Page 12 of Hawk

“Not a damn thing, but that’s not what she’s here for. She’s going to take care of the books. The rest stays the same. Only change is that we’ll be able to find the fucking paperwork to back up the invoices. She’ll make sure our suppliers are paid on time and keep us profitable,” I reply.

“We still ordering our own parts?” Shooter asks.

“If it’s a rush, then yeah, but make sure you write it down and get it to me. Same with pickups. I want the slips to match when we get invoiced. If we can do bulk orders, then it goes on the clipboard, and I’ll place an order once a day,” I tell them. “I know we’re making money, but I have a feeling we should have more in the bank. We grew fast, and the accounts are getting out of hand. Etain is the solution to the problem.”

“Fine by me,” Drifter replies with a shrug. The others agree.

“What if her douche ex shows again?” Decker asks.

“Keep her in her office and call me. After his piddly ass move with the cops tonight, I don’t want to see him anywhere near her.”

“We done?” Drifter asks, looking like he has somewhere else he’d rather be.

“Got someplace to go?” Shooter teases. Drifter is known to get a lot of pussy, and he doesn’t hide the fact that he enjoys women. All the guys have a slew of biker bunnies at their beck and call. They come to the club parties and have a great fucking night. The guys get what they need, and the women understand that this is how we live. You’re not part of the club unless you’re an old lady, and so far, none of the guys have taken a steady woman they’re willing to commit to.

It’s a far cry from Satan’s Pride, with all their main members hooked to their women. I’ve met them all a couple of times. Ava is Guard’s wife, and she’s gorgeous. But she’s a strong woman, and that’s necessary to play the part of the president’s old lady. The other women look up to Ava, and she makes sure the other old ladies have a leader. They even call themselves the Lady Pride. It’s cute, but I wouldn’t dare laugh about it in their presence. The Lady Pride take their role seriously. Especially Vi! She belongs to Orion, and sometimes I wonder who would be scarier to cross. Vi speaks her mind and is fiercely protective of her man, her kids, Satan’s Pride, and her Pride sisters. I think Etain and Vi would get along really well, but I’m not sure it’s such a good idea to have them mingling. I could just imagine the trouble they would get into.

“We’re done,” I announce. I’m fucking wiped. It’s been a long day, and I still need to connect with Raven.

Ashort time later…

“Yo, brother, what’s happening?” Raven answers the phone on the first ring. I give him the lowdown on what we’re planning with the Jackals. In return, he sends me a pile of photos he’s taken of the drop site where the exchange is supposed to go down. He’s also sent pictures of some of the Jackal members. I’ll send those along to Guard. They have two amazing tech geniuses, and we haven’t yet got a member who’s got that as a special talent.

Guard has offered his help, and I’m taking him up on it.

“This time, it’s going down our way,” I tell Raven.

“Preach, brother. I’m done with the Jackals’ shit.”

“This time, we protect our own at all costs,” I conclude.

SIX

First-Day Jitters

ETAIN

Ifeel like a schoolgirl on the first day of high school, and I want the cool kids to like me. Well, one cool kid in particular. For the last three and a half years, I’ve had devoted clients who would pay a monthly fee. I would either go to their place of business or set up an online Dropbox system and get them caught up, providing them with an income statement and balance sheet, and making sure the accounts were balanced with the bank. It was easy and organized, and I was proud of what I had accomplished.

It was easy to walk away, though, because the bookkeeping portion of what Robert and I had set up was all part of the legal firm and under his name. I did the work, but now he gets to keep the clients. Unfair, I know, but the only regret I have is that I’m unable to contact the clients to let them know the real reason I’m gone.

I look into the full-length mirror. I’m wearing dark gray fitted pants, a navy-blue sleeveless shirt, my hair is up in a high ponytail, and I’ve got on minimal makeup. I think I look professional and cute. I apply a dash of blush to each cheek and a pink gloss, which I slip into my purse, and then I head toward my car.

“I’ll bet you didn’t eat breakfast,” Sasha says, standing by my car with a to-go cup of coffee and a brown paper bag, the top neatly folded.

“What’s this?” I ask with a grin.

“A couple of scones, and I know how you need a cup of coffee in the morning.” She hands me my goodies.

“You didn’t have to do this, you know.”

“I know, but friends help each other.” In the short time I’ve known Sasha, she’s become like another sister. I’m not sure why she’s living in this small town on her own, but it looks to me like she values her solitude. She hasn’t mentioned family at all, and the only friends she speaks of are people from town. She doesn’t have a bad thing to say about anyone. Except, maybe, Robert. And even then, she calls him a lost soul who hasn’t yet discovered what’s important.

“You keep spoiling me, and I may never leave,” I tease.

“Then I’ll just have to keep spoiling you,” she says. “Have a great first day! I’m off to do my yoga, then I have to get to work.” Besides her work, I know very little about Sasha.. A pang of guilt hits me. It’s been all about me for the last couple of days. I make a note that I need to be a better friend.

What’s worse is that I don’t have any other friends. I put so much of my time and effort into helping Robert build what I thought was our future that I never made time for friends. It was work, home, and repeat. Outside of my parents and sister, I didn’t socialize much. Once in a while, Robert had to attend a function of some sort and I would be his plus one, but that’s not the same as connecting with a girlfriend and being able to confide your deepest, darkest secrets.

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