Devils Outlaws (Motorcycle Club Romance) (3 page)

“Uh, why me and why to Texas?” I asked, trying to be as polite as possible.

He averted his eyes and stared at the doorway. Was that guilt in his eyes? I couldn’t be sure.

“Well I just think you’d be the right person for the job. Plus the pay is much better and I figured you’d appreciate that. It wouldn’t be a permanent thing; you only have to stay there for one or two months tops.”

I sat back in my chair and tried to absorb this information.

“So I’d be getting paid to report on a motorcycle gang. What would I have to do? Just take pictures of them getting beers or something?”

He leaned forward ominously.

“Not exactly. I want you to get close to them. I want you to find out what they do, where they go, who’s involved. From what I hear, they aren’t as dangerous as some of the other gangs around the area, but I would still play it safe. You shouldn’t have too much trouble.”

“But why go there in the first place? What’s so special about them? What sets them apart from all the other gangs around the country?”

He averted his eyes again. I knew there was something he wasn’t telling me and it made me nervous.

“My boss just says it’s important to learn about what they’re up to. They’ve only been around a couple years so they’re relatively new. But they are pretty big down there in Texas now. I think you’ll enjoy it,” he said, smiling at her.

I wasn’t so sure.

“When do I leave for this assignment?”

“You’ll be catching a plane on Friday. I have your hotel booked for one month, but if you find anything interesting I may pull you out sooner.”

I nodded. Maybe this wouldn’t be so bad. Plus I’d get more money, which didn’t hurt. There was something about this that seemed a little fishy though. There was definitely something Dave wasn’t telling me about the gang. But I didn’t think he’d send me there if he knew there was a chance I would get hurt, right?

I spent the evening packing my bags and thinking about just what the hell I was going to do over there. I’d never been out of DC before so it would be a whole new experience for me. I was more nervous about the job though.

What kind of motorcycle club required a journalist to follow them around? Why was it
me
being sent when there were plenty of other people who were probably more experienced than me? What was it that Dave wasn’t telling me about the job?

Those questions went through my head for the rest of the week as I prepared myself to leave. The only thing that comforted me was the fact that there were probably a lot of hot cowboys in Dallas. Who knows? Maybe I’d get lucky and score with a cute guy. I was a decent looking girl, I shouldn’t have too much trouble.

But my nerves returned almost instantly once the plane touched down in Dallas. I grabbed my luggage and looked around for a guy holding a sign with my name on it. I found him at once by the exit, looking as nervous as me and at least five years younger. He couldn’t have been more than twenty.

“Hey, I’m Emily Nicks. I take it you’re here to take me to my hotel?”

“Y-yes. Right this way,” he mumbled opening the door for me. I wondered why he was so nervous.

He helped load my luggage into his car and ushered me in quickly. I sat back and relaxed in the back seat as we began to drive away.

“So where in Dallas are we going?” I asked.

He gave me a terrified look in the mirror.

“The dangerous part,” he whispered.

Wow. It must have been pretty dangerous if the poor kid was this terrified. He didn’t answer any of my questions the rest of the drive. I silently cursed Dave. I thought he said this wouldn’t be dangerous? Too late to back out now.

Finally we pulled up to a little rundown motel in the middle of nowhere. I got out of the car and looked around. There was sand everywhere. Millions and millions of miles of sand, it seemed. This town really was in the middle of nowhere.

There was a little grocery store next door to the motel, a bar across the street, twenty or so houses and a few more shops lining the streets. I cursed Dave again. Why the fuck would he send me to a tiny little town like this? And where the hell was I supposed to find a biker gang? I couldn’t even see any people.

My answer came a few moments later. I heard the sound of engines rumbling and spun around. There, about a hundred feet away, sat eight huge, hulking guys on motorcycles with the letters
TSD
on their jackets. There was a little carving of a demon looking thing with horns on the front of each motorcycle.

I gulped. Well, at least I found the Devils Outlaws without too much trouble. The fun part would be following them. The guy in the middle seemed to be the leader. He drove over to the motel parking spot as the rest of the guys followed.

He dismounted and immediately turned and walked over to me, taking his helmet off. My heart seemed to melt. I could see his emerald green eyes from here. This guy did not look like any typical redneck biker. He was absolutely gorgeous.

His sleeveless shirt revealed huge, broad shoulders and bulging arm muscles that rippled when he walked. I could make out his chest muscles underneath his shirt. This guy was
ripped.

He stood about a foot taller than me and had tattoos running all the way down his arms and legs. If he turned around I’m sure his jeans would outline a perfect ass. He looked like a bodybuilder model turned biker.

He stopped right in front of me and looked me up and down. I could feel my heart racing in my chest. If I wasn’t so nervous about these guys, pussy juice would be seeping through my pants right now. This guy was
incredible.

“We haven’t seen you around here before. What are you doing here?” He had a smooth, deep voice that made my head spin.

“I-I’m here on business,” I squeaked, unable to meet his eyes.

“What kind of business?” He eyed the big camera in my hand.

“You a photographer or something?” he asked, flashing me an absurdly perfect smile.

I don’t know where my sudden burst of courage came from, but suddenly I got angry. I was from Washington DC and these hicks were from butt-fuck nowhere. What business was it of theirs what I was doing here?

“That’s none of your business,” I replied defiantly, looking him square in the eye this time.

He chuckled. The chuckle turned into a laugh. Pretty soon the whole gang was laughing their asses off at me. I felt myself turn beet-red. Whether it was with rage or embarrassment I didn’t know. But these guys were really getting on my nerves.

I made my decision. I was determined to find some dirt on these assholes if it took me years. At this point I didn’t care that Dave had screwed me over sending me to this town in the middle of nowhere. These fuckers were going to get theirs.

When he finally stopped laughing enough to make a coherent sentence, the leader spoke again.

“Honey, it’s our
job
to know everything that goes on around here. We basically run the town. You may not want to tell us now, but believe me. You will,” he rumbled, much more seriously.

Those last two words sent a chill down my spine. Was he threatening me?

“I’m Rick, by the way. I got a feeling we’re going to be seeing each other real soon, honey,” he promised, giving me a wicked grin.

He turned back to his motorcycle as the rest of the gang followed. Within seconds they had sped off into the distance.

I turned to look back at the driver but he was huddled in the car.

“Thanks for all your help,” I muttered to him, grabbing my bags.

“S-sorry, ma’am. But those guys are really dangerous. If they saw me with you, they might…” he didn’t finish. I didn’t ask him to elaborate.

“So these guys run this town huh?” I asked him as he helped me carry my bags inside.

“Sort of,” he said. He grew more relaxed when we walked into the motel.

I nodded.

“I have a lot of questions for you if you don’t mind.”

He shrugged.

“Okay, that’s fine. Let’s get you settled in first and we’ll talk.”

I checked myself in and followed him up to my room. It was a small little place with no TV or microwave. At least it had a bed. I sighed and set my stuff down. This would take some getting used to.

Once I got my stuff unpacked, I met the driver down in the lobby. He’d gotten us both a cup of coffee. I smiled and sat down across the table from him.

“So, what’s your name?” I asked.

“Rob. My dad is your boss.”

That took me by surprise.

“You’re Dave’s kid?”

“Yeah. I’ve been helping him out for a couple years now, taking care of some stuff down here.”

“Wow.”

I shook my surprise off quickly. I had more pressing matters to discuss with him.

“So about these bikers. Do they come into town often?”

He nodded.

“Just about every night. They head into the bar and drink until it closes. Then they go back to their camp and drink some more.” He shuddered. “They’re scary sober, but when they get drunk… it isn’t pretty.”

“This camp that they have. Do you know where it is?”

He shrugged.

“Sure. But you’ll have to go by yourself; I’m not taking you over there. It’s south of town. You’ll go past a trail and walk about a mile, it isn’t too far.”

“One last question, Rob. Do you know why your dad sent me here? Did he talk to you at all about it?”

He shook his head again.

“No, he doesn’t usually talk too much about his employees or work. Sorry.”

I smiled and stood up.

“It’s okay, you’ve been a big help. Thanks a lot, Rob.”

He stood up too.

“You aren’t going out to their camp are you?” he asked nervously.

“Of course I am. I can’t do my job unless I get some information about those guys.”

He nodded solemnly.

“You’d better make sure you don’t get caught. If Rick catches you and you’re all alone, you’ll be in a lot of trouble.”

“Is Rick the leader?”

“Temporary leader. The main guy is away on some business. I forgot his name though.”

I smiled again.

“See you around, Rob.”

I made sure I had my camera and extra batteries and started walking south towards the camp. My heart started to pound. It wasn’t nerves though. I was excited. I was determined to find some dirt on these guys and really impress the boss.

It wasn’t long before I stumbled across their “camp.” It wasn’t really a camp. More a community. There were five houses on each side of the road and one bigger one at the end. Fortunately, no one was in sight. I assumed they were still off doing whatever motorcycle gangs do.

I decided to start with the bigger house first. I assumed that was where Rick lived so that would be where I would most likely find any incriminating evidence. I knew no one was in sight, but I still needed to be careful.

I snuck up quietly to the house. It was a two-story house that looked almost brand new. The windows looked like they had just been replaced and the paint looked great. Again, I found myself surprised. Maybe these guys weren’t the hard asses everyone made them out to be?