Chapter Twenty-One
“What’s going on?” Ashes asked Winter after Miranda had disappeared up the stairs.
“We were just talking to Hammer. I thought she could get him to find out what it would take for her to go back to school, if she wants. But he had it all ready. He gave her a new copy of her driver’s license, told her she had more papers on the way, and that she could enroll in classes as soon as she decided if she wanted to keep this major or pick a new one. ”
“What did she say?” Ashes shifted from one foot to the other. He had been planning to tell her all this, but was waiting for it to be a done deal. Maybe he should have mentioned it sooner.
“How did she seem?” He kept his gaze on the stairs where she’d disappeared and where she would reappear in a few minutes, he was sure.
“Surprised, confused.” Winter paused. “I think she doesn’t know what to do. Have you talked to her about it?”
“Not yet. I will. I’ll figure out what she wants to do, and we’ll figure out where to go from there.”
“Good plan. Since you’ve got her, I think I’ll go get some work done. I got a couple of new clients, and I’ve had ideas spinning in my head all morning.”
“You might want to go outside for a few minutes first,” he said, not looking away from the stairs.
“You’re up to something, aren’t you?”
Ashes felt Winter’s gaze on him, so he glanced in her direction. She stood with her hands on her hips and eyes narrowed as she watched him.
“You’ll have to go and find out.” He wasn’t going to tell her and risk Miranda overhearing.
To his surprise, Winter didn’t push. Instead, she folded her arms across her chest and headed for the door.
Good. He had a couple of minutes before Miranda was back, so he headed for Hammer’s office where he’d stashed the boots earlier.
“I’m doing it,” he told the club hacker. He retrieved the box from where it was stashed under the futon Hammer sometimes crashed on when he pulled an all-nighter, then headed back to the common room.
“Shit. I’ll get outside. After all her questions this morning, I forgot.” Hammer locked his terminal and stood.
Ashes heard the other man follow him but didn’t say anything as he went back to where he’d been when Miranda went upstairs and set the box on the table.
Hammer had just closed the front door behind him when Miranda appeared on the stairs, a pair of thin little anklet socks on her feet.
He shook his head. Good thing he’d had Billy pick up a pair of thick boot socks with the boots. They were in the box waiting for her.
“Okay,” Miranda said as she reached the ground floor. “First, shoes. I don’t like wandering around with nothing on my feet.”
“You have something.” He motioned to her socks.
She scowled but didn’t say anything more as she closed the distance between them.
He took her in as she made the trip. She’d found a pair of jeans that hugged her every curve, not that she had a whole lot after being held by that fuckwad for so long, but he was working on getting her well-fed again.
Still, those jeans were made for sin. “How tight are those jeans?”
“Not bad, why?” She stopped cocking one hip and putting her hand on it as if challenging him.
“I plan on being gone a couple hours, at least. Probably stopping for a bite too. Just want to make sure you’ll be comfortable.”
“They’re stretchy. As long as I don’t eat an elephant, I’ll be good.” She dropped down until her ass hit her heels, then bounced back to her feet and continued toward him.
Ashes couldn’t help but think he’d love to watch her make that move again, only with no clothes on. He could just imagine every bounce and jiggle. He had to shift his weight to make room for his stiffening cock in his jeans.
“So where are we going?” Miranda asked as she reached him. When she reached him, she leaned against his torso, tilted her head back, and looked up at him.
“For a ride. Here. These are for you. They’ve got good heels for riding.
” He tapped the box on the table, then leaned down and dropped a kiss on her forehead.
“Put them on and we’ll head out.” As much as he hated stepping away from her for any reason, he did, giving her room to pull out a chair and put the boots on.
There were people outside waiting for them.
He couldn’t get distracted and haul her up to their room.
“Heels?” She frowned down at the box. “Not sure I’ve ever seen anyone in heels on a motorcycle.”
Ashes rolled his eyes but didn’t let her draw him into this game.
If he engaged, she would twist everything he said until he was ready to scream, not at her, but in frustration.
Then she would giggle. Telling him she’d been fucking with him the whole time.
He loved that she wasn’t intimidated by him, but he didn’t have time for it right now.
He’d been working on getting this set up all morning, and Bulldog and the others would have his ass if he called it off to carry her upstairs so he could be balls-deep in her instead.
So, he would keep them on track, no matter how difficult it was. No matter that he wanted to pull her into his arms and kiss her breathless. That could wait. At least until they had this next bit done.
Miranda sat down before opening the box. She stared at them a moment before looking up at him.
“Put them on, we can’t ride with you barefoot,” Ashes said, waving his hand like he was impatient.
She shot him a frown but did as he prompted.
When she finished tying them and stood, he stepped in and noticed it was just a little easier to bend down and drop a chaste kiss on her lips. “How do they feel? Not too tight?”
She looked down at her feet, then back at him.
“No, they’re fine.” She looked around and seemed to notice they were the only two in the common room. Not unheard of but uncommon at this time of day. “Where is everyone?”
“Getting shit done would be my guess. Come on. I’m eager to get you on the back of my bike.” He urged her toward the door, trying not to think about how he’d like to have her astride the front of his bike instead of the back but he’d keep that fantasy to himself. For now.
At the door, Miranda stopped, turned, and gave him a look that said she knew something was up, but she couldn’t tell what. It was a good thing this would be done sooner rather than later.
He opened the door and motioned Miranda through, then followed her out.
She’d made it maybe three steps out, then froze.
He moved around her until he could see her face, and couldn’t help but smile at the look of shock and surprise.
Nearly everyone in the club was standing a few feet away, waiting for and now watching them.
“What is this?” she whispered.
“Just a little something,” Ashes said. He held out one hand toward Zipper, the club quartermaster and in charge of getting whatever the club needed.
He went down on one knee, lifting the cut Zipper had just handed him so she could see the back, the patches that looked so much like his, but instead of saying “Sons of Sin MC” and “Phoenix AZ” on the top and bottom rockers, it had “Property of” and “Ashes.” In place of the large patch of the winged skull that was the SOS colors, hers had a smaller version with the words “Phoenix Chapter” as part of the logo.
Their chapter had adopted the style recently after an issue at a rally where someone from another club was hassling one of the Sons of Sin old ladies.
There were so many SOS chapters, it had taken a while to find the woman’s old man.
And then the asshole from the other club had gotten his ass handed to him, and not just by the old man in question.
The Sons of Sin had each other’s backs. But to prevent it from taking so long to find someone, Phoenix had adapted their property patches.
“What’s this?”
“You know what it is. I know Winter told you what a property patch means. Often a brother doesn’t ask when he wants to make a woman his own, he just claims her and gives her the cut, but you’ve had too many choices taken away.
I won’t be someone who does that to you.
I want to be your choice, Tiny Warrior. So, what do you say? Will you be my old lady?”
He watched as she opened her mouth, then closed it. Wishing he knew what was going through her mind, he braced himself for her to say no. But after what felt like an eon, tears pooling in her eyes, Miranda nodded.
Everyone around them erupted in cheers and catcalls. Ashes stood and pulled her into his arms. As much as he loved his family, he wished it was just the two of them as he pulled her into a brief hot kiss.
“Get a room!”
Someone’s shout brought Ashes back to the moment. He loved having his woman in his arms, but she wasn’t all that into the public thing. He broke the kiss but couldn’t help the grin that spread across his face as he looked down at her.
“Are we still going for a ride?” she asked.
“Yeah, Tiny Warrior, we’re still going. I’ve been wanting to get you on my bike.
This is the perfect time. Come on, baby.
” He held her cut up, sliding it up her arms and settling it on her shoulders.
“This is really hot,” he said, leaning close.
“I want to take you from behind while you wear nothing but this later.” He smoothed one hand across his name low on her back and imagined plunging deep inside her while looking at his road name hovering above the firm globes of her ass.
He shifted his hips, hoping for a little more room in his jeans, to no avail.
“Come on. Let’s get on the road before I drag you upstairs and do that now. ”
Before he could steer her toward his bike, where he’d parked it in front of the building in preparation for their trip, Winter hurried and threw her arms around Miranda.
“Oh, I’m so excited for you. We’ll have a party to celebrate soon. I promise.”
“You don’t have to do that,” his woman said, flushing.
“Sure, we do. The guys love any excuse to party, don’t you, guys? How can we deny them that?” Winter gave Miranda another quick hug, then released her. “Go, enjoy your ride. I know I would in your place.” She wiggled her eyebrows as if leering at Miranda, sending his woman into a fit of giggles.
Ashes might think the whole exchange was a bit stupid and over the top but hearing Miranda giggle like that was totally worth it.
“Come on. If we don’t get out of here, we’ll never get back for the party.
” He used his hand at the small of her back to urge her toward his bike.
He needed to feel the wind in his face, and her at his back.
At the bike, he made sure she had her helmet on, and that the Bluetooth system between the two was turned on.
He had her get on, and once he showed her where to keep her feet, what to watch out for, and where to keep her legs away from the pipes, he climbed on and started it up.
When she laughed, he heard it loud and clear in his helmet.
Miranda wrapped her arms around him without prompting. He made sure she was secure, then he cranked the throttle and pulled out of the compound, eager to be on the road.