Cora patted the chair next to her. “Come tell momma all about it.”
Alice squinted at her. “I’m pretty sure I’m the same age, or possibly older than you.”
“Really?” Cora turned to me. “How old do I look?”
Uh, I felt like this was a loaded question. If I guessed too high, then I would insult her, and if I went too low, I would look like I was trying to suck up. “I’m gonna have to say twenty-seven. Possibly twenty-eight, but that’s as high as I’m going.”
A grin spread across her lips, and she looked back at Alice. “I’m twenty-eight.”
“I’m thirty-one. Me calling you momma creeps me out more than you know.” Alice shuffled over to the chair by Cora and looked down at her. “The cow onesie makes me look younger, doesn’t it?”
Cora blinked slowly. “I’ve tried to block that from my memory. Please don’t bring it up again.”
Alice pulled out the chair and plopped down. “No need to bring it up, I’ll just put it on tonight, and you can see it again in all its glory.”
“Um, did I miss something?” Wren asked.
I held up my hand. “It’s best you don’t know about Alice’s collection of animal onesies.”
Karmen’s jaw dropped. “She has more than one?”
A huge smile spread across Alice’s face. “I think you need to come to Kales Corners and see for yourself.”
“What other animals could there possibly be?” Karmen had just opened a can of worms I was not looking forward to.
Alice took a long sip from her coffee and set it on the table. “Well, it all started with my cow one. He’s my favorite.” Alice prattled on about different animal onesies, but my attention was on Pipe and Maniac who were headed to the kitchen.
I bit my lip and took in everything that was Pipe. Long, powerful legs. Strong muscular arms covered with tattoos. Broad shoulders capable of carrying a heavy load. Dark, thick wavy hair.
Mine.
All mine.
He caught me staring, and a smirk spread across his lips. He reached into his pocket and stuck a cigarette in his mouth.
Goddamn, he was sexy as hell when he did that. I knew all the things he could do with his mouth, and my envy of a cigarette was ridiculous.
“Mornin’, sugar,” he mumbled. He pulled the cigarette from his lips and leaned down to press a kiss to my neck.
Commence full-on goosebumps. Was I ever going to get used to this man touching me?
“Any food left?” Maniac asked. He walked to the stove and looked down at the empty pan of eggs and the pathetic one piece of bacon that was left. “Jesus, you would think a football team ate, not four chicks,” he scoffed.
I looked up at Pipe. “I planned on making more eggs when you guys woke up. I didn’t think you would want cold eggs.”
“Is that the story you’re sticking with, sugar?” he smirked.
I had made a shit ton of eggs, but I hadn’t anticipated Karmen’s raging appetite. “It is,” I laughed.
Pipe stepped back and let me stand up, but not before he moved in and wrapped his arms around me.
I grabbed the cigarette out of his mouth. “There are much better things you can be doing with your mouth instead of smoking.”
He brushed my hair off my neck and pressed a kiss next to my ear. “You mean that thing I did to you last night? Because I can totally clear this table and show everyone exactly what you mean.” His tongue grazed my skin and pressed a trail of kisses down my neck.
“Holy shit,” Cora gasped. “Do y’all see this? I’m pretty sure we have a front row seat to one of those soft porns where they keep their clothes on, but it’s still sexy as fuck.”
I buried my head in Pipe’s chest and tried to fight back the embarrassment that was creeping up my face. The man sure knew how to make me forget where I was and see only him.
“Hand me your phone, Maniac. I could totally use this later with B.O.B.”
Oh Jesus. I didn’t need to know that Cora was going to think of Pipe and me when she used her toy.
“Who the fuck is Bob?” Maniac asked.
I pulled out of Pipe’s arms and moved to the stove. I tossed his cigarette on the counter and tried to get my wits about me. I kept my head down and grabbed a bowl to crack the eggs into.
“It’s not Bob, it’s B.O.B.,” Karmen explained not so clearly. “Battery operated boyfriend.”
“Oh Jesus,” Maniac cried. “I did not need that damn visual.”
I looked over my shoulder and watched Cora cackle while she high-fived Karmen. “You know what it’s about, girlfriend.” Cora elbowed Wren, but she just sat there with her head down.
Before Pipe and Maniac had come in the room, she seemed to have come out of her shell a bit and was laughing and joking with us. Now the girl who looked like she wanted to be anywhere but here was back.
“Um, I think I’m going to head to my room,” she mumbled. She grabbed her plate off the counter and dumped it in the sink next to me.
“Hey,” I replied, gently grabbing her arm. She froze under my touch and gasped. Something wasn’t right with Wren. She acted like I was about to hit her for putting her dish in the sink. “You don’t have to run back to your room. I thought maybe we could go to the mall today. Kind of like a girls’ day.”
She gave me a small smile and shook her head. “Um, I kind of have a headache right now. Knock on my door when you’re ready to go, and I’ll see if I’m feeling any better.” Wren dashed from the kitchen, almost bumping into Pipe who quickly stepped out of her way before she barreled into him.
“Was it something I said?” Karmen asked.
Cora shook her head and grabbed her empty plate. “No, it’s not you. Hell, it doesn’t have anything to do with us. Well, maybe Pipe and Maniac, but that’s just because they’re guys.”
Maniac leaned against the counter by the fridge and crossed his arms over his chest. “What the hell does that mean?” he asked.
Pipe cleared his throat. “Unfortunately, I think it means the guys in Wren’s past haven’t treated her right.”
“That fucking true?” Maniac demanded.
Cora dropped her plate in the sink and wiped her hands on her pants. “I don’t know everything, but yeah, Wren hasn’t had the best relationships. This last asshole really fucked with her.”
Maniac pushed off the counter. “I’m not gonna fucking hurt her, dammit. She doesn’t need to act like that around me.”
“Calm down, brother,” Pipe called. “We all know you haven’t done anything to Wren.”
“I’m gonna go get dressed and talk to her. Hopefully, she decides to go to the mall with us. She hasn’t been out of the clubhouse since she got here, and I’m kind of worried about her.” Cora followed Wren, and we were all speechless.
“Um, well, that majorly blows,” Karmen sniffled. She wiped her nose with the back of her hand and pushed her half-empty plate away.
Nickel walked in and skidded to a halt. “Who the hell died?” he asked.
“We have to fix Wren,” Karmen sobbed.
“What the hell did I miss?” he asked Pipe.
Pipe cleared his throat. “Not really sure, but from what I’m gathering, Wren’s ex was a bigger dick than we thought.”
Maniac pushed off the counter and paced back and forth. “I gotta go for a ride,” he mumbled. “Can you guys keep an eye on Wren until I get back?”
“I really doubt she’s going to leave her room, so I think you’re good,” Karmen replied.
“I was talking to Pipe and Nickel.”
“Oh,” Karmen gulped. “I suppose they are more likely to defend her than I am.”
“You’re good, brother,” Pipe replied. “You can take off for the day if you want.”
Maniac nodded. “I’ll let you know what I’m up to. Right now, I need to just clear my head for a bit. Everything I thought I knew just got blew out of the water.”
“What the hell was that?” Karmen asked after Maniac left the kitchen.
“I think that was us witnessing first-hand that Maniac might have a thing for Wren.” Pipe wrapped his arm around my shoulders and pulled me close. “You okay?”
I looked up at him and nodded. “Yeah, I’m good. Worried about Wren, but I really doubt she’ll talk to me seeing as I met her yesterday.”
“Cora’s got her, sugar, and I have a feeling Maniac just got a lot more involved than I bet he thought he would have.” He pressed a kiss to the side of my head, and I went back to cracking eggs.
“How much fucking hot sauce did you put on that?”
I turned around to see Nickel waving his hand in front of his mouth and grabbing Karmen’s cup of coffee.
“Well, from the pink tinge that the eggs have on them, I would say a shit ton,” Alice smirked.
“Are you insane, woman?” Nickel finished Karmen’s coffee and reached for Alice’s.
Alice snatched it off the table and glared at Nickel. “Try it, and I break your hand.”
Nickel pulled his hand back. “I see you have a nice sunny disposition in the morning just like Karmen.”
As Karmen pulled the plate back in front of her she snatched the fork from Nickel. “Just for that, you don’t get any more eggs.”
“Promise?” Nickel laughed. “Pretty sure you’re gonna be burping up fire after you finish that plate.”
“But it’s such a delicious burn,” Karmen muttered.
Pipe pulled his lighter out of his pocket, and I glared at him. “You don’t need that.”
He shook his head and lit the end. “You’ll have to keep my mouth occupied, sugar, if you don’t want me to smoke anymore.”
I rolled my eyes. “I’m buying you the patch today.”
He shook his head and then turned it to exhale. At least the man had enough decency to turn his head. It would have been better if he didn’t smoke at all, but I had to pick my battles at the moment.
“You buy me the patch, and you’ll be wasting your money, sugar.”
“You make me roll my eyes entirely too much,” I mumbled. I finished cracking the eggs and grabbed another pound of bacon from the fridge.
“That’s your sassy side coming out. I like it.”
“You would,” Nickel piped in. “When Karmen gets mouthy, it makes me think of all the other things she could be doing with her mouth instead of talking back.”
Karmen pointed her fork at Nickel. “Keep it up, and I’ll show you what else I can do with my fork.”
Pipe busted out laughing, and Nickel held up his hands. “Point made, baby girl.”
“You’re looking a little green over there, Alice,” Pipe chuckled.
Alice groaned and laid her head down on the table. “I can’t decide if I need to throw up or eat.”
“Ah, the aftereffects of a night with the Fallen Lords,” Pipe chuckled.
“I remember when Pipe and Wrecker got me drunk,” Karmen reminded. “That’s when I became Captain.”
“I remember you letting me shiver your timbers that night.” Nickel wiggled his eyebrows.
Karmen elbowed him in the stomach and pushed her plate away again. “Pretty sure all of that hot sauce was a mistake.” She rubbed her belly and laid her head on the counter like Alice.
“No one shivered my timbers last night,” Alice grumbled.
“What in the hell is going on in here?” Wrecker asked. He walked into the kitchen and skidded to a halt just like Nickel had.
Pipe pointed at Karmen. “Too much hot sauce eggs.” Then shifted to Nickel. “Ate the hot sauce eggs without knowing that they were hot sauce eggs,” then finally landed on Alice. “Partied with the Fallen Lords last night.”
Wrecker nodded like that all made sense to him. “Sounds like a typical morning when you ladies are around.” Wrecker grabbed a cup down from the cabinet and filled it up. “Where are Maniac and Wren?”
“Um, Wren is in her room with Cora,” I mumbled.
“Maniac is gone for the day,” I added.
“What the fuck do you mean he’s gone for the day?” Wrecker demanded. “That asshole’s job is to watch Wren.” Wrecker pulled out a chair next to Nickel and sat down. Alice groaned when he bumped the table, but she didn’t raise her head.
“Cora told us some information about Wren today that none of us knew. Kind of threw Maniac off a bit,” Nickel explained.
“You wanna tell me exactly what that information was?”
I started laying the bacon into the pan and waited to hear who was going to explain about Wren.
Pipe cleared his throat. “Don’t know a lot of the details, but Nikki touched her, and she froze. Like deer in the headlights, spooked.”
“Oh Jesus,” Wrecker grumbled. “Please don’t say it.”
“Don’t know for sure what is going on with her, but Cora said she was pretty messed up from her relationship with the fucker from the Hell Captains.”
Wrecker slammed his hand down on the table. “Not only do I have huge fucking shit brewing all around us, now we gotta deal with this. I’d like one fucking day where we don’t get shit on more and more.” Wrecker stormed out of the kitchen, and the only noise was the sizzling of the bacon in the pan.
Alice raised her head, and Karmen leaned into Nickel.
Pipe’s eyes fell on me, and I tried to plaster on a smile.
Pipe put his arm around my shoulders and pulled me close. “It’ll all be okay, sugar.”
“I hope you’re right,” I mumbled.
Wrecker was right, and I only knew about two things that were happening with the Fallen Lords right now. I could only imagine what else was going on.
*
Chapter 31
Pipe
“I need you back here.”
I rested my hands on the table and looked at my brothers that were gathered around the table. “I know. I need a couple of weeks to get Nikki on board. I can’t leave her in Kales Corners by herself.”
“I’m not asking you to leave your woman there. I’m telling you to pack your shit up, your woman included, and be fucking present. Playtime is over.” Wrecker leaned forward. “Brinks is finding out info about The Ultra and Oakley. I need you here to take the reins while I travel to where Oakley lives and get our decoy in place.”
“When are you leaving?” I asked.
“A week from Thursday.”
That gave me nine days to talk to Nikki and convince her we needed to move back to Weston. “I’ll be back Wednesday.” Make that eight days.
Wrecker nodded his head, satisfied. “Now onto Wren and the Hell Captains.”
“I say we just blow their fucking clubhouse up and be done with the fucking assholes,” Maniac growled.
“You would suggest blowing them up,” Nickel laughed. “Maybe you could throw a couple of fireworks in there to pretty it up.”
“Totally doable,” Maniac bragged.
After Maniac had taken off all day, he was back to the clubhouse right when Nickel and I had returned with the girls from the mall. Also known as Hell on Earth. Cora and Wren had stayed back with Brinks and Slayer keeping an eye on them while Nikki, Karmen, and Alice dragged Nickel and me into every damn store.
Maniac had seemed different after his ride. There was an edge to him that he never had before. Wren being abused by her ex was weighing heavily on him.
“Not happening,” Wrecker vetoed. “As much as I would like to see the maggots disappear, obliterating a whole club seems a bit drastic.”
Maniac shrugged. “Then what exactly do you have in mind?”
“We just get rid of the ones causing us problems.” Wrecker looked at Brinks. “Add finding out which one Wren was dating to your list of shit to look up.”
Brinks shook his head. “Not like I was doing anything else.”
“You got a problem?” Wrecker thundered.
Brinks held up his hands. “Nah, it’s just that don’t you think you could task someone else to dig up shit on them? The Ultra is taking up all of my time.”
> Wrecker growled. “Pardon me for overloading you. Find out who the boyfriend was.”
It never was a good idea to question Wrecker. He normally gave one chance to listen, and if you didn’t hear him, he would make you listen.
Wrecker slammed the gavel on the table and stormed out of church.
“Am I the only noticing Wrecker is a bit on edge lately?” Boink asked. “Storming out of the room seems to be his M.O. lately.”
“Why don’t you point that out to him, Boink? I’m sure that will help the situation.” Nickel flicked him upside the head and turned to me. “You really think you’ll be back in Weston that soon?”
I shrugged and stood up. “I don’t have much of a choice. The club needs me, and the only thing that is keeping me in Kales Corners is Nikki, and she’s going to have to understand.”
“You really are new at this couple shit, aren’t you?” Nickel shook his head. “Telling Nikki she has to move is not an option.”
“Well, Nickel, I have eight fucking days. Explain to me how I’m going to get her to move without actually telling her we’re moving?”
He sat back and crossed his arms over his head. “Gotta make her think it was her idea, brother. That’s the only way you are going to make this happen smoothly.”
Yeah, that sounded as easy as getting an elephant in a tutu.
Fucking impossible.
“Just let me worry about it. I’ll be back Wednesday. Try not to make Wrecker’s head explode before then.” All the guys grumbled, but they knew not to bitch and moan. I made my way out of church and out to my truck.
Nikki and Alice were saying goodbye to Cora and Karmen, and then we were headed back to Kales Corners.
I heard the roar of a bike and knew that Wrecker had taken off, frustrated over all the shit going on. I couldn’t blame the guy for disappearing for a bit.
At least Slayer and Brinks had returned this morning and reported that they had a chat with Richard and were convinced that he wasn’t going to be a problem anymore.
Nikki was upset that I had been right that he was the one watching her, but she was glad that he was going to stop and he hadn’t been hurt.
Fallen Lords MC: Books 1-3 Page 36