Chapter Six
Krampus
“You’ve lost your fucking mind!” Drac yells as Gremlin and the rest of the prospects march in with arms full of baked goods.
“Maybe,” I grump, grabbing a fresh donut out of one of the boxes as Wolfie passes by. It’s covered in thick chocolate icing, and the actual cake part of the donut is heavenly.
“What are we going to do with all this shit?”
“Eat it,” Gremlin answers for me. “You should try the cinnamon rolls; they’re fucking delicious.”
Drac folds his arms over his chest just as Amber and Giovanni appear in the kitchen. They don’t come around the club much, so seeing them both is a bit of a surprise.
“What’s all this?” Amber questions, her eyes darting from one pastry to the next.
“Apparently our breakfast, lunch, and dinner for the next few weeks,” Drac grumbles. “Krampus has lost his fucking damn mind.”
“He was trying to impress a girl,” Gremlin pipes in. “Ended up buying out her whole shop. Well, except for the cinnamon roll I bought. Technically, I was her first customer.” He puffs out his chest, a look of pride skirting his eyes.
“Wait a minute! Are you saying that you went into a bakery and bought out all the stock inside?” Her tone is a bit off-putting. Amber never yells, but for some reason, she looks angry.
My hand scrubs the back of my neck, cowering under her heated gaze. She’s probably the only woman in the world capable of making me back down. “Well, yeah. She didn’t have any sales, and her shop was about to close. I didn’t want her to get discouraged.”
“Her?”
“Mindy. The shop owner.”
She gives me a pointed look, with a single brow raising in disapproval. “And exactly how many workers did she have there with her?” Amber questions, her eyes darting around the room, almost as if she’s counting each pastry in her head and checking them off.
“Just her, I guess.”
“Fuck, Rich, do you realize what you’ve done?”
“Helped a woman sell out on her first day?” Not sure why I’m questioning her, but I am.
Amber marches over to me, her perfectly polished nail stabbing me in the chest violently. “Take me to her right now!”
“Excuse me?” Both Drac and I share a confused look.
“Now, Rich, before it’s too late.” She pushes me towards the door. “Move.”
“What is wrong with you, woman?” Drac raises a quirked brow. “You’re acting crazy!”
“Do neither of you understand how a business works? Sure, you just helped her out by buying all her stock, but she probably was baking for two or three days before that just to get enough baked goods for her opening. That’s a lot of work, especially for one woman to do alone.
Now you’ve gone and bought her out. She’s probably frantically trying to buy more supplies so she can make enough goods for tomorrow.
But half her day is already gone, which means she’s going to be pulling an all-nighter just to have something on the shelves tomorrow morning. ”
“Fuck, I didn’t mean to do that.”
“Right, so that’s why you need to take me to her right now, Rich. This is a baking emergency!” She quickly gives Giovanni a kiss on the top of his head. “You’re gonna stay with Daddy for a while, okay, Gio?”
He nods eagerly, already grabbing a donut from out of a box. It’s covered in sprinkles. “Okay, Mommy.”
“I may not come home tonight, baby. If my gut is right, this girl is going to need more than just me to get her back up and running tomorrow.” Her glare shreds me to pieces as a bubble of air gets stuck in my throat.
“I didn’t mean to make her life harder, Amber. See, this is what I get for being the nice guy for once. Maybe I’ll stick to being a cold-hearted bastard.”
She rolls her eyes. “Rich, we don’t have time for your self-deprecating bullshit. So shut up and take me to her shop; you’re wasting precious time here.”
She doesn’t wait for me to protest; she just marches out the door, grabbing a few boxes of cookies as she goes.
“Your woman is too damn feisty sometimes, Prez.”
A smile spreads wickedly across Drac’s face. “What can I say? I love a woman whose passion burns like a roaring fireplace on a cold winter’s day.”
“Get the fuck out of here with that poetry bullshit,” I shout, shoving him slightly. “You sound like a pussy.”
He laughs. “I’m just fucking with you, Krampus. I know how much you hate that kind of shit. But honestly, I wouldn’t have her any other way. That feisty side really turns me on.”
“Gross, keep the bedroom talk to a minimum, would you?”
“You need to get laid, my friend. Soon. Before your balls shrivel up and start to wrinkle.”
He slaps me on the shoulder, forcing me to put down the middle finger I throw up like a gang sign. “You better get going. She looks pissed. And a pissed off Amber is not something to trifle with.”
He smirks when I take off into a sprint after her, grabbing Gremlin, who just walked in the door with a cold beer in his hand. “You’re coming with me.”
“Where?” he questions, taking a small sip from the bottle, his eyes nothing but questions and confusion.
“Back to the bakery. Apparently, buying out the chick’s stock was taboo in the baking world. So, we’re gonna fix this shit. You, me, and Amber.”
“Is that why she looked so pissed and stormed out of here ready for war? You really know how to turn off a lady, VP. You should work on it.”
He cries out in pain the second my fist leaves his shoulder, knocking him slightly into the wall. “Just fucking follow me, would ya?”
“Hey now! I’m not the one who bought her out of her stock of goodies, so why am I being drug into this?”
“Because you bought that cinnamon roll, dummy. You started this mess.”
He rolls his eyes. “I already cracked open my beer, though.”
“It can wait.”
“Beer waits for no one, Krampy.”
“So, chug it then.”
“Have you gone mad, man? You know I get all burpy when I chug beer too fast. No thanks. I’d like my belly free of beer bubbles and cheap after-market stale beer breath.
“Like that’s the worst thing that’s ever been in your belly, Gremlin. I’ve smelled your ex-girlfriend. You would’ve been better off fucking Shamu than that fishy smelling twat,” Drac jokes.
He grimaces. “Hey now, no need to bring up past mistakes like that, Prez. Greta was a nice girl; she just had a glandular issue.”
“And an eating issue,” Voorhees snickers, suddenly popping up out of nowhere.
Gremlin takes another sip of his beer. “There is nothing wrong with a curvy woman, boys. You just gotta know how to handle all those curves, and like the motorcycle I ride, I ride them curves like I’m all in and burning rubber.”
A horn violently blares from outside.
“You’re pissing off the Prez’s Ol’ Lady, Gremlin. Do you think that’s a good idea?”
He sighs, seconds away from taking another glorious sip of his beer as he recounts his short-lived relationship with his ex. “Maybe I should call Greta again. She was a lot of fun in the bedroom.”
His hand violently swings wide when I hit it away from his mouth, the brown liquid spilling from the top.
“Just place the fucking beer on the table and help me fix this mess. That’s an order.”
“Fine, but I’m only doing this because I’m craving another cinnamon roll. I’m not doing this because you ordered me to. This is for that hot as fuck sweets goddess you’ve suddenly become fixated on.”
“Shut the fuck up, Gremlin, before I pummel your goddamn face.”
He smirks. “Testy. She makes you really testy, you know that, Krampy? Riled… jealous even. I’m sensing there’s something going on between you two. Maybe a little spark of some kind?”
“If you don’t shut up…”
“I know. I know. Face pummeled… got it.” He reluctantly follows me, slamming his almost full beer down on a table as he passes. “I can’t even drink a beer anymore without someone interrupting me,” he grumbles.
“The beer will be waiting for you when you get back, Prospect.”
“Like almost every woman who has ever slept with me—lukewarm, flat, and already halfway over me,” Gremlin fires back, practically pouting.
Chuckling, I ruffle up his hair, pushing him toward the cage that Amber’s already impatiently waiting in. Gremlin climbs into the back seat, already sulking.
“Why the pouty face, Gremmie?” Amber questions, smirking when he shifts to look out the window, bottom lip jutting out a mile long.
“That cold-hearted bastard dragged me away from a cold beer and made me spill some of it.”
“Poor baby,” Amber teases.
“Two sips, woman! I only got two sips! Do you know how devastating that is?
“Sooo devastating,” she mocks. “Whatever will you do?”
“Be parched. Dehydrated. And definitely NOT buzzed!”
Smirking, I meet his hateful eyes in the rearview mirror. “You’ll thank me for it later, Gremlin.”
“If I don’t get at least one cinnamon roll out of this, I’m gonna fucking riot.”
“I promise you’ll get a damn cinnamon roll.”
“Make that three. I want three goddamn fucking cinnamon rolls!” he yells, his voice filling the car with conviction and rage.
“Was the cussing necessary?” Amber growls, glaring at him from the passenger seat.
Gremlin crosses his arms in annoyance. “Honey, you have no idea how goddamn fucking necessary it is. Once we get back to the bakery, fucking swearing’s not allowed.” He lets out a sigh. “I’m just getting it out of my system before I get slapped in the head a million times for having a potty mouth.”
“What have you done to this man?” Amber questions, trying to hide her giggles.
“The man has a swearing problem. Someone has to teach him a lesson.”
“At least buy me dinner first before you start spanking me, Daddy,” Gremlin retorts, his face a mixture of amusement and annoyance.
“Fuck off, Prospect.”
He laughs. “Did I mention this chick makes him grumpier than usual? The guy can’t take a joke anymore.”
Amber eyes me curiously. “I can’t wait to meet this girl.”
We pull up to the bakery, but before we do, I make sure to slide on my mask. I don’t usually wear it while driving, if I have to.
“You know you don’t have to wear that stupid thing, Rich. I don’t understand why you’re constantly trying to hide your face. Your scars aren’t that bad,” Amber tells me, laying a friendly hand on my knee.
She doesn’t realize that the mask is the only thing keeping the beast inside me hidden. I just met this girl; I don’t need her to go running for the hills the second she sees my real face.