Chapter 13 #2
He looked up when he saw the two of us smiling way too brightly for a couple of fools who had just spent the night cooped up in a cramped van.
“Look what the new day dragged in,” he announced roughly, his early morning voice making him sound twenty years older than he was.
“Good fucking morning, Harry,” I called back to him.
“Clearly is for you.” He smirked before turning his attention to Ayda. “Darlin’.” He toasted to her, raising his shot glass before throwing it down his neck in one swift move.
“You want some coffee to go with that whiskey, Harry?” Ayda asked, her eyes moving with longing to the kitchen where the coffee machine resided.
“If you’re making, I’ll drink it.” He slammed the shot glass down and sighed as he planted his hands on his hips. “The whiskey just helps with the sore throat and chest. The coffee’s what I need to help everything else wake up.”
I narrowed my eyes at him and shook my head. “You know what else would help with the chest?”
Right on cue, Harry pulled a packet of smokes out of his cut inside pocket before he placed one on the edge of his lips and smiled flatly. “What’s that?”
“You’re a fucking idiot,” I said, exasperated.
“My life. My rules.”
“Don’t say I didn’t try.”
“Never would, son. Never would.”
I turned to Ayda, shaking off my irritation at Harry before I placed a kiss to the side of her head. “Make a round of coffees, darlin’, and then we’ll go and shower. I have something planned for today.”
Turning on the tips of her toes, almost like the ballerina she’d mentioned earlier, Ayda grinned at me and walked backward for a while, before throwing me a wink and grabbing the carafe for the coffee machine that was sitting empty at the end of the bar.
Her hand patted Harry on the back as she passed him to fill the pot with water in the kitchen.
I tilted my head and zoned in on her ass for a while, enjoying the view before I forced myself to tear my eyes away. Walking over to the bar, I propped myself up on the stool closest to Harry and leaned over the counter, resting my chest on my balled up fists.
“If you die on me, I’ll make sure I get my revenge.”
“Oh, yeah?” He smirked. “How?”
“I’ll get your high school crush so smashed she ends up sucking Deeks’ dick while you’re watching from Heaven.” I grinned.
“Heaven?” He huffed out a rough laugh, resting his hands on the bar and leaning closer. “I’ll be in Hell, Tucker. Ain’t no window views to your old life from Hell. Good luck with that.”
“Asshole.”
“You’re starting to sound like an old man.”
“I feel like one ‘cause of you fuckers.” I shook my head and watched as he rocked back on his feet and took a long drag of his smoke. There was nothing left to do but roll my eyes. The guy could give all the fatherly advice in the world, but he’d be damned if he was going to listen to it from others.
“Fine. If you won’t help me keep you healthy, at least help me organize a surprise for Ayda today. ”
“What kinda surprise?” he asked, his eyes squinting as smoke drifted over them.
“She wants a tattoo.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah.” I nodded, holding his gaze and trying to silently pass on a message I wasn’t too sure he was receiving.
Pulling the cigarette away from his lips, he blew more smoke out of his nose before he coughed a little and narrowed his eyes farther. “When you say she wants a tattoo…”
“I mean the skull and hounds, brother.”
“Holy fuck.” He coughed louder, turning to Ayda who glanced over her shoulder and flashed him a sweet smile, even though she had no idea what we were discussing. Leaning closer, Harry eventually looked back at me and whispered, “May as well stick a ring on her finger, Tucker.”
“In good time.”
His eyes searched mine. “Jesus, Mary, Joseph, and all the baby orphans. You ain’t even blinking.”
I shrugged and smirked with confidence. “She’s here for a long time, Harry. Probably longer than us.”
Stepping back, he blew out a long breath and widened his eyes, his smile growing by the second. “Your old man would be proud of you, kid. Your momma, too.”
I pressed my lips together and gave him a nod. “Make the call?”
“I’ll get Stinger right over here.”
I slapped the top of the bar before I turned just in time to see Ayda walking over to us, balancing three mugs in her hands.
We made small talk, filling Harry in on where we’d spent the night.
Our other brothers slowly began to wake and filter into the bar, all with sleepy eyes and showing far too much flesh beneath their cuts.
Ayda had seen it all before, though. Nothing about Hut life seemed to bother her anymore. She’d seen everything…
Apart from Stinger.
When he walked through the front door, all dreadlocked hair, tattoos covering every inch of his skin, and eyes that were aflame with excitement, she turned on her stool and scowled in confusion.
“The Hounds of Babylon,” Stinger cried out, holding his arms—bag included—in the air. “Fuck, I’ve missed you guys. It’s been too long.”
Ayda had been around the club too long to openly stare at the guy, but she took him in, did the mental math and looked to me as she slid her mug onto the bar top. “Is that…?”
I didn’t answer, instead offering her a small smile of smug satisfaction before I patted her leg and slipped from my stool to go and greet our new guest.
Walking over to him, I held out my hand, and he took it in a heartbeat. “Good to see you, brother.”
“You, too, Tucker. My favorite customer. I can’t wait to get started on you. I’ve always said you’re too clean.”
“Fuck off.” I laughed. “I’ve got what I need where I need it.”
“Still refusing to let me put the snake on your dick?”
“You go anywhere near that and I’ll be displaying your dick in a trophy cabinet on the walls of this club.”
“Always so violent.” When he smiled, he flashed two silver plated teeth that seemed to sparkle under the dim lighting of the room.
“I’d actually like to introduce you to your next victim.” Placing a hand on his back, I turned and waved an arm out in front of us both, gesturing to Ayda. “Stinger, this is Ayda. She’s my…” I paused, narrowing my eyes and smiling. “Woman.”
Stinger feigned surprise, slapping a hand over his mouth and screeching out loud. “There is a God. Miracles do happen.” When he dropped his hand, he walked over to Ayda and held out his hand. “So the inks on you today, honey darlin’?”
It was hard to decide which was the more dominant emotion that flashed through Ayda’s blue eyes as they met mine.
There was shock, a little bit of fear, and resignation, but it was all pushed away as her polite smile graced her lips.
“I guess I am. Are you the artist who gave Drew all of his tattoos?”
Stinger nodded proudly. “Every man in this building has been touched by my skilled hands. In a purely professional manner, of course.”
Ayda relaxed and held out a hand to him. “Then I’m absolutely honored to have you tattoo me.
I moved closer to her, needing to make sure she was happy. “You say the word and Stinger will get off you and jump on someone else. You don’t have to do this. I just thought…”
With a genuine smile aimed at Stinger, she released his hand and stepped closer to me, bouncing on the balls of her feet as she stopped.
“Shut up and kiss me. I was the one who mentioned it to you. I always forget you don’t waste time with later when you can do it now.
” She pushed onto her toes, one hand reaching out and gripping the nape of my neck as she pulled me in for a long, heated kiss. “Thank you.”
The brothers around us started howling, laughing, and heckling, but I didn’t care. I grabbed hold of her waist, dipped her in the kiss and mumbled against her lips, “Whatever keeps you with me, baby. Whatever keeps you with me.”