“Are we more profitable now than we were before Indira left?”
“Yes.”
“Are our operations running more smoothly?”
“Yes, but that’s not the point.”
“That’s exactly the point.” I stood up, looking around the table at faces that ranged from concerned to hostile. “I’m a better president now than I was when I was fucking everything that moved and treating women like disposable property. My personal life makes me stronger, not weaker.”
“But she’s controlling you,” Handful protested. “Making you change who you are.”
“She’s not making me do anything. I’m choosing to be better because I finally found someone worth being better for.”
“And what happens if she leaves again?” Colt asked quietly.
“The changes I made aren’t dependent on her staying. They’re dependent on me staying committed to being someone I can respect.”
The room fell silent. Finally, Glitch spoke up.
“For what it’s worth, I’ve never seen you happier or more focused than you’ve been these past few months. If Indira coming back means more of that, I’m all for it.”
“Thanks, brother.” I looked around the table one more time. “Anyone who has a problem with how I run my personal life is welcome to call for a vote. But understand that my relationship with Indira makes me better at everything else I do, including leading this club.”
The silence stretched out. I was about to call the session when Handful spoke up.
“I call for the gavel.”
The room went dead quiet. In all of Venom Riders history, a vote of no confidence had only been called twice—once when my father’s VP tried to stage a coup, once when a president in another chapter got strung out on meth. Both times, the challenged president lost.
“You sure about that, brother?” I asked, my voice deadly calm.
“Yeah, I’m sure.” Handful stood up, his jaw set. “I love you like a brother, Dutch, but I don’t think you can lead this club with one foot in our world and one foot in hers. She’s a civilian. She doesn’t understand what we do, what we stand for. And if you have to choose between her and the club someday, I’m not confident which one you’d pick.” He paused, then added, “She already left you once, Dutch. What happens when she decides MC life isn’t for her again? You gonna fall apart like you did before? That’s not how a president carries himself.”
“Anyone else want to speak for the motion?” Colt asked, his voice formal. As VP, it was his job to facilitate the vote.
Holden shifted uncomfortably. “I don’t want Dutch out, but Handful’s got a point. What happens if she asks you to give up something important? Change club policy? Her being back creates... complications.”
“Complications we don’t need,” Handful added. “Especially with the ATF heat we’ve been dealing with. We need our president’s head one hundred percent in the game, not worried about whether his girlfriend approves of club business.”
“Anyone want to speak against the motion?” Colt asked.
Glitch stood immediately. “I do. Dutch has made mistakes, yeah. We all have. But the club is stronger now than it’s ever been. Our books are clean, our operations are efficient,and we’ve expanded territory without a single casualty. That’s Dutch’s leadership. Not the Dutch who was ruled by his dick, but this Dutch who’s got his priorities straight.”
“His priorities being his woman over his brothers?” Handful challenged.
“His priorities being excellence over ego,” Glitch shot back. “You’re pissed because he’s not the same man who used to party with you every night. But that man was destroying this club from the inside. I’ll take focused and committed over drunk and distracted any day.”
“I want to speak,” I said, standing up. “Handful’s right that there might come a day when Indira asks me to choose.” I looked around the table, meeting each brother’s eyes. “Yeah, she left me once. Because I gave her every reason to. I cheated, I lied, I treated her like property instead of a partner. If she’d stayed after what I did, that would’ve said something bad about her judgment, not something good about our relationship.”
I paused, letting that sink in. “She’s not coming back because I begged her to. She’s coming back for her career—a promotion she earned. The fact that she’s willing to give me another chance while she’s here? That’s a gift I don’t deserve, and I know it. But the reality is that for the past year, I’ve been the best president this club has seen. The numbers don’t lie. Our profit is up. Our legal troubles are down. Our territory is expanded. And yes, that’s partly because I’m not wasting time and energy on meaningless hookups. I’m focused on what actually matters—this club’s success and becoming a man worthy of the woman I love.”
“She makes you vulnerable,” Handful insisted. “Someone gets to her, they get to you.”
“Someone got to my woman, they’d have to deal with me. And then with every brother at this table who honors our code of protecting old ladies.” I let that sink in. “But if you genuinelybelieve I can’t lead this club anymore, then call the vote. I’ll respect the outcome. But know this—if you vote me out, you’re voting based on fear of what might happen, not evidence of what has happened.”
Colt stood. “All in favor of removing Dutch from presidency, say aye.”
My heart was hammering, but I kept my face impassive.
