Ink
He ignored the ribbing and jabs aimed at him as they waited for Church to start. He had been hearing all day that he wasn’t smart enough to do basic math, so Naomi had to write it all out for him. Hell, Jax even asked if Naomi had offered to draw pictures for him too, to make sure he understood.
Fuckers. Smirking, he flipped them off.
“The rest of you fuckers all have to do your own, so I wouldn’t be laughing too hard,” he pointed out.
“Esme does the garage’s,” Razor stated.
“For how much longer? She’s due soon, which means she needs to start handing that over.” He gave Razor a pointed look. “And we both know you’re not going to do it. And no fucking way are you sweet-talking Karissa into it.”
Razor scowled, then Jax and Razor exchanged a look. Yeah, assholes hadn’t considered any of that.
“Ice,” Rogue started.
“Nope. I’m not doing that shit.” Ice’s statement was firm. “I have too much to do during the day, and I’m not spending my nights figuring out your shit when I already have all the other books to deal with.”
“Damn it,” Rogue muttered. “I’d ask the girls or Scarlett, but Scarlett already told me she’s too busy, and the girls would probably fuck with it to piss me off.”
“Glitch?” Fury suggested, glancing at Code.
Code snorted. “Do you really think she’s going to agree to that? The woman doesn’t even do her own accounting now. She pays people.”
“Savage, we need to add to the agenda who’s going to take that shit over when Esme’s out,” Rogue ordered as the door closed behind their president.
Savage sat in his chair, brow arched. “What the hell are you talking about?”
“The books and paperwork. Someone needs to handle that shit when Esme is out. I don’t have the time or patience.”
“And I’m not about to deal with his mess again,” Ice added. “It took me months to get them on a system in the first place.”
Savage frowned. “Then why don’t you just take it over?”
“Because I have a shit ton of other work to do, and with the new idea we’re floating tonight, I definitely won’t have time.”
Savage sighed. “We’ll talk about it when we get to that part.” He banged his gavel. “Alright, where are we at?”
Everyone gave their reports, but Ink hardly paid attention.
It was always the same. The legal businesses were thriving, and their illegal ones were also doing well without any issues.
They mostly ran pills and weed, along with a few guns and weapons deals along the way.
That part of the business was always kept separate, and Ice handled those books alone. It was safer that way in the long run.
“Ink, how’s things at your shop?” Savage asked.
“Fucking busy. We’re going to need to bring in another artist if we seriously want to grow. I’m busting my ass, but even with doing everything and working every day, I have a list that’s about a three-to-four-month wait.”
Savage slowly nodded. “You got someone in mind for that?”
Here was the rub. He wasn’t sure how this suggestion would be received.
“Tom approached me about learning. I’ve actually been working with him on our off time, and he’s fucking good.
Picks up on shit quickly. I’d like to figure out a schedule where he could help me at the shop so he can keep learning and maybe take on some smaller shit for me to help me get caught up.
If he gets patched in, then we’ll already have a skill and a position for him. ”
No one said anything, but the wheels were turning.
“Can we sacrifice Tom right now?” Fury asked, glancing at Savage. “We got a few more prospects, but we’d have to really look at the rotation.”
Savage steepled his fingers, thoughtful. “How long has Tom been a prospect now?”
“Almost a full year,” Rogue replied, jaw clenched. It was well known he respected the kid, but Rogue also didn’t fully trust him around the twins. The overprotective father vibes often outweighed his common sense.
“We think he’s going to stick it out for the long haul?”
“I’d say so,” Ink replied. “We’ve talked a bit.
He’s got demons in his past, we know that, but that kid is fucking loyal.
And he’s never once run away from the shit that’s gone down like some of the other prospects we’ve had.
He’s mentioned wanting to get his patch, and he’s never complained about any of the shit we’ve thrown at him. ”
“And you said he’s showing promise on the tattoo front? You think it’d be a good fit for him?”
“Prez, you should see his art. It’s fucking amazing.
The kid can draw as well as me, and he’s got a steady hand.
I’m not saying we throw him into the deep end or even do a full day at the shop.
But he can clean the place up for me, keep track of appointments, and maybe handle a few smaller walk-ins to build his confidence and better his skills. ”
“He’d have to understand that just because he’s working with you, doesn’t mean he gets to slack off on his other prospect duties,” Savage warned. Ink took it as a good sign he wasn’t saying no. “That might mean some long-ass nights for him.”
“I’ll give it to Tom—he’s never been one to slack, even on long nights in the past,” Ice added. “He’s top of the pack as far as prospects are concerned. I do worry that if he isn’t around, the others will take it as a sign to slack.”
“We’d have to really keep an eye on them,” Snake agreed.
“Do we have the manpower to do that?” Savage asked, looking at Rogue.
Rogue shrugged. “We have more people here now that we have our newest guest. Wouldn’t take much to make sure they’re doing their jobs.”
Savage nodded. “Does anyone have any objections?”
“What about a trial run?” Fury suggested.
“We test it out for a month, see how things go, then we make a decision? Tom doesn’t slack off, things run smoothly, and we keep it that way.
Ink’s right that he needs more help, and if this is one way to do it and make more money, then we’ll do it.
If it doesn’t work, we bring in someone temporarily, and if Tom earns his patch, we move him over there. ”
“I’m good with that,” Ink said.
“All in favor?” Savage asked. Everyone raised their hand, and Ink relaxed.
Tom would be happy. “Alright, that’s what we’ll do then.
You’re going to have him do your paperwork for you too?
I’m sure he can draw you some pictures to help you.
” His grin had everyone else laughing and Ink rolling his eyes.
“Fuck off. That’s another thing I was going to bring up.
The paperwork side is a mountain of shit.
I don’t have the time or patience to handle it, and neither will Tom with everything else he’ll have to do.
Rogue is going to have no one to manage it either when Esme finally stops working.
We’re not running any other businesses or things through either business, and Naomi is bored.
She’s also fucking smart and good with numbers. What if we offered it to her?”
Everyone was quiet.
“You want to let a woman we don’t know, who has a memory that could cause a lot of problems for us, around our money?” Snake asked, his tone doubtful. “Is that really a good idea?”
“We hired Esme before we knew about her ties to the cartel or any of that,” Ink reminded him. “And when we found out the connection, it didn’t change anything.”
“The difference is that Fury had put his claim on her from the start. She wasn’t going to walk away in six months,” Razor pointed out.
He raised his hand placatingly when Ink shifted his gaze to him.
“I’m not saying it’s a bad idea, but it’s not the same situation.
And don’t kill me for this, Fury, but Esme isn’t on the same level as Naomi when it comes to smarts and memory.
None of us are,” he added when Fury glared at him.
“Brother, she’s got a fucking genius IQ and an eidetic memory.
That’s not just as simple as saying someone is good at their job. ”
“What are we worried that she’d find?” Code asked. “Ink is right that there isn’t anything in them other than the actual business documents and receipts. Everything about it will be above board. And it’s only for six months.”
“Do we really want her to be able to tell the Feds what we’re doing? How much money we make?” Rogue looked at Ink. “You’re getting close to her, brother, but this isn’t a simple situation.”
Ink cocked his head. “I’m not saying we have to do it, but Savage, you, and Ice gave me the okay to give her the paperwork, and she aced it.
I had Ice review it, and he said it was perfect.
If we were willing to give her that last night, what’s the difference for the garage too?
We kill two birds with one stone as well.
By the time we reach the six-month mark and she leaves, Esme will probably be back to work and Tom will probably be patched in.
Or we hire someone else to handle both for now and cost the club more money and time. ”
Savage slowly nodded. “Did you ask her the questions I asked?”
Ink nodded. “When we were going over it, I asked her about two specific invoices, and she didn’t even need to look at them. Just recited them.”
“That shit freaks me out,” Jax muttered. “Freaky mind shit.”
Ink ignored him. Everything freaked Jax out, even on a good day.
“What are we most worried that she’s going to remember?
If we only give her the documents and nothing else, she won’t be looking for trouble.
And we don’t discuss club shit around her.
Besides, we’re current on everything, so even if the IRS came knocking, they wouldn’t find shit. ”
“Do we have any other options?” Savage asked. “Anyone else willing to step up and do the job?”
No one volunteered.
“What about Karissa? Or Saylor? Royal or Harlow, maybe?”
“No,” Steel stated. “Harlow is trying to get her degree by doing online classes, and with Harley, she’s exhausted.”
“Royal’s exhausted from taking care of the girls,” Savage agreed. “And honestly, I’ve seen her work on some budget stuff for the bar before, and it was a fucking mess when she was done. She’s a damn good bartender, but the other shit?” He gave a rueful smile.
“Saylor is taking a break from her designer business, but she’s also not the type to do the paperwork.
She outsources that to a company back in her old city.
” Jax chuckled. “And she’s no better than Ink when it comes to his file-keeping system.
It’s a fucking pain in the ass to find shit scattered all over the place on her computer instead of in proper files. ”
“So we’re down to offer it to Naomi or hire someone else.” Savage sighed. He glanced at Ice. “I guess we’ll add to the plate. Go ahead and tell everyone what we were talking about, then we’ll put it all to a vote.”
Ice nodded and launched into his plan of opening a strip club. Ink perked up at that. Hell, yeah, who didn’t love watching women get naked on a stage? They already had one successful club, so a second one couldn’t hurt.
The image of Naomi twirling around a pole jumped into his mind—blonde hair falling as she stared at him unbidden with those pretty blue eyes.
He barely managed to bite back a groan, his cock jerking at the thought. Damn it, no! No, he was not going to think about that.
He forced himself to pay attention to Ice’s proposal, asking questions as much as he could. Namely, who got to audition the dancers, which got him eye rolls and knowing looks. What? He was one of the few single brothers left, which had to come with some perks.
When Ice finished, he added, “I’m going to oversee the books for this place. It’s a good way to launder money, and also to run some other shit through if we need to.”
“Wouldn’t that be the exact place the cops would look?” Code asked.
“They don’t touch the other place, but for the first little bit, we run it as a normal spot. We have enough cops on our side that we might be able to avoid any problems, anyway.”
“Anyone not in favor of this new business plan?” Savage asked.
No one gave any objections. “Ice, get to work on securing the location. Now, back to the books. Since Ice is going to oversee those for the new place and the other club, that means we have to deal with the books for Ink and Rogue. Rogue, you got any objections to Naomi doing the books?”
“If someone is going to double-check them and make sure shit isn’t screwed up, then I’m alright with it. Not like we got much of a choice. And at least if something gets lost, we can just ask her, and she can recall it.”
“And her memory? What are we going to do about that?”
“Maybe we need to make it clear to her what will happen if she squeals,” Snake suggested.
Ink bristled. “She’s not going to fucking squeal,” he bit out.
“And no one needs to fucking threaten her. She had a fucking panic attack today because she thought Rogue was furious at her. You do that shit, and she’s going to fucking run.
Then we’re really in trouble because the Devil’s Predators and Feds will be on our asses for sure. ”
Snake arched a brow at him but didn’t argue.
“That was what that was about?” Rogue asked, frowning.
Ink nodded. “I’m not sure why she acted that way, but I get the feeling that whatever she went through with the cartel, it was bad. She just wants to make her son happy and keep him safe. If you want me to talk to her and explain, then I will. She trusts me.”
“We’ll talk to her,” Savage stated. “You, me, Rogue, and Ice will sit down with her and go over everything. And Ink, it’s your ass if shit goes sideways and there’s a problem. You willing to take that on?”
Was he? He’d never had to worry about that before.
He nodded, not allowing himself to think about it too deeply.
“Alright. Let’s put it to a vote. Everyone in favor of trialing Naomi on the books for the garage and tattoo shop?”
Everyone but Snake raised their hand.
“Snake?”
“I’m still not sure that it’s the best idea, but I won’t stand in the way.
” He looked at Ink. “I hope you know what you’re doing, brother.
She’s pretty, but she’s not going to let you in her pants.
And that brain of hers, it helps you, but it’s also a danger.
She could double-cross us, and none of us would be the wiser until it’s too late.
One slip of the tongue to the Feds and we’re toast if she overhears or sees something she shouldn’t. ”
Ink tamped down his anger. “We won’t let that happen. Legit books only, and she won’t be at the shop to overhear anything. The garage, everyone else, watch your mouth, and we shouldn’t have any issues.”
“Alright, then we move it ahead.” He banged the gavel. “Ink, Rogue, Ice, we’ll get through that now. Everyone else, we’ll meet again at the end of the week.”
Ink really hoped he hadn’t just made a major mistake, but thinking of Naomi’s words earlier, he had to believe this was the right course.
And if he had, he’d have to pay the price.