Page 103 of Verses

Chuckling, he mashed the butter inside the potato. “I guess you’re right. Did you want sour cream for your potato?”

“This is fine.”

“Well, I want to see what you think.”

So he was going to wait on me before he took a bite. Using my fork and knife, I cut off a corner, not really knowing what to expect. Even though it smelled delicious, I hadn’t had any good experiences with cuts of beef. As I brought it to my mouth, the scent filled my nostrils, making my mouth water. After I put the fork on my tongue and pulled off the piece of meat, I began chewing, the savory flavor filled my mouth. After I swallowed, I said, “Holy shit. This is amazing.”

“Thank you.”

“Seriously. I haven’t eaten much steak in my life—and when I have, it’s been dry, chewy stuff. But this? Oh, my God. I had no idea.”

“I knew you’d like it. I can teach you my technique anytime.”

“If I ever afford steak, I’ll call you. Usually, I buy hamburger or chicken thighs, because that’s all I can afford.”

“Maybe so, but you’re not going to be working as a barista your whole life. You’ve got big things ahead of you…and I’m hoping that I can be part of that somehow.”

“You keep playing like you have been, and we all will.” He gave a half shrug and took another bite, so I continued. “I’ve probably said this a hundred times before, but you’ve taken our band up several notches. Don’t get me wrong. We were good—and Liam was a genius. He was brilliant and I wish I could have seen what he would have done had he been able to mature into his sound. You’re already there, Wolf. I don’t want to sayanything negative about Liam, but somehow you’ve whipped our band into shape, and we’re doing what we need to do. And I’m so grateful to you for that.”

“That feeling is mutual, songbird. I was in a rut, andyoupulled me out of that.”

“A rut?”

Nodding, he drew a long breath in through his nostrils and set his utensils down, picking up his coffee. “I don’t know how much you know, but I spent a few long dangerous years in the Wickeds MC. I was young. I thought I knew what I wanted. I thought I liked it. But when I realized that a lot of what I was doing would land me twenty years to life, I decided I no longer wanted any part of it. But the problem is you don’t just quit a motorcycle club.”

“Youdon’t?”

“You can’t just quit. It’s not like working at the bar. I could tell Marv to fuck off, then leave and I’d be done with that job. But you can’t even give notice to an MC. Once you’re patched, you’re pretty much a lifelong member.”

Thiswas news to me. “So how did you leave?” Orhadhe?

“Technically, I haven’t, but the guys pulled up stakes and found greener pastures.” He drank from his coffee before setting the mug back down. “Between the fact that Charlotte is mostly a retirement town and blue-collar folks who can’t afford to live in Silver City and apparently aren’t interested enough in drugs, the MC couldn’t make the kind of money they wanted, especially since law enforcement here couldn’t be bought—and they were cracking down on crime. Three or four of the guys got busted and two got some serious time handed to them…so the MC moved on. Don’t get me wrong. They made some money here, but there’s far more to be made elsewhere with a lot less hassle. They’ve expanded throughout the eastern plains and are doingpretty well with heroin and meth.” Wolf picked up his knife and fork and began cutting off another piece of steak.

“So they just let you go?”

“Not exactly. They knew I wasn’t happy…so we reached an agreement. I would stay here. They knew I didn’t want to leave Charlotte, partly because I’ve got my mom’s house here. I’ve got roots here. Those guys didn’t. Our agreement was that I would stick around and keep an eye on things…be the presence of the club here. And if things ever look promising, I’m supposed to report to the club President and let him know.”

“Holy shit.” I had stopped eating, glued to his every word.

“Nothin’ to worry about, songbird. We talk on the phone every so often, and he hears the same thing from me every time: nothing’s changed. Maybe someday, there might be the right conditions for a comeback…but he’ll never hear that from me. Other than a phone call once in a while, I’m pretty much free of all that shit, and I don’t want to get back into it.”

“But, conceivably, theycould? They could call you back. Is that right?”

“Well…I’ll cross that bridge when I come to it. But I’ve reached the perfect solution to my dilemma. It doesn’t hurt that the MC President and I used to be best friends.”

Nodding, I reached for my coffee…but I wasn’t sure I had anything to say.

Wolf’s eyes nearly peered into my soul. “I just…if you want to be with me, you need know all that shit.”

What made the biggest impression was three words:be with me. They made me fall harder than I should have, giving me hope…because he wouldn’t have told me all this had I not been important to him.

Maybe wedidhave a chance.

“That’s it, songbird. I’d been just biding my time, trying to keep a low profile, till you guys asked me to be part of the band.For the longest time, I hadn’t really been living, but you pulled me out of that funk…and this band means a lot to me now too.”

I gave him a gentle smile, still not knowing what to say but feeling like I needed to saysomething. “It feels almost like it was meant to be.”

Wolf just raised his eyebrows like he often did and shrugged, taking another swig of coffee before cutting at his steak.

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