Chapter 8: Ajax
I couldn’t believe how well my life was going. I had the woman I loved in my arms every night. I got to see her throughout the day as I stood guard more times than not at the bakery. She was opening up more to me and our sex life was amazing.
We were still staying at her apartment. For now, it worked for us, but I did have the club’s construction crew starting on the house we’d discussed. I hoped I could keep it a secret for as long as possible. I knew it was too much to hope I could until it was done. I wanted to see the surprise and shock on her face when she realized she had her dream home.
One really good thing came out of the last two weeks. The danger to Madisen had been eliminated. Her stepdad and his associates in the other MCs had been taken care of permanently, although the cartel was still a question mark. We’d relaxed the guard duty but still had our eyes and ears out for trouble.
Currently, the ladies were frantically working to get Madisen and Rebel’s wedding together. They planned to marry in four weeks. I’d watched Jessica’s face when she sat with them discussing the details. She was happy. I wanted to make that look last.
My plan was to ask her to marry me. I knew many outside our club would think it was way too soon, but not in our case. Warriors knew when they found the one and didn’t waste time before making damn sure she was tied to them in every way. I planned to give her property cut to her after church today. Then it was asking if she’d get a tat with my name on it. I was getting hers put on my chest right over my heart. I didn’t want anyone to forget she was mine.
A whistle got my attention. We were being waved into church. I gave her a quick kiss and followed the others. She was staying in the common room with the ladies to do more wedding planning. I took my seat with a sigh. I was tired. We were up late last night. I couldn’t seem to get enough of her.
“Okay. Let’s get this meeting done. First, let’s hear the financials for last month,” Bull said. Bear gave the rundown on the profits. All of them were performing well. When he was done, Tank raised a question.
“I know all the businesses are doing really well, but should we look into a couple more? We’re having guys settling down. They need enough to keep their families comfortable. In order to do that, I think we should look at other businesses nearby that we can either buy or build from the ground up. What do you guys think?”
This got the rest of us talking. We muttered and threw out ideas for a good twenty minutes before Bull reined us back in.
“Okay, enough chitchat. Let’s put this to the table. All those in favor of adding new businesses, say aye.” He ran around the table. Not one of us objected. “Good. Now, does anyone have an idea of what we should consider adding?”
“Well, Dublin Falls seems to have hit a gold mine with the spa there. Could we check and see if the current one in town would sell? And what about a tattoo shop? I can look to see if there are other businesses for sale in town worth looking at,” Demon added.
“I like the idea of the tat shop. Not too sure if the spa will work. We can check into it,” Tank added. Maverick sat up straight. I saw the look on his face. He was upset.
“Why not the spa? It does decent business, and the old ladies seem to like it. I think we should consider it.”
A few of the guys gave him a grin, but thankfully kept their mouths shut. We’d all seen how he’d reacted when he saw Rylan, one of the ladies who worked at the spa. Bull had her come one day to do a spa day at the compound for the women. Hell, I could see how attractive Rylan was as did my other brothers. Maverick seemed to be the most gobsmacked by her. Interesting. Wonder if we might be seeing the beginning of the next Warriors’ downfall.
“I agree with Mav. I think we should seriously consider it. We can ask Dublin Falls what they added to make their spa even more successful,” I piped up—anything to support a brother and the club as a whole. Maverick gave me a chin lift in acknowledgment. After a few minutes of discussion, we voted and the decision was made to look into the spa, and a tattoo place first. With these decisions and assignments made, Bull looked at me.
“You set to do this after church, Ajax.” The guys all got quiet and looked at me then back to Bull. I grinned.
“Hell yeah! I want this to be done then I can move on to the next thing. Payne, you have time maybe tomorrow to do some ink for me and Jessica?”
I asked Payne because he was our tattoo artist for the club. He would be the ideal one to manage the tattoo shop and even work it some of the time. He was truly an artist and had done most of our ink.
“Sure, I can. What’re you thinking?” he asked with a twinkle in his eye.
“Property tats for both of us.” This got the guys laughing and teasing me. I held up my hand. “It’s only fair that I get one. That woman owns my ass and I’m not afraid to say it. And after today, she’ll know it. I’m giving her property cut to her after church. So, hang around and celebrate with us. I want her to feel welcome.”
Bull frowned. “Doesn’t she feel welcome? What can we do to help her feel it? She’s totally part of the family, Ajax.”
“Thanks, Bull. She’s just not used to having friends or anyone at her back. I get the feeling she wasn’t really cared for growing up. She hasn’t talked much about her past yet. She’s had a hard time believing I want her. She doesn’t see herself as attractive.”
“Jesus, not that shit again! Doesn’t that woman look in the mirror? She’s gorgeous. All four of you are lucky bastards with the women you got. I hope I get one like them,” Slash told me, Bull, Ace, and Rebel.
“I know we are. She’s gorgeous. Just have to get her to see that, which will take time. And, just so you know, soon I’m going to be putting a ring on her finger. I just want to wait until after Rebel’s wedding. Keep that under wraps along with the house. She has no idea it’s for us.”
They all laughed and promised not to let the cat out of the bag about either of those. Payne said he’d have time tomorrow, just to let him know when we were available. Now, with this settled, church was really over, and Bull dismissed us. As we left the room, Bull came up and clapped me on the shoulder.
“Congratulations, Ajax. Jessica is a fine woman and I think you’re a perfect match. Just take it slow with her and she’ll soon realize her worth. It’s crazy how some women can be so beat down they don’t see themselves clearly. If you need anything, let me know. Let’s go get your lady officially claimed with her cut.” I nodded and smiled. I was excited and a bit nervous to see what she would think of it. Player, as the club’s secretary, had ordered it for me. No one else knew what it said.
Out in the common room, I was relieved to see all the ladies were still there. The guys were milling about. I saw the three prospects plus Madisen’s brother, Mitch, were here. I couldn’t have planned it better. I slipped down to my room before she saw me and grabbed the bag, I had her cut in.
Coming back to the common room, I stood in the middle and gave a loud whistle. Everyone stopped talking and swung around to look at me. The guys had knowing grins on their faces. Jessica and the ladies as well as Mitch and the prospects looked startled and perplexed.
“Jessica, baby, I need you to come here.” I pointed to the spot right in front of me. She got up slowly, looking around at the others. She came to me apprehensively. I wanted to kiss her and wipe that look off her face. When she got to me, I gave her a gentle kiss before turning her to face the room. This put her back to me. Just what I wanted.