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Ace
He walked into the Bandit’s with Trinity on his arm and garnered quite a few sideways glances. “I feel like I’m going to be sick,” she whispered into his ear. He pulled her up against his body and wrapped his arms around her.
“We can leave just as soon as I take care of business, Baby,” he whispered into her ear. The music was so loud, he could barely hear her agreement, but he felt her head nod against his chest. “Just stick close to me and you’ll do great,” he promised.
“All right,” she agreed. He took her hand into his own and squeezed it, hoping to give her some comfort. She followed him to the bar and he nodded to Knox. It was his night to help bartend and his business partner smiled like a loon at him. Knox always seemed so happy, and his spirit easier, when he was behind the bar at the Bandits. Ace had to admit, being at the bar and hanging out with the guys in his club always helped make him forget his troubles. Running a multi-million dollar corporation and opening a second casino, sometimes made him feel like he had the weight of the world on his shoulders. But with the Bandits, he was free to be himself.
They kept an old bell behind the bar—the type of bell that would have been rung to call people in for dinner. Ace grabbed the rope and rang the bell, garnering everyone’s attention. “Listen up, guys,” he shouted over the music. Repo rushed to the corner of the room to turn off the music. He had patched into the Bandits and was stepping up to help out around the place in Ace’s absence. He didn’t want to like the guy as much as he did, especially since he couldn’t stand Repo’s old Prez back in Huntsville, Alabama, Savage. He and Savage had never really seen eye to eye, even though they were both a part of the Royal Bastards. Savage sent Repo to him when he and his new wife moved to Gatlinburg, and he tried to refuse him from joining the Bandits. But, Savage reminded him that them both being charter clubs of the Royal Bastards came with certain rules that they both needed to follow. He reluctantly agreed and put Repo through the wringer, forcing him to patch in, but he had to hand it to the guy, he stepped up and took it on the chin. He did everything according to the book and Ace respected that.
“I’m going to make this short and sweet so I can get home to Arabella. With my new responsibilities, I don’t feel that I can keep up with work, the club, and more importantly, my new little family.” He looked back at Trinity and didn’t miss the shock on her beautiful face. He knew that she didn’t consider herself his family, despite everything that he had told her earlier. She was though—she and Bella both were his family now, and he would do just about anything for the two of them.
“I’ve given this decision a lot of thought and I need to step down as your Prez,” he said. A round of boos and jeers rang out around the bar and he smiled, waving his hands for the guys to quiet down. “I know, I know,” he said. “But, it’s what is best for Arabella, Trinity, and me. We’ve been killing ourselves trying to keep up with everything, and something has to give. I’m afraid that I’m spreading myself too thin and that’s not fair to you guys. You need a Prez who will be able to run this place and keep up with the Royal Bastards. The Smokey Bandits have always been proud to have a national chapter like the Royal Bastards, and I won’t do a shitty job. It’s not fair to them or you guys. So, that leads me to my next question. Are there any candidates who’d like to step up as president of the Bandits? We’ll do this fair and square—a democratic vote and all. Most of you know how this works.”
He looked back at Knox and smiled. His friend had already made it clear that he wanted nothing to do with running for Prez of the Bandits. He was happy to hear that. Ace knew that having Knox’s loyalties split would only put more work on his shoulders eventually, especially with the two of them opening the second casino together.
“I’d like to throw my hat in the ring,” Ryker shouted from the back of the bar. A few of the guys cheered and he quieted them down again.
“Any others?” he asked. Two other hands went up and he thought that they were done with nominations when Repo raised his hand and spoke up.
“I’d like a crack at it,” he said. Ace nodded to the back of the room where Repo stood.
“Okay—four candidates. You all know how this works. Swing by the bar, grab a piece of paper and pencil, and give your vote to the bartender. Knox will count them and I’ll announce your new Prez. Thanks, guys,” he said, nodding back to Repo. He started the music again and the noise level ramped back up to near-deafening decimals.
“Now what?” Trinity asked.
“Now we wait. It won’t take them long,” he nodded to the guys who already crowded around the bar. He was right because, within just twenty minutes, Knox handed him a piece of paper with the final tallies. Ryker had won, and all he had to do now was announce their new Prez. Knox rang the bell and everything around the bar stopped again.
“Your new Prez is Ryker, guys. I hope that you will show him the same amount of respect that you’ve shown me over the years. I’m not leaving the club, I’ll still be around for church and to have some fun, but you all are going to have to give me some time. Things are a little crazy around the home front with the baby and all. But, I wanted to tell you all that I’ve loved being your President and I consider each one of you my brothers.” The bar erupted into cheers and guys holding up their beer bottles and he had to admit, the whole scene made him a little misty. “Thanks, guys.”
Trinity went up on her toes to kiss his cheek. “Why don’t we stay for a little bit?” she whispered into his ear.
“You sure?” he asked.
She smiled and nodded, “Yes. You should at least have a beer or two with your friends and I think we could use a night out after everything that just happened with my sister, don’t you?” she asked.
“I do,” he whispered back in her ear. Ace kissed her neck, loving the way she shivered against his lips. “I think I should show you around first,” he said. He grabbed her hand and led her to the back of the bar, finding Ryker to congratulate him. He pulled his friend in for a quick hug. “Congrats, man,” he shouted over the music.
“Thanks, Ace. I hate that you won’t be our Prez anymore, but I’m happy to step up for the club. I’ll make you proud, man,” he promised.
“I have no doubts that you will, Ryke,” Ace agreed. “Hey, you mind if I head back to the office and grab some of my stuff—you know clear it out for you?” Ace asked. Ryker looked Trinity over and smiled back at him.
“Sure, Ace,” he agreed. “You two take your time.” His friend knew exactly what he had planned even though Trinity didn’t seem to have a clue. Otherwise, she would have never agree to “help” him back in his old office.
Ace led her back down the narrow hallway to his former office and opened the door, turning on the light. It had been weeks since he had been in his office—probably since around the time that he met Trinity and got Arabella back. He hadn’t had much free time at all to spend with the Bandits, making his decision to step down as the club’s Prez even easier.
The office didn’t have much in the way of decorations. He didn’t like the clutter and when he was there, he wanted to hang with the guys, not be stuck back in a tiny room by himself. He spent enough time in an office at the casino.
“You don’t have much to pack, do you?” Trinity questioned.
He pulled her up against his body, kicking the door shut behind her. “Nope,” he whispered. “Just wanted some alone time with my girl,” he said.
“I see,” she breathed. “Won’t they all hear us?” He looked back over her shoulder and shook his head. As if on cue, the music started and Trinity giggled. “Guess that answers my question. But, they will know what we are doing in here, won’t they?” she asked, nodding back over to the door.
Ace shrugged, “Probably,” he admitted. “That bother you?” he was kissing his way down the column of her neck, just the way he knew she liked it. He wasn’t playing fair and the way that Trinity hissed out her breath told him that he was going to get what he wanted—her naked across his desk, panting out his name.
“No,” she whispered.
“Good to know, Baby,” he said, spinning her around and backing her to the edge of the desk. “Clothes off and up on the desk, Honey,” he ordered. She watched him as she stripped out of her clothes, just as he ordered, and fuck if she wasn’t the hottest woman he’d ever seen. He hummed his approval when she climbed onto his desk completely naked and shamelessly spread her legs for him.
