Chapter Thirty-Five
THE LAST THING I expected at this fucking show was assholes from Dorset Daggers turning up, and for them to come at us, like we’re the poor man’s club?
They had no idea who they were messing with.
Phoenix may come across as soft, but they’d risen from the remains of two of the deadliest clubs in the South of England.
Weak guys didn’t patch over those kinds of clubs.
The part that bothered me was that Caroline was here to see this. That she would be scared, and overwhelmed, and I had to keep my eyes on these pricks, because turning away would be inviting a fist to the back of my head, or worse.
“I think these two gentlemen need to check themselves, right, Rocket? They might think they’re the big men, but surrounded by women and children isn’t the place for a showdown.”
Rocket snorted, stepping around his counter with me, both of us moving in sync, putting distance between trouble and my woman.
“It’s like they think we’re scared of them though, VP. I mean, do they think this shit’s intimidating anybody? You’re from double D, right? You named yourselves after tits, now admittedly, that’s a good size for tits, but you’re still nothing.”
The first guy lunged at Rocket, but before I could intervene, another guy grabbed him from behind, and used his weight to throw him off balance, taking him down without any collateral damage.
Rocket and I stepped up to the one guy left on his feet, who was now casting wary glances at us, and the guy holding down his compadre.
“Nothing weak about us, dickhead, but you wanna pick a fight, you do it somewhere where we can’t risk hurting innocents, yeah?
This shit? Coward stuff.” Still the guy tried his luck, swinging a punch in my direction, and I know I heard a scream from Caroline that time, as I ducked his move, and caught his chest with my elbow as I swivelled into him.
He grunted and staggered into Rocket, who caught him by the neck and slammed him down to the grass.
The guy who’d stopped the first asshole was sitting on him now, watching Rocket with the other one.
He looked vaguely familiar, but I had no idea who he was.
He carried himself like one of us, even as he looked like his clothes probably cost about as much as my ride.
He was smartly dressed, with a tan coat over a black shirt and trousers, and shoes to match the coat.
The guy he was sitting on was still and silent, so he’d laid him out cold without even breaking a sweat.
“I already sent a text to security. I know a guy. They’re on their way.”
I nodded at him, and lifted my head to the wary onlookers.
“Nothing to see here, folks. These poor gents just got a little overheated in the sun. Please enjoy the rest of the exhibition. The beer tent’s that way,” I pointed as I spoke, and people started to move on, realising this show was over.
I glanced behind me, seeing Caroline huddled in a crouch behind her fallen chair, her face drawn tight and panicked.
“I need to see to my old lady. You got this?” I looked from Rocket to the unnamed guy, and they both nodded, so I turned and made my way back to Caroline, picking up Rocket’s sprayed work, and setting it back on the counter as I passed it.
“Baby? Hey, look at me,” I dropped to my knees in front of her, waiting for her eyes to regain their focus, finding me right there, her safe haven. Please don’t take this as a sign that we won’t work, I silently begged, reaching for her.
Caroline released a soft cry and threw herself into my arms, holding me tightly as she pressed her face against my neck.
She wasn’t tearful, and that surprised and impressed me.
For someone who wasn’t like us, that little interaction would be terrifying, especially since she could have been injured in the process.
“I’m sorry I almost backed into you.” I tipped her chin up so I could look at her again. “You’re not hurt, right?”
She shook her head, drawing in a shaky breath, as her eyes darted past me to the security team, who were removing the bad element, while the guy who’d backed us up chatted with Rocket, and helped him pick up the rest of our gear.
“Caroline, baby. This wasn’t the norm, okay? This stuff doesn’t normally happen, not at this show. It’s why I invited you, because it’s normally a really fun experience. Take a deep breath for me.”
The unknown guy disappeared as Rocket dropped down beside us, crouching near enough to support, but far enough back that he didn’t need to eat my fist.
“You okay, Caroline? Those two dipshits won’t be back, okay? They’re gone, and we’re all okay.”
He was keeping his voice low and even, and I shot him a grateful glance, turning my head as the unknown guy returned, offering something to me.
I reached out to take the bottle of water, and he nodded at Caroline, so I checked the lid was sealed, and thanked him.
“Water, baby? It’ll help.” She nodded, so I cracked it open and passed it to her. As soon as she finished sipping it, I righted the chair and helped her onto it.
“You okay now?” She lifted a slightly shaky hand and wobbled it in the air.
“Mostly. Is that the prospect?”
We all watched as Joey appeared, having been waiting in the van. He was holding something to his face, and when he pulled it away, there was blood.
“Prospect, what happened?”
He grinned widely. “Oh, two pricks were being dragged out of here, mouthing off about Phoenix, so I uh, helped them leave.”
Good boy. I nodded at him, and turned to the new guy, standing up to face him.
“You did us a solid there, thanks. I’m Harley, and this here’s Rocket, that’s Caroline, my old lady, and the prospect is Joey. We owe you one.”
The guy shrugged his expensively clothed shoulders, and pushed his long dark hair back. “No problem. I hate people like that. Nothing wrong with Phoenix MC as far as I’m concerned.”
I exchanged an eyebrow raise with Rocket, who stepped closer to me.
“You know of us?”
The guy nodded. “Friends call me Henley. I’ve been looking for a club since I moved to the area, but the only local one was a real dive, so I gave up looking locally, and I’ve been roaming further afield.”
“Henley?” Rocket said, eyeing him warily.
“Yeah, it’s where I’m from. Apparently I look like a rich guy, I don’t know. Aren’t you guys based in Wiltshire? I’ve been tempted to reach out, but I was looking for somewhere a bit closer to home.”
Well, well, well. I grinned at Rocket and held out my hand to shake Henley’s.
“I’m Harley, VP of Phoenix MC Hampshire. Maybe you’ve been looking in the wrong places, man.” He shook my hand, then Rocket’s, shaking his head slowly the whole time.
“Where the hell have you guys been hiding? The only club I could find when I moved here was the Rogue Riders, and I’d rather go clubless than join someone like them.”
Rocket started to laugh, backing off to bark some orders at the prospect, and tidy his counter. I checked on Caroline, who was sipping the water again, and watching both of us.
“Rogue Riders was thinned out and patched over by Phoenix a while ago now. We just might be your new local club.”
Henley widened his eyes at me. “For real? Any chance I can hang out sometime, and get to know you guys? I really want somewhere to call home.”
Caroline
WHAT A TERRIFYING EXPERIENCE, to be witnessing two thugs from a different club trying to pick a fight with my man and his brother.
They’d brushed it off like it was nothing to them, and maybe it wasn’t, but to me it was huge.
It was big scary men making threatening comments, and trying to escalate a situation, but Harley and Rocket were both so calm the whole time.
That’s probably the only reason I didn’t run screaming from our stand.
The guy who’d stepped in, who was apparently called Henley, seemed to chat easily with them while I sat and watched, not really listening, still trying to decompress.
I really was more okay than I’d have ever imagined I’d be in a situation like that, and if I could handle that, wasn’t I proving that I could handle Harley’s club too?
“Caroline?”
I realised he was talking to me now, and lifted my head.
“Yeah?”
“I was going to grab some food from the tent over there, you want to come along and choose what you want?”
I hesitated, because here I felt relatively safe, but out there, among more strangers, and potentially more bad guys, I wouldn’t be.
“Henley’s going to join us, while Rocket watches things here.”
“Just bring me a burger and a coffee, VP, I’m starving.”
Should I just stay here with him? I pondered that for a moment, and Henley smiled gently at me when I met his eyes. He was another unintimidating man, calm, relaxed, very well dressed.
“He’s a biker? He’s dressed too smartly,” I blurted out as I stood up, amid their laughter. I did it again, didn’t I?
“Thank you, darlin’. I’m just in my street clothes. I’d much rather be in leathers.”
“That’s what she said,” Rocket murmured under his breath, as he straightened out a stack of flyers with intense concentration.
“Let’s go, baby.” Harley took my hand and tucked me under his side, and not for the first time, I marvelled over how perfectly I fit under his arm. Like we were made to fit together like this.
“So, uh…” Henley stepped up on my other side, maintaining a respectful distance, but feeling very much like a protector flanking me. There was something about him that put me at ease pretty rapidly.
“Yeah. They teach you conversation starters like that in Henley, mate?”
They both laughed, and I found myself relaxing further, as we crossed the hard grassy ground toward a large food tent.
“I’m a master of many things,” Henley joked, gesturing to a large group to step around us, while he acted like a barricade between them and me.
We made it safely into the crowded tent, with two men providing a support bubble for me, one a virtual stranger and the other, hopefully my forever.
“Damn, look at those burgers,” Harley groaned, watching people heading away with their food. They were huge, definitely man-sized.
“I’d never get all that in my mouth!”
A snort and then chuckling had me blushing, because it was definitely a ‘that’s what she said’ moment, but I appreciated neither of them actually saying it.
They both ordered burgers when they reached the counter, and I opted for a cheese and ham panini, because it was a safe option, and I could definitely get it in my mouth.
We each ordered a coffee too, and Rocket’s order, and then we made the short trek back to our stand. Rocket had it shipshape again, so you’d never know there had been any kind of altercation there.
I took my seat and the men stood around to eat and chat, while I listened, and kept half an eye on the crowd of people moving around the stands, stopping to talk to vendors, or heading straight for beer and food.
I didn’t feel unsafe anymore, but I still felt edgy, like someone else could turn nasty or something.
“Caroline, you want me to get rid of that?” I lifted my eyes to see Harley reaching for the paper sandwich box, which I’d held on my lap while I ate.
“Thanks.”
He gathered up everything and headed off to the recycling area, while I picked up my kindle again and started to read, but when Harley returned, I ended up tuning back in on the conversation around me.
“So, you want to come to the club tomorrow, and I’ll show you around? You can meet our Pres, Micro, and a few of the others. It’s Sunday, so there are bound to be plenty stopping by.”
Henley nodded, looking as relaxed with our group as if he’d known us for years.
“That’d be great, thanks. I’d love to find somewhere to hang regularly. I’ve been living here nearly a year, and I’d given up hope.”
“You might still, when you meet the Pres,” Rocket joked, looking suitably spanked when Harley shot him a glare.
“Micro is fucking solid, and I’ll beat down anyone who disagrees,” Harley warned, and Henley laughed.
“Can’t wait to meet him. How does he feel about vintage rides? My pride and joy is my Vincent Black Shadow.”
They all fell silent, as Harley and Rocket stared at the potential new member in shock. I wondered if he’d have to be a prospect if he joined up. I had no idea how these things worked.
“You have what? How… Jesus fuck, yeah, bring that. I need to see it.”
The rest of the day went pretty smoothly, but I was exhausted by the time we were leaving, even wondering if I had the energy to hang onto Harley for the ride home. He kept suggesting I go in the van, so I could rest, but I didn’t want to be with them. I wanted to be with him.
By the time we reached my house, luckily with no mishaps, although I had almost dozed off a few times along the way, Harley pretty much carried me inside, and put me to bed, wrapping himself around me as we both drifted off into blissful sleep.