“I’m in for Baker,” Lash said. “I love your hips, baby, and I intend to work off whatever else you eat.”
She held their son Anthony in her arms while Lash held onto the both of them. The picture before him tightened Tiny’s resolve. They were a strong unit, secure in each other. Both of them were loyal to the other.
“I think Fighter should be tested against the best of your men, Daddy,” Tate said.
All of the crew was here in the clubhouse to be involved in the picking of a new prospect. Tiny had to admit he liked all three. The only person who wasn’t present was Whizz. Ever since his attack, the guy had never been late to a meeting. This was the first time the other man was late.
“Who would you have him fight against?” Prue asked.
“I’d have to go with Lash, Killer, or Zero. They’re pretty damn good fighters.”
“Hey, my man is a good fighter,” Sophia said, sticking up for Nash.
“Thanks, babe.”
“No problem. You know I like you all sweaty and sexy.” Sophia giggled as she wrapped her arms around Nash.
This was his family. The unit he’d come to rely upon and love. Eva squeezed his thigh, and he glanced down at her. She was smiling up at him with so much love. This was why he took care of the club. They were a family, and together they took care of the town. In the last few years he had started to lose all focus of why he fought for a town that clearly didn’t want to be saved at times.
“I’m sorry I’m late,” Whizz said, strolling down the stairs. He held three files, and the f**ker was whistling. Ever since his attack Tiny couldn’t recall Whizz whistling. The good-natured man had been vacant from Whizz for so long. This was strange, and Tiny didn’t know if he liked it or not.
“Where have you been?” Killer asked.
“I was getting washed. I didn’t know we started already.”
The whole club looked at him. Tiny turned to see that, yes, the whole club was looking at him.
“Okay, I’m starting to freak out a little bit here. Is something wrong with me taking my time and having a wash?” Whizz asked.
“Do you have a woman upstairs?” Murphy asked.
“No, I don’t have a woman. No, nothing has changed. Everything is good, amazing really. Here are the files on the three men. They’re babies in the real world. Never been to prison or even got a speeding ticket.” Whizz handed him the files.
Taking them, Tiny flicked them open to see that Baker was indeed a good guy. He’d lost his young wife two years ago, closed up his baking business and gone on the road, settling in Fort Wills. Glancing at the man, he saw the pain in his eyes. Tiny knew what it was like to lose a wife. It broke a part of you on the inside. Even if Patricia hadn’t been the love of his life, he’d still loved her in his own way.
The thought of losing Eva filled him with despair.
Nodding toward Baker, he opened up the next file on Ink. Now, Ink was a player. Tiny didn’t know how Whizz got the kind of information he did. He was a great man, and it was a shame about what happened to him.
Ink liked the ladies, and because of it, he’d lost his job at the tattoo parlor where he was working because he f**ked more clients than he inked.
Moving to the next person Tiny saw Fighter was a savage within the ring. He had killed several people while fighting illegally, but he was moving on in the world. Tiny couldn’t see a problem with the men.
“If you’re all voted in then you’re prospects. That doesn’t mean you’re part of the club. It means you deal with shit and earn your loyalty. There will come a time when we will all test you to see if you’re worth being a club member. Until then, you do everything we tell you without f**king complaining.”
“No, boss, they can complain, but it won’t do them any f**king good,” Lash said, snickering.
All of his boys snickered. The men were fresh meat and were going to be put through the ringer.
“Then let’s take a vote. Who votes for them to be in?” Tiny asked.
The whole club raised their hands. Several of the women did as well. Glancing at his daughter, Tiny saw the wicked smile on Tate’s face. She hadn’t been smiling for a long time. The club life wasn’t healthy for her. There was no way he could leave the club in her hands when he finally decided to throw his cut in. She wouldn’t have the first clue on how to run it and be the president’s old lady. The president’s old lady was as important as the president himself of the club. Without both, there would be problems. He didn’t know how he’d managed to run the club without Eva at his side. She made everything possible, and helped him when he needed it the most.
“Then I guess you’re all voted in,” Tiny said. He threw them each a prospect jacket and watched them all slide the jackets on. “I want you all to know this is not a f**king competition. I don’t want fighting between each other unless I demand you fight. This is a family. We all work together, and you will all work together as if you’re brothers and your lives depend on it. I don’t run a f**king crèche. Is that understood?”
The men nodded.
“Good, the toilets need cleaning out and my club women are all busy.” The look on their faces made him chuckle. “Dismissed.”
He watched people file out of the club, some of the Chaos Bleeds crew and the others from his own club. Standing up, he drew Eva to his side, kissing her lips. “Are we good?”
After their argument the other night he didn’t know where he stood with her.
“We’re okay for now. I want to talk about this again. I don’t like how you keep cutting me off.”
“I’m old, Eva.”
“No, you’re not. You’re perfect, but you don’t see it.”
He took her hand and led her through to his office. Closing the door, he pulled her against him. “Butch got a call last night.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah. Gonzalez asked about you. What you did with your day or where you went. Butch warned him that you were unpredictable.”
“You’re worried he’s going to come after me?”
“He came after Tate after I killed that cop. There’s nothing to say he won’t do the same with you.”
Eva stared at his chest. “You haven’t attacked or done anything to make him think you’re going to be naughty. You’ve covered everything else up.”
“I know. Thing is, he’s playing by different rules.”