Page 51 of Dozer (Rolling Thunder MC #14)
Chapter 51
Dozer
“We’ll have a visitor from the Charlotte chapter this week,” Duke told us during church. “If we like him and his ol’lady, I hope he’ll decide to transfer to us.”
“His ol’lady runs a body-mod shop,” Brain told us. “She specializes in scarification, though she also pierces. From what I understand, she runs a tight ship and manages the money end with a tight fist, and the employee end with a mix of compassion and attitude. She’s five-foot two inches tall, and they call her Babysaurus. ”
“We recruitin’ the brother or his ol’lady?” Gonzo asked.
“Her ol’man is part of the deal, sure,” Brain said, “but we’re hoping to convince their son to make the move as well. He’s only been patched a few years, but he’s a certified restoration expert. He’s a mechanic with some impressive certifications, too, but his talents are inside the driving compartment — dash, seats, flooring, doors. We have a decent upholsterer, finally, but as our reputation has grown, so have his hours, and we’re keeping him busy six and sometimes seven days a week.”
“Davy’s good, but he doesn’t deal well with stress, and he works long hours nearly every day of the week to help us stay on schedule,” Bubbles said. “He was good with it at first because he was just happy to have a job, but it’s not healthy for him anymore. I’ve talked to Brain about the need to either stop accepting so many jobs that require upholstery, or looking at hiring someone he can share the load with.”
“We’ll get three people if this works out,” Duke said. “Babysaurus’s ol’man works security for their escort service. Their hotel and attached restaurant is totally legit, but one floor of it’s for the whores. It’s similar to the deal Marco’s setting up, and you all know we’re looking at either going into it as a joint venture, or merely acting as management during the daytime on a contract basis. Either way, we’ll manage the daytime business, and his vampires will come in thirty minutes after the sun sets. We’ll be responsible for making sure any girls purchased for the night make it home the next morning.”
“Which brings us to the next agenda item to vote on,” said Brain. “I’m advocating for us to go in as business partners on this — half owners. Gen is negotiating a deal for Marco to purchase a downtown hotel with a restaurant. They’re asking nearly nine million, but the game plan is to offer around seven and a half mil, with the understanding we’re looking at around two million in renovations. Some of that will go towards creating vampire-safe rooms, and those are in high demand despite the fact they go for three times what a regular room does. I figure our part of it, purchase price plus reno, will be approximately six million, because we all know how renovations go.”
“We have it,” Duke said, “but it’ll take us below where I like to be. I’d rather we not be out more than four million, at the present time.”
“Marco is used to running high-class escorts,” Slick said. “We’re known for having clean girls who can provide a service in a safe environment at our whore hotel, but that’s not the same as high class. His girls dress well, use proper English, and have had enough of a formal education to carry on a conversation with a successful businessman. Totally different clientele, and fees for going upstairs with a girl are many multiples of what it takes to buy one of our girls for an hour or two.”
“We need another two mil? So four of us loan half a mil to the club. Or eight of us loan a quarter mil,” Bubbles said with a shrug. “Brain can come up with a schedule to pay us back, but assuming we’ll all be whole within two years, I can pony up.”
Five minutes later, we had more than enough funds, and we voted to be business partners with Marco.
“Next item,” Duke said, “and sorry to blindside you with this Dozer, but we’re wondering when you’re going to tell Daisy you’re a wolf.”
I sat back in my chair and kept my face blank. “Was considering doing it when we return from our official honeymoon, or maybe waiting until the first anniversary of our quickie ceremony.” Our big wedding date was set six months from our quickie ceremony. Well, two days short of six months, but we wanted a Saturday wedding, and it was still close enough to be a half-anniversary. I’d get to celebrate marrying her twice a year, on our official anniversary and then on our half-anniversary.
“I think you’re in danger of an ol’lady revolt if you don’t do it soon,” Bash warned. “Angelica and Connie are thinkin’ of ways to not-so-accidentally tell her what they are, and I think they have Brianna convinced to help them make it legal, when they tell her.”
Fuck . Brianna was the mate of the Ringgold Alpha, and she could absolutely make it legal.
Because of my history of pissing off the ol’ladies, I’d kind of lost the moral authority to tell my brothers to control their women.
Angelica, Connie, and Brianna couldn’t tell her I’m a wolf, but once she found out they are, and learned about the ability to hear and scent that came with being one, she’d immediately understand that’s how I know when she’s lying, and everything else I know by scent, without her telling me.
“Harmony wants in on it, but she’s agreed not to because I’ve asked her to stay out of it,” Brain said.
“And Gen can’t,” Duke said, “or she’d be right in there with the rest of them. Bethany, too.” Right, because humans are under a different kind of blood oath. Also, it wasn’t their secret to tell, while the ol’lady werewolves would be telling their own secrets and not someone else’s.
“I’d never planned to tell Matty,” Razor said, “but it worked out okay when I did. He’s chomping at the bit for you to tell her, but you’ll get no pressure from me.” He sighed. “Or from him, but only because he knows he’ll have an appointment with my belt if he does.”
“Gabby won’t tell her,” said Horse, “but she’s on board with the other women doing so.”
“Several brothers have approached me about talking to you,” Duke said. “We don’t allow members from other chapters to transfer in unless their ol’lady knows, but that doesn’t resolve the issue of established members who gain an ol’lady.” He shrugged. “Subject’s closed for now — we’ve talked about it in Church, you know our feelings. You and I will talk again in a few weeks, because it stifles conversation in the clubhouse when it’s only us and we have to avoid topics that could get us in some serious hot water with the ruling vampires here and in Europe.”
He moved to the next topic, a discussion of upcoming road trips and where we were with the planning, and I had to concentrate to keep up with the conversation because I kept going over the pros and cons of her knowing.
When the meeting ended, I didn’t get up, and Brain moved to sit in front of me while everyone else made their way out of the room.
“I think it’s possible I’m not convinced she’ll stay with me,” I told him.
“You think she’ll leave you if she knows what you are?”
I shook my head. “I haven’t really gotten that far, because I’m not sure the society girl isn’t just slumming it for a while.”
If she was chained up in my basement with no access to the outside world, this wouldn’t be an issue, but once I realized she had a serious goal in life, something she’d thought through and wished for, I hadn’t wanted to do that to her. I’d wanted to make her dream come true.
“I love her,” I told him. “And it feels like I need to keep everything to the status quo and not complicate things. Also, I like her as a human. What if she wants to be a wolf?”
“And what if she thinks it a breach of trust to wait a year or more to tell her? You’ve taught her not being completely honest is the same as lying. She thinks she knows who you are, but you’ve kept this huge part of yourself from her. I’ve seen it happen so many times — when a human girlfriend realizes how you’ve always known they’re lying, it pisses them off if you’ve waited too long to tell them. She’s your wife now, and it seems to me, you should tell her sooner, rather than later.”
My heart fell into my stomach because I hadn’t considered that. At all.
“Well, fuck . When you put it that way, I should’ve told her between our wedding and her piercings.”
“I can be there, if you think it’ll help.”
I nodded. “It might. Angelica and Harmony, too.” I sighed. “And then I can put her in Razor’s martial arts class for the ol’ladies.” I couldn’t send her until she knew about us because I know he has to split them up into human and not when they spar with each other, and he has to teach the shifter ol’ladies how to deal with a human attacker without accidentally killing them.
“You need me to contact Moira?”
Technically, Etta was supposed to be the liaison with the local vampires, but we all preferred to call Moira, who’d been the liaison before Etta had come to town.
I shook my head. “I’ll call Julian and set a time to talk to Marco.”
“That works, too. Let me know where and when. If you want me, I’m there. Harmony too, if you think her presence will help.”
“The boarding school had horses, and young Daisy was required to learn to ride. She wasn’t a fan, at first, but grew to love one of the horses,” I told him. “I’m sure you know Harmony had her over once I started letting Daisy have more freedom to spend time with her new friends, and when my Daisy showed interest in one of the horses, Harmony told her it would be a big help if she could come ride him a couple of times a week. I know there are therapists who use horses to help people emotionally, and I never understood how that might help, but Daisy’s energy is better when she comes home from riding. I’ve thanked Harmony for it, but I want you to understand why I think having Harmony there will help. The two bonded over the horses, and it’s grown from there.”
“I’m aware, but I’m glad you think it’s helped. Harmony wishes she could share some of her own history, but I’ve counseled her not to. It’s best we leave the past where it belongs, where she’s concerned.”
Right, because Harmony was doing okay under her new identity, but it would be catastrophic if the government figured out who she really is, and we never know when someone might be listening in to our ol’ladies.
As far as Marco was concerned, I’d kept up with our monthly appointment, where I shared a young man with him, until the month after Daisy and I were married, and then I’d had to tell him I could no longer do so.
I thoroughly enjoyed the time I spent with him, and I have to admit, fucking a young man’s ass who absolutely didn’t want to be fucked in the ass kind of did it for me, but the wolf saw it as a betrayal. In my mind, it had nothing to do with my relationship with Daisy — it was a bonding thing with the most powerful supernatural in America. The young men meant nothing to me, at all . However, the wolf insisted, so once we were married, I stopped.
Marco had invited me to come help him punish a young man a few times, and I’d done so after talking it over with Daisy. I’m still Master in most things, but in this, she needed a say. No way was I going to do anything to break trust with her ever again.