Page 48 of Charger

“Was it from daddy?”

With a sigh, I smile. “Yes, it was from your daddy. It was a birthday present.”

“Am I ever going to meet him?” Her “light up the room” smile fades.

Just when a heart couldn’t break anymore…

“How about you let me worry about that and let’s focus on getting that lipstick off your face.” Her cute little smile is back. “How about this… remember when I told you that daddy had very important things to take care of?” She nods with enthusiasm. “Well, what if his important things are over?” Her smile is growing bigger by the second. My heart warms. Being able to tell Chloe that her dad is going to be around is by far the best feeling.

After about an hour of trying to stay busy, my curiosity gets the best of me. Zach has seen where I work, has seen what my life is about, maybe it’s time I did the same. If he is going to be active in Chloe’s life, I need to know what exactly his biker life is like. Biker club doesn’t exactly scream family fun zone.

A knock at the door has me guessing that Lucy has arrived. I called her, asking if she would watch Chloe for a while. She gladly accepted the offer. She loves Chloe.

“Thanks for coming over last minute, Lucy.”

“It’s totally fine. It’s either come over and play dolls with your adorable five-year-old, or sit home on my day off, binge watching Korean Dramas and wishing I had that kind of love life.”

“You watch K-Dramas?”

“No…” Lucy smiles, setting her purse down.

“Lucy!” Chloe darts over, clinging to her leg. “Do you want to play with my dollhouse?”

“Uh, yeah, totally. How about you go set it up and I’ll be there in a sec.” Chloe runs back to her room, pulling out all her doll pieces. “Are you going to be okay? Going there by yourself, I mean? You don’t know how those club places can get.”

“I do. I dated a club member, remember?”

“Yeah, well, just be careful is all.”

“I will. I need to see what the life of Zachary Scott is all about.”

Having dated Venom for almost a year, I know how these biker club’s work. But that’s Venom’s club, not Zach’s. So, let’s see what the difference is, shall we?

After googling the address, I realize I have driven past here numerous times. He hasn’t been that far away from me after all.

I park off to the side on the dirt lot and head up to their club, which is basically a large bar. It looks pretty nice but I make sure my pepper spray is handy on my keychain, clenching it to me. Venom’s club was anything but kind so I have to be prepared.

They have a gym and a bike shop on either side of the bar. The buildings are clean, the landscape is kept up, and they don’t give off any “danger” vibes. This is the nicest looking biker bar I have ever seen.

I take a deep breath in, then exhale before opening the door. There’s not a lot of people here but it is a Monday. They have your average pool tables toward the back and a stage, which I’m guessing is for live music, on the left; whereas the bar is to the right. I swallow nervously, walking past a group of men—each spinning around in a slow circle. I try to seek out the person I came to see.

“Hey, sweetheart, lookin’ for someone?” the girl behind the bar asks me. She’s pretty. Her chocolate brown hair makes her green eyes pop.

“Um, I’m looking for Za—Charger,” I quickly correct myself.

She eyes me up and down before smiling. “He’s in the pit, sweetie.”

“The pit?”

“The pit is the fighting arena. He fights there like all the time.” She sets a glass in the soapy water in front of her. Zach fights? “It’s the dingy place out back.”

Well, now I definitely have to see this for myself. What kind of fighting is this? Sounds like an illegal underground thing going on. “Okay, thank you.” I start walking straight for the back.

“Now, hang on, the pit is no place for someone like you. Those men will eat you up.”

I flash her my keychain. “I’ll be fine, nothing a little pepper spray can’t handle.” I’m out the door before she can say anything else.

As soon as I make it outside, I can hear the music thumping. Bikes and cars are lined up in the back lot. When I reach the door and pull it open, the smell of smoke, sweat, and beer hits my face. Letting out a cough, I continue down the narrow entryway, only to be stopped by a huge bouncer at the end.

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