Chapter 18
Chapter eighteen
Barrett
Last night was heavy. Camryn never asked exactly what our work with the Monaghans entails, but she needed some reassurance of what it didn’t include.
Honestly, had she wanted details, I would have given them to her.
I refuse to lie to my woman about anything.
But she trusts me enough not to need a list of particulars, and that means more to me than she could possibly understand.
“Any other business?” Ozzy asks as we all sit around the table in church. This is our typical weekly check-in when we go over business from the bar, strip club, shop and of course our runs for the Monaghans.
“Yeah, we need to talk about the Russians,” I say. “Can’t be sure, but I think someone from Sokolov’s crew was at Thorn and Thistle last night.”
My brothers are wearing varying expressions of surprise and anger. Yup, the Sokolov name is sure to piss everyone in this room off.
“What happened?” Ozzy asks. He looks more pissed than anyone in the room. That vein in the middle of his forehead looks like it’s keeping time with his rapid heart rate. Ozzy takes the protection of his club and everyone working for him more seriously than any MC president I’ve ever known.
I explain Camryn’s rundown of what happened, and the brothers listen intently.
“Not a lot to go on,” Braxton says when I’ve finished.
“It’s not. A hunch at best,” I agree. “But I’ll be damned if we get caught with our fucking pants down.
I think we need to keep an eye on all our old ladies and our kids,” I say, nodding toward Wyatt.
He’s already had to deal with those fucking Bone Breakers going after his kid. That shit cannot happen again.
Ozzy nods a few times. “Alright. The women don’t go anywhere without one of the brothers or a prospect with them. That means if they need to go to the store, get their hair done, fucking want a coffee from Betsy’s, someone is with them.”
“I think we should add a security guard to the bar. Two scary-looking motherfuckers are better than one,” I say.
“Done,” Ozzy says. “What about the flash drive? When is Sawyer going to be here?”
Last week, I told the guys what we’d found in the stuffed elephant and the note.
We all came to the conclusion that this could have something to do with Sokolov since Sami mentioned the Bratva in her note.
At the time, it seemed like too much of a coincidence that they would connect Sami to me or know she found a way to get the flash drive to me, but now I’m not so sure.
“He said maybe next week. So not soon enough,” I say, and Ozzy nods.
“Better than nothing, brother,” my prez tries to reassure.
“What about Midnight Rose?” Braxton asks.
“Talk to Sylvie. If she wants more security, then I’ll sign off on it.”
“She might want to know what’s going on,” Braxton says, but Ozzy shakes his head.
“Sylvie doesn’t want to know anything about the club dealings as long as she and her girls are safe and nothing happens inside the club.
Just tell her we’re dealing with something and we aren’t sure how viable a threat it is yet.
She needs to keep an eye on the customers and make sure no one is asking the dancers questions about the club—but she won’t want to know any of the details.
It’s a deal she made with Trick when he hired her.
That way, nothing can come back on her.”
Sylvie is the best damn house manager we’ve ever had. Ozzy looks at her as more of a partner than an employee, the same way Trick did, and all of us respect the hell out of her.
“We good?” Ozzy asks the table and all of us nod in confirmation before Ozzy slams the gavel down.
“Want me to pick up the girls from school?” Knox asks as we’re walking out of church.
“We’ll both go. I need to figure out a way to talk to Syd about what’s going on. Seeing your ugly mug might scare her before I have a chance to explain things to her,” I say with a grin tilting my lips.
Knox rolls his eyes but doesn’t comment on the ugly mug remark. “Just be honest with her. Syd’s a smart kid who’s seen a lot. She’ll know if you’re lying, and that sure as shit won’t win you any points.”
Sometimes I wonder if she’s too smart for her own good. She sure had to grow up fast and has seen too much. I fucking hate the fact that something is out there that could hurt her. I rub the center of my chest; this gnawing tightness is something I’m not used to and have never felt before.
“You okay?” Knox asks, clocking the motion.
“Yeah, I just feel a little off.”
“Tight in the chest?” he asks.
“Yeah,” I breathe out.
“Feel like you’re ready to murder anyone who threatens your woman?”
“Fuck yeah, I am.”
Knox chuckles and clasps my shoulder. “That’s what being in love does to a man.”
I rear my head back. Sure, I’ve claimed her as mine; she sleeps in our bed every night, and I miss the fuck out of her, even if she’s just in the other room. Is that love?
“I know it was a shock to me when I admitted it to myself for the first time,” he continues. “Don’t worry, you’ll get used to it.” The man laughs, full belly, as though my reaction is the most hilarious thing he’s ever witnessed.
I don’t know if he’s right about that. This feels completely foreign. How the hell do my brothers walk around when it feels like half their heart is on the outside of their body, where any asshole with a grudge can get to them?
“I’m going to go talk to Sylvie about extra security. See you at the school.” Knox shakes his head with a knowing grin plastered on his face. The cocky bastard.
I head out and get on my bike, still confused about how I can be so stupid about not recognizing the signs of falling in love with Camryn.
It’s not something I’ve ever considered.
Nothing with my woman is, so it shouldn’t surprise me that Knox is right, but it does.
I fucking love that woman with everything in me.
And I need her to know that. Need to show her.
When I get back to the house, she’s on the couch with a cup of coffee in one hand and a romance novel in the other, a small smile tipping the corner of her mouth.
She looks up and the smile turns megawatt as I walk straight toward her and kiss her, her mouth instantly opening and giving me access. There’s nothing better than kissing Camryn. She responds full force every time, and I fucking love it. I love her.
“Hey, baby. Let’s go for a ride. I want to feel your tits against my back on my bike.”
Camryn barks out a laugh and shakes her head. “You and that mouth.”
“You love it.”
She rolls her eyes but doesn’t say anything. The grin on her face is still in place, so I know I’m right, though.
Cam hops up from the couch. “I’ll go get ready.”
Last week, I took her and Syd to a little shop in Ayre and got them outfitted with everything they needed.
Syd doesn’t love riding in the cold weather, but fortunately for me, it doesn’t bother Camryn one bit.
We’ve had an unseasonably dry winter so far, but that’s sure to change any day.
I want to get as much time as I can with my woman at my back and on the open road before that changes.
Camryn walks out of the bedroom a few minutes later.
My gaze takes her in—from the black motorcycle boots with a little heel, to the tight jeans she’s wearing under the black leathers covering her legs, to the long-sleeved thermal that fits tight around her perfect tits.
My mouth instantly waters, and I want them in my mouth.
But I promised her a ride, so I silently tell my cock to stand the fuck down.
When I make it to her face, she meets my gaze, her brow arched with a knowing look in her eyes.
“You’re taking me out on your bike. Stop staring at me like you’re two seconds away from attacking me and ruining all the work it took to get into all this stuff,” she says, waving a hand over her outfit.
She knows me too well.
“Turn around for me.”
Cam lets out a light giggle but spins around and turns her head to the side, smiling at me.
“Fuck, your ass looks good in those leathers.” The belt sits at her waist, and the legs come up to just below her ass cheeks, framing one of my favorite parts of her body perfectly. What am I saying? There isn’t a part of her body I don’t love.
“Come on. The day is wasting while you stare at me,” she says, sliding her arms into her jacket.
I walk up to her and grab her around the waist, pulling her flush against me. “My day is never wasted looking at you, baby.”
Her cheeks turn a pretty shade of pink before she kisses me hard on the mouth. Then she smacks my ass twice and dislodges from my hold. “Come on. Get moving.”
I laugh as she steps past me, grabbing her helmet on her way out the door.
“Yes, ma’am.”
The wind is frigid, and cold air bites at my skin.
But the feel of Camryn behind me as we cruise through town, then hit the highway, is the only thing on my mind—the only thing that matters.
I didn’t really have a destination in mind when I got on the bike, but now that we’re headed west, I know exactly where I want to take her.
I pull off the highway and take a dirt road slowly until it opens up to a clearing with a lake nestled between the trees. No one comes out here, especially not in the winter, so we have the entire place to ourselves.