More Than Miles (A Lost Kings MC Novel) (16 page)

I have to give Axel credit. I didn’t see this coming.

Wrath kicking my ass? Sure, I’ve been waiting on that one for a while now.

Teller upset that I messed around with Heidi? I figured he might be uncomfortable. Maybe not thrilled. This level of pissed? No, I didn’t expect that.

Axel having the balls to call me out in front of every one, though?

I underestimated him.

That Heidi apparently confessed to her boyfriend and he forgave her and focused his rage on me? Nope. Never saw that coming.

When this clusterfuck dies down, I need to seriously consider having my head removed from my ass.

If I were a fraction smarter, I would’ve seen
all
of this coming.

Not that it would have mattered. Still wasn’t voting Axel in. I know I’m a dick for letting a girl fuck with club business. And if it were any other girl in the world, I wouldn’t. Which by the way, is probably the only reason Rock won’t strip my patch for this epic fuckupedness.

“Given I might
accidentally
kill one of you, it’s probably better that Z dole out the beatings you two assholes have coming.”

Wrath’s deadly voice breaks into my thoughts. It should scare the piss out of me. The fact that I think he’s referring to Trinity reminds me of what a piece of shit I am. I sort of welcome the ass kicking I’ve got coming.

“Did you touch her?” Teller demands.

No way am I talking about anything that’s gone on between me and Heidi in front of all my brothers. I cross my arms over my chest and stare him down, letting him know this topic is off-limits.

Teller shakes his head. “Fucker.” He turns on Axel. “And
you
. I catch you over at our apartment again, I’ll murder you.”

Axel backs up a few steps. “That’s fine. We’re planning to get our own apartment anyway.”

Damn, the kid has balls. If this situation were slightly different, I’d have mad respect for him.

Teller isn’t really seeing the grit in this kid. Nope. He lunges at him, tackling him to the ground.

“Enough!” Rock roars. “Get him off Axel.” He points to Z, who hauls Teller away and throws him down on one of the couches in the back of the room. Wrath has his head down, but if his shaking shoulders are any indication—he’s laughing.

I’d laugh too if I weren’t so fucking miserable.

“Jesus Christ,” Rock grumbles. “A simple fuckin’ vote. You guys have to be shittin’ me.” He jabs a finger in the air at Teller. “Your sister’s eighteen. She’s an adult. I suggest you calm the fuck down before talking to her or you’re gonna piss her the fuck off.”

Rock swings his presidential glare my way next, but the corners of his mouth are ever-so-slightly turned up, telling me he’s not horribly pissed at me.

Thank fuck.

A
s I arrive at the clubhouse, everyone except the officers storm out of the war room.

Axel doesn’t come out, either.

That can’t be good.

Maybe they voted him in?

I need to tell Axel about the baby. Maybe he’ll think it’s good news if he hears it on the same day he patched in to the club.

Ravage and Dex glance at me and Dex shakes his head. A strange, prickly sensation tickles my skin. I open my mouth to ask what’s going on, but Birch’s voice stops me.

“That shit with Murphy hatin’ on Axel’s just gonna get worse. No way is he ever gonna vote—” He stops when he notices me, and Dex punches him in the arm.

“Club business stays in there.” He jerks his thumb toward the closed war room doors and walks out the front door with Ravage.

Hoot laughs and smacks Birch. “Christ, you’re gonna lose your patch before you even get to wear it.”

I know better than to say anything. Over the years, I’ve learned if I keep quiet and fade into the background, the guys will talk about all sorts of things in front of me.

Except, they both glare at me.

That’s never happened before.

Since Axel’s a prospect, I’ve hung out with Hoot and Birch plenty of times. They’ve always been cool to hang out with. Plus, my brother’s the treasurer, so they’d be nuts to disrespect me.

But now they leave without speaking to me.

An uneasy feeling creeps through my stomach. More than the morning sickness that seems to attack me all day long. I run down to the bathroom to throw up and when I return, Trinity’s walking in the front door.

She tips her head at the closed war room doors. “They still in church?” she asks.

“Yup. Everyone else left, except the officers and Axel.”

Her forehead wrinkles and she crosses the room to stand in front of me. “That can’t be good.”

“Yeah, I thought so, too.” I still feel awkward around Trinity. She’s a girl, though. Maybe I should ask her what to do? I really need to talk to Hope, but she’s not around this afternoon.

A few minutes later, Wrath and Z storm out. No sign of my brother, Murphy, Axel or Uncle Rock.

“What’s going on?” Trinity asks.

Wrath’s gaze slides to me and he shakes his head. “Nothing. Club business.”

Club business is the guys’ way of nicely saying, “None of
your
business.” I’ve heard it for years.

The only good thing I can say is that they never use that excuse unless it really is about club business.

The bad thing is, I know it means Axel didn’t get voted in.

Rock’s about to let us all go. Teller’s calmed down. Sort of. Murphy doesn’t have the stones to look at me at all.

“Can we talk, prez?” I ask, after the two of them leave.

“Yeah. Sit.” He points to Z’s chair and I feel a little uneasy taking it.

“Thank you for everything you’ve done for me. But I think…I think I’m done with the club.”

He sighs and sits back in his chair, but his eyes never leave me. “I figured. I’m sorry. I know you’ve worked hard and you’ve been an asset to us. You know guys get voted down and still patch in later.”

“We both know Murphy will never vote me in. I understand why it has to be unanimous. Honestly, I don’t blame him. I don’t one hundred percent trust him and I know that’s a problem.”

“You want me to put in a word with Sway for you? He wouldn’t make you start over with a full two years of prospecting.”

The thought of moving to the Lost Kings MC’s downstate charter is incredibly unappealing. I spent some time there last year and they run things very different from the way Rock runs things.

“No. I—I like how things are run here. I don’t think I could—”

He holds up a hand. “I get it.”

Now, I understand in some clubs a prospect might not make it out alive. They’ve seen too much. Know too much. I have my guesses, but other than the strip club, I have no clue how the Lost Kings earn their money.

“This will make things difficult for Heidi,” he says, completely surprising me that Heidi’s his first concern here. This is why leaving the club is hard. Rock’s a good guy and I respect him a lot. Respect the way he takes care of the members of his club. Yeah, Wrath and Z have ridden me pretty hard and thrown a lot of work on me, but they’ve also always treated me with respect.

“I won’t stop Heidi from visiting.”

“You’re always welcome here for family functions. I want you to know that.”

“Thank you. Appreciate it.”

He stands and walks over to the locked cabinet where I’ve only seen him take stuff out of a handful of times.

“You done at the end of this semester?”

“Yes.”

“Got anything lined up?”

“I have some leads. I can take care of Heidi.”

The corners of his mouth lift. “Good. Glad to hear it. Even so, if you need a reference, use my name. I’ve got a contact at a diesel shop over in Ironworks I can put you in touch with.”

“Thanks. That’s…that would be a huge help.” The school helps us with placements, but there’s a ton of competition for coveted spots. Any extra edge I can get is great.

He returns to his chair and passes an envelope to me. “I want you to take this.”

The envelope is thick, and when I peek inside, there’s a lot of crisp hundred-dollar bills padding it. “Prez—”

“Just Rock now.”

“Rock, I can’t take your money.”

“Yes, you can. And you will. You said you’re planning to get an apartment near campus with Heidi?”

I nod, because yes, Heidi and I have talked about it a couple times.

“Find a nice place near campus for Heidi and use that for living expenses.”

“I—”

“Need to concentrate on your schoolwork.”

The intention behind his word is clear. This matter is closed as far as Rock’s concerned. I slip the money into my pocket and stand. “Thank you.”

He holds out his hand, but instead of a shake, he pulls me in for a quick hug and backslap. “You’re a good kid. I’m sorry it didn’t work out.”

My throat tightens and I have a brief moment of regret. Am I making a mistake turning my back on this family who’s, at times, treated me better than my own family?

I’m conflicted all the way out the door. But I don’t think there’s any way to take my words back.

Once you’re out, you’re out.

“W
hat’s going on, Blake?” Heidi’s voice pulls me away from staring at the war room door. I did a shit thing in there, but I don’t feel as bad about it as I should.