Chapter 10
Shivana
The ride back to the clubhouse was tense. Neither of them said much at all. I sat in the backseat like a little girl in the car with fighting parents. This didn’t seem like the time to be a smart ass or push for info. Jackal was tense after his call and Mama Hen dropped her snide attitude fast. Once I saw that his tires had been slashed, I got chills even though it was probably in the nineties outside.
He’d seemed surprised I planned to stay in Georgia, but regardless of what happened with him, I’d already made up my mind. I just hadn’t told Mom or Dad yet.
After we finally pulled back into the clubhouse, Jackal parked at Mama Hen’s, then promptly excused himself.
“You want me to see if Daisy and Lacy can come over here so you don’t have to lug all those bags across the courtyard?” Mama Hen asked.
“If you don’t mind. I didn’t want to invite people to your house, but I want to show them what we got!”
“Tell ya what, I’ll go let them know you’re waiting. I need to check on some things in the kitchen for dinner, anyway.”
“Oh, well thank you. I’ll be upstairs. If you don’t mind, tell them just to come on up.”
Mama Hen winked at me before she turned and hustled toward the clubhouse. I let myself inside, since the door was never locked, and heaved all the bags upstairs. Dropping them all on the bed, I blew a breath, fluffing the hair around my face.
“What a day,” I murmured, even though nobody was there to listen. Or so I thought.
“You okay?”
I practically jumped out of my skin. “Penny, hi. You scared me,” I told her. “Yeah, just beat. We went shopping. What are you doing home?” She normally wasn’t there. I only caught her when she was coming and going from school or heading out to some college function on the weekends.
“I was tired. Did something happen while you were out?”
“Hm? What?” I fumbled my way through, shaking my head. “Just lots of shopping,” I said as I waved my hand over the bags.
She stepped inside, her dark ponytail shining from the overhead light. She was several years younger than I was and could play Snow White in a movie with her nearly black locks, crystal blue eyes, and red lips.
She peeked into the bags, so I started dumping them out on the bed. “I got some good stuff. Now, if I can just get a few interviews lined up…Your mom said she’d help me find a place nearby once I was ready.”
“Are you seriously planning to stay here?” she asked, more concerned than snide.
I nodded and grabbed at some of the new clothes, holding them up. “Yeah. I think so. I kinda like it here and there’s a lot of great opportunities, at least if I can get my foot in the door somewhere.”
“But why here?”
“I know you said you’re tired but I just said–”
“I mean here . Why haven’t you left the clubhouse yet?”
Shrugging, I answered, “Well, until I find a job, it doesn’t make sense. At least I don’t think so. If I end up taking on clients online, it won’t matter for now, but I’ll just rent if that happens. But if I get a job downtown, I may move closer to there because driving sucks here. This traffic is like nothing I’ve ever seen.”
“You’re too good for this place, Shiv.”
Before I could make a witty comeback or assure her that I wasn’t, she left my room and I heard her door shut. I was a guest here and wasn’t sure if it was appropriate to follow her. Plus, the ladies were coming soon.
As if on cue, the front door opened, and footsteps trampled up the stairs. “Hey,” they said in unison.
“Look at all my stuff!”
They both squealed and came inside, picking through my new clothes, demanding I try it all on for them. I was squeamish with blood, but bodies didn’t bother me and they both were dancers, so I swapped shirts and bottoms while we talked.
“Oh, I love that peach color on you,” Lacy said.
“I want to see the red,” Daisy said as she tossed one of the tops in my direction.
I was pulling the peach one off and pulling the red one on when Daisy asked, “So what the fuck happened when you were gone? We did a half-day at the shop. Usually if Falcon doesn’t have appointments, he sticks around on Saturdays for walk-ins, but he got a text, and we booked it out of there.”
Lacy was biting her lip, so I asked, “What?”
“Eagle’s coming home after he finishes the client he had on the table already.”
I shrugged. “Okay. And?” I asked as I swapped another top.
Daisy was still sorting through clothes. “Something’s up. Thought since Jackal high-tailed it inside and they all took off for Church you may know something about it.”
“Maybe. We were shopping, then Jackal got a text. He walked off so I don’t know if he made a call or what. But when he came back he rushed us out. Then,” I stopped and looked around before continuing, “his tires were slashed when we got outside.”
Lacy’s chest flushed and Daisy sat on the bed. They both looked like they’d seen a ghost.
“Are you okay?” I asked.
They shrugged but Daisy said, “With Butch still out there, they’ve been tense. And we aren’t supposed to know, but they think there’s someone even above him that had to do with you two and the airport thing.”
Shimmying into a new pair of jeans, I asked, “So you think this is connected?”
“Those are perfect on your ass,” Daisy said. “And yes. It has to be.”
Pulling on a fitted top with a lot of cleavage, I said, “Well, they seem to be on top of it. I’m sure it’ll be fine.”
“Are you seriously not worried?” Lacy asked. She had been nervous about leaving the clubhouse since our little escapade in the Escalade.
“Lacy, we’re from Chicago. It’s not like we’ve never seen crime. I love this outfit. What do you think for later?” I asked as I turned, running my hands down my front.
“I think you need to stop,” Lacy said as she tossed a shirt on the bed.
My brow scrunched. “Stop what?”
She walked in front of me and grabbed my shoulders. “This isn’t a game, Shiv. And this isn’t the kind of place for someone like you.”
My brows deepening further, I asked, “You don’t want me here?”
“She just means you’re a professional woman of intellect and this is a motorcycle club. She just doesn’t want you to get hurt,” Daisy said as she walked on her knees to the edge of the bed.
“I appreciate you both, but what’s the point of life if you don’t live it?”
Lacy’s face softened and she looked up at me. “This isn’t a vacation, Shiv. This is our life.”
“Speaking of, you’re getting married soon. How can you expect me to miss that?”
“Psht, an airplane can carry you back. That’s not a reason to stay here.”
“But then I’d miss all the fun stuff. Daisy had a courthouse wedding.” I turned to her and said, “No offense.”
Daisy answered, “None taken.”
“I want to help you with the dress shopping, and the bachelorette party, and the ceremony. And you can make Jackal walk me down the aisle! How can you expect me to not be here?”
Daisy smirked. “Well, you can’t argue with that.”
“Shiv, I love you. I just—”
I grabbed her hands and clasped them together. “Lacy, I love you. But listen to me. I’m a big girl. I want to try something new and find my own way. I can’t do that if I go home. And we’re different, but I’m not better than you. And aren’t I safer with these guys if there are bad guys out there?”
“Maybe. And I do need help with the wedding stuff. Plus, I did promise you a biker daddy.”
“That you did.” She may have promised me a biker daddy, but I’d snag him myself. I was nothing if not persistent.