Coop (Reckless Souls MC 1)

“I said excuse us.”

“Leave her alone, Nogales.”

I really don’t want to have to lay this fucker out in front of the girls.

“Hey, asshole, she said we’re leaving.” Ruby isn’t as scared or as cautious as her friend. She’s short but feisty; that much is clear. “Come on, Kels.”

“Don’t worry.” One of the prospects flashes a sneering grin. He grabs Ruby by the arm, hard enough that she cries out. “I’m happy to fuck the fat chick while my boy plows your friend.”

Ruby yanks her arm out of his grasp and stomps her four-inch heel on his food, grinding hard while the asshole cries out.

“Keep your fucking paws off me, loser. I don’t fuck limp-dick assholes.”

The prospect raises his hand to hit her, and Joaquin steps up, but it’s too late. Ruby raises a small black canister and sends a cloud of red right into his face.

“Bitch. You fucking bitch, I’ll kill you.” He lunges forward, and it’s his first mistake.

Joaquin shoves Ruby aside and grabs the limp-dick asshole by the throat. “You’ll kill who?”

His words come out on a choke, his hands paw at Joaquin’s bigger hands. They tighten the more he struggles.

“I didn’t hear you. What was that?”

In the next moment comes chaos, my old fucking friend. The other dude lunges at Joaquin and meets my fist instead. “I don’t think so, asshole.”

Kelsey grabs her friend and rushes around the flinging fists, ducking one as she tries to make her escape. Her scream catches my attention just as Nogales grabs her arm.

“Let me go!”

“I will,” he says. “When I’m ready.”

Oh, fuck that shit. “Hey, Billy, why don’t you pick on someone your own size?”

He sneers at me, and I don’t give a shit. It’s just enough time to distract him and let Kelsey and Ruby put some distance between them and us.

“You mean you?” He throws his head back and laughs before stepping forward to throw a clumsy punch.

“Hell, no, we all know I’m much bigger than you in all the ways that matter.”

I flash a smile and duck as another fist flies at my face. When I come up, my fists lead the way, two to the gut and one right under the chin.

“Come on, asshole. Is that all you got?”

As much as it pisses me off to see how Nogales treats women, I can admit that this fight isn’t about the women. It’s about the MC, about his asshole prospects fucking our shit up.

Admitting that truth, at least to myself, fuels me, and my fists land hit after hit, landing on his stupid fucking face, his sneering lips, his twitching eyes.

“You are a fucking dead man, Coop.” He spits out blood and smiles as if he’s enjoying this as much as I am.

“One of us will be soon enough.” Two more jabs land right in the center of his big fucking nose.

Nogales falls to the ground, and when he gets on his feet again, he has a matted black gun in his hand. “Not so big and bad now, are you motherfucker?”

“No goddamned guns!”

Joe doesn’t mind having bikers in the bar. They’re his best customers, after all, but he has a strict no-gun policy. Seeing the gun, Joe moves into action just as Nogales aims it at me.

“Nothing to say?”

“You and Hector ain’t ready for the hell pulling that trigger will rain down your shitty MC. We both know that.” My heart races, even though I speak the truth.

Hector has been going after the Reckless Souls for years. It’s what brought me to California in the first place. As long as we exist, he’ll never be the big swinging dick he dreams of being.

Doubt swims in his eyes just as Joe approaches and swings his bat at the hand holding the gun. Nogales turns, angry and in pain, staring down Joe. But he doesn’t flinch.

“No fucking guns in my bar, Billy. You know the rules.”

Nogales winces at the use of his government name, but he knows better than to step up to Joe. “These assholes started it.”

“No. Guns.” Joe doesn’t give a shit about fights. You serve bikers alcohol, and fights are inevitable. Guns and the trouble they come with are not worth the fucking hassle.

“Fine,” he grunts. “I’ll kill him with my bare hands. Trip, go grab those bitches.”

Chapter Five

Kelsey

“All right, it really is time to get the hell out of here.” I lean in and whisper the words to Ruby because I don’t want to offend Joe and Marjorie, who seem like very nice people.

Ruby nods. “For sure. Those dudes were fucking scary. And did you hear what Joaquin said about that guy not taking no for an answer? Definitely rape vibes from him.”

I nod my agreement and finish off my sparkling water.

“Exactly, and I don’t want to end up on the wrong side of another no.”