That was where Ezekiel McGrew, Gordon’s son, had come into play.
Ezekiel, better known as Zee, was the brains of our small band of misfits, and also the one who had seen the posturing for what it really was—posturing.
The older presidents were used to getting what they wanted, and Zee had suggested that we give it to them.
Not by bending to their order to use the Dixie Wardens’ name, but by going with the Bear Bottom Guardians’ name and letting them figure their shit out on their own or not at all. Eventually, the three presidents accepted our decision, but not before it had caused a little bit of animosity between our clubs.
Meaning that there was still some lingering bad blood between myself and Conleigh’s stepfather, Steel Cross.
Unfortunately for Steel, I’d met Conleigh before I became a member of the Bear Bottom Guardians MC, and all of that stuff between the two factions had gone down. Because, if I hadn’t, Conleigh wouldn’t even know who I was right now, and if she did, she would hate my guts because Steel really did dislike what I stood for—change.
Winnie laughed. “He’s in a bad mood today. There’s an unsolved case that he can’t seem to solve, and they’re running him around in circles. Not to mention he bet on y’all last night to win and…”
She left that part hanging.
I winced.
“What if I just went ahead and continued on with this relationship, and we just agree that he said I could?” I suggested.
Winnie snorted. “Honey, you’re the one holding you back. Steel’s probably never going to agree because he thinks you’re a playboy and too full of yourself. Despite what you might think, when you pulled back right before you were drafted, that was all on you, not on him.”
That was true.
When I was drafted, Conleigh and I were fairly tight.
However, I hadn’t been able to handle all the things that came with being drafted, playing professional football, and everything else I was expected to do.
That, and Conleigh had started school clear across the freakin’ country from me, making me realize that it probably wasn’t our time.
Then there was her stepfather, a man who’d always intimidated me since the day that my father had joined his MC, telling me that I needed to stay away from his girl because she was too young.
So, I had.
And now, eight years after meeting her, she was twenty-four and I was twenty-seven, and I’d had an epiphany.
The time was now.
I was wasting it.
Conleigh was no longer across the country.
She was less than an hour away from me, going to school in her spare time while also working as a nurse at a local hospital.
I’d purposefully stayed away from her for too long, hoping that she’d finish school, and her stepfather would lose the grudge he held against me.
But then, last night, she’d said that she didn’t like school, and I realized that maybe it was time to do me now.
“Fine,” I said to my future mother-in-law. “How many grandkids do you want?”
Winnie squawked. “I’m too young for grandkids!”
I chuckled. “Well, maybe you should start preparing yourself now. Oh, and tell that husband of yours that I’m going for it.”
Then I hung up before she could say anything else, like the word ‘no.’
Pulling up my phone, I texted crabby pants again.
Linc: What time should I pick you up for lunch?
I got an immediate reply that had me nearly laughing my ass off.
Conleigh: I’m too far away for you to just pick me up for lunch. Sorry.
Linc: I’m sorry, correct me if I’m wrong, but aren’t you in Kilgore?
The dots that indicated she was replying went on for forever, making me chuckle.
Putting the phone down on my bed, I stood up and shucked out of my underwear, walking to my closet to find a brand-new pair, along with jeans and a Liners t-shirt.
Then I thought better of that t-shirt and pulled it off before tossing it into the bottom of my closet, settling instead for a solid navy blue one that didn’t declare me as a member of a losing team that the people in the surrounding area would still be pretty miffed off at.
Once I was dressed, I picked up my phone that still had those three dots rotating and headed out the door and toward my lunch date.
***
I grinned when I saw the blinds flip up and immediately back down at the sound of my Harley arriving in her driveway.
She had a cute little rental on the outskirts of town, and it was more than obvious that she cared for the little place.
It also happened to look a whole lot like the one I’d purchased just a year ago.
Sure, I could’ve easily afforded something more, but what was the point? I only utilized half of the house I had now. If I had more, that’d be just one more thing I’d have to clean.