Fallon crossed the room with an exaggerated sway and dropped into the chair like royalty, gracing us with her presence.For once, she didn’t argue or make some snarky comment. That was progress. Or maybe she was saving it for later.
“This is cozy,” she said, her voice laced with sarcasm. She swept a hand around the room. “It’s just like that biker TV show. I was trying to place it before the first time I was here.”
Yarder pinched the bridge of his nose, probably already regretting letting her into the room.
“Please don’t say it,” I whispered, though I knew it was hopeless.
“Sons of Alchemy!” Fallon declared and snapped her fingers like she’d just solved a murder.
I dropped my chin to my chest and let out a chuckle I couldn’t suppress. Cue Ball smirked while Dice groaned.
“Anarchy,” Dice corrected. “It’s Sons of Anarchy.”
Fallon leaned forward and winked at Dice. “See? I knew you’d know what I was talking about.”
Dice rolled his eyes, and Yarder slapped the table. “All right, enough of this shit. Let’s fucking focus, shall we? Fallon, you wanna clue us in on how the hell you know that yappy bitch? Not only are you connected to Gibbs and Boone, you’re also now connected to the damn TV show production.”
Fallon squirmed in her chair and tucked her light brown hair behind her ear. “Yes, well, I didn’t really see this coming either. I was just as shocked as you guys were when Clay walked in,” she paused for a beat. “And he was my fiancé a few years ago. That’s my connection to him. I haven’t seen him in over four years, though.”
Jesus Christ.
“You were going to marry that douche canoe?” Aero asked, his brow furrowed in disbelief.
Fallon shrugged and offered a weak smile. “We all make bad choices sometimes, right?”
“Why did it end between you two?” Yarder asked. His voice was softer, but his eyes stayed fixed on Fallon.
Fallon’s lips quirked in a bitter twist to the smile she gave. “Well, I took his threats of hurting me seriously before he could actually follow through on them.”
“See?” Aero spat, and his hand slammed against the table. “I knew the guy was a douche canoe.”
The tension in the room thickened. Every guy in the room shifted, and irritation flickered in their expressions. Threatening and hitting a woman was a fucking no-go for the Iron Fiends.
Clay Towne dropped fifty notches in my book right then and there. Hell, make it a hundred.
“He beats women?” Yarder asked. His voice was low and gravelly, with anger just beneath the surface.
Fallon shrugged again, but this time, it looked like she was trying to shake off what she’d just admitted. “He threatened to throw me down the stairs. I didn’t stick around to see if he meant it or not.”
It took everything in me not to get up from the table and find Clay to beat the shit out of him.
Yarder scrubbed a hand down his face, his jaw tight. “This is fucking great. The guy who’s in charge of filming us is a goddamn piece of shit.”
“Why don’t we just tell Don we want another producer?” Cue Ball suggested and leaned forward with his arms braced on the table.
Fade shook his head before Cue Ball could even finish. “Because we’re already on Don’s shit list,” he replied. “Before Adalee got fired, he told her we weren’t giving them enough footage. If we go back now and say we don’t like the guy he sent, they’ll probably pull the whole deal. Then we’ll be stuck paying back every damn cent of the advance.”
“Fucking hell,” I muttered under my breath. It was like we were in a vice getting the shit squeezed out of us.
Fallon leaned back in her chair and folded her arms over her chest. “Clay may be an ass with women, but he’s pretty professional when it comes to his job,” she said, her voice carrying a note of reluctance. “At least he was when we were together. He was gunning to be a big news anchor but apparently shifted gears to production. Said he was too handsome to be behind the camera, but that obviously changed.”
Yarder leaned back and eyed Fallon.
“What is that look for?” Fallon asked. “I’m just telling you how the guy is.”
Yarder nodded. “Which is why I think I just figured out how you are going to repay us for letting you stay at the clubhouse until the whole Boone and Gibbs shit blows over.”
“Uh, I didn’t know I was in debt to you guys,” Fallon said.