Ava chuckled.
Harlow wrinkled her nose. “Too much?”
“No, it’s fine. Yeah, Raven was … incredible. I told her not to, but she said that she would never allow anyone to hurt me.”
Harlow finished setting up the main counter. “So let me get this straight. You and Raven’s start of being … friend-ish.”
“Yeah, I wouldn’t say we were totally friends, but not enemies.”
“Then something messes up, and Raven hates on you, right?”
“Yes,” Ava said. She hadn’t told Harlow the full truth, not quite. She knew about what went down with Creed and Raven, only because Harlow had been caught in the crossfire and stabbed. Also, her brother was Big Dick, a fully patched-in member.
Ava was sure Harlow knew more than she let on, but she wasn’t going to feed more information to her.
“And then, the shit goes down. I get stabbed, and you two get taken, where the rival club, Twisted Bastards MC, which let’s face it, they stole part of that title from the Hell’s Bastards MC, but I digress. To save you and little baby boy Umberto, Raven takes a beating. You two share a moment at the hospital, and everything seems fine, and then out of nowhere, Raven starts avoiding you?”
“That’s pretty much it.”
“You’re also being paranoid because the club pussy that were in on what happened with you is gone. They have all vanished, never to be seen or heard from again, and you don’t know what to do, because magically, Raven is no longer at the club?” Harlow asked.
“I think I have unloaded way too much on you.”
“Nah, don’t mention it, I love the drama,” Harlow said. “Besides, I don’t watch soaps. Who needs television when you’re living it, right?”
Ava chuckled. “This is not a soap opera.”
“No, this is way better. This is an opera with bikes, which makes it totally cool. So, let’s break it down for you, to stop you freaking out.” Harlow held her hand up. “Club pussy moves on, honey. Trust me, I have seen my brother with plenty of women. Some of them club pussy, some of them not, but they all move on. They try to bag themselves a patch, but it’s rare for pussy to do that.” Harlow shrugged. “It sucks, but that is club for you.”
“But all of them?” Ava asked. “Every single one?”
Harlow opened her mouth and then closed it.
“Ha, see. Even you can’t think of a logical explanation for everything.”
“And you think Smokey is planning to get rid of Raven?” Harlow asked.
“I don’t know.”
“You know, you could just ask him?”
“We’re in a good place right now, and I don’t want to ruin it, but … I don’t think Raven should be forced out of the club. If that’s the case, then he has to remove himself, doesn’t he?”
Harlow shrugged. “That’s biker politics, and I don’t have the first clue what they’re about. Does anyone ever really know? Do you want Smokey to leave the club?”
“No. I don’t want Raven or anyone else to leave the club.”
“The club pussy had to go, though?” Harlow asked.
“Yes, no, I don’t know. Ugh, this is so confusing. I didn’t mind them,” Ava said. “Ever since it happened and the truth came out, they had to leave me alone anyway, so it’s not like it was a big deal.”
“But it’s great because all that willing pussy isn’t around your man.”
“You say it like that and it makes sense, but the club pussy has just changed.”
“Everything I say makes a whole lot of sense. You should listen to me more often.” Harlow glanced toward the door. “We’re going to get busy soon, and we’re not going to have much time to talk. If you think Smokey’s planning to get rid of Raven, and you don’t want him to, talk to him. I imagine the only person he’d ever listen to is you.”
****
“I’m here to protect you. Not party with you,” Raven said, even though looking down at the dress she wore would say otherwise.
It molded to her like a second skin and seemed to enhance her hips and waist. It wasn’t too tight, as there was certainly enough room to move.
“And you’re doing a great job,” Carlos said. “Come on. You’ve been by my side for a week now. Don’t you want to let off some steam?”
Back at the club, Raven used to love dancing. Spending her hours on the main club floor, listening to some of the music the guys put on, and she would just dance her heart out. Whenever she got antsy, dancing was usually the answer, and if that didn’t help, then it was a case of heading out to her bike and just riding it out.
It had been a week.
A week of playing Carlos’s lovesick puppy in front of everyone, and behind closed doors, being his friend. He wasn’t a bad guy. She couldn’t believe she was even thinking that about him.