Page 6 of October's Ride with Atlas

“Ladies, this is Bex. She is Malice's daughter,” I say, more for the guys in the room whose eyes go huge. “Bex, this is Ashleyand Ginger. Ginger is from the Savage Bones, so you two should talk.”

Bex just nods, still looking around. “This place is nice. I bet it will suck when you have to move again,” she says, hesitantly taking a seat at the table.

“Move? Princess, we have been at this clubhouse for over fifty years. Why would we move?” I ask, sitting next to her.

“Fifty years? We never stay in one spot more than five weeks,” she gasps.

I tuck that bit of information away for later.

“That's because you guys are always on the run, hiding from us and the law. You don't have to run and hide when you do things on the up and up. Hence why we have been here so long,” Thunder says as he hands Ashley a plate of food.

It’s my hope she will start to see the big differences between us and her dad’s MC. I want her to understand we are the good guys, but I don't want to force anything on her.

Getting up, I make us both a plate of food. I'm unsure of what she likes, but I will learn. In fact, I will know everything about her.

I set the food in front of her.“Do you want any coffee? Water? Orange juice?”

“Coffee sounds great,” she says.

“How do you take your coffee, Princess?”

“Cream and sugar, please.”

I head off to make her coffee and mine.

No one really talks over breakfast. I was hoping she might bond with the girls and maybe she will once us guys aren't around. I'm not ready to let her out of my sight just yet, though.

“Come on. I need to answer some emails. You can hang out in my office with me,” I say.

As she follows me to my office, she takes in the building.

“This used to be a brothel back in the old west days. Then, someone bought it to turn it into a museum. That didn’t work, so the city owned it, and the club bought it from them. We kept it as original as possible and have a lot of historical items packed away. We respect the building and the history of it.” I tell her.

“I love that. It fits an MC Club. Is the building on the National Historical list?” she asks.

I chuckle. “No, Princess. That would mean we are limited in what we can do and it would put it on the government watch list. We may follow the law for the most part, and sometimes we skate around it to protect the town, but we don't need to be bound by any government rules.” I open my office door and let her walk in while admiring the view of her ass in the skin-tight jeans she is wearing.

Following her in, I close the door behind us.

“Get comfortable.” I nod to the couch. “There are some books there you can read.” I glance at the bookshelf. Ashley pulled a stack of books she might like for her, and on the top is one about flowers in someone’s attic.

“Do you mind if I take a nap? I’m still slightly groggy,” she says.

Going to the closet, I pull out a blanket Luna insisted I put in there, and now I'm glad she did. After I hand it to her, Bex curls up on my couch under the blanket. While she naps on my couch, I pull up emails, though my gaze keeps wandering over to her asleep on my couch.

I love her there and want her on the couch with me, reading, sleeping, and hanging out with friends. I want her near me and I will do anything to make that happen. Though I know she isn't ready to hear the truth about her dad. Without a doubt, she’s been told lies to make her father look good, but I have the proof to back up what I have to say. Like that ridiculous shirt Gingerwore the other day which says,There are two sides to every story and then there are the screenshots.

When I saw it, I rolled my eyes, but now it couldn't be any closer to the truth. I watch Bex and her breathing, and she is out cold. She looks so comfortable right now, I'd like to think it's because she trusts me to take care of her. Even though I know that isn't the case, I want it to be.

My phone starts to vibrate on my desk, where I silenced it earlier as she was trying to fall asleep. It's Sheriff Cade, and I almost don't pick up, but my gut says I should. Answering the phone, I stand, stepping out into the hallway.

“Hello,” I answer.

“Give me back my daughter,” a voice that is not Sheriff Cade's growls, and it takes me a minute to register it.

Malice.

“Good to hear from you, old friend,” I say with a smile on my face. “Your daughter is perfectly fine. Napping on my couch as we speak after having breakfast with the girls.”

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