Knox Brotherhood

by Knox, Elizabeth

  Tank switched with him when he told everyone he’d be back after a pint. As Zane kept shuffling the deck, I watched the man walk his way up to the bar to join Blackjack. Booger had his hand pat down Blackjack’s shoulder as they talked to themselves, words that I couldn’t hear in the spirit of the parlor table. I had to avert my attention back to the table when Zane dealt the cards back out, handing me my draw.

  I check my card and prop it back down, my confidence unswayed.

  “Hit me.”

  He does. The card goes down and it’s the four of Clubs. My bottom card was a ten of diamonds. Out of anyone in this table, I think I was the lowest sum.

  “Hit me again,” I request.

  Another card went down. Ace. Shit.

  “Popped?”

  My brows knit together in that moment. That voice.

  I looked up and there he was. Blackjack was standing before the table with his arms crossed and a faint smile spreading across his features. My heart clenched at that damn smile.

  Boog’ just so happened to be standing behind him, hand on his shoulder.

  “Ashley, it’s no fun if you’re losing before my man joins the game.” He teases.

  I snorted at the two of them.

  “Hit me, Zane.”

  Zane gave me a dubious look.

  “Ash.”

  “I said hit me, damn it.”

  He draws the card slowly. My stare was on his hands as he flips the fold and starts to bring it down. One of the brothers start a little hooting chant, bringing the intensity up between us. They drummed at the table and the anticipation was building. Out of the corner of my eye, I could’ve sworn that Zane was sweating. His hand lays the card flat and the moment sinks in.

  I break into a smile.

  Someone groans, “How the fuck did she–”

  “That’s just not fair.”

  Tank starts shaking his head to himself. Every other brother beside him could barely believe his eyes. The line of Zane’s lips thin but even he couldn’t help but smile at the oddity of it. Four of clubs, ten of diamonds, an ace of hearts, and––the five of spades.

  I bested my luck at a top of twenty while everyone else busted. Not even Zane’s safety net of 19 could save him in this round. Whatever luck I was running on, my adrenaline was pumping for more. This was a hard streak and I was enjoying every second of it. Not even Harry could beat me at cards when we first started dating. After he realized I had the better poker face, he refused to gamble against me.

  Still––my glory didn’t last too long.

  “Start shuffling, Zane.” Blackjack’s voice let up.

  I looked over to him as the seat screeches below his feet before he sat with us. His arms cross atop the build of his chest, unfazed by whatever just happened on the table. I should’ve known he’d be joining us in no time. Blackjack out of any man here was the signature poster boy for this game. Dedicated to his title, he was the ace to any deck of men. He could gamble any honest man out of his wits and still walk out the door, shameless.

  Not even my Daddy could beat this guy’s poker face.

  “Thatta’ boy, Rob.” Tank claps his hand on the man’s shoulders, giving him a little shake.

  Blackjack laughs, “Don’t root for me yet. Monroe’s got a streak here.”

  “Lady Luck is smiling down on her, for sure,” Kade agrees, “But we all know she’s a sucker for muscles.”

  Kade and Zane both gave me a little wink and I scowl at them.

  “Are we talking or playing, Blackjack?” I lean into my seat, offering him a coy smile. Rob only gives me a look and my breath hitches itself at the back of my throat.

  Mmmm, that smile.

  “I’m not going easy on you, Monroe,” he warns, the smirk on his face intensifying.

  I raise a brow, “It wouldn’t be fun winning if you did, baby.”

  “Ohhhhhhh!” The men holler at once, smacking their hands at his back.

  “Easy, guys!” Blackjack assures them with a wave of his hand. “This dog isn’t down yet.”

  “One on one?” Zane offers us.

  Blackjack nods, “one on one.”

  “Hold up.” I lift my head up from the table. “I want to make a bet.”

  The men stilled for a second. Betting wasn’t anything new in the clubhouse, especially when most of the guys stupid enough to accept heavy bets ended up walking out the place naked. All bets had to be clarified before mutual parties accepted their risks. Whether it was Poker, Blackjack, War, or Grandma’s Solitaire––you were in for trouble if you didn’t perform your side of the deal.

  What kind of bet?” Blackjack asks. Amusement was hidden in his eyes.

  “Oh, Blackjack,” I shake my head before placing my hand to my chin thoughtfully.

  “Ashley,” he half-smirks.

  God, I was gonna regret this if things go wrong––but drunk me was melting for this guy’s cocky smile!

  If I win,” I start off slowly, “You have to do something for me.”

  “Something?” He repeats.

  “Anything.” I challenge.

  His brothers whistle behind him, already shouting to the roof with cat calls. Blackjack, on the other hand, didn’t even flinch; then again, it was expected of a guy who’d been branded as the Prince of Cards with his title.

  He stares into my eyes intensely and I felt like he was swimming in my thoughts, already figuring out what little old me’ wanted. I didn’t let him make my body falter with his low-let gaze. Instead, I played with a piece of my blonde hair and twirled it between my fingers. The man took it as an expression that I was playing with him and slowly, he leans back into his seat.

  “Fine. You’ve got a deal, babe”

  Another wave of voices washed over the two of us and we sat in our place, rinsed in the dim light. Zane finally stopped shuffling his cards and started dealing them to the two of us. While I folded up my card slightly, I could see the smile of a man underneath its eyelet. I return my hand back to my side in time for me to catch Blackjack talking to Boog’ beside him. The two men chuckle to one another at something until Blackjack catches my stare and sits back up.

  “Whenever you’re ready, Ash,” he asserts with the same confident smile.

  I return that smile by the tenfold and look up to Zane beside us.

  “Hit me.”

  Zane put the card down flat––Ace of Spades.

  Zane looks in my direction and I automatically swing my hand down to the cards, palm flat on the table.

  “Hold.”

  The men scoff to themselves, but Blackjack didn’t look convinced.

  “Since when do you play it safe?” He asks, cocking a brow.

  I gave him a coy little wink and he left it at that.

  “Hit me.” He tells Zane.

  Zane puts down a five of hearts. The brothers stay silent.

  Blackjack wasn’t satisfied. “Hit me again.”

  Down comes the King of Hearts looking up at us with his brilliant red. Zane waits for Blackjack’s cue but the man shakes his head.

  “Hold.”

  Everyone was on the edge of their seats, watching the game unfold. Kade was holding his hands together, staring intensely at the cards between us. Zane, on the other hand, was wiping his brow from the humidity in the room. Not even the AC could simmer us all down.

  I cross my legs together, left over right, and begin drumming my fingers down on the table. Blackjack automatically notices, and he takes a jab at me.

  “Impatient already, Monroe?”

  My baby blue eyes look up to him in that moment.

  “On the contrary, I’m willing to let you go first.”

  He gave an empty shrug as the boys encourage him. The width of his hand swept over his cards and he flipped his game up to face the ceiling. In his draws, there was the King of Hearts, the five of hearts, and last but not least––the five of clubs. He had a solid twenty with three cards combined; it was an unlikely trio.

  “Ashle
y’s in for it!” Kade sniggers to them all.

  Zane could only shake his head, “Got anything good, Ash?”

  “Not much, really.” I admit, sprawling the cards in front of me.

  The ace was just above my hand before my fingers glided up to the parred unknown card. One flip was all it took for the men fill the club with their dubious gasps.

  The Jack of Spades himself was grinning up at them all.

  Blackjack couldn’t believe it himself.

  With a teasing smile digging into my lips, I slide the cards in his direction. “All I’ve got is Blackjack in the palm of my hands.”

  CHAPTER 6

  Ashley

  “Does this make my––”

  “Ashley, I swear to God.”

  “––butt look big?”

  Blackjack had thought that taking me into Billings for a shopping spree was payback for my glorious win, only it wasn’t. It was a friend, asking another friend to take her into town, and well, Poor Blackjack.

  I turned my back from the pedestal mirror to face Blackjack who just so happened to be idly sitting beside my collection of shoe choices. We had only stepped into Billings twenty minutes ago and he’s already sporting on that “get it over with” façade. His arms crossed over his chest, a slack look of interest amongst the mall-goers, and of course – picking the designated shoe spot where he could sit down while I browse like a kid in a candy shop.

  I had picked a load of items to try on and surprisingly, there were moments where I caught his eyes flaring up like a lit candle when I tried on something just right. Within that assortment was a pair of Levi shorts, a lace cami that hugged my chest perfectly, and a little crop top hoodie that showed my midsection. As soon as he caught me wearing that, I couldn’t get his eyes off me until I swapped into a white tank with a pair of high waisted shorts.

  “I’m only asking, jeez.” I roll my eyes at him while smoothing down the shorts.

  “Honestly,” He shrugs his shoulders back, “You’ve gotten tinier since I last saw you. Your––butt? It looks just fine.”

  With a little smile, I give him a look before turning myself back around to give the mirror another look.

  “I’m not that tiny.” I say aloud, running my eyes up and down my figure.

  Blackjack shook his head in my reflection, “Harry’s been starving you for too long, Ash.”

  “High and dry.” I muse without a second thought.

  “Hm?”

  When I realized what I just said, I turned my attention back to him and smiled.

  “Don’t worry about it.”

  He didn’t ask but I could tell by his expression that he was growing skeptical. No one needed to know that Harry and I only had sex once in a blue moon. For the couple of weeks that I was pregnant, he didn’t touch me. And any time before that, it was just me in that house until he disturbed the night in a drunken slur. He’d beat me, apologize, and then convince me we were going to be okay just so he could slip into bed with me. All those times I believed in him made me lose faith in myself. The insecurity that was piling up like dirty laundry just made me feel more insecure about myself.

  I always asked myself if he was interested in my body at all or he was just looking for something prettier every time he drove back from the bar. As I started back to the changing room with the reflection of me waiting there, I realized that it didn’t matter. He could’ve been slamming into some whore and I didn’t care. It was all a lie.

  “Those shorts really suit your legs.” Blackjack’s voiced outside.

  I blinked in the mirror, startled that he caught me in my thoughts.

  “You think so?”

  The man coughed briefly before answering, “Sure. What are you hiding those legs for anyway?”

  “From dirtbags that abuse their wives.” I replied with a scoff before shuffling out of the shorts.

  Without a second thought, I dispensed them into the “Blackjack” pile.

  “Shouldn’t stop a woman from wearing what she wants.” Blackjack chuckled.

  I shook my head, “No, it shouldn’t. I’ll get them if you think they suit me so much.”

  “Atta’girl.”

  A couple of minutes passed between us while I folded the unwanted clothes into a neat pile by the chair. As for the remaining clothes, I draped them over my arm with their hangers attached. As I stepped out of the dressing room, Blackjack’s eyes removed themselves from his phone to find me.

  “All done?” He asks.

  “Hmm.” I gave it a thought before a wicked smile crosses my expression, “Maybe.”

  His brow cocks as he stands up from his seat, collecting the three boxes of shoes I tried on before. The two of us walked ourselves up to the register where a young girl had been waiting for us. I settle all the goods on the top of the counter where she starts picking them off one by one with her scanner.

  “Did anyone help you today with these purchases?” She asks.

  I look up to her, discretely reading her name tag.

  “It just so happens that this guy has been helping me all day, Jenny.” I give Blackjack a little nudge. He returns it with a brief eye roll.

  “Lucky you!” She throws a little laugh before noticing Blackjack beside me.

  Oh, there we go. I can see that little twinkle in her eye. It happens to every girl that gets an eyeful of him. Rob has always had that charm about him. Whether it was his height or just his presence, no girl could resist that rough look.

  Jenny dropped her eyes when Blackjack let his gaze wander across the rest of Billings. As she resumed packing my things in a paper bag, I let my own eyes take a brief glance up at him while he was distracted.

  Before I knew it, I was on a trip down memory lane. Why didn’t I just take a shot with him when I was younger. A real shot. Sure, there was that big, nasty age difference between us but dammit. We could’ve been something real. There was a time when we almost crossed that line, then he left without so much as a goodbye. I waited for him to come back, he was supposed to come back home, and then he didn’t, so I left. I left the club, my family, my home.

  I wonder if it would have been different if he stayed. If I wouldn’t have married Harry and moved away. I wonder if I would’ve been happy with Rob.

  “And here you are.” Jen slides the bag across the counter to me. “That’ll be one hundred and eighty-four dollars and seventy-six cents.”

  Ouch.

  As I look down to grab my wallet, Blackjack put his hand on my wrist and shakes his head. I turn my attention back to him, but it was too late. He had his wallet out and already fishing through for his credit card. Wait…what?

  Consider it a late birthday gift,” he assured me.

  “Robert, put your wallet away,” I hissed at him.

  “Not a chance.”

  As I was frantically searching through my bag for signs of my wallet, Jen had already slid his card’s chip in the register and let it process. When I finally had my little navy wallet in my grasp, Blackjack had already slipped his card back into his wallet pocket.

  “What was that about not being able to keep up, Monroe?” He teases with a little smirk.

  “Unbelievable.” I shake my head before taking the bag in my arm. “You’re lucky you’re cute, Rob.”

  “So, I’ve been told,” he says with a glide of his fingers through his hair.

  I let out a snort as the two of us start walking out of Billings and into the mall plaza. When it had become clear that the bag wouldn’t come over my arm as easily as I thought, Blackjack nudged my side.

  “Give it here,” he insists.

  “No way.” I pull the bag closer to me with a shake of my head, “I can take care of it.”

  “I’m sure you can, but,” he idly discontinued his words before I could realize his arm slipped under my elbow to steal the bag.

  “Hey!”

  Blackjack waves his hand off with disregard.

  “I’d rather you not struggle, Ash.”

/>   “Tsk!”

  I keep walking alongside him as we pass the bystanders of shoppers. I tried to ignore how small he made me feel in comparison to his large stature. He had that effect on me physically as well as emotionally. That confidence was something I never had––but that playful misdemeanor was something I couldn’t let him get away with.

  “You’re fooling yourself if you think I’ll let you sweep me off my feet, darling,” I chide with a little smile.

  Blackjack looks down at in bemusement.

  “A woman like you doesn’t need anyone to help her off her own.”

  “Some people wouldn’t agree,” I say, my smile faltering.

  He shrugs the weight of his shoulders.

  “Fuck what they say. You do you, as usual.”

  “And what do you say?”

  “To what?” He asks.

  I look up at him, “To my marriage.”

  At this point, I didn’t care what anyone thought but that changed when Blackjack’s point of view came to mind. He was a sincere guy with a well-defined constitution for ethics. As for what he thought of me, that also made me wonder.

  “Your marriage is your business, Ash,” he says simply. “It makes little to no difference what I say on the matter.”

  “I want to know either way.”

  “Sure, you do. But does that change the way you think?”

  That part stung. I didn’t want anyone to think I was anywhere in love with Harry since I introduced him to the club. They probably thought I was proud for leaving them behind for a stranger they barely even knew. On top of that, he was now affiliated with the Bears – our sworn enemies.

  “It might,” I say softly.

  Blackjack could only shake his head.

  “I could say that you deserved better but you were too high strung on love to care.”

  Little does he know that Harry wasn’t the one I was high strung on love with. Now, looking back, I can see that I was using Harry to cover up the love I had for the man right in front of me. I’d never confess that to Rob, though.