Moon smiled. “A thong. A present from my naughty Santa.”
“Oh.” Uninterested, he moved from the bar to one of the couches and sat down. He planned to catch a game of pool when another brother came in.
“So far, I’ve been given a flask, a beer tasting kit, and a red sweatshirt that says I’m on the naughty list. Today, I got the thong.”
Hennessy couldn’t care fucking less what the others had been given. He had avoided talking about the gifts like a plague, because he knew one of them was receiving them from Arin.
“What have you been given?”
“Nothing.”
Moon frowned, leaving the stool. “What do you mean, nothing?”
“I mean nothing, zip, nada.”
Moon’s frown deepened. “That’s not possible. Your Santa would have given you a gift.”
“In case you missed the news flash, the women want me gone. They hate the ground I walk on.”
“If they didn’t want you to do the Santa game, they would have spoken to Viper, and he would have told you. If you think they’re holding a grudge because of Arin, they cooled down the next day, so that’s not why you haven’t had any presents.”
“It doesn’t matter. I didn’t want to play anyway.”
“Then, why did you?”
Hennessy wasn’t about to admit that it was because his jealousy had gotten the better of him. He thought he would have been able to outsmart the game and end up with Arin. He couldn’t outsmart the game, though, because none of the bitches were giving up whose name they had drawn. It was crazy as fuck how they were holding onto the names like it was a fucking national secret.
“It seemed like the thing to do at the time.” He shrugged.
“And now it’s not?”
“The decision was made for me. I haven’t gotten any gifts. You want to play a game of pool?” It would be worth playing Moon just to change the subject.
“No, I don’t want to play fucking pool. I’m still broke from the last time I was stupid enough to play you.
“Where have you looked for your presents? I can help you.”
“I’m supposed to look?”
“You’re kidding, right?”
“No. I just assumed they would be in my room where I can find them.”
“Why didn’t you ask?”
“Maybe—”
“Brother, if you tell me you don’t care, you’ll be the one flying over the porch.” Moon shoved the thong into his jeans. “This game is for the women. They look forward to it all year. Not only do they get the time off from work if we figure out who they are, they get one-on-one attention from one of us. The brothers take it seriously. Everyone wants to feel special on Christmas.”
His gut clenched. He had thought he was the one being left out, not the other way around. The brothers had been flashing their gifts, not to brag about what they were given, but to show appreciation for the gifts they had received.
Hennessy watched with curiosity as Moon went to the Christmas tree and looked around. Stopping, he bent over then took out a small gift from the lower branches. His face was grim as he came back, dropping it into his lap.
If he didn’t feel like shit before, Hennessy did now. Holding the present in one hand, he started following Moon’s example. However, Moon was the one who found another one behind a bottle of Hennessy on the shelf.
Moon laid it down on the bar top. “You’re a fuckhead.”
Hennessy couldn’t deny the obvious.
“All you had to do was fucking ask.” While Moon’s words were angry, his expression wasn’t. It was sad. “You know the problem with you, Hennessy?”
“No, but I’m sure you’re going to tell me.”
“I have mad love for you, brother.”
Hennessy opened his mouth to call bullshit, but Moon didn’t give him the opportunity.
“There is no other brother, and I include all of The Last Riders, that I would rather have by my side when my life is on the line. You’re a mean motherfucker when it comes to fighting. The problem is that you consider everything a battleground where someone is trying to fuck with you or fuck you over.
“Viper considers you a friend, all the brothers do. I did. When we were together on end, I considered you one of the best friends I had in my life, but once the threat to The Last Riders and Road Kingz was over, you wouldn’t give me the time of day. Didn’t answer my texts and blew me off when I rode to Arizona to spend time with you.”
“I told you I was busy.”
“Bullshit.”
Hennessy stared down at the two gifts, knowing the shit that Moon was telling him was true.
“Did I get too close to you like the Predators did and you left them?”
“I left them because of DJ.”
“You couldn’t protect DJ any more than the Predators could.”
“Shut the fuck up. Don’t talk about DJ. You didn’t know him.”