Chapter 22
brOOKE
All the club members and some of their old ladies are here.
My eyes start to well up with tears as everyone smiles at me.
In the main room, there is a banner that says ‘Welcome Home,’ and the place is decorated.
Gears, Ink, Pres, and Whiskey are all next to each other with big smiles on their faces.
I lift my hand and wave. Gears’s smile gets wider and Ink shies away. I need to make sure that I tell Ink it wasn’t his fault. He didn’t know that Jared was going to kidnap me. None of them knew who Jared was.
I grip Bear’s hand, giving it a slight squeeze, and look up at him. He gives me a big smile and kisses my forehead.
“I told you everyone loves you. They all wanted to welcome you home, even though I thought it would be too much for you.” Bear rubs my back as he speaks.
I give him a small smile and a thumbs-up. It’s so sweet that he thinks about little things like me being tired or overwhelmed. It puts butterflies in my stomach when he says.
“I am so glad you are okay! I was so worried about you. I wanted to visit you, but the only time anyone could was when Bear was on a run,” Gears says, interrupting my moment with Bear.
I give Bear a glare. The only time other people could visit me was when he was gone?
“I’m sorry. I am protective of you, and I didn’t want anyone near you besides me,” he says, raising his hands.
“Did he just say sorry?” Gears looks over at Whiskey.
“Yes, he did. I don’t think I’ve ever heard Bear say sorry to anyone. We’ll have to write this down and date it,” Whiskey says, walking off.
“Don’t you dare!” Bear says, racing after him.
Whiskey starts to jog, but Bear stops. I look confused as he turns around. He quickly comes over to me and kisses me on the forehead.
“Stay with Gears. I am going to find Whiskey. I’ll be back in a couple minutes,” Bear says, jogging off.
I look over at Gears, who is standing in front of me. I give him a smile before I hug him. He stiffens before he brings his arms around me and hugs me back.
“Oh, girlie, you are something else,” he whispers in my ear.
I give him a confused look. What does he mean by that?
“You have changed Bear to become a better person. He is starting to think before he acts. He puts you before himself and makes sure that you are well taken care of. He didn’t do that before. He would only think about himself and the brothers,” Gears says, stepping back.
I had never noticed that. I didn’t know Bear long before we started talking. I didn’t get to observe him, like I did all the others. Bear wanted to get to know me from the moment he stepped into the clubhouse.
“It’s not a bad thing. It is a side of Bear that people didn’t think he had.
He has gone such a long time without talking to a girl that we were all surprised when he talked to you.
Heck, he walked you home the first night he was here.
He missed his own welcome home party. Someone he hadn’t even met yet.
He knew that he wanted you when he saw you. ” Gears laughs.
I give Gears a smile. I guess Bear knew what he wanted in the beginning, and he got it eventually. Though Bear and I haven’t made it official, and he hasn’t asked, we are already living together.
I look over at Gears and wave to get his attention. He looks at me and gives me a questioning look. I point to one of his tattoos and then toward the crowd.
“Are you looking for someone?” he asks.
I nod and point toward one of his tattoos. He looks at where I am pointing and then back at me.
“Ink?” he questions.
I nod and look around for him.
“Are you looking for Ink?” He looks at me.
I give him a thumbs-up. I really need to talk to Ink before anyone else comes over. I don’t want to forget to say that it wasn’t his fault.
“I don’t know where he is, but let me call him,” Gears says, calling Ink.
While I wait for a response, I look around at all the people watching me. I hide behind Gears, trying to get away from their stares.
“He should be coming soon,” Gears says, putting his phone in his pocket.
I nod and wait. I wanted to speak to Ink first before I talk to anyone else. This is important to me, and saying hello to other people comes after.
“You wanted me?” Ink comes out of nowhere.
I jump a little and look at him with wide eyes.
“Sorry, didn’t mean to scare you,” Ink apologizes.
I give him a smile and look over at Gears, making a writing motion with my hands. I need something to type or write with, so Ink doesn’t have to guess what I am trying to say. It would take forever, and it is exhausting.
Before Gears can hand me his phone, Ink places his in my hand. I look down at the phone and realize that it is already on notes for me to type.
Ink, I want you to know that I don’t blame you for me getting kidnapped. It wasn’t your fault.
He reads it and looks at me. I can see gears turning as he tries to think.
“It was my fault. I should have gone in with you when you went into the store,” he says.
I hold up my hand to tell him to stop. He hands me his phone back, and I start to type.
You wanted to give me space, and I really appreciate that. I was happy when you said you weren’t coming in with me. I wanted a little alone time, and you were giving it to me. I didn’t know that my crazy ex was going to break out of prison and come and get me. Stop blaming yourself.
He looks up from his phone and opens his mouth to speak, but I place my hand over his mouth and shake my head. I point to the last sentence on his phone and then toward him. He lets out a sigh and nods, so I take my hand off his mouth.
I give him a smile and open my arms. Ink looks confused. I walk closer to him and wrap my arms around him. Ink freezes before he wraps his arms around me.
I pull away from the hug and look at Ink. He blinks several times, and his eyes are watering. I take his phone from his hand and start typing.
You ever need a hug, I can give it to you.
“Thanks,” he says.
“All right, ready to meet some people?” Gears asks, interrupting us.
I look around the room, trying to find Bear. He said he would be a couple of minutes. Is he okay? Did something happen?
“Bear is taking care of Whiskey. He texted me saying he had Whiskey on the ground and would be a couple more minutes. While he is gone, we can meet some of the other brothers,” Gears offers.
He wraps his arm around my back and starts to guide me toward a group. I try to walk slower for my aching legs’ sake, but Gears isn’t having any of that and pushes me. I glare at Gears, and he just laughs at me. I guess he doesn’t realize that my legs are hurting.
“It will be good to put a face to a name. Everyone is dying to meet you, and since Bear isn’t around to be protective, it is the perfect time,” Gears says.
I let out a sigh and go along with him. I guess since I will be staying and working here, it is good that I can get to know some of them.
I don’t think it would hurt to get to know them now.
I believe Jared is back in prison, but I need to make sure.
Some of these bikers have found a way into my heart.
I hold my hand up, and he stops what he is doing.
“Is something wrong?” he asks, handing his phone to me.
My legs are just aching a little, so we have to walk a little slower.
“I am so sorry! I didn’t know they were aching. If it gets to be too much, just tell me,” he says.
I nod, and we make our way to the group of guys.
“These fellows here are some of the oldest members here. Hawk, Bones, Viper, and Jaws. Hawk is Pres’s dad. Bones used to be the Sergeant-at-Arms. Viper and Jaws were and still are regular members. They help out wherever they need to,” Gears says, pointing to each of the guys.
I wave at them and give them a smile, which they return.
“I’ve been wanting to meet the girl who stole Bear’s heart. I’ve known him for a couple of years before he came to this club, and he is the same as he was before. Never got close to anyone and now here he is, with a girl,” Hawk says.
“I wanted to meet the new mechanic. I heard it was a girl and wanted to know who would be working on my bike. Pres told us not to come and talk to you in case you got scared. I’m happy we get to meet you now.” Jaws smiles at me.
“Well, I am on a tight schedule before Bear comes back. She knows you now, so don’t be afraid to come and say hi,” Gears says.
All of the men laugh before they say goodbye, and they say that they will talk to me later. I wave as Gears guides me toward another group of guys.
“Hello, brothers. I need to make this quick before Bear comes back. This is Brooke, and you can say hi to her anytime you want to,” Gears says.
The group says hello. After their greetings, Gears takes me toward a wall and looks at me.
“I didn’t tell you their names because I honestly don’t know them. Most of them are prospects, and we just call them ‘prospect’. If any of them make you uncomfortable, either come to me, Ink, Bear, Whiskey, or Pres, and we will handle it,” Gears says.
I nod. I don’t think I will ever remember all their names anyway. I have a hard time remembering names, but I can remember faces.
“Hello, dear. I am Jaws’ Old Lady. I just wanted to say welcome back, and I look forward to seeing you around. My name is Cecilia, and if any of the boys are giving you trouble, just come to me and I will put them in their places,” Cecilia says, giving me a hug.
I smile at her, and she walks away. Several other people come and go, telling me that they are happy I am back and safe. They also can’t want to get to know me better.
I am growing tired, but there are still more people coming up to say hello.
I didn’t know that the club was this big.
My legs are aching the longer I stand on them.
I don’t want to tell Gears because he looks so happy to introduce me to people, but at the same time, I hope that this ends soon, so I can get off my feet.