“Z, I love you, brother, but I don’t swing that way. Unless you and Lilly need me to be your neutral third—”
“Stop right there.”
He grins at me. “Why so fierce, brother?”
“Well, for starters, you suggested I might let you near my wife, when there is absolutely zero chance of that ever happening.”
“I’m just fucking with you.” He waves at the small table and two chairs. “Have a seat.”
“You talk to Priest yet?”
He nods slowly. “Ran into him early this morning.”
“And?”
“He wanted to feel me out.” He shrugs. “I’m new at this VP thing, so I expected that.”
“Anything else?”
He blows out a breath and glances away. “He wanted my honest opinion on whether Sway should lead the club again.”
Fuck, fuck, fuck.
“And you told him?”
“Honestly, I didn’t know what the fuck to say, Z.” He gives me this tortured look that almost makes me feel bad for putting him in this position. “I don’t want to betray Sway and speak bad about a brother. But I can’t lie. You two are night and day when it comes to running this club. I never woulda thought about it or noticed the difference if Sway hadn’t left. But now that I know what this club is capable of under a good president, I can’t unknow it.” He hangs his head. “I’m sorry, brother. I know that’s not what you want to hear. You still want to go home and I get that.”
I’m too choked up to respond right away.
“You think I make that much of a difference?”
He squints up at me. “Are you trying to play humble or are you really that dense, bro? Come on. Sway wasn’t a dictator exactly, because none of us ever challenged him, but you’re a true leader. You don’t do shit without telling us. You’re steering us in the right direction. Fuck, the clubhouse alone looks better.”
“You guys did that,” I mutter.
“Because you opened everyone’s eyes and forced us to take some pride in this club.” He shakes his head. “You’re not so wrapped up in trying to fuck every woman who isn’t your wife that you ignore all the other shit going on around this place. There’s no reason he shouldn’t have known what Shadow was up to behind our backs. None. Or that Shadow was skimming money from the club. But he’s been too busy playing grab ass with Stella and her porny friends to notice.”
I snort. “Porny?”
He shrugs. “Pornstar plus horny.”
“Genius.”
“Can I finish?”
“Rooster, that’s a legit business venture and it’s bringing money into the club.” I feel forced to defend Sway, which is a position I don’t particularly enjoy.
“It is. Totally. And it should’ve been making us more money a fuck of a lot sooner. It probably would’ve if he let some of us help him with the business side. He knows dick about the tech side of things. But he was too worried about turning it into his own personal porny soap opera.”
Since I’d been on the prickly end of that particular stick when I was “dating” Stella, I understand exactly what Rooster’s saying.
“No one can force you to stay, Z.”
“Well, I think someone can.”
He huffs. “Priest will fuss over us for a little longer, then we’ll go back to not seeing or hearing from him again for another five or ten years. We’ll forget we even have a national president.”
Normally, I might agree with that statement. But after the events of the last year and the conversation I had with Priest last night, I have a feeling we can all expect more face time with our national prez.
“How do you feel about having a support club?” This will come up in our sit-down with Priest, so I want Rooster’s opinion.
He pauses. “It’s a good idea in theory. But the ones we had hanging around here a few years back were nothing but trouble.”
“We have someone in mind.” Actually, I still haven’t sat down with Murphy to talk to him about this yet. Fuck. I don’t bother pondering why I went directly to Rooster, my VP first. “It might be upstate’s problem more than ours.”
“Bro, I think upstate and downstate are going to be one in the same in a few more years.”
“Yeah,” I admit. “Priest asked about that last night. Rock and I explained it would be unleashing chaos if we start claiming the whole state.”
“Oh, for sure. But we’re far enough north, just call it upstate and be done with it. Anyone south of Long Island considers this “upstate” anyway.” He squints at the door. “Capital region might be a stretch.”
“Might piss off the Wolf Knights too.”
“Right.”
He shrugs. “Who gives a fuck, really? Christ, what’s Priest’s problem? He invest in a thread company and want to print up some new bottom rockers or something?”
I rumble with laughter for a solid minute. “Maybe.”
After wrapping up my conversation with Rooster, I head to Murphy’s room. As he’s done to me so many times, I bang on the door and twist the knob without waiting for an answer.
Locked. Damn.
A rumpled Heidi wearing nothing but a bedsheet answers the door.
I smack my hand over my eyes and shake my head in misery. “I can’t deal with this right now, Heidi. You’re still like eight in my head. Where’s your other half?”
She laughs and grabs the arm covering my eyes, trying to pry it loose. “Knock it off, Uncle Z. Geez. I have a daughter and I’m about to get married for the second time. I’m pretty sure you must have figured out that I know what s-e-x is by now.”
“I prefer not to think of what that big ginger yeti does to my sweet innocent Heidi behind closed doors.”
“Morning to you too, fucker,” Murphy growls.
I open my eyes and find him standing behind Heidi with his hands on her shoulders. “Aw, Christ, put some damn pants on.”
Heidi rolls her eyes and ducks out from between us. “I’m going to get dressed and go to the house. Poor Carter’s probably ready for a break by now.” She glances over her shoulder. “I assume you’ll all be at the table for a while?”
“Looks like it, Heidi-girl.”
“Hope said she was inviting Valentina over.” She bites her lip. “I feel bad Lilly’s not here though.”
“She’ll be back,” I assure her, impressed by her thoughtfulness as usual.
Murphy watches Heidi the whole time she gathers her clothes until she shuts the bathroom door. “What?” he asks without turning my way.
“You two aren’t even married yet and you’re in that creepy honeymoon phase.”
He’s still wearing the same dopey smile he has every time Heidi’s around. “Doubt that’ll ever go away. Never get tired of my girl.” He chuckles and leads me over to the chairs in the corner. “Besides, look who’s talking.”
Can’t really argue with that but it’s fun to bust his balls.
“What’s got you all twisted up this fine morning?” Murphy asks.
“What do you think?”
“The special meeting Priest is so eager to have with us before Sway gets here?”
“Boy, you really are smarter than you look.”
“No
w you’re just being mean.”
“He talk to you yet?”
“Someone knocked on the door earlier.” He smirks. “But we were busy.”
“Christ. I hope it wasn’t poor Teller.”
He turns his phone over and checks the screen. “Nah, he would’ve sent me a cranky text.”
“I need to tell you what went down last night.”
Murphy gestures in the direction of my room. “Walls are thin, bro. I’m aware of what went down.”
“You wish.” I glare at him. “I’m serious.”
Finally, he wipes the lazy grin off his face and sits up. “Hit me.”
“Don’t tempt me.”
I give him a quick outline of Priest’s concerns finishing with the suggestion we form a support club. “Now don’t get mad, but I threw your little fighter buddies in as potential support club founders. I was desperate for something to get him off our backs.”
Murphy sits back and nods slowly. “Honestly, I don’t think it’s a bad idea.” He sneaks a glance at the still-closed bathroom door. “I’m going out there in a few days, I’ll feel Remy out.”
“Jesus Christ. She’s gonna fucking murder you if she finds out you’re still fighting.”
“Club business.”
“No, it’s not. And she’s not dumb enough to fall for that either. You really are a dipshit sometimes.”
“You of all people giving me this lecture is hysterical. Now that you’re wifed up you’ve got all the answers, huh?”
“More selfish than anything, bro. We’re too short-handed to have you wind up in the hospital.”
He flicks his wrist like it’s a stupid concern. “We risk that every time we straddle a hog, brother.”
“That’s different.”
Heidi opens the door and breezes out. “Everything okay?”
“Yup.” Murphy curls his finger and beckons her closer. “You leaving right now?”
“I think I better.” Her gaze darts to me as she settles into Murphy’s lap. “I assume you need him.”
“Need to punch him maybe,” I grumble while Murphy’s busy groping Heidi’s ass and licking her neck. “Seriously?”