Her insides tightened. “I’m positive they do, but not in a good way. Their clubs are rivals. My brother would kill me if he knew I even talked to him.”
“Are you serious? That’s dumb.”
“It is to us but not to these guys. I’m not sure what to do here.”
“Are you involved with your brother’s club?”
“Not at all. He started it with Noe when they were around twenty years old, so he’s been in it for eleven years now. He’s the president. I only know that his club hates the Night Rebels and a few other MCs because he’s ranted about them for a lot of those years. A couple of years ago, the Night Rebels destroyed their clubhouse, and Vic was beyond livid. Normally, he wouldn’t tell me something like that, but he was so enraged, he couldn’t help venting to me when I called him to ask about one of my brothers.”
“This is like a TV show. It’s like that one that was popular on TV a while back. I can’t remember the name. Damn … I never thought this stuff happened anymore.” Ronica’s voice had a thread of incredulity running through it.
“It does. I think it’s ridiculous, and I’m not involved in any of it. I don’t really speak to my brother all that often, and I haven’t seen him for a couple of years now.”
“Then what’s the problem with you going out with Army? I mean, that’s your brother’s issue, and frankly, it’s none of his damn business what you do.”
“I feel that way too. I have nothing to do with the Satan’s Pistons. How can—”
“That’s the name of your brother’s club? It’s too wild.” Ronica laughed.
“It is. It’s so not my world.” Mia brought the can of soda to her lips.
“What’s your gut telling you?”
Mia fixed her gaze on the flowers. “To go out with Army. I really like him, and it’s blowing me away because it takes me a long time to fall for a guy.”
“I know. You dated Jorge for five months, and you never fell for him.”
“He was nice, but I like more of a challenge, and I like things darker and rougher when it comes to sex, but I’ve told you all this before.”
“Yeah, but the point I’m making is … if you have feelings this quickly for Army, it must be the right thing, you know … the real deal?” Ronica said.
“Maybe. I’ll admit there’s a real strong connection I’ve never felt with any other man, and I know Army feels it too. The thing I’m wrestling with is whether I should tell him about Vic being in the rival club.”
“Why? Like you said—you aren’t involved with any of that, and you haven’t seen your brother in a long time. It’s not like you’re super close to him or you’re all gung-ho about his club thing. What difference does it make? I mean we’re civilized people, right? We don’t believe in feuds. You’re not the Hatfields and the McCoys. It’s silly, really.”
“I like him a lot,” Mia whispered. “Why would he judge me because of who my brother is, right? I’m my own person. I want to keep seeing him.”
“Then go for it. The only world that should matter is yours—not your brother’s and Army’s club. This is about the two of you—not anyone or anything else. You deserve to have a really great guy. Oh, hang on a minute.” Ronica put her on hold.
Mia read the card again and leaned over and smelled the sweet fragrance of the flowers. I can’t give him up. He’s only been gone two days and he’s been in my head nonstop.
“Mia, I have to go. Stuart’s on the phone, and he’s in a mood. Go with your instincts. We’ll talk later. Bye.”
Mia crushed the can in her hand and went into the kitchen and threw it in the recycle bin. After replenishing Pumpkin and Snickers’ dry food, she went back into the living room and dialed Army’s number. He answered on the first ring.
“Hey, babe. Nice surprise.” His low voice caressed like warm fingers.
“You’re the one full of surprises.”
“What do you mean?” A hint of mischief wove through his question.
“The flowers. They’re beautiful! I’m still reeling and in shock that the big, bad biker sent them.” She laughed.
Army joined her. His rich, low rumble stroked her senses like velvet. Mia loved to hear his voice … laughing … talking … singing … anything. She could lose herself in his voice.
“So a biker can’t send a chick flowers?”
“Is that your MO with women? Dine them, kiss them passionately, then send flowers?”
“Not with women, babe. Only with you.”
A warm feeling spread through her. “That’s good to know. How did you know sunflowers were my favorites?”
“I didn’t, but you seem to bring light wherever you go, and I know you’re crazy about fall from the way your porch and house are decorated.”
Mia blinked rapidly to hold back unexpected tears then inhaled a deep breath; his words had touched her in ways that surprised her. She had never been a sentimental fool when it came to men, but since she’d met this captivating man, her emotions had been bouncing all over the place.
“You’re sweet,” she said softly.
“Get your ass movin’, dude. Church is starting now,” a booming voice said in the background.
“I gotta go.”
“When will I see you?”
“Not sure. We got some club business going. I’ll call you, baby.”
“Okay then—” The phone went dead, and she wondered if the club business was about the Satan’s Pistons.
She put her phone down and scooped her cats up in each arm, nuzzling their faces. “I’m screwed big time here,” she told them. “I like Army too much to walk away.” Remembering how Pumpkin played up to him when he’d been to her house, she kissed her on the side of the face. “You liked him too, didn’t you? He’s irresistible. Look what he gave me.” She gazed at the flowers making a mental note to put the vase on a plate surrounded by orange and lemon peels to keep the cats from nibbling on the petals—both her cats loathed the citrus scent.
After playing with them, Mia changed into her training clothes and headed out of the house, looking one last time at the bouquet before she closed the door.
Chapter Fourteen
Army watched the woman strut on stage shaking her tits and ass as she auditioned for one of two dancer jobs.
After the explosion at the strip club a couple of weeks before, Army and the other brothers thought business would be bad for a while, but the crowds just kept getting bigger, thus the reason Army was watching a clodhopper attempt to dance on stage.
“You’ve got the best damn job,” Jigger said, sitting in the chair next to Army’s. “She’s a looker.”
“Yeah, but she has no rhythm or sex appeal.”
“I’d watch her.” Jigger lifted his chin to Charlie, who placed a bottle of beer in front of him.
“Do you want anything?” the bartender asked Army.
“Just a 7-Up. Thanks,” he answered slicing the air horizontally with his finger.
Kyra, the stage manager, turned off the music. “Thank you. We’ll be in touch,” she said to the redhead, who picked up her robe off the floor then walked off stage. “Patricia Fuentes,” she called out, and in seconds, a stunning brunette came out and shrugged off her robe.
“She’s fuckin’ hot,” Jigger said.
“Yeah. Let’s see if she can dance.” Army took a sip of soda.
“She can just stand there, and that’d do it for me.”
“A paying customer wants more than that. Besides, you’re always looking to get laid.” Army motioned to Kyra to start the music.
“And you’re not?” Jigger looked back at the stage.
The music filled the venue as the applicant swung her leg around the pole. Instead of seeing her, Army saw Mia arching her back, her long caramel hair skimming her ass while her tits pointed up toward the ceiling. Then she was underneath him, her strong and shapely legs wrapped around his back as he pumped into her, those magnificent amber eyes locked onto his as small moans escaped through her
parted lips.
“You gotta hire her, dude. She’s fuckin’ awesome. I wish Ruby or Kelly was here to get rid of this boner I have from watching this chick. Damn.”
Jigger’s voice pulled Army away from his fantasy, and he shifted his jeans as he tried to focus on the woman gyrating on stage. At that moment, his cock throbbed painfully which helped with his attention span. It seemed that in the past few weeks, whenever he had a free moment, all he could think about was Mia and fucking her hard and rough. Every time he had some dead space, there she was in his mind—naked and underneath him.
Fuck. I need her so bad.
During the past two weeks, he’d managed to go to Durango twice. Both times, they had a great time and talked about practically everything well into the night. He couldn’t believe how much he enjoyed talking with her. It was a first for him with a chick, and sharing his thoughts and anger about his mom was cathartic. He was still trying to figure out how Mia keeps getting him to reveal so much shit about himself. They’d made out pretty hot and heavy, and she finally let him play with her luscious tits, but each time he’d delve a little farther down her body, she’d shoot him down.
He was going crazy just thinking about her and imagining how awesome it would be to fuck her so hard that she wouldn’t be able to walk for the rest of the day. Army pulled at the whiskers on his face while deep in his thoughts. He had a connection with her he couldn’t explain. It was the first time he’d ever felt bonded with a woman. All of his encounters with women over the years had just been sexual and only about pleasure, but with Mia, it was different. He didn’t want a no-strings-attached arrangement with her. Just the thought of another man holding her or kissing her made his anger index rise to boiling, and he was pretty sure she wouldn’t be too happy if he had a one-night stand.
Nudging him with his elbow, Jigger waved his bottle toward the stage manager and said, “Kyra keeps looking at you to give the word on the dancer.”
Army straightened up from his slouched position. “Is she done dancing?” Dammit. He’d gotten caught up in his head and missed the audition. Mia … you’re fuckin’ killing me.
“Yeah, dude. She’s just standing there on the stage.”
“Did you like her?” Army asked.
A wide grin broke out across Jigger’s face. “She’s a keeper. She can dance and turn a guy on. She’ll bring in some good money on the private dances.”
“Okay then.” Army gave Kyra the thumbs up and he heard her tell the woman—he’d forgotten her name—that she’d gotten the job. The woman squealed and clapped her hands then turned to Army.
“Thank you so much,” she said, her gaze scanning both Army and Jigger’s faces.
“You gotta get drug tested before the job’s official. Kyra will go over everything with you, including the rules,” Army replied.
The woman walked off the stage and Kyra went over to Army. “Do you want to see more? We have the first slot filled now with Patricia. There are two more applicants waiting to audition.”
Army motioned Brutus over. “I’ll let Brutus and Jigger check out the last two. If they’re no good, then we can do some more auditions tomorrow.”
“Sounds good.” Kyra ambled away and soon a short woman with pink and purple hair came on stage.
“Make sure you think with your heads and not your cocks. The chick has to have rhythm and sex appeal. I’ll be back—I have something to do,” Army said to the two guys.
He went to the bar and had Charlie pour him a double Jack then he tipped his head and threw it back, loving the slow burn as it slipped down his throat. Maybe that was enough to take the edge off so he’d stop acting like he was a lovesick idiot who couldn’t control his fucking hormones. He slid the glass to the end of the bar then walked through the backstage area and went outside.
It was a nice Indian summer day: warm with a clear blue sky. Army watched the leaves flutter down and crackle on the pavement. Leaning his head back against the wall, he wondered how Mia had slid in and taken a place in his life. A place he didn’t even know was vacant until she came along.
The phone rang and he smiled when he saw it was her. They talked on the phone a lot, sometimes for an hour, which was a record for him, considering that he rarely talked for more than fifteen minutes with anyone on the phone, but with Mia the time just flew by.
“Hey, babe,” he said.
“Hiya, sexy. Are you doing something?”
“Yeah—thinking about you.”
Her sweet laughter hit him right in his dick, waking it up again. “I was jogging and thought about you, so I wanted to give you a call.”
“How’s the training going?”
“Rick’s mad at me. He says I’m too distracted, and I’m blaming you for it all the way.”
“Is that right?” All he wanted to do was pull her through the phone and kiss her deeply.
“Yep. I wasn’t this way before I met you, but … you’re a very good distraction. Rick tells me I’m not ready for the fight. I’m bummed about it, but I have to agree with him. There’s another one in a couple of months I’m training for.”
“Since you’re not gonna compete, why don’t you come down to Alina for a bit?”
“I’d love to. I’ve never been there, and I miss you too much.”
“Me too, babe.” Army rocked back and forth on the balls of his feet.
“I’d have to reschedule a few things.”
“I want you to come to the club party we’re having on Saturday.”
A pause. He chuckled. She breathed out loudly.
“It’s not so bad. I’ll be with you. I want you to see a part of my world. I’ve seen a lot of yours,” Army said.
“Okay,” she said with a tinge of hesitation. “Saturdays are tough to reschedule. Maybe Ronica and Danielle can help me out.”
“Or you could come after your appointments. The party doesn’t really get started until around nine or ten. The food will be available all night.”
“That could work.” Hesitation was still in her voice.
“Don’t you wanna come?” Army cradled the phone on his shoulder as he lit a joint.
“I do. I want to see you in your environment. Is your club going to be the only ones at the party?”
“Some brothers from the Fallen Slayers will be there and some from the Twisted Warriors. The Warriors are from Ohio. They’re passing through on a bike run.”
“When did you say your club’s rally is?”
“In a couple of weeks. I’d love it if you could come down for that. You can meet the old ladies, and there’s a ton of shit to do. There’ll also be a lot of booths and all that. It’s our fundraiser.”
“I’d like to go. Taylor said he was planning on coming down, so I may ride with him.”
“That’d be cool. I haven’t talked to him, but I’ll give him a call. So, Saturday works for you?”
“What the hell? Sure. I’ll go to the party.”
“Then we can go to Chaco Canyon for a ride the next day. It fuckin’ rocks. How many days can you take off?”
“Probably until Tuesday night. I’ll have to be back at work on Wednesday. That’s now the beginning of my week.”
“A four-day week isn’t too shabby.” He hated that he was so damn excited. I can just imagine what Eagle or Goldie or any of the brothers would be saying about now. I’m acting like a damn pansy-ass. But he didn’t really care because he was excited that Mia was coming, and he’d get to spend four days with her. The woman just did shit to him that made him crave her with an insatiable hunger.
“I’ll book a room at a hotel,” she said, enthusiasm replacing the hesitation from moments before.
“You can stay at the club if you want.” Army smiled, knowing full well she wouldn’t go for it. He was teasing because there was no way he’d want her around the brothers and club girls on her first trip down. The party would be enough of a window into his world.
“Thanks, but I’d feel uncomfortable.”
&
nbsp; “Okay. I’ll set everything up for you at one of the hotels.”
“Decelles, get your ass moving!” A man’s voice bellowed.
“Uh-oh. I’m in trouble,” she said. “Whenever Rick calls me by my last name that means pushups. We’ll talk later.” Mia kissed into the phone.
“Bye, babe.”
Army stubbed out the joint on the patio floor then went back inside. Several of the regular dancers were now in the dressing area getting ready for their shifts. He lifted his chin at them then went back into the bar and headed over to Kyra.
“Are the auditions over?” he asked.
“For today. The last two didn’t work out. I’ll set up five more for tomorrow. The same time?”
“Yeah. I’m gonna be in the back room sorting through some boxes if you need me.” Army went over to Jigger. “You still here?”
“I don’t have anything else to do. I was gonna go to Durango to see Abe, but Morgan said he has to do some shit at his school tonight. I’ll have to wait for the weekend to see him.”
“You’re not going to be here for the party?” Army scooped up a handful of pretzels from the bowl on the table.
“Nah. I promised Abe we’d do the zip-line adventure. He’s been talking about it for the past three weeks.”
“Morgan’s letting you take him on that?” Army asked.
“Yep. I’m surprised too.” Jigger chuckled. “Have you ever tried it?”
He shook his head. “Not into soaring on a cable. I just like to fly on my bike.”
“I agree with that. I’ve never done it, but Abe’s been asking about it since one of his friends did it with his folks over the summer.”
“It should be fun.”
“Any time I spend with my kid is fun. I just love hanging with him. He’s gonna be eight soon and before you know it, he’ll just wanna hang with his friends,” Jigger said.
“Yeah—they grow fast. Since you don’t have anything to do, you can help me go through a bunch of boxes we have in the back room.”
“Let’s do it,” Jigger said, rising to his feet.
As they unloaded the crates, Army kept thinking about Mia and how soft she felt in his arms. As far as he was concerned, Saturday couldn’t come fast enough.
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