Page 77 of King
Chapter 23
Ella
I tried not to be nervous as Dante parked his bike in front of the clubhouse. The parking lot was over half full of bikes, with a few cars – or cages as I’d heard them referred to – parked there, too.
I took off my new helmet, the one Dante had surprised me with when he’d picked me up this evening. It was painted in various shades of blue that resembled water. He said it had reminded him of my eyes, and I’d almost melted into a puddle of goo. He strapped the helmet to the back of the seat rest he’d had added for me, another surprise today.
I ran my fingers through my hair to fluff it, and Dante assured me it looked fine.
“You’re fuckin’ gorgeous, woman. I’m gonna have to beat my brothers to keep them away from you.”
I’d been a little unsure of what to wear tonight, but had settled for my favorite jeans, topped with a casual, black V-neck shirt. It was sleeveless, and the shoulders straps were made up of three strips of fabric braided together. It had lacy panels inserted along each side, from my armpits to the hem, which gave a little flash of the skin underneath when I moved my arms. It was pretty, and different than my usual run-of-the-mill T-shirts. I’d worn a pair of flat, black ankle boots, since we’d taken the bike tonight. Based on the wolf-whistle and the scorching hot kissDante had planted on me when he picked me up, he approved of the way I looked.
Dante had given me the rundown on the clubhouse over dinner at a nearby Mexican restaurant, describing the various members and what they did for the club. I doubted I’d be able to remember everything, but at least with their names on their cuts, I should be OK. I was a little nervous but felt prepared to face whatever was going on inside.
Dante took my hand and led me to the entrance. I could hear the music from inside even before he opened the door. Nobody paid any attention to our arrival until Cowboy spotted us and called out a greeting. Within seconds, every eye in the place was on us, or at least it felt that way to me.
I was relieved to see familiar faces scattered around. Jagger was sitting at a table with Lucky and two other men. I only knew it was Jagger – and not Rome – since Molly was sitting on his lap. There were subtle differences in their appearance, but unless I saw them side-by-side, or interacted with them, it was hard for me to tell them apart.
I saw Linc and Rod working behind the bar and noticed Pop at a table playing poker with several other men. That’s where we were now headed, with Dante’s arm resting on the small of my back as he guided me across the room.
“Hi, darlin’,” Pop said, standing up to greet me with a kiss on my cheek. “I’m glad to see King brought you to meet the boys.”
Dante wrapped his arm around my waist as he introduced me to the other men at the table.
“That’s Saint there on the end. He works at Guardian Ink with Rome. Brick runs our security company. His wife, Theresa, took their girls to their swimming lessons tonight, so you’ll haveto meet her another time.” Saint and Brick both greeted me with curious looks and polite smiles, then went back to studying their cards.
Dante’s arm tightened a little as he got to the next man, who was staring in a way that made me extremely uncomfortable. His pale blue eyes raked over me, focusing on my boobs as he gave me a sleazy grin. He looked like he’d just stepped off of the Sons of Anarchy set, and not in a sexy, Charlie Hunnam way. No, this guy looked mean, with long, scraggily hair that was more gray than brown, and a long goatee to match, with faded tattoos covering his arms and even his neck. He was wearing multiple silver chains, and chunky silver rings on several fingers. “That’s Ace, the club’s road captain.”
I struggled to keep my expression neutral.This was Dante’s half-brother?They looked nothing alike, and I was thankful I’d never had the occasion to cross paths with him before. There was something about him that creeped me the fuck out. I offered a slight smile and a head nod to be polite. He stared at my boobs and licked his lips.
I glanced up at Dante, who thankfully had moved on to the next guy and had missed Ace’s little stunt. I had a feeling things would have turned ugly otherwise.
“And this is Bull, our club secretary and resident computer genius.” The man in question turned his head and greeted me in a deep, gravelly voice. I smiled and returned the greeting, and he cocked his head as if puzzled about something as he studied me carefully.
“Brothers, this is Eleanor Chadwick, otherwise known as Ella. She’s Pop’s neighbor and my – “
“Well, fuck me sideways. Ellie Drake. I knew you looked familiar.” With that, the man called Bull pushed back his chairand stood up, with a huge smile on his face. He was heavily muscled and topped out at a couple of inches taller than Dante. His arms, neck, and hands were covered in swirls of dark ink, and he even had one on the side of his shaved head.
Dante tensed, and his arm tightened around me as he pulled me closer to him. This huge, scary looking man clearly knew me, since he knew my maiden name, and that I used to be called Ellie as a kid, but I had no idea who he was. As he got closer, I saw a pair of bright green eyes shining out of his tanned face, and something pinged in my memory. Before I could figure it out, he came to a stop in front of me.
“Don’t you recognize me, Ellie?” He teased, clearly not offended. “I guess I have changed a little in the last twenty-odd years. I’m – “
“Mike Hollis,” I gasped in surprise as his identity finally registered. He laughed and leaned in for a hug, which I gladly returned. I felt Dante’s arm slip off my waist as Mike released me and I looked up to find him glaring at us both.
“You wanna share with the rest of us how you know Bull, darlin’?”
I grinned at Pop, then turned to smile back up at Mike, or rather,Bull.
“I grew up down the street from him and his family. I went to school with his brother Chris.” I looked up at Dante again, and he looked even more pissed off than before. His jaw was clenched, and he looked like he wanted to punch my old neighbor.
Mike and I spent a few minutes catching up, while Dante stood next to us, watching our interaction with narrowed eyes.
“I can’t believe Chris is a paramedic now,” I mused. “I remember how he always refused to use a bandage any time he cut himself working on that old bike of his. He’d wrap a piece of duct tape around the cut instead, usually without even cleaning the grease off first.”
Mike winced and said that luckily Chris knew better than that these days. “He actually comes around the clubhouse every once in a while, so you might run into him here.”
“I’d love to see him sometime,” I agreed. I had fond memories of our teenaged years.
