Page 34 of Surviving Midnight

I nod. “Bitch of a prospect kept trying to hit on my girl, wouldn’t take no for an answer.”

“And you saw him drop shit into her drink?”

“I did.”

“Goddamn disrespectful little shits,” Marbles grunts.

Prez leans back in his chair. “I’ll see if I can get in touch with their president. I don’t think it’ll do much good since they seem pretty goddamn unhinged and stupid, but I’ll try. In the meantime, how do you want to handle things with your old lady? You want her to come here?”

I shake my head and bite my tongue so I don’t screamfuck no, never.“For now, I’d just like to put a man on her at all times.”

“You mean other than you?” He lifts a dark orange brow and scratches his even more orange beard.

Fuck.

“I’ve been trying to lay low, stay hidden. Was hoping maybe if they thought I wasn’t seeing her anymore they’d back off.”

Prez nods. “Understandable, but it isn’t working. If you aren’t ready to have her stay here then you need to stay there, but before we do that or provide you with backup, I want to meet the woman who finally tamed the beast.”

Fuck my life.

I was really trying to avoid that because I’m not sure how to talk to Theo about any of this. I don’t want to scare her by telling her about those idiots or by bringing her here, and I definitely don’t have the slightest clue how to broach the subject since I haven’t spoken to her in two and a half fucking weeks.

Oh hey, Theo. Sorry I ditched out after you treated me better than anyone ever has. I really fucking like you but I’m not good enough for you because I’m dangerous and fucked up. That being said, remember those kids from the bar? Well, they’ve been making threats and watching your house so I need you to pretend to be my old lady so my club can protect you. They have to meet you first though, so I’ll be parading you through the middle of Satan’s den before you meet some scary but good guys and once they’re cool, we have to move back into your house together so you aren’t kidnapped and forced into prostitution. I really fucking like you though, so it’s going to be super hard to pretend anything when all I can think about is taking care of you forever and fucking you senseless every single day of that. Sound good?

This is going to be a goddamn disaster.

“When?” I manage to ask without sighing.Barely.

Prez grins. “I’m getting hitched this weekend, Cy. Makes sense to bring your old lady as a date, right?”

“I can have her cut ready by then.” Pope leans forward, those gun-metal grey eyes dark and analytical. “Assuming you’re serious and want her wearing one with your patch on the back.”

“About that...”

“You officially asked her to be your old lady yet?”

I shake my head.

Theo or not, I’m so fucking glad Prez is more progressive than a lot of founders were. Making someone your girlfriend or wife used to be a demand, not their choice most of the time, and something that meant they were essentially enslaved to you and the club rules.

Prez doesn’t allow that shit, neither did Tank or Gunner for the most part, but a lot of old timers still looked at women as a possession and the line of thinking preached for decades amongst the Kings has taken a long time to get accepted and normalized. Women here, actual girlfriends or whatever, may wear a patch indicating they’repropertyof Wulven Kings MC, SWCO Chapter with their man’s name, but it doesn’t mean they’re treated like actual property. All the shit they used to do—silent until spoken to, punishment for sass, their opinions don’t matter, expecting them to be submissive or a servant, riding with her old man on runs and all that crap—doesn’t fly.

Prez just expects them to be private about the club, respectful to everyone in it, and stay loyal to their man. He basically wants them to be decent people but he’s leery because he’s seen lots of guys—Spider being one of them—get caught up with a woman who loves the lifestyle and not the man.

“I’ll have her cut ready just in case.” Pope smirks. “You know her size?”

I just blink.

Not that I’d know anyway, but Theo is tiny as hell and wears clothes that would fit us. She’d have to wear her vest underneath her sweaters as a fucking bra and that won’t work.

Damn.

I don’t want to alter her life more than I’m about to, and I really like the way she dresses. For the most part she’d only have to wear it if we went to the clubhouse or a bar, and considering the current threat we’re facing, Theo won’t be going out anywhere like that anytime soon. Maybe I’ll talk to her about it after she freaks out on me then realizes everything I’ve done has been with her best interest in mind.

“I’ll text you.”

Pope nods and Marbles grins. “So, you gonna bring your girl to the wedding or what?”

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