by Franca Storm
“We need to get out of here,” Wraith said, pulling me further away as Jesse got to work.
“What about Jesse? How’s he gonna handle that by himself? What about the people in the diner? They must’ve heard the shot. They could’ve called the cops.”
“Jesse’s backup will be here in moments. This is old hat for him.”
“But—”
“Kid!” he snapped, shaking me out of my messed-up state. “We move. Now.”
***
“I told you I had your back.”
I eyed Wraith over the rim of my whiskey glass. “I remember.”
“Instead, you went off on your own. You led that soulless maniac right to you and tried to beat him into submission? Is that it? Because, I have to say, as plans go it was—”
“Stupid,” I finished for him. I slammed my glass down on the table. “I know. I fucked up. I just… I had to try.”
“He almost had you.”
“Yeah,” I grunted, taking a huge swig from my glass to try to swallow down the memory.
“You brought your gun out to a fight you weren’t prepared to finish. Never pull your weapon if you aren’t certain you’re gonna use it.”
“I get it,” I muttered.
“You don’t.”
I glared at him as I downed the rest of the burning liquor.
He leaned forward, forcing my full attention. “You’re not a killer.”
“Just because I hesitated, doesn’t mean—”
“Kid,” he hissed, cutting me off. “It was a kill-or-be-killed situation and you didn’t pull the goddamn trigger. There’s no part of you that’s killer material. Trust me, I’m pretty much the leading authority on it. Tell me you know that about yourself.”
“I’ve never killed before and I’ve never planned on starting,” I admitted.
“Making it all the more insane that you even got close to it tonight.” He shook his head in dismay. “Things have spiraled so far out of control. Just like I warned, you’ve become reckless for her, not only to protect her, but from fear of losing her. Hearing she’s been called back home under lockdown had you pulling this bullshit today. You thought you could head it off, prevent the lockdown from happening by taking down the threat on your own. You stole her phone, rode a hell of long way out here without club permission, risking not only your own life, but the club’s wellbeing and the alliance with Lone Outlaws.”
“I know what I did. I get the mistake loud and clear.” Pushing my glass away, I slumped back against my seat heavily. “Fuck, I just… I had to fight for her.”
“I get it. You know I do.”
“What the hell else would you have done in my position then?”
“Fight out in the open.”
I frowned. “I’m gonna need more.” What was he getting at?
He leaned forward, his look intense. “You can’t have it both ways. You can’t have someone like her as yours and expect to be free to come and go as you please together without putting the relationship itself out in the open. A sacrifice needs to be made here. You want her, you have to deal with the baggage that she comes along with. You need to tell Python.”
“Yeah.”
“I’ve got you covered on this shitshow and it’s actually gonna come out in your favor for the most part. Spartan isn’t gonna be happy about you going off half-cocked, but the threat’s been dealt with due to a team effort from you and me, so that’ll win out with him. You tell Python, do it on our territory, not his. If things go south, you’ll have backup close by. Wait until after your anniversary party though. I know you’ve been looking forward to it and it’s only a couple of days away now. No need to ruin it.”
I nodded in agreement.
A couple of days.
That was it.
I’d tell Python.
Then the bubble Hayley and I had been existing in would be ripped apart. The relationship we’d been building, our love… it would be thrust out into the open, exposed to everybody. Vulnerable. Endangered.
It was a huge risk.
But Wraith was right. The situation had crossed a line beyond unsustainable.
I had to take a stand.
Let the chips fall where they may.
I just hoped when all was said and done, I wouldn’t end up losing everything in the fallout.
16
~Hayley~
“WHAT. THE. HELL?”
I watched Damien tense at the furor behind my words.
Good. He deserved it. He’d been a complete idiot.
He kicked the door of my clubhouse guestroom shut and held up his hands as he strode on in. “It all worked out. You don’t need to worry.”
Unbelievable. Did he really think I was just going to accept that weak-ass bull? I thrust my hand out. “Give it back.”
He shoved his hand into his leather jacket pocket and pulled out my cellphone.
I snatched it from him before he could hold it out to me. “Might as well have read my frigging diary,” I muttered.
“It’s not the same as that,” he had the nerve to argue. “I didn’t look at anything anyway.”
“Oh, that makes it okay then, huh? You just sent texts in my name to Haywire, set a meeting as me, and put yourself in an insane level of danger.”
He scrubbed his hand over his bristly jaw. “I could’ve told you a load of bullshit, but I gave you the truth and—”
“And what? That’s supposed to absolve you? I expect the truth from you no matter what, Damien. It’s not an optional thing, not something you deign to tell me one minute, then decide against the next. It’s not a favor you’re doing me. Tell me you get that.”
“I get it… to an extent.”
“What?” I snapped, tensing up at his disconcerting response. It was bad enough that he’d done what he had today. But I could find a way to get past it if it had just been a one-off mistake borne from desperation. If he planned on continuing to operate the same way going forward, though, we had a major problem.
“There’s issues of club business.” He eyed me in surprise. “Didn’t Python clue you in to all that? You’re a club princess.”
“Things are different now. I’m running their security. But that’s Lone Outlaws, not Iron Kings. I don’t need to know the ins and outs of your club’s business or every mission that you’re tasked with. Just like you don’t need to know the ins and outs of my upcoming security work with Sky. But I do expect you to tell me about things that risk you or impact us.”
I saw him taking my words in. Relief flooded me as he nodded. “All right. You’ve got it.”
“You swear it?”
He walked to me. “I swear.”
Wrapping his arms around me, he spoke softly into my ear, “I’m sorry. I just got desperate. You being ordered back home because of the threat from Haywire… I couldn’t let it happen. I couldn’t let your life be stalled like that when you’re working so hard to carve out a career outside of Outlaws. I couldn’t let you go.”
Warmth surged through me at his beautiful, thoughtful words, my heart melting. I squeezed him to me. “I can’t let you go either.”
We held each other tightly for a long while, the both of us needing the reassurance after the threat of almost being forced apart.
He pulled back and planted a soft, lingering kiss on my forehead.
I grasped his hands and held them between us, urgency spilling from me, as I said, “Promise me you won’t do anything like that again, no matter what your reasoning is. I was worried sick. I can’t live like that. My mom has spent her life like that and it’s caused a huge strain on her. We’re a couple now, in a relationship. What one of us does impacts the other. From now on, we need to act as one.”
“Yeah, okay. As one.”
“Good. Thank you,” I said, raising our joined hands and kissing them.
“With that in mind and in the spirit of full disclosure, you should know that I’m gonna tell Python about us.”
I jerked back away
from him. “No.”
He frowned. “No?”
“You can’t.”
“I have to, Hayley. It’s the only way we can move forward and really be together. All this secrecy, the sneaking around and the lies, has spiraled way out of control. It’s not sustainable. Much longer and it’s all gonna come crashing down around us.”
“No. He’ll kill you, Damien. I can’t let you do this.”
He scoffed. “That’s a bit dramatic. There’ll be consequences, yeah, but not that.”
I ran my fingers through my hair in exasperation. “You don’t get it. To you and your club, he’s calmed down and become a better person. He’s no longer that dealer of brutality or that reckless, soulless killer he used to be. His road name, Python, no longer holds true.”
“Yeah? So?”
“He's still that person. He’s been forced to pull back because of health issues. His heart… it’s not good. I mean, he’s my dad and I love him. He’s always been sweet and loving to me, but I’ve known about the dark side of him for a while now. I have no illusions about it.”
“I hear you, but, no matter the reason, he’s still calmed down. He’s not the dangerous fucker he used to be. Spartan wouldn’t have made this alliance with him if he was.”
Argh! He wasn’t getting it! It had me yelling out in my desperation, “I’m his daughter! His baby girl! Finding out I’ve been with a biker, of all things, given how adamant he’s always been against it will have him losing it. His whole reformed, calmer thing will go to hell!” I grabbed the lapels of his leather jacket. “He. Will. Kill. You.”
His eyes were wide. He looked majorly taken aback, shocked, even. I wasn’t sure if it was because of what I was telling him, or my freak-out as I’d said it.
Then his hands closed over mine on his jacket and gently pried them off. He led me over to the bed and eased me onto it with him.
We sat there together in tense silence for several moments.
I was eyeing him expectantly, wondering why he’d interrupted my tirade to bring me over here. One reason was clearly to calm me down. But what was he planning on saying? What could he possibly offer up to the situation after what I’d revealed? He’d told me he’d been somewhat of an adrenaline-junkie, always gravitating toward trouble for the thrill of it. He’d also made it clear through his assurances and his actions, that he’d calmed down and moved away from all of that, though. But the bull he’d pulled today seemed like a step back down that dangerous former path of his. Was that what his adamancy to tell my dad was all about, some kind of ill-advised thrill-seeking thing?
“Why are you pushing this?” I ended up blurting out. “Is this some pursuit of one hell of an adrenaline rush, wanting to barrel headlong into danger?”
He flinched as though I’d just pinched him really hard. “No!” he cried adamantly. “Of course not. Jesus!”
I held up my hands. “I’m sorry.”
He shook his head to himself, not happy I’d accused him of going back to his old ways. “I did what I did today for you, for us. I didn’t like doing it, I didn’t want to do it. It didn’t give me a fucking thrill or anything. Actually, it made me sick to my stomach. All right?”
“Yes. Again, I’m sorry. I just—”
“I get it. Tensions are high. We’re both stressed and worried.”
“Yeah,” I breathed.
He shifted his weight, cleared his throat, then told me in a calm, very gentle tone, “I love you and I know you love me too. I want to be with you out in the open, no more looking over our shoulders, no more restrictions.” He grasped my hands. “I want to celebrate this, the best thing that’s ever happened to me. I want us to build a future together. But we can’t do any of that while we’re hiding from everybody and living in the shadows. We need to tell Python and we need to do it our way, before one of us slips up and he hears it from somebody else. That won’t help anything. We can spin it our way if we get there first. And, yeah, there’s a risk of him reacting badly. But I don’t care, because if we don’t come clean, you and me are done anyway. We can’t live like this much longer. Look at today… it’s already taking its toll. Imagine months more of this. It can’t be done, lovely.”
I took his words in, hating the truth to them.
Just the thought of my dad hurting the man I loved was too much.
But Damien was right about everything that had been happening, that was still happening. We couldn’t keep up the lies and all the secrecy.
“Okay,” I said, nodding. “But we tell him together.”
“All right. Thank you.”
I threw my arms around him, holding him tightly, needing the warmth and comfort that only he could provide. Judging by the way he held me to him, he felt that need as much as me.
It would be okay.
We could do this and get through whatever the fallout turned out to be.
I just had to trust in us.
17
~Anarchy~
THIS WAS IT.
The thing I’d been waiting on for so long was finally here.
My anniversary celebration.
A huge-ass blowout marking my five years of service to the Iron Kings MC.
It was a major milestone. And it was more than just service or work to me. It was a beloved brotherhood for me, my real family with people who knew me, who accepted me for who I was, who accepted my shortcomings too, and who valued me. Not only had I made it five years, but I’d also surpassed all expectations. I’d learned so much, gone above and beyond, impressing my fellow brothers, Prez, and even somebody as accomplished and as hard to please as Wraith. I’d become an invaluable member of the club.
Despite all of that, though, tonight was bittersweet.
For one, I couldn’t share it with the woman I loved.
At first, I’d thought there might’ve been a way to have her close by. But then Grim had shown up, her usual protection and the Sergeant-at-Arms of the Lone Outlaws. He’d been sent down to check in on her. With the Haywire threat dealt with, Python’s order demanding she go home and be placed under lockdown had become null and void. But he still couldn’t let go and allow her to have some semblance of freedom. Some because she might’ve been allowed around town without a constant shadow following her every move, but she wasn’t allowed beyond our borders. It wasn’t real freedom, just the illusion of it. But Python couldn’t even give her that much. He’d had to send his fucking boy down to spy on her.
It had screwed things up. It was one thing taking a slight risk by having her at my party in front of my brothers, the guys who’d lay down their lives to protect me, just like I would for them. But it was another to do it in front a member of another club and the very club that was run by her father. I couldn’t get the look of hurt and disappointment that had flooded her beautiful face out of my head when I’d told her she had to stay away, that she couldn’t be here with me to celebrate something this meaningful to me.
The other bittersweet part of it all was that everything was on the line. Once tonight was over, Hayley and I were going to tell Python. I had no idea how it was going to end up. Now that an alliance existed between our clubs, the guy had some pull over me via his business relationship with Spartan.
“Come on, Anarchy, you’re supposed to be celebrating.”
A heavy arm wrapped around my shoulders and I turned to see Tricks grinning at me.
“What gives, brother? You’ve been looking forward to this for ages. I even arranged things exactly the way you like them.” He gestured around the clubhouse at all the boys drinking, having fun and celebrating. The decorations had made me smile. Paper chains in the shape of my bike, the exact model and everything. It looked like they’d been designed from a real picture of it. The streamers were motorcycle-related. Posters of significant moments in my five-year run with Iron Kings were plastered all over the place. There was even a massive cake on a rolling table in the center of the room that had my road name and the date I got patched in written on
it. I’d noticed all the music playing was from my favorite bands, Shinedown and Foo Fighters. And then there was the entertainment. All leather clad girls. Basically biker chicks. Some were club whores, some were dancers.
When there was a party, there was Tricks. He loved sorting them as much as he enjoyed the actual partying. The guy was wild through and through. He was all about having a good time and living life to the fullest, in the fast lane. While I’d had a rep for searching out trouble, he had one for searching out fun and wildness. And he wanted all of us to follow suit.
I held up my half-full beer bottle and assured him, “I appreciate it and I am celebrating, T.”
“You’re celebrating like an old man.” He pointed at Spartan and Wraith who were both sitting in the corner nursing a beer each, away from the heart of the party. “See?”
I laughed. “They’re enjoying themselves even if it’s not your idea of fun. Each to their own, right?”
“That’s what I’m saying, though. This is your idea of fun. Or it was.” He pointed to two leather-clad babes lounging on one of the couches, blowing kisses and crooking their manicured fingers at us. “I got them especially for you. Two sexy-as-fuck biker chicks all leather clad looking to hookup for a threesome with a biker.”
Jesus.
“I’m good here. For real, T.”
“Well, I’m not gonna let Wrecker in on that action. The guy wouldn’t appreciate it like you. They ain’t his type. I just gotta loosen you up.” He leaned over me and signaled the prospect behind the bar. “Whiskey. Double. Two.”
I sighed and looked around for a way out of it. No way was I gonna get wasted. I needed to watch what I did and said until things between me and Hayley were out in the open.
Plus, those girls were out of the question.
I already had all the biker chick that I could want.
***
Where the fuck was Tricks?
