Chapter 44
CHAPTER
FORTY-FOUR
WRATH
Standing with my hip against the sink, a cup of coffee in my hand, I hear a knock on the front door. I know who it is before I even look through the peephole.
It’s Alex.
I also know that he was out last night. I saw him leave on my way up. I made sure he didn’t see me, but at this point, seeing him is unavoidable. Pushing off the counter, I walk over to the door and tug it open, fully expecting him to give me some shit the moment he sees me.
But he doesn’t.
Instead, he walks right past me and heads straight over to the coffee system that Elodie has set up. I don’t understand the damn thing, but she makes a mean cup of coffee, so I’m not going to question it or bitch about it.
“Mornin’,” I murmur as I close the door behind him.
I walk over to the little table that Elodie has and sink down into one of the chairs, setting my coffee down as I watch him and wait for his response. Granted, I don’t know him well, but I’ve never seen Alex look so… disheveled.
I assume he’s got a hangover, and I would assume there was some serious sexscapading last night, too. Leaning back in the chair, I lift my cup to my lips and take a sip, continuing to watch him as I wait for a response.
Once he’s finished doing whatever the fuck he’s doing at the little coffee area, he turns around slowly, his cup in his hand. I watch as he closes his eyes, lifts the cup to his lips, and takes a sip.
His eyes open, and then they connect to mine. “Okay,” he states, “what the fuck is going on here? And don’t even fuck with me, because I am still drunk from last night and tired as fuck.”
My lips twitch into a smirk while my gaze searches his for a moment. I stifle the laugh that is threatening to bubble up from my throat. I think about telling him to fuck off and mind his own business, but I also know that Elodie is his business—she’s his family.
“I had some work shit come up with Cake. It was an emergency that took me out of town. As soon as I got back, I came here.”
He watches me, though I can’t tell if he thinks I’m full of shit or what. He just looks really fucked up and ready to puke at any given moment. He takes another sip of his coffee, his eyes never leaving mine.
“You should have texted her,” he deadpans.
No shit.
“Yeah, Elodie made sure to inform me of that. Gotta admit, never had any kind of relationship like this, so I’m gonna fuck up.”
“You’re almost fifty.”
I’m sure that’s meant as some kind of insult, but I don’t take it as one. First of all, I know my age, and that’s my age. I’m not going to get insulted because someone points it out. Secondly, relationships aren’t needed in my world. I’ve never had the inclination or desire to do that.
Not until I met Elodie.
“And you’ve been to the clubhouse, yeah?” I ask.
He wrinkles his nose, and then something slides behind his gaze, and I can’t read the expression. He’s thought about something, and I’m not sure I want to know what it is. There is a glint in his eyes that I don’t think is for me to know.
“Yeah, I’ve been to your clubhouse,” he says before he clears his throat and takes another sip from his mug.
I hear the shower turn off, and I know Elodie is going to come out soon to get dressed for the day. This conversation needs to be done and over with before she does. I can’t have Alex pissed at me, not after I already got him somewhat on my side.
“Then you know relationships aren’t needed. Some guys date girls in town. Some of them have even had kids and gotten married, but I’ve never felt the need. Never had the desire. It’s been easy, and easy has worked for me.”
Alex nods once, his gaze never leaving mine. “But now you want something different?”
Having a serious conversation this early in the morning should be fucking illegal, is what it should be, but I know it’s a necessity. And I want it out of the way now so it doesn’t turn into a problem.
“And you’ll communicate more… better?” he asks.
I dip my chin in a single nod. “I will.”
“Then if she’s cool, I’m cool.”
The bathroom door opens, and I watch as Elodie emerges. She’s got on her tight shorts and an oversized shirt, her hair is pulled up into a messy bun on top of her head, and she shuffles toward us, ignoring both Alex and me as she makes her way over to the coffee situation.
“Babe,” I call out.
She doesn’t even look over to me and Alex, she’s so focused on pouring her hot water over whatever the fuck contraption she’s got going on. I can’t help but laugh because this whole thing is so fucking ridiculous.
“Elodie,” I repeat.
She turns her head, her eyes flicking up to meet mine. “Yes?” she asks. Though she isn’t chipper, she sounds tired.
“You need a real coffee maker, especially since there’re three of us here now.”
She stares at me, blinking a couple of times, then her lips twitch into a smirk. “Three of us here now?” she asks.
“Yeah,” I say. “Even in your new place, there will be the three of us.”
Alex and Elodie stare at me in silence, and as much as I want to laugh at their response, I don’t.
I told them all of this, that I would get them into a different place.
Alex flicks his gaze down to his feet, but it’s Elodie who speaks first. She doesn’t look away. She’s focused even in her sleepy state.
“New place. That’s not something we can afford. Not even if Alex and I pool together what we pay for rent, it wouldn’t be enough to get anything better than what we have here.”
“Babe,” I begin again. “I’m putting you both up in a better place. There’s no fucking reason to be split up in these little shitholes. Plus, this is the bad side of town.”
“While I agree this is the hood,” Alex states, sounding much more awake and alert as his gaze searches mine while his lips curve up into a smile, “it’s your hood. You’re known at Fat Boys.”
It’s my turn to smile. “Yeah,” I say on a laugh. “Which is why neither of you should be living here. If it’s somewhere I’m known, it’s not for you. Plus, a little more room will give us the space we need.”
I hold his gaze for a moment. He smirks, jerking his chin in my direction. “The space,” he mutters.
“The space,” I confirm. Then I shift my attention over to Elodie. “Let me take care of my woman, babe.”
Conversation done.
And over.
We part ways, but only after I give Elodie a long, wet, deep kiss. I’ve made my decision. I’m moving them into a better place, safer, with more room. Plus, I’m ready to invest in myself.
In my future.
And now that I have a plan for the future, it seems like the right time.
And that plan is Elodie, however that looks, which I’m not quite sure of yet, but I am going all in with her.
And there is no way I can be all in if I’m not taking care of her.
From what I know about her past, just the things I discovered and the few things she’s told me, she deserves to be taken care of a bit, as does Alex.
They’ve been through enough, and now it’s time for them to breathe a bit easier in life.
The conversation of the morning ended better than I thought. Once Elodie started bringing up clubwhores, I thought for sure it was going to turn into a fight.
I might not know much about women, but what I do know is that I don’t want another man even looking at Elodie, and if they came up to me and started talking about how they fucked her… the fuck wouldn’t be breathing.
So shit is going to go my way, and that is the only fucking thing I give a shit about at this point. I’m going to have a conversation with Velvet, because I’m fairly fucking positive that’s who cornered Elodie on Monday. Velvet better watch her fucking self, or she’s going to end up on her ass.
I’m not playing.
I’m the vice president of the fucking Iron Flame, and Elodie is my woman. Once I claim her publicly at the clubhouse, all bets are off, and Velvet had better back the fuck off. I’ve already warned her. There won’t be a next time.
Taking my phone out of my pocket, I call Loot. I need to shift gears and get a fucking move on getting Elodie and Alex a place.
He answers on the second ring. “Wrath,” he says. “What can I do ya for?”
Loot is the treasurer of our club. He’s also got a whole bunch of rental places out in Henderson. If anyone knows anything about properties, it’s going to be him.
I should have done what he did years ago—invested my club money in something other than tricking out my bike and letting the rest sit in a bank that pays me about three cents a month. I really screwed the pooch on that shit.
“Need something,” I begin. “A townhouse, a house, something with two bedrooms and two bathrooms. Not too expensive but clean, newer, and in a good area.”
There is silence on the other end, and I think that maybe he’s hung up the phone, but then he finally speaks. “There a reason you need a place in town?”
I should tell him to fuck all the way off because it’s not his goddamn business, but I decide not to be a smart-ass, especially since I’m asking him for help.
Plus, it’s not really a secret, and soon enough, Elodie is going to be completely immersed in our club as my old lady, so why not tell him now?
I tell him the truth. Because honestly, what does it fucking matter? I don’t give a fuck if the world knows Elodie is my woman. She’s fucking beautiful, and I’m proud to have her by my side and especially in my bed.
“My woman and her cousin need a place to live. I don’t like where they’re at now.”
He doesn’t respond immediately, then he clears his throat before he continues. I expect some questions about the fact that I’m claiming Elodie as my woman, but he doesn’t say a word about it, at least not yet. He’s got other questions.
“Buy or rent?”
That’s the question, isn’t it? Buy or rent.
If I buy it, then I’m stuck with it if something happens between us.
If I rent it, that’s less liability, but I’ll also be paying rent on something I could be paying a mortgage on.
Considering I have absolutely no fucking assets, it would probably be good to have something to call my own.
“Buy,” I state.
It’s a split decision, but I think it’s the right one to make. I’m almost fifty years old, and I should probably own something in this life aside from my bike and a truck. I know it’s more of a gamble, but at the same time, I’m cool with it.
If shit doesn’t work out, I can sell the house. But I think it’s going to work just fine. I’ve never had the inclination to settle down in my life until I met this woman. It was instant, and I knew that she was the one I wanted. She’s my woman, and I don’t see that changing anytime soon.
“Let me do a little looking around, and then I’ll text you.”
“Thanks, brother,” I murmur.
He snorts before he speaks. “I didn’t think you would fall, brother.”
“Like a fucking pine in a goddamn windstorm. Down I fucking went.”
He ends the call, which is good, because I’ve got some other shit to handle and need to stop thinking about how much I fucking want Elodie.
It’s time for the job. The big fucking job that’s going to pay out.
Big time. So big that I’ll be able to buy whatever the fuck house for sale Loot brings me… in cash.
I’m sitting in my office, looking out at the empty room. Two chairs, a sofa, and all the makings of what an office should be. But there’s something missing. Just when I start to wonder what could be changed in the space, though I have not the first fucking clue what that could be, the door opens.
It’s Two-Pump. He smiles as his eyes find mine. “We ready to do this shit?”
“Blast and Hippie ready?” I ask.
He hums. “They’re dressed and ready to go.
” Standing from the desk, I clear my throat as I walk around it.
Following behind Two-Pump, I make my way into the bar, where I see Blast and Hippie.
They’re dressed, alright. In fucking penguin suits, bow ties and all.
It’s comical as fuck. I turn to Two-Pump to ask him where his tuxedo is, but he answers me before I can even ask.
“I didn’t pass the background check,” he grunts.
That shit cracks me up. I can’t hold back the belly laugh that rumbles out of my chest and up my throat. Two-Pump flips me off before he turns to Blast. “You can get me in?” he asks, ignoring my laughter and flipping me the bird.
“I can get you in,” Blast confirms with a nod. Then he shifts his attention over to me. “And we’re good to go?” he asks.
There’s not much for me to do at this point.
The plan is in place. They’re going to ensure that there is a grease fire that gets into the event center’s ventilation system.
I’ve already talked to the client, and he’s disabled all the cameras inside the building, so there will be no evidence of how the shit started, though it’s not an uncommon event.
We just have to ensure that the fire department is not called too soon, and I’ve also got that shit handled. Not only do I have an in on the fire department, but considering I’ve also got a line in on the emergency dispatch, I think we’ve got this on lockdown.
I’ve never worried about a job before, but I have to admit, with the size of this one and the payout that’s on the line, I’m a bit nervous. Blast, Hippie, and Two-Pump seem cool as fucking cucumbers. Either that, or they’re just good at hiding their anxiousness about the evening.
“Let’s do this, then,” I mutter.