I smirked. “Yeah. It’s his entire personality.”
She snorted. “Is his old lady right in the fucking head? I’d shoot myself if I ever married a man like that.”
I laughed. “Aaliyah has that man by the balls.” I jerked my chin toward the clubhouse. “Come on inside. Grab a beer since you don’t seem like the type to drink those girly, fruity drinks.”
“Heeeey,” Geek complained from where he was standing by the open door. He frowned at me as we made our way closer. “I happen to likegirly, fruitydrinks, asshole.”
I clapped him on the shoulder. “Not surprised, brother.” I jerked my chin toward the bar. “Go on and take a seat. Aaliyah will grab you a beer. Hell, she’ll probably keep you company, too. I’ll go see if I can talk some sense into Johnston.”
She made a sound that was a mix between a snort and scoff as she moved away from me and toward the bar. “Good luck. He’s a fucking pig.”
Aaliyah barked out a laugh as she made her way toward the fridge. “He grows on you,” Aaliyah told her as I forced myself to rip my eyes from Noah’s slender body to make my way to the chapel. My eyes still managed to wander back to her though, and it was a miracle I didn’t walk right into a chair or table.
Johnston was sitting at the table rolling a blunt when I pushed the door to the chapel open. He glanced up at me when I stepped inside, then quickly refocused back on what he was doing. I shut the door behind me, blocking out the rest of the clubhouse. Rounding the table, I dropped into my chair and arched a brow at him.
“So… why don’t we allow women into the club, exactly?”
He grunted. “They’re too fucking soft, Blayke. They can be hardasses all they want, but when it comes to putting someone down, no matter who they are, can they be trusted to do that?”
“Would you trust Aaliyah to?” I countered.
He remained silent, but the look he cast my way warned me I was treading on thin ice. I back-pedaled. The last thing I wantedto do was piss him off to the point he sent Noah riding off into the sunset. I wanted her around. I wanted to give her a chance. My reasoning behind that was purely selfish, but I also thought she might be a good edition.
How many men did we have sitting at this table every fucking morning that could say they’d stood toe-to-toe with Johnston fucking Trimm?
Not many.
“Look, brother, she could be a good edition. She clearly isn’t easily spooked. Most other men here would’ve backed down when you started losing your shit, but she didn’t even budge.”
“Probably just fucking stupid,” he muttered, lifting the blunt to his lips and grabbing his lighter from his pocket.
“Possibly,” I agreed. “But I think there’s bravery there, too. And I don’t think it would hurt to give her a chance. Anyone coming here asking to prospect has seen some shit, brother, and you know that. Weallhave.” Hell, my mother had been a damn good woman, but my dad had been a fucking abusive piece of shit. I was sixteen when I put a bullet through his skull after I found him raping my mom.
Johnston had caught me trying to get rid of his body and had helped me. And then, he’d given me the number to his burner phone and told me to call him if I needed a place to belong.
Back then, Johnston had just been making a name for himself. He’d still been trying to build the Satan’s Worshippers MC. I’d called him a week later, and together, we formed the club, making it into what it was today.
Johnston was quiet for a few minutes. I let him have his time to think and used my pocket knife to clean the dirt from beneath my nails. Finally he sighed and put out his blunt with the tips of his fingers before setting it in the ash tray.
“You really think she can be valuable?” he asked me. “You’re not just looking to get your dick wet?”
I scoffed. “I’malwayslooking to get my dick wet, Johnston.” He rolled his eyes at me. “But yeah, I think she can be valuable. Something about her tells me she’s someone we want on our side.”
He grunted and pushed back from the table, then pointed a finger at me. “Then she’syourproblem, Blayke. She’ll go with you to Mexico. If she does well and can hold her own down there, then you and I can discuss patching her in when you get back. If we agree, then we’ll bring it to the table.”
Standing from my own seat, I pocketed my knife and nodded once. “Understood, Prez.”
3
Noah
“So, you want to prospect?” Aaliyah asked, leaning on the bar in front of me, holding her own beer.
I scoffed. “Idid. Not so sure I want to any longer.” I cut her an annoyed look. “Your man is a real piece of work.”
She laughed, her blue eyes lighting up. “He is,” she agreed. “But he’s also a man you can rely on to always have your back. If you’re loyal to him, he’ll stand ten toes down for you. He’s definitely an asshole, but honestly, once you get past that hard ass exterior of his, he’s a decent guy.”
“Really?” I asked, my brow arching as I lifted my beer to my lips. “Because one of the first things he said to me was some sexist ass bullshit about how women weren’t allowed to be members of his club because of our—and I quote—‘soft hearted bullshit’.”
