But it was too late to bitch now, and I was pretty sure Bam would have more than a little to say about this. That is, if I told him about it.
“You okay, sis? You look a little shaken.” Jackson’s eyes narrowed on me. “Did something happen to you between here and the locker room?”
I bit my lip and did what any good sister would do. I lied. “No, no. I’m fine. I’m just…I kinda need to talk to Mom. You know? Girl talk?”
Jackson’s eyes didn’t leave my face as he nodded slowly. “Sure.”
“What’s up, honey?” My mom asked as she bounced up from her slot machine’s seat.
I tore my gaze away from my brother’s probing eyes and smiled weakly at my mom. “Can we talk? You know, alone? Maybe over there?”
My mom nodded, and we took off for the weird divider between the bar and the slots. Reaching the wall, my mom turned and gave me a look. “Okay, what’s really going on?”
“What do you mean?”
“I know that look. That’s your I’m-hiding-something-that-I-don’t-wanna-talk-about look, so spill.”
“I don’t have a look.”
“I’ve raised you. I know all your looks. What’s going on?”
This. This right here was why I’d been avoiding her for so long. “It’s not important.” I sighed. “I just wanted—”
“It’s important enough that you don’t want Jackson to know. Jackson who was supposed to be watching you but instead came over to talk to us. Something happened. What. Was. It?”
“It’s not a big deal. I was going to tell Bam about it later. Maybe.”
“Amber.”
“Ruslan was here. Okay? That’s the big secret. Ruslan came up to me when I was outside the locker room alone, and we had a few words.”
“Ruslan? Is that the Bratva guy who’s been stalking you?”
“Yes. I know I should’ve told you about the whole thing, but—“
“Yeah, you should’ve. You had a crazy mafioso stalking you—sending you gifts, probably watching the house—you damn well should’ve told me about it. What if something happened, Amber? Did you ever think about that?”
“Of course I did! But I thought you had enough on your plate. I don’t want to worry you.”
“I’m a parent. That’s the job. Of course I worry about you. I worry about Jackson. I worry about him following in his father’s footsteps. I worry about you dropping out of college, working here. I worry all the time.”
“I know you do. It’s what drove you to drink. I didn’t want to be the one adding to your worries, and cause you to fall off the wagon.”
“No, grief drove me to drink. And my insecurities. That has nothing to do with you. My drinking is on me. I don’t want you to ever hold things back from me because you’re worried I’m going to go over the deep end.”
“You’re kidding, right? Do you not remember who’s been cleaning you up for the last year? Who’s been paying the bills because Dad didn’t have much life insurance, and you couldn’t scrape yourself off the floor in the morning to make it to work on time? It’s all been on my shoulders, and has been ever since Dad died.”
My mom looked at me like I’d sucker punched her, and I pulled in a breath as regret burned through my stomach lining. This was why we kept everything inside and never talked. I always said something the wrong way, or was too honest and biting. A little bit of honesty was good; too much tended to burn. Happy fake family was so much better than truth-telling wounded family. I never wanted to be the reason that my mom was so hurt.
I bit my lip. “I’m sorry, Mom. I shouldn’t have—”
“No. It’s fine. We needed to get this out.” My mom’s eyes glistened as tears welled, and I felt so low. “I know I haven’t been there for you this last year. I know it’s been hard. And I’m so sorry that you had to pick up the slack and become an adult so much sooner than you should’ve. You should be at college parties and worrying about boys and grades, not working a full-time job, shaking your ass to pay my bills.”
My face burned at her ass-shaking remark. I’d never enjoyed this job, but it paid so much more than any other I was qualified for. I could’ve worked the reception desk or cleaned rooms, but the tips alone paid our mortgage. And we needed the money. “Mom…”
“No. I’m so thankful that you worked your tail off for me, but it ends today. You’re quitting. Give them your notice. Turn in your tiny skirt and bustier, because you’re going back to college next semester.”
I sucked in a breath. It was everything I’d wished for.
And yet…
“We can’t.” I sighed. “It’s not that easy. There’s the mortgage and tuition and all the paperwork for admission and financial aid. I wish we could, but I can’t.”
“We can and you will.” My mom waved a hand when I tried to interrupt her. “No—I got a job, so the mortgage is covered. And as far as the paperwork goes, we’ll talk to the admissions office tomorrow. If it’s too late to apply for this year, you can do a semester or two at the community college, take some classes that will transfer over. We’re done with you living your life for me.”
“I’d do it again in a heartbeat.” I smiled at my mom as tears streamed down my face.
“I know you would, honey.” She grabbed me in her arms and pulled me into the tightest, warmest hug. It’d been so long. I wrapped my arms around her and hugged her right back. I’d missed this. I finally had my mom back after a long, hard, painful year. My breath shuddered.
We stood there for a minute, tangled in each other’s arms. Finally my mom squeezed me one more time, then took a step away. “You go give your notice, then we’ll go find the boys, and you can introduce me to your man.”
I groaned even as a giddy sensation swept over me—I had no idea that we were meeting up with the guys tonight. “I was totally going to tell you about Bam, I just—”
“Had to figure out how you’d explain it first?” My mom interjected.
“Kinda. I’d been so anti-biker since Dad died, and I knew you knew how I felt, but you didn’t know about Ruslan and the Bratva thing, so it was kinda hard to explain.”
My mom laughed as she put her arm around me and led us back to the group. “Well, now you know for the future. If you tell your mom everything, it doesn’t make it awkward later.”
I rolled my eyes. “Yeah, I love you, Mom, but I’m not telling you everything.”
“You can and you should. Speaking of, does Bam have his you-know-what pierced? Quite a few guys in the club do, you know.”
“Mom,” I groaned.
* * *
—
Six hours, I don’t know how many drinks, and one job quit later, I was feeling no pain. The ladies and I had left the Mother Lode for the Pay Dirt Casino across the street, and had taken up almost half of their Gold Bullion Bar with our mix of biker chicks and True Brothers patched members. Bam hadn’t shown up yet, but after the first hour or so Tank and Reb and a few of the other guys slowly trickled in. My mom and I were dancing at our table to an old eighties song while my brother rolled his eyes and sipped a beer. He might be too cool for school, but I was having the time of my life. I’d quit my job. I’d be going to school next semester. I was laughing and drinking with my friends and family. Life was pretty damn perfect.
The only thing that could’ve made my night any better was the man who’d just walked in the door.
“Bam!” I squealed as I pushed away from the table and practically ran for the door.
Bam spread his stance and caught my flying leap with a grunt.
“You’re here! You’re here!” I peppered his face with a thousand kisses. “I was beginning to think the guys were lying. They were here, but you weren’t. But they kept saying he’s coming, he’ll be here, don’t worry about it. And you’re here! You’re here!”
H
e laughed as he held me in his arms. “Holy shit, kitten. How many have you had?”
“How can you say that?” I pushed away from him with a glare. “You know you’re the only man I’ve ever slept with!”
Axle snorted a laugh as he slapped Bam on the shoulder and walked by us. I didn’t know what the hell that was about, but Bam hadn’t acknowledged him. His eyes were trained on me and only me.
Finally he rumbled, “I meant, how many drinks have you had?”
“Oh.” My face burned from a combination of my drinks and my blush as I thought over his question. Giving up, I shrugged. “I dunno. I lost track. Come on! Let’s get you something to drink so you can catch up.”
Bam laughed when I squirmed down his body to break away. I grabbed his hand and led him toward the bar.
“One huge-ass beer for my man, Raymond!” I shouted—by this time I was on a first-name basis with the waitstaff at the bar. Which reminded me. I turned to Bam and let out another squeal. “Guess what?!”
Bam’s eyes danced as he smiled down at me. “What?”
“I quit my job! As of the end of the month, I will no longer have to shake my ass to pay our bills.”
“Ah, babe, that’s great. It’ll make my life a hell of a lot easier if I don’t have to watch other men ogle your ass on a nightly basis.”
“Yup. I’m going back to school. I talked it over with my mom, and I’ll enroll next semester. Or the one after. Or the year after. I don’t really know how the whole thing works since I’ve never gone back. But since I was there before, it shouldn’t be too hard to figure out.” I leaned hard against his side and blinked up at Bam. “What were we talking about?”
He laughed as he accepted the large beer mug from the bartender. “I think you’ve had way too much to drink tonight, kitten.”
“No, it’s just that I’m so excited that you’re here.” I nuzzled my face against his arm, and that amazing aroma of Bam filled my head. Leather, bergamot, and Bam. God, he smelled so good. My nipples tightened as a faint buzzing sound drowned out the background noise. If we were alone, there was so much I would do to this man. But we weren’t. We’d have to wait till later to play drunk and horny night.
Bam choked on his beer. “What the hell did you just say?”
“I didn’t say anything. I was just thinking about hot you are and how good you smell. How long do you think we need to stay to celebrate Reb and Emily’s engagement?”
“Considering you just offered me drunk and horny night, I’m thinking we’re leaving right now. Where’s your car?” Bam put his barely touched beer down and wrapped his arms around me, then kissed me like he hadn’t seen me in a year.
After a long and heady kiss, I pulled away panting. “Across the street. In the employee lot. Like usual.”
“Fantastic. Let’s go.”
There were cheers and good-natured jeers as Bam swung me into his arms and headed for the door. I know I should’ve been more embarrassed by the fact that everyone in the bar knew what we were going to do, but I was too happy—and horny—to think much about it. We were ten feet from the door when Tank stopped Bam with a hand on his shoulder.
“I know you kids have somewhere you’d rather be, but we have a little business to settle first.”
A steely look settled over Bam’s face as he set me down on my feet then stepped in front of me, putting his body between me and Tank and leaving his hands loose at his sides. Bam’s voice was a low drawl when he finally spoke. “I thought we settled everything we needed to at the last club meeting.”
Tank stared back at him with a similar hard expression. The entire bar was silent, only the soft strains of Def Leppard’s “Pour Some Sugar On Me” could be heard. I had no idea what their standoff was about. I thought everyone in the club was okay with me and Bam being together.
Bam tensed as Tank reached for something on the table behind him.
“Not quite,” Tank said as he held out a leather vest with a flourish. He twisted it so the back was visible. Curving around the vest in the True Brother script were the words “Property of Bam Bam.”
I sucked in a breath while I stared at the vest. My mom had a similar one, and had worn it so much the stitching had to be repaired. I never thought I’d wear one, too.
Bam laughed as he took the vest from Tank, then pulled him in for a one-armed man hug.
Tank slapped him on the back before he pulled away. “Sorry for all the shit we gave you. Well, not really.” He laughed. “But this is our way of welcoming Amber officially to the club. You guys stay safe and enjoy the rest of your night.”
The crowd around us hooted and cheered their approval. Bam was practically beaming as he helped me into the vest. It didn’t exactly go with my outfit, but now wasn’t the time to bitch about that. The leather smelled new and fresh as it enveloped me. I brushed a hand down the lapel and noticed the blank spot where my name patch should’ve been on the front.
“We didn’t know if you wanted your name or if Bam had picked a road name out for you. We can fill that part in later.” Tank saluted us with his beer before he melted back into the crowd.
“So, what do you say, kitten? Or should we have ’em put Amber on your patch?” Bam’s grin was so wide. I don’t think I’d ever seen him smile that big.
“Whatever you’d like, honey.” I replied. “I’m your property, after all.”
“Fuck yeah. And don’t you forget it.” Bam pressed a quick peck on my lips, then slapped my ass with a loud spank. “Let’s get going before you’re no longer drunk for drunk and horny night.”
“Yes, sir.” I mockingly saluted him. I was able to take three whole steps away before I felt Bam grab me and heave me over his shoulder in a fireman’s hold.
The crowd hooted and hollered as Bam carried me away like the marauding Viking he was.
And I grinned the entire time.
Chapter 22
Bam
TWO WEEKS LATER
“If all continues to go as scheduled, probate will close on Friday.” Harry Hastings rumbled on the other end of the phone. “So far we haven’t heard a single peep out of your mother or her lawyer. It looks like it was an empty threat.”
I laughed bitterly. “I doubt it. My mom has a way of swooping in and ruining everything at the last second.”
“Regardless, you have the upper hand—your grandmother’s will was written years before you joined the club. She can’t claim coercion due to the club, and you had cleaned up your act and were enrolled in a local trade school at the time. I’m confident that if it goes to trial the judge will rule in your favor.”
“Thanks, Harry. I appreciate all the work you’ve done for me on this.”
“Wasn’t much work, but I’m glad to have it. I’ll let you know when it’s official. Later.”
I ended the call and tossed my cell phone onto the couch next to me. It was hard to relax when so many things were going my way. Amber had worked her final shift as a cocktail waitress and had enrolled at the local community college. And the Wild Riders MC had yet to strike back or even threaten anything after we’d hijacked their drug shipment and left it on the Reno PD’s front doorstep. The drug delivery had made the news. The police had found the place where we’d hijacked the truck, but no one had come knocking at our door. They’d just arrested more Wild Riders. Dumb fucks. Everything in my life was finally running smoothly. I had an amazing woman, a great job, and my Brothers at my back. Life was fan-fucking-tastic.
Hence my tension. Nothing in my life had ever gone as good as these last few weeks. It was only a matter of time before it all came crashing down, one way or another.
“What did Harry say?” Amber asked as she came out of the bathroom wearing stretchy yoga pants and a T-shirt, rubbing her wet hair with a towel.
My dick hardened at the sight of her. I watched, mesmerized, as h
er tits bounced in rhythm with her vigorous rubbing. She was clearly braless, and given what she was wearing, it wouldn’t take much to get her naked again. I’d had to skip out on showering together when I saw the call come in from Harry. My only regret so far. But maybe we could rectify that.
“Bam? Hello?” Amber leaned toward me and waved her fingers in my face. “Is everything okay? What happened with Harry?”
“What? Sorry. You get me so fucking hard just being you.” I reached out and grabbed her hand and pulled her until she fell into my lap. “You look so squeaky clean and wholesome; it makes me wanna dirty you up.”
I burrowed my face in her neck as she squealed and wiggled in my lap.
“Oh my god. Stop, Bam! You’re gonna give me a huge beard rash on my entire face, and I’m supposed to meet my mom in an hour.”
I stopped tormenting Amber and sat up with a frown. “What? An hour? When did that happen? I thought we were gonna have the whole afternoon together. I had plans. Wonderful, dirty plans involving you and my beard and your thighs.”
Amber bit her lip and groaned. “Don’t tell me that. Now I don’t want to go.”
“Exactly,” I murmured as I molded my hands over her perfect but still covered breasts. “Now let’s get to getting naked.”
“Bam, no. I can’t.” Amber wiggled until she fell off my lap and onto the couch next to me. “I haven’t seen my mom in weeks, and she really wants to spend time together. Now that she’s working, and I’m over here so much, we haven’t had any time to just hang out. She wanted to do a fun family get-together. Jackson is even coming.”
I nodded stiffly. “Fine. That’s okay. I’ll watch some TV or whatever. Maybe swing by the club and see if anyone wants to get a drink.”
Amber’s eyes darkened as she frowned. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you. It was kind of a spur-of-the-moment thing. She asked me about it last night when she called. Maybe—”
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