Laken dropped the card, and as soon as he saw it, Davis shook his head and grumbled,“Motherfucker.”
He shoved his chips to the center of the table with disgust and grumbled something under his breath. Damn. I took another long sip from my drink before saying, “Some things never change.”
Ghost glanced over at me, but he didn’t say a word.
I knew what he was thinking.
I was thinking the same damn thing.
Hoping to lighten the mood, I cleared my throat and said, “Used to be like that when we played little league. If we lost, Davis would throw his glove clear across the field. Once told the ump he was blind and might’ve tossed out a few choice words. Hell, the kid was ten and swearing like he was forty and a day late on paying the light bill.”
I waited for a chuckle.
It never came.
Memphis’s mouth stayed closed, and Ghost’s focus never left the table. Laken dealt again. Davis leaned back in his chair, crossed his arms, and glared at her like he was daring her to lay down the wrong card. I felt something sour twist in my gut.
The story wasn’t funny anymore. The punchline hadn’t changed, but the stakes had.
Back then, we were just kids. It was just a game.
Scraped knees and hurt pride.
Now, he was on my turf, bleeding money and attitude in front of men who didn’t tolerate either. And Laken, an ol’ lady who was protected by the brotherhood, was the one stuck smoothing out his rough edges.
After another loss, Davis finally pushed back from the table and stood. He said something to Laken, then turned and started in my direction. I watched as he crossed the floor. His expression had already started to soften, like he hadn’t just been one bad hand away from flipping the felt.
Just as he was about to approach, Ghost stepped away, melting into the crowd like he always did. Memphis followed a second later, clapping me on the shoulder as he walked by. Neither of them had spoken a word, but I got the message.
They wanted me to handle my brother, and that’s exactly what I planned to do. He stepped in front of me with an easy smile. “Man, I just got my ass handed to me.”
“I saw that.” I crossed my arms. “I also saw you giving our girl a hard time.”
“Ah, it wasn’t that bad.”
“But it was. That shit doesn’t fly around here.Not with anyone.”
“Okay. Okay. I’m sorry. I’ll behave.”
“See that you do, or it will be both of our asses.”
“Understood.”His eyes tracked the various tables and the steady flow of money changing hands, and after a few minutes, he shook his head and said, “Man, this is a hell of a setup you boys have got here. I bet you are rakin’ it in.”
I didn’t respond. I just stood there looking at him, but that didn’t stop him from adding, “Club has to be sitting pretty.”
Again, I said nothing.
Hell, there was nothing to say.
Club business was club business. Period.
“Yeah, yeah. I get it. You boys don’t talk about nothing.” He leaned in a little closer, lowering his voice as he asked, “But what about you? How you making it?”
“I get by.”
“I bet you do.”
A woman walking by caught his attention, and a smirk crossed his face. She was tall with dark hair and a fitted dress, and confidence rolled off her like perfume. His eyes tracked her without shame as he snickered, “Damn. I wouldn’t mind getting a piece of that.”
