by Ami Van
“Titus McKenna,” his buddy answers. “Dakota and I have been friends a long time. Patched in together. This might be the first time I want to kill him and take his place though.”
Minx slinks her arm around him and looks up at him. He bends and gives her a kiss on the lips right there in front of Titus and his buddy all but growls.
“I have to go put the table together. Kris is going to lend me a hand if that’s okay,” she says.
“Sure. Tucker’s anxious to call the meeting tonight before the festivities start anyway,” he tells her.
“Can you check her out?” she says, handing her keys to him. “Trevor says he saw a nail in my back tire. Maybe I can leave it in until we get back home?”
“I’ll see about it,” he tells her before giving her a swat on the ass as she walks away.
“I fucking hate you,” Titus says. “She’s smoking hot!” his brother says, putting his finger to his mouth and biting it.
“Shuuut up,” he tells Titus.
CHAPTER 38
Dakota
“Tuck, I know it’s a night for celebrations but I just want to give a heads up,” Atticus says from his seat at the table, next to Tucker. “We still see Reapers lurking around. Not in numbers but they’re watching.”
“We don’t ride alone,” Tucker orders. “Carry if you need to. Carrying legit would be even better if you. Kyle, are the cameras at Minx’s and Tricia’s place good?”
“Yeah. I set up the one at Tricia’s place myself. Maddox gave us actual access to the feed off of his current one. With Otis, Snake, and Dakota staying there, I don’t expect them to be rolling in that neighborhood unless they’re dumbasses,” Kyle answers.
“I’m more worried about your place,” he tells Tucker. “It’s just you, Tricia, and Bee there.”
“We’re working on buying the two houses that are for sale on the block,” Tucker answers. “In the meantime, I’ll have someone posted with my family at all times. Sorry brothers, but I have to do what it takes to keep them safe until I find a more permanent solution.”
“Minx’s place is big enough,” he reminds Tucker.
It wasn’t his place to offer up her home but it was true. With everyone moved or moving to their clubhouse, the main house only had her, him, and Maddox staying at the moment. Which leaves three rooms open downstairs since Austin’s room is still locked up.
“I’ll talk to Tricia about it,” Tucker says. “So...we need some votes!”
“YEAH!” “YES!” the table shouts out loudly, pounding their hands and fists on their brand new table.
The voting for both Titus and Griffin didn’t take long with unanimous decisions for both. Titus, he was good friends with. Griffin, he didn’t really know yet but he was still a brother and from what he knows from the members familiar with the guy, he was loyal and trustworthy.
The sound of the gavel slamming ends their first official meeting in their new clubhouse. The new charter members were being handed their new rockers and loud congratulations when he left the room in search of his girl. He found Minx, sitting at a table with his dad.
“Pop, stop moving in on my girl.”
He takes a seat right next to hers and grabs a beer from the bucket that was on the table. She pushes a plate of burgers and ribs in front of him then hands him a fork for all the sides.
“Thanks,” he tells her and she flashes him one of her knock-me-on-my-ass smiles with the dimples.
“I was just telling Minx how the mother charter’s going to be envious of that gorgeous table inside their. Great work,” his dad compliments her.
“Thank you, Miles. It was a cool project,” she says.
“It looks amazing baby. The leather and then the fine cut metal on top of wood like that. It’s intricate. No wonder you’re spending so much time in the garage,” he says. “Are you okay with the Renaissance pieces?”
“Yeah. Penny’s been great. She takes good notes. I think Otis showed her a simpler way to do measurements and conversions because she’s been getting faster and more accurate,” she tells him.
“Pop, you’re staying with us at the house right?” he asks his dad.
“If you don’t mind,” his dad answers. “This is a lot of noise for an old man like me.”
“We’d love for you to,” Minx answers him. “Some of the members will be staying at the clubhouse out there too since this place won’t hold everyone. But the main house has plenty of room. It’s just me, Dakota, and Maddox. He’s family.”
“Where is he anyway?” he asks her. He hadn’t seen Maddox all day and thought the guy would be here.
“I don’t know. I tried calling him but he texted me back and said he was going out to dinner and then an hour later, he said he wasn’t feeling well. I’ll check on him when we get home,” she says.
◆◆◆
"The clubhouse looks great,” she says, as she slides in bed next to him.
“Yeah. It should be done by the end of next month if everyone keeps pitching in like this,” he tells her. He pulls her right up to his side. “The rooms seem to be filled already though.”
“Do you plan on staying there once it’s done?” she asks.
He'd thought about it, of course. He wasn’t sure if she needed space or not. They’ve been together since the first night he’d rode into town. Things between them happened so fast, it was pretty unbelievable.
“Do you want me to?” he asks her.
She pulls herself closer to him.
“I like having you here,” she tells him. Her fingers already playing with his beard. “I love waking up next to you. I like that when you have to leave before I’m up, I can still smell you on the pillow. If I’m really lucky, I’ll find a long strand of your beard on the pillow too,” she laughs.
“I like being here,” he tells her. “But I don’t want to push you and I don’t want to feel like I’ve just moved into yours and Maddox’s house without talking to you first.”
“If you haven’t noticed. It’s a big house,” she says with a smile. “Besides, it’s quiet around here.”
“We can always add a baby or two for some noise,” he teases her.
She laughs at him. “Are you ready for that already? I was thinking more along the lines of a dog,” she says.
“I’m 37 and not getting any younger. I wanna be able to show my kid how to ride a bike proper before I’m too old to do that.”
“Do we have time to start practicing right now?” she teases. “Or are you too tired?”
Her hand was already causing wildfire across his skin. Her lips were on his neck, licking and biting. His hand was already burying and fisting in her long hair.
“We can make time,” he tells her. “We can always make time.”
“I love you, Dakota. I waited for Tucker the past ten years but I think you're the Knight that might have saved me.”
“Damn, Mercy. I fucking love you. Think I mighta loved you since the second that beer bottle flew by your brother’s head,” he tells her.
He rolls onto her and seals their fate with a kiss. No regrets. This is where he needed to be. This is where he WANTED to be.
Everything ends...and everything starts with her now.
EPILOGUE
Dakota
“Maddox! Wait up!” he calls out, running down the front porch.
“What’s up?” Maddox asks him as they both start walking down to the clubhouse where Maddox seems to have been staying most nights of the week.
“Everything okay, man? We haven’t seen you around much lately and Minx has really been worried.”
“I'm fine. I just thought I’d give the two of you some personal space,” Maddox answers.
“I’m sorry, man. I'm an asshole but I don’t want it to seem like I just moved in and took over your house or anything,” he tells Maddox.
“Don’t worry about it. Hadn’t crossed my mind at all. It’s just as much her house as it is mine,” Maddox tells him.
“Ar
e you sure everything’s okay?” he asks again.
“Yeah, man. Everything’s fine. I have to head out but I’ll call Mercy later and see if she wants to grab dinner or something. Maybe me and her can sit down for a movie tonight until you get home,” Maddox says.
“She’d like that, man. She misses you. Caught her wandering around in Austin’s room a few times this week.”
He sees Maddox slowing down his steps.
“It still hurts,” Maddox says. “I miss him as much as she does.”
“I’m sorry,” he says. “I know it’s still hard.”
After a moment of walking to the garage in silence, he speaks up again.
“I’m not suppose to saying anything but I think you deserve to know first,” he says to Maddox.
Maddox stops and looks at him.
“Me and Minx. We’ve been trying...for the past month,” he says. "Since my Pops left town."
“Trying?” Maddox repeats.
“Yeah. To have a baby,” he says. “We haven’t told anyone yet. She stopped taking the pill a month ago so don’t spill it to her that I told you.”
“You plan on marrying my angel or you just gonna make her pop out bastards for you?” Maddox asks, eye to eye. Okay! So THIS is the Maddox he was more familiar with.
“I’m not gonna take offense to that but yes. Of course. I just gotta convince her to say yes already. Woman’s stubborn as horse shit. She’s willing to have a kid with me but still won’t believe that she deserves someone who can look beyond her past and love her,” he says with a sigh.
“Maybe having the kid first isn’t such a bad idea then,” Snake says from behind them.
“Yeah,” Otis chimes in. The two were in the garage working on whatever project they have going. “A kid will love unconditionally. Maybe once she gets that, then she’ll understand where you’re coming from, brother.”
“Let’s hope so,” he tells the three men in the garage. "Remember, not a word of this to anyone!"
“I gotta get going,” Maddox tells him.
“Remember to give her a call later. I might not make it home for dinner so it’d be nice if she had some company.”
“I will,” Maddox yells back. He zoomed out of the garage faster than a hawk.
“He’s always in a rush to go places now,” Snake says.
“Damn it! Did Maddox leave already?” Minx asks from the doorway. She sounded out of breath.
“Yeah. He said he’ll call you about dinner tonight.”
“Ugh! Where’s he always off to?” she asks as she walks over to him.
He shrugs when she reaches him. He takes her hand and kisses the inside of her wrist before placing a gentle one on her head.
“Ready?” he asks her.
“Yeah,” she says.
She was already putting her helmet on and heading toward his bike. Today, he was dropping her off at Tricia’s place so they can hang out. Penny would be picking her up later once she returns from town with the rest of the materials and designs needed.
She swings her leg over the back of his bike and he gets on. Turning the engine and backing out of the garage, he feels her arms wrapping around him. He can feel the electric jolt even through his cut. Just like the first time he’d touched her.
As he coasts down the road, he can feel her arms tighten around him. He can feel her sighing against his back and can even glimpse her dimpled smiles in his mirror every now and then. She was happy.
And damn...did he love her even more when she's happy.
THE END
Dear Readers,
As always, thank you for hanging in there and finishing another read with me. I have to confess that I’d hoped for Dakota’s and Minx’s relationship to be full of non-stop steamy scenes but as usual, these characters have their own personal stories to tell and they tend to steal the spotlight. I absolutely love how they are beginning their relationship, nonetheless. Don’t worry...the other Knights will get their turn too and I promise you, Dakota and Minx will both be making appearances in each one’s story as the Knights of Havoc MC - Iowa begin to settle into their new home.
A good review and feedback are always appreciated but not necessary. Just hang in there with me and follow along as I find more characters with their own stories to tell.
Again, thank you all for taking this journey with me. To the next!
Sincerely,
Ami Van
P.S. Now you can sign up for my newsletter for announcements of new releases and giveaways!
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About the Author
Ami Van is a crazy cat lady residing in Las Vegas, NV with her children and of course, her cats. As a child, she held her cats hostage in a room as she unleashed her imagination, boring them with countless stories of fire-breathing dragons and heart-shaped dandelions floating into space. Stubborn and defiant, she disregarded her tutors’, teachers’ and mentors’ advices to explore creative writing and instead graduated college with an Information Technology degree. It took many twists and turns for her to start writing. A firm believer that it sometimes takes a little more time to find one’s path, it took her nearly 16 years to finally take the step.