Page 26 of Levee

“I live at the clubhouse,” he told me. “Same with Coast and Kylo. And Velle and York. The older club members have moved on to other houses and shit now. Starting families and such.”

That was… surprisingly wholesome.

See, he wasn’t the only one who’d been doing some research. I mean it wasn’t every day you came across someone who said they were in a motorcycle club. And, quite frankly, I had absolutely no idea what that entailed.

The thing was, my research had ended up involving a lot of fictional content that likely made things out to be a lot grittier than it actually was in real life.

The general consensus was that guys who liked riding motorcycles sometimes got together into little clubs and hung out and rode together. Kind of their version of a book club or knitting circle kind of thing. A way to connect with people who had similar interests and passions.

None of the stuff I’d come across had ever mentioned the bikers actually living at the clubhouse, though.

I couldn’t help but wonder if that was a common thing, or if this club was more of the exception to the rule.

“So there are a lot of kids around the club?” I asked.

“Ton of ‘em,” he admitted. “All different ages now. Seems like every few months, one of the guys is finding a forever kind of girl and settling down. Not long after that, they start popping out litters.”

“Do you like kids?” I asked.

“Yeah. Think they’re more fun when they’re mobile and you can do fun shit. But they’re a good time. You love them, right?”

“Yes. I wouldn’t mind having a litter myself one day,” I admitted.

I’d always liked kids. But I figured that thing about feeling your clock ticking was utter nonsense. Until I first held Lily’s baby. Now, all I wanted to do was spend some time with her, soaking up the snuggles and smiles and that oddly sweet-sour baby smell.

“I can see that,” he said nodding. “Lot of kids in your family?”

“God, no. My brother is fully anti-kid,” I admitted. “He has two dogs that he travels around with when he’s got time away from work. And it’s just the two of us.”

“Does he live around here?”

“No. He’s back in Massachusetts still.”

“What brought you down here then?”

“I’ve never been a fan of the cold. I mean, don’t get me wrong, snow is magical. But I figure I can appreciate that from a distance. Or on the occasion when I go visit home in the winter. I wanted to be down by the beach.”

“Makes sense how you ended up in that neighborhood then,” he said. “Thought it was an odd place for you to be.”

“I don’t think I realized just how expensive the area was going to be. It was the only place I could afford right away. You know, with first, last, and security on top of furnishing the place and stuff. I have a five-year plan. Max. Probably more like two.”

Though I’ll have to admit that some part of me would find it hard to leave now that I was making connections.

That said, Lily and Curtis didn’t even want to be around for another year. And Mrs. Jackson and her husband were planning on retiring to Mr. Jackson’s parents’ house once things went through probate.

Sure, new people would move in. But I got a feeling that this building was a more transient of a place for most families. A stepping stone to a house or an apartment in a better schooldistrict. There were too many bad elements around for most people to want to settle down long-term.

“I know there is a lot of rough shit going on around there, but there were things I liked about my childhood in that neighborhood.”

“Did your parents move eventually?” I asked, since he said he’d grown up there. And it was only his uncle around now.

“My old man died a few years back. My ma ran out on us a long while before that. Not that I blame her. My father was a fuck. But—“

“But she left you alone with him,” I filled in for him.

“Yeah,” he said, eyes dark for a moment before he shook it off. “So where are you thinking of moving after this?” he asked.

“I honestly don’t know,” I admitted. “I entertained the idea of a bungalow by the beach.”

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