Page 14 of What He Wants

Children of all ages were everywhere, running and playing, and laughing happily. I could only assume that their parents were the adults that were present. Since it was a club party, I wasn’t surprised to see that a lot of the men present were wearing cuts. The music was Christmas-themed, and the atmosphere was brighter and a lot more festive than it had been in the other two rooms. I found myself looking for Jasmine again.

“Big John!” someone called out.

He identified the source of the voice and then we were making our way to a table wherethere were about six couples sitting around it. The women were all beautiful, the men looked fiercely protective and guarded as they watched the goings on, as if they were expecting something bad to happen. I smiled at the unexpected site of one burly man with a baby on his lap. He was even bigger than Big John, and his eyes, which were scrutinizing me carefully, made me slightly uncomfortable.

“We were beginning to think that you weren’t going to make it, brother,” said the giant.

“Is this your friend?” the beautiful red-head sitting next to him asked with a smile.

“We’ve been waiting to meet her,” said another woman, who was just as beautiful. She was sitting on the lap of her man. At least, I assumed that he was her man.

I could hear Big John’s grunt next to me. “Yeah, everyone, this is Daisy.” He handed me one of the beers that he was holding.

“Hi everyone.” The women returned my smile naturally, and I sensed an immediate alliance from them, unlike the women that I’d come in contact with earlier. The men at the table just acknowledged me with a slight nod, mild interest in their watchful eyes. Though their expressions seemed to relax some, I got the impression that most of them were uncomfortable and out of their natural element at this party.

“We may as well go around the table and introduce ourselves,” said the woman who’d spoken earlier. A little girl ran up to her, and the red-head scooped her up onto her lap.

It took about five minutes for all the introductions to be made, and I knew it would be a miracle if I remembered all of their names. The entire time I was aware of Big John’s eyes on me, as he stood by silently sipping his beer. Knowing that he was staring at me made me want to squirm. The sizzling heat inside that signaled my arousal, the buzzing of my pussy and the wetness between my legs, were all making me aware of his powerful effect on me.

“We need to talk, brother.” It was the giant sitting next to the beautiful red-head who’d spoken. If I remembered correctly, his name was Hawk and he was the president of Phantom Riders.

Audra, his wife, reached out to him with a pleading look in her eyes. “Hawk, not tonight, you promised−”

“Baby,” his soft tone belied his cold expression. “Just a few minutes. It’s important, and we’re all present.” He wrapped his hand around the back of her neck and pulled her close for a kiss. The baby on his lap reached up for the loose curl against his mother’s neck. The little girl on her lap wiggled between them.

When they parted, Audra shook her head with resignation. “Go on, but please make it quick.”

Hawk handed the baby off to her and pushed his chair back. Except for one man, Craig, I thought his name was, the only one not wearing a cut, the rest of the men did the same. I met Big John’s eyes.

“I’ll be back. Stay here with the old ladies where you’ll be safe.”

“Don’t worry about Daisy,” Allie said, patting the seat next to her. “We’ll take care of her.”

I needed taking care of? Big John didn’t seem to be in any hurry to follow Hawk and the rest of his brothers as he waited for me to respond. “Do I have any choice?” I smiled teasingly.

“You always have a choice,” he said with that sexy grin.

“I’ll be here when you get back.”

“Good. I don’t want to have to look for your sexy ass.”

He pivoted and left me standing there.

Chapter 7

Big John

“Found out which Trouble Makers were released, brother,” Hawk stated the instant we were all sitting at the table. “Whistler and Demo ring a bell?”

Fuck! I exhaled loudly and leaned back in my chair. This wasn’t good news.

“What do you remember about them?” Rock was the one who asked the question, his expression closed to whatever thoughts were going through his head.

I glanced at Fox, because I knew that he could probably answer that question, too. He would have pulled up everything he could find on them once he’d found out who they were. Fox was good at digging up dirt. His job was everything that had to do with providing security for the club and its members, and that meant a ton of fucking surveillance and investigation.

When I realized that he wasn’t going to offer anything up, I shrugged. “It’s not good news. You already know who Shooter is. Demo and Whistler are two of his soldiers. Mean fuckers. Shooter mainly used them as assassins.”

Hawk’s mouth snapped open. “And they weren’t officers?” he scowled.

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