Reese had been nursing a mug of coffee for way too long, staring down into it. He couldn’t get the sight of the wordpregnantout of his mind.
“You awake?” Hawk asked.
“Yeah. I’m good,” Reese said.
“You look like you missed out on some pussy last night or something.”
A second later, a hand smacked Hawk’s face so hard, the slap echoed through the house and everyone stopped eating. A couple of utensils clanked to the plates.
“The mouth. The mouth on this one. At my table?”
Hawk stiffened and rubbed his cheek. “Sorry about that, Aunt Athena.”
“Now shut up and eat. And don’t talk about women like that. They’re beautiful. Like flowers.”
Aunt Athena moved down the table, carrying a giant pot of scrambled eggs, refilling everyone’s plate. She was Levi’s aunt, by blood, and she was as ruthless as a person could come. But she believed in her traditions, which included having the MC over several times a week to cook for them. In some way, her table was their second table. Levi had called meetings at that table several times, using a fork or a spoon as a gavel to make decisions.
There were a few rules at the table though. Aunt Athena’s rules. There was no cursing during meal time. There was no real business talk either. Everyone was to enjoy their food. Take a sense of thankfulness that they had food. It was long rumored that her lost husband was the original member of BDD MC. The one who founded the name, the club, wore the first cut and the original patch. It was said that Aunt Athena had that original patch somewhere in the house. That meant she was the true queen of the MC. And you did not mess with her.
“What’s wrong with him?” Aunt Athena asked Levi as she slapped eggs on his plate. She pointed the spoon at Reese. “He looks too tired.”
“He’s a growing boy,” Levi said. “Probably discovering his body. Up too late, you know what I mean?”
“Pigs,” Aunt Athena said. She put the spoon under Levi’s chin and showed her teeth. They were false, but that look on her face was real. Her blue eyes still shined brightly. Her hair was thinned and puffy. She was short and a little stout, but she packed a punch with her attitude that made the biggest and toughest of men fall on their knees and cry. “Are you done talking like that, Levi?”
“Yes, ma’am,” Levi said.
She took the spoon away. “So, what’s been happening at the clubhouse?”
Levi looked at Reese and nodded.
Reese snapped out of his trance and lifted his coffee mug to his lips for a sip. “The usual, Aunt Athena. The police have been pushing hard against the entire MC. Chasing charters out of towns. We have a close eye on things so it doesn’t happen here.”
“Good,” she said. “You can never take your eyes away from anything. It’s smart to be ready. No matter how successful you think you are, you’re not.”
“There’s a pep talk for you,” Ellis said.
“Am I wrong?” Aunt Athena asked.
“Never wrong, Auntie,” Ellis said with a grin. “Hey, how about that bacon? Was that not perfection?”
“Here, here,” Jason said and slapped the table.
Everyone started to slap the table, shaking everything on it. Half the guys cheered, the other half started to oink like pigs. Brett stuck two pieces of bacon into his mouth and growled like an animal.
Aunt Athena tried to stay calm, but ended up laughing.
Levi finally stuck his fingers into his mouth and whistled to get everyone calm.
“The bacon is perfect,” Reese said.
“I had the butcher cut it thick for me.”
“A butcher, huh?” Zac asked. “You’re like straight out of a TV show.”
“Except she’s packing heat under that apron,” Levi said.
“Bullshit,” Zac said.