Freedom.
I started walking into the room again, noticing how quiet it was without everyone there. Most people had gone off to the Pit in town, since for the first time in weeks we were all back together and we wanted to show the Burning Eights a good time, so the clubhouse was eerily quiet, barring Dom and Butch laughing.
“Hey,” I called out.
Butch stood up quickly, dropping his beer onto Dom’s lap and spilling it all over the other man, who cursed loudly, and I burst out laughing.
“What the fuck, man?” Butch barked out. “What the fuck are you creeping around like that for?”
Dom stood up, his whole crotch soaked in beer, and I laughed again and threw my T-shirt to him to mop it up since I hadn’t bothered to put it back on yet. He snatched it from the air and swiped at the beer, giving me a grumbled thanks. Brother was moodier than Butch and didn’t talk much. Most women liked to try to get him to open up, but none succeeded. Didn’t stop it being funny to watch ’em try though.
“Creeping around?” I chuckled.
“Didn’t realize anyone was still here,” Butch growled out, his eyebrows pulled down harshly. “Thought you would have gone with everyone else to the Pit.”
I rubbed my greasy hands down my jeans and headed to the bar with a smirk. “Nah, fixing the A/C on the roof,” I explained. “Trying to, anyway.”
“No good?” Butch asked, and I shook my head.
“Whole system’s fucked and needs replacin’. Thing’s older than Pops.” I laughed, and Butch cracked a smile. “Going to price up a new system. I’ll get the costs to you as soon as I can. Gonna be a couple of days before it’s up and running again though.”
“Shit,” Butch replied, dragging a hand down his beard.
I raised an eyebrow in question and grabbed a bottle of beer before popping it open and taking a swig. Butch looked over at Dom, who was still scowling at having his cock and balls beer-soaked.
I smirked at him. “Women will thank you for it later, brother,” I said, nodding toward his crotch. “Little something extra for all their hard work, am I right?” I laughed.
Butch laughed and Dom glared at the other man before dropping the T-shirt onto the sofa and storming away.
I watched him go with an amused smile on my face. “What’s his deal?” I asked.
Butch shrugged, his gaze on the space where Dom had just been. “Don’t worry about it. Just get the A/C back on. The Burning Eights are sticking around for the week. Hardy wants them to go on the next run with us, split everything down the middle since it’s a big job for the Reverend and the Eights lost a big load last week.” Butch didn’t sound or look happy about the decision, but it was Hardy’s choice, not his, in the end.
“Better get this shit working real soon then,” I said, pulling on my cut. “I’ll go straight into town and see if I can pick up the new system right away.”
“You need anyone with you?” he asked, moving around the sofa.
I shook my head. “I got it handled. Gonna need to take a cage, though.”
“Least that’ll have air-con,” Butch chuckled, and I laughed back.
I swallowed the rest of my beer and headed for the door, turning back briefly to watch Butch head off in the direction Dom had gone. They’d been best friends since I’d joined, kinda like me and Fighter, though in the past couple of months there’d been a lot of tension between the two men. No one knew why, and no one wanted to ask, and since it wasn’t affecting the club’s runnings, Hardy didn’t give a shit either.
I climbed into one of the club’s trucks and started the engine before heading into town to the hardware store. It was a small, family-run business, but it was where I always went. It kept a lot of things in stock, and I’d known Alfie, the owner, since I was a kid.
I drove down the main road through the center of town, my arm hanging lazily from the window. Loved my Fat Boy, and normally hated being caged up in a truck or car, but there was something to be said for the cool air currently blowing through my hair after working up on the sun-drenched roof. I slowed down and pulled off my shades as I passed a woman wearing Chucks, tight blue denim cut-off shorts, and a faded black cut-off T-shirt. She was stunning: hair held back by a yellow bandana, though a few loose blond hairs were hanging on her shoulders. A tattoo trailed lazily down her spine, and as I passed I looked out my window to get a better look at it, wondering what it was.
Damn, but she was gorgeous, and my dick got hard at just the sight of her ass sashaying as she walked. Looked like an angel or some shit, the way the sun bounced off her blond hair and porcelain skin.
A car in front of me sounded its horn and I slammed on my brakes, coming to a stop just millimeters before hitting a little car on the junction. I waved a hand at them.
“Sorry!” I called out the window, turning my attention to the road instead of the fine piece of ass I’d just passed.
I started driving again, ignoring the death glare from the old guy in the car I’d just nearly rammed into, and pulled up outside the hardware store and climbed out. I looked back to where I’d just seen the woman, but I couldn’t see her anymore. Probably ran a mile when she saw a man like me staring at her. I chuckled at the thought. Yeah, that woman was the Yin to my Yang, white and pure where I was black as they come, my soul dipping down into hell for a taste of the bad stuff.
I pushed open the door to the hardware store and tried to shake off all thoughts of her for the time being.
“Hey,” Alfie called as I made my way to the counter. He was a cool guy—eighty years old and still going strong. He had two sons of his own, but neither of them knew how to look after themselves, never mind a business. So Alfie was still working. He’d been good friends with my grandfather, so I held a soft spot for the guy.
