She remembered me. Dread clenched my stomach. “Julia Edwards. I went back to my maiden name.”
“That’s right. I remember your parents now.” Her expression soured. “You probably don’t remember, but I met you once. At the Seattle Children’s Hospital Dinner, but you were…”
“A pretentious bitch?” I offered.
Her eyes widened in surprise, and then lit up and she snickered. “I was going to say still married, but your assessment is accurate as well.”
Her honesty, paired with the knowledge of her taking down the Kinlans, endeared me to her instantly. “Sorry about that, Ms. Stafford. I assure you that I have surgically removed the stick from my ass and am here to assist and hopefully atone for my sins.”
“Emily,” she corrected. “And you’ve come to the right place. The Dead Presidents know all about helping people find redemption. But I’m more curious about how this happened.” Her gesture encompassed me and Havoc before she turned her attention on him. “Link needs your help. I’ll watch out for her. She’ll be fine.”
“Thanks, Em,” he said before giving me one last hug. “You need me, text me. I’ll keep my phone on.”
“Go. I can handle myself.”
He took off and Emily’s amused expression returned as she watched him leave. Turning toward me, she said, “I guess it’s true… the bigger they are, the harder they fall.”
Giggling, I felt some of the tension I’d been holding onto roll off my shoulders as I followed Emily into the dining area. The back of her vest had the same Dead Presidents MC logo as Havoc’s, but hers also had two extra patches at the bottom that labeled her as “Property of Link.” Confused, I asked, “Did they make you an honorary biker or something for helping with Havoc’s case?”
“No.” She laughed. “This bunch of knuckle-draggers wouldn’t allow a woman to join their club. I’m engaged to Link, the club president, and he gave me this cut to wear at club functions. It reminds his men that I belong to him, so he doesn’t have to beat on his chest and chase them away.”
And if Link was anything like Havoc, I could picture that happening. “Primitive,” I replied.
More laughing. “You have no idea.”
“But property of…?” I asked. “Don’t you find that demeaning?”
She shook her head. “I thought I would, but there’s something to be said for a man who’s not afraid to throw you over his shoulder and carry you to his hut. But by the way Havoc was looking at you, I’m guessing you understand that firsthand. How’d you two meet?”
“He came into my bookstore looking for the secret to keeping his flowers alive and I offered the answer in exchange for him being my date to my sister’s wedding.”
Emily spun around and studied me, her eyes bright and a smile spread across her face. “Youown that little bookstore downtown?”
I nodded.
“I sent him there. Gardening was supposed to help chill him out, but it appears he found something else to do the trick.” She shook her head. “I can’t imagine him at a wedding of Seattle’s elite. He wore a suit?”
“Yep, and he looked incredible in it.”
“Hm. That settles it. Link and his groomsmen are wearing suits for our wedding. I was on the fence—thinking about letting them go casual—but now that I know Havoc survived dressing up, I’m sure Link will, too. Although I do like him in nothing but jeans…”
I looked around the station, taking in all the good-looking bikers. “That might be a bit too casual. All these guys stripped down to their jeans could cause mass swooning.”
Emily’s smile widened. “It’s nice to have you here, Julia. I sure am glad you had that surgery.”
Feeling welcome, I smiled and thanked her as we started arranging condiments on the tables and organized serving stations. Emily introduced me to the old ladies and club whores. Havoc had explained the titles to me this morning, but the way the women embraced those titles seemed strange to me. I still couldn’t get over a strong independent woman like Emily wearing a property patch, but I really couldn’t understand the club whores. Before I could ask her more about them, her grandmother and assistant showed up.
“Grandma, Jayson, this is Julia. She came with Havoc,” Emily introduced us.
“You snagged big, dark, and handsome?” Jayson asked, getting right to work on the napkins and silverware. “Girl, I need details. Please tell me he is that big everywhere.”
“Jay,” Emily warned.
“Don’t act like you’re not curious,” he replied before turning back to me. “So, what are we dealing with? It’s bigger than a banana isn’t it?”
The visual created by his examples made me laugh, but I needed to set Jayson straight. “We’re not reallytogether.”
“But you have seen the D. Be honest, girl. I can tell you have by that look on your face. Can you wrap your hand around it?”
