Page 89 of Allegiance
“Yeah. Fester came to see me after the fight. He said you were going to come by. Anyway, we got to talking, and after thinking about everything he said and what you’d said to me, I came to the decision to step down. Nick is the most important thing in my life—all my kids are, but he’s sick so he needs even more care and attention. My loyalty is divided, so how can I run the club?”
Tank reached out and grasped his friend’s arm. “It takes a man who loves the brotherhood to make that kind of a decision.”
“I do love it, and I know you do too. You went nomad because of your mom. You knew you couldn’t give the time and attention equally to her and the club. It just took me a longer to figure that out.”
Lost in their thoughts, they sat in silence; their love for the brotherhood bonded them for life.
After several minutes, Raptor rose to his feet. “I gotta get back.”
“How’s Nick?”
A weak smile ghosted his lips. “Better.”
“What are his chances of getting a donor for the transplant?”
“One of his brothers or sisters may be able to. The doctors are arranging the tests. They’re actually pretty hopeful.”
“That’s good. Keep me in the loop.”
Tank walked Raptor to the door, and the two men bumped fists. When he went back into the kitchen, Lena was back at the sink.
“Thanks for giving us some space,” he said.
“No problem. You’re looking kind of shaky. You should get some fresh air.”
Lena helped him into the sun room then went back to finish cleaning the dishes. It killed him to be so weak on his feet, and he hated she had to see him like that. Though he didn’t mind her soft body pressed close to his, with the scent of her perfume swirling around him.
“Here you go.” She set a glass of iced tea on the small wicker table next to his chair.
“I’d rather have a beer.”
“The doctor said absolutely no alcohol until you’re off all medication, especially the antibiotics.”
“That sucks.”
She cocked her head to the side. “Life’s a bitch. You have to stay here and get pampered while looking out at the ocean. How are you ever going to survive this?”
“The sea air has made you even sassier.” He teased.
Sinking down on the chair next to his, she stared out at the ocean. “I love how quiet it is here. I could get used to this.” She turned to him. “This is the longest I’ve gone without working in years. I mean,physicallyworking in the bistro. Cooking, baking, loading and unloading trucks—all of that. I’m in contact with Adalyn and Sarah, and I’ve made business calls, but it seems strange not to be in the bistro. Yet, I have to admit, I love the peacefulness here.”
“This is a great place to kick back and just let your mind wander.” He didn’t add that the atmosphere was usually charged and tense, because it was used for hiding out from rival clubs, the badges, gangsters, and a whole slew of other dangerous scenarios. But she didn’t need to know that.
“Do you come here often?” she asked.
“No. I’ve only been here one time, and that was years ago.”
And that was when Maniac had pissed off one of the Dying Breed’s members by fucking the dude’s old lady. Maniac didn’t have a clue she belonged to another man, let alone a rival club member, but that didn’t matter in the MC world. Maniac had disrespected the dude, and he was out for blood. In the end, the Jagged Outlaws took care of the guy, and due to the constant turf wars, they eventually annihilated the rival club.
“Thanks for helping me out during the fight. I was in a bad way before you stepped in.”
Lena’s face flushed and her face tightened. “I never thought I’d be involved in something like that. I keep wondering if I” —she lowered her voice— “killedanyone. I stabbed one of those guys with a butcher knife. A fucking butcher knife. When they left, they were all standing, except for Cougar. They had to drag him out, but what if the guy bled to death?”
“Demon deserved what he got. An outlaw knows the score.”
“Butthatdoesn’t make me feel better. I don’t… I can’t think that way. I feel horrible about what I did, but there was no choice—Ihadto do something. I knew I couldn’t call the sheriff’s office because they’re corrupt, but I couldn’t let them kill you.” Her voiced cracked.
Catching her hand in his, he brought it to his lips and kissed it. “I appreciate what you did for me. By you stepping in, you saved my life. And to ease your mind, Raptor said Demon and Rubble survived.” Cursing inaudibly, Tank pivoted in his chair so he faced her. “I’ve missed you a lot. I came in there that night to make sure the BS stopped.”
