Chapter Four
By the time Ivy pulledinto the gravel lot outside the Devil’s Crown clubhouse, her nerves had upgraded from a low hum to a full body buzz.The building squatted at the edge of the compound like it had grown there rather than been built.It was made of dark wood, had reinforced doors and windows that looked more like they were designed to keep things out than let light in.
Bikes were parked in loose rows, chrome catching the afternoon sun, engines ticking softly as they cooled.She cut the engine and sat there for a second longer than necessary, hands resting on the steering wheel.
This was not a gallery meeting.She smoothed her palms down her thighs, left faint chalk smears on her jeans, and snorted under her breath.Of course she’d worn paint clothes.It was more out of habit than anything else.
Besides, if this went sideways, at least she wouldn’t be worrying about ruining anything nice.Ivy grabbed her sketch portfolio and stepped out of the car.
The air felt heavier here.It wasn’t threatening, exactly, but watchful.It felt like the kind of place that noticed who came and went and remembered it.There were only a handful of bikers around at this hour—a couple leaning against the building smoking, another wiping down a bike with slow, methodical movements.
None of them stared outright, but she felt their awareness brush against her skin like static.She kept walking, although she thought to herself that it wasn’t too late to back off.Return to her car and tell Roach she changed her mind.Fear warred with curiosity, but curiosity won in the end.Ivy kept walking.
The door to the clubhouse opened before she reached it, and Roach stepped out.
“Hey,” he said, wearing an easy smile.Ivy wondered why he was called Roach when he was easy on the eyes and down to earth.Unlike Havoc.“You made it.”
“Barely talked myself into it,” she admitted, then winced.“Sorry.That probably wasn’t the best opening line.”
Roach chuckled.“Fair.You nervous?”
“Is it that obvious?”Ivy asked.
“Little bit,” he said, but there was no judgment in it.“Come on.King’s expecting you.”
After taking a deep breath, she followed him inside.
The clubhouse smelled like oil, old wood, and something fried lingering from earlier.It was dimmer than she expected, sunlight filtering through dusty windows and catching on scuffed floors and heavy tables scarred with history.The walls were crowded with framed photos, patches, and memorabilia, each one whispering stories she didn’t know yet.
She felt small here.Not weak, but new.An anomaly.Roach kept an easy pace beside her, not rushing or crowding her.He seemed to respect distance, and Ivy appreciated that more than she’d expected.
“So,” she said, mostly to fill the quiet, “thanks for mentioning my work.”
He shrugged.“King saw the mural.Liked it.He asked who did it and it seemed worth passing along.”
Her chest warmed at that.“That’s good to hear.”At least she thought so.
As they walked deeper into the clubhouse, Ivy’s gaze kept drifting.Not to the bikers or to the décor, although she bet not very many people got to see what the inside of an MC clubhouse looked like.She secretly searched the empty spaces.Places where she half expected to see Havoc leaning against a wall or stalking out of a doorway, scowl already locked in place.
Three days.It had only been three days since he’d nearly run her over, since his eyes had pinned her in place and lit something dangerous and electric in her chest.She’d told herself it was adrenaline.A fluke or perhaps a moment.Her thoughts hadn’t listened.
“You know Havoc?”she asked suddenly and immediately regretted asking it.Too late for that now, Ivy thought.
Roach shot her a sideways look, and lifted one eyebrow.“Do you?”Roach asked.He sounded curious.
Heat crept up her neck and she wished she didn’t blush so easily.
“Not really.Just bumped into him the other day,” she admitted.
Roach made a thoughtful sound.“That so?”
“That’s all,” she added quickly.“He almost flattened me with his bike.Hard to forget.”
A corner of Roach’s mouth twitched.“Yeah.That tracks.”
Before she could press further, they stopped outside a solid door that she presumed led to King’s office.Roach knocked once and opened it without waiting.
