Page 3 of Her Grumpy Biker (Savage Kings MC #1)
DIEGO
“ R emember Bruise and Slim?” Rock, our President, asks the club. He called church a few hours ago, and the last of the members just walked in the backroom of The Black Crown, where we hold our meetings.
A few men nod their heads while others scoff.
The two men in question, along with Stitch and Guardrail, had attempted to join the Savage Kings a while ago.
They didn’t make it past the prospect stage due to selfishness, theft, and a general lack of alignment with the rest of us.
They even gave themselves road names despite never being patched in.
Typically, the club gives you a name. I suppose that says everything about these stupid fuckers.
“Apparently, they don’t take rejection too well,” Rock continues. “We’ve been keeping tabs on the merry band of assholes, and I just got confirmation that they’ve formed their own MC, Sons of Decimation.”
“Can they even spell decimation?” Moose jokes.
“They don’t have to be able to spell in order to do a fuck-ton of damage around this town,” Rock snaps back.
We recently elected Dane Johnston, aka Rock, as our President. He’s a veteran, like most of us in Savage Kings, and he’s a natural leader. Rock takes his new role in the club seriously, which is why he’s not in the mood to joke about a potential enemy.
“Sorry, Prez,” Moose grunts.
Rock nods and then picks up where he left off. “Right now, things are still new. We can dismantle them before they can grow into a real threat. They’re gathering funds, I’m guessing, for a clubhouse, equipment, and likely a stockpile of weapons.”
The room is filled with scoffs and grunts of anger. I take a deep breath and let this new information sink in. Something is scratching at the back of my brain, but I can’t quite put the pieces together.
Old prospects turned rivals, raising money for a clubhouse…
“I know one of their scams,” I suddenly announce.
“I saw a man I thought I recognized outside of Bloom he just squeezes my shoulder and tips his chin toward the exit. He’s letting me know he’ll cover for me and fill me in on any details I might miss.
Once outside, I roll my shoulders out and lift my face toward the sky. The dark, looming haze of anxiety dissipates the longer I’m outside, taking deep breaths. After a few moments of soaking in the crisp autumn air, I hop on my bike and head home. Or, at least, I intend to head home.
Instead of turning right at the end of the road, I take a left into town. I should go back to my place and throw myself into fixing up the house I purchased a few months ago. God knows I have a dozen projects to complete before winter hits and makes construction difficult.
Despite knowing all of this, I take another right and park in front of Tall Tales she simply cares for me in this unexpected and tender way.
My eyes flit around her face, memorizing the shape of her rounded cheeks, slightly upturned nose, and deep green eyes.
She’s focused solely on tapping my temple, then below my right eye.
Camden moves her attention to my chin, and then my collarbone, this time tapping with both hands on either side of my shoulders.
“See? Your breathing is back to normal.” The mysterious, ethereal woman graces me with a soft smile filled with light and life.
She’s too damn good for me. I’d ruin her with my darkness and snuff out her light. I’d suffocate her with the weight of my suffering. Fuck, I’d stain her soul with the blood I still have on my hands from years of combat and defending my MC.
“I have to go,” I tell her, a bit more harshly than I meant. Another reason I’m no good for her. She deserves someone who can handle her with care. I’d only cause hurt and destruction, and I can tell she’s already had enough of that in her short life.
“Okay,” she answers, the soft smile never leaving her face. “Thanks for coming in. I know it wasn’t easy.”
I furrow my brow, unsure how she saw right through me. All I can do is nod like the oaf I am and take off toward the front door.
A few moments later, I’m on my bike, hightailing it back to my house before I get any more crazy ideas like scooping Camden up and riding off into the sunset.