Road to Passion (7 page)

He smiled. “Good girl. Change
your shoe and we’ll go.”

“We’re in the car, right?”

He laughed. “Yeah, baby, we’re in
the car.”

“Thank you.” I smiled and kissed
him quickly. “Be right back.”

I opted for the other black shoe
and then followed him to the car.

“Will you get in trouble?” I
asked once buckled.

“For?”

“Us being in the car and not on
your bike.”

Mack raised an eyebrow. “Honey,
what kind of club do think I’m apart of?”

I shrugged, feeling the heat
crawl into my cheeks. “I just know how important motorcycles are to motorcycle
club members and I don’t want you to be looked down on because your girlfriend
is afraid of them.”

He chuckled. “You’ve been
watching too much television.”

“Maybe,” I said. “But I can try
again if it’ll help.”

We stopped at a red light and
Mack took my hand. “Baby, we will try again, but not on a wet day. It’ll happen
in a place that has next to no traffic so you feel safer.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, Darien, I’m sure.”

I squeezed his hand. “Thanks,
honey.”

He smiled. “Don’t mention it.”

We drove to the club compound and
I was a little awed by the bikes on display. Even though I was terrified of
them, I still loved them.

Mack parked the car under the
Big
Ernie’s Body Shop
sign and faced me. “You ready?”

“Not in the least.”

“Dani and Kim’ll be here and
you’ll meet Payton and Cassidy, so you’ll be in good hands. Promise.”

“Am I like your old lady now?”

He laughed. “Yeah, babe.”

“Am I being clueless again?” I challenged.

“No, honey, you’re askin’
questions, there’s a difference.” He climbed out of the car and collected me,
kissing me gently before taking my hand, and leading me through an unmarked
door to the left of what looked like the actual shop.

A dimly lit hallway led to
another unmarked door into a small foyer with a few easy chairs and a desk with
a television sat in the space. Through another door we entered a large common
room milling with people. The space was filled with sofas, overstuffed chairs, a
pool table, large flat-screen television, several smaller tables that kids
gathered around for board games, and three outdoor picnic tables.

“Mack,” Kim squealed and threw
her arms around him so hard, he had to let go of my hand to catch her.

“Hey, babe.”

Kim released him and then pulled
me in for a hug. “I’m so glad you made it.”

I smiled and hugged her back. “Me
too. Pauley’s pissed she’s missing the fun, but she also had the choice to work
or not tonight.”

Kim laughed. “I did too. This is
better, plus I needed time with my horse. He’s missing me.”

“Oh, is he here?” I joked.

“Ohmigod, I
wish
. But he’s
not potty trained, so...”

I giggled. “Well, if you could
potty train a horse, I think you’d make a hell of a lot more money than working
at the bar.”

“Yeah, I’d have to agree. Come
and meet everyone.”

I grabbed Mack’s hand (just in
case he had any thoughts of deserting me) and we followed Kim to the small
group huddled around the pool table. I met Ace and his wife, Cassidy, then Hawk
and Payton. Ace was a tower of a man who looked like his brother, Knight, and
Cassidy was half his size with curly blonde hair a quick smile. I noticed Ace
hovered around his wife, but later found out she’d been shot less than six
months before by a crazed stalker, so it was understandable.

Hawk was blond and muscular, and
had a kick-ass handlebar moustache. He adored Payton who, with her long,
brunette hair and lithe body, looked more like a movie star than a teacher.

“You got a minute?” Booker asked
Mack.

“
Honey, no
,” Dani whined.
“You promised no business.”

“Won’t take long,” he said.

Mack released my hand, kissed me
quickly, and followed Booker down a back hallway.

“I hate it when they do that,”
Dani confessed, albeit in a whisper. “Sometimes club business sucks.”

I smiled. “It must be important.”

“Yeah, that’s what I’m afraid
of.” She sighed. “Come on, we’ll grab some wine.”

“Sounds good.”

* * *

Mack followed
Booker into his office and shut the door. “It’s bad?”

Booker nodded. “Yeah.”

“Shit.” Mack lowered himself into
a chair and took the file Booker handed him. “They’re cookin’ now?”

“Looks like it. They’re pushin’
out the Bekhterevs... tryin’ to, anyway.”

“But fuckin’ meth?” Mack snapped.

“Nika thinks he’s Walter White.”

“Nika’s a moron.” Mack shook his
head. “But Katya is not.”

“You think the sister’s in on
it?”

“I think she’s fuckin’ runnin’
it.”

“If she is, she’s invisible.”

Mack nodded, reading over
Booker’s notes. “Yeah, brother, she’s good at invisible.”

“She sniffin’ after you again?”

“Again?” Mack smirked. “She never
stopped.”

“She know about Darien?”

“I’ll assume she does.” Mack
sighed. “And talk to a couple of the recruits.”

“Good call.” Booker shook his
head. “I got Flea on Dani when I’m not around.”

“She okay with that?”

“Surprisingly, yeah. After Payton
got taken from school, she gets the severity. Her father and brother are also
gonna help.”

Dani’s father was police chief
for Vancouver, Washington, and her brother was a detective.

“Help how?”

“Just watchin’ out. No club
access.”

Mack nodded.

“Ace’s brother’s familiar with
the Bekhterevs. Want me to run it by him?”

Ace and Knight were two of six
brothers. Their older brothers, Matt and Jaxon, were FBI agents, and worked
with Payton’s brother, Brock. So far, they’d kept the Dogs at a distance, but
had intervened when Cassidy had been held hostage, and when Dani had been
kidnapped, so they were a resource, if a last resort.

“You think we need to?” Mack
asked.

“I don’t want whatever shit the
Kozlovs are into to drag the club down, do you?”

“You might have a point.”

Booker shook his head. “Last
resort, yeah?”

“Yeah, brother. That’d be good.”

“Okay, I promised Dani no work,
so let’s get back to the party.”

Mack nodded and stood, following
Booker out of the office.

* * *

I was standing
with Kim watching Cassidy annihilate Ace at pool when strong arms wrapped
around my waist from behind. “Hey,” Mack whispered, and kissed the back of my
neck.

“Hi.” I smiled up at him.
“Everything okay?”

Mack nodded. “I’m gonna get a
beer. Need anything?”

“Nope, I’m good.”

He squeezed my hip and then left
me briefly. As I stood with Dani, watching the pool game that had now become
some form of blood sport between Ace and Cassidy, I heard a squeal of laughter
and followed the sound to find Mack with a little blonde girl in his arms. My
heart melted at the sight of her tiny hands cupping his cheeks while he smiled
at her.

Mack nodded and said something I
couldn’t hear, then the little girl hugged his neck before he lowered her to
the ground and took her hand. They walked over to me and Mack smiled. “Darien,
this is Lily. She’s Hawk and Payton’s daughter.”

I knelt to her level with a grin.
“Hi Lily.”

“Hi.” She reached out and took a
strand of my hair. “Your hair is so pretty.”

“Thank you, honey, so is yours.”

“Lily!”

We turned to see a rather
handsome young man coming rushing towards us. “You didn’t tell me where you
were going,” he accused.

Lily threw her hands in the air.
“I wanted to say hi to Uncle Mack. You were playing Smash Bros.”

“This is Maverick,” Mack
provided. “He’s Ace and Cassidy’s.”

Maverick took Lily’s hand and
tugged her toward him.

“Bud,” Ace said, closing the
distance between them and laying his hand on his head. “What’d we talk about?”

Maverick frowned. “I’m supposed
to give Lily her space,” he grumbled.

“It’s okay, Uncle Ace,” Lily said.
“I like Maverick.”

“See, Dad?” Maverick said with a
triumphant grin. “She likes me in her space.”

I bit my lip in an effort not to
laugh and leaned against Mack who slid his arm around me. I looked at Cassidy
who was shaking her head and pressing her lips together.

“How about,” Cassidy began, “we
find something to eat?”

“Daddy!” Lily squealed, and made
a run for Hawk as he walked back into the room. He and Payton had walked out
back to check on the pig just a few minutes before.

“Hey, baby girl,” he said, and
scooped her up. “You havin’ fun?”

“I’m with Maverick,” she
answered, and Hawk chuckled.

“You’re havin’ fun, then.”

“We were just heading out to
eat,” Cassidy said.

Hawk nodded. “Payton’s already
gettin’ a plate for Lily.”

The kids followed their parents
outside and I faced Mack. “You start them early here, huh?”

Mack laughed. “Maverick’s gonna
be devastated when Lily figures out there are other boys in the world besides him.”

“You might be surprised,” I
countered. “They might end up together forever. Girls know when they meet their
match.”

He grinned. “Yeah?”

“Definitely.”

Mack kissed me gently and then we
headed outside to eat.

A
MONTH AFTER he and Darien had become
“official,” Mack followed Knight into the restaurant Kim and Pauley worked at
and smiled as he caught her eye. Kim didn’t know he was coming and she sure as
hell didn’t know he was bringing Knight. But, as they say, payback’s a bitch.
Kim adored Knight, but was playing some kind of hard to get thing with him, so
Mack decided to move things along a bit.

“What are you guys doin’ here?”
she asked with a smile as she walked up to their table in the bar. She hugged
them both, but quickly separated herself from Knight.

“Dinner,” Knight answered, giving
Kim an appreciative look. Even though
Blush
had great bar food, the guys
often took a break, otherwise they’d never leave the club. It was one block up
from the restaurant Kim and Pauley worked at, so they usually broke for dinner
there rather than the club. Tonight Booker was with Dani, so Knight came with
Mack. An obvious attempt to have a legit reason to see Kim. Mack agreed, since
Darien was out with Millie, so he wasn’t going to see her tonight. He didn’t
like it, but they were both busy, so they had to work around it.

Kim nodded, but was unusually
tongue tied. “What can I get you?”

“Bourbon,” Mack said.

“Same,” Knight responded. “And
calamari.”

Kim smiled and left them to put
the order in.

“Fuck, she’s hot,” Knight said.

Mack chuckled. “She still
shuttin’ you out?”

Knight grinned. “Yeah, but I’ll
break her down.”

“Horses, man.”

“Said by someone who’s clearly
ignorant,” Knight said.

“Yeah? How so?”

“Girls who ride the way Kim rides
are superior, brother.”

“Superior?”

“Yeah, man. In their own minds.
They think what they do takes more skill. I gotta break her down, slow so she
doesn’t know it’s happening.” He studied Kim with a slight smile. “She finds
out I ride, she’ll dismiss me as a cowboy without knowing exactly what I can
do. Right now, I want the upper hand.”

“Good luck with that.”

“I got a plan.” Knight chuckled.
“Where’s Darien tonight?”

“Out with her friend. Movie I
think,” Mack said. “Probably won’t see her tonight.”

“Sucks.”

Mack gave a slight smile. “Yeah,
it does.”

Kim returned with the drinks and
calamari and Mack excused himself, heading to the bathroom. Mack finished up
and walked out just as his phone buzzed in his pocket. It was Darien. “Hey,
babe.”

“Hi,” Darien said. “Movie just
got done, so wanted to check in.”

He smiled. She was always
thoughtful that way. “Was it good?”

“Um, it had Charlie Hunnam in it,
yeah, it was good.”

Mack chuckled. “Do you remember
the plot?”

“Not with Charlie Hunnam in it.”
She giggled. “Millie’s waving to me so I’ve gotta go. You having a good night?”

“It’d be better if I was with
you.”

“Charmer.”

“I’ll let you go, baby. Call me
later?”

“Sure. ’Bye honey.” Mack hung up
and headed back to the table.

He and Knight had had their food
for about ten minutes when a familiar face walked in. Darien and Millie didn’t
see him, so he decided to watch his woman for a minute.

“I thought Darien was at a movie,”
Knight said.

“Yeah. She must have wanted to
see Pauley.”

“You gonna go get her?”

“Yeah. Just takin’ in the view
for a minute.” She looked gorgeous in dark jeans and heels, the soft sweater
and jacket she’d worn the day he had to cut their date short. She’d pulled her
soft curls up at the sides, leaving the back long. She was stunning.

Knight chuckled. “Don’t blame
you. Her friend’s fuckin’ hot as well.”

It took all of thirty seconds for
other people to notice... particularly the men. Mack clocked one guy from
across the bar see his girl and start toward her. Not easy to do in the crowd.
“That’s my cue,” Mack said, and rose to his feet.

* * *

“Maybe this
wasn’t a good idea,” I said to Millie. It was standing room only and we
couldn’t even get to the bar to find Pauley.

“Yeah,” Millie agreed. “I thought
for sure we’d miss the crowd. It’s eleven.”

“Says the old lady.” I giggled.
“It’s Friday night, things are just getting started.”

“Ladies.”

I turned to find a man smiling,
drink in hand, and I tried not to groan. I didn’t want to get hit on and
neither did Millie. “Hi, sorry, we’re looking for someone.”

“Well, you found him,” he said,
laughing at his ridiculous joke.

“We don’t want to be rude,” I
said, trying to put distance between us, hard to do in the crowded bar. “But
we’re just here to get a drink and see some friends.”

“I can be real friendly,” he
said, and leaned forward and sniffed my hair (yes, sniffed it).

I stepped back again and shook my
head. “You’re drunk.”

“Not yet, but gettin’ there.”

“Okay, look, you need to go.”

He reached out and grabbed my
arm. “Come on baby, be nice.”

“You better get your fuckin’
hands off my woman or you’ll be coughin’ up blood for a week.”

I gasped at the sound of Mack’s
voice, then smiled. “Hi honey, what are you doing here?”

“Dinner,” Mack said, and scowled
at Drunko. “Man, what did I say?”

“I saw her first,” Drunko
slurred.

I tried to pull my arm away
again, but he just gripped harder. “Ouch.”

The guy didn’t get another
chance. I was suddenly released, he let out a squeal of pain, and Knight rushed
over to help.

“I got him,” Knight said,
grabbing the bloody creep. “I’ll take him out.”

“Thanks, brother.” Mack turned
back to me as Knight took the trash out.

I threw my arms around him and
squeezed. “Thank you.”

He lifted me off my feet and
kissed my neck. “You’re welcome.”

“Do you remember Millie?” I
asked, after he set me back on the ground.

“Yeah. Hey.”

Millie grinned. “Hi, Mack.”

“We got a table. Join us,” Mack
said.

“That would be awesome,” Millie
said. “It’s out of control in here.”

He drew his eyebrows together.
“Friday night, babe.”

I gave Millie my “I told you so
look” and followed Mack to the booth.

Millie slid in, then me, then
Mack. I scooted closer to him and kissed him quickly. “When do you have to get
back?”

“Soon.”

“Bummer.” I wrinkled my nose and
leaned against him. He slid his arm around me and settled me against his side.
“Have you seen Pauley yet?”

“Yeah, she said she’d come over
again when she took a break. She hasn’t done that yet.” He sipped his drink.
“Kim’s here somewhere.”

“I’ve got about twenty minutes,
Dare,” Millie said. “Then I have to head home.”

“Oh, right.” I glanced up at
Mack. “Want to take me home?”

“I’m not done ’til about three,
sweetheart, but you can hang in my office if you want to.”

I nodded. “Yes, please.”

Mack chuckled. “Fine by me.”

“Is that okay with you?” I asked
Millie.

“Yeah, hon,” she said. “It means
I can hang with you for an extra twenty minutes.”

“Score,” I exclaimed. Millie was
my ride, but my place added over half-an-hour to her commute, so we always had
to factor that in.

Knight returned, met Millie,
smiled when Millie went a little crazy, because seriously, Knight was extra hot
in his suit, then told Mack they had to get back.

Mack slid out of the booth. “Buzz
me when you’re ready and I’ll come get you or send someone to walk you. Don’t
go anywhere alone.”

“Yes, bossy,” I retorted.

He smiled, kissed me, talked with
Kim for a couple of seconds and then he was gone. I felt a little sad, but
watching him walk away was almost as good as watching him walk toward me, so I
took it.

“How long are you going to have
to wait?” Millie asked.

Pauley had just left the table,
only able to say hi, give hugs, and then had to get back to the bar.

“For what?” I asked.

“Him to do the deed.”

“Ohmigod, Millicent. It’s barely
been a month.”

“So? You’re hot, he’s hot, you’re
both clearly into each other... like, big time. Time to punch that V-card,
baby.”

“Romantic.”

Millie giggled. “Just get it over
with.”

“Well, I’m just waiting on him.
I’m ready whenever he is.” I lowered my voice. “I even went back on the pill.”

Millie nodded her approval. “Is
he being all gentlemanly and shit?”

I smiled. “Yeah, I kind of think
he is.”

Millie’s grin went from sweet to
ecstatic. “You really like him, huh?”

I nodded. “A
lot
.”

“Aw, honey, I’m so glad. You
deserve a good guy.”

“Thanks, Millie. So do you.”

“Ugh, no, don’t say that. I just
got rid of Trey. I’m good for a while.”

I laughed. “Yeah, that’s very
true. He was a douchebag.”

“Amen to that.” She checked her
watch and smiled. “I really have to go. Tomorrow’s going to be a bitch and a
half getting up early, but now that I’ve pushed it, it’s going to be worse.”

“I’ll text Mack so we can walk
you to your car.”

“Thanks.”

Mack responded that he’d come, so
we waved Kim over for the check. She grinned and walked our way, waving my hand
with my credit card away. “Mack took care of it, hon.”

“He did?”

“Yep. And he tipped me
generously,” she said. “Or he’s going to.”

I laughed. “Okay.”

We slid from the booth and headed
out of the bar. Mack arrived a few minutes later and we walked Millie to her
car, then he wrapped his arm around my waist and we walked the short block to
Blush
.

“Thanks for taking care of our
drinks,” I said, giving his waist a gentle squeeze as I smiled up at him. “You
didn’t need to do that.”

Mack smiled. “Yes I did.”

We walked in through the back of
the club and he guided me to his office. Once inside, he slid his phone from
his pocket and sent a text to someone before focusing on me again. “Through
that door,” he nodded to the back of the room, “bathroom, behind us is a
private bar. Help yourself to anything, just write down what you take.”

“Okay.”

“If you’re hungry, just pick up
the phone by the door and order what you want.”

“Will I get to see you at all?”

“I never know what’s going to
happen, so I can’t promise anything.” He gave me a gentle smile. “Babe, I told
you how busy weekends are.”

I sighed. “I know. I just thought
I could distract you enough not to care.”

Mack laughed, leaning down to
kiss me quickly. “I’ll make it up to you.”

I slid my hands up his chest. “I
look forward to it,” I whispered, and kissed him again, this time, holding him
closer and hopefully relaying exactly what I needed to relay.

“God, Darien, you’re killin’ me,”
he said when he broke the kiss.

I smiled, stroking his cheek.
“So, if I tell you I’m back on the pill, will that—”

I didn’t finish my sentence, as
his mouth covered mine again and our kiss became desperate... frantic. The
phone on his desk pealed and he dragged his lips from mine with a, “Fuck!”
reaching behind him to answer it. “Yeah?” He sighed. “Yeah, okay, be there in a
sec.” He hung up and gave me a gentle squeeze. “I have to go, but we’ll talk
about all of this later.”

I bit my lip. “Can we do more
than talk?”

“We’ll talk.”

With that last word, he stalked
out of his office and pulled the door closed behind him. Feeling a little like
a petulant child who didn’t get their way (because I didn’t, damn it), I
flopped onto his sofa and pulled out my phone. It was too late to talk to
Millie, and Pauley was still working, so I was kind of stuck.

Gah! This was all so new to me
and I had no idea how to proceed. Was I a slut if I suggested now? Was I a
prude if I didn’t? My sister said she loved sex and had it with all of her
boyfriends, but she typically waited a few months. If she ever had a one-night
stand, she never told me about it. Millie had only slept with one guy (not
Trey) and she made him wait six months, but they were also seniors in high
school and almost eighteen. They were together for almost three years before
they broke up. Trey was a quick and ridiculous relationship that barely lasted
three months and she never felt comfortable enough to go that far with him.

I’d waited twenty-two years, and
honestly, I didn’t really want to wait any longer. I liked him, probably loved
him a little bit, and I wanted more. I bet he typically didn’t wait very long.

I slid onto my back and set my
feet against the arm rest as I opened my scrabble game and requested a random
opponent. Might as well pass the time... I was going to be there for a while.