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“But, I was tired,” she returned.
“And nice try on the phone for listenin’ to music. You’re not gettin’ that back. You think I’m an idiot?”
She huffed, keeping her eyes pointed away from me. “Dunno about an idiot; though do suspect you’re a bit of a salty ogre.”
“Guess it’ll be a long night for you in the swamp.” I lifted the cuffs and waited.
She shook her head. “Don’t.”
“You told Prez you’d cooperate. This ain’t seemin’ like cooperatin’, woman, so –”
“So, what?” she asked, gaze meeting mine with a bit of fire. “What are you gonna do if I refuse?”
She was throwing sparks, but she was also trembling. The trembling didn’t affect me. She could be a great actress and a fucking liar. And bottom line – if she wanted safe haven, she’d have to deal.
“You wanna be turned out? I suspect if I call Prez and say you’re not listenin’, he finds out you’re makin’ life hard here when we’ve got to be on the ball, watching shit to make sure the enemy doesn’t pull anything-”
“Deke won’t turn me out when the Wyld Jackals could scoop me up!” she exclaimed.
“You wanna test that theory?” I stood and reached into my pocket for my phone. “I interrupt him to tell him you’re being a pain in my ass, you think he’ll be happy with you?”
“He’s not like that. He’s not Mantis.” She folded her arms stubbornly.
“No, he’s absolutely not Mantis. But, ya think he’ll be happy? Let’s find out.”
I tapped Deke’s name on my call list while she kept that glare aimed at me.
It rang until it went to a voicemail box that wasn’t set up. I ended the call and met her gaze. She looked freaked out. She wasn’t sure if Prez would turn her away and she was terrified he might.
“With his daughter’s life at stake? You think he’ll give a shit you’re not happy about the way I handle things? You were there weren’t you, when he told you my word was law?”
She whispered, “Please.”
“Guess I could send a text to some other brothers to find Deke. Deacon, Rider, or Sp-”
“Wait. I’ll…” She swallowed hard. “I’ll cooperate.” She shakily held out her right wrist.
She looked a little green around the gills, wincing with her eyes shut like I was about to give her a jab with a needle or touch her with a red-hot branding iron.
“You’re brainless if you think Deke’d pick anybody over the safety of his daughter, let alone a stray who dips between multiple clubs,” I muttered as I clicked the cuff into place.
“I do not dip between clubs,” she stated fiercely. “The only MC I ever hung around the last few years has been this one. Or I did before Kailey’s bullshit got me uninvited. She dips. I don’t.”
“All I care about is that you do what I tell you to do. You gonna listen or do I call Prez back?”
“I’ll listen,” she said, then jolted at the ratchet sound of the cuffs as I clicked the other end around a headboard slat.
My phone rang. Deke calling.
I answered.
“Hey Prez.”
“Yo, Jesse.”
“Can you do me a quick favor? Sorry to interrupt, but need you to remind this bunny how you said my word is law.”
“Hand the phone over and I’ll do that,” he replied.
She launched into an apology instead of saying hello. She said, “Sorry, Deke. I’m not tryin’ to cause problems. I just… I’m not tryin’ to be a pain in anyone’s ass, it’s just…” She stopped and listened for a moment and then said, “I understand. Okay. Yeah, I will. You want him back? Okay. Bye.” She ended the call before passing the phone to me without making eye contact.
I tossed it onto the bedside table, then went for the light switch, and slapped it, leaving us in lamplight.
After getting undressed from the waist up, feeling like her eyes were on my back, I reached for the lamp switch, plunging us into darkness.
I kicked my boots off, then dropped my jeans. The bed creaked as I sat and pulled my socks off. This double bed was barely enough for me, let alone two people. And when this place was packed, it reminded me of jail. Too many men in a small space.
I like what Deacon did, grabbing a piece of land and putting a trailer on it to live in while he builds his place. I could do that. Put in a trailer or a little cabin, maybe. Possibly even one of those container homes. Though, I don’t know if I wanna stay in one place forever, either, so a trailer might work as I can keep wheels on it.
I don’t need something fancy like what D’s got planned for his house. He’s building a sprawling place, big enough to house a pile of kids. Something small will suit me fine if it’s got a couple of rooms and plenty of windows without having to share it with a dozen people.
