Chapter Eight
Halligan watched everyone interacting. Shield and Stinger from Saint’s Outlaws MC were making sure they met everyone. Of course, his nephews watched all of Twist’s storm chasing videos, so Stinger’s infamous I’m Gonna Die video had come up.
Loni was sitting talking with people. He wondered if she was aware that his dad and Peck were guarding her.
With the added information of Franco whipping his wife, the men in the family had decided that when they were in a public place, like tonight in the bar, two male family members would be additional guards for Loni.
Halligan hadn’t had a chance to let her know that because he’d only found out in a text thread twenty minutes ago.
“The party’s here,” Brew yelled as he walked into the bar carrying a case of Bluff Creek Brotherhood’s beer.
Halligan took the case and set it on the bar.
“Thanks for coming,” he said, shaking Brew’s hand.
“We brought the truck so we could bring the beer, and I trailered my bike,” Brew said.
“I thought you said you’d be right out with help to unload the beer,” a woman’s voice said from the doorway.
“I was gone like half a minute, woman. Now come meet Halligan,” Brew said.
A gorgeous, dark-haired woman with an easy smile walked up.
“Oh, well aren’t you a tall drink of water,” she said.
“Renae, he’s the one who has a wife,” Brew said, rolling his eyes.
“Brew, did anyone ever tell you that the stick up your ass is probably why you don’t have a girlfriend? Halligan obviously found a wife. Maybe you should ask for some pointers. Hi, I’m Renae Witham,” she said, holding out her hand.
“It’s nice to meet you. Thanks for coming to help us,” Halligan said.
Renae was 5 feet 7 inches with brown hair that glistened in the lights.
If he weren’t married and besotted by his wife, he’d be calling dibs before his cousins could.
As it was, he was going to enjoy seeing who tried to tame the beauty.
She had a strong grip, and if he wasn’t mistaken, she was carrying a gun under her leather jacket.
“Oh, I’m happy too. The clubhouse is running well, and it was getting a little boring in Cider Creek. Now which one’s your woman so I can introduce myself?” Renae said.
Halligan pointed toward Loni’s table. “The gorgeous dark-haired beauty over there,” he said.
“Awesome. Brew, get me a Mountain Dew, please,” Renae said, walking off.
Halligan chuckled, then belly laughed.
“Executive assistant for the clubhouse,” Halligan sputtered.
“Mom decided the clubhouse was a mess after Beth and Rose ratted us out. She hired Renae to keep the clubhouse running smoothly. It’s clean. We have fantastic food, but sometimes Renae treats me like a little kid,” Brew said, shaking his head.
“Noted,” Halligan said, trying to stop laughing.
“We better get her a Mountain Dew. I don’t want to see what happens when Renae doesn’t have her drink. Not again,” Brew said, turning to go out.
Halligan followed him to the door. “What happened?”
“That’s a story for another time. I’ll pull around to the side delivery entrance if you’ll have a couple guys meet me to unload,” Brew said.
Halligan nodded, then sent two of the guys to help unload.
He went behind the bar and poured Renae a Mountain Dew from the fountain, then filled a pitcher of it. He made his way to the table where Loni and Renae were.
“Mountain Dew as requested with a refill pitcher if you need. Can I get you ladies any food?” Halligan asked, leaning close to slip his arm around Loni.
“Oh, I am a little hungry. Does Crewe have the pasta done yet?” Loni asked.
Renae perked up. “Pasta? I love pasta.”
Loni giggled, “I’m Italian, and Crewe wants to fix me his version of pasta and get my opinion.”
“I’ll check. I thought he said it was almost ready. If it’s not, should I bring you all some bread to snack on?” Halligan asked.
“Yes, please,” Loni said, her face alight with happiness. That was the look he wanted to see on her face, not the sad one she’d had last night when he’d seen her scars.
“I’ll get the bread, but please let me know if more Mountain Dew is needed because Brew said that he didn’t want to deal with what happened the last time you didn’t get your Mountain Dew,” Halligan said, winking and walking off.
“What happened the last time you didn’t get your Mountain Dew?” Vivi asked.
“Yes, we need gossip. The guys have been a little boring and after friggin’ Halligan and Quinton added the ‘guys’ area,’” Ry air-quoted, “on the top of the apartment building, we’re not getting near the gossip we deserve.”
Loni listened to Ry and Vivi quiz Renae about the Cider Creek clubhouse. She envied the familiarity between Ry and Vivi. They’d been very nice, but Loni longed for that feminine companionship where she could tell them anything.
“It wasn’t so much that I didn’t get my Mountain Dew but that it was gone.
Let me set the stage. I was hired by Regina after her daughter and friend had to stay at the clubhouse.
Although a lot of the guys are former military and keep their rooms pristine, the common areas were disgusting.
I’m not sure if they ignored it or were hoping someone else would deal with it.
“Now, at the time of what they now call The Mountain Dew Incident, I’d been working there for over three months.
We had a schedule. The guys knew if they ate, drank, or used all of something and wanted it replaced immediately, to write it on the board.
I only have two rules—clean up after yourself and leave my Mountain Dew fucking alone.
I drink four a day, so I know exactly how many I have and have an auto order set so I’m never without.
Which I don’t think is too much to ask,” Renae paused as Halligan put the bread in front of them to take a drink.
“Oh, I agree. Those don’t seem like rules that couldn’t be followed. Whiskey and the guys know not to touch the chocolate stash unless they are willing to replace it the same day,” Vivi said.
Loni grinned, wondering if Halligan and she stayed together what type of rules they might have. She hoped she could stay because this place was special.
“The MC throws a huge party. Now, the morning after a party, I know that people didn’t clean up but that’s different, so I’m prepared to do some cleaning.
I walk to the refrigerator where my Mountain Dew is kept, and it’s gone.
It’s Saturday morning and I had enough in there to get me through until Tuesday.
I decide I’m going to find the culprits.
There are some women who had partied the night before passed out in the main room with a couple of guys who are hangarounds,” Renae paused to take a drink.
“You guys know what those are?” she asked.
Loni hadn’t watched much television, so she had no idea what Renae was talking about. She shook her head.
“Okay, well, a hangaround is someone who can come to the parties. It’s a way for the MC guys to get a feel for them.
If Brew or Bootstrap like what they see, then they ask them to prospect.
It’s a period of time where they have to prove their loyalty to the MC.
They also get all the crappy jobs the guys don’t want to do,” Renae explained.
“So a hangaround would be like a temp employee at a business; you’re seeing what they’re like. If you like them, they prospect or become a probationary employee,” Loni said.
“Exactly! Though Brew might take offense to saying a prospect was a probationary employee because it’s a lot more serious than that. If the prospect passes, then he becomes a brother, which in the MC world is family. The club and brotherhood are for life,” Renae said.
Halligan dropped their food off and everyone dug in. Crewe had made chicken fettuccine alfredo, which was one of Loni’s favorite dishes her Gigi made. The chicken was tender, the sauce was the right mix of flavors of butter, cream, and garlic. His noodles were perfection.
Loni hadn’t thought Crewe would be able to get the dish as good as her Gigi’s, but he had.
“This is so good,” Loni said.
“Oh yeah, Crewe is a king in the kitchen. I haven’t had anything that isn’t wonderful,” his wife Ry replied.
“It is good, but I want the story,” Vivi said, wiping her mouth and leaning back.
“Okay, so passed-out girls and some hangarounds. On a table beside the couch, I see all sixteen cans of my Mountain Dew—opened with the cans crushed in a pile. I might have a little bit of a temper. I screamed, ‘Seriously?!?! You have got to be fucking kidding me!!!’”
Loni chuckled, imagining Renae’s voice in a quiet clubhouse screaming that.
“The girls jump up and before I can say anything else, they grab their clothes and shoes and run bare-ass naked out the front door. Tweedlefuckingdee and Tweedlefuckingdumb rub their eyes and ask, ‘What’s your problem, bitch?’ Now, Bootstrap has come out by this time along with almost all the guys.
He starts to intervene, but I hold up my hand.
This is my revenge, and everyone knows that revenge is best served when no one is expecting it.
Hell, I’m former Army. I can plan an attack.
I backed down and said I didn’t have a problem.
I was surprised how messy the clubhouse was.
I walked off and started planning,” Renae said.
“Oh my, this is getting good, but I’ve got to hit the restroom,” Ry said.
“I need a smoke, so I’ll head outside, and we can continue this later,” Renae said.
Loni sat at the table, enjoying the atmosphere. The relaxed vibe of the bar was somewhere she could see herself hanging out while Halligan covered a shift.