Sexy Bastards Anthology: Bad Boy, Biker, Alpha, Motorcycle Club, Contemporary Romance Collection (71 page)

Nate shook his head. “This is fucked! I ain’t leaving here until I know how I got caught in this squeeze play.” He looked at Craig. So did everyone else in the room.

Craig didn’t say anything.

Morgan sighed. “Don’t make me take you to the circle Craig. I don’t want to beat it out of you. You’re out of options. Did you set this shit up?”

Craig threw his hands in the air. “Fuck yeah, I did! But it wasn’t my fault, Morgan!” He jabbed a finger in Morgan’s direction. “You bought this damn bar when you became prez. All of a sudden you didn’t care about the money we could make anymore. You dropped the dope trade.” He spun around the room. “Most of you guys got a job or an old lady with a job or something. Me? I got nothing but you guys, and all of a sudden I was just hanging ass out to the wind, and nobody seemed to care that the money was running downhill and not touching any of us anymore.”

“It’s not anyone’s fault, but your own, Craig. You got greedy. No matter how you felt about what was happening with money you could have come and talked to us, to me. We are brothers. Not a bunch of OutKasts.” Morgan shrugged at Nate. “No offense, man.”

Craig clearly disagreed. “Whatever man! You stopped listening a long time ago.”

Morgan shook his head. “Doesn’t matter. You don’t make your crew responsible for your shit. Ever. We rode for you, man. We could all get our asses handed to us in a sling if we get looked at for being in that house. If it was somehow tied into some big money project you can bet the men who did it have enough cash to stay out of jail. We don’t. You screwed us, Craig. Now you have to walk.”

Craig’s eyebrows shot up. He stared at Morgan in disbelief. “You’re exiling me? You’re putting me in the wind, Morgan? I helped start this club!”

“Walk,” Morgan said evenly but Katie saw the sorrow on his face. She read it in his body language too. He was doing something so hard it was twisting him up inside but he had to do it anyway. “I mean it, Craig. Walk out of here or we’ll carry you out.”

Craig looked from face to face. Nobody looked away from him. Nobody made a move toward him either. He spoke again, and his voice held a break that made Katie’s heart catch. “Keep the sunny side up, Morgan.”

Morgan didn’t say anything.

Nobody did.

Craig walked.

Katie stared into the depths of her drink. Her thoughts twisted and chaotic. What would happen if she ever made Morgan angry? Would he send her away like he had just sent Craig away? He had cut her off earlier, and without a qualm. He’d been happy to see her when she had shown up, but did that mean he would let her stay? She didn’t know, and she wasn’t sure she wanted to know the answers to those questions either.

Nate cleared his throat. “This is all sweet and shit, but enough. Where’s my money?”

Morgan sighed. “You’ll get it in three hours.”

Nate glanced at Katie before turning back to Morgan. “You’d better have that timing right
brother
.”

Morgan met his eyes steadily. “I do.”

Nate hitched his pants and motioned to his club members. “I think me and my boys have a little business to deal with.”

“It better not have anything to do with Craig.” Morgan tapped the barrel of the rifle he still held.

Nate shrugged, clearly unconcerned by the gun. “Would it be so bad if it did?”

“We agreed he could walk clean,” Morgan said. “Let him walk.”

Nate shook his head. “Your call, but I’d be doing you a favor. Guys like that always come back pissed off.”

“I know. When he does I’ll be waiting for him,” Morgan said.

Nate pointed to the door and his crew began filing out. He turned to Katie and grabbed her hand, kissing her knuckles. “I’ll be seeing you around, babe.” He winked. “Maybe in my dreams, but fuck, you’ll be there.”

Katie pulled her hand back and slapped him. “Drive careful.” She took pleasure in the angry red print already showing on Nate’s cheek. He grinned and nodded at Morgan before leaving.

She sagged against the bar with relief when she heard the motorbikes rumble away. She lifted the drink to her mouth and sipped it carefully.

Morgan took her by one arm and said, “You, in the office, now. The rest of you, figure up what we have and get it in here.”

Katie was propelled across the floor so fast she didn’t have time to protest. Morgan closed the door to the office and looked down at the drink she held. “Fuck! It looks like Jack likes you now too.”

Her heart hurt. So did her throat, now almost painfully tight. “Do you?”

He stared at her, his facial expression giving nothing away. “Tell me why the hell you lied to me.”

“Because I didn’t know you. You lied to me as well.” She pressed her lips tight. This wasn’t about he said, she said. She didn’t want to fight him. She let out a shaky breath. “I was taught to lie. I was raised to believe my safety would be compromised at any time. Even in college I had to worry something bad might happen. I went to Yale for shit’s sake, where a lot of rich kids go, and even there I was constantly being reminded of how dangerous my last name and my family’s money could be. I didn’t know you, and once I did, I was scared you’d be like everyone else and only be interested in me for my money.”

“That’s not very flattering. About me, I mean. Your parents were afraid you’d get kidnapped and held for ransom because of what happened to your brother I take it.”

Her eyes filled and she blinked the wetness away. That was old news. It had happened before she had even been born. She’d never known her brother, she only knew that when he was five he had been taken and held for ransom. He had been returned, but he’d been left in the cold, in a park, at night. He’d died of exposure before he could be found. Nobody had ever told her she had been a poor substitute for him either—but she knew it anyway. “It changed my mother. She was…and still is, an alcoholic. She’s also in and out of very discreet institutions. My father wanted another child. She didn’t. Not after that. I was born to a surrogate. She refused to carry me. He hoped for a boy but he got me instead.

“He groomed me to take over the company and I went along with all of that but…but I never wanted to be there. Then I met you. I walked out on everything. On my job, the apartment, my life. Everything. I didn’t even take the car. I have no idea what I’m going to do, or how. I didn’t even think about it. I just knew I didn’t want to be there, living that life anymore. So I left and I came here. I don’t know what that tells you, if anything. I don’t know if you want me. I don’t know if…”

He crossed the distance between them and took her into his arms. “I want you. But Katie, look around. I don’t just ride for fun or pleasure. I’m not a bad boy you date to get back at daddy. This is who I am. I can’t guarantee you won’t get mixed up in more shit somewhere down the road.”

“I don’t care,” she said fiercely. “I don’t give a crap about any of it. I just care that I get to be with you.”

His heart beat rapidly against her cheek. “Katie, think carefully about what you’re saying.”

“I feel more alive when I’m with you than any other time.” She stepped back and looked him in his eyes. “I know what I want.”

Morgan ran his fingers through his hair. “I… We… You need to sit down and think about what you’re saying. Take the time to make sure. This isn’t a heat of the moment decision. You have so much riding on everything you do. Please. Just think about it.” Someone knocked on the door but didn’t open it. “I have to go right now. I have to cull money from some really shady places. I have to handle a lot of bad shit and I don’t want you mixed up in it.”

“I can give you the money…”

“No, you can’t! See, right now, you’re asking me to break a code. You’re asking me to let you do something that is mine to do. I’m the leader of this club. That means I have to take care of this. You can’t be here right now, not because I don’t think you can handle yourself—you’ve proven you can.” He started to laugh. “I should’ve gone out just to watch that OutKast get on his bike and ride with a bullet hole in his butt.”

She chuckled. “That might have been fun.”

He nodded and his face sobered. “I have to take care of things. You go back to your pent—wait…you left your apartment?”

“I quit my job. Everything.” The realization of everything seemed on the verge of settling in. She fought the fear and pushed her shoulders back. “I’m at the Earl and Spencer hotel down the street. Room 1502.”

“I’ll come there. Soon. I promise. Right now I need you to go. Will you do that for me?”

She nodded, suddenly scared to speak. The danger of the situation frightened her in a way she had never been scared. She didn’t want to lose him.

He released her then kissed her, softly. “I’ll see you soon.” He walked her to the door.

Katie stared at him, wanting to say something but all she could do was whisper, “I’ll see you soon.”

Morgan watched her go and slowly turned away. He had shitty things to do to rake the money Craig had lost. Or stolen. Now he didn’t know. He didn’t want to think about Craig, or the whole mess he had gotten them into, or how close he had come to having to choose between Craig and Katie.

He would have chosen her if it had gone the other way. He would have, and it would have been the end of the club. Some would have understood, but it would not have changed things. It was brothers before women, always.

He hadn’t had to choose, and she had helped to make sure he didn’t have to. He was deeply grateful but he knew this wasn’t over. Not by a long shot. It wouldn’t be over until he had the last of the cash he needed to appease Nate and the guys in his crew. No matter what, Craig had ridden in his club, and one man’s mistake was everyone’s mess. He would fix it—they would fix it, then move on.

And he could go to Katie.

His mouth curved up in a smile. He was going to see Katie tonight. That was what mattered to him more than anything. She mattered to him. He was fucking falling for her.

**

Katie walked the hotel floor the rest of the day and into the evening. Where was Morgan? Was he okay? Her thoughts kept going to the guns and the way he and the others had used them so casually. How they had gone from trying to kill each other to sitting down and having an almost normal conversation. All because of a damn code Morgan was always talking about. If she wanted to be with him, she knew she would have to get used to it, and some other things too.

But he was worth it.

She stopped pacing and sat at the desk, snatching a hotel pen and a piece of paper from the drawer. The classy hotel was posh, lower than her father would ever stay at, but still posh. She needed to make a list. It was a good distraction. There were a lot of things she would have to learn how to do, like buy a house, manage her finances, speak to a lawyer regarding her parents and her money. Maybe an accountant or financial adviser would be better. Someone who didn’t work for her father.

She made another column on the paper. This list was more personal. She had to learn how to speak up about what she wanted to do, and what she didn’t. She had to figure out what made her happy. Her future was her choice. Her career included. She wanted to do something she was passionate about.

She told her dad she wanted to be an artist. It was a heat of the moment comment, now she wasn’t so sure. She could paint and she liked art, but was she passionate about it? It just seemed if she felt that way, she would have been willing to fight harder for it when she was in university.

She understood passion. She knew the feeling now without a doubt. There was one thing she was willing to fight for. Morgan.

That kiss he had given her, the way he had shielded her body with his own before she had been outed by that loudmouthed cop came to mind. He’d been happy to see her and he had done everything to protect her.

Her cell phone rang and she answered it without looking to see who was calling. Her heart sank when her father’s voice came through.

“Kathleen, I have it on good authority that you were at that bar today.”

“The one where somebody set off firecrackers?” Her heart twisted. Was her father to blame for the deaths of that other crew? He might have ordered them roughed up, that was his style, but murder was not. However, he had investors, and she had no doubt a few of them were ruthless enough to be involved. “It’s none of your business where I go.” He wanted to push her? Then she’d fire questions at him if he pushed her hard enough.

“You’re throwing your life away.”

She could almost hear him shaking his head as he spoke. “No, Father. That was what I was doing up till now. I’m a person. Not your minion. Do you even love me at all?” She didn’t give him time to respond. Anger grew inside of her, the anxiety of today exploding. “If I had been a boy would things have been better? Maybe I could have taken it then, but I can’t. I won’t. You are only fooling yourself. Living a fantasy of control.”

“You know if you walk away, there will be nobody to carry on—”

“I don’t care!” she screamed. “You want this. You fucked this up! I never asked to be something I’m not! I deserve to have the chance to find out who I am and what I want. Not what you want.”

“You are making the biggest mistake of your life.” His voice stayed low and cold. Emotionless.

“Maybe it’s the best thing, Father.” She hung up.

She wanted to feel sorrow but she couldn’t. It was almost like she’d shed a skin that was too tight and for the first time she realized just how much it had constricted her.

Her parents would never love her. Her father would likely cut her off. She had her trust fund though and they couldn’t do anything to take that back. It was her severance pay as far as she was concerned, payback for all the years they had treated her so badly or ignored her. All the times she had spent sleepless nights agonizing over making sure one thing or another was perfect only to be taken to task for one small mistake or perceived mistake.

She would not be a Wilkes anymore.

She was free.

She’d go buy the car she’d always wanted, find a job that spoke to her, buy a house and decorate it just the way she wanted to and she would never worry that the housekeepers would see her panties on the floor or a crumb on the counter. She would live a great big glorious life, and she would not ever again worry about pleasing anyone but herself.

And Morgan.

Pleasing Morgan would be easy. She’d give him his freedom, and he would do the same. She had to learn to stand on her own two feet. Morgan would teach her.

Penny had told her that night at the party. She’d said the only way to love a biker was to love the way they were no matter what, and the only way to keep a biker was to let them go. To be as strong as they were.

She could do that.

**

Morgan rode through the neighborhoods, his booted heels stopping the bike at curbs. This was serious and all the dealers knew it. They passed on the cash they owed without a word. Morgan and his crew were good to the neighborhood, and now the neighborhood had to repay some of what it had gotten over the years.

He knew Katie could have written a check as easily as she breathed, and he also knew he was probably crazy for not letting her. But it went against everything in him to let her do it. She was his girl, not an ATM. He wanted to show her he would never treat her like that.

Another thought wouldn’t leave him alone. He was filled with grief over Craig. He would have to do something about Craig at some point and he knew it. Craig would come looking for revenge, and he would either have to be killed or beaten so badly he never tried it again.

He didn’t want to fight Craig.

Nate had been right when he said he’d be doing Morgan a favor by having a ‘chat’ with Craig. Nate and his crew would kill Craig though—and it would not be an easy death. It would be hard and torturous. He caused what had nearly come to a war between the clubs, and because of Craig, several of Nate’s men had been hurt at the bar.

His lips twitched as he remembered Katie shooting the big guy in the ass. She’d been dead serious, and had a damn good shot too. One day he’d have to ask where she learned to shoot like that. The way she had taken out the gun from the one guy had been nothing short of impressive.

She was extraordinary. Impressive as hell, and she could be his. If he let her. He knew how she felt about him. He also knew exactly how he felt about her.

He swore he’d never fall for anyone again.

He hadn’t been looking for anyone when she had come walking through the door of the bar in those spotless white pants that cupped her ass and made her look like a dream designed by a horny teenaged boy.

She had come into his bar, his life, and she had turned it all upside down. She was nothing that he expected, and everything he wanted. She was phenomenal, and he knew he was lucky. He’d be an idiot to throw this opportunity away.

He also knew she would break his heart. And that could kill him.

Morgan collected the money from another street crew and got back on his bike. He knew he couldn’t say no to Katie.

It meant he’d have to teach her the code of their road, how to respect the elders of the club and that his brothers always came first. He knew they had already accepted her. They’d stood with her instead of Craig.

When he finished doing what he had to do, he was going to her, then they could discuss being together.

Building a life together.

Freedom meant a lot of things, but it didn’t mean walking away from love.