Page 6

Havoc

I was at a table in the back corner of the room, nursing a beer, not in the best of moods. Mostly because I’d spent the last thirty hours or so thinking about my situation. Truth be told, I didn’t like how Storm had told me that I shouldn’t think about working with Riley as a suggestion. It had sounded ominous and made me think I might be in more trouble than I originally thought. I’d been thinking that Storm would never throw me out of the club, but now I was second-guessing myself. It was dispiriting to think my club was fed up with me, ‘cause this was about the only place I felt like I really fit in. When I came to the Dark Slayers, I’d thought I’d finally found a brotherhood that accepted me. I guessed not.

Charlotte walked up, bringing me a refill on my beer.

When she set it down, I said, “Thanks, Charlotte.”

“You okay, Havoc? You look a little down tonight.”

Barely glancing up at her, I downed the drink left in the bottom of my mug and then shoved it aside in favor of the ice-cold beer she’d just brought. “I’m fine.”

She reached out to touch my shoulder. “Want a blow job? It might cheer you up.”

Inconspicuously shrugging her hand from my shoulder, I told her, “Naw, thanks for the offer. I just wanna drink in peace.”

Her voice took on an edge of hurt. “You turned me down last night too. That’s two nights in a row. Are you avoiding me too?”

My head snapped up to look her in the eyes. “What do you mean by me avoiding you too? You having problems with your favorite brother?”

“Yeah, Chubs said he’s got a girl on the outside. He said that he doesn’t want me hanging around him anymore. Said he needed to make a clean break.”

I was happy for my club brother—but not for Charlotte. She’d had her heart set on Chubs. “I’m really sorry it didn’t work out between the two of you.”

“Me too. I was just looking for some company,” she told me morosely.

“Normally, I’d love to help you out with that, but I just want a few minutes to get my head together before Riley gets here. She’s gonna spend a couple of hours learning about club life.”

“That’s the woman I saw you with a few days ago, right?”

“Damn sure is. I’m sure you’ll find a brother to take your mind off all your problems.”

“If you change your mind, be sure to let me know, alright?”

“Will do, girl,” I said, fairly certain that I wouldn’t be getting with her anytime soon. Charlotte tended to latch onto brothers and was pretty high maintenance. I wasn’t wild about getting serious with a club girl, and if I were, it would not be this one. Charlotte was gone from my mind within seconds as I went back to worrying about my problems.

As the evening wore on, the clubhouse filled up with club brothers, old ladies, and more club girls. The music started, and suddenly everyone was in motion. Everyone but me, that was. The brothers were laughing, joking, shooting pool, and playing cards. About half my brothers had old ladies—the lucky half. The rest of us managed to get by somehow.

Once I started thinking about old ladies, my mind drifted back to that lunch I’d had with Riley. She’d make some lucky brother an outstanding old lady. She was smart, resourceful, and pretty as can be. She was probably real nice when she wasn’t poking and prodding into someone’s personal life. I decided that although she made my cock hard and had any number of good qualities, she wasn’t for me. I just couldn’t take her digging into my past—because I knew that’s where most of my problems had started.

As if thinking of her conjured her, she walked through the front door. I watched her look around for me and waved her back because I was too softhearted when it came to women. It was always my downfall. I couldn’t take my eyes off her as she walked back to my table. She had all that red hair thrown up into a messy updo, and her clothing was more casual than before. Her black leather pants were classy and tailored. They looked like they’d been custom-made to cling to every curve. She’d paired them with a black sweater set and—goddamn—pearls. I rolled my eyes as she walked up.

“Can’t believe you wore pearls to a biker clubhouse.”

Her hand rose to touch the necklace. “It’s one of my favorites. Is there a rule about wearing pearls to the Dark Slayers’ clubhouse that I’m unaware of?”

“You know that there isn’t,” I acknowledged.

She sat down across from me and glanced down at the table. “You’re already two drinks in. That was a bold move. Are you going to be able to stay on task?”

I gave her a feral grin. “Are you kidding me? I can drink every man in this club under the table, wake up the next morning, and use power tools.” Yeah, I was bragging my ass off and didn’t even know why I cared what Riley thought of me.

She glanced around anxiously. “I didn’t realize the clubhouse held so many people. I somehow doubt the fire marshal would approve.”

I tried to focus on her worried expression. “Who gives a fuck what the fire marshal has to say?”

“Alright,” she told me in an exasperated voice. “We just got together a minute ago, and we’re already straying off course.”

I lifted my beer for her to see. “What you need is a drink. How about another of Rosie’s specials?”

She frowned and looked as though she was about to say no. So, I quickly reminded her, “You’re supposed to be learning about club life. What better way to learn than to join in with the socializing?”

Riley glanced around and nodded her head. “Alright. The Dark Slayers don’t seem like the kind of men to object to light drinking during a work meeting.”

“Attagirl,” I said as I motioned to get the bartender’s attention and gave him the sign for Rosie’s favorite mixed drink—not the one she liked drinking but the one she loved to make. He gave me a thumbs up and got to work on the drink.

“What’s with the hand signals?” Riley asked curiously. She shoved her purse to the side of the table and leaned forward on both arms.

I shrugged. “The brothers like nonverbal communication. It’s a holdover from the military. We used them when we were sneaking up on an enemy encampment—really anytime we were in a dangerous situation. Once you get into the habit, it spreads to other parts of your life. It’s convenient for ordering drinks because we don’t have to keep running up to the bar all night.”

“So, you were in the military? Storm mentioned you were,” she told me like it was nothing.

I froze in my seat because my time in the military involved active duty, and that was the last thing in the world I wanted to talk about. When I didn’t pick up the thread of the conversation, she switched it up.

“So, what made you decide to join the Dark Slayers MC?”

“Does it really matter? Is this what passes for casual conversation in the outside world? I only ask because you’re very close to three strikes out with me.”

“Yeah, these are normally considered safe topics of conversation. Come on, you wanted me to learn about club life. Why guys join MCs is part of my education on the subject.”

I shook my head and took another drink of my beer. “What does it matter why I joined the Slayers?”

Exasperation edged into her voice. “Because it helps me understand you better. Why does every topic of conversation feel like pulling teeth with you, Havoc?”

Since I wasn’t about to go into all the reasons that had brought me to the Dark Slayers, I told her grudgingly, “This is where I belong—the one place that makes sense to me.”

“Storm told me most of the brothers are prior military. Is that why you feel so understood here?”

I just stared at her and nodded, ‘cause I was trying my level best to cooperate, but this woman was testing all my limits without even knowing it. “Yeah, I came for the brotherhood.”

“And you clearly love to ride. I can tell because your neck tattoo says so.”

I had to admit I was amused on the inside, but I didn’t show it. Instead, I pointed to my eye with one finger. “An eagle eye, that’s what you are.”

A familiar voice spoke up from nearby. “No, brother. I’m the eagle eye.”

I turned with a smile for one of my favorite club brothers. “I forgot everyone says that about you. Long time, no see, Mace. Where have you been?”

“I’ve been around. Busy with work. You know how the grind can be.”

“Yes, sir. I sure do. Where’s Alicia tonight?”

He jerked his chin towards the restroom but didn’t say more because he didn’t consider it polite. “She’ll be along shortly,” he said.

“Who’s your friend?”

“Her name’s Riley Dalton. Riley, this is Mace.”

She extended her hand, and he shook it. “Wow, she’s really formal.”

“She’s my life coach. Storm assigned her to me ‘cause of the flash flood I made in the clubhouse last week.”

“Glad I missed that one. I was visiting my mom and gran. I heard it was epic.”

“More like everyone was epically pissed at me.”

About that time, several squealing club girls came running out of the women’s restroom, followed by his dog, who caught sight of Mace and came running. He skidded to a stop and managed to bump right into Riley.

She jumped out of her chair and backed up. “Oh my God. What is that thing?”

Mace bent over to pet his wolfdog, murmuring, “Don’t pay any attention to Havoc’s new friend. She has no idea how amazing you are, buddy.”

I explained, “Mace’s family crossbreeds wolves with large dogs. Fuckers turn out to be gigantic, don’t they?”

Mace just laughed, and his dog tried to maul him with dog kisses.

Riley glanced around before edging back into her seat. “Is that even legal?”

Mace finally spoke up for himself and his unruly dog. “Yeah, it’s legal, and lots of folks around here do it. The problem is Nine likes women a lot more than they like him.”

I reached over to give Nine a little scratch behind the ear. “I think it hurts his feelings when they scream and run from him.”

Mace’s response made me chuckle. “If those women knew how strong his hunting instincts were, they wouldn’t act like prey around him.”

Even Riley thought that was funny. She hid a big grin behind her hand, but I could tell by the way her eyes danced with amusement that she appreciated his kind of humor.

Mace caught sight of his old lady coming out of the restroom and jerked his chin at her. “I gotta go. I promised Alicia some one-on-one time in the basement.”

“Catch you later, brother.”

“You too,” he replied.

I threw my hand up at Alicia and yelled, “ Hola , Alicia.”

She responded in kind, all smiles.

Riley spoke. “So, you speak Spanish?”

“Yeah, I speak about twenty words. All taught to me by guess who?”

She laughed, “Alicia.”

“Correctamundo. And Nine got to gnaw on my leg every time I mispronounced a word.”

She shot me a doubtful look. “I think you’re pulling my leg about that one.”

“Correctamundo again,” I teased her. “That was me, just trying to keep the conversation interesting.” It was nice to finally be able to let go of some of the stress of this situation and relax.

Her expression turned admiring. “You have a good sense of humor. I can see why you like being here. You seem like you’re very much in your element here at the clubhouse with the other brothers.”

Feeling like she might understand, I disclosed more of my motivation to join the club. “For me, it’s more than just fuckin’ fitting in. It’s being with men you can trust to have your back. People who don’t judge you, act like assholes constantly, or compete over women and every damn thing else in life—and that’s damn hard to find in this world.”

Damn, I realized my voice had gone gruff again, and I sounded like I was getting wound up again. I wasn’t. My club was just something I was passionate about.

I drained my beer and thumped my glass back down on the table. When I chanced a look at Riley, I saw something akin to understanding flicker in her eyes.

“I thought I got it before. Now I realize how far from getting it I was. Thank you for the honesty. I appreciate it.”

“You’re welcome. Don’t get used to me talkin’ about my feelings all the damn time. This was a one-off thing.”

Leaning forward, she said conspiratorially, “I’m hoping you slip up again because that was good information.”

I snorted a laugh. “Don’t count on it. I don’t plan to make it easy for you to pick my brain.”

Her voice took on a serious tone. “Well, I’m not interested in picking your brain. And being stubborn about sharing information only hurts you because it’s harder for us to work together.”

I motioned for the prospect tending bar to bring me another beer and told Riley, “Simmer the fuck down. I was just fuckin’ teasing with ya.”

She looked me dead in the eyes and called out my shitty behavior. “I know you didn’t ask, but actual apologies are much more effective at getting women to simmer the fuck down.”

Tapping the side of my head, I said, “Don’t worry, I’ll file that handy piece of fuckin’ information away in a safe place.”

“You do that. But in the meantime, I have a question.”

Sigh. “Of course, you do. Ask away.”

“Why were Mace and his girlfriend going down to the basement? Do they have something interesting going on down there?”

With a totally straight face, I told her, “I don’t know if you consider a sex club interesting or not, but that’s what’s in our basement.”

She stared at me for a long, hard moment and then asked blandly, “Are you ever serious?”

Ha, I thought to myself, she didn’t believe me. I didn’t bother trying to convince her. “I’m always as serious as a heart attack, woman.”

She stated calmly, “My name is Riley. I know you remember it because you used it to introduce me to your friend, Mace.”

Gesturing between the two of us, I asked, “Is that how it’s going to be between the two of us? Me trying to be decent to you, while you try hard to put a stick up my ass so it’s less obvious that you have one up yours too?”

“Calling people out of their name is disrespectful,” she responded firmly.

“Fine, Miss Riley. We’ll use names from now on.”

“I appreciate it. I’m gonna go ahead and call it a night. I’ve got a session scheduled with another client in the morning.”

Feeling sorry for whoever the fuck had to endure a session with her tomorrow, I jerked my chin at her. “Drive safely, Riley. We wouldn’t want nothing bad to happen to you before you get a chance to unfuck me, Riley. It’s been nice talking to you Riley.”

She looked irritated that I was using only her name, like she asked. If I were being honest, I’d admit that this wasn’t one of my better moments. In fact, it was all kinds of immature.

She grinned and bore it, for the sake of professionalism, I suspected. “Goodnight, Havoc. I’ll see you on Friday.”

Watching her walk out of the clubhouse with her back straight and her shoulders squared reminded me she wasn’t gonna put up with much shit outta me. I made a mental note to stop fucking this up by agitating the situation. The goal was to get this the fuck over with as soon as humanly possible, not drag it out forever.

After Riley left, I sat nursing my fifth beer of the night, not feeling the least bit inebriated.

Storm threw a package of peanuts down on the table in front of me and slid into the seat that Riley had vacated. “You look like a man who could use some protein.”

I tore the package open and dumped a mouthful of salty goodness into my mouth. “Thanks,” I said as I chewed.

He jerked his chin at me and asked, “How did your meeting go with Riley tonight?”

“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you,” I said while dumping yet more nuts in my mouth.

“Try me,” Storm shot back, his voice firm.

“I shit you not, we spent three solid hours rehashing the situation with the sprinklers and, unsurprisingly, didn’t come to any great epiphany. It felt like a complete waste of time to me.”

“It couldn’t have been that bad. Ali found her really helpful. You will too if you just give her a chance.”

“Fuck that, boss. The only thing I got out of it was a raging headache.”

“You just need to try harder, Havoc.”

“Yeah, that’s easy for you to say because you don’t have to deal with her. By the time she left the clubhouse, I felt like beating my head against a wall. I honestly don’t know if I can do this. And what’s more, I question her ability to help me.”

“Look, she’s one of the best life coaches in the area. There had to have been something you liked about the session.”

Rubbing my jaw, I answered truthfully, “For a minute there, I thought we were establishing rapport. Then she went right back to being a preening goodie two-shoes.”

Storm was quiet for a moment before speaking. “Did it ever occur to you that you have something to teach her as well?”

“Not really. She’s smart and has her life together. I think that’s why she comes off as so superior at times. It’s because she is fuckin’ superior.”

“She seems very rigid and driven, like she doesn’t touch grass nearly enough. If you start paying attention, you might find that you’re smart about all the things she isn’t—and vice versa.”

When I didn’t immediately respond, Storm slapped me on the shoulder and said, “Think about what I just said and try your hardest with this chick.”

When he ambled off, I sat there holding my beer, wondering if our club president could possibly be right. I had to admit that the idea of us helping each other took the sting out of feeling like a dysfunctional freak that needed a minder.