My phone buzzed in my pocket. I pulled it out to check the caller and smiled.
Speak of the Devil.
“Hi, Mama.”
“How’s my beautiful girl today?” she chimed.
“I’m good. How’s things with you?” I tucked the phone between my shoulder and my ear as I searched my school bag for the keys to my little Honda Civic.
My mom sighed. “Things are good. These boys are keeping me on my toes, that’s for sure.” I laughed and opened my car door. A rush of heat hit me, the downside of having a black car in summer. Geez, did it get hot. I opened the door wide and opted to stand beside it, hoping that it would cool down a few degrees before I attempted to drive.
“They up to mischief again?” My mom’s laughter tinkled trough the phone and suddenly I felt a sad feeling in the bottom of my stomach. I missed her. Like crazy. “So Storm found himself a pretty girl. Think this one’s a keeper.” I laughed at the small twinge of disappointment in her voice. I knew she was happy for him. Storm was a member of the band Ashes and Embers, and he was a great guy. But my mother had all these ideas about how we would be perfect for each other. Her matchmaking abilities were pretty crap if we're honest.
“How’s the fan base taking that one?”
I could practically see her cringe through the telephone. “A lot of crushed dreams. I’m imagining girls all over the world are screaming, crying and mourning the loss of his single status.”
I giggled, not doubting that for a minute. “I’m happy for him. I hope I can catch up with you all soon.”
“Me too, sweetie.”
I had chatted with her for a bit before I realized I was probably running late. I was meeting Chelsea at the mall to get some lunch and grab a new outfit for tonight. The boys from the Troy, Alabama chapter, had ridden in from down south this morning. And once all the family festivities were done, the men were going to be ready to let loose with a few stiff drinks and a nice piece of ass.
“I gotta go, Mom. I’m meeting Chelsea for lunch. I’ll talk to you later.”
“Love you.”
“I love you too, Mama.”
My mom wasn’t fully aware of my part within the club. She knew I lived at the clubhouse, and she knew I wasn’t just there cooking and cleaning for the men. But my mom had seen a lot in her time working with famous bands and I’m pretty sure she would have stories that even I would think were crazy. She loved me, and she trusted me to do what I felt was best.
It had only ever been my mom and me. My father took off when I was born. I had no idea who he was, nor did I care to know. I’d watched my mom go through men like underwear as I grew up. Groupies, band managers, a couple drummers and a lead guitarist or two. They never stuck around for long and my mom was always an emotional wreck when they left her. I’d gotten attached to a few of them. They’d fueled my love for music, some even teaching me their craft. For that, I was grateful. But in the end they were just another guy who walked away.
My life somewhat reflected that of my mother. While the men of the MC were constants in my life and had been for a long time. Every time one of them walked into my room, I knew he was just going to turn around and walk straight back out after he’d gotten what he wanted. Knowing they were going to walk away was strangely comforting. That’s what I expected of them. It’s what I knew. I’d watched men walk away my whole life. I’d also watched my mother break down when they did.
I wouldn’t let myself have that weakness. I’d never pleaded with the men for something more; I never expected a relationship or exclusivity. And if we're honest, none of them had ever offered or seemed interested.
I loved my men. I cared about them. I worried about them. I wanted to make them happy. But I could do that all without being tied down, and without having to worry about the risk of falling in love before he up and left. I didn’t have to risk my heart in order to be a part of their lives.
I found Chelsea at a small café in the mall, sipping coffee and fending off a man who didn’t seem to be taking a hint from Chelsea’s bored expression. He was tall and well presented. Also a little on the older side, maybe in his late forties.
“Just a phone number. That’s all I’m asking for, beautiful,” his voice was slick and smooth and I can imagine the tone would have worked wonders with many women, young and old.
She screwed up her nose at his attempt at endearment. “I said no. Now shoo.” She waved him off. Chel always goes on about how she wants her prince to come, but when it comes down to it she loves a dirty talking bad boy just as much as the rest of us.
I took a seat at the table, surprised when the man didn’t even acknowledge my presence. “Problem?”
The man straightened the lapels of his rich guy suit. His shoes screamed too much money. They were far too shiny. He probably had servants that cleaned them, I mused. His eyes shifted to me, but his body didn’t turn. Almost as though he could tell from my voice that I wouldn’t be worth his time. After studying me for a second, he dismissed me with a tiny scoff. “Keep your nose out of it, sweetie.”
Chelsea looked over at me, rolling her eyes dramatically as he continued to harass her with his big words and promises of wealthy gifts.
I pulled out my cell phone, whistling as I dialed. I could see the look of agitation flush the man’s face, but he continued to ignore me.
“Harmony,” Optimus’ voice gruffed, low and stern. There was a lot of noise in the background, men’s voices, woman’s laughter and kids screaming. For a minute I wished we could attend the family get-togethers. It would be nice to hang out with all the guys together while they were relaxing and shooting the shit without getting boozed to their eyeballs. We didn’t get that often because we weren’t invited to family gatherings which were compulsory for all members to attend. At other times, there were always some men working or away on runs.
“Hey, Prez.” That caught Chelsea’s attention. She leaned forward on the table and began rubbing at her temples, knowing what I was about to do was more than likely going to have Optimus on her back.
I shot her a quick apologetic look. “I’m really sorry to bother you while the Brothers are there, Optimus, but I’m out with Chelsea and there’s some rich dude in a suit who won’t leave her alone.”
“Give the mother-fucker the phone.” I heard a door slam and the background noise seemed to minimize a little.
I stood and reached over the table tapping the man on the shoulder.
He turned to me with a frown. “You need to learn your place. Stay out of my business.”
I held out the phone, a sickly sweet smile on my lips. “This call is for you.”
He studied the phone in my hand before reaching out to take it and holding it to his ear. “Yes.” His narrowed stare never left me. I couldn’t hear what Optimus was saying to him, but the look on his face changed rapidly. A snarl formed on his lips and I swear I saw his eyes darken to a malicious shade of black. “Not a problem,” he gritted and with one swift movement he slammed my phone face down on the table.
Chelsea and I both jolted at the loud crash. I knew for sure the screen of my phone was shattered. I opened my mouth to let rip at him, threats and foul words tickling the end of my tongue. But before I could inform the man of what I thought of him, the remnants of my phone was thrown against the café wall, barely missing an employee who had to jump out of the way, spilling some poor person’s coffee order in the process. I sat, semi-stunned at the ridiculous outburst.
“You girls need some lessons in behavior,” his voice, now eerily calm, sent shivers through my core. I pulled Chelsea out of her seat, placing her behind me protectively and moving out of his space. Finally taking notice of the attention he was getting from the staff and patrons of the small café, his body relaxed and he straightened his cufflinks casually. “Your lessons will come. And it will be my pleasure to conduct them personally.” With that he was gone, his shoes squeaking on the linoleum floor.
The quick encounter had been so f
ast and so incredibly strange that I was lost for words.
Chelsea was not so silent, expressing her primary concern. “Optimus is going to be on my ass about this.”
I laughed and squeezed her hand. “That’s all that you can think about right now?”
She looked at me with a ‘duh’ look. “That man can make a mountain outta a molehill.”
I stopped to pick up the part of my shattered phone that contained my sim card. It had all my numbers on it and that was the only thing I cared about. The rest was replaceable.
“Best we find something fucking sexy for you to wear tonight then. He can’t complain if he’s too busy tearing your clothes off.”
She smiled. “Oh trust me, he’ll try.”
The trip up to visit my longtime friend wasn’t huge, three to four hours at most. I didn’t know why I hadn’t taken the time to visit more often. I kept in touch with Optimus often through phone calls. He’d even come to see us a couple of times since his father was killed, but I hadn’t been up to Athens to visit him in nearly four years.
We’d left early, knowing there would be plenty of family coming into the clubhouse to celebrate my new status. A lot of the old timers and their old ladies had known me since I was a kid. My father being a huge figure in the world of the Brothers by Blood. I was looking forward to seeing them all again, proud to show off my freshly sewed president’s patch.
My father Oz had been the national President of the Brothers by Blood in Australia until he met a pretty American girl and decided to follow her to the States. That pretty girl soon became my mother. Everyone called her Bright Eyes, due to her constant smile and strange greeny-yellow irises.
I’d bought a handful of Brothers with me including my best friend and Sergeant at Arms, Tally. We’d both grown up in the club and had tortured our parents with our antics since before we could walk. Tally’s dad, Loose was my Vice President as he had been for my dad. He was a good man, one that I respected and was honored to have stand beside me. I’d left him behind to take care of shit for the next few days. I knew things would run smoothly with him at the helm.
Optimus and his men were there to greet us as we pulled into the compound. I couldn’t help but smirk at the sight of the men, lined up behind their president. All their legs spread to shoulder width and arms folded across their chests. It was a massive show of welcome and respect. My boys and I pulled our bikes in, lining them up with our other Brothers.
I climbed off and walked straight toward Optimus. I was only six foot away from him before his scowl finally broke into a smile – a rare occurrence for my serious straight-faced Brother.
“Congratu-fucking-lations, fuck head,” he beamed, followed by resounding calls of ‘Ya-hoos’ and ‘Fuck yeahs’ from the Brothers standing behind him.
I laughed and embraced my Brother. We both gripped the other's wrist and pulled in for a few slaps on the back with the other hand. “Thanks, bro.”
The Brothers from both chapters had all greeted each other in much the same way before we headed inside. Optimus, his VP Blizzard, Tally and I, found a group of chairs and sat down to catch up.
“How’s it feel?” Blizzard asked.
I ran my fingers through my hair which was slick with sweat from my helmet. “Fucking strange,” I answered honestly.
Optimus scoffed. “What the fuck you talking about? You’ve been ordering people around since you were fucking knee-high. Only difference is now they gotta listen.”
Tally laughed. “He’s still scared none of us are gonna do what his dumb ass says.”
I reached over and smacked him around the back of the head. “Shut up, asshole.”
Tally rubbed at the back of his head, but unfortunately I hadn’t hit him hard enough to smack the stupid smile off his face.
I watched as a few of the old ladies bustled in and out, chasing children and carrying food. Some of them I recognized and others I didn’t.
“So, any of these old ladies yours?” I shot at Optimus. Optimus often kept to himself when it came to women because of shit that had happened in the past. He hated to get attached and I understood why. I knew he had a girl here somewhere, but that there were a few problems. I didn’t know much more than that, girly feeling talks made my cock want to shrivel up and hide away.
Optimus glared at me. “No.”
End of conversation!
The day was incredible. The Old Ladies fussed over their men. Most coming over to offer me their congratulations with a kiss on the cheek, much to their men’s disgust.
“Let’s make this shit interesting,” I offered as a group of us strolled toward the back section of the compound where there was a shooting range set up.
Optimus looked a little smug at the challenge, but little did he know I had a secret weapon. “My best shooter against yours. One shot each.”
I’d anticipated his suggestion knowing one of his boys, Kev, was an ex-police officer turned outlaw. Kevlar was his full-road-name, but it wasn’t given to him due to the fact a Kevlar vest was what policemen wore. He received it after he’d been shot six times in the stomach and chest during the same war in which Optimus’ father was killed. And then the mother-fucker lived to tell about it. I knew he was a good shot, but I had someone who I knew was better.
“Deal! Two grand each on the table?”
Optimus nodded, confidence oozing. Two grand wasn’t a lot of money for us to throw away. We made more than good livings through the businesses we owned and other club dealings, but it was the bragging rights between clubs that were like gold.
“Choose your man.”
“Kev, get your ass over here,” Optimus yelled back toward the clubhouse.
I looked over my shoulder and found Rifle looking at me with a smirk on his lips. Rifle had joined us last year and earned his patch faster than any other Brother. He was sharp, fiercely loyal and the guy had skills that we couldn’t afford to lose. Ex-army sniper, he knew the ins and outs of tactical work. Shit that came in handy, more often than you would’ve thought. Plus, he was a fucking crack shot with a gun.
Optimus’ man took the gun first. It was something simple, a .22 long rifle with an attached scope. He took the first shot and then sent one of the prospects down to mark it with a red marker. He fired off another shot into the woods, scaring the crap outta the kid and making us all laugh as he ran a little faster.
When he got back, Kev handed the gun over to Rifle. He looked pretty damn sure of himself, but I knew my man was the best of the best. He stood up to the mark and raised the gun to his eye. His hands were perfectly steady, not a single shake or movement as he sighted the target. I saw a small smile flicker in the corner of his mouth just before he squeezed the trigger. He knew he had this.
We all walked down to the target together. Kev’s mark was circled in red and just on the edge of the black center circle.
“Fuck me,” Optimus groaned.
I smirked and gave him a pat on the shoulder when I saw the other bullet hole. Straight through the damn center of the circle. I bet if we measured that shit it would be fucking perfect.
“Where’d you find this fucker?” Optimus said with a huff.
“Rifle is an ex-army sniper. Three tours.”
“Hustled! Hustled in my own damn club grounds.”
I laughed. “How’s that saying go about the better man winning?”
He shoved me and we all headed back to the other end of the range where we spent over an hour competing with each other.
When lunch was called we headed inside the clubhouse. My stomach now aching for food as I hadn’t eaten since one of the club girls cooked us all breakfast at too-fucking-early o’clock this morning before we headed out. Just as we stepped inside the door, Optimus pulled a ringing cell phone from his pocket.
“Harmony.” I watched as he listened for a minute, his face growing increasingly redder with anger. I followed him as he stormed off to the back of the clubhouse and into what I assumed was his office.
<
br /> “Give the mother-fucker the phone,” he roared. I shut the door behind us and took a seat on the arm of a chair, curious about what was going on. There was a moment of silence as I watched my Brother sizzle. “Listen here shit-for-brains. Those two girls in front of you, they fucking belong to me. Do you know who I am, asshole? I am the mother-fucking president of the mother-fucking Brothers by Blood! Now back your pansy fucking ass away from my damn girls. You get me, limp dick?”
I choked on a laugh.
Optimus waited a moment before pulling his phone from his ear and checking the screen. “Bastard hung up on me.”
“You think you got enough insults in there?”
“Shut the fuck up, Knight Rider,” he shot, storming out of the room mumbling something about some guy hitting on his girls. Ah, these few days were going to be interesting for sure.
We decided to get ready for the party at Lucy’s place. Because she was a stripper and not a club girl, she had her own house not too far from the clubhouse. Reinforcements had been called in for the night because of the amount of extra Brothers in the house. There were extra girls from X-rated coming in as well. It was a club rule that the Brothers were not allowed to sleep with the strippers. Brothers by Blood had strict feelings about keeping business and pleasure separated. But for tonight, they had all been given a free ‘anything goes’ pass. I knew Lucy and some of the girls were itching to get their hands on the men.
There were close to twenty Brothers in attendance at the club and only seven club girls, with around the same amount of strippers. Shit was going to get a bit crazy and I couldn’t wait.
Lucy leaned against the door frame of her room where I was getting dressed. “Girl, you look hot!”
I smacked my now bright red lips together before turning to her with a bright smile. I’d chosen a deep red pleated pleather skirt that was short, but covered just enough to be super sexy. I topped it with a black sequin top that tied around my neck and dipped low in the back. I’d never been a big fan of the hooker type heels that strippers wore, so I’d paired my outfit with a sexy stiletto ankle boot.
Harmony (The Club Girl Diaries Book 1) Page 3