Bitter Sweet Deception (The Kingsmen M.C Book 4) (7 page)

A large, sanded lot is left empty, offset to the main entrance and we begin to pile in, parking close, to fit everyone. I
t’
s chaos. Absolute chaos. The cars have started to unload, with kids swarming around, checking out the bikes and seeking out their parents. And tha
t’
s
before 
the other charters join our swarm, welcoming us, catching up with their brothers.

I dismount so that Clink has the room to hop off the bike, but I stay close to it, hanging back as man after man comes up to him to slap him on the back, punch him in the arm, or spew some good-natured curse words at him.

A cloudy-eyed, older man with a bandana folded around his fluffy white hair, and a good-sized beer belly, leaves Clink when h
e’
s finished with him, and makes his way to me.

“
How you doing, darli
n’?
”
 
He hugs me hard, lifting my feet from the ground.
 “
The nam
e’
s Bear
.
”
 
He sets me down and holds me at length, inspecting me.

I smile awkwardly,
 “
Hi, um, Bear.
I’
m Charlie, nice to meet ya
.
”

He chuckles, deep,
 “
Ah! I know who ya are, Sugar. Clin
k’
s like a son to me. Told him myself to rag you up
.
”

My eyes widen at the burley, happy-go-lucky man who has an advantage over me. Clink breaks free of the small cluster of Kingsmen surrounding him, joining us.

“
So this is her, Bear
,
”
 
he switches to a joking voice.
 “
The woman who
tamed
  me
.
”

Bear laughs hard, slapping my other half hard on the back. Clink sees me burning him with my eyes, and he makes a conciliatory gesture to kiss my lips and then smack my ass. Bear watches me, sizing up my reaction. This is a opportunity.
I’
m not a pushover and I do
n’
t want to get a reputation as a doormat of an o
l’
lady. What would Jean do at a time like this?

I smile sweetly, lock eyes with my
o
l’
man, 
and then reach out to grab his dick, closing my hand around his bulge. His eyes bounce, and he straightens.

“
Damn right yo
u’
re
tamed
,
”
 
I blow a little kiss at him.

I do
n’
t squeeze or twist, although
I’
m tempted to. Clink starts to laugh hard at my bravado, and so I let go.

“
Yo
u’
re gonna fit right in here, kiddo
,
”
 
Bear rests his hand on my shoulder, squeezing lightly before walking off, laughing.

Clink grins broadly,
 “
I knew you would
n’
t be able to leave my dick alone, Sugar
.
”

I shake my head,
 “
Oh, do
n’
t get me wrong. Yo
u’
re still cut off for now
.
”

I wink, and turn to head off to find the girls.

CHAPTER SIX

CLINK

The tents have all been staked down and cabins all claimed. My rank entitles Sugar and me to a small wooden cabin, so I have our stuff stashed inside and then leave her with a bunch of the women to attend church.

Vince heads up the table with Bear, Stitch, and Hawg sitting side by side, presidents representing the four local club chapters. There are
n’
t enough chairs so the rest of us stand. The meeting wo
n’
t last long, tha
t’
s not why w
e’
ve all come here. W
e’
re here to have fun, relax, have a  reunion of sorts.

But, ther
e’
s always some amount of club business to smoothe over first. Standard stuff, at first, a roll call, a breakdown of all new brothers, transfers, and a moment of silence for those gone or locked up and unable to be here with us.

Next, the rules are laid out. No drugs, since i
t’
s a family shindig, and no carrying weapons. Each chapter is responsible to lock up all guns and knives. The last thing we need is for some drunk brother with a grudge against another, or a pair of beer-balls to go reaching for his piece to prove a point. With so many kids running around, we do
n’
t need anything ending up in their hands as a toy, either.

As enforcer, it falls to me to lock our chapte
r’
s shit up. Any brother caught carrying is subject to punishment, so as soon as the meeting is adjourned, I set out to make the rounds. I have Cage log everything tha
t’
s turned in, and we lock it all up in the trunk of Jea
n’
s truck. Before we leave to go home tomorrow night, w
e’
ll hand everything back.

When yo
u’
re used to carrying a piece for as long as all these guys have, i
t’
s not an easy feeling to deal with when i
t’
s gone. The whole ordeal has eaten up a good amount of my day, too, tracking down each shit-head to collect their pieces was no easy task.

I know the grills have been lit and the food is starting to cook, but Charlie is nowhere to be found. I start to search for her, first with the women and then back at our cabin. The wooden shutters are open, with the metal mesh screens giving no protection to hide the voice inside.

“
Mom,
I’
m not going to be home. W
e’
re so shorthanded,
I’
m definitely gonna get stuck working another double shift tonight
.
”

Shit
.  Really? Sh
e’
s still pulling this shit with her ma?

“
N
o…
i
t’
s fine. I need the money right now. I
t’
ll be an easy night, and then when I get home,
I’
ll just crash. S
o…
I probably wo
n’
t be able to answer my phone till late Monday night
.
”

I open the screen door, letting it slam shut behind me. The cabin is very small. Sugar sits on the bed to take her call. She freezes when I enter the room.

“
Uh- mom, I gotta go.
I’
ve gotta go clock in.
I’
ll see you Tuesday. Sure, two
o’
clock, at Tempur
a’
s. Got it. OK. Yup. Love you, too. Uh huh. Bye
.
”

She tosses her phone aside. I do
n’
t say anything, I wait for her too. She squirms, uncomfortably. I wait some more, crossed arms over my chest. Charlie is just a little too comfortable lying to her mom. Sh
e’
s convincing enough, like sh
e’
s had plenty of practice. I stare her down.

I can see her wheels spinning, trying to some up with something.
 “
I
t’
s just easier to tell her what she wants to hear
,
”
 
she offers.

“
Stop
,
”
 
I hold up my hand.
 “
No bullshit. If you do
n’
t want me to bullshit you, then do
n’
t do it to me, Sugar
.
”

She exhales.
 “
Fine. My mo
m’
s jus
t…
a lot to handle. If you meet her, I know sh
e’
s gonna scare you off
.
”

I gauge her truthfulness.
I’
m not sold.

“
I
t’
s gonna happen eventually, babe. The longer you put it off, the worse i
t’
s gonna be. Those letters on your back mean something. Moms and all
.
”

“
I do
n’
t see you bringing your mom over for dinner
,
”
 
she comes back at me.

I laugh,
 “
Sh
e’
s coming into town next month, Sugar. Stayi
n’
in the guest room. Nex
t
…”

She bites her lip.
 “
She does
n’
t like bikers. Sh
e’
s got thi
s…
thing
  against them
.
”

“
Well, i
t’
s a good thing I got a truck then. Next
.
”

Sh
e’
s getting nervous.
 “
She hates tats
.
”

“I’
ll wear long sleeves. Next
.
”

Now sh
e’
s getting flustered.
 “
She does
n’
t like long hair. Thinks i
t’
s trashy
.
”

I run my hand through my overgrown hair.
 “I’
m about due for a trim. Next
.
”

She moves to speak, but ca
n’
t find words.
 “
Bu
t…
I-
I….
”

I pull her up from her seat on the bed, latching one arm around her, the other holding her chin still as I tell her how i
t’
s gonna be.
 “
Yo
u’
re gonna tell her about me on Tuesday. Then, w
e’
ll deal with her hangups
.
”

She tries to free her chin, but I straighten it, my eyes widening, silently demanding her understanding.

“
Fine. Fine.
I’
ll tell her on Tuesday
,
”
 
she gives in.

I nod my head, agreeing with her.
 “
Good. Now that
tha
t’
s
settled. Le
t’
s go grab some grub, have a few drinks, and then let me convince you to end your strike and give me some
.
”

******

CHARLIE

Ah, fuck. I need to come up with a plan for Clink meeting my mom. Hiring an actress to play my mom is not out of the realm of possibility at this point. Damn, I need to figure this shit out before things get more out of hand.

And even more important right no
w
…
 
Clin
k’
s mom is coming to town? Like I do
n’
t have enough on my plate. I need a drink.

The night is getting a little cool, so I change into a pair of jeans and a long-sleeve, fitted flannel and my Uggs. Clink left a couple of minutes earlier, and I leave the cabin behind to catch up.

“
Whoa, chica
!
”
 
I turn to see Sunny and Li
l’
s walking behind me.
 “
Wher
e’
s your rag
?
”

I look around, confused.
 “
Crap! I forgot it back at the cabin
,
”
 
I explain.
 “
Should I go back and get it
?
”

Li
l’
s and Sunny look at each other, and nod simultaneously.
 “
Hell yeah! You do
n’
t want to be walking around these parts tonight without your letters. Some of these boys get frisky when you pum
p‘
em full of booze
.
”

I nod, believing it 100%.
 “
Mm
m…
kay.
I’
ll catch up with you two later
.
”

I
t’
s a short distance to the cabin, but the setting sun slows me down as I tread carefully on the bare ground. The snapping sound cracks through the silence and I freeze. I spin around and squint to pierce the darkening night and see a form approaching.

“
U
h…
wh
o’
s there
?
”
 
I call out.

I fumble in my pocket, reaching for my phone.

“
Depends who you want me to be, little girl
,
”
a
very slurred speech replies.

The little hairs on the back of my neck stand tall, alert. I do
n’
t like the sound of his voice.

“
My man is waiting for me,
I’
m just heading to meet him
.
”
 
I hope that sounds as believable as I need it to.

“
Is that so
?
”

I step backwards, walking away from him as he nears, his pace quickens. My foot stumbles on a round object nearby. It must be a rock. If I move quick, I can reach down and use it against him, if I have to.

I bend down, reaching out to find the rock when he takes advantage of my position and pounces, crashing me down to the dirt. He reeks of booze and his grip is strong, but the movements are sloppy. H
e’
s trashed. His lips slide over my skin, searching for mine, but my head thrashes from side to side to avoid them.

“
Get
off
  of me, you asshole
!
”
 
I manage to get out even though he is crushing my lungs. He does
n’
t listen, not that I really expected him to.

I jab my knee up fast and hard, crushing his dick. He coughs and gasps from the trauma to his privates. His limp weight is still covering me. I move fast, biting his ear, and push him off of me as he screams. My feet move on their own, getting me to safety.

I reach the cabin and lock myself in. Ther
e’
s no electricity, and the room is dark. I move the lone chair in the room over to block the door, and crawl over to the corner, huddling in on myself and rocking. My body trembles uncontrollably, and my breathing is shaky at best.

Holy fuck
,  what just happened? I swallow hard, clenching my eyes tight. I try anything I can, to think of anything other than what that guy smelled like, how heavy his weight was on top of me. After some time,
I’
m able to force myself to stop feeling his bulged erection through his clothes, poking into me.

“
Sugar
?
”
 
I hear from outside the wooden walls.
 “
Charlie, you in there
?
”

I know that voice. Thank God! I crawl on my knees to get close to the chair blocking the door.