Love, Loyalty & Mayhem: A Motorcycle Club Romance Anthology

by Ryan Michele

  “Well, seeing as it’s Saturday and Remy is getting married a week from today, yeah, I don’t have much faith in you seeing as you haven’t even bought a dress for the wedding yet. You get a yellow dress, and you’re gonna look like a fucking canary.”

  I scrunched up my nose. “I have plenty of time and you sound like you don’t think I’ll look good in a yellow dress.”

  Lo pushed off the counter and pulled me up from my chair. He wrapped me up in his arms and I tipped my head back to look at him.

  “Never said you wouldn’t look good. Said you would look like a fucking canary.” His voice was low, and a shiver ran through my body even though I was a bit upset that he had called me a canary.

  I quirked an eyebrow. “So you’re into fucking canaries now?”

  “We really gonna get into this?” he growled.

  I didn’t really want to but getting Lo riled up was kind of fun. “I’m just going off what you said.”

  His nostrils flared. “Babe, I’m into you, and if you want to dress up like a fucking canary, then go for it. Just don’t come crying to me after you see the wedding pictures and you stick out like a sore thumb.”

  The urge to argue with him was strong, but I knew that everything he said was right. The idea of a yellow dress seemed fun and different in theory, but I knew I would end up regretting it. “Yellow is on the top of my list, but maybe I’ll check out some other colors too.” I wasn’t going to let him think that I was giving into his reasoning.

  “Like black,” he replied flatly.

  I pinched his nipple through his thin, black shirt. And twisted.

  “Hey, hey, woman!” He knocked my hand away and placed his hand over his now twisted nipple. “Don’t damage the goods.”

  I rolled my eyes and pushed him away. “I need to be at Cyn’s in fifteen minutes.” Gwen was also coming along and we had agreed to meet at Cyn’s then drive together to the dress shop.

  “That means no quickie before you leave?”

  I wagged my finger in his face. “You don’t get to call me a canary and then think we’re going to have sex.” I grabbed my purse hooked over the chair. “Besides, you should have woken up earlier if you wanted that.”

  Lo scoffed. “Normally you wake me up with the smell of breakfast cooking, but you had cereal today. That ain’t gonna wake me up.”

  I had cereal on purpose. I knew if I made bacon and eggs Lo would have woken up and distracted me with sweet morning kisses which would have led to the quickie he mentioned. “Forty-five years old and he expects me to wake him up every morning.” I rolled my eyes and dug around in my purse for my truck keys. “What are you doing today?” I spotted my keys and pulled them out.

  “Gotta clean up the clubhouse before the reception next weekend and then maybe work on the bike.”

  “Work on the bike? What’s wrong with it?”

  Lo grabbed his coffee and leaned against the counter. “Putting a new exhaust on it. Got it in last week and I finally have time to work on it.”

  “What’s wrong with the exhaust you have on it.”

  He shrugged. “Nothing.”

  I closed one eye and pursed my lips. “You lost me on why you would order a new one then.”

  “Cause this one is gonna shake the neighbors windows.”

  Good lord. “I’m sure Larry will appreciate that.”

  “Fuck Larry. You would think after living here for almost ten years the guy would warm up to me a bit but nada.”

  “You really think Larry is going to come over and shoot the shit with you in the driveway while you wax your bike every Saturday?” Lo was crazy if he thought Larry was going to be buddies with him. I was just glad Larry kept to himself and didn’t give us shit for bikes and people coming and going from the house all the time.

  “No.”

  “Then what the hell, Lo?”

  He shrugged his shoulders. “I thought about it for a second and decided I was good with the guy not talking to me.”

  “And you tell me I’m the crazy one.” I rolled my eyes and leaned up on my tip toes. “I’ll be back later. We’re going for hibachi after so you might have to fend for yourself for dinner depending on how long this takes. ” I pressed a kiss to his cheek.

  He grabbed me around the waist. “That kiss ain’t gonna do it for me, babe. Especially if you’re leaving me to fend for myself for dinner.” He pressed his lips to mine, and I slipped right into the Lo Daze. Though, I had to say I basically lived there permanently the past ten years. “Behave. I don’t want any phone calls needing me to bail you out.”

  “One time that happened and you just won’t let me live it down.”

  His hands squeezed my waist. “That one time got us banned from the furniture store for life.”

  “Pfft. I still say that was all Ethel’s fault.” You break one bed in the furniture store and bam, banned for life. “He was an angry nugget of a man, anyway.”

  “That was not my mother’s fault at all. I’ll have to let her know when I see her that you are still trying to blame that on her.” Lo pulled me close and buried his face in my neck.

  “You’re such a mama’s boy,” I grumbled.

  “Gotta love her while she’s still here with us.”

  Ethel had another cancer scare six months ago, and I knew it had changed Lo. He realized he wasn’t going to have his mom around forever. I closed my eyes and enjoyed the feel of being in this loving man’s arms. “We do have a plate of her’s you could drop off to her on the way to the shop.”

  “Guess I could stop by,” he whispered.

  “Mama’s boy,” I taunted.

  He playful pushed me out his arms. “I’m gonna have to say you have your own mama’s boy due in town in a couple of days.”

  I shook my finger at him. “You’re damn straight I have my own mama’s boy. Though he could stand to call me a bit more.”

  Lo followed me to the front door and held it open for me. “I tell him all the time to call you, babe. I think he’s afraid of the crazy stories you’re gonna tell him.”

  I blew a raspberry. “He should be used to it by now. The boy has known my craziness for the past twenty-seven years.” I pressed another quick kiss to Lo’s lips. “Now I gotta drive fast to get to Cyn’s on time. You’re too distracting.” I pushed out the screen door and glared at Lo over my shoulder. “Have fun playing with your exhaust today.”

  Lo shook his head and rolled his eyes.

  Larry was walking past the house with his tiny fluff ball of a dog and of course heard me. “Uh, hey there, Larry.”

  I could hear Lo’s boisterous laugh from inside the house.

  “Asshole,” I hiss through the screen door.

  It was only ten o’clock, and I had already made a fool of myself.

  Just another day living the life.

  2

  Lo

  “Jesus Christ!” I stumbled backward out the door and slammed it shut before I fell back on my ass.

  “Logan Birch! Why in the hell are you walking into my house without knocking?”

  I scrubbed my hand down my face and asked myself the same question. I was catapulted back to a young child walking in on their parents doing the nasty. Full body shiver.

  “Hush, woman,” Gravel grumbled through the closed door.

  “Who in the hell does that in the middle of the day with the door unlocked?” I hollered.

  The front door swung open and Gravel glared down at me. Shirtless. Top button of his jeans unbuttoned. “We ain’t fucking dead, son. Figured everyone who would stop by would be at work or out doing shit.”

  “Here.” I shielded my arm over my eyes and held out the pan that belonged to Mom. “Just take this.” I was going to need to go to the clubhouse and rinse my eyes out with bleach.

  “You think you would have learned from the last time you did this.” Mom’s voice joined Gravel’s but I didn’t want to look. God only knew if she managed to get all of her clothes back on. “Knock on the damn
door, Logan.”

  Mom was mad. She really only called me Logan when she was pissed off or trying to be serious. “Lock the damn door,” I countered.

  “You think we planned this?” Gravel asked. “One thing lead to another and before I knew it I had your mother bent over-.”

  “Stop!” I thundered. I had seen the visual, I didn’t need the play-by-play of how it went down. I scrambled to my feet and turned my back to Gravel and mom. “I, uh, I’ll see you guys at the wedding.” Lord knows if I was going to be able to make eye contact with either of them. “Lock your damn door.” I stomped down the steps and over to my bike.

  Mom cackled like a mad woman and Gravel’s low rumble laugh followed me till I peeled out of the driveway.

  I couldn’t hear them laughing anymore, but god knew I was forever going to be haunted with the image of my mom bent over the couch and begging Gravel to go harder.

  Vomit rose up my throat, and I didn’t make it to the clubhouse before emptying my stomach on the side of the road.

  Twice.

  3

  Meg

  “That’s the one.”

  “Lord have mercy, you look good.”

  I did. I looked amazing. “I’m not getting this one.”

  Cyn’s jaw dropped and the bubble Gwen was blowing popped loudly. “Come again, girlfriend?” Gwen gasped.

  “Unzip me, now.” I turned my back to Cyn. “Did you not hear what I said earlier. I cannot buy a black dress. Get it off me, now.” This was not going to happen. “Do you think they have it in yellow? Maybe orange.” I glanced over my shoulder at Cyn who hadn’t budged from the chair she was sitting in.

  “Uh, girl. You cannot rock yellow or orange.” Gwen shook her head. “At least not in a mother of the bride dress. We could do some funky highlights in your hair if you want though.”

  “Cyn,” I hissed. “Snap out of it and get me out of this dress. Pronto.”

  Cyn shook her head. “Only if you promise to me that you are not going to buy a yellow or orange dress. You are not a bright color person, chick. Why don’t you try plum or dark blue?”

  I turned to the mirror to the side. I ran my hands down the satin fabric and sighed. “I’m not doing blue cause that’s your thing. I’ll match Rigid’s hair and that will just be awkward.”

  “How’s it going in here?” Peg, the sales clerk, slipped into the dressing room with a platter of champagne glasses.

  Yes, booze will make this better. I grabbed a glass from her and chugged it down in three gulps. I set the empty glass on the platter and grabbed another. “I’m gonna need this dress in purple, Peg.”

  Peg blinked at the empty champagne glass. I don’t think she was used to customers like Cyn, Gwen, and I. “I, ah, let me look at the tag.” She offered the tray of glasses to Cyn and Gwen then set it on the small table next to the seatette they were sitting on. She fumbled with the tag and cleared her throat. “Uh, that dress comes in the black you have on, or white.”

  “Oh hell no!” Cyn jumped up and yanked the zipper down. “If you’re not going to get the black, then you sure as hell aren’t going to get the white.” She grabbed my glass from me and set it on the table.

  “Well, duh,” I grumbled. Black would make me look like I didn’t approve of Harlyn and the white would make it look like I was trying to upstage her.

  “Cover the girly bits and let’s go look at the racks. There has to be something out there that is perfect.” Gwen grabbed my shirt and tossed it at me.

  I smirked and pulled the shirt over my head. The dress pooled at my feet and I stepped out of it. “You mean I can’t go out there in my underwear?”

  Peg choked and lightly patted her chest. “Uh, that would not be the best idea.”

  Cyn snatched my pants off the floor and handed them to me. “Put your damn clothes on, woman. You and I both know you wouldn’t step foot out of here without being clothed.”

  “Clothed?” Gwen snickered.

  “How is she tipsy after only having one glass of champagne?” I asked. I tugged my pants on and grabbed my glass of champagne. “And for the record, we always need to shop at places that offer booze.”

  Gwen led the way out of the dressing room and over to the four racks of mother of the bride dresses. “There has to be a dress in here that is going to be the one.”

  I nodded my head. “Yup. There has to be.”

  Cyn grabbed the hem of a lime green dress. “But it’s not this one.”

  Agreed. “I think first we need to just look at color. Pick out the colors that will work and then whittle them down by style.”

  Gwen tipped her glass to me. “I think shopping and drinking booze works for you. That was a very smart idea.”

  I knocked the green dress from Cyn’s hand. “Thank you. Now, let’s get to work, ladies, and prove Lo wrong.”

  “And what was it again that we’re proving him wrong about?” Gwen asked.

  I reached to grab Gwen’s glass from her but she sidestepped out of my grasp. “You are not taking my mama juice right now. I have a six and four-year-old at home and I can’t remember the last time I was free for a whole afternoon.”

  Cyn clinked her glass against Gwen’s. “A-fucking-men to that, sister. Micha just turned eleven and I swear to god it’s like he’s eighteen.” Cyn shook her head. “You would think it would be enough for him to be able to do whatever he wants with his hair, but now he’s begging Rigid to get his ear pierced and a tattoo.”

  I clicked my tongue. “Go with the earring but tell him auntie Meg says he has to wait on the tattoo. At least sixteen.”

  “Meg,” Cyn gasped. “His ass is waiting until he is eighteen to get either.”

  Gwen chuckled. “I find it hilarious that you let the kid dye his hair any color he wants but you’re freaking out over an earring.”

  Cyn rolled her eyes. “Because I can cut his hair off and it’ll grow back. You think I can cut his ear off and it’ll grow back?”

  Gwen and I looked at each other. “Uh, can’t you just take the earring out? I mean, there will be a tiny hole there, but I think cutting his ear off would be a bit drastic.” Thank god Micha had me around or he would be Picasso walking around.

  “It’s about the principle,” Cyn huffed.

  “You’re married to a man with blue hair, covered in tattoos, and from the stories you’ve told, pierced in,” I cleared my throat, “places the eyes can’t see.”

  “Like we are ones to talk,” Gwen laughed. “I think we all married men like that.”

  We looked from one to the other. “A-fucking-men to that!” we cheered in unison.

  “Now, let’s find me a dress so we can get to the hibachi place.” I drained my glass and tucked it under my arm. Good food was our end game. “I want black, but not black.”

  “Sounds easy enough,” Cyn laughed.

  Twenty minutes later we were back in the dressing room with a fresh bottle of champagne and fifteen dresses.

  “Those five are out right off the bat.” I tugged my shirt over my head. “Let’s just agree these arms need sleeves, yeah?” I didn’t feel like getting out on the dance floor at the wedding and having my arm fat waving at everyone. I lifted my arm and watched my loose chicken wings flap. “Ridiculous,” I grumbled.

  Cyn grabbed the five sleeveless dresses and hung them on the opposite wall. “So, this will be the reject wall.”

  Gwen grabbed a deep yellow dress. “Who in the hell grabbed this one? I thought we decided that yellow was not the color for Meg?”

  Cyn grabbed it and hung it on the reject wall. “I thought we could give it a whirl seeing as it wasn’t a bright ass yellow. I didn’t know we hated every shade of yellow.”

  Gwen and Cyn argue back and forth about the color yellow while Peg helped me into my first dress.

  “Pfft, blah, urgh, gah,” I sputtered. Peg zipped the dress up in the back and I batted down the large ruffle around my shoulders. “What in the hell is this?”

  Peg turned m
e toward the mirror and Cyn and Gwen stopped bickering. “This is a mermaid flared skirt and off the shoulder with a ruffle. The color is regency.”

  “Oh, uh,” Cyn muttered.

  Gwen searched for her words. “The, well, uh, color is nice.”

  “It is very mermaid esque,” I muttered.

  “It’s awful!” Cyn blurted. “You look like a damn clown with the puffy collar around your shoulders.”

  “Accurate,” Gwen agreed.

  “So, we’ll take the clown mermaid dresses out and put them on the reject wall.” Peg picked through the dresses and placed two on the opposite wall along with the first offending dress.

  The next six dresses went by quickly with no real winners.

  “This one has to work.” Cyn fingered the lacy sleeve.

  “At least it’s a pretty purple.” Gwen grabbed the dress from the hook and slid it off the hanger.

  “This is brand new. I actually haven’t seen it on anyone yet.” Peg grabbed the dress from Gwen and helped me into it.

  It fit snugly across my bodice, the lace sleeves glided up my arms and Peg zipped up the back.

  “Holy. Shit,” Cyn gasped.

  “Why in the hell didn’t we try this one first? It would have saved us half an hour and a bottle of champagne.” Gwen circled around me with her hand covering her mouth.

  “A-line, chiffon and lace with a scoop neck. It’s actually breathtaking on you.” Peg fluffed out the bottom of the dress and I watched in amazement as it floated back around me.

  “You’re like a purple goddess.” Cyn circled the opposite direction of Gwen. “Lo is going to blow his load when he sees you.” Cyn and Gwen high fived and laughed.

  “Uh, so that means this is the one?” Peg asked. She was once again a bit taken back by the open and crassness of our group.

  I twirled around and knew I looked psychotic with the huge smile on my face, but I couldn’t stop. “We have a winner, Peg. Wrap it up and point me in the direction of the hibachi place.”