Rock_A Bad Boy Biker Romance

by Jade Kuzma

  “I’m not looking for confrontation,” Burke replied. “You’re a last resort. If things go smoothly, it’ll seem like you haven’t done a job at all.”

  “A hundred grand a piece,” I said. “That was what Sebastian said to me.”

  Burke turned to me with that smarmy little smirk of his. He looked me up and down like he was sizing me up.

  “It’s always about the money, isn’t it?” he said.

  “What else is there besides money?” I said.

  “Indeed. You must be quite the businessman yourself, Rock.”

  “No. I just know how things work. It doesn’t matter where you’re from. Ivory or on the other side of the world. It’s always about the money.”

  “…Of course.”

  The grin on Burke’s face grew even wider though I wasn’t in the mood to smile the same way he was.

  “Four nights,” he said. “I’m a fair man. I’ll give you 25,000 every night for your services. Cash. Do your job and you’ll receive full payment.”

  This is too simple…

  “Any questions?” Burke asked.

  Seabass and I looked at each other. I’d done worse for a lot less. This guy was just asking for four nights of protection for the biggest payday I’d ever seen in my life. Something about this was off.

  From the look in Sebastian’s eyes, he didn’t seem to have the same concern that I did. I was trying to find a reason not to make the deal but there was nothing. It didn’t matter if this was too good to be true. I had to take my chances.

  “Do we have a deal, gentlemen?”

  “…Tonight counts,” Sebastian said.

  “Of course.”

  Burke nonchalantly reached into his jacket and pulled out two stacks. He tossed them on the table in front of us for everybody to see but everybody else minded their own business.

  I picked up the wad of cash and thumbed through it.

  “Do you want to count it?” Burke said.

  “No,” Sebastian said. “It looks right.”

  “Good. I have a meeting I’ll be needing you at tonight. Are you armed?”

  “I think you already know the answer to that.”

  Burke smirked then got up from his seat. He fixed his tie then stood up straight. The motherfucker stood out like a sore thumb but he didn’t care.

  I got up from my seat and walked with them out of the bar. When we got outside, there was a black SUV with tinted windows parked on the curb waiting for Burke.

  “Cain,” he said. “Follow me to the meeting point.”

  “You got it,” Sebastian replied.

  “And you…” Burke turned to me. “I have another job for you.”

  “Another job? What are you talking about?”

  “I hired you for protection.”

  “That’s right.”

  “Cain here is enough for me. I need you to guard someone else.”

  Of course. Shit is never simple…

  “And who’s that?” I said.

  “Her name is Mia Palazzo. She’s my fiancée.”

  “You want me to—”

  “She said that she wanted to spend some time with the locals while I was conducting my business. I believe she mentioned a bar called Frank’s or… something that started with an F—”

  “Finn’s.”

  “That’s right. She said she’d be at Finn’s. She’ll be expecting you.”

  Burke opened up the backseat of the SUV. I stopped him before he got inside.

  “Hold on,” I said. “I don’t know who your fiancée is. You gonna tell me what she looks like?”

  Burke paused for a second. I held my hands out, waiting for his response.

  “She’s the 21-year-old daughter of a Mafioso. Judging from the looks of this town, she’ll stick out, don’t you think?”

  Burke’s explanation might’ve made sense but I didn’t appreciate being left in the dark.

  “Let’s go, Cain,” he said. “We don’t wanna be late.”

  “Just gimme a second with him,” I said. “We have to make sure that we have our… arrangement all worked out.”

  Burke arched an eyebrow in curiosity at me. Seabass shrugged back at him.

  “Don’t take too long,” Burke said.

  He slammed the door to the SUV shut.

  I grabbed Sebastian by the arm and pulled him off to the side.

  “What’s wrong?” Seabass said.

  “What do you mean? You didn’t tell me that we weren’t working together on this.”

  “What difference does it make?”

  “I thought I was being hired to protect him, not some fuckin’ 21-year-old broad.”

  “I still don’t see what difference that makes.”

  I sighed a deep breath of frustration.

  “The way I see it, I’ve got the more dangerous job,” Sebastian said. “Who knows what kinda people Burke is dealing with?”

  “And you’ve got me babysitting some girl who’s barely old enough to drink.”

  “Did you forget about the money?”

  “I…”

  I cut myself off. The fat wad of bills was still weighing down in the pocket of my vest and against my stomach. Seabass grinned at me because he knew he had me. I put my hands on my hips and sighed again.

  “Look at it this way,” he said. “Would you rather spend a week shoveling horse shit or a week looking after this girl?”

  “Babysitting a girl is shoveling horse shit.”

  “I don’t think so. You’ll see.”

  “Gentlemen.”

  Burke rolled the window down to interrupt our conversation.

  “Time is money,” he said.

  “It’s been a long time since you’ve been to Finn’s,” Sebastian said as he patted me on the arm.

  He moved over to his bike parked on the curb and revved his engine.

  “Get yourself a drink and have a good time!” he continued.

  The SUV rolled down the street and Sebastian followed right behind it. I stood outside the bar, my hands still on my hips, and watched them leave.

  A hundred grand…

  I wasn’t gonna back out of this now.

  “Goddammit…”

  Chapter 4

  MIA

  Night one…

  When I turned 21 early in the semester, it wasn’t a big secret. It was like some big ritual for everybody to celebrate with me in the most extreme way possible. Friends at the university brought me out for drinks. They were doing everything they could to pour as much alcohol down my throat as they could. Getting as drunk as possible was a tradition as I was told.

  I didn’t remember much about that night. But I do remember telling myself that it would be the last time it would ever happen.

  It’s funny how things change so quickly…

  Not even half a year had gone by and here I was. In the middle of some small town called Ivory that nobody had ever heard of, in a bar that was unlike anything I’d ever seen before.

  I wasn’t much for going out but I’d been to enough nightclubs in the city to know what the scene was like.

  This though… This was like something I imagined after the world ended.

  The scene at Finn’s was hard to describe. Mostly because there was so much going on that it was hard to take in.

  There were groups of bikers all scattered around. The smell of leather, oil and asphalt filled the air. Tattoos, leather vests, and riding boots were on full display. These guys walked around like they were looking to start some shit. A few times, I actually saw them step outside when they had a disagreement.

  And the women… Tiny skirts with their asses hanging out. Tops that were smaller than the bras underneath. Layers of makeup and heels that looked like stilts completed their ensembles. It was like a competition to see who could draw the most attention to themselves.

  I could almost smell all of the pheromones and testosterone in the air. It was either that or the smell of something else that I had to get used to.
<
br />   And here I was, at the corner of the bar by myself, waiting for another drink, while I observed the wild scene.

  I’d picked out a modest outfit for myself. Just a long, black skirt that was around my knees and a short-sleeved top that showed off my arms and a little bit of cleavage. In a place like this, being modest actually made me stick out.

  I didn’t care though. I was stuck in Ivory with a man I didn’t want to marry for an entire week. If I was going to suffer through this, I was going to have as much fun as I could.

  I didn’t know how much time had gone by after Arthur had left me here. A few drinks down and I suddenly got attention from a man who had the courage to say hello.

  “How are you doing, little lady?”

  I didn’t know what was distracting about the biker standing next to me. The tattoos he had on his head instead of hair. The leather vest with all of the patches on the front. His long beard and goatee. Or maybe it was his fat gut that hung out over his belt and pointed at me almost ominously.

  “Hello,” I said, taking a sip of my drink while I tried to mind my own business. “I’m doing just fine.”

  “I haven’t seen you around here before. You must be new in town.”

  “You’d be right. I’m… new.”

  “Really?”

  He raised an eyebrow and licked his lips like I was a piece of meat. I tried to hide my disgust behind another gulp of my drink.

  “You know, if you’re new in town, I could show you around. Take you for a ride and give you a tour.”

  “No thanks,” I said, giggling softly so I didn’t offend him. “I think I’m just fine taking in all of the sights by myself.”

  “Oh, I think you’ll enjoy yourself if you had a little bit of company.”

  “No thanks,” I repeated. “I don’t want to trouble you.”

  “It wouldn’t be trouble at all, little lady. It’s what we call Ivory hospitality.”

  He licked his lips again. That lascivious smirk on his lips was enough to make me gag. I quickly pounded my drink and ordered another one from the bartender. The alcohol worked quickly enough to loosen me up to the point that I wasn’t as intimidated by him as I was just a few seconds ago.

  “What’s your name?” I asked.

  “You can call me Ball.”

  Ball… How fitting…

  The round man stood confidently, his thumbs in his pockets as he looked down at me. He wasn’t blinking. Every second that went by, I felt like I was closer to getting pounced on.

  “Listen, Ball. I’m sure there are plenty of ladies around here that are willing to have a good time with you. I really just want to enjoy my drink in peace and enjoy the scenery.”

  I looked away from him and turned to the freshly poured drink that the bartender put in front of me. A glass of vodka had never looked so inviting. Just as I picked it up, Ball snatched my wrist in his hand. I held back a gasp as I dropped the glass back down on the counter.

  He moved his face toward me. That stare of his had suddenly become so menacing. He leaned his face forward and looked me right in the eye.

  “Now you listen here,” he said. “I’m trying to be nice and show you a little Ivory hospitality. Don’t be a bitch. Show some appreciation, would ya?”

  His stare was almost enough to sober me up.

  Not tonight.

  I clenched my jaw and stood defiantly.

  “Ivory hospitality, huh?” I said. “I don’t think it’s very hospitable to call a woman you just met a bitch.”

  I tugged my arm free from his grip. The bar was so crowded that a few of the patrons were bound to notice what was happening. They looked on but didn’t bother intervening. Apparently, Finn’s was a zoo and the audience was watching a predator stalk its prey.

  “I’m not gonna ask you again,” Ball said. “And I’ll say it nicely this time. Go for a ride with me. Or else.”

  “Sorry. Not interested.”

  I would’ve refused him if I was sober. The alcohol just made it that much easier to reject him.

  “All right,” he said. “I warned you—”

  “You heard the girl.”

  I heard a loud voice over the chatter of the bar. Ball and I both turned to look at the man suddenly standing there. My eyes widened in surprise.

  Who’s this guy?

  The vest. The blue jeans. The tattoos on his arms and neck. There was enough to tell me that he was a biker like everybody else. But there was something else about him that stood out. He wasn’t that much older than me. A clean-shaven face. A shaved head with a little bit of dark hair on top.

  And then there were his eyes. Striking blue eyes that seemed even more intense against his tan skin.

  “Leave her alone,” the stranger said.

  “And who the fuck are you?” Ball said. “Her fuckin’ bodyguard?”

  “Actually…”

  The stranger turned to me. I couldn’t help but smirk from the way he was looking at me, even though he had a straight face.

  “…I am,” he said as he turned back to Ball.

  Ball turned his attention away from me and moved over to the stranger. They were just as tall as each other but Ball was certainly more rotund. The other man seemed a lot more fit, judging from the way his veined bicep stretched the sleeve of his shirt.

  “I ain’t gonna do nothing,” Ball said. “Not in Finn’s. But if I was, you’d get the worst of it.”

  “Listen to me,” the man said. “I’ll drop you right where you fucking stand. But I’ll do you a favor though because I’ve got a lot of patience. Do you really wanna get into a brawl over some pussy? Look around. You can do better than this broad.”

  “Hey!” I exclaimed.

  The stranger gave me a stare. I wasn’t sure if he was being serious or not.

  Ball looked me up and down and started chuckling to himself.

  “Maybe you’re right,” he said. “There’s plenty of pussy in this joint. Tons of women who are more than willing to suck me off.”

  “That’s the idea,” the stranger said. “You don’t wanna mess around with a frigid bitch like this.”

  “Hey!” I said again.

  Ball shook his head and walked away. I should’ve been relieved that he was gone but I was too tipsy to focus on what was important.

  The man who apparently saved me walked up to me and looked me up and down.

  “All right,” I said. “He’s gone. Now are you going to try? I should tell you though, calling a woman every name in the book isn’t a way to get on her good side.”

  “I’m not here for that,” the man said. “And even if I was, I’d know better than to hit on a woman who’s engaged.”

  For a second, I almost forgot that I was in Ivory because of Burke. I held back a sigh and took another sip of my drink.

  “Burke sent me,” the man said. “You’re Mia, right?”

  I looked at the man but didn’t say anything.

  “Tell me you’re Mia,” he said.

  The man was a foot taller than me. He was so muscular that it was funny to hear a bit of concern in his voice.

  “You sound worried,” I said.

  “I’m not worried. I’d just prefer not to pick fights with every man in the bar trying to single out the one woman I’m looking for.”

  There was something about him I couldn’t put my finger on. I figured there was no point in stringing him along.

  “I’m Mia.”

  “Roman.”

  “Roman… So… You’re the man my lovely fiancé sent.”

  “That’s right.”

  Roman leaned up against the bar next to me while I finished the rest of my drink.

  “Listen,” he said. “I don’t know what it is you’re thinking. I don’t know if you hate me. I don’t know if you want me to go away.”

  “And what if I did?” I said, turning to him.

  “It doesn’t matter. Your fiancé sent me here to watch over you and I’m gonna do it.”

  I n
arrowed my eyes and grinned at him.

  “You like taking orders from other men?” I said.

  “Nice try,” he replied. “But I don’t have an ego when money’s involved.”

  “Ah, yes. Money. The ultimate ruler. You pay a man enough money and he’ll shovel all the horse shit in the world for you.”

  “Why the fuck does everybody keep talking about horse shit?” he muttered to himself.

  “What was that?” I said, slightly confused.

  “Nothing… Look, I don’t know if you know this, and you probably don’t, considering you’re here… But Finn’s isn’t exactly the friendliest place in Ivory.”

  “It seems friendly from where I’m standing.”

  “Right now, I’m the only friend you got and…”

  He looked at the empty glass on the counter.

  “How much have you been drinking?” he said.

  “Just one or two… or three… I don’t know, I lost count after the fourth one…”

  “Jesus Christ…”

  “Hey! Don’t talk like that around me. I’m just trying to have a good time.”

  “I think you’ve had enough of a good time.”

  He suddenly put a hand on my wrist and pulled me forward. He was so strong that I couldn’t help but stumble a few steps in his direction.

  “All right, all right!” I said as I tugged my hand away. “I’m coming.”

  Roman put his hand back on my wrist to make sure that I was following him and led me out of the bar. I kept walking with him, struggling to get my hand free at the same time.

  “I’m not a little girl!” I said. “You don’t have to be so rough!”

  Apparently, I was loud enough to draw some attention from some of the people outside.

  “What’s going on over here?” one man said. “We got a problem?”

  “No problem,” Roman said as he looked back at the man. “Mind your own fuckin’ business.”

  The man looked like the other bikers in the bar. I couldn’t make him out from anyone else.

  He inched toward us.

  “It doesn’t look like she wants to go home with you,” he said.

  “She wants to go home,” Roman said, turning to me. “Tell him, Mia. Tell him it’s time to go home.”

  I looked at Roman and couldn’t help but giggle softly to myself. The blood in my veins was gone, replaced completely by alcohol. I didn’t know what came over me.