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7
Mamba headed toward the front of the salon. He could feel all eyes on him, but it wasn’t a surprise. Usually he was the only man in the place, but Mamba didn’t have any illusions about the way he looked. The scar running down his jawline, shaved head, hard rough features, most of her employees and customers probably couldn’t believe petite, sweet Mandy and him were together. Along with the size difference was the eight-year age difference. An issue he brought up in the beginning of their relationship. He thought she could do so much better than him, but she loved him being older, although probably not wiser and she was mature beyond her years. They just clicked.
After Mamba worked his magic with Mitzi, she folded with a promise of getting with the new Serpent prospect. He’d stop by the Gold Mine, get the keys to the cabin from Cobra and him and Mandy would head up tonight. After what went down the other night with Marita, he wanted to get out of Vegas for a few days. Clear his head in the mountain air. He didn’t trust Marita for a minute and until he came up with a plan to present to the Serpents, he’d have twenty-four-hour eyes on Mandy.
* * *
“It’s so beautiful up here.”Mandy admired the wooded area as they ascended Mount Charleston.
The sun set behind the line of trees casting an orange glow over the leaves. In mid-September the heat wasn’t as intense as the summer months and at this altitude it was at least ten degrees cooler than in the city.
“I’ve been up here a few times with Cobra and the guys. It’s a great place to get away from it all.”
“It was nice of him to loan it to us.”
“Cobra and me had a rough start in the beginning, but when I finally pulled my head outta my ass things started coming together.”
“You probably needed somebody to give you a chance and he was that person.”
Main reason why he couldn’t admit to his prez he was drowning in debt.
“And other shit. Following my deadbeat father from one town to another living hand to mouth in beat to shit trailers didn’t give me a solid foundation. I was living the only kinda life I knew, then Cobra saw something in me and made me want to do better.” He grabbed up her hand. “Then I met you and you made me wanna be better.”
She leaned across the console of the SUV and kissed his cheek. “You’ve never opened up like that before.”
“I tell you all the time how good you are for me.”
“I know, but you hardly talk about your past. And I get it. There’s plenty of things with Ajax I’d like to forget about too, but I like hearing about your past.”
“Not much to tell. Didn’t know my mother.”
“Only your father?”
“If you could call him that—I mean he wasn’t abusive like hittin’ me and shit, he just wasn’t around. When we were in a town for a while, he’d enroll me in school, but there were plenty of times when we’d leave a town, then be on the road for weeks. I went to six different schools between seventh and eighth grade. My lack of education always made me feel stupid.”
“Don’t ever say that; you are smart in all the ways that count. Look what you’ve done for me and my family. Thanks to you my brother has advantages he never would’ve had and my mother is living her best life.”
“Your motheristhe best. Strong and loving like her daughter.”
“Geez, now you’re scaring me. Who are you and what have you done with my hard-edged, closed-mouthed biker?”
“You and the coming of our baby has me excited about finally having roots and a feeling of belonging to something. By the time I was in high school, I got involved in fighting. I looked older so I lied about my age, dropped outta school, and joined the underground circuit. Traveling from one shithole to the other half the time living outta my truck, repeating all the fucked up things I learned from my father.”
“That’s all behind you and look at all you’ve achieved. You’re at the top of the fight game, and you’re practically running the security at Club Wicked.”
“I know this is gonna sound corny as shit, but one of the prospects puts on Dr. Phil in the afternoon and some of it makes sense. Like when he says you can’t move forward if you keep repeating your past.”
“That’s true. Although you quoting Dr. Phil is another first. If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were suffering with too many hormones too.”
“I guess with the baby coming.” He threw her the fisheye. “Whose sex I still don’t know, by the way.” His hand crept up her thigh. “I bet I know a few ways to make you talk.”
“I’m sure you do, but I want you to be surprised. Plus, I know if I tell you you’ll go blabbing to all the Serpents.”
“Yeah, probably, but only cause I’m so proud you’re mine and you’re having my baby.”
* * *
The trees grewdenser as Mamba made a few turns off the main road, then wheeled the SUV down a steep driveway. The house was tucked away on a dark, deserted mountain road with no visible neighbors on either side.
