by K E Osborn
“First it’s one little thing. Then it’s a favor. Then it’s a felony. Then it’s jail time… one little thing is a slippery slope!”
“Then I’m glad you understand the nature of our relationship moving forward, Zero. The Baron was lenient with you. I might consider giving you concessions, but we’ll need to work as a team.”
“Why do I get the feeling there will always be an I in team?”
“Well, darlin’ there is an I in team because it’s hidden in the ‘A’ hole, right there for everyone to see. Hidden in plain sight.”
Wraith scoffs. “That makes no sense?”
She chortles. “Google it. There are memes about it. Pity your fragile male ego just can’t comprehend intelligence.”
“You know, your lack of respect for us is becoming a fucking issue,” Zero grunts.
“Well, damn, and here I thought I was bein’ polite ‘n’ all. I do apologize. Where are my manners? Zero, please, would you do me the honor of calling me the Baroness?” she mocks.
Zero groans. “I’m gonna regret this. Fine. Baroness,” he grates out. “What do you want from us?”
The bitch grins wider, reaching over, turning the music back on. “God Bless America” starts again as she stands tall, the spotlight shining on her like she’s running for Congress or a damn beauty pageant. I can’t tell which one.
“All I wanted from this today, Zero, was for you to understand I’m here, and I’m not going anywhere. We will be in touch again at some point. It’s been a pleasure, darlin’… and God Bless America!” She brings her hand up as if she is waving to a huge crowd as she walks off the stage. The spotlight following her as she goes.
Spinning around, I search for someone manning the light.
Of course, she has a team with her.
We’re probably heavily outnumbered as she walks completely off stage out of sight, and the spotlight switches off turning the room black.
Zero turns to Wraith and me. “Well, I never saw that coming when I checked out her profile,” I suggest.
Zero scowls at me. “You knew about her?”
“I knew she was an ex of the Baron. When I did the background checks on him, she came up, but not as anything other than a wealthy woman in her own right.”
“So, no alarm bells then?”
“Nothing.”
“Any fucking kids we need to be concerned about?”
“Not that I can recall, but I’ll need to double-check.”
“I want you to find out everything, Neon. Every piece of dirt you can identify. We have to know what kind of fight we’re in for here and have some ammo to defuse the situation should we find we need it.”
“Got it!”
“Pres, we should get out of here. This whole shitshow is giving me a bad vibe,” Wraith adds.
“Couldn’t agree more,” I reply.
We walk quickly to our bikes to head back to the clubhouse.
Now the process begins. I have to find out as much as possible about the Baroness because if she is twice as wealthy and has double the pull and influence the Baron had in this town, Houston Defiance might have just found their biggest adversary, and I was the one who let this bitch slip through the cracks.
Arriving back at the club, Zero calls church immediately.
I’m sitting on my laptop while Zero is filling everyone else in on what happened.
“So, when she started threatening us, taking aim at Cherry and Ethan—”
“Wait, at Ethan? What the fuck did she say about my brother?” Kevlar sits forward, concern written all over his face.
Zero exhales. “Nothing worth worrying about, but according to her… and I don’t know how much credence this has… she has men in the precinct. So, Ethan needs to be careful… cross his t’s dot his i’s. Make sure everything he does is above board, especially after everything he did while he was here at the clubhouse.”
Kevlar bobs his head. “Got it. I’ll make sure he knows to keep away from us for a while and to keep on the straight and narrow.”
“Probably best for the short term until we figure out Connie’s motives.”
I’m digging further and further into the dark web. There’s so much dirt on her, and it’s open for me to gather.
“Brothers, she’s got even more money behind her than we thought. She has the backing of state senators and powerful business moguls. This woman is a tycoon. If we get on her bad side, this could get ugly real damn quick. Money talks. She’s somehow become the queen of fucking Texas, all in the background while we have been celebrating our victory over the Baron. Actually, it looks like maybe she’s got pull in South America, too.”
Zero rubs his chin like he’s contemplating. “Maybe we don’t treat her as the enemy, but as an ally? Work her so she trusts us, and we trust her. We could be a team?”
“You honestly believe we’ll get to that point with a woman like Constance Squires?” I ask.
“We can try. What else can we do? Fight against her? Roll over? Neither of these are a viable fucking option. We need a common ground. What say you, brothers?”
Everyone slowly nods, not entirely convinced, but our options appear limited.
Zero bangs his gavel, making it so, signaling the end of church.
Sometimes to play in the big league, you have to make a deal with the devil, and sometimes the devil wears a white pantsuit and a cravat.
OAKLEY
While the guys are in church, I’m sitting in the main room waiting. I’m glad they came back from wherever they went without a scratch. I have to admit, when Neon rode off earlier, I was apprehensive as to what state he was going to come back in. He said the meeting wasn’t about Rage, but there was this nagging part of me that was scared to death the message was from him, and they were going out there to try and make a deal. Honestly, it could still be the case. I won’t know until I talk to Neon, and only if he tells me what’s happening. But I’m assuming because Rage isn’t here kicking the gates down, things aren’t going the way my mind is making them out to be.
Sitting here, filled with the unknown, is killing me. I’m feeling caged without a possible out. No phone or friends to talk to besides Neon, and now left alone with endless possibilities spiraling out of control in my mind. The waiting is driving me to the point of insanity. Needing to change course, I pull my shit together and make my over to Cherry. Her eyes light up. Her long blonde hair, sweeping down over her cute round face. Her button nose crinkling when she spots me. “Oakley, how you settling in?”
I let out a small exhale. “Going stir crazy, honestly… do you guys have a gym? I’m not allowed to race right now, but I want to keep up my fitness routine if I can?”
Cherry bobs her head while standing from her seat. “I understand completely. Follow me.” She leads me past the pool table, out the rear doors into an outdoor gym area. The setting is extensive, with weightlifting benches, a couple of boxing bags, a treadmill, a rowing machine, a row of dumbbells of various weights, and a basket of towels.
This setup is more elaborate than I thought it would be. Just like this club.
“Wow!” I say before I can stop myself.
“The guys like to keep fit.” Cherry chuckles.
“So I’ve seen. Is it okay if I get changed and use anything in here?”
Cherry beams brightly waving her hand through the air. “Mi casa es su casa.” Her Spanish meaning “my house is your house,” comes through crystal clear. We walk back inside the main room together, and she winks as I make my way for the stairs.
Ducking into my room, I change into my gym clothes, then head back down ready to take my frustrations out over this whole fucking bullshit I have found myself in.
Finding some boxing wraps, I strap up my hands, ready to take on the bag. I tie my hair back in a braid and stare, getting my game face on. Pounding starts in my ears, my pulse elevates as my vision clouds, adrenaline coursing through my veins as I focus on the one face forming in my mind.
One feeling.
One name.
Rage.
I slam my closed fist into the bag as hard as possible, the jolt from hitting the leather jars my knuckles, but the pain only fuels my desire to do permanent damage. Rage has done so much, taken so much from me over the years I’ve known him.
Abused me.
Used me.
Threatened my family and me.
I land another punch into the bag. It swings away from me, but I follow it, smashing it harder, my hits coming hard and fast now.
My fury can’t be tamed.
I felt caged before. Now I’ve been set free, ready to strike and ignite like the fierceness of a thousand suns.
I slam my fist hard, imagining his face. “This is for the time you told me I wasn’t worth shit, then beat me making me feel worthless.”
I slam my fist again. “This is for the time you forced me to suck you off under the table, while you had a meeting with your brothers, and if I didn’t, you’d send my father the naked photo you took of me in the shower.”
I bring my leg up, kicking the bag so hard the chains holding it jerk with the movement. Sweat trickles down my temple as I grit my teeth.
I slam my fist once more. “This is for making me stay with you because you said if I left, you’d find my father, tie him up, and tell him explicitly every sordid detail of my time with you. From the sex to aiding in your money laundering.”
My desire for vengeance is so strong that I unleash, throwing punch after punch, in quick succession. Pounding hard on the flesh of the bag, so much so, my knuckles smart from the beating I’m giving them. Sweat pours down my face, my body ignites in an insatiable heat. I’m almost at my boiling point when I spot Neon in my line of sight, leaning against the beam, his arms crossed, his lips turned up toward his hooded eyes.
For a split second, everything stops.
All I can see are his molten chocolate eyes focused on me, baring into my soul, letting me know I’m definitely alive. The way he is staring at me with that deep-seated hunger in his veins teamed with that gorgeous grin does something to me. He’s an Adonis, a true gift from the gods. I’m staring at him, and he’s definitely staring at me too.
I stop punching, swiping the sweat from my brow with my forearm as I pant for much-needed oxygen. “You gonna stand there gawking, or you gonna help a girl out?”
Neon shifts from the beam, pulling off his cut and shirt, placing them on the weight bench. My eyes widen taking in his tattooed chest and chiseled stomach. He’s hot as fuck—now I’m the one who’s gawking. He grabs some handheld pads bringing them up to his eye line. “You know how to sequence?”
I scoff. “You know how to lead?”
He brings the pads up with a smirk. “Jab, jab, cross.”
I hit the pads with extra force in the sequence making his palms inch backward with the pressure.
“Good. We’re gonna go fast now, keep your feet in the right stance.”
Damn.
He has me there.
So, I move my right leg back into place.
“Ready?” I nod. “Jab, jab, cross, upper, jab, cross, hook, upper, kick.”
I keep up with his demands with ease. I stop, taking a deep breath when he pats me on the shoulder.
“You’re good at this.”
“I’ve been boxing for a long time. Got into it a lot more when I fell in deep with the Heathens.”
“To defend yourself from them?” Neon’s smile falls.
“I should have. I would have if it got too bad, but for the most part, I could handle it.”
“So, you feel like you need to defend yourself here? Is that why you’re busting a nut on the bag?”
I burst out laughing. “Defend myself from the guys at Defiance? No, you guys are all teddy bears.”
Neon slams his padded hand into my hip playfully, making me smile. “Teddy bears, my ass.”
I jab him in the chest. “I bet I could whoop your ass.”
“You probably would because I don’t hit girls, no matter how much they shit talk or infuriate me.”
“Well, then, biker, show me your moves.”
“You gotta be real specific here, Oakley. I got a lot of moves. Just some I don’t want to show you here, where my brothers can walk in at any moment.”
My thighs clench, the air changing to that arctic blast I’m becoming accustomed to around Neon. The fact Neon doesn’t want to share me or do anything with me around his brothers only proves to me just how opposite to Rage he really is—this fact alone heightens the attraction for me.
I inch forward, right into his space, the energy around us like some kind of magnet pulling us together. He inches closer, and our eyes lock. I move in as if I’m about to kiss him, smirk, then shove. He stumbles backward as I shoot my arm up, to which he quickly follows with his left pad just in time for me to cross hit. He lets out a booming laugh as I then move straight into jabs.
“Gotta be ready for anything your opponent throws at you,” I tell him.
“Don’t I know it.”
We continue to spar for near on half an hour until I’ve worn myself out.
“Okay, you’re done.” Neon drops his pads, calling time. I have to admit, I’m wrecked. I puff, trying to catch my breath, sweat beading all over me as I slump down on the mat. I can’t even take my wraps off, I’m that wiped.
Neon kneels next to me and starts pulling them off. He removes my left wrap, and I wriggle my fingers now they’re free from their confines. He leans over me. His bare chest so close to my face, I could reach out and lick him as he undoes my other wrap. I can’t help but study his chest piece while he’s over me. When he pulls back, he catches me staring. “Now who’s gawking?”
“Not gawking… studying.”
He sits back on his ass next to me, pulling his knees up, his arms resting over them. “And what lesson are we studying today?”
“The art of tattooistry? Tattoo-ography? Tattoophilia?”
He chuckles. “I think tattooistry is a thing, but the others… not so much.”
I bring my fingers up running along his arm. “Do they mean anything?”
“Yeah…” His left hand slides up to his right shoulder. “This tribal design here…” his hand slides down to just under his pec, “… and here, this represents my heritage. My grandpa was from New Zealand, he’s Maori, so I wanted to pay homage to him. The tribal design isn’t traditional Maori, but I wanted to get something to signify that part of my DNA.”
My fingers skim over the top of his right hand. “And this?”
“The roaring lion. This was influenced by my mother. She always said I had the heart of a lion, especially when I was younger.”
My chest fills with warmth. “And the rose in the middle of your chest?”
He exhales and closes his eyes. “Anna Rose, my sister.”
Neon’s having troubles with Anna at the moment, but they must have a very close bond for him to tattoo a memento of her on him.
“I’m seeing a lot of family-related themes here…”
“Family is everything, Oakley, you understand that.”
“Yeah, I sure do.” My chest squeezes thinking of my father and hoping he’s okay.
“The other main focus is the club. On my left arm is the giant skull and also on my chest are the two skulls as well.”
“The skulls represent the club?”
“The skull is part of our logo. So, yeah, it’s a part of me.”
I glance up at him from the floor, beads of sweat make his artwork even more beautiful. “Well, I think it’s meaningful and perfect for you.”
“Have you got any?”
“Tattoos?” He nods. “No. I should get one, though. You’re inspiring me to get something meaningful.”
“I’ll take you to my guy, he’ll do you a good deal.”
“Great, thanks.” My eyes shift back up to the ceiling. I exhale. “Neon…”
“Yeah?”
“Do you ho
nestly believe I’m walking away from this?”
“With Rage you mean?”
“Yeah?”
He reaches out, grabbing my hand in his. “I know this is scary, but we will find a way to fix the mess you’re in.”
Silence filters over us for a few minutes, though it’s not awkward, it’s kind of nice. But I’m stinky and sticky, so I need to bathe. Dramatically, I sit up with a huff. “I better shower.”
Neon smirks. “Good workout.”
“Good talk.”
He dips his chin, stands, and places out his hand for me. He hoists me up, yanking me into his arms playfully.
I giggle, slapping his shoulder. “Gross, I’m all stinky.”
“Maybe I like the smell of sweat on you, let’s me know what to expect in our future.”
I roll my eyes. “Where has this cocky guy come from?”
“Kissing you has brought out an animal in me.”
“The heart of a lion, the libido of a rabbit, hey?” I tease.
He chuckles. “I find you… incredibly sexy, Oakley. You do something to me. I have no control around you.”
My insides tingle with happiness. I know exactly what he means because I feel the same when he’s with me. Leaning in, I press my lips to his gently. His arms snake around my waist, my fingers run up into the prickles of his scalp. Our tongues dance, making fireworks explode inside me like the Fourth of damn July. Kissing Neon is so much more than I could ever imagine—even when we’re both disgustingly sweaty. We move together perfectly, his body aligns with mine, and I feel every one of those impeccable abs he has. Neon is perfection personified, and I can’t believe a man like him is kissing me right now.
The kiss heats as I throb with an insatiable need. He slowly pulls back, leaving feathery light, lingering kisses on my lips. They’re like a whisper of a promise that’s yet to come.
We’re both breathless as we stare at each other, tingles run up and down my spine. “Why couldn’t I have run into you in that bar instead of Rage?”
Neon smiles. “Probably the different cities made it difficult.”
“I’m just glad I’m here now… that I met you.”
“Me, too.”
Suddenly, his cell starts ringing. He groans, pulling it out of his pocket, then huffs rejecting the call placing it back in his pocket. “Now, where were we?” he asks leaning in to kiss me, but before his lips touch mine, his cell rings again. “Fuck,” he mumbles gritting his teeth. “She won’t stop until I answer.”
