Blayd: A Bad Boy Biker Romance (The Reckless Riders MC Book 1) Page 6

  I stared at him. Under my wing? I glanced at her then back at him.

  Scotch laughed. “Man, you had to be around clubs before, Blayd. Do you think it would be a good idea for a female to just be IN the club?”

  I let out a sigh. “So, I make out like she’s my Old Lady?”

  He nodded. “You willing to do that?”

  Here it was, the bite in my ass. I met Angelina’s eyes and I felt the pull. I felt the need to protect her, but damn, I had never had an old lady. I slowly nodded.

  Angelina looked stunned. “So, you mean we have to pretend we are…lovers?”

  Scotch raised a brow. “Unless you want to be a god damned party favor.”

  Her brows rose.

  Scotch laughed again. “It is up to you. I am not making you do a damn thing you aren’t willing to do. I don’t roll like that. However, it is my job to keep my club running smoothly. Not tossing in a fine-looking monkey wrench like you into the fucking fray.”

  Angelina nodded her head, not even taking another moment to think about it. “But I can be an asset,” she spoke firmly now. “I have skills other than my body. Skills that could help your club.”

  “Oh?” Scotch crossed his arms over his wide chest as he leaned back in his chair. “What kind of skills?”

  “I’m an expert with weapons. I can also get in and out of places where a man larger than me, cannot. I’m quick and I catch on fast.”

  He raised his brows. “I can see that. So, what was it that you do for a living?’

  She paused at this, then answered, “Steal. I have also taken on odd jobs and some were like pretty illegal.”

  Now my brows rose.

  “Oh, really now,” Scotch replied. “I will think about it. We don’t have women members, never have. I hear some clubs are starting to, but ours may not be ready for that.”

  “I will pay my way by doing it. Like I could help.”

  He gave her a slow nod. “Well, we can set something up. See how you do.”

  I believed she could do the things she said. I just knew she could, even though I was determined to help, I wanted to see her in action. I wanted to see what she was like out there defending the club, because that was going to tell me a lot about what she experienced in her past. I kept my doubts to myself, keeping my promise to help her.

  Now, Scotch turned his attention to me to make sure that I was on board. “Blayd, since you’re the one that offered Angelina here help, I suggest that it would be in your best interest to accompany her on her first mission. She can handle herself on the back of a bike, but I have to see if her time here is going to be worth the time of all the other club members. After that, we’ll decide for certain whether she’s going to be a good fit for the Reckless Riders or not. Sound good?”

  “Thank you, Scotch,” she said.

  “Now, I just need to run things over with Blayd quickly, and then you two can be off,” he said.

  She nodded.

  I followed Scotch into his office hidden away in the back of the bar, one of his many places to conduct business. The minute he shut the door behind him, I could see the worry in his eyes. He did seem to be such a good judge of character, so I had no choice but to be concerned. “What is it?” I asked, furrowing my brow at him.

  “There’s something that’s off about her, but I can’t put my finger on it. I need you to make sure this goes down without a hitch and when you’re done, I need you to leave her here. I’m going to get a few of the other members to spend time with her, the ones I trust, and I need you to do a little snooping for me. There is truth to her story, but I have a feeling it isn’t the whole truth,”

  I felt the same way. Like there was something more to her than met the eye. “You got it, Scotch. Now, where will we be going?”

  He went on to explain. I was supposed to fill her in on the details and see how she did.

  Angelina and I got onto the back of our bikes, feeling the wind against our skin, riding out onto the open road heading far enough out of the city that we could feel the change in the air.

  She appeared determined, like she was ready for Scotch’s initiation plan. She would be stealing a few weapons off of some gangsters who were running their drug business out of a two-floor walk-up. Getting in would be the hardest part, but grabbing the weapons, and escaping on our bikes didn’t seem too hard.

  It would be the first time I was on my own mission, and I did feel surprised that Scotch even had it in him to trust me like this, but it wasn’t the theft that worried me, it was what I had to do afterwards. I knew how much I hated anyone invading my own privacy, and I could only imagine that Angelina was going to freak out if she ever learned about me breaking into her apartment to find out what she was hiding.

  Scotch had managed to track down the building she was staying at. It wasn’t that far away from the Lazy Pint. It would be up to me to work my way past the front desk, grab a master key off of someone when they weren’t looking, and gather as much information as possible before anyone got suspicious. It was best not to worry about it now, because the more time I spent trying to figure out how to double-cross the woman I was interested in, the harder it was going to be when the time came.

  Angelina and I parked in an abandoned parking garage, knowing our bikes were going to be safe for the time being until we got what we needed.

  “Are you ready for this?” I asked, genuinely curious to see if there was even a sliver of fear in her eyes.

  There wasn’t.

  This seemed like a walk in the park for her and that made me even more intrigued to see how she did once we got close enough to our targets. I opened the duffle bag that slumped against my side, handing her a gun.

  She shook her head, pulling out her very own from the holster fastened into the top of her jeans.

  I stared at her weapon and how she held it.

  Who the hell are you, Angelina?

  I was impressed that she even had her own piece.

  She looked at me like I was crazy for even thinking that she wouldn’t, judging me just as much as I’d been doubting her. I now realized this whole thing would be very interesting as it played out. Or very deadly if she was all an act.

  “Why so shocked, Blayd?” she teased. “I thought the reason you were given that name was because you had a seemingly impenetrable stoic expression”

  “I guess, I’m still getting used to it. Getting used to you too.” I shrugged.

  “I got the gun and some other weapons when I realized that my life was in danger, and sometimes the thing stills scares me, but that isn’t going to stop me from using it when I have to.”

  I nodded. “Alright, we’ll head out the back, approach the small house from the side, and I’m going to start firing. You’ve been tasked with the great job of having to get upstairs, grab a bunch of their weapons, and get out before anyone can find you. Got it?”

  “Seems simple enough. Don’t fuck it up.” Her lips curled up into a smile.

  I shook my head as I smiled.

  We both made our way out onto the street.

  I handed her the duffle bag she needed to gather the weapons. It was a small job and it wasn’t really asking much, but I was more worried than usual. It could be possible that she’d been putting up a front this entire time, while fear hid under that calm, collected façade of hers, but I would never know for sure until we both did what we needed to do.

  We approached the house, hearing laughter coming from the open window and beer bottles breaking. It was plain as day that the men inside were absolutely high.

  I hoped it would make things easier on us both, but I’d seen how quick on their feet men like these could be, when they thought they were being threatened.

  Angelina snuck around the side.

  When she was in position, I fired off the first shot. I needed to get as many of them out as possible, but it wasn’t long before I stood in the doorway, waiting to see if they were even going to take me up on my threat.

 
“Who the fuck are you?” one of them asked.

  “Scotch sent me, but you already knew that. I’m here to collect a few of the things that he lent you when you came begging for weapons. Once I do that, I’ll be on my way.”

  The man cackled as he inched closer to me. “Do you really think that you can take on all of us, boy?”

  I could smell the alcohol on his breath. “I can try,” I said, not breaking eye contact with him.

  In the split second it took him to alert the rest of his buddies, I began to shoot at them all. They were caught off-guard long enough for me to get a bullet into each of their kneecaps. Then while they fell to the floor, reaching for their guns, I kicked them out of their hands, doing as much as I could to stall, and I could’ve sworn I heard sounds coming from the basement. I worried a bit, peering out into the back of the small house.

  Angelina had snuck in, keeping her gun close to her then made her way upstairs.

  I dealt with the men that had been minding their business in the basement.

  “What the fuck is going on up here?” one of them asked, but before he even made it up the stairs, I shot at him.

  He tumbled right back down the way he came.

  “Angelina? I’m going to need you to hurry the fuck up!” I yelled, hoping she understood that we had minutes to pull this off before it got really ugly.

  “I’m coming!” she yelled right back, and it wasn’t long before she was running down the stairs with me, struggling to carry the duffle bag, then she handed it to me.

  We took off on foot, running for our lives back to the parking garage where we’d left our bikes. We were panting, desperately trying to catch our breath.

  “What the hell? Did you manage to get all of their weapons?” I asked, taking a quick look into the duffle bag before we both got onto the backs of our bikes and started up our engines.

  “You said grab what I could, so I grabbed what I could,” she said, shrugging at me.

  “Let’s go,” I replied, shaking my head wondering how she was able to pull that off with such ease. Yeah, she had done this kind of thing before. Truth there.

  We rode back to the Lazy Pint where Scotch had been waiting to see whether we managed to get the goods or not. The moment he spotted the full duffle bag, he smiled, realizing that Angelina managed to pull through, and that alone made him see things a little differently.

  “I see you two managed to get the job done. I have to say, Angelina, I’m impressed.” Scotch nodded.

  “I did what I had to do,” she said then glanced back at me for a moment, like she wanted to say something, but the words didn’t leave her lips.

  “Well, I think it’s time we celebrate,” he said, leading her to the back booth where she would be sitting with all the other members of the club, engaging in conversation while I tried to make my escape.

  I knew it would take a lot of effort to slip away from her unnoticed, to head straight for her apartment complex to make sure she wasn’t hiding anything else before we all could trust her.

  I felt a light tap on my shoulder and turned around to see Thrasher standing there with a drink in his hand.

  He eyed Angelina, wanting to know what the real story was behind her introduction into the club.

  “Did Scotch tell you that you’re all supposed to stay here to keep her company?” I asked, whispering.

  “Yes, apparently he doesn’t trust her as much as you do.” Thrasher shrugged. “It’s best to find out the truth before you let her get too close, Blayd. I’ve made that mistake many times in my life and sometimes I still feel like I’m fucking paying for it.”

  I glanced back at her. Hopefully, she would remain preoccupied for the time being.

  I slipped out the back, walking around to the front. I stayed out of sight, mounted my cycle and headed out of the lot in the direction of her apartment building.

  I hope you’ve been telling the truth this whole time, Angelina. Otherwise, you’re going to have a lot more explaining to do, and you can kiss the trust we have for you goodbye. It’s time I find out what you’re hiding.

  10

  Falling on the Job

  That had been one of the most exhilarating experiences I’ve had in a long time. I felt so free in those few moments while escaping from the scene with Blayd by my side, and it got me to thinking that I might want to stick around here for a little longer. I never thought I would get this comfortable anywhere, especially when I was harboring such a big secret, but it was comforting to know they were starting to trust me. I needed a place to stay, I needed people looking out for me now, because I wasn’t sure how long I had before the Dawn Vultures were going to hunt me down.

  I didn’t listen to them when they’d warned me the first time, instead I managed to join forces with the man that I had come into the city to hunt down and kill. Scotch was nothing more than a contract to me at first and for a while, I thought he would never be anything more than that, but I began to see that taking him out would’ve been wrong.

  He did so much to keep the peace around him, to take care of the people that were doing everything they could to build a better life for themselves. I could see now that they didn’t operate solely on the will to aimlessly hurt others. I had a feeling that the Dawn Vultures were just as terrifying as everyone made them out to be, especially because they scared me enough for me to search for protection, even if I had to lie my way to get it.

  I still wasn’t sure why Blayd had been so adamant on helping me and at first, I merely blamed it on how new to the club he was, but I was starting to see he had a genuine side to him, much like Scotch did. I saw the very same thing that Scotch must’ve seen in him when he asked Blayd to join the Reckless Riders, and it was that determination that would get him far in life.

  I could already see that even though Blayd was new on the scene, Scotch already trusted him much more than the others. I had a hunch that Scotch had seen something different in Blayd than he saw in the others, and that alone was reason to believe that he had my best interests when he first offered to help me out. Now, the Reckless Riders were offering me the protection I needed, and for that I truly couldn’t have been more grateful.

  “You seem distracted. I know it was a long day, but you did well, Angelina,” Scotch said while sitting across from me in the booth while he handed me a cold one.

  I took the beer, taking a sip while I nodded at him.

  He chuckled softly. “You and Blayd do seem to make a great team. I can’t remember the last time I sent anyone out on a mission like that and didn’t get a call requesting backup when things went south. Blayd has spoken very highly of you from the beginning.”

  “He has?”

  “He did. I want you to know that we’re going to keep you safe, and the Dawn Vultures aren’t even going to get the chance to lay a hand on you. We protect our own, as you know,” he said.

  I smiled warmly at him, but guilt was eating me up. I wanted to tell him right then that I’d come into town with the task of taking him out, and receive a big paycheck for it, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it. I worried that Scotch wouldn’t spare me when he found out the truth. I would either have to pay the consequences for my actions, or say goodbye to the Reckless Riders forever. I didn’t want to leave. I wanted to explore more of what it felt like being a part of something. I had to be honest with myself about the fact that I was beginning to feel something for Blayd too. At first, I truly thought it was just curiosity, but I could see it had become more than that. After hearing about the way he spoke up for me, it told me that he maybe felt more too, but I had to make sure I told him the truth before we got too deep into this. I still wasn’t sure if he would forgive the truth though and that made me sad. I glanced around the room looking for him, but I couldn’t spot him anywhere.

  Where are you, Blayd?

  After another half hour, one of the Reckless Riders approached me. He looked familiar, like I’d seen him around before, but we never had the chance to officia
lly meet.

  His curly dark hair was pulled back into a low bun. He adjusted his leather jacket and spoke in a low rumbling voice, “I’m Thrasher, VP of the Riders.”

  I nodded. I knew he meant he was Scotch’s vice president. “Nice to meet you, Thrasher.” I wondered what he did to get that road name, but seeing that he was 6 foot 4 and maybe 300 pounds, it fit.

  “Heading out?”

  “Yeah, if I don’t get some rest soon, I’m going to have no choice but to crash right here,” I said, chuckling.

  “Yeah, I get it. But you can’t be riding around with a target on your back. We all were told you are now under our protection.”

  I had to agree but wondered where I would be sleeping. Also, where was my supposed man? “Have you seen Blayd? I haven’t seen him for ages.”

  The big guy paused at my question, like he knew exactly where Blayd was, but he wasn’t going to tell me.

  I wrote it off as being something that Scotch probably needed him to do, but I couldn’t help but wonder what he would be doing at this time of night.

  “Yeah, I saw him earlier,” Thrasher finally replied. “He told me to tell you that he had to finish some things up for Scotch. Our prez said we have to guard you. So Hammer and I have the first watch.”

  “Ok,” I responded, taking him up on his offer. Scotch was on it, so I did really feel like he believed me now.

  “Hammer!” he yelled out in that booming voice.

  One of the brothers came over. “I’m ready.”

  I stared at him. He was also huge, muscular and he had a tat of a Thor like square hammer on his large arm.

  We went out to the lot and rode off into the night. Me with my two large escorts on Harleys. I hadn’t realized how much time had passed until I started to feel the exhaustion creep in. As we were about to make the final turn to head down my street, I heard the sound of bikes coming up behind us. I heard the first gunshot fire off into the air.