"Mr. Evans!" I shout getting Easton's attention. "As your doctor, I highly advise you refrain from all sexual activity until the rash and inflammation has cleared up. Also, don't forget to take those antibiotics I prescribed!" Now it's my brother's turn to be embarrassed. The hall goes completely silent and several of the skanky women who minutes ago were waiting to get chosen look at him with horror then make a hasty retreat as fast as their hooker shoes will carry them.
Narrowing his eyes at me, Easton declares, "this means war." Then he disappears into his dressing room while I double over in laughter.
After the best concert I have ever seen and okay I might be a little biased, but it was amazing, Easton invites everyone back to his hotel suite for drinks. I love how my brother doesn't even bat an eye at four large bikers standing in his room. He's completely unjudging. About an hour into our visit, Jake receives a phone call that changes his entire demeanor, and it doesn't go unnoticed by the guys who are suddenly on high alert.
"There a problem, Prez?" Quinn asks.
"Time to roll out," is all he offers in a clipped tone. Without question Logan, Gabriel and Reid move into action with their woman in tow.
"Time to go, babe," Quinn tells me. "Go on and tell your brother bye." Nodding, I walk over to Easton who has a concerned look on his face. "Everything Alright, Em?"
"Yeah, we just need to get going."
My brother looks over to Quinn who has come up beside me. "Should I be worried about my sister?" he asks getting straight to the point.
Quinn answers him with genuine conviction in his tone. "Never. Emerson is always safe with my club and me. I promise ya that."
Seeing the truth in Quinn's eyes, my brother offers his hand and Quinn accepts. "Then we're cool. She's the most important person in my life."
Quinn nods, "That makes two of us."
We make it back to the clubhouse in record time and are met by Bennett and Lisa. Immediately, the men go straight to the room they hold church while us woman sit at the bar and wonder what the hell is going on.
Chapter Nine
Quinn
"Babe, stop fidgeting. You have nothing to be nervous about."
"Quinn! You said we were going to hang at Charley's for a bit when you called this morning. You failed to mention we were going to visit your parents too," Emerson fires back crossing her arms over her chest.
I called Emerson this morning saying I wanted to take her to Charley's for lunch and drinks. When I picked her up at her apartment in my car instead of my bike she didn't think anything of it until she climbed in and I informed her I needed to stop by my parent's house and drop off some car parts I ordered for my dad while pointing to several boxes sitting on my back seat.
"I can't believe you would spring this on me. Scratch that, yes, I can. This is such a Quinn thing to do," she grumbles. "Always pushing boundaries. I don't see why you can't just drop this stuff off then come back for me, or I can meet up with you at Charley's when you're done."
"Hell no, it's time for you to officially meet them, babe. Besides they've known about you for a long time."
"What! What do you mean they know about me? This thing between us just started," Emerson says gesturing back and forth between us with her finger.
"We might have just become official, Em but you've always been mine. My mom and dad have always known about my feelings for you. Hell, my dad is the one who encouraged me to keep going after what I want. My dad practically stalked my mom until she caved."
"Great, now I know where you get your crazy from," she remarks rolling her eyes.
"Admit it. You like my crazy don't ya, Sunshine." Ignoring my question, she huffs out a frustrated breath and turns to look out the window. My booming laugh only pisses her off more, and she ignores me the rest of the drive there.
When we arrive at my parent's house fifteen minutes later, Emerson and I are greeted by my sister running down the steps of the porch, and heads in our direction. I don't make it two steps out of my car before she launches herself into my arms. "How's it goin', KitKat."
"Good," she says when I set her back down on her feet. "Hi, Ms. Evans," Kat greets Emerson with a wave. They met months ago at the club when we were on lockdown. She even met my parents then, so I don't get what she's so nervous about.
"Hi, Kat. Please call me Emerson," she smiles.
Taking a hold of Emerson's hand, I lead her across the lawn and up the porch steps just as my mom and dad walk out the front door to greet us. My mom is the first to speak. "It's good to see you again, Emerson," she pulls her in for a hug.
"You too, Mrs. Beckett."
"Oh honey, please call me Vicky, and you remember my husband Quinten?" she gestures to my dad.
"Of course. It's nice to see you again."
"Mom, why don't ya take Em inside while Dad helps me with the parts I ordered him?"
"Sure, sweetheart. Come on honey, I just put some coffee on."
I give Emerson a wink and walk off with my dad as she looks at me with pleading eyes.
Two hours later we are back on the road after leaving my parents' house and headed to Charley's. "It wasn't so bad now was it, babe?"
"No. I like your mom. I guess. I didn't know what to expect. I've never been in a serious relationship and met the parents before. This is all new to me."
"This shit is new to me too, Sunshine. I've never dated anyone seriously or met a woman's parents before either. I know there will come a time when I meet yours too." At the mention of her parents, Emerson visibly tenses. Fuck, maybe she doesn't want me to meet them. Maybe she is embarrassed because I'm a biker? Pushing the thought away, I decide not to question her about it. The way Emerson spoke about her parents before has me thinking they are a sore subject and I don't want to ruin an already good day with bringing them up.
"Quinn, my boy. How ya doing?" Charley asks when we walk into the bar. "And who's this pretty young lady you got with ya?"
"Hey, Charley. This is my old lady, Emerson. I told her you make the best Philly Cheese Steak sandwiches, so we thought we'd come by and fill our bellies up."
"You come to the right place, sweetheart. Let me grab you guys a couple of beers, and I'll go fire up the grill."
After Charley delivers our beers, I turn to Emerson. "I'll be right back, babe. I've got to hit the head." Several minutes later, I finish my business. When I walk out of the bathroom I come to a dead stop and an icy chill runs down my spine before the devil himself lights a fire under my ass, because standing at the bar flanking my woman are two bikers, and they don't belong to The Kings.
Adrenaline takes over and in two seconds flat I have the barrel of my gun pressed against the back of some piece of shits head. "I'm thinkin' you must be lost motherfucker. Either that or you're stupid for thinkin' you can waltz up into Kings territory. My bet is on the latter," I grind out my voice dripping with venom. I can't help but notice the look of pure fear on my Sunshine's face. Cocking my gun, I pray the pussy tries something stupid just so I have an excuse to paint the bar with his brains.
Stepping around the man in front of me, I grab Emerson by the arm and bring her to my side. It's then I get my first look at the fucker's face. I instantly recognize who he is. The son of a bitch in front of me is the prospect who rode to Polson with our Louisiana chapter a while back. The same prospect who tried to rape my woman. He goes by the name Twiggy. The fucker is scrawny as hell and has stringy, greasy hair. "I see I didn't teach you enough of a lesson last time we met," I snarl, "I should have blown your head off when I had the chance."
Hearing Emerson cry and the vile things coming from some motherfucker's mouth as I walk around the corner of the clubhouse has me seeing red. It's when I hear the audible sound of her being slapped that had me drawing my gun and ready to paint the wall red. Once Emerson was in my sights, I could could tell by her behavior something wasn't right and there was a good possibility she had been drugged. She was out of it. I've never known Em to drink more than one or two beers in a single sitti
ng.
Logan knew I was about to kill the prospect for what he had done. He gave me a look that told me it wasn't my place because the guy belonged to Riggs. Thirty minutes later the prospect was sent packin', but that alone wasn't good enough for me. Not after what he did to my Sunshine. Leaving out the back door, I make my way around the front to my bike. A few people are milling around, but nobody questions me leaving. I make it about five miles down the road when I spot the prospect pushing his bike. He stops and turns around when he hears me pull up behind him. I see a flash of fear cross his face before my fist connects with his jaw and I feel his bones shatter at the contact. I deliver blow after blow until he is nothing but a bloody, unrecognizable heap of shit laying at my feet.
When I return to the clubhouse, I take a seat at the bar and down a cold beer. Logan notices my bloody and swollen knuckles but doesn't say a word. I could get into some serious shit for what I just did because Riggs handled the situation the way he saw fit. I know what my brother was thinkin', he would have done the same thing had it been Bella. Consequences be damned.
I'm brought back to the present when I hear Emerson gasp. I notice the other biker out of the corner of my eye about ten feet to my left and take in the blade he has in his hand. "Get down!" I holler to Emerson the same time I push her to the floor against the bar as I use the butt of my gun to clock the guy in front of me in the back of his head, then raise my left arm to block the blow from the knife coming at me from the other guy. Just as I'm about to aim my gun at the fucker holding the knife, the prospect lands a bar stool across my back bringing me to my knees, and I hear Emerson scream my name. Two gunshots ring out and I am back on my feet with my gun raised searching for my target only to come up to an empty bar. Looking behind me, I see Charley with a shotgun in his hand pointed at the now blown up door. "I called Jake. The guys are on their way," Charley announces.
I go to make my way to my woman, but she beats me to it. "Oh my God, Quinn! Are you okay? Let me look at you," she cries and goes into doctor mode.
"I'm okay, baby. It's nothing I can't handle."
"You just had some asshole break a bar stool over your back, Quinn!" Pulling her into my chest, I wrap my arms around her and hold her close. As soon as Emerson's head meets my chest, she breaks down into sobs.
"Everything is going to be okay, baby, I promise." Seconds later I hear the rumble of Harley's letting me know my brothers are here. The energy in the room turns electric when Prez, Logan, Gabriel and Reid walk in. Prez takes in Emerson who is still softly crying in my arms then cuts his eyes around the room taking in his surroundings. "You okay, son?" he asks with concern.
"Yeah, Prez, we're good."
Jake strides over to Charley, and they exchange a few words before he barks out orders. "I want all the women and children at the clubhouse now. Charley is going to close the bar for a few days. I called Grey over here to fix his door. I expect to see all of you back at the clubhouse in an hour for church. For now, I only want women and children on lockdown. Once we assess the threat, then I'll choose whether to extend it to the rest of our family. Turning his attention back to me, Prez asks, "those cocksuckers say anything to you?"
"Not a word, brother."
"Um…" Emerson interrupts, "one of them spoke to me. The one that hit Quinn with a stool."
"What did he say, sweetheart?" Jake asks her in a soft tone.
"He said tell your old man he'll get his. All of them will." A moment of silence follows before Emerson speaks again. "It was him," she chokes out on a sob.
"Who?" Logan asks.
"The guy who drugged me at the clubhouse that time. I don't remember his face, but I'll never forget his voice. It was him."
"That true?" Prez grinds out looking at me.
"Yeah, Prez it was him. I was going to wait until church to bring it up because I didn't want to say anything in front of Emerson. I didn't think she remembered him." Tuning out the collective rounds of motherfuckers coming from my brothers, I take Emerson's face in my hands. "I'm so fuckin' sorry, Sunshine. I should have killed the bastard when I had the chance."
"It's okay, Quinn. It's not your fault," her hands reach up and cover mine.
"No, but it's my job from now on to protect you, and I promise that son of a bitch will never hurt you again."
Peering up at me with tears pooling in her eyes, Emerson whispers, "it's not me I'm worried about."
Jake went and picked up Grace from the bakery, and together they went to Remi's school to check her out. Logan went back to the garage, closed it down and has Bella and their two little ones with him. The same goes for Gabriel and Reid.
Roughly an hour later, all the brothers have made it back to the clubhouse with their women and kids in tow. The women have worried looks on their faces, but don't ask questions. I'm sure once we're in church Emerson will fill them in on what little she knows of the events that have transpired today.
Walking into church, I take my seat and light up a cigarette just as Prez slams the gavel bringing everyone's attention to him. "As some of you have already heard there was an incident at Charley's involving Quinn and two men from an unknown club. Quinn was able to get a good look at the fucker's cut. They call themselves Satans Reapers. The same bikers Charley has been telling us about. I've never heard of them before, so my guess is they're new. At first, we had no idea why they were suddenly so interested in Polson or what their agenda was, but that has changed. It turns out one of those men is the same prospect Riggs brought with him on his last visit. The same one that got kicked out of the club for drugging and trying to force himself on Quinn's woman."
By the time Prez has given a rundown on the shit storm at hand the room erupts into a fury. We haven't had to deal with a rival club since the Los Demonios. Slamming the gavel, Jake brings the room back to order. "I want Logan, Gabriel, and Quinn to hit the road ASAP lookin' for anything you can find. We haven't got a clue where this club is held up at or what their numbers are. Reid, I want you on that computer of yours seeing what you can find from the security feed we got at Charley's." Leaning back in his seat, Prez continues. "Meanwhile, I'm going to put a call into Riggs down in Louisiana and see what he can tell me about his former prospect. For now, the garage will remain closed and so will Gabriel's shop. I'll have Bella reschedule all appointments until next week. The problem at hand takes top priority. I'm not taking any chances on anything happening to our women and children," Prez's eyes land on me, "Quinn, I want you to get with Emerson and see if she can take some time off work. Now, I know how she can be. She's likely to put up a fight, but I hope you can make her see reason."
Finished with his orders, Prez brings the gavel down once more ending church. I remain in my seat as the room clears out. A few of the brothers clap me on the back when passing and express how glad they are that Emerson and I are okay. All the while the only thing I can dwell on is the fact this shit wouldn't be happening had I ended the prospects life when I had the chance. Now the fucker has hooked up with another club and has sworn vengeance on The Kings. Jake has worked too hard the past few years to bring the club out of shit like this and make sure our families stay safe.
Walking up behind me, Prez lays a hand on my shoulder. "You want to know what sets you apart from the other men in this club?" he asks out of the blue. "It's your heart, son. The other men get to feeling guilty about certain things that are beyond their control. They let that shit go to their heads, and it makes them wild with anger. But you, Quinn; you let it go to your heart, and it makes you shut down. Something you need to realize now is you have a woman who is depending on you. What happened today and what happened months ago with that prospect was not your fault. Did he deserve a bullet to the head along with the ass beatin' you gave him after he walked off our property that night? Fuck yeah, he did. But it also wasn't our call."
"So, you know about that?" I ask a little surprised.
"Yeah, son. I know what you did. I know everything that goes down in my club. The r
eason I never said anything was because I would have done the same damn thing. Now here is what you're going to do. You get the what if's out of your head and go take care of business."
Chapter Ten
Emerson
I'm sitting on the sofa in the main room of the clubhouse where just moments ago Bella, Alba, and Mia along with their children were hustled in by their husbands. Bella made a promise to return in a few minutes to check on me after she got the kids settled in the playroom. I wave her off and tell her I'm okay and to take her time. Making sure the kids are alright and not scared or suspecting anything is more important than my frazzled nerves.
I thought I was over the incident that happened months ago at the clubhouse house party with the prospect of the Louisiana chapter, but hearing his voice in my ear brought all that back to the forefront of my memory. The way he forced me to kneel before him on the ground, and the vile things he was demanding of me right before he smacked me across my face.
The memory sends a cold chill down my spine, making my body shiver. I thank God everyday the guys thought enough to come check on me. I don't want to imagine what would have happened had they not shown up when they did. Jake apologized a thousand times and assured me his club and the men he surrounds himself with would never treat a woman in that manner. I already knew that though and expressed to him what happened wasn't his or his men's fault. You can't always control the people around you. The President of the visiting chapter even came to me the next day before leaving and apologized. I told him he was lucky he found out sooner rather than later what kind of man his former prospect was. I'm sure the guy would have brought a heap of trouble to his club in the future.
Hearing a noise, I turn to see Raine and Ember walking into the room with Ember carrying a tray. When she sits it down in front of me, I notice a sandwich, some fruit and a cup of tea. "Raine and I wanted to come and check on you. We also thought some food or tea might help settle your nerves a bit," she says.
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