Even if a lot of it peeked out of her uniform at work. Christ, I hated that fucking thing. I really didn’t like it when I had to shadow her, but now that she was my woman, it made me itchy to think of all those men leering at her. Itchy in that I-want-to beat-them-all-down kinda way.
My lips pulled away from her tit with a pop. “Sorry, kitten. But we don’t have time. Roscoe will be here in a minute, and you gotta get ready for work.”
“Wait, you’re not taking me?” Amber propped herself up on an elbow as she frowned at me. The sheet fell to her waist, perfectly framing her tits and distracting me. “Bam, eyes up here. We’re having a conversation.”
“What? Sorry.” I focused on her face and the disgruntled look in her eyes. Now was not the time for fantasies from my spank bank. “No, I can’t take you to work tonight. I have a club meeting.”
Amber’s eyes took on a shiny glow as she bit her lip. “That’s tonight? I thought you guys were meeting Sunday.”
“Nah, that’s for something else. Tonight’s our regular monthly meeting.” I ran my hand up her arm to sooth the goosebumps. “It’s gonna be okay, kitten. I don’t want you worrying about me.”
“How can I not?” Amber sat up and wrapped the sheet around her. “The guys don’t want you with me. Tank is going to shit a brick and Axle—I don’t even get why Axle’s panties are in a twist. He was hardly ever around when I was growing up, not like Tank. But still. I don’t want you to get hurt because of me.”
I sat up and pulled her in my arms. “I know you feel like this all on your shoulders, but it’s not. It’s okay. I’ll be okay. And given the choice again, I’d choose you. I’ll always choose you.”
Amber shook in my arms as she took a deep breath. Then she whispered, “I’d choose you again, too.”
My heart did a free fall in my chest. I was wrong. Apparently that was the sound that made me impenetrable and capable of leaping buildings. Unable to articulate the feelings coursing through me, I bent my head and passed my lips over Amber’s blond head as I squeezed her tight. Christ, I’d do anything for this woman.
The sound of someone pounding on my door had us both jerking apart.
“That’ll be Roscoe. You go get ready for work, and I’ll tell him you’ll be a few minutes.” I drew my arm away from her and made to scoot across the bed when Amber’s exclamation stopped me.
“Wait.” She reached out and clutched the back of my neck and pulled me toward her, then covered my lips with the sweetest, softest kiss with her luscious lips. A beat later she took it deeper as her tongue teased mine.
Pound, pound, pound. Roscoe knocked at the door again while the melody of “Enter Sandman” blasted through the apartment from wherever I’d left my pants. I pulled back and, unable to resist, planted another quick kiss on her. I smiled. “What was that for?”
“To thank you for being you.”
Pound, pound, pound.
“Shit.” Unable to process her words with all the endorphins surging through my veins, I leapt from the bed—and away from temptation—to search for my pants. Finding them in the hallway, I hopped as I struggled to pull them on. Behind me, the bathroom door softly clicked shut, and I winced in regret at missing out on Amber’s naked departure. With my jeans finally on, I got to the door and ripped it open just as Roscoe lifted his hand to knock again. “Hey man, come on in.”
Roscoe’s wide eyes took in me with my disheveled state and wisely didn’t say a word. Tucking his hands into the front pockets of his pants, he brushed past me to step inside my apartment. He stood next to the couch and awkwardly rocked back on his heels as he took in the room.
I shook my head as I watched the prospect say nothing with his mouth and everything with his body language. He was intimidated as hell and afraid to show it. Christ, that took me back to my prospecting days with the club. Everyone was larger than life and had me by the balls. I’d wanted to be a member so fucking bad.
And now, in a few hours, it’d probably all be over.
I sighed as I closed the door. “Amber will be out in a few minutes. Want something to drink?”
“No, sir. I’m good. Thanks.” Roscoe crossed his arms over his chest then fidgeted and shoved his hands back into his pockets.
I smirked at the sir since I was pretty sure Roscoe was a year or two older than me. “Did Reb go over what to expect tonight?”
“Keep my eyes on Amber no matter where she goes. No drinking, and if I see anyone who even looks out of the ordinary, call Reb, then confront them.”
I nodded slowly, even though it bugged the shit out of me that Roscoe would be calling Reb and not me. I was the fucking man in Amber’s life, and after tonight’s meeting the whole damn club would know it.
“I’ve been driving Amber out, but tonight you’ll follow her. If everything goes like it should, I’ll be at the Mother Lode before she gets off shift to relieve you.” I’d be damned if Amber was on the back of another Brother’s bike after I’d claimed her as my woman.
Roscoe frowned. “Reb didn’t mention—”
“Reb doesn’t know yet. I’ll fill him in at the meeting tonight.”
Roscoe jerked at my terse delivery, then nodded tightly. “Gotcha. Sir.”
Awkward silence hummed between us while we stood there. Roscoe’s eyes passed over my living room furniture, then briefly met mine before he stared, fascinated, at the tips of his boots. I chuckled quietly as I crossed to my kitchenette. Grabbing a glass from the cupboard, I filled it with tap water, then gulped it all down. All that playing with Amber really took it out of me. I was refilling my glass when she finally appeared.
“I just need another second. I’ve got to get all my gear in line,” Amber muttered as she frantically searched through her overnight bag.
I set my glass down with a clink, then walked over to her. “Baby, it’s gonna be okay. What’s got you all twitchy?”
Amber bit her lip as she looked up at me. Her eyes glanced over at Roscoe and she shook her head.
“Roscoe, give us a few seconds.” I ordered without taking my eyes off Amber.
A moment later the door clicked closed.
“What’s going on? You’ve got plenty of time to make it to work, so I know it’s not that. Why are you all twitchy?”
“You. Okay? I’m worried about you.”
“Me? I thought we sorted all that out in the bedroom when Roscoe got here. I’m gonna be fine.”
“No, you’re not. They’re going to…I can’t even say it. You’re going to lose everything because of me. How can I not worry about that? I’m freaked out. What if they put you in the hospital? Or worse?” Her eye sheened with tears as she whispered, “I’m so fucking scared, Bam.”
I closed my eyes and pulled her into my arms. I wanted to tell her that she was wrong, that everything would be okay, but I couldn’t lie to her. To be honest, I worried about how tonight was gonna go down, too. I didn’t want to lose my friends, my pseudo family, but the die had been cast. I’d made my decision, and I couldn’t go back. Looking down into Amber’s worried eyes and knowing all I knew now, I wouldn’t go back. As long as this amazing woman was willing to put up with me, I wanted to be with her. In her life, her bed, wherever the hell she was willing to let me be close to her.
“Whatever happens tonight, I want you to know that I don’t regret anything. You are the best thing in my life. And that’s including the club.”
A tear rolled down her cheek as she shook her head. “You’re crazy. I’m just a girl. The club is everything to you. I can’t be the reason you lose everything.”
“As long as I have you in my arms, I do have everything.” Before Amber could say something else ridiculous about her worthiness, I kissed her. Amber’s lips were tense at first, but quickly softened as I deepened the kiss. In moments she was panting and arching toward me. But unfortunately for bo
th of us, we didn’t have the time to do anything more. Roscoe was waiting outside. With a sigh of regret, I broke the kiss and rested my forehead against hers. “So, we good now?”
Amber released a shaky sigh. “We’re as good as I’m gonna be on the subject, I guess. Call me when the meeting’s done?”
“I’ll do you one better. As soon as the meeting’s done, I’m gonna come to you.”
Amber planted a peck on my lips, then pulled away to grab her bag. “That could be difficult. What if I’m at home sleeping in my bed?”
“I’d scale the wall to get to you.”
Amber rolled her eyes.
I laughed. “Okay, how about this? I’ll give you a key, and if I’m not done by the time you get off shift, you come over here?”
Amber had been sneaking back to her mom’s house to change clothes and whatever else while I was working, but she’d spent the majority of the past few days in my apartment and in my bed. Giving her a key was kinda crazy soon, but also made sense. I wanted her here where I knew she’d be safe. And I really didn’t want her sleeping anywhere else but in my bed.
Amber’s eyes widened as she fiddled with the strap on her bag. Then she squeaked, “A key?”
“Yeah.” I walked over to the hall closet and rummaged through the shelves for a few seconds until I found it. Crossing back to Amber, I held it out to her. “If I don’t get through with the meeting by the time your shift ends, have Roscoe follow you back here.”
Amber took my key with a wary expression. “You sure this isn’t too fast?”
“Probably.” I laughed. “But since when have we done anything the normal way?”
“True.” Amber placed the key in her bag, then stepped forward and hugged me tight. “Be careful. And take care of yourself, okay?”
“Will do. Have a good shift at work.”
She laughed wryly like that wasn’t possible. I gave her another quick peck, then opened the door to find Roscoe slouched against the opposite wall, waiting for her.
“Take care of my girl, prospect. Don’t take your eyes off her for a second.”
Roscoe straightened with a grimace. “Yes, sir.”
Amber gave me a little wave, then the two of them disappeared down the hall.
I closed the door behind them with a sigh, then leaned against it. Comforting Amber took all of my bullshitting skills. I was between a rock and a hard place. And I was pretty sure the rock was gonna crush me in a few short hours. Pushing away from the door, I walked wearily down my hallway toward the bathroom. I might as well wash up. Wouldn’t do to show up to my own funeral reeking of sex.
* * *
—
Three hours later, I walked into the meeting room at the clubhouse. Unlike every other meeting, where I’d show up early to hang out with the guys at the bar and shoot the breeze, this time I got there right before the doors closed. I couldn’t stomach the idea of them confronting me before, during, and after the meeting. Why give them extra time to give me shit?
Instead, I avoided everyone and took my customary post at the back of the room, holding the wall up. A moment later, I flinched in surprise as a body slumped against the wall next to me. I looked over and smirked at Maverick. I shouldn’t have been surprised to see that he had my back. Maverick was the best fucking guy I knew. I gave him a chin tilt in appreciation, which he returned. Then we both gave our attention to Reb at the podium.
“All right. All right,” Reb barked. “If you all pipe down, we can get this shit started. I wanna get home to the soft woman in my bed, not be shooting the shit with you all.”
The general rumble in the room subsided until only the sound of chairs squeaking broke the silence.
“Good.” Reb grunted. “First order of business. Our meet is still on for Sunday night. Those of you with job assignments report to your designated areas. No chatter on phones or texts or anything that could be bugged. I wouldn’t put it past those fucking Wild Riders—or hell, even the fucking pigs—to have a bug on someone. We’re going radio silent on anything to do with this job. It’s face-to-face communication only.”
A few heads in the room nodded.
I had an assignment on the job, but given how shit was going this week, I wasn’t sure if I’d actually be going. Not that I was gonna bring that up now.
“Second, I’m sure you all heard we had a rumble with the Bratva over the weekend. We had a little misunderstanding about club property, but I’ve been assured that it’s all been handled on their end. Until I’m confident that they’ve backed off, we’ll be continuing to have a few of the girls escorted everywhere they go. Stitch’s family will be under guard for the time being.”
A few heads swiveled my way, and I knew everyone in the room knew what was up, regardless of Rebel’s glossing over the details. I crossed my arms over my chest and stared stoically back at Reb. In all honesty, I was surprised that Brittany had been added to the guard detail. I hadn’t heard about that. Although, given the fact that I’d been hiding from everyone this week, it wasn’t exactly shocking that I wasn’t in the know.
“I’ll turn it over to our treasurer to update us on the finances.” Rebel stepped away from the podium, his eyes scanning the crowd until they lighted on me. He scowled as he stared me down. I didn’t move a muscle, but also didn’t break our impromptu staring contest. Gunnar droned on in the background about dues and something about a charity run, but I wasn’t paying attention. I was too busy holding my ground with Reb.
After several minutes, Reb finally looked away as he retook the podium. “Thanks, Gunnar. That’s all the official business we have for today’s meeting, so unless anyone has anything else…”
And here we go. I pushed away from the wall and cleared my throat before saying, “I move to claim Amber Bennett as my old lady.”
A few guys groaned in front of me and a couple of whispered conversations broke out, but I didn’t look away from Reb.
Oddly, his narrow-eyed stare softened, and I could’ve sworn he almost smiled. Was the bastard really that eager to deliver a beat down on me? Shit.
Reb gripped the podium and turned his attention to crowd. “Any objections?”
I held my breath as I waited. Then my stomach sank as Tank and Axle both raised their hands. Tank stood up and crossed the room toward me with determined intent. He stopped in front of me and before I could open my mouth to say anything, he punched me in the stomach. A beat later I saw stars as another blow landed just below my right eye.
“Anyone else?” Reb asked.
I leaned against the wall and looked over Tank’s shoulder. Most of the heads shook in the negative.
Then Axle piped up. “I think Tank said it for all of us. Don’t fuck it up. Or we’ll fuck you up.”
“Motion passed.” Reb thumped the podium. “Amber Bennett is now recognized as Bam’s old lady, with all the respect and protection due to her.”
“May the Lord have mercy on your soul,” Maverick intoned.
Reb paused for a second then shook his head. “Anything else? Then meeting adjourned.”
“That’s it?” I blinked at Tank in confusion. “I thought you guys were gonna hand me my ass.”
“We can always do that for you if you really wanna.” Tank smirked. “We wanted to make sure that you understood that Amber wasn’t a hookup kinda girl. If you wanted to be with her, you had to commit.”
“And you couldn’t have just told me that?” I groaned.
Axle came up and clapped Tank on the back. “More fun this way. Too bad Tank beat me to the punch. Literally.”
“Come on, Bam. I’ll buy you a drink to celebrate.” Tank laughed as he helped me off the wall.
“Drinks are free,” I grumbled as I held my sore ribs.
“You gonna bitch or are ya gonna come have a drink with your boys?” Maverick snorted.
My girl. That sounded pretty damn good.
Chapter 18
Amber
I spent my entire shift freaking out about Bam’s meeting—and avoiding the gropey hands of my customers. Despite what Bam had said, it was my fault. If it hadn’t been for me, he wouldn’t be faced with the decision to lose everything or lose me. It was insane. I wanted to march into that meeting and give everyone there a piece of my mind. They didn’t even give a shit about what I thought. Bam was an awesome, amazing man who was totally worthy of my time and attention; I wouldn’t be with him if he wasn’t. Why couldn’t they see that? But I knew my presence at the clubhouse wouldn’t help. If anything, it’d make the situation worse.
So instead, I worried. I tried to hide my emotions from my customers, and at the same time keep their hands off my ass.
“Here you are.” I set a beer bottle down on the craps table next to an old cowboy. “One Coors Light. Good luck.”
“Wait, darlin’.” The cowboy—who was easily old enough to be my grandfather—put his arm around my waist. “Give me some luck. Blow on the dice.”
I stiffened when he touched me and tried to sidestep out of his reach, but despite his age, his grip was firm. Flashing a “help me” look at the dealer, I found no aid as he stared disinterested back at me. With a brittle smile, I blew on the man’s dice, then stepped away when he threw them. “Good luck.”
Fortunately, I was already forgotten as the game continued, and I barely resisted the urge to shudder. I hated this job. I hated everything about it except for the wage, but it still wasn’t enough to make up for having to walk around in practically nothing while men pawed at me. And the son of a bitch didn’t even tip me.
It was days like this that I really missed college.
And Bam. I wanted to feel his arms around me and know that everything was going to be okay. What were they doing to him? Would he be well enough to go to work tomorrow? I know he was worried about paying the attorney, so he needed every hour he could get at work.
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