CHAPTER 2
FRENZY
The doors to the clubhouse open and the sounds of the Old Ladies reach me as I turn toward them. They all have smiles on their faces as they walk into the common area with a few bags in their hands, including some grocery bags. Wrenley is carrying her and Prodigal’s daughter, Maya, who has a big gummy grin on her face.
She’s a sweet little baby and my heart warms while I push away the flash of jealousy that washes over me. Don’t get me wrong, I’m damn glad that some of my brothers have found their Old Ladies and we have the next generation of Devil’s Saints coming into the world. With how many brothers have settled down, I’m sure Maya and Rain, Heather’s little girl with Bedlam, Viper, and Scope, will be joined by more little ones soon.
Our chapter isn’t the only one where brothers have been finding their better halves. Seattle has been locking in Old Ladies left and fucking right from what we’ve been hearing. Next up, if I had to bet, would be Charleston even though they have some wild fucking brothers in that chapter. Who fucking knows; I wouldn’t count out Tampa on the Old Ladies leaderboard.
Prodigal gets up and practically sprints toward Wrenley and Maya. The little princess chaps and giggles while straining to get toward her dad. He tucks her into his chest and smothers her adorable little face with kisses as he wraps an arm around Wrenley’s shoulders and tucks her into his side.
My VP isn’t the only one who has joined the women. Lucifer, who is a man I would never want to cross, pulls Cherise into him and kisses her like they haven’t been together forever and he’s missed her even though it’s only be hours since she’s been gone. Prodigal makes a gagging noise in the back of his throat at seeing his parents make out, but Wrenley smacks his chest with the back of her hand in chastisement.
Apostle and Scythe, two of the club’s enforcers, become fucking big teddy bears when they reach their women. Apostle growls at the kiss Scythe plants on Tallulah, his Old Lady; not that I can blame him considering Tallulah is Apostle’s little sister. Scythe meeting her was entirely a stroke of fucking luck if you ask me.
Sioux, Apostle’s Old Lady, grips the back of the big guy’s neck and pulls him down to kiss her. Or to distract him from what his club brother is up to with his blood sister. The man practically melts into Sioux and doesn’t waste a moment in taking over the kiss.
My heart thumps in my chest and that familiar ache grows. I know what it is, and I know why I’m feeling the way I am. Sure, I’ve spent a lot of years making use of the club angels and randoms I’ve come across. But it was never anything more than a quick fuck.
I’m ready for something more. I want something more.
That’s why I’m always on the lookout for anyone who might be in my path. I’ve learned from these guys that the woman who is meant to be yours might be coming my way. I’m not a stupid man, I know I can’t force it, but that doesn’t mean I’ll let something pass me by.
Hell fucking no.
I can only hope that when I find my woman, I won’t do anything to fuck it up. It hasn’t happened with all my brothers, but more than a few have made it harder on themselves, and their woman, than need be. I won’t be doing that shit. Hopefully.
“Lucifer,” Cherise’s voice has a hard edge to it that has me paying attention, and I’m not the only one, “there’s a problem that we’d like to talk to you about.”
I perk up, along with the men who are holding their Old Ladies. Lucifer studies his woman’s face, taking in the seriousness written all over her and nods once before leading her over to some tables. The rest of the group is on their heels, and I join them along with a few other brothers including the rest of the club’s leadership.
Brothers pull their old ladies down on their laps which is only comical when Prodigal does it and has both Wrenley and Maya on his lap. The little princess looks thrilled and coos loudly which has us all grinning at her.
Raphael, our road captain, Loot, our treasurer, Tack, our sergeant at arms, and Hacker, our secretary and go-to tech genius, pull up chairs to the large table and get comfortable. I’m not part of the leadership in the club and I probably shouldn’t be including myself without a second thought, but my gut is telling me to pay attention.
“What drama are you getting us involved with now, woman?” Lucifer’s voice is deep but there’s a hint of tease to it that we don’t hear often. When Cherise glares at him, he straightens up and goes from being her Old Man to the DSMC President in a heartbeat. “Tell us the problem.”
Cherise nods once before speaking. “We’ve been going to a bakery for a while now.” She looks toward Wrenley and Sioux, her face scrunching up slightly. “What? A year now?”
Sioux nods. “It wasn’t long after it opened when we found it. Right after Valentine’s Day last year.”
“Is this the place that you got those cupcakes and little cookie things you’ve been bringing to the club parties?” Apostle licks his lips as if he can taste the goodies he’s talking about.
I don’t blame him. I’ve been known to put down some of those sandwich cookies. They look fancy as hell, but that doesn’t stop them from melting in my damn mouth. Honestly, I never gave much thought to where they came from; I had kind of assumed one of the Old Ladies was making them.
“That’s the place,” Cherise confirms and gives Apostle an indulgent smile, “and those cookies are macrons.”
The big guy shrugs one shoulder, his voice casual, but with a hint of appreciation, “Whatever they’re called, they’re delicious.”
“Scarlett will be happy to know that.” When Cherise says the name Scarlett, something inside of me sits up and takes notice. It’s an odd fucking sensation; one I push aside for the moment.
Lucifer questions, “What’s so important about this bakery other than the fact that the brothers can decimate the desert table?”
“Today we went into Cresent Sugar Bakery to get a snack before doing some shopping. Scarlett is a sweet girl. She’s always nice when we go in and has never looked at us sideways for our cuts. She’s a happy person who normally wears a big smile on her face. Today, was different,” Cherise gets down to business.
I find myself shifting in my seat, something being wrong with the owner doesn’t sit right with me. I’m aware that doesn’t make any fucking sense considering I’ve never met her, but it is what it fucking is.
“She was clearly upset about something,” Cherise explains, “even though she was trying to hide it.”
“Her smile was fake as hell,” Wrenley adds in and Cherise nods solemnly.
“It took a little convincing,” Sioux snorts out a laugh with Cherise’s words, “but we got her to tell us what has been going on. Apparently, she’s had problems with someone messing with the bakery.”
I perk up, unable to keep out of it, “Messing how?”
Lucifer looks over at me with an arched eyebrow and all I can do is shoot him a sheepish smile. Thankfully, he doesn’t call me out on why I feel the need to be involved in this conversation. I’m curious, but my hackles are raised a little bit.
It’s not a common thing for the women of the club to get involved in club business and they definitely don’t bring other people’s issues to us. I’m not sure how to feel about this turn of events, but I also can’t deny that I want to know more.
“Today when she went into the bakery, there was graffiti on the back wall.” I open my mouth to tell her it’s not such a big deal, but Cherise doesn’t give me a chance. “It’s not the first time. This time it was only the back wall, but it’s been the front and back before. Once her bakery was broken into,” her words have my spine straightening, “nothing was stolen, but whoever it was destroyed most of the interior of the bakery.”
Lucifer’s voice is gentle, like he’s cajoling his wife, “This sounds like an issue for the police.”
Cherise narrows her eyes to slits and it’s the epitome of ‘if looks could kill’ which has me thinking about taking a step back. She might be a sweetheart, and a mom figure to many of us club brothers, but I’ve also seen her put someone in their place when needed. And she does it with precision.
“No,” Cherise’s voice is firm, “this is an issue that we can help with.”
“She’s not club,” Prodigal gently points out which earns a hard glare from Wrenley, “and neither is her business.”
Prodigal notices the look on his woman’s face and blanches slightly as he holds his hands up in surrender. “She’s our friend,” Wrenley points out, “and she needs help.”
“You’re not willing to help our friend?” Sioux’s face is incredulous as hell as she looks at Apostle. “She needs help. I’ve never known you all to be men who turn your backs on a woman who needs help,” there’s a tsk in her voice.
I’m not the only one who drops my head. With just a few words, they’ve been able to chastise us completely.
Lucifer sits up a little straighter and I know what he’s going to say before he even says it. “No,” he concedes, “you’re right. We’ll help your friend. We can’t have women in our city being terrorized.”
The women beam and the men light up and puff their chests out like they just won something. I swear they look like fucking peacocks right now. It’s amusing as hell because they don’t even see how their women manipulated them. Even if they’re doing it for a good reason.
I barely bite back a chuckle as the women get up in a flurry of activity, kissing their men on their cheeks and walking away while talking to each other excitedly. I shake my head and run a hand over my face to try and hide my grin.
“What’s so funny?”
My head snaps up to find Lucifer glaring at me. I shrug one shoulder and try to keep my face neutral. But I can’t fucking do it.
With a bark of laughter, I tell them, “You’ve all been had.”
“The fuck we have,” Scythe snarls.
I point at him, “Your woman didn’t even have to say a word and you were nodding right along with Apostle and Prodigal.” My words are filled with amusement, “They played you and knew exactly which buttons to push.”
“Oh, like you’d rather us not do a damn thing and leave this Scarlett woman out there to deal with this problem on her own?” There’s a challenge in Prodigal’s voice.
I straighten up quickly and shake my head. “I’m not saying that, I’m just saying that those women did a number on you.”
“Maybe,” Lucifer concedes while rubbing his chin.
I’m not sure I like the way he’s looking at me right now. My gut sinks because I know that look, I’ve seen it before when he’s coming up with some sort of fucked up plan I’m going to hate. I might not hold a position of power in the club, but that doesn’t mean I’m not in the thick of things.
My brothers know they can rely on me for anything that needs to be done. I don’t shy away from the hard jobs and I’m always willing to mix it up and draw some blood, if need be.
That’s just the way it has to be when you put on the DSMC cut and I accepted that shit a long time ago.
“You need to head over to Crescent Sugar tomorrow, Frenzy,” Lucifer’s grin is dangerous as fuck and has me swallowing hard. “Find out what’s going on and then come to me with a plan on securing the bakery for this girl. I won’t have my woman, my daughter in law and my granddaughter going to some bakery that’s being targeted.” He murmurs, “And if you think I didn’t know exactly what my wife and those women were doing, you’re wrong.”
With that he stands up and stalks out of the room, no doubt going after his woman.
My head drops back on my neck with a groan. Even though I’m not sure if I’m thrilled about this assignment, I am curious as fuck. If nothing else, I’ll be able to satisfy my sweet tooth.
Something tells me I’m going to get more than a treat when I head over to the bakery tomorrow.