Page 18 of Patch's Bride
“So, you’re Patch’s old lady,” she says, stopping about five feet away. “I don’t see a property cut.”
I shoot back, “I could show you the marriage license if you want.”
Her eyes go wide. She takes a minute to look me over. If her expression is any indication, she’s not impressed. “Are you trying to tell me that you’re Patch’s new wife, like an actual wife?”
Something about the way she says wife makes it sound like an insult. I lift my chin. “Yes. I’m Beth.”
She leans closer, putting one hand on the far side of the swing. Staring down at me, she says, “Listen up, Beth. Don’t get too comfortable with Patch. He always comes back to me.”
My stomach drops at her crude attempt at manipulation. “That’s not true. Patch isn’t like that.”
“Of course it is,” she shoots back. “Patch and I have a long history together. You seem like a sweet kid, but Patch prefers his women more experienced.”
“I understand history,” I tell her. “Patch and I have that as well. We grew up together. Our mothers were best friends.”
She smirks at that. “Aw, how sweet. I never had Patch down as a mommy’s boy.”
“He chose me of his own free will, not because his mother thought we’d make a good match.” I tell a little white lie because we’re supposed to be selling the illusion that our marriage is real. “So, if you’re banking on him kicking me to the curb for you, you might want to come up with a plan B.”
She looks a lot less confident now but covers it well, stammering, “Rings and papers don’t mean a lot around the Savage Legion clubhouse. The brothers aren’t all that faithful to the women in their lives. Most of them are attracted to club life because there’s always a steady supply of beautiful women standing at the ready to make sure their needs are met. So, when you find yourself sitting at home, wondering where your husband is, he’ll be in my bed.”
“I don’t believe you,” I tell her flatly, although my mind is beginning to question everything I thought I knew about Patch. He always seemed the nice, reliable type, but after being in the clubhouse for a couple of hours and seeing what goes on here, I wonder if I really know him at all. Maybe I just saw one side of him, and when he’s with his club brothers he lets loose.
“You don’t have to,” she shoots back. “The only thing these brothers are truly loyal to is their biker code. You’ll never truly understand club culture and what draws the brothers to it because you’re an outsider. The brothers keep us around, spoil us, and always end up coming back to us because club girls are the only ones who truly understand what makes them tick.”
Her eyes dart towards the hallway and she takes a step back. “I’m glad we had this little talk. You needed it and I’m generous that way.”
When she turns to walk away, I feel like something in my chest just fractured. I can’t help but wonder if there is a grain of truth in all her bullshit. I guess there is, or she wouldn’t be approaching me so confidently. I managed to rattle her with the whole surprise marriage thing, but I doubt that’s going to keep her from continuing to go after Patch. She seems stubbornly determined.
Just then I see Sharon walking down the hallway, looking worried. “Was that Roxy?”
When I nod, she asks, “Did she give you her own fucked-up version of a welcome to the clubhouse speech?”
“Yeah, I don’t think we’re going to become friends anytime soon.”
Sharon chuckles. “Roxy did that to me too. She’s a nasty piece of work.”
She is, but Roxy is here because the brothers want her to be. I don’t know where that leaves me in Patch’s world.
Chapter 7
Patch
I’ve spent a lot of time in the clubhouse since I started prospecting, but I’ve never actually been in church alongside the brothers. Only patched-in brothers attend club meetings. Prospects only get invited to church if a brother is planning to nominate them for membership in the club.
Siege, our president, slams his gavel down on the table once. He raises his voice to be heard in the back of the room. “This meeting of the Savage Legion MC is now called to order.”
The whole room goes quiet, every brother in every seat sits up a little straighter.
Siege glances around the room before continuing. “Old business first. We’ve had reports of another club encroaching on our territory. Burning Skulls. Let’s keep an eye out for those fuckers because they’ve got a one-percent patch on their cut.”
Angry whispers break out because the Savage Legion works hard to keep Las Salinas free of the kind of crime that one-percenters are famous for.
“If they’re not just passing through, we need to push back, fuckin’ hard and fast,” Rider says abruptly. He takes his duties as Sergeant-at-Arms seriously and is particularly security conscious about incursions into our territory.
“I agree,” Siege says quickly. “I don’t want any brother striking on his own, no matter how good the opportunity is. Like always, we bide our time, gather intel, and then plan our attack together.” When everyone murmurs their agreement, he moves on to the next item on our agenda.
“Tex, talk to us about how the security firm is doing.”
