Sons of Trouble: A Biker Erotic Romance (2 page)

“You know what? I actually am pretty hungry this morning,” Chad Merrick replied. “Go get us some pancakes and sausages.”

Bianca didn’t bother to scribble their order down on her notebook. She just walked away to the kitchen to tell the cook.

“And hurry it up, bitch,” Chad shouted after her with a domineering smirk.

“The only bitch I see is the one ordering the food,” a husky voiced remarked, casually.

The insult was like a needle to Chad Merrick’s balloon of an ego. His face turned red with outrage and the smirk vanished from his face. Chad looked up to see the leader of the nomad bikers’ staring him down from the opposite booth, waving so there would be no doubt as to who had just insulted him.

“What the fuck did you just say to me?” Chad demanded. His voice faltered with rage, as he stood up to confront the biker.

“I was just saying you should show a bit more respect for the lady who’s waiting on you.” The nomad leader stood up and squared off against the hooligan leader. Before long, their respective crews stood behind them, as well.

“She does whatever she’s fucking told,” Chad Merrick shot back. “I’m more interested in the fact that you just called me a bitch. It makes me think you’re not from round here, since no one in this crappy old town would be stupid enough to do that.”

“Oh, not only did I just call you a bitch,” the nomad leader retorted, and then, quick as lightning, he rabbit-punched Chad Merrick in the face, knocking him off his feet and into the arms of his crew, “I think I just proved it, too.”

Bianca had stopped on her way to the kitchen to watch the confrontation unfold. Now, she stood frozen with horror. The biker just signed the demolition warrant of her precious business. The fight would smash her shop to bits; but, even if they didn’t end up fighting, the Merrick boys would surely return to smash the place up out of spite. This time there would be no cash to compensate for the damage or to buy her silence. Fear of further reprisals would buy that all on its own.

Chad Merrick scrambled to his feet, seething with fury from the blow. Blood was trickling from both his nostrils and he looked ready to fight. So did the nomad bikers, all of whom raised their fists and prepared to hurt someone. The Merrick boys tried to look tough with a slim six to five numerical advantage, but it was clear who would win if a fight broke out. The nomad bikers were clearly bigger and stronger than their adolescent opponents. Some of them sported knuckledusters, too; but, the Merrick boys had only their bare fists.

“You’re dead,” Chad Merrick hissed, still visibly smarting from the blow, both to his face and to his pride. “You hear me, you’re all fucking dead!”

“I’m standing right here, pussy,” said the nomad leader. He smirked and spread his hands out, inviting Chad to hit him back.

“Enough, all of you!” Bianca shouted, finally deciding to intervene before it was too late. “If you’re going to fight, do it outside!”

“No one’s talking you, bitch!” Chad snapped at her. That statement earned him a second punch from the nomad leader, straight in the face again.

“What’d I just say about showing some respect to the lady?” the nomad leader inquired coolly, wagging his finger at the bloodied hooligan.

At this point, the Merrick gang’s resolve faltered. Chad’s nose was bleeding profusely from both nostrils and it was clear that they weren’t going to win this fight. Slowly, they backed towards the front door, while one of them took the initiative to grab a handful of napkins on the way out.

“We’ll be back!” Chad warned. His voice sounded a lot less threatening with his nose full of blood. “My dad will have you all locked up for assault and then we’ll fucking get you! You’ll see! Then, we will smash this fucking diner to pieces!”

They made a hasty retreat from the diner, covering their withdrawal with a continuous barrage of face-saving curses and threats. The other patrons of the diner watched in a mixture of shock, fear, and relief, as the terrors of the town climbed into their 4x4 and sped away with their tails between their legs. No cheering or whooping could be heard, as they faded into the distance.

On the other hand, there was a cautious round of applause for the nomad bikers, as the other customers processed the fact that someone had finally stood up to the Merrick gang. The bikers accepted the adulation with modest smiles, albeit tinged with an element of self-satisfaction. Then, they returned to their seats, all except for the leader who went behind the counter to speak with Bianca.

“Sorry about that. No one deserves to be spoken to like that.”

“Thanks a lot.” Bianca didn’t sound nor feel particularly grateful, as she furtively arranged things behind the counter.

“Are you ok?”

“Do you have any idea what you’ve done?” Bianca hissed at him. She tried to keep her voice down to avoid attracting the attention of the other customers in the diner, but her anger was evident.

“I just kicked out some prick who was abusing you, that’s what I did,” he replied, confused by her apparent ingratitude.

“No one ever talks that way to the Merrick boys,” she shot back angrily, “and they certainly don’t punch them in the face! If you so much flinch in a way they don’t like, they’ll trash whatever they can, just out of spite. You think they were joking when they threatened to smash this place up? They’ve done it before and not just to my business.”

“Are people that afraid of them?”

“They think they own this town and they practically do. Chad Merrick, the guy you floored, his father is the town commissioner. So, the local cops can never prove anything against them and they can get away with pretty much anything they want.” Bianca fought back tears, then she recomposed herself and rubbed her moist eyes. “I’m sorry. I don’t mean to sound ungrateful. It’s just that the Merrick boys have been terrorizing me for years; me and everyone else unlucky enough to cross paths with them. The only thing that makes the abuse worthwhile is the cash they pay for the damage they cause. This diner is my life, if they decide to tear it down because I’m rude to them, they’ll do it; but, there’ll be no cash payout afterwards.”

The nomad leader listened with an impassive face; but, Bianca could see the incredulity in his expressive blue eyes. It was tinged with a spark of righteous anger, since part of him clearly didn’t believe that a pack of glorified goons could have the entire town under their thumb.

“Ask anyone here if you don’t believe me,” Bianca added, in an attempt to tackle his doubts.

“What if someone took care of this little problem, permanently?” The incredulity in his eyes had turned to righteous fury.

“You’re a nomad biker and I’m just an owner of a small town diner, surviving from paycheck to paycheck. Why would you care about helping me?”

The biker took an assertive step forward until he was only a few inches from Bianca. She didn’t move back or flinch, as he looked down into her eyes with his deep blue gaze. Something about those eyes mesmerized her.

He held her gaze for several seconds before finally replying, “I exacerbated this mess for you. I’ll be the one to make sure it gets cleaned up. A pretty girl like you shouldn’t have to live in fear all her life from those goons.”

Bianca tried to answer, but found herself at a loss for words. He was even more attractive up close. He looked every inch the quintessential heartthrob with his finely groomed beard, his powerful torso, and his alluring blue eyes. His mouth had a perpetual smile playing at the corners, somehow smug and self-deprecating at the same time. Just from being so close to him, Bianca realized that her heart was thumping with curious excitement.

“Well, that sounds awfully chivalrous of you,” she finally answered, trying to harden her tone into something more serious, “but you can’t deal with every problem that comes your way by punching it in the face.”

“True,” he conceded, “that’s where a crowbar comes in handy.”

“Very funny,” she snorted. Her amusement vanished when she saw the crowbar hanging from his belt and she realized that he wasn’t joking.

“You wouldn’t happen to know where the commissioner’s office is, would you?” he casually asked.

“It’s the big brown building with the US flag on it.”

“Thanks,” he said with a smile.

“Wait!” she called after him as he turned to leave. Again, she found herself at a loss for words.
Was she going to wish him luck or ask him not to go? Or maybe tell him to get on his bike and never come back?
“I didn’t get your name,” she said eventually.

“Braden,” he replied, as he pulled out a wad of cash and left it on the counter. “I’ll see you later, Bianca.”

She blinked in surprise, as she wondered how he knew her name. Then, she remembered that her uniform had a name tag on it. She took the money and began counting it out as Braden went back to his crew.

After a few words together, they roared away on their motorbikes. Bianca was left to contemplate her predicament and muse about the mysterious Braden. She was still afraid that the Merrick boys would be back; but, there was little she could do about it now that her pseudo-savior had chosen to intervene.

As she continued serving customers through lunchtime, Bianca’s thoughts returned again and again to Braden. People in town knew better than to stand up to the Merrick crew. They weren’t above torching buildings to teach people a lesson about respect, even though such cases were never proven. It had taken a brash outsider to do that; but now, her business may be burned to the ground, if not the rest of the town with it.
What business did that conceited, Harley-riding thug have interfering in a town he’d never been to before?
He’d be gone the next day, leaving everyone else to weather the consequences of his reckless behavior
, she thought.

Bianca shook her head and continued with her job. The combination of worrying about the future and contemplating the enigma of this morning’s visitors was making her head hurt. For now, she still had a business to run.

***

Around 11pm, the last few customers were finishing their late night suppers and getting ready to head home. There was usually something very satisfying about seeing the flow of customers gradually ebb towards closing time. It meant that she could soon go home and rest. This time, however, the satisfaction was overshadowed by apprehension about the Merrick crew.
When would they come round to smash the diner?
Why would the nomad bikers actually set the Merrick boys straight? Her diner was doomed for sure,
she thought.

The last of the customers paid their bills and headed home, followed by the cook. Bianca was left to sweep the floor and lock up for the night. As much as she hoped that the diner would not be smashed to pieces by the vengeful Merrick crew overnight, she knew it was a slim chance.

Bianca’s heart leaped with terror when she heard the distant roar of an engine coming from the main road. She dropped the broom and hid behind the counter, praying that it was the nomad bikers on their way out of town and not the Merrick boys on their way to destroy her livelihood. Her heart sank, as she heard the engine pull up outside the diner and then die out. Peeking up over the counter, Bianca saw a lone figure walk towards the diner entrance. There was no 4x4 in the parking lot outside, only the silhouette of a Harley-Davidson. Although the closed sign was on the door, the lights were still on and the door was still unlocked; so, the biker walked in.

“Bianca?” Braden’s voice called out.

Bianca popped up from her hiding place and gasped in shock at the sight of the otherwise handsome biker sporting a fresh bruise on the side of his forehead and bloodstains on his jacket.

“What the hell happened to you?” she exclaimed, as she rushed out to assist him.

“It’s nothing, really,” he replied reassuringly, gently brushing aside her hands.

“The rest of your crew, what happened?” she asked him frantically.

“They’re fine, they’re back at the motel where we’re staying,” he explained calmly. “The important thing is you’ll never have to deal with those goons again.”