Total pages in book: 81
Estimated words: 75833 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 379(@200wpm)___ 303(@250wpm)___ 253(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 75833 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 379(@200wpm)___ 303(@250wpm)___ 253(@300wpm)
He grinned, “man can be curious about where he stands in the bedroom. Damn.”
There was this silence between us for a moment. Not uncomfortable, simply there. I took a long pull of the beer letting the burn settle in my belly. “Glad you saw somethin’ in that hotel. Business shit is your thing, Tiny.” I shared the truth with him. He really had stepped up with this hotel and shown real leadership.
“You saw somethin’ in me once. Glad you gave me the Kings and wanna do what I can to give back to the club.”
I nodded knowing he felt some kind of way about being a brother. Even though he earned every patch and his place, it was like he still couldn’t believe it for himself. He was a confident son-of-a-bitch in most things. But he never seemed to be able to show enough appreciation for the brotherhood.
I got it though. He had a rough start in life. Mom got knocked around by her old man, he had to watch that shit. No one stepping in to help them. Step-dad came along gave them a few good years before dying. Tiny had a lot to process while he was young. Feeling like an outsider all the time, it ate him up inside until the Kings.
We stood in the quiet together a moment longer, both of us staring at the space.
“You ever think about where things are headed?” I asked casually.
Tiny let out a breath. “You mean past the next run, the next war, or the next five years?”
“All of it. The guns, drugs, what does shit look like in five years? Ten years?”
He shook his head. “I’d like to. But ain’t built that way. Not like you.”
I studied him raising an eyebrow.
“Thrasher, you’re that man. The one who sees the bigger picture. You look ahead, around, and even sometimes you look back to see where to improve. You’re always planning and not just for yourself or the club, but for every single man wearing this cut.”
“I’m just a man, Tiny. Anyone is replaceable.”
He gave me a look of shock. “Nah, man. You are the glue.”
I didn’t reply. I couldn’t. I didn’t need the praise, but I wouldn’t say it didn’t feel nice to have someone acknowledge the dedication.
“Get some sleep, Prez. We got a busy day,” he muttered before wondering off and down the hall to his room.
As the door shut behind him, I sat alone staring at the walls. This place was home. These men were my family.
This was everything.
Brotherhood.
Power.
Loyalty.
Chaos.
Control.
And if I played my hand just right, I might find a way in this life to have it all.
5
MELODY
The chipped tile behind the front desk caught my eye over and over again. It curved like a jagged scar across the ceramic like this pale fracture running through an otherwise smooth surface. I had cleaned the crack five times already this morning, even though I knew it wouldn’t come out. This wasn’t dirt.
It was damage.
Permanently broken.
Kind of like me.
The wall clock behind me ticked far too loudly in the quiet of the lobby, another rhythm I couldn’t ignore. It was mid-afternoon and I was a full six hours into my shift. My back ached from the cheap shoes I wore. The front of my shirt clung to my body like a second skin, damp from the humidity. The hotel air conditioning was hit or miss lately on blowing cold air versus hot.
This wasn’t exactly how I pictured things going when I took off with Lyric. While I couldn’t exactly put into words how I envisioned our new lives, this definitely wasn’t it. Reality was I hadn’t pictured anything other than we had to leave.
In Montana, the way the men thought, the destiny laid out in front of me made my skin crawl.
I ran.
And here we landed. In a rundown hotel owned by a motorcycle gang that made zero apologies for how they handled things. That was what I had learned recently as Nancy got replaced by some of Tiny’s associates.
Lyric said this was a fresh start for us both. She embraced the ladies who were probably some of the most confident people I ever encountered. Lyric said we could do this. Learn to blend in and all.
I wasn’t sure I believed in it.
The door behind the counter creaked open. I didn’t have to turn around to know it was her.
She moved light on her feet now, easy. It was as if her bones had shed this weight. A weight I now felt held me down threatening to crush my very soul. I could feel the excitement and energy Lyric carried around now, truly relieved to be here and not back home.
“You’re not gonna believe what Lexi just told me,” Lyric burst out buzzing with excitement. “She said Hacksaw was going to take her out tonight. Like out, on his bike and everything.”