Page 7 of Tank

His eyes flash before darting to the men and women behind me before he tips his chin. “Follow me,” he replies in the gruff voice I most definitely recognize.

I follow “Marx” down the hall that isn’t nearly as dingy and gross as I expected it to be. In all honesty, I had expected the clubhouse to be smelly and dank and covered in old bullet holes and smell like sex and lube, but it’s actually really airy and clean smelling, even if it does have bachelor decor. I’ll have to make the MC clubhouse in my book way grosser than this one.

“Have a seat, Mira or should I call you Melody Baldwin?” He asks, sitting his very large body into an office chair that looks like it doesn’t quite have the structural integrity for a man of his size.

“Aha! I knew you recognized me!” I crow.

“Yeah, so look, about that, my men, they don’t know that I read.” Marx says, picking at the edge of his desk with his blunt fingernail.

“What do you mean they don’t know you read? They think you’re illiterate?” My brows furrow as I try to figure that one out. “Did you tell them you can’t read to make yourself look cooler?”

“What? No. They don’t know I read…your books. The genre you write.”

“Ohhhhhh, they don’t know you read sexy murder books.”

His thick dark brow raises, “They’re romance books, Mira.”

“Are they? Because I kinda just think of them as sexy murder. I mean, yeah the couples or throuples often fall in love, but the main thread is mystery. Murder. The carnal stuff is just window dressing. Apart from the happy ever afters. Oh, and the declarations of love and the epilogues where they have a million children and live happily ever after.” He raises a dark brow at me. Again. He seems to do that a lot. “OK, I guess they’re pretty romantic.”

“Whatever you want to call it, my men don’t know. So if we could keep it between us?” Both brows are raised in question, and I’m thinking that this could be my big bargaining chip. I mean, I want access to the clubhouse to be inspired and get the inner workings and all that jazz. I need to be here for the research aspect. I’m probably less likely to be arrested here too.

“Ohhhh, I hear ya,” I dramatically wink at John, or Marx as his leather vest thing says. He frowns back at me. “I keep how I know you hush-hush, and you’ll let me hang out here and write? I mainly need to do research and stuff, you know, make sure the action in my book is as realistic as possible.”

He frowns even deeper. “You want to set up base here?”

“Yeah. Maybe on one of those long tables. I’ll clean all the sex fluids off them.” I give him a conspiratorial wink. “You won’t even notice I’m here! And I won’t write about anyone in particular, because I already have my characters sorted out. I just need to see how a working clubhouse, well, works.” I shrug.Then give him the big eyes that I think might make me look imploring. Or nuts, either or.

“I’ll let you work in the common room for two weeks. No mention of my men or any of our businesses, I want full confidentiality.”

I let him sweat and put on my thinking face. Which is me squinting a little and looking at the ceiling. It’s how I write my characters’ thinking faces. “So, I get two weeks in the common room in exchange for keeping your little secret?”

He nods. “And signed copies of your next three books.”

“How about the next four? I have four MC books planned out. I mean, you are one of my biggest fans.” I smile at him.

“That stays between us.”

“Of course! So, I get two weeks full access in return for keeping my lips sealed and signed book copies. Deal.” I beam and thrust my hand in his direction. He takes it and gives it a gentle squeeze which is somewhat disappointing because I was bringing my handshake A game.

“Deal.”

I stand, excited to get settled in immediately.

“Mira?” I turn toward Joh- I mean Marx, “Can I just say that action scene in ‘Solar Eclipse of the Heart’ was fucking edge of your seat type shit.”

“Hey, thanks Mr. President! I hope you enjoyed the pegging scene in there too,” I grin as he shudders slightly. Men. Wouldn’t know a good thing if it lubed up and entered their back passage. “Well, I better go out there and set up. You won’t even notice I’m here!” I give him a curt nod and gather up my things. I have a novel to write.

Chapter 2

Tank

Iwatch Mira’s curvy ass follow Marx down the hall and try to ignore all the looks staring my way. Flopping down onto the couch I rest my head against the back. It’s been a day and I have no idea why Mira decided now was the perfect time to resurface. Not that I’m complaining. I think about the unusual woman periodically, and I’m not sure why. Yes, she is gorgeous, but there’s more to a person than their looks. Unlike my brothers who loved when we had the club whores and parties where townie women would come to walk on the wild side, I never quite joined them in their excitement for strange women. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not, nor have I ever been, a monk. I just need more than a pretty face and a fantastic ass or tits to get me interested. And this woman, Mira? Well, there’s no denying she’s interesting.

By the time I tip my head up, I’m met with three sets of eyes staring at me. Maybe six if you count all the children in front packs staring at me, along with their moms.

“Can I help you ladies?”

“Yes!” Nat says, taking a seat next to me, jostling little Rosie in the process. “Who was that woman? We need details right now.”

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