I watched Brooks clench his fists at his side. “You don’t seem too concerned with this meeting.”
Chops shrugged. “Had you not gone and caused so much trouble, maybe they wouldn’t want to meet.”
Brooks’ eyes narrowed. “You know damn good and well that if I hadn’t made some sort of move, they would’ve killed Raven. Flat out.”
Chops tucked his helmet beneath his arm. “And had you stood down and not attacked them, we wouldn’t be in this mess in the first place.”
Brooks cocked his head. “Are you not hearing a fucking word I’m saying? They took Raven!”
“And instead of coming to me so we could come up with a plan, you went behind my back, over my head, and caused irreparable damage! So, as far as I’m concerned, this meeting is all your fault!”
Brooks growled. “You’re our president. You always back up our actions.”
H shrugged. “Hyde might have done things that way, but not me. You’re the one who went off on your own without informing me. You’re the one who blew shit up in an attempt to rescue someone without my permission. So, as far as I’m concerned, this is your meeting and your issue. Not the club’s as a whole.”
I hated the fact that Chops had a point. Brooks did go off on his own to do this shit. And while we had a great reason as to why, it wasn’t as if we could tell Chops that. Holy fuck, he’d have our heads if he knew the real reason why we galivanted off like that.
Nevertheless, I had to stand up for my boy. “Chops, if Brooks hadn’t gone over there in the first place—even just to scout things out—something terrible would have happened to Raven and you know it.”
Cole piped up behind me. “Yeah, and we can’t let one of our own suffer like that when we know we can save them.”
Chops snickered. “One of our own? Raven hasn’t spoken to us since her husband died and Brooks went off to prison! How does that make her one of us?”
Brooks gnashed his teeth together. “She was married to one of our men for years. She’s now with me. That’s about as ‘one of us’ as it gets.”
Chops chuckled. “What? Because she likes to hop bunk beds with the guys, we’re supposed to protect her twenty-four-seven?”
Brooks lunged at the man and I had to wrap my arms around him to keep him from clawing Chops’ eyes out. And the slimy grin on our President’s face made my stomach flip over into knots. Was Chops insane? Did he really think this would somehow help his case?
But of course, Chops didn’t stop. “And do you want to know the real kicker?”
I whispered in Brooks’ ear. “Come outside. Just let it go.”
Brooks’ eye twitched. “What?”
Chops walked up to the man. “Every single one of us knows you’ve got Raven protected in ways Gage would have never wanted. Yet, you’re the one who constantly talks about honor and valor. Holding ourselves to a higher standard. I wonder how your best friend would feel about you fucking around with his widow, Mr. Upstanding Citizen.”
The second those words hit my ears, I let go of Brooks. My vision dripped with red as I pulled back my fist and connected it straight against the jawline of our bullshit, pathetic excuse for a leader. He stumbled back before someone grabbed at my leather cut, but all I did was slip my arms out of the sleeves.
Before hauling off and slamming my knuckles into Chops’ stomach.
“You’re a piece of shit, you know that?” I grunted.
Chops looked up at me through the tears in his eyes. “I’m gonna kill you for that.”
He lunged up and tried to punch me, but Archer and Tanner were quicker. Brooks picked me up and forcibly carried me to the other side of the room while Archer and Tanner held Chops’ fists back behind him. I wanted to rip his jugular out through his mouth. I wanted to pluck his teeth out with some pliers, one by one, until he begged for mercy.
“How dare you talk about her that way!” I roared.
Chops barked with laughter. “Looks like there’s another guy who wants to fuck her, yeah!?”
Brooks dropped me and I scrambled to grab his jeans. I stopped him in his tracks, taking him to the floor as Chops guffawed with laughter near the front door. I wanted to beat the man into the ground, but I knew Brooks would kill him.
Because it certainly wouldn’t have been the first time my friend killed a man with his own two hands.
Chops’ voice boomed across the room. “This is your fucking mess, Brooks. So, you can get yourself out of it. I never once told you to cross town and start chucking grenades into a god damn warehouse. That was all you. You think you can lead better? Then, by all means, show us how you would lead now.”
And before any of us could respond, Chops slid his helmet back onto his head and walked out of the clubhouse.
Leaving during a meeting he called about a situation that required his attention.
“What the absolute fuck?” Finn asked.
I pushed myself up from the floor and offered my hand to Brooks. “Take it. Come on. We’ve got work to do.”
He glared up at me before his hand slapped against mine, and I hoisted him to his feet. I didn’t know what the hell we were going to do, but all eyes were on Brooks as Chops soared off into the distance on his bike. I licked my lips and turned around, searching for my leather jacket.
And after Cole tossed it to me, Brooks spoke. “I’ll go meet with the Black Flags tomorrow morning. What was the meeting time?”
Cole sighed. “Five in the morning on the outskirts of town. You know, by that old abandoned warehouse district.”
I rolled my eyes. “Well, you’re sure as hell not going to Metalville alone.”
Tanner nodded. “Yeah, if you go, we go.”
Archer shrugged. “I’m just ready to put an end to whatever the hell this is.”
Cole snickered. “Guess I’m bringing the coffee, yeah?”
Brooks nodded. “I appreciate the support, guys. Thank you. And I promise that, one way or another, we’ll all figure this out. I won’t abandon you like Chops just abandoned us.”
The room fell silent as we all tried to gather our thoughts. Then, Brooks turned to Cole. “I want you to call those guys back and tell them we’re on for the meeting. I also want you to tell them that all of us are coming. I don’t want there to be any perceived secrets on our end because that means if they come with secrets, we’ve got the high road before we start picking them off.”
Archer snickered. “I like your style.”
Brooks chuckled. “I’ll go ahead and call an end to this church meeting for now. Cole, I’m headed back to my room to check on Raven. But the second you get done with that call, come find me.”
Cole nodded. “On it.”
Brooks looked at Archer. “Go with him. Make sure he stays on track. And make sure he gives out all of the information I want him to.”
Archer followed after Cole. “Got it.”
I leaned over into Brooks’ ear. “Do you know what the hell you’re doing?”
Brooks waited until the rest of the guys dispersed before he turned to face me. “My honest opinion? No, I don’t. I’m flying blind here, but we don’t have much choice.”
I nodded slowly. “You think this is a trap?”
He heaved a heavy sigh. “It very well could be, which is why I want all of us there. I want us armed to the teeth, ready to fight our way out if necessary.”
“So, what do you want to do until tomorrow morning?”
He gripped my shoulder. “Be here at three. There are some things I want to go over before we all head out. Think you can do that?”
I scoffed. “You know damn good and well I don’t sleep much anyway. I’ll be here with coffee. I take it you’re staying here for the night?”
“You aren’t?”
I thumbed over my shoulder. “Figured I’d go check on Astrid. Make sure no one’s hassling her.”
He eyed me carefully before he licked his lips. “That’s good thinking. I don’t know where the fuck Chops just got off to, but so long as we don’t have him in our sight, Astrid is at risk.”
“I think she’s at risk either way, which is why I’d rather be safe than sorry.”
“You just gonna do a drive-by or something?”
I shrugged. “Figured I could do that. And if something looks off, I’ll just go knock on the door.”
He narrowed his eyes slightly. “You make sure she’s okay, all right?”
“Dude, it’s Astrid. She’s family. I’ll make sure she’s good.”
He nodded curtly. “Good.”
After dealing with one last prying look from Brooks, I started for my bike. I couldn’t wait to get back to Astrid, even if I had to use the excuse that I thought something was off just to get back inside. I blazed a trail toward her house, keeping an eye on my rearview mirrors just in case I was being tailed by someone.
And when I pulled into the driveway, I didn’t hesitate to rush up to the front door.
Knock knock. “Astrid?”
I paused and didn’t hear anything behind the door, so I knocked again.
Knock knock. “Astrid! It’s me, Porter.”
I heard soft cursing behind the door and my hand flew to the butt of my gun. I gripped it with my hand as footsteps sounded behind the door, preparing myself to blast anyone in the face that wasn’t Astrid. The hairs on the nape of my neck stood on end as the lock flipped and the knob turned.
But when the door opened, I certainly didn’t expect the sight that followed.
“What do you want?” Astrid asked breathlessly.
I couldn’t help my eyes as they slid down her body. She was soaking wet and she looked irritated as fuck, but her clothes clung to every curve of her body as water dripped down her peaks and valleys. I swallowed hard as my hand moved away from my gun, taking her in as much as I could.
And when my stare finally found her gaze again, she looked almost sheepish.
“You uh… you good?” I asked.
She groaned. “The kitchen sink is clogged to hell and back and I can’t get it unclogged. Do you know anything about plumbing?”
I resisted the urge to chuckle. “Yeah, I can help out. Show me where the issue is.”
She ushered me into the kitchen, and I saw the massive, chaotic mess spread out for what seemed like miles. The kitchen sink was almost filled to the brim with what looked like muddy water. There was a slight smell emanating from beneath the kitchen sink. And if I didn’t know any better, I’d say the drain wasn’t clogged just beneath the sink, but a bit deeper down into the piping.
“You got a snake?” I asked.
Astrid walked up beside me. “Like, a python or something?”
I grinned. “No, a snake, for the plumbing. Like, something I can slither down into the drain to try and find the clog.”
She pointed to the kitchen table and I saw a metallic instrument with a small claw on the end. I slid off my jacket and reached for it, then made my way for the sink. I slid it down and immediately hit trouble in the pipe, so I dipped down to see what was going on.
And I found the first issue without pressing forward.
“You’ve got the wrong joint pipe connected to the sink,” I said.
Astrid sighed. “I don’t even know what the fuck that means.”
I pointed. “See that U-shape joint?”
She walked over and bent down beside me. “Yeah?”
“That’s not the U-joint you need. That one is for a smaller sink, like a bathroom sink. A kitchen sink needs one that’s a bit deeper on both curved ends.”
“So, how do we fix that?”
I raised up. “There’s a good chance the actual attachment we need got put in one of the bathrooms. Let’s check all of them and see what we can come up with.”
I started for the stairs, but Astrid wasn’t following me. So, I peered over my shoulder and waited for her to come. But instead of walking my way, all she did was lean against the kitchen counter while I stood at the bottom of the steps.
“You coming?” I asked.
She crossed her arms over her chest. “Why did you come back?”
I blinked. “What do you mean?”
She looked around. “The house. Why did you come back here?”
I shrugged. “To check up on you. Make sure things are okay here and that no one’s hassling you.”
She tilted her head. “Something’s happening, isn’t it? That’s why you’re here and not Brooks.”
I sighed. “I’m just here to keep you safe. That’s all.”
“Safe from what?”
“Ah, we’ve got some people who are pissed off at us right now. Just taking extra precautions and all that.”
She slowly walked toward me. “I’m not an idiot, Porter. And Brooks has spat out more to me than he probably should have. I know you guy are struggling with the Black Flags right now. Are they watching the house?”
I held her gaze as she came closer. “Again, just a precaution.”
She stopped just shy of the stairs. “I can handle myself, you know.”
“I’m sure you can.”
“Hell, I’ve been in L.A. all this time by myself. Surely, that counts for something.”
I shook my head. “I’m not saying you can’t handle yourself. You forget how long we’ve known each other. I saw how you handled your mother. How you took care of her as much as you could. I know you’re more than capable.”
She swallowed hard. “Holding Mom’s hair back while she was puking wasn’t that big of a deal.”
“I always thought it was.”
Her eyes fell to her feet. “I’m sorry I left, Porter.”
I furrowed my brow. “You don’t owe me an apology for that. You more than deserve the chance to carve out a life for yourself. Especially after the shit you put up with from your family.”
She slowly rose her gaze. “You think so?”
I stepped off the steps, feeling her body heat reaching out for me. “I know so, Astrid. You’re one of the strongest people I know. I just wish you saw it yourself.”
Her eyes danced between mine. “Porter?”
“Yeah?”
She licked her lips. “Have you ever thought about—I mean, maybe in your free time—possibly…”
I knew what she was trying to ask, so I cut her off at the pass as I cupped her cheek. Her soft skin slid against my palm, making me weak in my knees. I braced myself as I closed the distance between us, allowing the pad of my thumb to run along her lower lip.
Then, I gazed deeply into her eyes.
“I’ve always had feelings for you, Astrid. And that’s never going to change.”
And the next thing I knew, her lips were against my own.
