Saving Dallas 2 Making the Cut (12 page)

“Kid is our little nerd. He helps us out with
our computer and security systems. He is a genius and he knows
it.”

Kid’s smile widened at Luke’s description of
him, not at all offended by Luke’s “nerd” comment. I wanted to fist
punch the air, because I had hit the nail on the head with my
uncanny ability to profile people, but I thought that might be a
little much.

“He is too young to PROSPECT, but we let him
hang around here in exchange for his services,” Luke said in a way
that let me know he had to explain Kid’s reasoning for being here
more than once.

“It helps me out with the guys at school.
They are fucking dickheads, but they don’t mess with me anymore,
now that they know I’m protected by the club,” Kid said, rocking
back and forth on his toes making me dizzy. He must suffer from
some kind of ADD.

“Hey!” Luke snapped, causing Kid to stand
stock still. His face took on an expression of fear and I wanted to
smack Luke for hollering at him.

“Language. What did I tell you about cussing?
Especially in front of a lady.”

“Sorry, Luke. I just got excited,” he said,
hanging his head in shame. I wanted to hug him, but I refrained. I
didn’t need Luke snapping at me too. Luke let out another
exasperated sigh. He now seemed aggravated with himself for being
too hard on him.

“Why don’t you hang out tonight? Crash on one
of the couches. I’ll make sure you make it to school on time in the
morning.” At this, Kid’s head shot up and he became excited once
again.

“Cool! Thanks Luke!”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah. Just don’t piss anybody
off.” Kid pulled a phone from his pocket and disappeared through
the crowd.

“Well that was mighty nice of you, Mr.
Carmical,” I said laughing. Luke rolled his eyes at me and shook
his head.

“I’ve never had a soft spot for nerds. You
are turning me into a pussy.” I threw my head back, laughing hard
at Luke’s comment. There was nothing “pussy” about Luke.

“Damn boy!” boomed a voice from somewhere in
the room. We had made it through the doors and for the first time,
I was able to take in my surroundings. It looked like a mixture
between a bar, a gentlemen’s club, and a bike rally. Not that I had
ever been to a bike rally, but I had seen them on T.V.. My eyes
scanned the room for the voice when they landed on two men standing
at the bar. The tall, lean one wore glasses and had legs that
bowed, giving any cowboy a run for their money. The shorter one was
well built in the arms and had white and gray hair that covered
only the sides of his head. His skin was very tan and I thought he
might have some Native American in him.

Luke’s lips turned up on his face and parted
revealing two rows of perfect, white teeth. He placed his hand in
the small of my back and led me towards the two men that were
propped up at the bar drinking beer.

“I’m gonna say it again. Damn boy!” the
shorter man said laughing. I smiled at him, falling in love with
his laugh and the lines that formed at the corners of his eyes. He
was everything you expected from a biker. From his rugged look to
his dusty black boots.

“Dallas, this is Possum. He is the Vice
President of our Lake Charles chapter.” I stuck my hand out for him
to shake. He laughed his throaty laugh once again and stared down
at my hand shaking his head.

“Baby, I want to feel big tits on my chest
and I can’t do that if I shake your hand.” Before I had time to
react to his comment, he pulled me to him and wrapped me in his
arms. “Damn you smell good.”

I put my arms around his neck, patting him on
the back, not sure what to do or say. He had completely taken me
aback with his “tits” comment. When he released me, his demeanor
was much more serious, but also sympathetic. “We are here for you,
baby. You are a fighter. We are proud of you and we are glad to see
Luke finally settle down with a good woman.” Out of the corner of
my eye, I could see the tall man nodding in agreement. I was
humbled at his comment, and was sure that I would start crying at
any moment. I got the impression Possum was the type of guy even
the ladies went to when they just needed to talk. He was fun and
flirtatious, but it was just a mask to conceal the passionate,
understanding guy underneath.

“We are gonna take care of you, hun.” I
turned to my left to face the tall man who spoke lightly, but with
clarity. “Everyone in this room is here for you. I’m just glad to
see you have roped in this one,” he said, clapping Luke on the back
and pulling him in for a hug. Roped… hmm. Maybe he was a
cowboy.

“Ronnie, I want you to meet
my
Brooklyn. I hope in years to come we can say we have a relationship
as strong as the two of you.

This was Ronnie. This was Brooklyn’s Ronnie.
I was Luke’s Brooklyn. I was gonna lose it.

“Oh, is she a crazy bitch, too?” Ronnie asked
laughing.

“I heard that shit!” Brooklyn yelled from
down the bar. We all laughed and my emotions were back in
check.

“Come ‘ere, girl.” Ronnie pulled me to him
and I slid my arms around his back. He was much taller than me and
my head landed somewhere between his stomach and his neck. I wasn’t
sure where, because along with his bowed legs, Ronnie had the
longest torso I had ever seen.

Our hugging party was interrupted when a
gorgeous blonde with teased hair, a leather mini skirt, and fishnet
stockings appeared. “Drinks?” she asked, flashing a smile and
giving me a wink. I thought my reaction would be to punch her in
the face, or at least want to, but instead I smiled and requested a
vodka and Redbull.

“Great choice. I’m Linda,” she said, sticking
her small hand out for mine while battling the tray with her other.
Luke grabbed the tray from her and she smiled sweetly at him, but
not in an inviting way.

“Thanks Luke,” she said, never really making
eye contact.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you Linda. Luke and
I appreciate you being here.” Where the hell had that came from?
Luke beamed beside me, obviously pleased with my comment.

“The pleasure is all mine.” She sashayed
away, shaking her perfect ass as she went, and giving me time to
admire and appreciate her. Her long, slender legs were toned and
muscular. She walked with so much grace you would think she wore
flats instead of platform heals. She was, for lack of a better
word, hot.

“You like what you see, babe?” Luke asked
from beside me. I snapped back into the conversation to find the
three of them staring at me with an amused expression.

“What?” I asked, not knowing what was so
amusing. “She’s hot.”

Luke laughed and shook his head, “Here I was
thinking it was the guys I was gonna have to watch out for. Looks
like it’s gonna be the strippers.”

“She’s a stripper?” I asked, but now that he
said it, I could see she had the body of one.

“The best stripper,” Possum chimed in. “You
need to come down tonight and watch her in action.”

“Oh hell naw,” Luke said, shaking his head
vigorously.

“And why the hell not? I think it would be
fun.” I had never seen a stripper in action, other than on T.V. I
could handle it.

“Brooklyn’s gonna be here,” Ronnie informed
us, smiling at Luke, pleased with his discomfort.

“We’ll see. Come on, babe. I have some more
people I would like you to meet.”

Luke pulled me away and through the growing
crowd of people. The clubhouse was swarming with men and women of
all different ages. From those who looked like they had just
graduated high school to those that were carrying oxygen machines.
Luke introduced me to everyone we encountered. All of them were
gracious and kind and seemed to have the need to reassure me that
they were here to protect me. I had never felt more loved.

The bar was lined with women and PROSPECTS
behind it, serving drinks and making sure everyone was taken care
of. Several women floated around carrying trays of beer, chips, and
liquor-all dressed in skimpy attire and wearing platform heals. The
pool tables were crowded with people throwing their bets down on
who was the best. Tables, chairs, couches and barstools were all
taken, and even the meeting room was full of patch members who
looked to be in deep discussion. I told Luke I needed to go to the
bathroom and for the first time since we had entered, he allowed me
to leave his side. I had been introduced to almost everyone, so
there was no doubt about who I was here with.

The bathrooms were set up much like what you
would find in a bar. There were four sinks that lined the counter,
along with a mirror that stretched the length of the wall. The
stalls were made of wood, and the doors of them had the Reaper
emblem carved out. Along the counter, every beauty product and
toiletry you could imagine was available to you. From makeup and
hair spray, to tampons and condoms-they had thought of it all.

The bathroom was just as alive as the
clubhouse. It was full of women, all hogging the mirrors and
re-applying makeup. A window on the back side of the bathroom was
open, helping to vent some of the cigarette smoke. It smelled like
Marlboros and cheap perfume. The excitement that had been bubbling
inside me died when my eyes met Maddie’s in the mirror.

The last time I had seen her was at my house,
after my assault. Maddie and I didn’t have a very good
relationship, but she had been there and that was more than I could
have asked from her. Flanking her were Monica and Jennifer, the
twins I remembered from my first night at Luke’s. Next to them were
Jenn, Baby, and Jugs-all of whom I had met.

“Slap a pair of jeans on her and she almost
looks like a biker babe,” Maddie said, eyeing me in the mirror as
she applied a coat of lip gloss to her already red lips.

“Don’t be a bitch, Maddie. She is a biker
babe,” Jenn said, walking up to me and wrapping me in her arms. She
smelled good, and her hug was motherly. Her embrace gave me
reassurance and I let Maddie’s comment roll off my back. She walked
up to me until she was in my personal space. Not a good idea. I
cocked my eyebrow at her and stood my ground, letting her know that
she did not intimidate me.

“I’m not gonna pretend I like you. I’m sorry
about what happened with Frankie, but that doesn’t change
anything,” she said to me, not even looking me in the eyes, only
examining her fingernails. Bitch. If I was going to be around,
maybe it was time we just got this over with. “Maddie, why do you
hate me so much? Is it Luke? Do you want him or something?” So
maybe I shouldn’t have said that. I felt the air in the room shift
and you could cut the tension with a knife. Apparently, I had
struck a nerve. Maddie closed the distance between us, until she
was so close that when she spoke her warm, peppermint breath
tickled my nose.

“You don’t know shit. This is
my
family. That includes Luke. I love him, but not in the way you
think.”

“Well, maybe you should enlighten me, because
right now I don’t know and I don’t care who you are. I love him and
it’s in the way you think. This is
my
family too, so if you
have a secret to share or something to say, now is the time to do
it. Ever since I have been around, your place here has been a big
secret, so if you expect me to know shit and have a little more
patience with your fucking attitude then you better start
talking.”

I was now seething. My nostrils flared as I
stared down Maddie. She was just as stubborn as me and not backing
down. I had a feeling this was about to come to blows. My best plan
of action was to just wait for her to make the first move. I didn’t
need Luke saying I was starting shit and I didn’t want the other
girls to jump on me for hitting her first. My head was pounding. My
pulse was racing. My eyes had blocked out everything in the room
but her. My ears were not as easy to tune out the noise and I could
hear the other girls in the room trying to calm us down. Monica had
stepped to my right and her voice was in a fog, but I could make
out the words, “please, just let it go” that were whispered close
to my head.

When the door swung open and a loud “Hey!”
was shouted, neither of us budged. I knew it was Luke and the
thought pissed me off more. If she let her beady little pathetic
eyes sway the slightest in his direction I was going to cut her
fucking throat. Arms that I knew could belong to no one but Luke
grabbed me and hauled me out of the bathroom and through the
crowded clubhouse. He pushed me through the group of people that
had formed outside the door, forcing my feet to move. People got
out of our way without hesitation and I could feel every eye in the
room on me. This normally would have been embarrassing, but I was
so pissed that all I could think about was ripping Maddie’s head
off. The noise had died down and I was beginning to remember who I
was and what was happening.

Everyone here was hiding something when it
came to Maddie. Red had told me that her story was for Luke to
tell. It seemed that I was the only one out of the loop which
pissed me off even more.

We neared the doors and they were opened for
us as Luke escorted me outside with his hand wrapped tightly around
my waist. He never broke stride as we crossed the sidewalk, into
the carport and entered the house. I could hear laughter throughout
the house and noticed that kids were here. They didn’t seem to
notice us, and I didn’t have time to get a count of how many of
them were there. Luke steered me through the kitchen, living room,
and into his bedroom. Once inside, he let go of me and turned to
lock the door.

Chapter 6

Dallas

“What happened?” he immediately asked, once
the door was closed and we were alone.

“She fucking happened. This is the third
time, Luke. The third fucking time that I have had to deal with her
shit. What the fuck is going on? Who is she and why is she here?”
My body shook slightly with the anger that was coursing through my
veins. Luke ran his hands through his hair and paced the room. I
watched him as he walked from one side to the other. He looked to
be trying to figure out what in the hell to say to me. “The truth,
Luke. The truth is the best way to go with this. I can handle it,
just tell me. I don’t care if she is your ex, but I need to know. I
look like a damn fool! Everyone knows what is going on but me. If
you have had your dick in her, that’s fine, but I deserve to
know.”