He nodded, grinning. “Very true. But this year, we’ve extended our hospitality and resources more than once. Plus, while you’ve been a valuable asset, the loss of your father was a blow to us all. A sign of good faith is all we are suggesting.”
Pushing off the wall, I turned to fully face him. “Come out with it, then.” I knew this was coming, I just didn’t know he’d hit me with it in a public place with mixed company. They had beenproviding assistance outside of our usual dealings, so I expected some kind of demand. But he was cunning. I couldn’t explode here. And whooping his ass may make me feel better but it wouldn’t help the situation.
He looked up at the lights, then around the room. “We were thinking, a union.”
As my jaw tightened at the thought of him touching my sister, something smacked me on the side of the face and cheers erupted around us.
Petrov shouted, “Za Lyubov!”
Looking down, I realized the thing that hit me in the face was Lacy’s garter. Eagle was laughing and Lacy was cheering and clapping, along with everyone else in the whole fucking room. Every bunny was eyeing me like a steak. Jackal’s brows were raised, and Falcon held a beer up with a grin. Ma was the only one in the room who wasn’t jumping for joy. Looking back over, Petrov was grinning ear to ear.
Shit.
Chapter 2
Hawk
Thanks to the excitement, I was able to dodge the ridiculous suggestion at the wedding reception for a while. I’d been rushed by my brothers and had to practically beat off bunnies with a stick.
New dance music flooded the speakers, and the party picked up. The look that Ma gave me wasn’t what I’d expected, not that I expected to be smacked in the face with Lacy’s garter.
Ma was a family woman. She’d spoken to me a few years back and understood my stance to wait. She explained that I should be careful not to lead anyone on, though, since sex brought emotions and attachment for many women. But shealso told me not to be a dick about it. Ma was big on respect and dignity. Even though bunnies had their place, we still needed to respect that they’re human. It was one thing to let a bunny think she had a shot at a life with you, but if you were clear about expectations, or lack thereof, anything they assumed was on them. Plus, that kept the bullshit at the clubhouse to a minimum. There still was bad blood amongst them sometimes, but it was short lived.
I hoped I was clear with the women I had. Bunnies often understood their roles, but that didn’t take away the fact that at the end of the day, they were all women with feelings. Add to it that everyone expected me to be president someday and that only complicated the matter.
Having an Old Man with the club carried a lot of weight on its own.An officer? Definitely more sought after.The president? Well, Ma made sure that everyone knew what would happen if they even looked twice at Pops, so anyone next in line was the next best choice to try to snag.
Had I ruled out ever getting hitched? I grew up knowing never to say never. Shit happened fast and things changed. The quickest way to ensure something was going to take place was to say it would never happen. And up until Pops was taken out, I’d had in the back of my mind that I’d someday find a match suitable for me and the life. Even if it wasn’t for love, at least to carry on my legacy. Now, I just didn’t think I could subject someone to what Ma went through.
What I surely never considered was being coerced into choosing a wife. Coerced because that preppy fucker had another thing coming if he thought he was going to force me to take a wife. Hell,wifepractically meant nothing to us. Claimingan Old Lady, property patch included, was what mattered to us.
As the party started to wind down and the crowd began to thin, my eyes landed on Penny. She was part of the bridal party, again, probably against her will. She was a pretty girl…girlbeing the operative word. Sure, she was in her mid-twenties, but to me she’d always be my baby sister. She and I favored each other, but while I was definitely more masculine, her features were delicate, unlike her attitude.
Her long black hair was pinned up in some fancy style and her icy blue eyes looked more green from the teal bridesmaid dress. It was still strange to see her with a drink in her hand, and I wanted to rush over and snatch it away. I had to constantly remind myself she wasn’t a child, but I’d been protective of her since she was born. After Pops was killed, the weight of ensuring the safety of her and Ma became even heavier.
I was technically only interim president. An official vote had to happen with all officers from each chapter to choose the national chapter president. I tried many times but with everything going on, it wasn’t as urgent as other things. Plus, at this point it was more of a formality than anything. The other chapters hadn’t expressed any issues with me assuming the role thus far, but we still needed to make it official.
When we tried to have this wedding before, that was the plan. But Butch and those fuckers, the Hellbound Heathens, tried to overthrow us. They failed miserably, but with everything that happened and the change of plans surrounding it, the vote fell to the wayside again.
Everyone was gathered again, though, and the plan wasto handle it before everyone left. Now I also had to worry about Petrov and his stupid idea.
Glancing over my glass as I sipped the smooth whiskey, I noticed Petrov walking towards Penny.
Oh fuck no.
Taking long, quick strides, I made my way to the bar where Penny watched Petrov like a female preying mantis, letting a mate make their move before devouring them. The problem was while he wasn’t in charge of us, we still had to keep up the pretense of a happy business partnership and having a woman tear him to shreds in a public forum probably would take more smoothing over than I was prepared to do. Also, that slick fucker probably enjoyed a little degradation.
As I approached, Penny broke her intense gaze from Petrov and when her eyes landed on me, they nearly rolled inside her skull. “What?” she snapped.
Petrov grinned, turning to look at me. “Oh, Hawk. I was just enjoying a riveting conversation with your intelligent sister.”
“She’s too smart for the likes of us,” I said, trying to keep my tone even.
“Beautyandbrains,” Petrov said with a sly grin. “Deadly combination.”
“Yes. Anyone messing with Penny would be deadly,” I said with my own grin.
“To sisters,” Petrov said, raising his glass.
