Chapter 10
Thomas
“Lookin’ for your mom,” my dad said abruptly the moment I answered my phone that afternoon. I was staring at the black button down and new pair of jeans I’d bought, hoping like hell I’d gotten the right thing. I hadn’t bought anything but t-shirts, hoodies and work pants in years and I had a feeling I was going to look like a douchebag at my own wedding.
“She’s with Heather and the girls,” I told him, glancing at my boots by the front door. They were scuffed as hell, but I could probably get most of the dirt off of them. Heather was just going to have to deal.
“What?” my dad barked. “What girls?”
“Aunt Farrah, Cecilia, Brenna, Trix, her sister and Molly,” I rattled off, grabbing the shirt off the bed to hang it up. I sure as shit wasn’t ironing the thing, so hopefully keeping it hung up would work.
“What the fuck?” my dad bellowed, startling the shit out of me.
“What?”
“We were pretty fuckin’ clear when we told everyone not to be havin’ get togethers off club grounds,” my dad said, making me freeze. “You know where they’re at?”
“They were helpin’ Heather out with wedding stuff.”
“Of-fuckin’-course they are,” he snapped, before breaking the connection.
Shit. Things had been pretty quiet for the last couple of days, but I knew there was shit I didn’t know about going on behind the scenes. I had a feeling they were keeping even more from us prospects than usual. My dad knew something he wasn’t telling me.
I dialed Heather and she picked up after just one ring.
“Where are you?” I asked, already sliding my boots back on.
“I’m at your aunt’s house, doing flowers,” she said dryly. “Where are you?”
Ah, shit. My hands shook as I locked the door behind me and jogged down the stairs outside. I fucking hated my uncle and aunt’s house. Didn’t like being there, and really didn’t like Heather there.
“I’m on my way,” I said as I climbed on my bike.
“What? Why?”
I didn’t answer her, just ended the call and put my phone in my pocket.
When my dad and the guys got there all hell was going to break loose.
* * *
When I pulled up in front of my aunt’s house, Casper and Dragon’s bikes were already parked out front, but thankfully, my dad’s wasn’t. I walked up the stairs quickly and let myself in without knocking when I heard Dragon’s raised voice coming from inside.
“…told you not to be havin’ fuckin’ hen parties when we’re dealin’ with this shit, Brenna!”
“No, you didn’t!” she yelled back, making me cringe. She was the only person I’d ever heard talk to Dragon like that. Ever. In my life. “You told us not to have parties off club grounds! We went wedding shopping! We just got here and I was getting ready to call you!”
“You think they’re gonna care where you’re at?” he bellowed as I walked into the kitchen. They were staring at each other from across my aunt’s dining room table and the women sitting at the table were caught in the fucking crossfire. “They don’t give a shit if you’re at the motherfuckin’ nail salon! Someone sees a group of Aces old ladies rollin’ around town with no protection, not even a goddamn prospect, what you think they’re gonna do?”
“We were fine! We took separate cars and we kept our eyes open!”
“Jesus Christ,” Dragon muttered, running his fingers through his hair. That’s when I noticed the gray streaking through the black. He’d aged ten years in the last three.
Heather’s wide eyes met mine from across the room. She looked freaked the fuck out and I couldn’t blame her. Not only were people pissed as fuck about our wedding, but now the old ladies were getting into it with their husbands about it, too. I heard a bike out front and tilted my head, stepping farther into the kitchen when I recognized the pipes. My dad had shown up, and I was pretty sure Hulk had, too.
“Trix,” Dragon said as I made my way around the table to Heather, stepping in behind her to rest my hands on her shoulders. “You’re too old for me to beat your ass, but thank Christ I know your man’ll do it for me.”
“Shit,” Trix muttered as she got to her feet. She must have heard Hulk’s bike, too.
“Come on, baby,” I murmured into Heather’s ear, helping her up from the table. “We’ll leave ’em to fight it out.”
“What about Molly and Mel?” she asked quietly as Trix and Hulk started their own screaming match in the entryway.
“Guarantee their men are already on their way,” I said, shaking my head.
I hadn’t even thought to make sure the women had someone with them when they went out shopping. Brenna almost always had a shadow and so did my mom. It was so common there wasn’t any reason for me to check on it. Hell, I’d played bodyguard more times than I could count.