Chapter 5 #2
The door behind Hudson opened and Rosa, one of the Old Lady’s appeared.
I’d hoped to find her at some point today.
Rosa was a legend who took no shit from any of us and handled the brothers like she was commanding her own little army.
She was always the one called in when shit went sideways within the ranks of the clubhouse, both with the brothers and the women who hung around.
She had been married to the Club Enforcer for almost thirty years.
I’ve never been happier to see someone in my life.
Rosa walked around Hudson and straight to Tanya, grabbed her arm, practically throwing her towards the front door.
Hudson shook his head as the girl tried to sidle up to him.
He turned, his gaze catching mine, and I couldn’t help but arch a brow.
He deserved everything he got. Hudson made a growly sound and pushed away from Tanya, slamming out of the door, leaving her staring after him, her jaw clenched tight.
Rosa didn’t even bat an eye as she walked to Warren, hands on her hips.
She was the epitome of the phrase small but mighty, with her olive skin, thick dark hair, and black eyes of her Italian heritage.
Her hair was greyer now, but her skin remained smooth and although she dressed like an Old Lady, in tight jeans and a low-cut top with a leather vest of her own, there wasn’t anything trashy about her.
“She out?” she demanded of my brother.
Warren rubbed his chin, thinking about it. I crossed my fingers, but no such luck.
“She’s been here a long time, has nowhere else to go. We can’t kick her out,” he finally answered.
Rosa nodded her head at his decision. “Gia?”
“Not worth it, she has a rich daddy in town she’s trying to rile up by being here. Cut her loose.”
Well, that sucked. I watched the triumph in Tanya’s eyes as she disappeared through the front door.
Rosa made an exasperated sound and turned away from Warren.
Her eyes found me, widened a little, then a huge smile spread across her face.
She pointed at me. “Come see me after you’ve talked with your dad. ” And with that, she left.
I turned to Casper. He had a wide grin on his face. “He’s right. Tanya has been here a long time and she’s good, if you get me. Her and Hustle are real friendly.”
“Get bent, Ghost,” I muttered, but my heart wasn’t in the insult, and he knew it.
“I’m just fucking with you,” he nudged me with a grin, holding out a carton of milk with his brow raised. I shook my head. I liked my coffee black. “What a welcome back,” he leaned his elbows on the bar. He was a little way down from me, so he wasn’t leaning right in my face.
“Does this happen often?”
He swiped a hand over his smooth chin. “Not usually. Fights are mostly drunken brawls between the brothers, never any malice, just good natured and less violent than this,” he laughed.
“Good natured brawls,” I repeat. “Cos that’s normal.”
“When you’ve got this many guys together, the occasional scuffle breaks out,” he straightened. “The girls usually know their place.”
I sipped my coffee, surveying the room. Warren was talking to someone but caught my look and he patted the guy on the shoulder before heading toward us. He took the coffee right out of my hand and lifted it to his lips.
“Hey,” I back handed his chest. “Get your own.”
He chuckled as he handed it back. “Too much sugar. I’m sweet enough.” Casper set to work getting Warren his own drink. He leaned one elbow against the bar and angled himself, so he was facing me. “You should get dressed and we’ll get some breakfast before we go see King.”
“You had to ruin my morning,” I said with another eye roll.
“This didn’t ruin your morning?” he swept his arm behind him.
“Not my problem. These are your little bitches to keep in line.”
Warren nodded and took the coffee Casper passed him, who made himself scarce after handing it over.
“This isn’t the Starbucks I’m used to,” I mumbled.
I should have been going to the gym for a quick workout, then my morning coffee and bagel before I went back to the bar to get ready for the night ahead.
I was standing here in my pyjamas and bare feet but looking about, no one was watching us.
I guess having the VP as my brother meant I didn’t need to be worried about being ogled by these losers.
“I want to go see Rosa,” I said. “I’m going to shower and change.”
“No can do,” Warren stood to his full height, and I hated how far I had to tip my head back to look at him. “We need to speak to King first. Even Rosa knows that.”
I scrunched my nose, wanting to see my father as much as I wanted to stick a rusty nail into my eyeball. But it was unavoidable.
“Come on, Wave, it’ll be alright.”
If I wanted answers about why I was here and when I could get the hell out, I had to speak to my father. Putting it off was foolish, even though my chest fluttered at the thought of seeing him.
The last time I’d seen my father was the night before I left. He had been heading to meet some of his officers and hadn’t said a word to me, just walked out.
All the time I’d been gone, I’d never once heard a single thing from King Curtis.
I pushed away from the bar and steeled myself, my fists clenched.
“I got you,” Warren pressed a kiss to my forehead that almost made my heart break. “Always.”
I lowered my chin, unable to look at my brother. “I wish I could believe that.”
My heart pounded as we descended the stairs, a rushing sound in my ears, barely registering the people we passed as we headed to my father’s office.
I’d been in there a lot as a kid, when I was content to sit and read a book or draw pictures, spread out all over the floor.
Dad let me stay if he was alone. If any of his men wanted to talk, one of the old ladies escorted me out.
We didn’t talk much. I was happy being around him. As I got older, that changed.
Warren waited for me to shower and dress and offered some breakfast, but my stomach was churning. The last thing I wanted to do was eat. I had to get this over with. I needed to be strong when I did it. Puking on my shoes in front of my dad would not help.
“Where did everyone go?” I asked as we rounded a corner.
“Work,” Warren shrugged. “We have a garage in town, a couple of diners, even got us a hardware store now,” he grinned. “Plus, we’re working on some houses further down the acreage. Have a whole construction crew down there. Some of the guys are planning on taking a place.”
“People are moving on to the compound?” I asked in surprise. I knew brothers lived in the accommodation here, but houses? That was new.
“Yeah, we got some land a couple of years ago. The plan is for most of the club to live on or nearby, eventually. No one is being forced, but King thought it would be good to have everyone close. It’s subsidising work for a lot of people, plus the houses will be cheap to run and live in and you know King likes to have family cl…
” he trailed off, a pained look on his face.
I didn’t have the energy to make any comments about how I felt. The conversation died there, and we continued on our way to dad’s office. When I heard groaning, my steps faltered. A low breathy sound followed by a feminine giggle stopped me dead in my tracks.
“Oh hell no,” I balked.
Warren laughed and pulled my arm. “Relax, it isn’t King. He doesn’t do that here.”
“I don’t care whether he does or not. What the hell is wrong with you people? It’s disgusting.”
He shook his head and took my hand, leading me to the last door in the dark hallway, away from the sounds coming from what I presumed was a closet.
“Just be grateful it isn’t happening out here,” Warren smirked, making me shudder. “It’s no fun squeezing through tight quarters when a brother has his bare ass-”
I slapped my palm over his mouth to shut him up. He laughed behind my hand, then licked it.
“Ew,” I pushed him, and he hit the wall, laughing hysterically.
I slapped his arm, but he grabbed me, squeezing me in a bear hug from behind, then his fingers dug into my side, tickling me.
I screeched as I tried to get away from him.
He always used his size to his advantage.
At five ten, I was no slouch for a girl, but my brother was well over six feet of hard muscle.
“Warren, stop!” I tried to shout, but it came out a muffled mixture of laughter and pain. “Your bony ass fingers hurt.”
“Yell Uncle.”
“Never,” I shouted, getting an arm free and elbowing him in the gut.
He huffed out a breath, but he was humoring me.
I couldn’t dislodge the giant moron. But I knew a few tricks, I went limp, like a dead weight and he lost his grip on me, then I swung around and hit him in the side with a solid upper cut, causing him to bend, his breath whooshing out.
“Take that, fuck face,” I smirked.
“Are you two done?”
I froze at the voice behind me. Warren straightened up with a laugh as he hooked his arm round my neck. “You see that move?” he asked our father.
“I saw a girl get the drop on you, yes. You’re not ten years old anymore. Get your asses in here.”
I stared at my father’s retreating back, then glanced at Warren. Somehow, my father made an achievement seem like a disappointment. He was more concerned Warren allowed me to knock him off balance than me getting myself out of the situation.
Warren was trying to make me relax by acting like a big kid.
What he didn’t get was it made me look worse.
Now I’m still the kid my father thinks I am.
Not a grown ass woman who’s looked after herself for the last five years fine without this club, or my family.
I squared my shoulders and marched into his office, leaving Warren to follow.
Oliver ‘King’ Curtis was as scary as you would imagine the President of an outlaw motorcycle club to be. In his late fifties, he still looked fit and handsome. We both took after him in looks, though his dark hair was more grey, strong bone structure and dark brown eyes.
King always had a quiet, intense demeanor, rarely smiled, let alone cracked a joke. Given the title he held, the responsibility and the people he protected, not to mention the criminal empire he commanded in the Devil’s Chaos MC, he had little to smile about.
Would it hurt to show at least a little compassion to his children? I snorted at that thought. I’d stopped asking questions about our mother when I was nine, after he’d shouted so loud at me, I’d run to my room and not spoken to anyone for days. Not even Warren could coax me out.
Eventually it was Connor who brought me back from my depression and, for the first time, the fear of my father.
I’d asked about seeing Connor last night and Warren promised I would, although he hadn’t elaborated on what happened. All I knew was Connor had his own place away from the compound and I would see him after an appointment with his doctor tomorrow.
King went behind the enormous desk that took up most of the office, like he was some kind of businessman. He dropped heavily into the chair, the leather of his cut creaking as he moved. I always wondered why the guys never replaced their cuts, no matter how gross they got.
Warren was appalled when I asked about getting a new one after it got blood on it. He took care of his cut like it was a baby, loved it as much as he loved his bike. Another thing I would never understand about these men.
“Sit,” King barked, indicating Warren and me to the chairs facing his desk.
I contemplated disregarding his order. I was not a dog.
But there was no point trying to win that battle.
We both sat, Warren with his legs spread wide and elbows on the wooden armrests, his fingers laced on his stomach, while I leant back and crossed my legs.
I stared at my dad, wondering if time had softened him any.
He stared back and I couldn’t read what was going through his head.
The room was brightly lit, which somehow didn’t feel right for his presence.
There was a giant metal safe in the far corner, the kind you would need TNT to blow the door off if you didn’t have the key.
It looked like something from the Wild West era and had been in this room for as long as I could remember.
There were houseplants on a shelf near the window.
They were vibrant and alive. I wasn’t sure who was looking after them, unable to believe it was the man in front of me.
I waited him out. He would expect me to be flipping out or come in yelling and screaming.
But I’d gotten all of that out of my system with Warren and Hudson back home.
Not to mention, watching how everyone laughed their asses off at the two women fighting.
It was clear being an irrational or emotional female wouldn’t get me anywhere.
No matter what he said, it wouldn’t be good for me. I needed to contain that.
I’d already accepted I’m here for the short term. It was in my best interests to keep as clear a head as possible.
No, dear old dad was going to explain himself to me.