Page 11 of Wild Card (Royal Bastards MC: Cody, Wyoming #1)

NINE

Ash

I take the longer route back to town, ensuring we come into it from the far end, to the bar, and have to ride through it.

I want as many people here to see that she’s mine now.

I may not have been in town long, but spending some time in the bar before it closed last night taught me that this town adores her.

I can understand why. Ruby is unlike anyone I’ve ever met before, her beauty ain’t just external, it’s her whole fuckin’ aura.

“I thought you used to live here?” She looks at me strangely when I park up outside the bar.

“I did.” Balancing my bike on the kickstand, I wait for her to get off.

“You should have taken a right at the crossroads; we’d have been back here ten minutes quicker,” she informs me, and I quickly grab her arm to steady her when she wobbles on her feet.

“Don’t worry, it’s normal for first timers,” I assure her, making sure she’s stable before I release her. “And I know my way around this town, I just figured you were enjoyin’ the ride.” I smile at her, and it doesn’t take long for the one she gives me back to fade.

“I should head inside and speak to Esmé.” She suddenly looks bewildered now that we’re back in the real world.

It makes me want to grab hold of her and put her back on my bike so I can ride us the hell outta here.

I can see that she’s worried Brett is gonna be a problem.

But she doesn't need to be. If he hasn’t already learned his lesson, I’ll happily teach him another one.

He was lucky that the desperate sound of her voice pleading was enough to stop me; the rage I had for him was beyond anything I’ve had to handle before.

It was different, and I’ll be honest, a little scary.

The image of him hurting her and making her scared made me wanna put the son of a bitch in the fuckin’ ground.

“I’ll catch ya later,” I tell her, wondering if now would be the right time to kiss her again.

“Where are you going?” She looks slightly nervous, and I wonder if it’s because she wants me to stay and protect her, or if she’s worried I’ll go back and finish what I started with Brett

“I need to ride back to the club. Byron put me on collection duty with Taint,” I explain, wishing I could stick around. Something tells me she needs me, too, even if she would never admit it.

“You need me, you call. I’ll give you my number.”

She closes her eyes and shakes her head as if she just remembered something.

“I left my cell in Brett’s car last night,” she tells me, biting her bottom lip.

“You want me to go back and get it?” I offer, with a smirk.

“No!” Her eyes stretch, and she looks even more panicked. “I’ll see if Esmé can fix something for me. That’s if she forgives me for leaving her brother with his face busted open.” I hate that she looks so fuckin’ concerned for him. He doesn’t deserve a single thought in her head.

“Just tell her that the big, bad biker gave you no choice.” I decide that I am gonna kiss her, she looks too fuckin’ adorable not to, and when I move in and lock my lips with hers, she doesn’t resist. She kisses me back, in that soft, gentle manner that makes me wanna kill any man that came before me.

“I won’t be gone long,” I tell her after we both pull away. The way she’s blushing like we just committed a sin makes me wanna get off my bike, fling her over my shoulder, and take her upstairs so I can make the rest of her body blush.

“Goodbye, Ash.” She smiles as I kick-start my engine and take off toward the club.

“What the fuck did you do?” Byron greets me with a furious face when I step through the clubhouse doors.

“I don’t know, why don’t you tell me?” I shrug, knowing damn well what he’s talking about.

“I just had Mayor Preston on the phone, telling me how you attacked his son. He’s talkin’ about pressin’ charges. D’ya know what that means for you? You wanna go back to jail?”

“If anyone's gonna be getting charged, it should be his son. I was just fixing one of ya little town problems. I don’t see what the big deal is.”

“We don’t always fix things here with our fists.” Grizz decides to step up and have his say.

“Yeah? Well, maybe that's why you're losin’ control of your streets,” I snap back at him, and it makes the entire clubhouse go quiet.

“I thought a son of Dom’s would have more respect.” He looks me up and down with a snarl before shaking his head and slamming his shoulder into mine on his way out the door. I can feel the eyes of everyone in the room on me, and not one of 'em looks supportive.

“Prez, that asshole got what he deserved, he was–”

“You’ve barely been in town two days and already you’ve upset the mayor and Kurt Kingston.

I got enough on my plate without having to handle damage control,” Byron interrupts me.

“Here, in Cody, we got a system that works. We rely on it, and the people of this town do too. We don’t upset the fuckin’ mayor,” he explains, trying to adopt a calmer tone but unable to hide his frustration.

“So, we just let his son beat on his girlfriend and stand back? Do nothin’ about it? I don’t think my father would have allowed that.” I wait for his response, but he says nothing, just glares back at me.

“Careful, boy. You’re sailing a little too close to the sun,” he warns. “What Brett Preston and his girl get up to ain’t club business. We stay out of it.” He points his finger at me sternly.

“Hard to stay out of it when the kid’s gettin’ in to the girlfriend, ain’t it?” Moby adds, turning around to face the room and resting his elbows back on the bar. “Cute little Ruby Saunders… I underestimated you, Wild Card.” He holds his hand out to me to hit, and Byron quickly slaps it away.

“This ain’t a fuckin’ joke. I told you to stay fuckin’ clear of that girl.” He pierces me with his eyes.

“I heard he put her on his saddle and everythin’.” Moby stirs the pot a little more, and it makes me wanna put my fist through his face.

“Good news travels fast around here, don’t it? Good to see your mouth is as big as your dick,” I hit back at him, and Moby looks nothing but proud at the accusation.

“Hack stopped by the deli to pick up some subs. Wendy said she’d seen ya together,” Menace explains, talking like he’s some kinda local now, and I notice Zander’s finally decided to show his face when he steps up beside him, tipping his head at me in an awkward kinda greeting.

“Is there some kinda law against that?” I ask, waiting for someone to enlighten me.

“She’s Brett Preston’s girl,” Byron tells me.

“Yeah… well, she ain’t his girl anymore.” I wanna tell each and every one of 'em that she’s mine now, but I know that's taking things too far. If I move things too fast, I’m gonna scare her. Hell, I’m gonna scare myself.

“Is Taint here yet? We got those collections to make,” I remind the boss, deciding it’s best for me to get outta here. I ain’t liking this hostile atmosphere, and the sooner I do the job, the sooner I can get back to the bar.

“Taint’s dealin’ with something right now.” Byron looks shifty as he takes a stool and scrubs his hand over his face. “Hack will go with ya; he knows the ropes and the clients like him.”

“Looks like it’s me and you, Brainiac.” I look over to him and head out the door, leaving the outlaws, whores, and hangouts to judge me.

“So what’s the deal with these collections?” I ask Hack after we pull up at one of the bars on the outskirts of town.

“It’s one of the club’s business ventures. Freda came to Prez with an idea a few years ago. She has the expertise, and we offer the protection,” he explains as we head inside. The place is full of worn-out truckers, and it doesn’t look like it’d see much trouble.

“Follow me.” Hack smirks, nodding to the bartender as he leads me through the back and then up a dark, narrow staircase. Some blonde wearing a tiny pink thong greets Hack with a hug when we get to the top, and he grips her ass hard and winks at me over her shoulder.

“It’s been a while, Specks.” She twists some of his blonde hair around her finger.

“Been busy; how's things been?” he asks as she leads us into an open room where there are lots of other half-naked females, and men that sure as ain’t truckers being entertained by 'em. These guys look more like lawyers and accountants to me.

“Who’s your friend?” The blonde ignores his question and licks her lips as she moves over to me.

I look down and watch her slide her long-nailed fingers up my torso, her eyes looking up like she wants to take a bite outta me and wonder why my dick ain’t responding.

It seems Ruby fuckin’ Saunders has ruined every other woman for me.

“He’s new,” Hack explains.

“I’m a nomad,” I correct him. ‘ New ’ suggests that I’ll be sticking around, and I sure as fuck don’t intend on that.

“Sounds dangerous.” She raises an eyebrow seductively.

“Nah, it just means he don’t got no friends.” Hack looks across at me and sniggers before getting distracted by another girl who walks past him.

“Freda around?” he asks as he scopes the room.

“No, but she said to tell you what you came for is in the safe. Help yourself.” The girl doesn’t take her eyes off me as she explains, and I feel no urge to take advantage of the situation.

All I wanna do is get back to Ruby. I’ve started to become addicted to that feeling I get when I’m around her, and I don’t trust that ex of hers not to try something sneaky.

“You staying to play?” the girl asks, scraping one of those nails over my stubble.

“Not today, darlin’,” I explain, stepping back to distance myself. I don’t wanna be smelling like whore when I go back to Ruby.

“Shame, I could have had some real fun with you.” She shrugs as she moves on to join the other girls.

“What the fuck is this place?” I ask Hack when he returns from one of the side rooms carrying a thick envelope that he tucks inside his cut.

“Heaven.” He winks, slapping me on the back and leading us back out.