“Yeah,” I admit.
She’s quiet after that, working quickly to transform me into my onstage persona while I hum a few scales.
After she’s finished, I have a few minutes to myself. Jittery and anxious about the show, I pace back and forth, focusing on some favorite deep breathing techniques.
A scratch-whoosh noise draws my attention to the door in time to see a black envelope with a glint of silver pushed underneath. It sails across the floor. I frown at it before scurrying to pick it up.
My name’s scrawled on the front in some kind of silver pen. Reminds me of the black notebooks and gel pens I’d loved in high school. The writing’s neat, precise, like a child trying to impress his parents.
I rip open the flap and pull out the piece of paper tucked inside. Expecting it to be from a kid, I smile.
Dearest Shelby,
For your sake, I hope the rumors of you cavorting around with two men isn’t true.
M
What the heck?
I’m not smiling any more. That’s not a note from a sweet little kid.
Cavorting? Who says crap like that?
I glance at the door again. Did security drop it off?
Whatever. I don’t have time for this nonsense.
More annoyed than scared, I stuff the stupid note at the bottom of my purse and finish getting ready for my show.
Chapter Thirty-Four
Rooster
I keep flicking my phone on to check out the silly pic Shelby sent me. I love that she trusts me enough to send goofy candids instead of filtered glamour shots.
As much as I love to be on the road, damn, it feels good to be home. Only thing better would be having Shelby here with me.
Jigsaw and I said goodbye to Dex and Murphy at Exit 24, promising we’d both fill our presidents in on the visit to Zips. Jigsaw and I continued downstate on our own.
The front door slams open and Z swaggers outside. I stuff my phone back in my pocket. Z greets us with hugs and hearty thumps on the back. “It’s not the same around here without you two.” He flashes a sincere dimpled grin.
It’s nice to be missed and appreciated for a change. Sway always acted like all the brothers hanging around the clubhouse annoyed him and ruined his jolly good time.
I shouldn’t compare Z to our old president. They’re worlds apart. Sometimes it’s hard not to, though.
I set my helmet on the seat of my bike. “I get why you miss me, but what’s Jiggy add to the atmosphere?”
Jigsaw flips me off and I blow him a kiss.
“How’d it go?” Z asks, ignoring our antics.
“You want me to debrief you now?” I ask, following him inside. “Or at the table?”
He cocks his head and studies me under the clubhouse’s new and improved lighting. “Something happen I need to call everyone to the table for?”
“No, nothing like that.” I consider the conversation I had with Chaser. “Well, maybe.”
“All right, let’s chat.”
He waves us into the chapel and stretches out in his chair, lacing his hands behind his head. “So?”
Jigsaw adopts a similar pose, adding an eyebrow quirk in my direction. Dick.
“I ran into Chaser at Shelby’s show.”
“Really? Don’t picture him being into country music.”
The corners of my mouth twitch. “His daughter’s a fan of Shelby.”
Now I’ve got Z’s attention. “No shit?”
“She’s also smoking hot,” Jigsaw adds. “Just like Mallory.”
Z slides his gaze Jigsaw’s way. “Please tell me you didn’t—”
“No.” Jigsaw points at me. “He forbid me from even talking to her.”
“Good.” Z nods at me. “Continue.”
“Brought them backstage to meet Shelby. She and Angelina seemed to get along. I talked to Chaser a bit. All low-key friendly stuff. He invited us to the clubhouse, so we popped in after the show and hung for a while.”
Z’s eyes widen. “Good.”
“He says DeLova’s retiring.”
“Fuck me. Never thought that day would come.”
“No one did. Sounds like he’s annoying the shit out of Chaser and Mallory while he’s at it.”
Z lets out a brief chuckle. “So, he’s not upset with us then? For turning down DeLova’s work? That didn’t have anything to do with him retiring, right?”
“Fuck, never considered that angle. But I don’t think so.” I shrug. “Chaser’s pretty straightforward. If he thought we’d fucked them over, he’d have no problem saying so, and I doubt he would’ve invited us to their clubhouse.”
“True.” Z squints and stares up at the ceiling for a few minutes. “Who’s taking over for him?”
“Excellent question, Prez.” I use my best game-show host voice.
“Chaser? I don’t know all the intricacies of DeLova’s operation but there has to be some mob stuff his club can’t touch.”
“Obviously, he didn’t share details. He said Mallory’s cousin has a piece. Demons have part of it. And…” I pause for effect. “He’s offering some of the action to us.”
“Fuck. Extortion—no thanks. Guns—Priest will bury all of us. Heroin—same problem.”
“They run counterfeit crap from Russia,” Jigsaw says. “Especially down in Bright Point. Move that shit right into NYC.”
“Well, we don’t speak Russian.” Z grins. “I bet that piece is going to the cousin anyway.”
“Maybe.” I sit forward, capturing Z’s attention. “Our concern should be whoever takes over for DeLova respects our boundaries and territory.”
“That’s why I want to make sure we stay friendly with Chaser’s crew.” Z’s gaze shifts to Jigsaw, then me. Technically, we probably should’ve called Hustler and Steer in for this meeting. “Let’s wait and bring this to the table when upstate’s here. It’s going to fall on both charters.”
“Okay.”
“Otherwise...” Z runs his hand over his chin and nods thoughtfully. “That’s more than I hoped for. Thanks for going the extra mile, with the backstage invite and all. I like that your visit wasn’t all about business.”
“Not a problem.”
“Shelby didn’t mind?”
Interesting that Z gives a shit what Shelby thinks. Can’t imagine many MC presidents showing concern about a female’s opinion. But I respect his approach. Too many clubs have been brought down by forgetting or dismissing how important an ol’ lady can be to their members’ well-being. “Not at all. Like I said, she got along well with Angelina. Chaser knows the headliner, so they talked a bit. It was all good.”
“Shelby do all right at their clubhouse?”
Meaning did she see some deviant shit and pitch a fit. “She was fine.”
“It didn’t get really wild until after they left,” Jigsaw adds.
“You stayed?”
“Dex and I stayed pretty late. Rooster wanted to get his princess a hotel room.” He sings out the last part in a high-pitched wail.
I roll my eyes but don’t bother responding to the taunt.
Z smirks but doesn’t comment. “Moving on. How’s our wee little support club?”
“Wee little nothing.” I snort and sit forward, resting my elbows on the table and lacing my fingers together. “Still feeling them out. This isn’t something we should jump into lightly. Oh and Remy offered to help with any of our porn needs.”
“Dex shot that down quick,” Jigsaw says.
Z rolls his eyes. “He want to star in them or something?”
“No, just meet the talent.”
“Yeah, we got plenty of that here. He can fuck off,” Z dismisses that easily. “What else?”
“Eraser didn’t seem as enthusiastic about the porn but we did discuss their money-laundering needs. Griff wants to open an auto body shop or something. Sounds like Murphy’s gonna have Teller handle that.”
Z chuckles. “Like Teller doesn’t have enough to do. That sounds good
. You get a read on how they’re feeling about the support club?”
I catch Jigsaw’s eye and shrug, giving him a chance to jump in if he wants. He answers with a quick headshake.
“Honestly, none of us brought it up directly. It was more like a, ‘Hey, how’s everything?’ kind of visit. Letting Murphy reel ’em in slow with some assistance in their business ventures is a solid play.”
“Build that trust and loyalty,” Jigsaw agrees.
Z sits up and claps his hands together. “Thank you. That’s good.”
His gaze lands on the small silver burner phone in the middle of the table and he grits his teeth. “I got another fuckin’ call with Priest this afternoon.” He flashes a devilish smile. “I’m looking forward to siccing him on Murphy next.”
“I’m sure he’ll appreciate that, Prez.” Guess I better text Murphy later and let him know what’s coming his way. VPs gotta look out for each other and all.
Hustler pushes the door open. “Z, you got a minute?”
Z slaps the table and stands. “We good?”
“Yup.”
Jigsaw follows them out.
My phone buzzes and I pull it from my pocket. The corners of my mouth automatically curl up when Chickadee flashes across the screen.
Almost finished.
Another picture comes through of Shelby. This time she’s fully made up in her supermodel persona.
I like the first picture better, but there’s no fuckin’ way I’d say that to her. Especially—I glance at the clock—an hour before she’s going onstage.
Me: You are smoking hot.
Shelby: Where are you?
Me: Clubhouse. Was having a sit-down with Z.
Shelby: Sorry.
Me: Don’t be. We’re done.
“What’re you up to?” Z’s voice breaks through my thoughts and I quickly turn off my phone, shoving it in my pocket.
“Nothing. Thought we were finished?”
“Missing Shelby already?”
Busted.
I sit back and tap a finger against my cheek. “Why are you asking?”
He jerks his chin. “The phone you just shoved so far down your pocket I wouldn’t be surprised if it landed on the floor.” He closes the door behind him while he waits for my answer.
Z’s not a soft guy. You can’t be soft and run a motorcycle club. I’ve literally committed murder with this man. More than once. But he’s also one of the most involved family men I’ve known. Has crazy love for his wife and son. Treats the other club kids as if they’re his own. Would kill to protect his brothers’ old ladies.
Still, it feels weird to get all touchy-feely with my president. “Yeah, I miss her.”
“Then why are you here instead of on the road with her?”
I snap my head up. “What are you talking about? I don’t have time for that when you’re trying to force me into mentoring a bunch of teenyboppers out in the woods and set up porn networks all over the country.”
Z snorts. “As if anyone can force you to do anything.”
“You know what I mean, Prez. Club first.” I tap my VP patch. “Still feel like I need to earn this.”
“You’ve more than earned that patch, brother. No doubt. You’ve been putting the club first more than anyone. Murphy can handle the support club.” Z glances around. “Things are calm here. Might as well take advantage of it while it lasts. You should benefit from all your hard work too.”
“I’m not the only one working hard. Everyone’s finally pulling their weight.”
“And again, you’re partially responsible for that. So, go spend some time with your girl.”
“I made plans to meet up with her in Virginia next week.”
A genuine smile curves his mouth up. “Good.”
“Plannin’ to check in down there. See what I can do to help them out.”
“Appreciate that, brother. I’ll call Ice after my chat with Priest and let him know you’re droppin’ in.”
“Thanks.” I lift an eyebrow. “You mind if I take Jiggy with me?”
“Christ.” He laughs. “You gonna subject poor Shelby to more of him?”
“He was actually helpful at her meet and greet. Keeping the pervs away.”
His expression darkens. “That a regular problem for her?”
“More often than I think she wants to tell me. She downplays it, like it’s part of the job—”
“Fuck that.” Z’s bloodthirsty nature already extends to Shelby and she’s not even officially my ol’ lady yet.
“Yeah, my reaction too.”
“How many dates is she playing in Virginia?”
I’d only briefly looked at the schedule this morning. “Two, I think.”
“Then what?”
“Depends on how much help Ice needs to get his crew set up.”
“Go early.” He hesitates for a second. “But do me a favor and keep it on the down low.” He gestures toward the closed war room door. “I don’t need Stella catching wind of this and throwing a tantrum.”
“She’s smart enough to know if porn’s making the club money, we’re going to set up more sites.”
“Yeah, I wouldn’t be so sure about that. To her, it’s ‘art’ and she’s going to be offended if you’re replicating the same setup with another girl.”
“For fuck’s sake. She didn’t invent porn or even the sex-with-strangers reality version she does. People have been doing that shit for eons.”
“I’m not disagreeing, I’m just warning you.”
“Tell Sway to keep her ass in line, then.”
His lips twist with amusement. “I think he’s got his hands full.”
Sway’s recovery from the bullet to the head he took earlier in the year has been going well. Now that I’ve straightened out the mess he made with the film companies and they’re profitable, maybe he should start handling it again.
“I’d like to turn over the maintenance for the sites back to Sway at some point, you know.” Preferably before I have to tell Shelby how often my work for the club involves the business end of amateur porn. I had the perfect opportunity when we briefly talked about Crystal Ball, and let it slip away. Shelby won’t care. She was pretty chill about the strip club. Porn is almost the same thing, right?
He snorts. “Good luck convincing the rest of the club Sway won’t fuck it up again. You’re better off grooming Jigsaw to take over or maybe Steer.”
“Jiggy does have an annoying knack for detail.”
“Good, so get him up to speed while you’re in Virginia. Show him how to build it from the ground up. Like I said, keep it off Stella’s radar.”
“I’m not exactly in the habit of updating Stella on my whereabouts, so I don’t think it’ll be a problem.” I’m trying really hard not to judge Z too harshly for ever gettin’ involved with her.
“Good.” He slaps his hand on the table. “Head down early. It shouldn’t take long to scout some locations, set things up, then you’re free to continue on to the next date with Shelby until I have another assignment for you.”
Z hasn’t dealt with the technical side as much as I have or he’d know it’s not always that simple.
“Are you encouraging me to stay on the road?” As soon as the words are out of my mouth, I’m into the idea. “Don’t you need me here at some point?”
“You’ll still be helping out. Besides,” he shrugs, “some things are more important.”
Chapter Thirty-Five
Rooster
A few days later, Jigsaw and I roll into the parking lot of our Virginia charter.
“Fuuuck.” Jigsaw groans and stretches as he slips off his helmet. The last leg of our trip had been rough.
“Still happy you joined me?”
“Fuck, yeah. Just felt every fuckin’ bump and pothole ripple up my spine the last few miles.”
“You might wanna check the air pressure on those shocks.”
“No shit, genius.”
“Told you before we left swit
ching them out for the progressive shocks would’ve been better.”
He rubs the back of his neck and sneaks a glance at the clubhouse. “You know what will help even more?”
“Let me guess. Asking the first random girl you see inside those doors to rub you all over.”
He points to his forehead and then mine. “It’s like you can read my mind, brother.”
“Yeah, because you’re pathetically transparent.”
“What’d I tell you about gettin’ smug with me?”
I scratch my beard and pretend to think it over. “Is it smugness if I’m just pointing out that you’re a degenerate?”
“Rooster! Jigsaw!” T-Bone’s booming voice bounces over the parking lot, interrupting our post-ride conversation.
“What’s up, brother?” Jigsaw calls out.
“Long time, dickheads.”
“I can go right back home if you’re planning to bust my balls all night.” I take his outstretched hand, yank him close and slap his back a few times. “How you been, brother?”
“Can’t complain.” He lifts his chin at Jigsaw. “How you been, ya scary fuck?”
“Life’s good.” Jigsaw knocks knuckles with T-Bone. “Nice ride down. Hot as fuck here, though.”
“This is nothing, you whiner.” T-Bone waves at us to follow him into the clubhouse. Place looks like a big, rustic cabin. It’s nestled deep in the woods sort of the way upstate’s clubhouse is but not as hard to find.
For a Thursday afternoon, it’s tame inside—but not so quiet that a pretty dark-skinned girl doesn’t immediately attract Jigsaw’s roving eye.
“Focus,” I growl at him.
“But—”
T-Bone, of course, waves her over. “This is Shonda. Anything you need around the clubhouse, she’s your girl. Shonda, these are our brothers visiting from New York.”
Jigsaw might as well be Roger Rabbit with his lust-crazed eyes popping out of his head.
He rubs his hand over the back of his neck. “Hurtin’ bad after a bit of rough road. You think—”
“I’ll take care of you,” she coos. She lifts one perfectly sculpted eyebrow at me. “How about you?”
Jigsaw slaps my shoulder, drawing her attention back to him. “Don’t worry about my brother here. Rooster’s girlfriend took his balls with her on tour, so he won’t be needing any comfort during our visit.”
Rhythm of the Road Page 22