“Still breaking her in?” High asks.
“Yeah, she’s still green, man.”
“You put her through the paces?” Warp asks.
The glint in his black eyes sets off an alarm in my head. We don’t call him Warp because he was fast. It was short for Warped. Sometimes, I thought the fucker was a few kills short of going off the reservation and becoming a serial killer. He’s the type of man you want when shit gets gritty. Nomadic, he floats around the chapters during turbulent times.
“Not yet.” I pause. “That wasn’t an invitation for you to step up to the plate either. You’re terrifying to most men. You’d probably give my Old Lady a heart attack or make her pepper spray your ass.”
He gives a laugh that’s scarier than anything I’ve seen him doing. Warp being genuinely happy is like seeing a unicorn. The stoic bastard is usually closed off and bloodthirsty.
“That I’d like to see,” Warp says.
“No, she’d really do it, man. You should’ve seen what she did to this road pussy that followed him home,” Dusty says.
“Oh, yeah?” Warp asks.
“Blew a hole right past her head and chased her out, bullets flying. Best shit I’ve seen in a long time.” Dusty nods.
“Glad she can amuse you, brother,” I say dryly.
“She left an impression, I’ll say that much.”
“Shit, I might want to meet this little lady,” Warp says.
Perfect, day one and she’s drawn the attention of one of the scariest brothers we have. This sociopath likes to have a handle on who is who and how they tick. I get it, so I’m trying not to take it personal. I never knew what being protective meant until I acquired a pregnant Old Lady. I’ve seen what Warp is capable of, but I’d fight him tooth and nail if he tried to push up on Ruthie.
“Just leave the bottle,” I say, taking my drink from the blonde in tiny cut off shorts and a white crop top with no bra. Her nipples stand at attention. Before it would get my blood running. Now, I’m unmoved. I grab the bottle and take long pull. I shoot the shit with my brothers, getting lost in the regaling of ridiculous situations.
“Hey man, you up for a smoke?” Shadow asks pulling a joint out of his cut.
“You have to ask?”
He laughs as he leads me outside.
The fresh air takes the edge off my buzz.
He lights up, takes a drag and hands it over.
I inhale holding the smoke in before I release it. Since we began running our Weed business, the quality of our marijuana has sky rocketed.
“Shouldn’t you be dragging her into your old dorm room about now?” Shadow asks.
“She can wait until I’m ready,” I say with a shrug.
“You’re going to fuck up a good thing if you keep holding onto the petty shit.”
“And you’d be okay with Blue lying to you about something that could fuck with the club?”
“No, but she knows better. Ruthie is still learning, and judging from the outfit, Blue’s schooling her now.”
“Fuck that. I can’t let pussy make me weak, or depend on someone who might flake. I’m already too invested in her as it is.”
“Cold brother.”
“What? Her playing dress up is supposed to change everything? She lied to me.”
“It’s the effort that matters, brother, and it wasn’t out right lying. Look, I’m not trying to defend her. I just know what it’s like to be at odds with your baby mama. Hell on Earth, man. Think on that.” He lapses into silence as we pass the joint back and forth.