Chapter 6
Hawk
The ride to Jersey was always long, but this time it dragged on.
Ma and I still weren’t on the best terms and neither of us could decide who was in the right.
She’d known all along this was the plan and never told me, even after Pops died and Petrov sent that letter to her.
He handed it to me to pass to her. Unbelievable.
It was in my hands that day I rode up to ensure he knew business would not be affected by the loss of Raven.
I contacted Petrov, Sr. the day Ma showed me the letter.
He apologized but said it was Pops who had instructed him to share that with Ma first if something happened to him.
We couldn’t speak about much on the call.
Even with Keys and the guys that worked for him, we could never trust a call wasn’t monitored.
Every hacker had their unicorn was what Keys explained.
Someone who was just out of reach. So the call was quick and he said we’d speak more once I got there.
Senior told me to get my affairs in order, whatever that meant, and arrangements would be made soon. The following day, Junior called and invited us up. When he suggested I bring Ma, I asked if I needed a tux.
“We’ll take care of that here. I spoke to Shiv and she had all the measurements still from Lacy’s wedding. We’ll handle everything. And we’d love for you to stay with us,” Petrov, Jr. had told me on the phone.
Once I realized this was happening, at least the Petrovs thought so, I told Ma and Penny to get their bags ready and plan to follow us. I wanted to chat with Senior first, but ultimately expected to be coming home with a wife. I wasn’t about to make it easy on them, though.
Even though this situation wasn’t planned and things weren’t right with me and Ma, she and Penny were my blood.
If I was getting hitched, I wanted them there.
Especially Ma. I may have been pissed but I wouldn’t do something I’d regret out of anger.
Losing Pops gave me a newfound perspective on life.
Which was probably also the reason I ignored the signs about Butch.
He’d been like a brother to me for so long, I wanted to believe he’d never cross us.
But Ma was different. She was my mother.
She lived for Pops, and for me, Penny, and the club.
I’d eventually get over this rift with her and I wouldn’t make her miss this.
When Daisy got wind of what was happening, she conspired for her and the newly patched Old Ladies to join us as well.
“Don’t you want us to make the new First Lady feel welcome?” Lacy asked, batting her big blue eyes.
While I was annoyed they butted in, I did consider it may make the new bride feel more comfortable coming back with us and entering the clubhouse if she had a few ladies showing her the ropes.
Bride. Jesus fucking Christ. What did Pops get me into?
Looking in my side mirror, I made sure the Escalade was still behind us.
Falcon and I took the lead, and the other officers followed.
Junior arranged for the vehicle to be loaned to us.
I didn’t want Ma driving her SUV all the way up since it wasn’t prepped for action.
Plus, I had no clue if my bride had ever ridden on a bike and that would be a long ride back.
In my effort to be sure both of the Petrovs knew how angry I was at the situation, I never did ask her name. Keys of course worked his magic once I learned I’d be taking her for a wife.
You’d think all the times we’d done business, and all the times we’d been to the restaurant I’d have heard her name dropped at some point.
But we’d always kept everything strictly business and never discussed things outside of guns and money.
Plus, we didn’t really focus on women when doing club business.
I kept Penny away from it as much as possible so I understood separating the two.
Keys found minimal info and pictures of her, but he did find her.
Katarina Petrov. She was pretty, but definitely a mafia princess.
I wondered if he was certain it was the right woman, though, because I’d never seen her before.
We hadn’t spent a lot of time at the restaurant though since most of our business was done at the warehouses.
Petrov mentioned before that his daughter baked things for the restaurant.
But today we weren’t going to the restaurant.
For the first time, we were invited to the home of Petrov.
I’d seen pictures and knew where it was thanks to Pops and Keys. But I’d never been in person.
Pulling up to the gated entryway, I thought I’d be prepared, but once inside and we’d gone beyond the trees hiding the home, I knew I had underestimated it. Pictures had not done justice to the sheer size of the lavish home.
The white brick driveway wrapped around a fountain then continued to a detached garage of the same architecture of the sprawling house.
It was tall and white, with grand columns and ornate wrought iron decor over the tall glass doors.
It must have spanned the width of a football field, and that was only the house.
I always thought the clubhouse was huge, but you could fit two of them into this place.
Killing the engine, I took off my helmet and lit a smoke, still sitting on my Harley, taking in the huge building.
“We’re on the wrong side of the business,” Eagle said as he came over.
Falcon walked over as well but he said, “His cock must be the size of a needle. Why the fuck do you need a house like this for three people?”
A hand swiftly popped Falcon on the head. He turned, fists up but Ma stood staring up with a scowl. “Act like you have some sense, boys. They live different. No better, no worse. Different. If they wanna dump money into fancy houses, it’s none of our business. Go grab our stuff.”
“Sorry Mama Hen,” Falcon said before heading to the oversized SUV.
Instead of following him, I climbed off my bike, gripped her arm, and spoke low. “Ma, I understand the sentiment, but if you don’t watch your mouth, we’re gonna have a problem. You’re overstepping.”
“What are ya gonna do? Ground me? Oh wait,” she said, jerking her arm away. “You already did that.”
My jaw clenched and my skin heated as my blood pressure rose. She was still pissed I wouldn’t let her go to Destiny’s Desires, the strip club we owned. She’d run it for years, but with everything happening, it wasn’t safe. I wasn’t giving in.
Jackal came over and gripped my shoulder. “Choose your battles, my boy.”
Grinding my teeth, I took a long drag from my smoke, then blew it out. I started to flick it away, but then looked around and decided against it. Instead, I flicked the cherry off and squeezed the end before shoving it in my pocket.
Two men in penguin suits rushed outside and toward the SUV. Not liking how fast they were moving, I reached for my pistol and walked that way. I relaxed my grip when I saw they went straight for the back and started grabbing luggage.
We all packed light but the ladies still all had bags. Petrov, Jr. came out onto the stone porch and clapped his hands together once before shouting, “Gentleman, ladies, welcome to our home.”
He took the six white steps down and met me as I pulled my duffle from my saddlebag. “Petrov,” I said dryly as he held his hand out.
He didn’t put his hand down and kept smiling, so I finally took it.
He leaned in closer, patting my shoulder. “We’re about to be family. Please, call me Niko. Petrov is my father.”
Raising a brow, I answered, “You’ll be in charge one day. You gonna have everyone call you Niko?”
He chuckled, finally letting go of my hand and shoving his own in the pockets of his fancy, tan suit. “Doubtful. And I didn’t say everyone should call me Niko. Just my intended brother.”
“You remember everyone?” I asked, tipping my chin toward the small crowd I brought with me.
“Yes, yes. So glad you could bring your lovely sister and of course, Cindy,” Niko said as he walked toward Ma with his hand out, ready to receive hers.
She smirked but placed her hand into his and waited for him to kiss her knuckles before she pulled away.
Penny walked up the stairs without acknowledging him but Niko still watched as she did. “She must be tired from your travels. All of you must be. Please,” he said as he waved his hand toward the house. “Theo and James will show you all to your rooms.”
“Penny is with me,” Ma said. I hadn’t thought ahead that much, but I liked the idea of Penny not being left on her own here, especially with Niko always keeping close tabs on her as of late.
Niko shrugged and nodded to the men helping with the bags. “Whatever is most comfortable for our guests. Shall we?”
I carried my own bag and let everyone walk ahead before walking up the stone staircase and entering the huge foyer.
A large staircase led to the upper level and marbled floors led to the left and right of them.
“If you like, follow Theo and James upstairs, get settled, freshen up. Then come back down and head this way,” Niko said as he pointed to the left, “for before dinner drinks.”
Since the ladies were with us, we’d split up the ride and got a hotel on the way so it wasn’t as late as when we usually arrived.
Heading upstairs, I ignored all the artwork and focused on finding my bedroom. I wanted to put my shit down and take a piss and a hot shower. Riding for a full day didn’t ever bother me, but sleeping in a hotel, or any bed other than my own, always fucked with me.
After being shown my room and waiting for Mr. Belvedere to leave, shutting the door behind him, I walked around the room.
I had a king size bed at home, but this one seemed even bigger.
I wanted whatever it was. Even with my king size, my feet were at the bottom of the bed.
Hopping onto this one and falling back, I groaned at the luxury.
“Christ, this is amazing.”
Looking down, there were a few inches still below my boots. Running my hands over the soft fabric of the comforter, I sat up and threw my legs back over the edge, not wanting to fuck up the fabric with dirt and oil.
Grabbing my shower kit, I headed to the bathroom and gently nodded as I looked around.
It was bright. A huge garden tub was tucked in the corner with a separate shower stall, white marbled countertops, with grey and white tiled flooring, his and her sinks, a stained glass window, and plenty of overhead can lights.
The shower door was plain glass and there were three shower heads, one on each wall of the stall.
Holes also lined the stall. Opening the door, I fooled around with some of the settings and water shot from the walls.
Slamming the door shut, I shook the water off of me and pulled a towel from the cabinet, wiping down my leather.
“Goddamn.”
After drying my cut and finding a place to hang it, I disrobed and climbed back into the water torture device and took a very quick, very hot shower.
When I was done, I figured out which button stopped the whole thing and brushed my teeth at the sink, moisturized, shaved, sprayed my favorite cologne on, then got dressed, and fixed my hair.
Looking in the mirror, I puffed out my chest as I looked at the patch over my heart. Ma had begrudgingly sewn it on before the trip. National President.
I was ready to meet my bride. But not before I made a few of my own demands.