Chapter 9
When I came over last night, I had no expectations beyond spending time with my gal.
I didn’t think she’d go out in public with me, give herself to me, or wake me up with breakfast in bed.
I didn’t want the moment to end, but I had to go to the shop and order our inventory before the weekend came, and I also had to wipe down all the main members’ bikes in preparation for us to ride out this weekend.
The task itself was something I could zone out while I did and not get annoyed by, so I wasn’t tripping off it, but I was ready for this prospect shit to be over.
I knew what I was having to do was light work in comparison of others, so I didn’t complain.
More than anything, I was ready to get my patch so I could be done with the grunt work.
Since Jelai mentioned loving sports, I busied myself with buying tickets to the rest of our city’s basketball games for this season.
We both preferred football, and I was hoping I’d be able to get us a skybox to watch The Demolishers play this fall.
I’d work on that a little later since I would have to apply and finalize everything over the phone or in person.
For now, surprising her with the basketball tickets would be enough.
As she made her way out of the bathroom naked, I realized this woman was going to get pregnant sooner than later.
Her ass never had on clothes after her showers it seemed, and one sight of her had my dick hard with her in clothes, so seeing her naked made the shit worse.
Those hips. That ass. Her smooth skin.
Damn.
I didn’t realize I was staring until she giggled. “You like what you see?” The seductive, low tone she used made my dick throb.
“C’mere, and I’ll show you.”
“No, sir,” she rejected through her laugh. “I have to get ready for work, and I heard you making plans on the phone earlier too.”
“Yeah. I gotta go to the shop and then to the clubhouse. Speaking of which, you up for riding out with us this weekend? We ride out every weekend, usually alternating between Saturday afternoons and Sunday evenings.”
“I’d love to,” she agreed with a grin. “Last night was so much fun. I was scared at first, but it made me feel so alive.”
“That’s what I love to hear.” I stood from the chair between her bedroom windows and walked over to her as she shimmied into her jeans. “Thick ass,” I grumbled before smacking her ass. “Take these off real quick,” I requested, pulling her close and kissing her neck.
She moaned and giggled before gently pushing me away. “I can’t,” she whined. “I can’t be late. Will you come back over tonight?”
“If you want me to, absolutely.”
“Yay,” she squealed in a cute way that made my heart skip a beat. I loved that she wanted to be around me, just as much as I wanted to be around her.
“What’s your email address?” I asked, opening my email to forward her the basketball tickets.
In case I couldn’t attend, I wanted her to be able to still go without me.
After she rattled off her email address, I sent the tickets.
It wasn’t until she was dressed and we were heading toward the garage that she checked her email.
When she noticed what I’d sent, she stopped walking, shrieked, then turned and jumped into my arms. “Courtside seats? Ah, I’m so excited!”
“Good,” I said through my laughter, but it was muffled by her kiss.
“You’re so intentional, and I love that for me.”
“This is nothing. Now that you’ve given yourself to me, I’m going to spoil you and take care of you every chance I get.”
Her pointer finger slid down my nose before she gave me a quick kiss. “I know we wanted each other when we were younger, but who knows how that would have played out. Things are just starting between us, but I’m happy to have this version of you in my life.”
“Same. I know everything happens for a reason, so maybe we would’ve fucked things up back then because we were too young. Regardless, I’m glad you gave a nigga a chance now.”
When she kissed me that time, she didn’t immediately pull away. The only reason she slipped out of my hold was because my phone vibrated in my pocket. I didn’t have to look to know who it was. It was likely my mama making sure I was going to take her to lunch like I’d promised.
We went out to her garage, and I helped her get settled in her car before getting on my bike.
As I rode out, I said a quick prayer of thanks to God for the progress Jelai and I had made.
Now, I had even more motivation to find a home and ensure the success of my investments and business, because if things kept progressing this way, I was going to propose to her within a year.
I waited until I made it to the shop to return Mama’s call, and sure enough, she wanted to make sure we were still on for lunch.
She asked if I was cool with Southern Delightz, and I told her that was fine before ending the call.
To be safe, I texted Jelai to make sure she was cool with us coming through.
I knew that was her mom’s restaurant, and if she wasn’t comfortable engaging with me in front of her, that was something I’d need to know before I pulled up.
“I’m sorry, baby. I don’t want to make this weird. I just would like some time to tell her about us before I introduce the two of you,” Jelai said softly.
I guess she was so busy that she hadn’t seen my text because she looked like a ghost when Mama and I arrived.
Lucky for her, we weren’t put in her section, so that made it easy for her to ignore me.
Regardless of how hard I tried, I couldn’t keep my eyes off her.
It wasn’t until Mama and I finished lunch and I went to the restroom that Jelai decided to acknowledge my presence by pushing me back into the bathroom and locking the door behind us.
“It’s fine, bae. That’s why I texted you what I texted you. I’m cool with keeping things on the low for now, but I’m too grown to be hidden forever.”
Her body relaxed as she wrapped her arms around me.
“I know, and I’ll be quick about it. It’s just .
. . Chris told her you were out and he asked her to tell me to make sure I stayed away from you.
Honestly, she didn’t even want you and your mom to have lunch here because a lot of Outlaws eat here, but I told her that was absolutely ridiculous.
They don’t run shit around here, and I’m not putting you or any other Wilted Roses out because of them. ”
My head tilted as I processed her words. “The Outlaws consider your mama’s restaurant a part of their territory? Why?”
She shrugged. “I don’t know. I guess one of the members randomly had dinner here one day and they just started hanging around.”
“Have they been here a lot since I’ve been out?”
“Actually, no. Since the day you showed up at my doorstep, none of them have stopped by. I hadn’t noticed until you just mentioned it.”
I gave her a quick kiss before making my way out.
After tossing a few bills onto the table, I told Mama we had to go.
If I was right about this, there was no doubt in my mind that The Outlaws would be pulling up soon.
Once they started eating somewhere frequently, they put a claim on it and used the space for meetings and bike nights.
I didn’t see them using her mom’s restaurant for bike nights because they didn’t serve alcohol here, but I was pretty sure one of their members had been watching the place and waiting to see if I’d come through.
If they really had a target on my back because of Mario, they were going to be waiting for me and Jelai to link up. It didn’t make sense for them to no longer eat here just because I was out. That was for my benefit. For me to relax. For me to think there would be no threat.
By the time Mama and I made it outside, about six bikes pulled into the parking lot. As they circled us, six more bikes pulled in. I saw Jelai running out of the restaurant out of the corner of my eye, but I pointed toward the door for her to go back inside.
“Yates,” Mama called, grabbing my hand.
“It’s cool, Mama. You know I ain’t gon’ let nothing happen to you.”
“I know that. That’s why I’m worried about you.”
Ignoring her statement, I opened her car door and helped her inside. After placing a kiss on her temple, I told her, “I love you. I’ll see you at home later.”
“What? I’m not leaving you here with them!” she yelled, trying to get back out of the car.
“I’m good, Mama. Gone home. I’ll call you when I get to the clubhouse.”
She released a shaky breath as her head shook. “Yates—”
“I can’t take care of them and worry about you,” I said firmly, still keeping my tone low out of respect. “Please go.”
She looked back as a dozen bikers circled my bike, swallowing hard. “I’m going to go, but you call me the moment you make it to the clubhouse, Yates, and not a second later. I’m about to call your daddy now.”
“Yes, ma’am,” I agreed before closing her door.
My eyes shifted toward the window of the restaurant as Mama pulled off, and Jelai stood there—watching. A small group of onlookers had huddled around the door, and I just shook my head in frustration. This was the last thing I needed right now.
As I walked toward my bike, the ringleader parked in front of it.
I didn’t know who it was because he still had his helmet on.
Regardless of who it was, none of them could put fear in me.
When he lifted his helmet, I chuckled. It was Mario’s uncle.
I remembered him from my trial. Last I heard, he’d been promoted from road caption to vice president for The Outlaws.
“What’s keeping me from putting a bullet between your eyes right now?” Hamilton snarled as I grabbed my helmet to put it on.
With a shrug, I chuckled. “The fact that you know if you kill me, my folks will wipe out your entire bloodline.” Our eyes remained locked as I hopped on my bike.
“The only reason I’m letting you ride away is because my president made me promise not to touch you unless I was provoked. I won’t ever forget what you did to my nephew, and I will make you pay for it, one way or another.”
“Yeah, aight,” I replied, unable to hide my amusement. I’d never been one to go back and forth. I gave warnings, and then it was time for action. All this shit he was talking meant nothing to me.
“You stay the hell away from here. This is Outlaw territory.”
“Did the owner agree to y’all using this as your clubhouse? Do you gather here for events or bike nights?” When he didn’t respond, I continued. “You have no claim to this place or anyone in it. And even if you did, you can’t tell me what the fuck to do.”
“You heard what I said, Wicked. The next time I see you around here, I might forget what Prez said.”
“I’ll see you then,” I decided. My eyes shifted toward the window, landing on Jelai.
Her eyes were watery, face showing every ounce of fear in her body.
I shot her a wink to let her know I was okay, and she smiled, clutching her chest. I noticed Hamilton look in her direction, and that was the only thing that kept me from immediately putting my helmet on.
“I’ll do you worse than I did your nephew if you even think about going near her.”
He tried to lunge toward me, but his men held him back. I was cool with that. At this point, I was sure we’d see each other again, and I’d be prepared. All I knew was he’d better not go anywhere near Jelai, or he was going to be in hell with the nephew he was trying to avenge.