Page 10 of Sweet Pea

“So, I was at the courthouse—”

“You still do that shit? Appear in court when you don’t fuckin’ have to?” Clutch asked. “I swear to God, there’s something wrong with you, Pea.”

“Yeah, well. While I was there, a lawyer kind of noticed me,” I said, as casually as possible, suddenly wishing we could go back to talking about wedding planning. “A family lawyer who works in the DA’s office.”

Clutch shrugged. “A lawyer saw you at the courthouse, big deal.”

I scratched the back of my neck. “It’s a little more complicated than that.”

Clutch’s face fell. “For the love of Elvis, what the fuck have you done?”

“Nothing, I swear, just attended a few court hearings now and again. When the club didn’t need me, and I guess—”

“Haven’t Ropes and I both told you to be careful? That hanging out there was gonna make someone suspicious?” Clutch asked, unable or unwilling to hide the irritation in his voice.

“Yeah, but—"

“And now, some lawyer can’t help but ask himself why a big ass biker is constantly roaming the halls of the courthouse. Right?”

“Something like that. Yeah, I guess.”

“So, what’s he know about the club?”

“I’ll know more in a couple hours.”

“Why’s that exactly?”

“Because she’s meeting me here later for a drink.”

“She?”

“It’s not like that,” I said. “The whole thing was her damned idea.”

“And you had to say yes?”

“She said she has something for me,” I replied.

“I’ll bet she does.” Clutch paused before letting out a slow, low groan. “Oh, shit. She’s hot, isn’t she?”

“Her looks have nothing to do with this, and like I said, she asked me.”

Clutch threw his hands in the air. “I knew it! She’s fucking hot.”

I leaned in and whispered, “She knew my real name.”

“You’d better hope that’s all she knows.”

“Why do you think I wanted to tell you about this right away?”

Clutch relaxed his posture. “You’re right. You did the right thing. I’m gonna hold off from saying anything to the prez until you report back to me, but I want to know what you know A.S.A. fucking P., you understand?”

“I will.”

“And please do your best not to fuck her, would ya? Whatever mess you’ve gotten yourself into is only gonna get worse if you get your dick involved.”

“Weren’t you the one that was just telling me to find a nice girl and think about settling down?”

“A nice girl, Pea, not a fucking lawyer.”

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