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Bull aimed his attention at Gunner. “She told Josie that shit. May need to remind her that club business does not go outside these doors.”
Gunner stared down Bull, and I braced. I wasn’t sure how Gunner would handle a direct hit to Maggie. To say he was overprotective would be an understatement and none of us disagreed she needed the protection, but Bull was right in the sense that we couldn’t let any club information be leaked.
“Josie’s part of the club,” Gunner stated.
“No, she isn’t.” Bear cleared his throat. “Josie made the decision after the news was shared with her that she no longer wants protection from the club.”
“You lettin’ that happen?” I asked, surprised that he would.
“Absolutely not,” Bear replied. “She may not want our protection, but we committed to keeping her safe, and we’ll follow through on that.” He glanced around the table. “We’ll need to stay in the shadows.”
“She’s scared,” Bull stated, and all eyes shifted back to him.
Bear tilted his head. “She tell you that?”
“Didn’t need to. I was there when she got the call from Maggie. Saw her face after they ended that call. Heard it in her voice.”
“Then we stay on her,” Bear said decidedly, but I knew that was never up for debate.
“Becs still in danger?” I asked.
Bear put his hands on his hips. “According to Hawk, no, but I’m not sure how much I can trust him.”
“He infiltrated the club,” Ritz reminded us what we hadn’t forgotten. “You can’t trust a fucking word he says.”
“Haven’t seen a Widow since that boy’s first visit to New Hope.” Pop spoke up for the first time.
Bull narrowed his eyes in Pop’s direction. “You sayin’ you trust him?”
“His actions are speakin’ for him, brother. That’s what I’m sayin’,” Pop answered calmly. “We stay vigilant, but we can breathe a little easier. While Hawk’s handling the Widows, we should focus on rebuilding our reputation in this community. With all the shit the Widows have been pullin’, I’ve been seeing fear in the community. I don’t like it. This is our time to regain folks’ trust.”
Murmurs of agreement floated through the room. Finally, something we could all agree on. When I heard Bear’s voice, I faced him. “Stay on Becs.” When I nodded, he continued. “Doesn’t have to be obvious, but keep doin’ what you’ve been doin’. I don’t want anything to happen to her or the kid.”
“You still babysittin’?”
I shifted to face Ritz, who was wearing a shitty grin. “Yep.”
Ritz leaned back in his chair. “That all you’re doing?”
I knew he was baiting me. Ritz liked to stir up shit, and it was working, but I wasn’t ready to share with everyone yet, so I jerked up my chin. “You know it.”
“And the rest of us?” Tank interrupted.
“Get back in the community. Pop’s right. We have a lot of trust to earn, and while the Widows are distracted, this’ll be a good time. But we don’t lose focus. Keep your eyes and ears open for any chatter about the Widows and bring everything to Gunner and me,” Bear instructed.
When everyone remained quiet, Bear glanced around the table. “Anything else?”
Gunner sat back. “Christmas is a week away. Maggie wants to have a Christmas Eve party here at the clubhouse for everyone. Or at least she did before this shit happened with Skinner.” He shifted his attention to Bear. “Not sure it’s the best time, but she’s been isolated again, and I think she needs it.”
I grinned down at the table and waited for Bear’s response. I’m not sure I ever remember a time when we talked about fucking Christmas parties in church, but things were changing.
For all of us.
I was surprised when Pop responded first. “That sounds like a good idea. I’ll bring my grandkids.”
I trained my eyes on Gunner, who looked relieved that Pop spoke up. I scanned the faces at the table until I got to Pop, who jerked up his chin at Gunner, but my attention landed on Ritz when he spoke next. “I nominate Bull to be Santa.”
Bull jerked back, and I chuckled. “I’m not bein’ fucking Santa.”
