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“ Y ou really going to leave me?” Jumper whines again, and I just chuckle at his antics. He’s been like this since I got back a week ago and told him I wasn’t staying.

“Yeah, man. Never thought I’d want a presidency or my own club before, but I like it. I got a taste for it, and I don’t want to give it up.”

“Yeah, but you’re leaving all this. Your club, your family. Hell, what about me and our plans to open our own business and not just rent a chair out?”

I look at him, really look, and see what’s really going on.

This has nothing to do with me leaving. Well, it does, and it doesn’t.

Jumper was always the first to jump, but only if he knew he wouldn’t be alone.

And that’s what my leaving does. Our plans become his plans.

Our business becomes his. And he’s freaking out.

“Sorry, man. I didn’t think about that.” He nods and looks at his drink, but I touch his arm to get his attention back on me.

“Seriously. Sorry. But I know you can do this. I didn’t even know half of anything about tattooing till you showed me.

You’re going to open a shop, and it’ll be awesome.

The club will back you, but you won’t need it, ’cause you’re that good.

And if you need me, I’ll be here. Michigan is north, but not that far north.

Hell, you could get so good at this that you might need to open a second shop, and you know I’ll be vying for a chair in any shop you own. ”

He takes a deep breath and clears his throat. “Thanks, man. Maybe I’ll come up and visit your sorry ass sometime.”

“You’ll always be welcome. Already got a room reserved for you for whenever you want it, for however long.”

I would give my left nut to have Jumper in my club. Him and me together again? Fuck yeah. But he ain’t ready to move. Maybe never. The guy will remain my best friend no matter where I live. Damn fool is stuck with me till long after death.

Just like my woman.

I still can’t believe she came with me. I still can’t believe that I have an old lady.

Fucking lucky is what I am.

Looking over at my girl, I just smile. She has a bit of a fan club already.

Once word got out about my old lady being taken, word of her being an MMA fighter came with it.

Soon, her videos of boxing in the underground circuit got around.

And not just among the Hounds. The Crazy Eights have all but tried to recruit her since we got here.

Billy and her sister, Penny, rarely leave her side.

I’m not worried, though. My girl came with me for me.

She isn’t about to go with another. Out of everyone in her life before me, I was the only one she was willing to be teamed up with for more than a night of fighting like Summer.

And that’s her ride-or-die chick. That’s sacred, and still I trumped it.

Not going to ask why. Not going to ask how. Just know I’m going to thank her every single day she wakes up in my bed. Just like this morning. I’m actually becoming addicted to her. Who needs a cigarette when you can lick a pussy in the morning to wake up?

“Yo.” Kooper places new beers on the table, which I accept gratefully, then takes a chair and spins it around before sitting down.

“Thanks.”

“Anytime, Prez.” He smirks, and I snort.

Rolling my eyes, I take a large gulp. “Dick.”

The boys are taking it well that I’m leaving.

Well, mostly. The real kicker is that I’m taking on a presidency for legit reasons.

No one saw that coming. Casper had faith in me, and no one questioned if I could, but all were surprised that I wanted it for more than a temporary thing.

I get it. I was surprised, too, at first. But the more I thought about it, the more it made sense.

Bombs wait. They take time to think through. You have to see it from all angles to get it right. Just like running a club.

“You still talk with Tommy?” Kooper asks with a raised eyebrow. He was with us in Russia, knows the guy as much as I do. Enough to ask around about him, at least.

“Yeah. He still sponsors Menace and told me he’ll loop me in when he comes into town to avoid any awkward meetups. We both agree that the only way to make it work is if we keep what we have with my girl separate. He does the fighting thing, and I do the—”

“Fucking?” Kooper grins, and I just nod.

“Where’s Casper?”

Kooper shrugs. “Had a few more calls to make. He’s still trying to get all the clubs into going with a national chapter. ”

“He getting a lot of pushback? Figured most would be on board with having a rotating club check in on shit to make sure it’s legit.”

What happened in Michigan and the reason I was there also spread through most of the clubs.

Everyone had an opinion on it—they still do, even though it’s not their call to make.

Being the boss of that chapter won’t be easy, especially with so many still suspicious of those in that area.

But I’m not some ordinary person, and I refuse to be knocked down.

“Yeah, he’s noting those who are being a pain about it and wanting to look in on a few himself before going forward.

But the most pushback is from trying to find brothers to lead it who’ll get the backing they need.

We’ll need a majority vote, and we’re still looking to see who the nominees will be.

It’ll be an interesting vote once one comes to pass.

We’ll need a few club doctors on hand to patch up our boys when things come to blows. ”

I shrug. “We could always appease people and have a person rep each region in one way or another. Have a head guy, but each region gets a place at the table.”

Kooper sets his drink down and looks at me as if he’s never seen me before. “Wow. You get the president patch and then you get a brain?”

“Not just a pretty face.” Jumper grins before getting up and lifting his chin at us as he departs.

I give him a nod, then look at my girl a few tables away, talking to some of the old ladies. I wait till I see her eyes before I raise an eyebrow, asking if she’s good. A smile and a nod my way, and I’m looking away with a smile of my own.

“Not you too,” Kooper complains .

I don’t let my smile fall. I hope it dazzles him as I grin that much more.

He groans with a shake of his head, and I know I’vedone it.

“Find yourself one and then come complaining to me about how bad it is.”

“Not going to happen,” he mumbles into his drink.

I huff at that and don’t plan to argue on it anymore, so I look about the club. It seems like nothing has changed, but there’s still a presence missing. One that should be here.

“How’s Law?” I ask.

“Same.”

“And Ruby?”

I look over at him when he takes longer to answer.

“Pissed.”

“Can you blame her?”

He shakes his head. “No. But I can be pissed that she’s not looking at it from our side. We only did what we thought would keep her safe. Not sure how that makes us the bad guys in all of this.”

I shrug. “Don’t know. But that’s her dad. Her mom already left her, and then she thought he did too. You can’t fault her for how she feels.”

“Don’t fault her, just don’t like it.”

I roll my lips in and don’t say it. I want to, but I don’t. The guy’s not ready to know what we all know. About what he he really doesn’t like when it comes to Ruby.

We sit in silence as we drink our beers, and I just let things soak in.

Club up north is doing good. Radar is stepping up in the tech spot, doing daily tutorials with Flint over a live feed to learn more.

Mickey, Rooster, and Lucky are sticking around too.

I hope to get them voted in as officers soon.

They’ve all earned it. Bane is even on my short list of officers too.

He’s turned around and has become one hell of a club brother.

I’d be a fool not to look beyond his mistake and see what he has to offer.

Right now, the Michigan chapter is being treated as a new sister chapter being opened.

I’m here about another week for a bit of learning and shit, and then I’ll head back to get it up and running.

Usually we have a potential president take a year to learn it all before starting a new chapter, but this is a special circumstance.

I’ve been an officer for years; I already know how shit works.

I’ve also been a president for months. I’ve got this.

Well, I hope I do. Just need to find the boys who’ll have my back when I fuck something up because I didn’t fully know what I was doing.

“You better get your girl.”

“Huh?”

Kooper nods behind me, and I see Viv is now with Jumper, and they’ve got their heads together. Not a good thing.

“Dammit.” Now it’s me muttering and standing to go see what those two are on about.

They’re so deep in hushed conversation, they’ve got no clue I’m walking up to them till I wrap an arm around my girl’s middle. She leans back into me easily.

“What are you doing?” I say as I kiss her bare shoulder. It’s warm down here. No need to layer .

“Getting a tattoo.” She doesn’t even look at me as she says it, and my lips pause on her skin as I glare at Jumper.

“You going to let another man ink you, Menace?” I growl it as a warning to both of them.

She turns her head. “Well, when you put it like that….” She smirks and pecks my nose with her lips before turning back to Jumper.

“If anyone’s going to mark this skin, it’s going to be your old man.” I stand tall behind her and jerk her back to me, pulling a bit of her ass off her chair. But she knows I won’t let her fall. Ever.

“Yes, sir,” she purrs, and on cue, my dick jumps. I know she feels it with how close we are.

“Don’t worry, man. I would never mark your old lady unless you approved. She thought about going with a domino or something,” Jumper says.

“Domino?” I ask.

She shrugs. “Don’t know your name.”

“Ain’t nothing pretty.”

“Then what is it?”

“John.”

“Seriously?” she asks, like everyone always does when they find out. Not sure why everyone expects a biker to have some unique kick-ass name. Some of us were born normal and became kick-ass later in life.

I shrug. “Parents didn’t put much thought into it.”

“Wait till you hear his last name.” Jumper snickers.

Viv looks at me, then Jumper, then back and forth one more time before her jaw drops as she says, “No. ”

We both nod, but only I say it. “Yeah, Smith.”

“That’s horrible.” She giggles but tries to cover it up with a cough.

I get it. Everyone who’s basic, just another body in the world, is John Smith. Nothing special about it. But Domino? Not many are called that.

“Yeah, definitely getting a domino on me. Might even help in my fights.”

I raise my eyebrow for her to explain when she looks back at me with an eyebrow wiggle.

“Girls I’m fighting will be so confused why I got a domino on my knuckles till I knock them out with it. Might even change my name too. Something about ‘they all fall down’ or something. What do you think?”

“I wouldn’t,” Jumper says as I shake my head at her words.

“Why?” she asks, but Jumper just tilts his beer toward me to explain.

“Already put a down payment on the piece he’s doing on me. Can’t change the design now.”

Her eyes widen. “Wait, what? You got another tattoo?”

Jumper hums. “Tomorrow starting at nine he will.”

“What is it?” She spins on her seat. “Where are you getting it?” She starts looking me over, and I chuckle.

This will be my first piece that’s above the waist. Something anyone can see if my shirt is off. Which is the point. I want everyone to know who’s mine, just like I’m hers.

“A slingshot. Right here.” I point to my heart. “Dennis was only a true menace with one. ”

Her mouth opens, then closes. If she were the crying type, I’ve got a feeling I’d get a tear down her cheek. Instead, I get a jab to my chest that I grab and rub.

“You dick. You’re getting me tattooed on you, and you didn’t think to tell me?”

“You were just about to do the same.”

She throws her arms up. “I was just getting ideas. I wasn’t going to do it without you knowing about it.”

“Would you not do it if I told you not to?”

This makes her pause and lower her arms as she tilts her head. “No. I like having a piece of you on me that I can see every day.”

I wrap my arm around her neck and pull her head close to kiss her forehead. “Same, baby girl, same. You’re my menace, and I love everything about it.”

“Hounds,” Casper bellows as he walks in.

Everyone in the club quiets and looks at him as we wait for him to say more.

“Law’s awake.”

The room is silent except for one.

“Fuck.” Kooper’s voice echoes in the hallows of the clubhouse as we all come to the same conclusion.

Ruby’s about to go postal on us all.