Page 81 of Elling & Jackie

Chapter 31

Elling left out thefront door of The Fire Ring, walked across the street, and knocked on the door of the two-story house. Turning his back while he waited, he looked out at the curb. Since the Feds tried to bring in Brikken and failed, there had been no sign of Agent Campbell hanging around trying to bust up Slag.

For that, he was grateful.

The door opened. He turned and lifted his chin. "Hey, Prez. No baby yet?"

Tiredness etched Roar's eyes. "Two more days."

It'd only been two days ago he'd seen Lizzy. She'd seemed happy and excited and very pregnant. Roar, on the other hand, looked beat to shit with worrying.

"You got a few minutes?" he asked.

"Ja." Roar stepped outside. "What's on your mind?"

"I've been thinking about getting my own place." He lit a cigarette and offered one to Roar who took the pack, lighting his own.

"As you know, there's nothing in the bylaws against moving out of the clubhouse." Roar blew smoke in the air. "If you're set on getting your own place, we can move one of the couples out of the community room and into yours. I'm sure they'll appreciate the privacy."

He inhaled deeply on the cigarette, gazing at the clubhouse standing tall behind the bar. Moving out wasn't a rash decision. He'd been thinking about a way to make his relationship with Jacqueline work for both of them. Renting his own place to call home was only the first step.

Elling rubbed the back of his neck. "There's another thing I wanted to talk to you about. To get your opinion, considering it crosses over to involving the club."

"Go ahead." Roar leaned back against the house.

"Jacqueline Stanton." He glanced at his president. "I'm not willing to walk away from her."

"She belongs to Brikken."

"Ja, I know." His chest tightened every time he thought about the implications of being with her.

"You're sure about your feelings?" The warmth of Roar studying him heated his body.

He'd always been his own man. He never asked for favors, never needed advice, and did what he wanted. To admit he needed approval from the club knocked him down a peg.

"Never felt this way before." He shrugged. "Just know, I want her with me."

"It'll start a war between our clubs." Roar let a stream of smoke out of his mouth. "I have to tell you, I understand why Brikken would be out for blood over you seeing the woman. They're not going to let her walk into Slag."

"She would never give anything up and wants nothing to do with Slag." He inhaled deeply. "Same goes for me. I wouldn't ask about her family, and I don't plan on rubbing elbows with them."

"Hey, I'm not saying you would. I'm saying, Brikken won't trust you, ever. They have a right not to." Roar ground the cigarette against the thigh of his jeans and put the filter in his pocket. "The same way I don't trust Jacqueline to be around Slag."

"Do you trust me?"

"With my life, my woman's life, and my men. But, put her between us, and who are you going to save?"

He remained quiet. Understanding what Roar was saying, he still wanted to believe that he would protect his president first.

As soon as he thought the answer, he wanted to retract it. He would want to save both of them. Why would he have to choose?

The chance of him being in a situation where Jacqueline was around the Slag members, and he had to choose which one to save was slim. Even non-existent, because he planned to keep her safe from everyone. She didn't belong around club business or the crime-filled life he led. It wouldn't make any difference if she belonged to another motorcycle club or attended Divine Service at the local Lutheran church. He wanted his woman safe and protected, and with him.

He wasn't recruiting a new member for Slag.

"She wants to keep our relationship secret." He looked Roar in the eyes. "I'd like to convince her to move in with me, away from the clubhouse, when she's ready. I want to believe when that time comes, I can meet with her family. If they want blood, they can try and take mine. I won't go down without a fight. I have a lot to gain, and I'm tired of always losing people I love."

Roar whistled low. Elling waited for him to tell him he'd thought everything out and had a good plan. Hell, he was responsible for making sure all the Slag members followed the rules and performed all the research behind every hit the club put on the others.

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