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I may have decided to save her, but that doesn’t mean I have to stop appreciating her.
I finish up my breakfast and leave her tip on the table, nodding over to her as I head out the door toward my bike. Me and Skid got our rides built in no time, we even got ourselves patched in within a few months because of how useful we’ve been in getting the club garage at the new compound up and running.
One thing the club has been lacking over the years is legitimate businesses, and what me and my brother bring to the table is beyond valuable to them. I don’t check in often with the Bastards for risk of being uncovered but I know how to if I need to, and despite the fact that Tommy and Skid have settled in with the Soul brothers nicely, it doesn’t change the aim of my game.
“Wait.” I hear Carly’s voice call after me, and when I turn around and see her dashing across the street to catch up with me, I can’t help imagining putting my hands around her dainty, little neck, though instead of choking her, I wanna pull her onto my lips.
The girl screams virgin vibes at me, and there ain’t a price I wouldn’t pay to be her fuckin’ first.
“You left this.” She holds out my cell for me. As I take it from her I let our fingers brush and feel the spark travel up my arm.
“Guess I’ll see you tomorrow.” She laughs before turning around and rushing back inside, while I stand still and let it sink in that this is all we can ever be.
When I arrive back at the club, Skid looks like he’s got something he wants to say as he watches me step into my overalls.
“Don’t look at me like that,” I warn him.
“I’ll look at ya however I want when your son is being passed around from whore to whore. You ain’t seen the kid in four fuckin’ days.”
“I don’t need to see him. They take better care of him than I ever could, and it ain’t like I don’t pay ‘em for their troubles,” I remind him.
“That’s not the point, he’s your kid, Chop. He ain’t their responsibility.”
“Well, I’m making him their responsibility, we got too much on here. And ain’t that supposed to be the Soul way? We all look out for each other. Now come on, let's get to work.”
“Mom called last night. Did you know Luciana was dead?”
“No.” I shake my head, doing my best to seem surprised. I guess it was only a matter of time before her body got found… I’m surprised it went uncovered for this long.
“They found her floatin’ in a river, twenty miles from her house. Coroner reckons she’d been there a while.” He eyeballs me suspiciously.
“Out with it.” I stare right back at him as I pop the hood on the Honda I’m gonna start working on.
“Was it you?” My little brother surprises me when he pulls no punches and gets right to the point. He’s changed a lot since he’s been here. Sure, he’s still a fuckin’ soft touch but at least he’s grown some balls.
“I know I can be a cunt, but I ain’t cunty enough to kill my own son’s mother,” I lie, and I make it sound convincing too. “But hearin’ about it makes sense, it must be the reason she dumped him on me. If she knew she was in trouble and that someone was comin’ for her, she would have tried to protect him. Now, despite what you think about me bein’ heartless, I’d appreciate some time to let it sink in that she’s gone.” I drop my head and get to work.
“I’m sorry, okay?” Skid looks guilty when I raise my eyes. “It’s just…”
“I know.” I nod my head understandingly.
I’ve always been a disappointment to my family. Mom and Dad were always bailing me outta jail. It’s why I never stuck around for too long. No parent wants to watch their child fail. I’m not an idiot, I know he’s here to keep an eye on me. But I have to admit, I like the idea of us sticking together. He’s the only person in this world I know I can trust.
“I guess I’m just a little on edge. I got someone comin’ over for dinner tonight, and I like her a helluva lot. I think she might be the one.”
“The one.” I chuckle at him.
“Don’t do that. Dad always told me I’d know when I saw her. And I knew right from the second she looked at me. She’s even cool with the whole club thing, in fact, I think she likes it. I’ve been datin’ her a little while now and I want to introduce her to you and Tommy. I just need you to be nice.”
“I better be, especially if she’s theone.” I shake my head and laugh before reaching up to smack my younger brother across that soft old head of his.
* * *
Skid’s real nervous, he’s checked the pot roast in the oven five times in the last ten minutes and he’s even ironed the shirt he’s wearing. There’s wine on the table and a flower that he must have picked from the woods standing in an empty bottle of bud in the center of it.
“Will you relax? Why ya gettin’ so uptight over a female?” I knock back my beer and roll my eyes at Tommy. Kid’s got his mama’s eyes, and whenever I look into them for too long I see them bulging out and looking all desperate, the way they looked when I strangled the fuckin’ life outta them.
“Get your feet off that coffee table and go change your shirt, you’ve been workin’ in that all day.” Skid runs his hands nervously through his beard when the door knocks.
