by Amber Burns
“We shot out their windows,” he said sullenly. “What I assume was a crackhead threatened us in return. He seemed to submit to what you wanted, and we left. The ride back was uneventful.”
I sat back and tilted my head as he spoke, his voice had a slight monotone to it, and I wasn’t sure what to make of the way he gave the report.
“That it?” I grunted.
“Yep,” he paused to yawn broadly, I couldn’t tell if it was faked.
I had more questions to ask, more things that I wanted to throw at this guy. But, I realized I wanted to do it after I had the information I wanted. I scratched the hair on my jaw and nodded.
“Alright, just wait for Wilson to say the shit he wants to say.”
I watched Miller covertly as I could as I questioned two more guys. It was difficult to pay attention to their words. It was closing in on five AM, and I was feeling the heat of the long day. I wanted nothing more than to go home and find my bed with my woman in it. Only Dylan wouldn’t be there. She wasn’t going to show up there after her shift. She was going home, and I didn’t know where she lived.
Finally, Wilson clapped his hands to get everyone’s attention.
“First,” his voice sounded rougher than usual. “You have earned your patches here tonight by going into a position that was dangerous. You’ve shown that you still maintain a quality of life that you were trained in, that you suffered through, and what you sacrificed for. I don’t intend for the Boneyard to be as rough as that of the government. I don’t intend to ask for you to put your lives on the line for the Boneyard. But the fact is, everyday clubs form, they start whether with the intention of being a group of guys riding together or a group of guys giving a big fuck you to the police.” He took a minute to take a pull off a bottle of beer. “We are a group that stands on the fence. We took the mantle of protectors when we joined the service, no matter the branch. You’re here because you still have the drive to be honorable, even if it’s just to fuck off and ride a motorcycle for two hours. I hope… He raised his bottle to us. “… that a situation like this won’t come up again. I can’t claim that it won’t. From your words that I’ve heard, words that Cole heard, and words that Tillman heard… this shit ain’t over. Be vigilant. Keep your eyes open. We take no shit,” his voice was a growl now. “And if those fuckers think we believe the bullshit they tried to hand us they’ve got another thing coming.”
“It’s late,” Tillman said steadily. “Go home. Get rest. Tomorrow we’re going to relax to shake off the tension from tonight. After that, we’ll be getting ready to test this asshole’s word. We’ll save that plan for later,” he nodded towards me, and I could already tell I wasn’t being dismissed just yet. “You got anything to add to your report, any concerns we haven’t heard, yet. This is where we’ll be.”
I stayed at the table, watching as the tired men filed out. There was the roar of motorcycles and then the quiet as the noise drifted away from the clubhouse. Wilson came to join me, and soon, Tillman took a chair from another table and sat at it.
“You get what you needed?” I asked, my eyes starting to burn.
Wilson nodded, “Everyone of ‘em seemed to tell the same story. Anything stand out for you two?”
Tillman shook his head, “Kept hearing how Hernandez shot a bottle from the guy’s hand.”
I nodded, “Fucker sure did. The crack head pulled a gun out on me, too. I was going to have Hernandez shoot that out of his hand, too. Man’s got skills. If we do any more runs to Tony and Suzy or start moving product again, he’s going to need to be on the crew that does that.”
“Sid’s gonna be pissed to lose him,” Tillman drug a hand over his face. “Says the man does a lot around the shop.”
I nodded, “Told me the same thing.”
“Redding ain’t stupid. He’ll understand, and we all will make more money once we get business going again. If necessary, Hernandez can train someone to take up his position at the shop.” Wilson looked at me. “I saw you talking to some of the new guys. I wanted to clock you for that shit. I wanted to talk to Miller.”
“You told me to keep an eye on him,” I grunted at him. “I kept an eye on him. His report wasn’t detailed, and there was nothing notable to it.” I stretched, feeling the muscles in my back start to ache. “Nguyen seemed to be excited about us getting back to business even if he doesn’t know what it is,” I paused then looked between Tillman and Wilson. “He says he has a man that’s good with computers. I’m going to get a background check done on Miller. See if he’s a rat or not.”
“That is a great idea,” Tillman looked impressed with me for once. “I guess you’re more than just muscle.”
“Keep us posted on what you find out,” Wilson croaked as he was rubbing his eyes. “I want to know what’s found out. Between here and now I’ll decide what to do with him in the event he is a plant. Killing him wouldn’t be something that’s feasible, that’ll just bring more heat.” I could only nod in agreement, “Let’s get the fuck out of here and go to bed. Tomorrow just rest and if you think of anything that was missed let me know. Let’s take a fucking day off.”
A fucking day off, I couldn’t help but grin at the prospect.
27
As soon as I hit my bed I was out, I slept like the dead. Something I hadn’t done in a long time. When I finally woke up my bedroom was bright. I stretched and unconsciously found myself searching the sheets for something that wasn’t there. It took me a second to realize I was alone and I couldn’t help but groan. I had grown so used to her being there with me that it was hard to wake up alone. I rolled to pick up my phone, because here I was craving her. I needed her close to me.
A message greeted me, something she sent to me when she finished her shift. ‘Going home, going to sleep in my big ol’ empty bed. See ya later!’
I couldn’t help but smile at it. It’s good to see she would miss me in the same way I missed her. I spied the time, just after two. It wasn’t too early to send her a reply then I paused, a text wasn’t what I wanted. I wanted to hear her voice. I pressed the phone option to call her. It rang for a little while before it went to voicemail. I grunted and tried again. At the third ring, she finally picked up.
“You know it’s very rude to wake someone up.”
“You can tell me where you are and I can help you go back to sleep,” I offered. “This whole sleeping alone shit is for the birds. I need my woman beside me.”
She hummed in my ear, and the noise went straight to my dick.
“You got a point there. It was a whole lot harder to go to sleep then it usually is. I’m guessing that’s your fault.”
“Blame me if you want to, but you know you like it,” I sighed. “Let me come over.”
“Say please,” she murmured. “Make it sexy.”
I couldn’t help but laugh, the warmth in my chest when I was around her seeming to radiate outward. Normally, I wouldn’t even entertain the idea, but with my cock hard and my need to see her just as bad… I was willing to bite the bullet.
“Please,” I made it into a low growl. “Please let me come over so I can fuck you.”
“Oh,” she sounded breathless. “Well, if you put it that way, I guess I can let you come over.” I heard an adjustment, an amplification of sound. I guessed she put me on speaker. “Texting you the address. Can we save the sex for later and just cuddle?”
“I hear compromise is good for relationships, “I admitted. “I can wait for sex, but I can’t wait to feel you against me.” I felt my phone vibrate against my cheek and I felt relieved.
“Relationship?” her voice sounded slightly amused. “Is that what this is?”
“Do you doubt it?”
“I don’t, I just didn’t expect you to admit it.”
“Hanging up so I can come over there,” I sat up and then moved to get out of bed. “The compromise for me not fucking you when I get there is that I’m going to steal your day.”
“Oh no,” she didn’t
sound worried. “Whatever will I do? You coming or not?”
“I’m gonna shower first, give me thirty, and I’ll be there. I got this lady I want to impress,” I heard her snort in laughter. “See you soon.”
I ended the call and went into the bathroom, trying to refrain from rushing. I couldn’t though, the desire to see her was too much.
Dylan lived in a small apartment complex on the second floor; it was smaller than I expected. I imagined that with her job she could easily afford a nice house. When I tapped on her door, I was trying to get a feel for what it looked like.
“Look at you, nosing around, and you haven’t even got in here yet,” I turned to see her hair damp and around her shoulders.
I shrugged at her, “First time here, I had to see where my woman lives.” I nodded towards her, “Are we going back to bed?”
“No,” she stepped aside to let me in. “But you’re taking me out for food if you’re going to take my day.”
“I can do that,” I walked in and eyed the small living area. There was a television and a tiny kitchen. “You like chicken wings?”
“I do,” she admitted as she walked back into the bedroom.
I heard the hair dryer go on and waited patiently as she got ready. She met me out in the living room with her hair still hanging around her shoulders.
“Sorry, I thought I had thirty minutes to get ready to go,” she threw a sly grin my way.
I considered a retort before I gave up and pounced. I wrapped my arms around her and tugged her against me, catching her mouth in a hungry kiss. Having her mouth now seemed to make me forget the last time I was with her.
She pulled away, “Sex has to wait. Food first.”
I carefully brushed my lips against hers, keeping just enough distance so I could talk, “That’s not sex, this isn’t sex. This is me telling you how happy I am to see you.”
“Then, you’re making sex awfully tempting,” she pulled away from me. “I need food, sir, and you said you would feed me.”
“Let’s go get something to eat.” With that, I tugged her out of her apartment and led the way to my truck. “What? No bike?”
“That’s on the agenda for the day. I need to get you a helmet and a riding jacket before you get to go for a ride,” I took her to my truck and opened the door for her. “Then, it’ll be you and me on my bike.”
“I can’t wait for that,” she smiled at me in a way that struck like an arrow.
I took her to the clubhouse because I knew the best wings were there. The bar there had a medium crowd to it since the shop was closed. Since there was so many that worked there or hung out at the shop, with it closed it left them nothing to do. So, at the clubhouse, they went and here I was coming to join the crowd.
I found her a table and sat her down, before going to make our orders. I spotting Hernandez, Jones, and Martinez at the bar. I got nods and smiles; for once people that were happy to see me. I saw Miller at the end of the bar, he looked up and met my gaze. After a beat, I got a nod from him, too. Did he know we were suspicious?
Everything seemed normal, not a thing was out of place. When the gunfire opened up, it was like everything went into slow motion. Heads turned towards the door, the sound of exploding glass followed and seemed to cut through the shock.
“Get down,” I hollered. “Everyone down!”
Bodies hit the floor, hands went over heads. Luckily we had was fewer windows and cinder block walls.
Eventually, the gunfire stopped, and I was up, gun in my hand. In what seemed like an instant, I was at the door. I saw two assholes on a motorcycle, the one on the back fidgeting with his guns. I took aim and fired off a round, and the guy the back of the bike cried out. The driver gave me one look and revved the engine of his bike.
“Crazy Aces don’t conform to anyone’s rule, motherfuckers!”
I growled and fired again, this time the guy on the back spasmed and I knew he was dead. I tried to get the driver, but the dead guy on the back was in the way. I watched as he sped off, getting away scot free.
Yelling inside caught my attention, keeping me from running out to my truck to give chase. I went back in, and I saw several guys shaking off the shock and getting up to come to the door. Wilson and Tillman were at the office door, and it looked like chaos inside even though there was no telling what was going on.
“Shut up,” snarled Wilson’s voice over the commotion. “If you are injured come to the office. If you aren’t hurt get to the bar and shut the fuck up. If you can’t get up, call out for help!”
I saw Dylan get up and for a second I was afraid she was hurt, “I’m a nurse! I can help!”
I came in and was dazed. Closing the door, I went to the bar and tried to figure out how this happened. I sat the in shock and watched as the others struggled to clean up. I saw Wilson and Tillman back at the office as the commotion died down. I watched as pieces were picked up and the outrage and anger that was boiling below my surface reflected on the faces of the men I saw.
“If you ain’t hurt,” I shouted. “Go outside and assess the damages. If your bike was hit or anyone else’s was hit. If you worked the shop be out there and help assess the damage.” I stood, “If you don’t know shit about fixing a bike then stand guard. That was enough noise to get the attention of the folks around us. Do not, I repeat, do not have a gun on you. Stand look out and watch for the cops.”
Tillman seemed to catch my meaning, “Go in teams of two to check on our neighbors, make sure no one outside of the club was hurt!”
The rest of the day turned into damage control. We greeted the sheriff with stiffness and dealt with questions upon questions. There was the anger at seeing every motorcycle wrecked in varying degrees. “We can fix the engines,” Redding was reassuring everyone. Somehow the fucker managed to dodge this little run in. “If anyone has a trailer and a truck we can start moving them to the shop so we can get everyone fixed.”
“Get out,” Wilson said at last after the sheriff took the report and left us to clean up. “Start getting your shit cleaned up. You,” Wilson pointed at me. “Stick around we have a retaliation to talk about.” I nodded.
“This one,” Tillman nodded towards Dylan as she stepped out of the bathroom, having just washed her hands. “Earned herself a cut.”
“I don’t think she’s ever served,” I tell him, but looked to her for confirmation.
“No, but I like the idea of joining the boys’ club. Not too keen on getting shot at though,” she admitted to Tillman. “Do you have to be military to join?”
“Usually,” Wilson said without a beat. “But you proved your worth back there. Cole, get your girl a cut, and I’ll get her patches made. You’re the first prospect that doesn’t have to go through the details, girl.” He nodded at her in appreciation. “Not everyone would jump in to help like that.”
“She doesn’t have a bike,” I jumped in. “Yet, at least.”
Wilson shook his head, “Well, you’re either riding bitch, or you’re getting your own bike.”
“For now,” Dylan caught me with a look, her lips pulling up to one side. “I’ll ride bitch until I get this guy to help me pick one out.”
Shit, the haze of anger that had been in my gut was whisked away with that one look. This girl… she had me. If I hadn’t been fully and completely taken by this girl before, I was now.
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The Heart of a Hero
A Love Struck Bad Boys Romance
By Amber Burns
Copyright © 2016-2017 by Amber Burns & Scarlet Lantern Publishing
All rights reserved.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the
products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
This book contains sexually explicit scenes and adult language.
All characters in this work are 18 years of age or older.
1
Camp Cunningham, Bagram Airbase, Afghanistan.
I jogged in time with the rest of my platoon who were all breathing hard in the incredible dry desert heat and battling to keep their pace perfectly timed. The Sargent keeping in line next to us frowned.
“Can you useless rats not keep yourselves in a neat formation?” He screamed while he ran, not even out of breath or breaking the slightest sweat. He stopped, “Halt!”