Spade (High Rollers MC Book 3)

by Kasey Krane

  Table of Contents

  Copyright

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Chapter Thirty

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  Epilogue

  About Kasey Krane

  About Savannah Rylan

  Copyright © 2019 by Kasey Krane & Savannah Rylan

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Chapter One

  River

  It took me several minutes of sitting in the car and trying to gather myself before I could actually step out and make my way towards the Church. Everything about today was wrong, this was not the way I’d pictured my return to Las Vegas to look like.

  This was the city I’d grown up in and hadn’t returned to in over seven years. I was nostalgic and sad and angry; all at once. I didn’t know which emotion to give priority to. I knew I was supposed to feel sad about dad’s death, but I was angry about it too.

  While I sat in the car, in the corner of the parking lot, I tried to zone myself out and focus on one thing at a time. Two days ago, while I was on my way back home in Texas from a long day at the office; I received a phone call from an unknown number. I’d answered it without thinking twice and then I vaguely recognized the voice on the other end of the line.

  It was Ace.

  Someone from my past. A guy I knew from my life here in Las Vegas. Someone who used to work for my dad. Why was he calling me? We hadn’t been in touch since I left Las Vegas. I should have known then, I should have known instantly that something was wrong. It was the only reason for him to call me out of the blue.

  We made very little small-talk. It was evident that Ace just wanted to get to the point. Dad was dead. He had an accident and he died painlessly. The funeral was in two days and I was welcome to attend.

  That was all Ace informed me of and I couldn’t even thank him. I had to park the car on the side of the road and just end the call in a hurry before I burst out crying.

  I switched off the engine and just sat there in the dark while other cars zoomed past me. Dad was gone? What kind of accident? When was the last time I’d spoken to him? Did I even remember his voice?

  Nothing was making any sense. I could feel my hands shaking, my lips quivering. I hadn’t cried in years. I wasn’t a crier. Why was I crying over my father, whom I hadn’t seen in seven years, whom I’d spoken to only a handful of times in that time over the phone? Why did I miss the man who forced me to leave Las Vegas, the only home I knew and made me live my drunken alcoholic mother?

  My father had ruined my life. He’d turned my life upside down and now I couldn’t control the tears flooding down my cheeks. Why? I wanted to scream. I wanted to break something, crush something with my bare hands so I could feel anything besides this mounting frustration in my chest.

  I needed to stop crying so I just started driving instead. Hoping I made it back to our little apartment without crashing.

  ***

  Back in the apartment, mom was on the couch, splayed out with a bottle of cheap whiskey in her hand. The TV was turned on but she wasn’t watching anything. Her head was lolling to the side, she was drunk already and I wasn’t surprised.

  Mom had a very good reason to leave me and dad when I was two years old. She didn’t want to be a mother. She loved alcohol too much and she didn’t want the responsibility of caring for another human being. So, she left Las Vegas and ran away to Texas and dad never went looking for her because they were never really meant to be together.

  He was going to raise me himself and raise me alone and I was a happy kid. I never missed the presence of a mother. My father was my world and I was his.

  So why did he send me here? Why did he force me to come and live with mom when he knew exactly how much she hated being a mother? He made it worth her while too…making sure he paid her enough on a weekly basis to encourage her to let me stay at her apartment.

  Maybe he wasn’t aware of the extent of her addiction to alcohol. Maybe he had no idea what a nightmare it was to keep living with her. When I tried to tell him over the phone, on the few occasions that he called; dad dismissed it, blaming me for making things up so I could return to Las Vegas.

  Why was keeping me away from Spade so much more important than my happiness and well-being?

  I walked into the apartment tonight, wiping the tears that had stained my cheeks. I walked over to the couch, shaking my mother awake so I could tell her.

  “Dad is dead!” I shouted, angry and feeling helpless. She blinked her eyes open but from the dazed look on her face I knew she had no idea who or what I was talking about.

  Dad died. Do you understand what I’m saying, mom?” I shook her again. She smiled a lopsided smile and nodded.

  “Sure honey, he’s dead.”

  “Do you know who I’m talking about?” I asked, gritting my teeth and she continued to smile. I got my answer. She was completely out of it.

  I stepped away from her and watched her curl up into a ball on the couch again. Another spurt of tears burst out. Where was this coming from! He was gone. I would never see him again. He died without really knowing how I was, if I was happy, if he’d done the right thing by sending me here…

  “I’m going back to Las Vegas, mom,” I shouted, over the din of the TV, hoping she would hear me and she just lifted up her hand and waved at me.

  ***

  And now I was here. I was in Las Vegas again and it finally felt like I was back where I belonged. I should never have left. Maybe I should have rebelled against my father more. I should have put my foot down and made him see that he couldn’t just make me do things according to his will.

  Maybe he had everyone else wrapped around his pinky finger, but not me…

  But I didn’t get a chance to prove that. Dad made sure I had no choice but to leave this place. Now, it was only after his death that I could return.

  Even as I sat in the car and thought about how difficult the next few hours were going to be, I couldn’t stop wondering if I’d ever forgiven him. I’d loved him. I trusted him. For years and years, ever since I was a baby…he was the only person in my world. He was family.

  Till Spade happened and everything changed.

  Why?

  I never got the answers to my questions.

  I was desperate to find out why dad was willing to let me go…his only child…away to live with a woman who’d abandoned him and me as a baby. How and why did he trust my mother more than he trusted me or Spade?

  What did Spade do that was so wrong?

  But dad never explained. Not
when he was forcing me to leave the city and neither when I called him from Texas. That subject was closed. He wanted me to move on. He wanted me to believe him when he claimed he’d made the best decision for my life. That I would thank him later.

  Well, I still hadn’t discovered the reason to thank him and I never could now.

  I wiped the tears glistening in my eyes and decided to finally force myself to step out of the car. I didn’t want to miss the ceremony. After all, that was why I was back here wasn’t it? To pay my respects to a father I’d lost seven years ago.

  I tugged at the sleeves of my black dress and glanced at myself in the rearview mirror of my rented car. I looked like a complete mess. This was the reason why I hadn’t bothered with makeup, because I was sure I’d cry my eyes out and destroy it all anyway.

  I couldn’t stop crying these past two days. It was like suddenly the floodgates had opened up and there was no way to shut them back again. I couldn’t even recognize myself anymore.

  It felt strange walking into the Church, knowing I would find several familiar faces inside of my father’s friends and colleagues…men I had grown up around but hadn’t seen in years. Would they even recognize me? Were they even expecting me to come?

  Did any of them know why dad had sent me away from this place?

  The Church door had been shut already, I was late by a few minutes but I pushed them open.

  Thankfully, the ceremony hadn’t begun and some people were yet to take their seats. There was a low buzz of voices going around the Church. It was filled to the brim with people my father was apparently acquainted with.

  Despite the crowd, I could sense a lot of faces turning to me. Were people shocked to see me?

  “River!” I heard a voice as I gingerly walked down the aisle. When I stopped and turned I saw Ace. He was all grown up now. A man!

  “Hi, thanks for calling me. Sorry we couldn’t talk much that time, I was just in complete shock.”

  I was rambling and before I could continue with anything else, Ace just threw his arms around me and gave me a big bear hug.

  “It’s nice to see you again, River. I’m sure your dad would have appreciated you coming here. He is being sorely missed, as you can tell.”

  We both looked around at the Church and once again I registered how many people were in attendance at my father’s funeral. I had no idea he even knew this many people. Or that so many people would care about his death.

  I saw someone else I recognized—Edge, another guy who used to be just a kid the last time I saw him. He came up behind Ace and we shook hands.

  “You’re looking all grown up, Edge,” I commented and he nodded.

  “And you’re looking great!”

  Besides that, there wasn’t much to discuss at the moment. The mood was somber. Maybe they could tell that I’d been crying and they pitied me.

  “So, the last time we spoke, you didn’t get a chance to tell me what happened to dad. You said it was an accident. What kind of an accident?” I asked, staring at Ace for some answers. He reached over and squeezed my shoulder.

  “It’s about to start, we can discuss all this later. You should go ahead and take a seat up front,” Ace replied. I got the sense that he was trying to dodge my question and I didn’t know why. I had every right to know how or why my father died!

  But Ace and Edge did a good job of distracting attention and I had no choice but to start proceeding down the aisle again towards one of the front pews.

  I was keeping my head down, avoiding eye contact with anyone else because I didn’t know if I could deal with it, but even from the corner of my eye; I sensed him.

  I glanced up, only for a second, but it was enough for me to see Spade standing up, some distance away from me, surrounded by people I didn’t recognize.

  I looked away quickly. My heart was racing in my heart. I forgot where I was or why I was here. I thought I was going to slip and fall. I had to force myself to keep taking one step at a time and move forward. I didn’t want to turn back or see him again. I just wanted to forget he was even here.

  Chapter Two

  Spade

  On the morning of Buck’s funeral, I woke up feeling like we were out of options now. Mr. Money and his guys had taken things too far and I couldn’t think of a single solution to our MC’s problem.

  We lost Buck at a crucial time. He’d sacrificed himself for the sake of the life of a child. He knew exactly the kind of risk he was taking when he walked into the park that day. Hell, he purposely goaded that asshole to take a shot at him so the rest of us would get a chance to rescue the kid.

  Buck had walked himself right into a trap, proudly and holding his head high. After all these years of riding with him, following in his footsteps and hoping to someday be worthy of his respect—he was now gone and I felt lost.

  Like I’d lost a father. Someone I aspired to be, and now nothing felt right.

  I wasn’t the only one feeling this way in the MC. Everyone was broken up about the loss of Buck. Some of the guys were reacting to it with anger and rage, while others like me had retreated back into our shells and we were refusing to face reality.

  Buck was responsible for this MC. He’d built it from the ground up when the High Rollers were nothing more than an amateur motorcycle club. We were now a force to reckon with in LA. We had a successful business, a gig that Mr. Money was after and he was going to make us pay for. Everything we now had we owed to Buck, but he was gone and we were still trying to find our footing without him.

  According to MC rules, the VP was supposed to take the spot in the event of a President’s death. Shark was the official VP, so it was his job to be our boss now but so far, since Buck’s death, he’d been pushing off the nomination.

  I was beginning to get the feeling that maybe Shark didn’t want to take on this responsibility. I couldn’t blame him for thinking this way. This was huge. Following in Buck’s footsteps and trying to fill his shoes could seem like a daunting task. One you would not willingly want to fail at.

  Yet, someone would have to do it. This MC needed direction. Especially at a time like this when we were in full-on crisis mode. The last thing we needed was even more chaos and confusion over who was going to be our leader.

  But today was Buck’s funeral. Today was the day we were going to lay him to rest, so I gave myself time to think about all this until tomorrow. Today, my task was to just focus on saying goodbye to Buck, my mentor, the man who had given me a second chance.

  ***

  I was thinking about this second chance as I rode my bike to the Church for the funeral.

  I didn’t expect him to give me that second chance, in fact, I expected him to kick me out on my ass and force me out of the MC or worse still—make me face the real consequences of being with his daughter.

  The day he discovered my bike outside his home, I’d run out in fear and out of respect. I didn’t know how to face him that day or look him in the eye. I knew he would know. I didn’t need to give him any excuses, nothing that River could say would explain it to him either.

  Being with the daughter of the president of the MC was against the rules. Even though I was just a teenager, I knew the consequences of that rule. Especially when that rule had been set down by a man who wanted to keep his daughter closely guarded from every aspect of his professional life.

  He didn’t want River getting anywhere close to the MC and by being with her, I’d put her right bang in the middle of it.

  I was convinced he was going to find me and put me in the hospital. Make sure I never stepped foot in MC premises again.

  Things happened. I wasn’t too far from the truth in my prediction of how Buck was going to take the news. Nothing about the situation pleased him. I had to do everything in my power to convince him I wanted to stick with the MC, that nothing was more important. At the end of it all, Buck agreed to give me a second chance and prove myself to him.

  And that was what I’d been doing all these yea
rs. Trying to prove myself to him, to the MC, make it all worthwhile. Things had never been smooth sailing between us since he found out about River and me; but I respected his decision. I knew from the beginning that it was me who had committed the crime and it was me who deserved the punishment.

  I was willing to spend the rest of my life trying to prove my loyalty to the MC if I had to but it took Buck several years before he could soften towards me again.

  He’d seen the potential in me, he still trusted me; but did he like me? That was a different question. He’d forgiven me for the sake and benefit of the MC but he’d never forgotten what I did.

  In the last two years I had finally begun to see a chance in him. Maybe it was because he was older now and he was willing to let go of old grudges. Maybe enough time had passed and he knew his daughter was safely tucked away from me and I wasn’t going to mess it up again. But things had never returned to normal between us and for that I could never forgive myself.

  It was my fault that Buck had died without me having the opportunity to tell him the truth about River and me.

  ***

  The truth about River and me was that I had fallen in love with her. Something that wasn’t going to be easy to convince Buck about. Maybe the man didn’t even believe in love. Maybe he didn’t care for that word or those emotions. Buck was a highly principled man. He believed in what was the wrong thing to do and what was right. Everything else could go fuck itself.

  One of his boys, a fresh-faced prospect who was too young to do anything right—was definitely wrong for his daughter. Involving his only child in the MC world was wrong. Those were the principles Buck believed in and how he governed River’s life. Me claiming that I was in love with his daughter and would do anything to keep her safe and happy; would not have flown with him then and seven years later, would not have flown with him now either. River was always going to be off limits. No matter what emotions were involved there.

  It was why I could never have that conversation with him, the one I should have had back when he confronted me about her. I knew I should have told him the truth about my feelings, even though I wasn’t sure of hers. But I was afraid of ridicule. I knew Buck wouldn’t understand or believe me. Nothing I said would make a difference to him in this matter.