Page 45 of Fire Meets Fire

“I like the idea of sticking it to the Doms,” Bull states with a large grin. “They’ll be pissed as hell at losing those dollars.”

“Especially when it’s in our coffers instead.” Beard chortles.

Helo’s in her element, and I can easily see how she got to the rank that she had. Though she’s decisive, she listens to everyone’s suggestions, pulling some into the plan that’s taking shape while dismissing many of the others, but in a way that doesn’t cause offence. She even appears to give consideration to some of the inane ones which would have had me slapping the person offering it around the head. Gradually she’s pulling them all onto her side, and I can see looks of admiration on more than one face.

The prospects arrive carrying crates of beer and boxes of pizza and everyone perks up, stands or pushes away from their perches and for a moment, no one is looking my way. No one appears to be bothered when I approach Helo. Having previously escaped the zip ties, I take hold of her elbow and lead her away to the kitchen. As I do, I notice I’ve caught Slugger’s attention. He’s got his eye on me, but he doesn’t make a move our way. He knows I’m not going to try to make a break for it out the back door, there are too many brothers with guns, and obviously, I’m weaponless.

“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” I give her a little shake.

“Getting us both on the right side of your club,” she hisses in return.

“I’m sorry.” I’ve been thinking about it. “This is my fault. If I hadn’t gotten Legend to look into you?—”

“Now stop right there.” When a woman stares at you with her hands on her hips, and especially when she’s also an ace pilot, you’d be crazy not to take it as a sign that you better shut up. “You might have given whoever’s looking for me a head start, but without your club, I wouldn’t know who I was up against. Hell, Chaz. The fucking Dominators? Sure, I underestimated an MC when I stole those parts, but it’s not a mistake I’ll make again. Look at the way your club managed to find us? If the Dominators are half as resourceful, I wouldn’t have lasted long. You’ve given me a way to end this. And…” she pauses, bites her lip, looks down, then, after a moment, looks back up, pointing her finger at my chest so I can make no mistake, “You. You’ve given me a reason to want to.”

Me?Again, I’m stunned. And again, I stay quiet, not wanting the wrong assumption to come out of my mouth.

As I hoped, she fills the silence. “I never wanted another man’s hands on me. I never wanted to get close to anyone. But I allowed you to hold me.” Her eyes fill with emotion. “You know how damaged I am?” She’s told me, so I simply blink slowly to show I understand. “I thought they were going to kill you.”

“They still might.”

“Which would be a waste of a very good man.” I open my mouth to tell her I’m far from being an angel, but she goes and steals my breath. “For a moment, I thought I’d lost my chance. I don’t want to waste what we might have, Chaz.” Her voice drops to a whisper. “With you I feel like I want to try.”

“A relationship?” I almost hesitate to ask.

She bites her lip. “If I can and if you want to.”

I’m stunned, acknowledging what she’s gifted me. No guarantees, no quick fixes. But I’ll be fucked if I don’t want to take that chance. A vision of her as my old lady flits through my mind, then reality sinks back in. There are more obstacles than her mental and physical injuries. “Then why put your fuckin’ lifeon the line?” I growl, not understanding. “Wretched Soulz are always ready to take the Dominators on. You don’t need to play a part in this.” I’m thinking fast. “If I made you my ol’ lady, that brings you under the club’s protection.”If I remain a member, that is.I ignore that small complication. At least now we know where to start to track down her enemy. The Dominators have to know who they’re working for. “Let us fight your battle, let me protect you?—”

“I don’t need a man to protect me. I can do that well enough myself.” She brushes a hand over her short hair and looks frustrated. “And I can’t live always looking over my shoulder. Chaz, someone thinks I’ve betrayed them somehow, and I’ve got to put that right. Even if the Soulz got rid of the Dominator threat, someone else may come along.”

“We’ll get to the man at the top.”

“That’s my plan. Weren’t you listening?” She seems frustrated, but tries to console me. “I never leave the fighting to anyone else, Chaz. I’ve got to play my part. And, once we’re over this hurdle, I can concentrate on a future. With you, perhaps?” There’s a little plea of hope in her last three words.

And those hit me right in the feels. I’ll give her a future if that’s what she wants. Fuck, if she asked, I’d try to give her the stars. Even if my club never forgives me, if I manage to stay alive, I’d be happy to start anew with someone like Helo by my side. It’s what comes in between that and now that scares the shit out of me.

Slugger pokes his head around the doorway, rapping the doorframe as if his appearance hasn’t been enough to get our attention. “Church,” he rasps. “Now.” As I start turning to Helo, he snorts. “She’s included.”

“Well fuck me.” She grins as he walks away. “You religious?”

“Hell no,” I respond. “He means he wants a meeting.”

Her resulting chuckle suggests she was just yanking my chain and realised that anyway. Still, we walk out together. The rest of the club have already taken their spaces in a makeshift oval with Slugger seated at the head. There’s a seat on the couch next to Skunk, but Helo ignores it, making me suspect she’s already clocked his issues. Poor guy, there’s no deodorant made to counteract his body odour. Fuck knows we’ve all tried giving him different brands. He doesn’t give a shit, making out it’s his pheromones. Personally, I think he’d do well to become more familiar with the shower.

Clasping Helo’s hand, I lean against the wall, pulling her in beside me. My body is tense, suspecting I won’t like their discussion at all. She squeezes my fingers, emphatically knowing I need the support.

Slugger’s an ass, everyone knows it, but somehow he made it to the topmost position in the club. It’s only times like this when he puts his serious cap on that the reason he made it to that spot shows. Gone is the asshole personality, and in comes the professional, willing to make the hard choices.

Banging the heel of his knife on the table, Slugger gets everyone’s attention. He glances around, then catches my eye and holds it. “First order of business. What’s to be done with Chaz? Brothers? You want him in, out bad, or six feet underground?”

I swallow hard, feeling my Adam’s apple bob. While I knew it was coming, I didn’t expect Slugger to table it so fast. I’d hoped we’d get Helo’s business sorted before my fate was decided.

“For running out on the club? Taking our payday away?” Pothead raises a joint to his lips and takes a deep puff. Blue intoxicating smoke wafts out, making Legit, who’s seated beside him, waft it away with his hand.

“Strong shit that,” he chides him.

Pothead looks uncontrite. “Good fuckin’ shit,” he answers him. “Want to try?”

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