Page 101 of Royal Sons MC

“No, thank you, this is great.”

King placed his hand on the inside of her thighs, giving a subtle tap. He took a long pull, taking in the crowd. Shit, whatever Ivy had come to tell him sure as fuck couldn’t be good, and he didn’t like the fact it was coming so close to their last job.

He tapped his finger along with the song playing. Korn was a favorite, and the DJ played often. His brother looked at his phone, more than likely getting an updated text. King ignored the vibration in his pocket, not wanting to appear worried. He had Duke and his MC brothers there. The only wrinkle was having Ayesha with him, but that couldn’t be changed now. Besides, if shit was coming, there was always a backup plan.

Mack walked up to the table, a smile on her face. “Hey, King, can Ayesha help me out in the kitchen? Curly got sick earlier, so we sent her home. I think this pregnancy is gonna be a boy. Boys always seem to make women sick.” Mack had her hands folded in front of her, looking at King first, swiveling toward Duke with the same chagrined expression before gazing at Ayesha with a smile.

“That’s up to my girl. Do you want to help out?” he asked, taking another drink, and emptying the bottle.

Ayesha took a swallow. “Sure, but I ain’t being the bitch,” she warned Mack.

Mag tossed his head back, laughing. “I fucking love her. That’s right, you let them know who’s the top bitch in the house. Aroo,” he howled with his hands around his mouth.

Mack raised her fists, one facing out, the other in, and began rolling her right hand while the middle finger on her left slowly rose. “Oh, what’s that? she asked sweetly. “Why that’s my give a damn meter, and it’s bigger than your dick.”

Mag’s eyes narrowed, but the DJ cut off the music before he could open his mouth.

“Ayesha, go on and go with Mack,” King said, pushing her off his lap.

He took the bottle out of her hands, finished the rest of her drink, and waited for her to question him. When she looked at the entryway, then at him, he prepared for questions and readied himself for what he’d have to do. Only she didn’t do what he expected. Fucking-A, his woman was game. She bent, giving him a view of her tits, and kissed his chin.

“Be careful, and I’ll try not to hurt Mack. Try being the keyword here.”

King spun her around, tapped her ass a little harder than necessary. It really was a fine ass. “Be good,” he growled as he watched her walk away.

“Where the hell did you find such a fine piece, brother?” Mag’s question came from beside him.

“I found her hiding in my clubhouse and decided to keep her. You’ll need to look at your own place for an ole’ lady.” King wouldn’t offer up one of his brother’s girls, even if they were only casual hookups.

Tymber Black and Ivy, his little brother’s best friend, were winding their way through the crowd. He liked the man with Ivy. It wasn’t the other man’s fault Luke had killed himself all those months ago. Hell, Tymber hadn’t been a part of Ivy’s life at the time, and unbeknownst to all of them, Luke had been using Ivy as a decoy for his real relationship with his roommate, Darian.

King took a deep breath, waiting for his friend and tattoo artist to come to the table. “Tymber, Ivy, what brings you both to my neck of the woods?” he asked, waving to two chairs.

Tymber pulled one out for Ivy, flipping the other around for himself as he eased it to the side, putting his back at an angle to the nearest wall. Smart man.

“Just left my shop, thought we’d stop by and have a drink. Damn shame about that salon next door being blown up and all. Thank god the walls between our two places are thick as fuck, though. We only had minimal damage. The city cleared us to reopen this weekend.” Tymber put his arms over the top of the chair, staring directly at King with no sign of fear.

“Yeah, that was some shit, man. Glad your place didn’t sustain any damage. How you doing, Ivy Girl?” Her red leather jacket was open. A black tank with the image and logo of Twisted Ink under it. The club had devised an early warning system for the women years ago. If they came in wearing red from head to toe, it meant there was trouble. He was glad Ivy had remembered, or at least he thought that was why the duo was here.

“I'm good, King. I told Tymber how you and Duke were always the ones I came to for advice, especially when buying big things."

King nodded, waiting for her to continue.

"I told her I could be that for her as well, but she said having you back me up would ease her mind, so here we are." Tymber rubbed his hand down Ivy's thigh and back up like King had done with Ayesha, but he wasn't doing it under the table. The man was showing that all Ivy belonged to him.

"Baby, you know I trust you and your opinion. But it's hard to stop old habits. Anyhow, I was thinking of buying a new car. I saw this one, and it was perfect, but Tymber thinks it has too many issues. He didn’t like the tint job and said it looked more like a hipster’s ride—you know, one that someone with too much money would drive. What did you say the make was, Tymber?” Ivy turned to her boyfriend.

“Shit, babe, I didn't say it was that bad.” Tymber looked around the room, taking his time before returning to King. “I don’t think I’ve met your friends, King.”

King lifted a hand toward Mag and Zinc, introducing them to Tymber. “Nice to meet you. If you need a tattoo, come see me or one of us at Twisted Ink.” He didn’t offer them a card or address, which King knew was just a formality. What he was doing was asking if they could speak freely. Nodding, King sat down, signaling Rubii to bring them some drinks.

“I’ve had some new customers come in, thinking about getting tattoos. Rich little fuckers. They were surprised to see the shop next door had been in such a state. Wanted to know if they were safe at my place. Not very good actors if I do say so myself.” Tymber paused, accepting the beer from the waitress and handing one to Ivy at the same time.

“Were you there, too,” he asked Ivy.

“I was just arriving when they were leaving. I got their license plate numbers—plural. Tymber said only two came in, wearing jeans. They were clearly trying to appear casual. However, the guys in the second car were in suits and ties. I pretended not to notice them when I got off my bike.” She looked at the drink in her hand, took a gulp, and grimaced.

King laughed. “Still don’t like it, huh?”