Page 8 of Drake

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An hour later, I am showered, dressed, and have eaten breakfast. Drake already went down to the bar, so I make my way down to say goodbye.

When I walk inside, the place is dark and soft music plays in the background. Drake is standing at the bar as he goes over his records for the week. His laptop is open and I see that he is tracking the sales and comparing them to orders placed. He is meticulous with keeping up with every penny that comes in and out of this bar. Just another thing I love and admire about him. Hopefully, one day when I own my own boutique, he can teach me a few things.

“Are you off to school already?” Drake asks, glancing up at me briefly.

“Yes, I need to get on campus for my morning classes. I work from two until six, so I will be home to have dinner with you,” I say, leaning down and kissing his cheek.

“What are you going to do today?” I ask, knowing it won’t take him all day to balance his records.

“I am working the morning shift at the bar today, and then I have the evening free. I think I will ride around,” he says, shrugging.

If I know one thing about Drake, it’s that he loves to ride his motorcycle. Any chance he gets to be on that beast of a bike, he takes it.

I offer him one more kiss, before I shift my backpack on my shoulder and head off to school.

Chapter 6

Drake

The sound of the engine of my Harley drowned out the rest of the world.

There were so many changes happening around me and I just needed to get lost on the open road. I needed the wind through my hair, my soul to become one with the road, and to just be alone.

I know it sounded selfish, but my world was filled with constant noise and activity. That was how I grew up; loud voices and people always around me. I guess, that’s to be expected when you grow up inside a motorcycle clubhouse and bar.

I love my life; it’s a fucking great life, but sometimes a man just needs to be alone. Thankfully, Lacy has always understood that need. She gets it. In fact, there are times that I catch her looking through her fashion magazines, and I know she just needs the silence of being alone.

As the trees of the forest pass me by, I inhale the fresh air. I’m moving further outside of Hollow’s Cove and as the small town grows further behind me, I see the country roads opening up to me. I’m on a mission right now, and only myself and the good lord above knows what I am about to do.

I turn onto a small, one-lane road that is lined with massive trees, shading the road from the bright morning sunlight.

I allow a sliver of a smile to appear on my face, because damn, this is beautiful.

I keep a close eye on the view ahead of me and slow down, as I spot a silver Lexus parked alongside the roadway.

A man wearing a black suit stands out against the natural landscape around me. He waves as he sees me approaching. We had spoken earlier, and now, I was about to take another huge step in my life.

Truth be told, I had really only made two major decisions in my life. To take over the Raven Boys Clubhouse after my dad passed and to look after my brothers. Both were decisions I never had to think twice about. But this decision-- this was huge. Life-changing in a way that I never thought I would ever consider.

But, here I am about to meet with Glenn, the realtor. I had told Lacy that I had planned on sticking around the bar most of the morning, but that was a lie. Well, a lie sounds dirty. This was a special project and Seth was going to help run the bar so I could work on my plan.

“Good morning, Mr. Raven,” Glenn said, as I threw my leg over my bike and walked over to him. He extended a hand and a cheesy smile.

“Morning,” I replied back. “Just call me Drake. Mr. Raven was my father,” I added.

“Great, Drake,” Glenn said, with way more enthusiasm than needed before ten in the morning. “Let’s get started then,” he said, clapping his hands together.

Nodding, I followed him along a gravel drive all the way up a small incline. The grass was overgrown and trees outlined the majority of the space, but there was no denying that this was magnificent.

I continued walking, until I reached the highest point of the property. It overlooked the rolling hills of Hollows Cove and had a small view of the river that ran through town. Ten acresof grass and trees stood before me, and it was the second most glorious thing I had seen in my life. The first being Lacy.

“You would have all ten acres and the lot next to yours is a twenty-seven-acre farm. The lot to your left is a forty-acre cattle ranch and the owner lives on the first five acres in the back. The lots behind the property and across the street, are city-owned land and have been deemed to remain green space. You have neighbors, but you will probably never see them. If you want secluded, this lot is perfect,” Glenn said, turning to face me.

“How much?” I asked. I didn’t need to be sold on this lot. I had been watching it and driving past it since I could ride a bike. I had secretly been in love with this property, but never dared tell my brothers about it. We all lived, worked, and breathed the bar and clubhouse-- especially me.

It was just normal for me to live above the bar. It was where my parents had first lived when they got married. It was where I had moved when I moved out of my parent’s house at eighteen. It was where my brothers or our friends crashed when they had too much to drink at the bar. It was where Storm first learned to ink. Ryder held his first race behind the bar and apartment, and Axel sought it out for shelter when he needed an escape when dealing with Chuck. That small apartment had held most of my life's memories, but now, it seemed I was ready to start a new set of memories.

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