the years I’d been around the MC, in all the years the snatch was supposed to be cooking and cleaning as well as boning the brothers in exchange for board and lodging, I didn’t think I’d ever seen them clean stuff.
Not once.
That was pretty fucking gross now that I thought about it, nose crinkling.
I guessed Giulia was being mean to the women, maybe even bullying them, but they were just as cruel with any amount of power they thought they might have in their grasp, and I knew they’d cut her in an instant.
They weren’t weak. They were snide bitches who would wreck a man’s life just for the chance to wear a brand before they were too old to be the bikers’ cum sluts anymore and were tossed out.
I gnawed on my lip, wondering what Storm was doing, if he’d broken in all the new sweetbutts down at the Ohio chapter, and even as the thought speared me with pain, I was filled with a joy I couldn’t describe when I saw Steel help Stone onto her feet.
She was much stronger now, a lot healthier, but still a little wobbly when she was standing.
I’d never thought Steel could be so devoted to a woman, and I was happy for Stone. Happy because when these brothers loved, they loved hard.
Which meant Storm had just never loved me.
“Where you going?” Giulia inquired as she grabbed Nyx’s hand when he strode past her, moving to her back before he bent over and pressed a kiss to her throat.
My stomach churned at the intimate kiss, and I tried not to get turned on by such a blatant display of possession.
If wishes were horses…then Storm would have done that to me.
Showed the club who owned me.
“Indy’s branding Stone,” Steel declared, and I could sense his pride.
Stone’s cheeks burned, and I giggled a little. “Have fun.”
Her nose crinkled. “Fun? Being stabbed with a needle? That’s what I have people pissing themselves over when it’s time for a shot.”
Though Giulia and I laughed, Nyx shook his head. “How the fuck you and Indy were so close for so long and she didn’t ink you yet—”
“I’m strong willed,” was her retort.
Steel and Nyx laughed. “Understatement of the year.”
“You know it, boys. You know it.”
Her wink had me grinning, and I waved her off as she leaned on Steel, grinning back at me as they walked toward where his bike was parked.
“Is it wise for her to ride his bike?”
“Probably not,” Nyx replied, his tone bored. “But you heard her. She has her own mind, and she wants to ride bitch. Says it’s only right she’s on his hog as her inaugural ride as his Old Lady.”
Giulia laughed. “She ain’t the first lady.”
“You tell her that,” Nyx said wryly. “Anyway, to Steel, she’s definitely the first lady. Fuck, she’s his only lady. It’s about time he claimed her. Been wearing her brand all this time, it’s fucked up that she hasn’t been wearing his.”
Giulia twisted around to peer up at her Old Man. “Huh?”
He waved a hand. “Got a big ass tat on his back with her name on it. Only right she wears his name too.”
Giulia arched a brow at me, but this was news to both of us.
I shrugged, wondering at that. Stone didn’t share that much about her relationship. About the brothers, sure. Stories about when they were kids, definitely. I’d loved hearing about Storm, but the truth was, they were stories I should have heard from his lips.
Steel: A Dark MC Romance (A Dark and Dirty Sinners’ MC Book 4) Page 29
