Page 2 of Love’s Decree

“Girl, let’s order some drinks. We’re supposed to be celebrating. All that other stuff can wait for another day,” Ava said as she waved the server over.

I tried to move past the conversation, but the scenario replayed in my mind. The more I replayed the interaction, the weirder it was to me. Someone went out of their way to send that message to me. The fake courier knew exactly who I was and the time I would leave the courthouse. Someone had to have told them where I would be and when I would be leaving. I continued to feel uneasy while I attempted to enjoy my time with Ava.

We placed our order for a twenty-piece lemon pepper wings, extra crispy, and two whiskey sours. Ava and I were mid-conversation, chatting about our upcoming cases and her dating life, when the finest man I had ever laid eyes on walked into the bar. He was average height with broad shoulders and a toffee complexion. His dark Caesar haircut and full beard were well groomed. Tattoos covered his arms and neck. There was a scar that ran from the middle of his bicep to his wrist and was visible through the tattoos.

The motorcycle vest he wore was black and had the words “Sons of” on the top and “Destruction” on the bottom in white writing outlined in red. A dog tag hung around his neck. He had an air about him that made everyone in the bar stop and stare. I watched as he and the two men with him took a seat at a table across from Ava and me. Ava was so engrossed in our conversation that she didn’t notice the men until they sat down. I tried in vain, but I couldn’t take my eyes off the handsome stranger who locked eyes with me.

“If you’re not going to go over there and say hello, then stop staring,” Ava said.

I looked at her and rolled my eyes. She knew I would never get up and speak to any man first. If a man was interested in me, he would need to come see me. The server came over with our food and drinks. My staring contest was instantly disengaged.

2

AASIM “BRICK”

Isat at the head of the table during our meeting at the clubhouse. The count from last night’s drop was off, and as the president of the Sons of Destruction, I needed to figure out why. While everyone thought we were having a regular meeting, I was ready to crack some skulls. This was the first time the money had ever come up short. I had been fuming internally since last night, trying to figure out what happened. Jaxx, Gavin, and I stayed up for hours, going over everyone’s role and every possibility, but nothing seemed right. Something was off, and unfortunately, there seemed to be a thief among us.

“Let’s bring this meeting to order,” I said as I banged the gavel against the table.

The men seated around the table were all members of the Sons of Destruction. Jaxx, aka Rider, was my Vice President, and Gavin, aka Knuckles, was our muscle. Everyone else held various positions that made the club function to its full potential. We were mixed up in a lot of shit from drugs to guns and anything in between to keep us all afloat. Everyone at the table knew the risks of our business, so missing money wasn’t just on me; it was on all of us.

“Listen up. The count last night was short. I’m not going to tell anyone how short. Just know it’s short. The only thing I want to know is—who was dumb enough to steal from the club?” I asked no one in particular. I knew the thief wasn’t going to out themselves in front of the entire club. My hope was that someone would act out of the ordinary so we could get to the bottom of this. The murmurs around the table grew loud as everyone denied any involvement in the missing money.

“Now that everyone has proclaimed they don’t know shit, let’s figure out who stole our money. Who was in charge of the prospects last night?”

“I was, but I didn’t leave them alone. There’s no way it was one of them,” Major, one of the club members, said.

“Are you sure? By the time me, Jaxx, and Gavin got here, they already counted the money. Something happened between the docks and it arriving at the club. Are you trying to say that JoJo shorted us?”

“Nah. I’m not saying that. The money was all there when we counted, unless someone miscounted their pile,” Major attempted to explain.

The crew argued amongst themselves, and I sat back and watched. With each passing moment, I became angrier. When I had finally had enough, I banged my fist on the table.

“Enough! If you have nothing productive to add to this conversation, shut up. Ya dig? From here on out, everyone is on notice. I want my money back ASAP. We have a gun shipment that we have to pay for. If I have to go in my pocket to cover the missing money, bodies are going to start dropping. How about everyone go put their ears to the street and find the money? Meeting is adjourned. Now, get out my face,” I said as I stormed out of the room.

There was nothing I hated more than a bunch of men bickering like bitches. As I stepped into the hallway, Angie, a chick that hung around the club, waved at me and smiled. After a meeting, I would usually take her to the back and get my dick wet, but today wasn’t the day. She approached me and ran her hand across my chest. “I can’t wait for you to bend me over and smack my ass, Brick.”

“You’re going to have to wait. I’m not in the mood today,” I said as I snatched her hand off my chest and walked away. Angie was used to my hot and cold nature. My turning her down today wouldn’t stop me from beating that pussy up whenever I wanted in the future. With the drop coming up, the last thing on my mind was getting my dick wet. By the time I made it outside, Jaxx and Gavin were at my side.

“Y’all, follow me so we can chop it up without all these ears around,” Jaxx said.

One by one, we each hopped on our bikes. My bike of choice for today was a black-on-black Kawasaki Versys 1000SE. “SOD” was etched on the left side of my helmet, and “Pres” was etched on the right side. As Jaxx led us away from the club, Gavin and I followed his lead. I was close to the other club members, but Jaxx and Gavin were my brothers.

We’d been down together since we were teenagers. A few years ago, Big Will stepped down as the president and handed me the reins. Jaxx got bumped to my vice president, and Gavin kept his role as enforcer. If anyone in the crew had my back, I knew these two did. As we rode, the sound of bikes roaring through the busy streets was all I heard. It was a sound I would never grow tired of. The sound of my bike was the only thing that could calm the crazy thoughts filling my mind.

Thirty minutes later, we pulled up to a familiar spot. Bottoms Up was Jaxx’s favorite bar in the city, aside from my cigar lounge. I should have known he’d want to come here. We parked our bikes at the back of the bar and headed inside. I looked around the spot, scoping everything out. My eyes landed on this light-skinned beauty with a baby face and almond-shaped, chestnut eyes. Her hair was bone straight and went all the way down her back. She and a beautiful ebony-complexioned sister sat at a tabletop across from Jaxx’s favorite table. The beauty must have felt my gaze because her eyes met mine.

I found my way to the table and chose a seat that faced the baby-faced beauty who caught my attention on the way in. As Jaxx and Gavin took their seats, they both turned around to see what had me so laser focused.

“Only man I know that goes from threatening to crack skulls to staring a hole in a chick at a bar,” Gavin joked.

“Shut up, fool. Ain’t nobody doing all of that,” I said.

“Yeah, you are. Why don’t you go over there and say hello? Maybe she can help keep you calm until we resolve our issue,” Jaxx added.

“Fuck all that. The only thing that will keep me calm is finding that money.”

While they gave me shit for keeping a watchful eye on shorty, the server approached us to get our orders. I ordered a shot of whiskey and some lemon pepper wings. The wings were the best thing on the menu at this spot.