Gordy gasped as Gunner’s maharishi lifted from his arm, gasping, “So you know nothing about being a shifter and what that means for you? You know nothing about mates and sharing souls… nothing?”
Gordy shook his head once again, then looked around. “Don’t you think you should stay down? There are a lot of humans in here. Someone could see.”
The dragon lay back down, but still spoke, “I’m more concerned about you than I am about the humans in this room.”
Sighing, Gordy said, “Look, my knowledge of shifters is limited to what I could find on the internet and a lot of what they say is crap. I can shift whenever I want and don’t have to wait for a full moon to do it. I know I can hear, see and smell better than the average human. I know that I am a bit stronger than them too. Not much, I guess, because I’m only a tiny dog, but I can still lift things that most people my size can’t.”
“Sorry for the wait. What can I get for you two?”
Gordy jumped at the sound of the server’s voice, not even noticing the guy’s approach.
Gunner sat back, asking, “Do you know what you want, or would you be okay if I order for us?”
Gordy hated when Gunner had let go of his hand, but knew it was for the best. Maybe now his dick would go down.
“Gordy?” Gunner asked with a raised brow.
Realizing he was just sitting there staring at Gunner, Gordy felt his cheeks heat in embarrassment. He muttered, “I trust you. Go ahead and order, but I don’t drink.”
Gunner gave Gordy a strange look and then smiled wide. He soon put in their order, and once the server left he turned to look at Gordy as if to say something, but changed his mind.
They sat there quietly for a moment. Gordy had no clue what to say. He started to feel that anxious fluttering again, and began to fidget in his seat.
Finally, Gunner said, “There are so many questions I have for you, Gordy. So many things I want to say. I just hesitate because you seem to finally be a bit more relaxed with me, and I don’t want to scare you away.”
Gordy realized that Gunner was right. They were just sitting there having a conversation and Gordy hadn’t even stuttered. However, with that being pointed out to Gordy, he felt his heart rate pick back up as the nerves grew once again.
Licking his lips, Gordy looked towards Gio and the others, only to see them watching them. Gio gave Gordy a smile, but Gordy wasn’t stupid. He could tell something was wrong.
Turning back to Gunner, Gordy asked, “What’s going on? Why are Gio and the others looking so uncomfortable? Did something happen? Are we in big trouble because we left Drago?”
“Okay, that wasn’t something I wanted to talk about, but I guess you should know. Pit, Cobra, and Casper are on their way here. Hell, I’m surprised they haven’t already shown up. Pit had said they were taking the ‘Dragon Express’.” Gunner explained.
Gordy gasped, “I don’t want them getting in trouble just because they wanted to help me. Whatever punishment Pit wants to distribute, he can do it to me. I don’t want them banished from Drago because of me, Gunner. They were only trying to help.”
Gunner’s features darkened for a moment, but he soon took a deep breath in and slowly let it out. Once he seemed more in control of himself, Gunner said, “First off, no one is going to be banished. The fact is, we are constantly under threat and Bren is the mate to the leader of the D.O.A. That means he has a responsibility to make sure all rules are followed. The first rule is no mates are to leave Drago without protection.”
“But Gio is literally a force of nature. He would protect us.” Gordy quickly said.
“I know he is a strong paranormal, Gordy, but that rule is in place for a reason. As you pointed out to my maharishi, there are humans everywhere, and if you guys were attacked, what could he do that the humans wouldn’t notice? I’m not just talking about our enemies from what we do, there is the Tiger Sharks to consider.”
“Who are they?” Gordy asked.
Gunner quickly explained, “They’re a gang of bikers known as the one percent.”
“I’m afraid I don’t know much about motorcycles or gangs.” Gordy replied.
“People often join groups when they ride motorcycles. They are logged and sanctioned by motor club but the American Motorcycle Association is the largest. There are rules we abide by, like, respect the patch the other guys are wearing, and treat another rider as you would anyone else, but don’t shake hands until the offer is made. A lot of times the other person just wants to know what kind of rider you are. Never ever lie. We don’t always have to answer questions because we have officers in the club that will do that. Like Pit is our President, Taj is VP, and Cobra is our Sergeant-at-arms. We have others with titles as well, but you get the point.”
Gordy nodded in understanding and sat back as the server set their food down. There were baskets of chicken wings of all flavors as well as potato salad and macaroni salad. A large glass of iced tea was placed in front of Gordy, and a mug of dark beer put in front of Gunner. When the server left, Gunner continued. “Ninety-nine percent of riders follow the AMA rules, however, there is a group, one percent, that don’t. Hence their name. These guys are what we consider outlaws. The US Department of Justice believes that most of these groups are conduits to criminal organizations.” Shrugging, Gunner said, “They could be right, but we’ve never been called in to deal with a one percent group yet, so I couldn’t tell you how they conduct business. What I can tell you is they’re nothing but trouble, and they won’t hesitate to hurt or even kill someone if they feel like they’ve been crossed.”
“But this Tiger Shark gang has shown up in this town now and are causing trouble?” Gordy asked, taking a large gulp of his tea.
Nodding, Gunner polished off a basket of wings, then took a sip of beer. “Yep. They showed up a couple of years ago. We ran into some trouble with them when one of their members got into some legal trouble and asked Rylee to help him out. Some of the guys in the Tiger Sharks weren’t keen on his interference and the fact that Rylee was already involved with D.O.A. To them we are a rival gang, and that means they didn’t want our help with their friend. Rylee more or less told them to fuck off, and in the end the Tiger Sharks lost two members of their gang. They’re pissed and have been causing us some issues as well as the people here.”
“So you’re concern… or Pit’s concern, is that some of those people would come in here and attack us? But why? We aren’t bothering anyone. I mean, we should be allowed to come in here and have a meal if we want to.” Gordy stated firmly.
“And you would… if one or more of us were with you. Alone, however, they would take that as an opportunity and think nothing of taking out Bren, since they know that he is with Pit. See, the other thing about the one percent, is that they hate what they term as fags. If they ever found out that one of their members was gay, he wouldn’t live long.” Gunner stated as he continued to eat.
Gordy nibbled on a wing, saying, “I didn’t know this. I’m sorry.”
Gunner wiped off his hands, saying, “You might not have, but Bren, Jude and Rylee did. As the mate to the leader of our group, Bren has responsibilities and he knows it. Bringing you and others out into the open, where you are already under threat against whatever brought you to Drago to begin with, he also placed you in danger of an attack by the Tiger Sharks.”
