Page 7 of His Loyal Rebel

He studied the boys and took out his wallet. They weren't teenagers yet. Maybe eight or ten years old.

Holding two five-dollar bills in front of him, he met their gazes. They lived in one of the shittier neighborhoods. A lot of crime went down on the four blocks this side of town. Yet, he'd bet the boys knew how to hold their own and knew everything that went down in the neighborhood.

He held the cash out of reach of their grubby hands. "I need you both to watch my bike. Don't let anyone touch it, including both of you. Can you do that?"

Both boys nodded their heads. He handed them each a bill.

"If I come back and you're not standing here, I'll find you."

"We'll stay." The taller boy looked at his friend. "Won't we, Allan?"

Now that he knew his bike was safe, he walked up to the front door of the house. Music blared inside, and he kicked the bottom of the door, making sure whoever was inside would hear.

After several minutes, a young woman opened the door and backed away upon seeing him. Ringtail walked out of the hallway into view, slipping his vest on.

The music quieted. He waited until Ringtail caught sight of him, then motioned him outside.

His MC brother raised his brows. "What's up?"

"You were scheduled to work tonight at Promise. Hammer wanted you there an hour ago."

"Fuck, man. I lost track of time." Ringtail moved to go back into the house.

He grabbed Ringtail's leather. "Forget her, and go."

"I'm grabbing my smokes."

Whip let him go, waiting to make sure he got his ass on the road and headed toward Promise. This was the last time he'd bail him out. The next time Ringtail forgot to show up to work, he was on his own, and Priest could dock his damn pay.

Ringtail walked down the hallway out of sight. Less than twenty seconds later, another woman strolled into the living room. Whip took in the other girl, her hair wrapped in a towel, obviously coming from the shower.

No wonder his MC brother couldn't keep track of time trying to entertain two women.

The woman glared at him. He cocked his head, wondering about the animosity directed toward him. He hadn't done anything. All he was doing was looking, and the last time he checked, that wasn't illegal.

"You." She crossed her arms and approached the door. "What are you doing here?"

Lost to what he'd done to piss her off, he took in her breasts, jiggling against her shirt, and a surge of interest took hold of him.

She stopped, lifted her arm, and slammed the door in his face. He rocked back on the heels of his boots. The only way he would leave was if Ringtail got his ass out of the house and went to the bar.

The door opened again. Ringtail slipped a cigarette in his mouth. "Sorry about that, brother. The chicks are fighting something crazy. I've never seen two sisters hate each other that way."

"You don't have time for that shit. Ride like hell. Promise is overflowing." He walked toward the driveway, following his MC brother. "You'll be lucky if Priest doesn't rip you a new asshole."

"I hear you, bro," mumbled Ringtail, stopping at his bike. "I'm going."

Behind him, a woman shouted. He looked over his shoulder. In the doorway, the two women argued.

Ringtail hesitated. Out of patience, Whip lifted his chin. "Just go."

Whatever was going on inside wasn't any of Ringtail's business. Tarkio came first.

The roar of the Harley muted the argument. Whip stayed out of Ringtail's way until he rode off. Then, he walked out to his Harley.

The two boys were hunkered down beside his motorcycle, looking at the chrome. He walked toward the kids as they caught sight of him, and scrambled to stand before he reached them.

"You're off duty." He sat on his bike and grabbed his helmet.

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