Page 29 of Hendrix

“Damned straight,” I cut out. “Though that’s gonna change when Anna gets here. I’ve got every intention of wifing her up whether we make it official with a ceremony or not. In the meantime, she’s off-limits. D’ya get me?”

Every eye slashed toward me, shocked.

“Do you fuckin’ get me?” I repeated louder that time.

My officers collectively nodded, murmuring their agreement.

“You all show her respect and treat her as if she’s an ol’ lady to this club,” I ordered. “Keep it among us for now, and you fuckers make sure to keep your hands to yourselves.”

“Does she know she’s your woman?” Ice asked, a small smile playing around his mouth.

He already damned well knew the answer to that, but I humored him anyway. “She will soon enough.”

“You’ve been keeping tabs on her, though,” Dad deduced, nodding toward Colt’s tablet. “There ain’t no way the wonder kid found all that shit out about her in the space of an hour.”

“Been keeping an eye on her since the day I left Hambleton,” I admitted. “Colt was on the case before she even arrived in Philly.”

Silence fell over the room, the brevity of my words sinking in.

“Told you back then you were being too hasty,” Dad bit out. “I said, clear as day, you’d regret letting her go. Maybe next time you’ll fucking listen to me, and we’ll all be spared three years of angst and heartbreak.” He sniffed distastefully. “It’s been like livin’ in a goddamned teen movie.”

Iceman nodded along. “He’s not wrong, Prez. You gonna be okay with all this? Last time it all got fucked up, you lost your damned mind.”

My eyebrow rose. Ice and Dad weren’t wrong. I did lose my shit last time around, but I was older now and hopefully wiser. Being without Anna made me realize how much I needed her. I’d been given a second chance, and I wasn’t about to make the same mistake twice.

“Mind your fuckin’ nosy assed business,” I said cuttingly. “Focus on your own love life. After last night, you should be tending to your own shit, especially when the likes of Fletcher can swoop in and fuck your girlfriend more or less right under your nose.”

Snickers went up from the men, while Ice’s face turned stony.

“Ice fucked up Fletch’s face,” Diablo crowed. “God only knows how he explained that shit to Frankie.”

“By telling her everything but the damned truth, no doubt,” Pop interjected.

Blade shook his head despairingly. “You can probably wager your paycheck on that. Fuck knows what he’s thinking. He’s getting worse.”

“D’ya think it’s his PTSD?” Gambit suggested.

“Nah,” I drawled. “I think it’s his dirty dick.”

“I don’t get it.” Bones shrugged. “Why’s he risking everything for easy pussy?”

An uneasy silence fell over the room as the boys contemplated that question for a minute.

“Maybe I’m the asshole for saying this, but I’ll die on that hill if I have to. I don’t trust him,” Diablo admitted. “If he’d betray the mother of his kids, he’d betray anyone.” He looked around the table. “Us included.”

The men murmured their agreement.

My eyes drifted to Blade. “We’ll keep an eye on him.”

Veep nodded, leaning forward across the table. “Next on the agenda is something I shouldn’t have to bring up, but still, here we are. We’ve got some loose lips spreading our little secrets around. Club business is getting broadcast to all and sundry, and I don’t fucking like it.”

The men squirmed uncomfortably.

“Club business is exactly that,” Blade went on. “Since when does the bar manager—who incidentally is not a member of this club, seeing as she has a vagina and all—get informed of our business plans?”

I took in their guilty faces, almost hearing crickets chirp.

“Next time any of you flap your gums, you’ll get a big-assed fine, and I’ll see you in the ring. And if it happens again, then I’ll kick you outta this club quicker than one’a those girls out there can drop their panties. I don’t give a fuck what your position in this club is, how well-liked you are, or if you’re BFFs with the prez. You could be the second coming of Jesus Christ himself for all I care; I’ll still escort any one’a you motherfuckers to your bikes then wave toodle-oo as you ride off into the Potomac River with the wind blowing in your cunt hairs. Do you fuckin’ get me?”

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