Chapter Nine #2
“My woman asked you a question, friend.” At the mention of her being my woman, his face reddens. Shaking off his infatuation with my Birdie, he snaps, “Someone in one of your tow trucks stole my car.”
“We’re not in the business of stealing vehicles. The only tows we take are for vehicles that have been in an accident or those being repossessed. So, yours must fall into one of those categories,” I tell him.
“I called Wrath out to a bank repo a couple of hours ago,” Birdie whispers into my back before sliding into my side.
She keeps sneaking glances at the man standing in our lobby, and I can tell she’s worried.
I’m not sure if I should be insulted or not that she’s thinking he’s a threat with me standing here.
Looking down into her concerned eyes, I grin when she relaxes into me, giving me her trust. I guide her to the doorway and tell her, “Lock this if it makes you feel safer, yeah?” She’s nodding in agreement before I even finish speaking, and it pisses me off that this fucker is making her feel uncomfortable.
Hearing the click of the lock, I move behind the counter and shake the mouse until the computer wakes. Opening the file for the repos we’ve been commissioned to collect; I see that Wrath dropped off a tan Ford Taurus belonging to Mr. Jeffery Talbot not even half an hour ago.
“Is it a 2019 Ford Taurus?”
“Yes, and I want it back now. I don’t have time for this.
” I’m used to this kind of shit from assholes like him.
He thinks he doesn’t have to honor his commitments because he’s fallen on hard times or whatever excuse he may have.
That’s not the agreement he made with the bank when he borrowed their money for the car.
Looking around the reception area, I realize this isn’t going to work.
If I wasn’t here, this guy could have easily gotten to Birdie.
Going to need the nerds to come up with something to keep Birdie physically separated from the customers.
“I don’t have any paperwork from the bank saying they’re releasing the vehicle back to you. You’ll need to go down there and talk with them. Once you’ve cleared this up, they’ll fax over a form and give you a copy as well that allows me to release the vehicle back to you.”
“Are you fucking kidding me? I need my car now!” he shouts.
The slamming of a door behind me in the warehouse gives way to Knox and Legend.
“We have a meeting I forgot about?” I ask them.
“Got a meeting with your wife,” Knox chuckles. I kinda figured she would call someone in as backup, although it was completely unnecessary. I do, however, like that she didn’t hesitate to call the auto shop next door when she felt unsafe.
“She’s in the office if you want to go on in.”
“As for you,” I tell the seething asshole, “come back with the right paperwork, and we’ll be happy to release your vehicle.
” He opens his mouth to argue but thinks better of it when Knox steps around the counter.
He’s a big fucker, and not many people want to go toe to toe with him.
Mr. Talbot finally takes the hint that he’s not getting his car back without the proper paperwork and storms out of the building, slamming the front door behind him.
Once he’s gone, the interaction replays in my mind, and I can’t put my finger on why he looks so familiar.
“Did he look familiar to any of you? I feel like I’ve seen him somewhere before, but I can’t remember where,” I ask as Legend knocks on the door, letting Birdie know the coast is clear.
We all chuckle when she peeks through the blinds before cracking the door and sticking her head through to see if the man is gone.
“He’s gone, baby. You’re safe. You didn’t need to call in the calvary. You know that, right?” I tease.
“Maybe not, but all my warning bells were going off. And if there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s to trust my instincts and to put myself as far away from danger as possible.
I’ll never ignore my gut again,” she says in a serious voice, making us all pay attention.
Noticing she’s a little pale, I move from behind the counter to stand in front of her.
Resting my hands on her hips, I bury my nose in her hair and breathe her in.
“You’re right, baby. You did do the right thing. I want you to always trust yourself. These guys don’t mind swinging over to check that everything’s alright. Do you, fellas?”
“You did good, Sierra,” Legend praises. His sister was killed in a domestic dispute a few years ago.
He’d felt there was something off about her boyfriend but ignored it.
He feels responsible because if he had asked Dex to look into it, we’d have known the guy had a rap sheet a mile long and could have gotten her out of the situation before she was killed.
“You ready to call it a day? I’ve got church tonight and could really use a shower before we head to the clubhouse.”
“Yeah, I’m ready.” Pressing her cheek into my chest, she looks from Knox to Legend before finally saying, “Thanks for coming by.”
“Anytime, Sierra. I mean that,” Knox vows, holding her stare.
Walking into the clubhouse, I see Viper in the back, standing with his hands on his hips and staring at his wife.
She’s sitting at his booth in the back, surrounded by the rest of the girls, and he ain’t looking too happy about it.
I don’t know why he bothers to argue with her and her gaggle of women about invading his space.
He knows it does no good to argue with her stubborn ass.
Yelling from the other side of the room draws everyone’s attention to Knox and Rock yelling at each other. Again.
I dart my eyes at Birdie when she latches onto my hand.
“They’re not going to fight, are they?” I hate hearing the fear in her voice.
“Naw, there’s no fighting in the clubhouse, and they know not to step out of line in here.”
Viper lets out a piercing whistle, signaling to everyone it’s time for church. “Go sit with the ladies, and when I’m done, we’ll go grab some dinner, okay?”
“Okay, honey.” Lifting onto her toes, she offers me her mouth, which I take greedily. It’s on the tip of my tongue to tell her that I love her, but I don’t want to scare her. After kissing her lips once more and patting her ass, I head down the hall to church.
Rounding the table, I take my seat next to Viper and listen as he rips into Rock for starting shit. I’m not sure what they’re arguing about this time, but I’d wager a bet it has to do with G.
“Prez, I didn’t start shit this time. He’s just pissed that G is leaving. It ain’t got shit to do with me.”
“I don’t care, Rock. I’m over this bullshit.
You’ve been getting more and more disrespectful, and I’m fucking done with it.
I’m sending you to New York to help Ridd take care of a problem he’s having.
When you come back, you better have your shit together.
” If I’m not mistaken, he looks almost excited about being sent to New York.
I really need to call Mav.
“Wait! Did you say G is leaving?” Legend asks, catching that little tidbit of information before anyone else.
“She is. It was her decision, and everyone is going to respect her wishes and her privacy. I’m putting her up in the four-plex up the road.”
“Enough about women. Storm, go through club finances so I can go over who’s tagging along to Jacksonville with me,” I say. Once he finishes announcing bonuses, I fill Rock, Legend, and Wrath in on our upcoming run.
“We’re going to be doing the same thing as always, except Birdie will be coming with us. We’re going to spend the weekend up there, so pack a bag.”
“Fuck yeah,” Legend says. I kinda figured he’d be excited about going. There’s a certain Jaguar cheerleader he hooks up with any time we’re up that way.
“If nobody has anything else, get the fuck out of here.” Viper bangs the gavel on the table and dismisses everyone.