Reckless Love (Satan's Prophets MC, Book 2) (Satan's Prophets MC Series) (9 page)

Mick headed back to town. He thought about just going back to the motel, but he didn’t feel like sitting in that little motel room all alone, so he decided to check out the corn-and-clam slam. He parked his bike near a roped off area and walked into the crowd looking for familiar faces. He spotted Drifter and Roach over by the shooting gallery booth. A little girl was standing off to the side crying. Her mother was trying to soothe her, to no avail. Drifter was shooting at the target and missing, every so often letting a swear word come out of his mouth. Roach was standing next to him, ribbing him every time he missed.

“You know this gun is rigged, so shut your trap,” Drifter scowled back at him.

Mick reached them in time to see Drifter pick up the gun and smash it against the side of the booth. He put the broken gun down on the counter and pointed with his index finger to a big, brown bear on the top shelf.

He growled to the worker, “I’ll take that bear up there.” The worker took small hesitant steps toward the shelves lined with prizes, undecided what to do. It was when Drifter started cracking his knuckles that the worker quickly grabbed the bear and handed it to him. Drifter turned to the little girl and her face lit up into a big smile as he handed her the bear. Her mother thanked Drifter profusely before they turned and walked away.

Roach started walking away, then looked back at Drifter. “Didn’t take you for such a softhearted prick. Come on, let’s get the fuck out of here before that douche calls the cops or something.”

Seeing that little kid standing there crying really got to Drifter. It made him think of his son that he’d never seen. His ex-girlfriend gave his kid away because she found a new lover and skipped town with him. She didn’t want the extra baggage of a baby along. When Drifter found out, he hired a private investigator immediately, but so far, no luck on locating him. All he knew is that he would never give up until he found his kid. He only hoped that whoever had his son was taking good care of him.

* * *

Jaz was sitting with Holly and her son at a picnic table enjoying potato pancakes when she noticed Renee and Susanna walking among the crowd. She yelled out to them and they hurriedly came over to Jaz.

“Thank goodness you guys have a table to sit at. My freaking feet are killing me,” Susanna cried out. She sat down and took off one shoe to rub her foot. “Just look at the size of this stupid blister!”

Renee pointed down to her beige pumps with the inch-high heel. “I told you not to wear those shoes. They’re not practical for walking around in all night.”

“But look how stylish they are, and they do make my feet look smaller,” Susanna whined. “Just be glad you’re not a size ten shoe!”

Susanna looked up when she heard her name called, surprised to see Roach standing there with Mick and Drifter. He asked her how she was.

Her eyes sparkled when she answered, “Just fine.”

Mick walked over by Renee, scanning around the nearby stands and looking for Peter. When he didn’t see him, he asked in a small, tight voice, “Where’s your douche of a boyfriend?”

She didn’t want to think about Peter. Mick looked so hot and sexy standing there, she felt butterflies in her stomach. She had to lower her face so he wouldn’t see her blushing. She shrugged. “I wouldn’t know.” Renee felt a spark of hope ignite inside her. Mick sounded a little jealous.

“Where’s your men?” Roach asked, looking down at Jaz and Holly.

“Where do you think?” Jaz rolled her eyes and jerked her head toward a beer stand that was set up off to the side.

“Sounds like a plan to me.” Roach smiled, already walking over with Drifter hot on his heels.

Mick asked Renee a few questions about Michael and, hearing he was doing good, left to go have a beer with his bros. Renee sighed as she watched Mick walk away. Her little girly nub was tingling loud and clear.

* * *

Holly asked Renee if she wouldn’t mind getting her some more sour cream for Sam’s potato pancake. She walked over to the stand to get some along with more napkins. With Renee’s auburn hair hanging loose around her face, and in her black tank top and tight denim jeans, she was getting a lot of attention. When she turned to leave, she noticed four guys close by eyeing her up. They moved in closer and surrounded her. She was trapped inside a circle of male chests.

“Hey, pretty lady, wanna join me and my friends here? We’ll show you a good time.”

Renee shook her head no and asked them to move, but they wouldn’t budge. She tried to push one aside with no luck. They laughed at her feeble effort. It was when one of the men grabbed her arm and ran his finger down the side of her face that all hell broke loose.

Mick was over at the beer stand, having a few drinks with the guys and keeping one eye on Renee. He watched as she got up and walked over to the food stand. He noticed the men flock around her and was just getting ready to walk over. When one of the guys touched her, his fate was sealed. By the time Mick reached them, Renee was as white as a sheet and struggling to get her arm free.

Mick growled in a low, hard voice. “You’ve got one second to take that arm off of her before I cut it off.” The guy got the message as he felt a knife being pressed to his ribs. He immediately lowered his arm. “Renee, get back over to the girls.”

Renee hurried away on wobbly legs and broke out in tears. Jaz put her arms around Renee to comfort her.

“Seems like you and me need to have a lil’ talk about you touchin’ what don’t belong to ya.” Mick nudged the guy a little harder with his knife in the direction of the wooded area. “Move.”

When his friends tried to interfere, JD, Roach, and Drifter blocked their path. “You three jerk-offs wanna join your friend in the woods?” Striker asked in a low, gravelly voice. “Because I could sure use a little exercise. How about you?” Striker turned to ask his bros.

JD’s mouth formed a crooked grin that didn’t reach his cold, dark eyes. “Hell, yeah. Good idea.”

Looking at the outlaw bikers standing in front of them, the three men’s faces drained of color and small beads of sweat were forming on their upper lips. They were shuffling their feet looking around for an escape route, and when JD moved a little to the side, the three of them took off running like a bolt of lightning. “Fuckin’ little dip shits,” Roach said with a disgusted snort.

Mick came walking out of the woods alone with his knuckles bruised and his t-shirt hanging over his jeans. He ran his hands through his hair to push it back, then unzipped his jeans to tuck his t-shirt back in. He stretched his arms out wide, looking around. “Hell, where’d everybody go? I was just getting warmed up.”

“Ran like fuckin’ little mice. Thought they were gonna shit their pants, the way their legs were shaking.” Striker smirked.

Mick frowned and muttered, “I think the other one did. Something sure stunk back there.” The bros burst out laughing and walked back over to the women.

“You okay, Renee?” Mick asked with concern, looking into her eyes.

She answered in a shaky voice, “Yes. Thank you for helping me.”

“Anytime, darlin’.” Seeing how upset Renee was, Mick walked away and came back with a half cup of beer. “Here, drink this. It’ll calm you down some.”

Renee felt a heaviness settle in her stomach, seeing the bruised knuckles on Mick’s hands as he handed the drink to her. It brought her back to the reality of his dangerous lifestyle. Renee did as Mick suggested. She gagged a little, but she had to admit, it did calm her down.

Susanna turned to Renee. “Well, honey, I’ve had enough excitement for one night. I’m ready to go home. How about you?”

Renee shook her head. “I’m more than ready. I just want to go home and forget about what happened here.”

Striker picked up Sam and told Holly to get her ass to the truck. They were leaving.

Jaz frowned, not liking the way Striker always ordered Holly around. “Screw him, Holly. You can stay with JD and me if you want to. We’ll take you home.”

“No way,” she whispered in Jaz’s ear. “When Striker’s worked up like this, the sex is
fantastic
.” Jaz watched her hurrying over to Striker’s truck and burst out laughing.

JD asked, “What’s so funny?”

Jaz just shook her head. “I’ll show you when we get home.” JD picked up Jaz and threw her over his shoulder and walked toward his bike.

Susanna turned around to grab her shoe and just happened to catch sight of Peter standing in the shadow of a tree, his eyes intent on Renee. She didn’t want to upset Renee, so she quickly stood and asked Mick if he would walk them to their car. Once they were safely inside and driving away, Susanna mentioned seeing Peter lurking in the shadows. Renee visibly shuddered and told Susanna she was done with him. Susanna was relieved, but when Renee would say no more, she let it go, still a little worried.

Roach and Drifter followed behind and, after the girls drove away, they walked around a little longer. Roach was looking for a little action.

“Doubt you’re gonna find what you’re looking for here,” Mick commented, looking around himself. “These mommas keep a tight rein on their daughters when they see the big bad men coming,” he joked.

Roach stopped and looked at his bros. “What the fuck we doin’ here anyway? Let’s ride over to The Den. At least that place has more action goin’ on.”

“Yeah sounds like a plan. Maybe Lila is there tonight. Damn, she’s getting’ good at suckin’ dick. Thought my balls were gonna get sucked in the last time,” Drifter bragged. 

“Nah, not me. I’m going home. Gotta be up early tomorrow and head over to the bank for the closing on my house.”

Roach grinned and clapped Drifter on the back. “Come on, Drifter, let’s go see Lila and show her how to do two for the price of one.”              

* * *

The next day, Mick was in a great mood as he headed over to the bank. All he needed to do was sign the final paperwork at the closing and the house was officially his. He couldn’t wait to hold the deed with his name on it in his hand. The meeting was wrapped up pretty quickly and Mick felt like whooping out loud. He hopped on his bike and took off, just riding, enjoying the sense of freedom. He found a narrow trail that led up to the top of the mountain he often admired from a distance. He followed it slowly on his bike until he could ride no further and took off on foot, slowly climbing the rocky, hilly terrain. Finally, after what seemed like a good hour of hiking, he reached the top of Hubbard Mountain and was covered in a fine sheen of sweat. He was in awe as he looked down over the little valley town of Fulton. It looked like a miniature town that might sit under the Christmas tree with the train going around it. He sat down on a big boulder and just kept gazing at the town below, thinking of how much his life had changed over the past few years.

He thought about how he went from being a loner most of his life to finding a sister in Jaz, a new found family of MC brothers, and now he was a father. The thought of that still scared the crap out of him, but he was trying his best to be there for his kid. Maybe an outlaw biker wasn’t the best role model, as Renee was so quick to point out, but he figured his kid could do a lot worse. Thinking back to his dad who was a perfect role model and worked all hours of the day to make a good living for his family—but wasn’t around when it counted the most—yes, his kid could do a lot worse. Mick was lost in his musings and didn’t realize the sun was almost set until he felt the chill in the air. He headed back down the mountain to his bike and rode home.

Mick walked into his house and stood there, feeling a sense of pride wash over him. It was his and he had earned every dollar to buy it. He thought of all the fugitives he had chased down, the long weeks spent on the road, the lonely nights when he was on a stakeout, and knew it was all worth it. But the longer he stood there and looked around, the more he realized how big and empty his house was. He imagined it with lights on in every room, friends over shooting pool or just to hang out and drink. He wanted his house to be his place of refuge, a place he could come home to every night for comfort and good home-cooked meals. His joy at owning this house suddenly didn’t seem as exciting as he had thought it would be. He shook his head, feeling a heaviness settle in his chest, realizing these dreams and fantasies were meant for other people, not him.