CHAPTER FIVE
Blue—
It’s been two days since Luisa visited the clubhouse.
I sit at the bar with a shot of whiskey while Gypsy, the prospect who was here that day, washes glasses. Glancing around, I frown. “Hey, Gypsy, where’s the other prospect?”
“Punk? He’s taking out the garbage.”
These two have only been prospecting for a month.
They’re a couple of guys Zig hired to help out down at the garage.
We need more guys, so when they showed an interest in joining the club, Rio decided to take a chance and let ‘em prospect. They’ve got a lot to prove before we ever decide if they deserve to wear a Saint’s Outlaws patch on their backs.
Maybe after today, we won’t be so desperate to fill out the ranks.
I push my glass forward. “Hit me again.”
He pours me another shot, and we hear the rumble of bikes. The club has been gone for three days now, and I’ve been bored as hell. I’ve spent most of the time forbidding myself from seeking out Luisa for another round.
“That’d be the club coming back,” I say and drain my glass. “Let’s go greet ‘em, prospect.”
We stroll outside and watch our club as well as the six Desert Dogs from El Paso pull in and shut their bikes down.
“Who’re they?” the prospect asks.
“They’re the club Rio wants to patch over.”
“Patch over? You mean they’re gonna be Saint’s Outlaws before me?”
“Yep. That’s what it means.”
“That sucks.”
“Don’t worry, kid. Your time will come. Punk’s too.” I jerk my head toward the door. “Better go make sure you two have got the coolers stocked. We’re gonna have a party tonight.”
“Son-of-a-bitch,” he mutters low, and goes to do the task.
I grin and take in Rio and Zig as they approach.
“You hold down the fort, Blue?” Rio asks.
“Yep.” I make no mention of my visitor and change the subject. “But I don’t think my staying was really necessary.”
“Still, I felt better about it, especially with DKs in the area still a possibility.”
“I get that.” I lift my chin to the new men. “So? Things went well?”
“Yeah. I think they’re gonna work out just fine.”
“Does that mean we’re having a patch-over party tonight?”
“Yeah.” He turns to the new men. “You boys remember Blue from his last trip down, right?”
They all nod.
Rio points at each man and refreshes my memory on their names. “This is Vic, the Desert Dogs president. He’s gonna to be our new Secretary.”
I shake his hand.
Rio points to each man down the line. “This is EZ, Trip, Rush, and Dragon.”
I shake each man’s hand.
Prez lays his hand on the shoulder of a gray-haired man. “And this old guy is Papi, he’s our new chaplain.”
“Really? Didn’t know we needed one,” I say, shaking his hand, and the old guy winks at me.
“We can all use a little prayer, right?”
“Guess so,” I agree. With these six guys, we’ll have twelve men, plus the two prospects. It’s a lot better than the six of us originals. It’ll give us better odds going up against the Devil Kings if it comes down to it.
Rio meets my eyes and nods his head toward the door. “Go to my office and get the patches Zig ordered. They’re in the top drawer. Meet us in the chapel. And bring the brass bowl. I want to get this taken care of right away. We’ve got business to discuss.”
“Sure thing, boss.” I walk inside, and the men all follow, moving down the hall.
I find the manilla envelope containing the center patch, plus the top and bottom rockers. Then grab the large, shallow brass bowl off his credenza.
When I walk into the room, Rio’s already seated at the head of the table.
I lay the envelope down in front of him and put the bowl down, too.
Then take the chair on his right, which is my usual spot as Sargeant at Arms. Zig sits to his left.
Next to me is Bagger, our enforcer. Across from him is Mauler, our road captain, and next to him is Bandit, our treasurer.
The six men from the Desert Dogs all stand along the walls.
Rio takes his large Bowie knife from his hip and passes it first to Vic, their president.
Vic shrugs out of his Desert Dogs cut and lays it across the table face down. With the blade, he cuts through the threads holding his old patches to the leather, then flips his cut over and cuts off the patch on the breast that reads president.
I see his throat bob and know it’s a big deal for him. He’s losing his position as head of his club. In exchange, he’s joining a much bigger MC, and for him, that’s the payoff. Still, I’m sure it’s not an easy thing to do.
When he’s finished, he hands them to Rio along with the knife.
Rio tosses the Desert Dogs patches in the brass bowl, pulls out his lighter, and lights the edge of one. Soon flames flicker up and consume them. The glow reflects in Vic’s eyes as he watches them burn.
Prez passes the knife to the next man down the wall, and each one in turn steps forward to remove his old patches and watch them burn in the growing pile of ash.
When that’s complete, Rio goes around the room to each man and passes out their new Saint’s Outlaws patches.
When that’s done, Rio slams the gavel down and calls their first meeting to order, and the men take a seat at the table.
He and Zig fill them in on our problems and run-ins with the Devil Kings. From the story Vic tells, apparently the Desert Dogs had issues with them as well, and have seen them around since we drove the Devil Kings out of town months ago. This is news to us.
The six of us originals all exchange a glance, knowing this isn’t good news. We’d all hoped the situation had been dealt with.
“Looks like they’re going to be an ongoing issue for us, boys,” Rio says. After a few more minutes of discussion, he slams the gavel down, and we adjourn to the bar for a round of shots, and the celebration begins.
The patch-over party lasts well into the night, and Rio calls in some of the hang-around women, which our new brothers appreciate.
The size of our club just doubled, and that’s going to take some getting used to. I’ve suddenly got six new brothers.
When we remodeled the inside of this warehouse, Rio had an eye to the future and made sure we had enough bedrooms built to house the additional men, so at least they’ve each got a place to crash.
It was interesting to find out in the meeting that some of the guys have automotive experience, so when Rio brought up the fact that our club owns a garage in town, some jumped at the chance to work there.
It’ll definitely take part of the load off the rest of us, but the Saint’s Garage has been making good money and now we’ll be able to expand and add another lift or two.
I know Rio already had plans drawn up to expand two more bays.
All in all, things are looking up for our club, even with the DKs lurking.
I toss back a drink and feel my phone vibrate with a text.
I lean to look at the screen.
When I see it’s from Luisa, I step outside to read it and light a smoke.
LUISA: I just wanted to say good night before I went to bed. I hope you had a good day.
I grin and take a drag of my smoke, then fire a response. She and I have been communicating since we were together three days ago.
ME: Goodnight, angel. Dream of me.
LUISA: I miss you.
I stare at that last message for a long time. On the inside, I’m at war with myself. I want nothing more than to climb on my bike and ride to her father’s land and see her.
On the other hand, I don’t want to get her in trouble or get myself shot.
I check the time. It’s almost 1am.
ME: Your parents asleep yet?
LUISA: They’ve been asleep for hours.
ME: Do you have a security system?
LUISA: We do. Why?
ME: Wishing I could come see you, but not lookin’ to get shot, babe.
LUISA: I know how to turn it off. Will you come?
ME: It’s probably insanity. I don’t want to get you into trouble.
LUISA: Please come. Park your bike on the north access road and walk in. I’ll meet you at the pool house. It’s unlocked.
ME: Pool house, huh? Fancy. You sure about this, babe?
LUISA: Yes. How soon can you be here?
ME: Give me fifteen minutes.
LUISA: I’ll be waiting for you.
I grin and shove the phone in my pocket, then grind my cigarette under my boot.
Bagger strolls outside just as I’m throwing my leg over the seat of my bike.
“Where’re you goin’, brother?”
“For a ride.”
“I’ll come with you.”
“Not this time. Goin’ to get laid.”
“Oh,” he replies with a chuckle. “Have fun.”
“Plan to. See ya.”
“Treat her with respect, young man,” he teases in the voice of a woman and shakes his finger at me. “Pa and me will leave the light on for you.”
I flip him off and pull out.
Fifteen minutes later, I coast to a stop on the dirt road on the far side of the pecan groves. Leaving my bike, I head up the path between the trees toward the back of the house.
I can see the blue glow of the pool lights as I get closer and spot the dark, shadowy structure that must be the pool house.
I pause on the side, scanning the house and area, but see no one. Moving around the corner, I find the sliding glass door unlocked, and I slip inside.
The place is much larger than I expected, and the floor to ceiling curtains are drawn closed across the expanse of glass that faces the pool.
“Luisa,” I whisper.
A shadow moves near what looks to be a sofa. A second later, her arms wrap around my waist. She’s wearing a gauzy white nightgown that flows to her ankles.
“You came,” she whispers, her head against my chest.
I stroke her hair and press a kiss to the crown of her head. “Said I would, didn’t I?”
Gathering her face in my palms, I tip her head , and my mouth finds hers. It’s like we’ve been parted for much longer than the three days it’s actually been since I took her virginity.
I hope she’s had time for the soreness to go away, because I want to show her tonight how pleasurable sex can be without the pain she experienced last time.