Ties That Bind (Ruthless Sinners MC 1)

Lisa was a beautiful woman, tall with an hourglass figure and dirty-blonde hair, and I wouldn’t lie, I’d considered hooking up with her in the past but never followed through. She busted her ass at work, did whatever she had to do to take care of her kid, and something in my gut told me she was interested in more than one night. Much more. That wasn’t going to happen. Not with me. So, I simply smiled and said, “I’m not the kind of company you need or want, doll.”

“I don’t know about that.” She placed the palm of her hand on my chest and provocatively whispered, “I think you’re exactly the kind of company I’m looking for.”

I took hold of her wrist and gently removed her hand. “As tempting as it might be, it’s not going to happen.”

“Why not?” A mix of hurt and anger crossed her face. “You’re not attracted to me?”

“Didn’t say that, Lisa. You’re a beautiful woman. You know that.” I let go of her wrist and took a step back. “Set your sights on a man who can give you what you really need, ’cause trust me when I say, it isn’t me.”

Before she could respond, I turned and headed over to Axel. After I let him know that I was going back to the clubhouse to check in with Viper, I went out to the parking lot and got on my Harley. Moments later, I was in the thick of Nashville traffic. Rush hour had come and gone, but there were still plenty of cars on the road. It was Nashville after all—the homeplace of the Ryman and the Grand Ole Opry, where many country music legends got their start. People from all over the world visited Music City, making Nashville one of the fastest-growing cities in Tennessee, which was always a good thing for a business like Stilettos. Over the past ten years, the strip club had doubled in size, and we were in the process of opening a second one closer to downtown. With all the red tape of zoning and permits, it was a lot to take on—which made the hassle with Danny all the more frustrating. We didn’t have time for distractions, and I hoped that Shotgun and Rafe would be able to help us get some kind of resolution on this fucking thing.

When I got to the clubhouse, I found Viper sitting at the bar with Lynch and Menace. They were each drinking a cold one as they talked amongst themselves, but quickly grew quiet when I approached. Noting my expression, Viper asked, “You heard anything from Shotgun or Rafe?”

“Not yet.” I took a seat next to him. “Shouldn’t be much longer, though. Danny’s place isn’t far from here.”

Lynch shook his head as he muttered, “Surely, the asshole isn’t stupid enough to be at his place.”

“I pinged his phone’s location a few hours ago, and he was still there,” Menace, the club’s computer whiz, replied. “Well ... his phone was still there. I can’t say the same for him.”

“We’ll know soon enough.” Viper ran his hand over his beard with an unsettling grunt. “I gotta tell ya, I’ve got a bad feeling about all this. I’m thinking this thing goes a lot further than just Danny.”

“Who else could be involved?”

“Danny’s not big enough or smart enough to be leading the chain on this supply,” Viper replied. “Besides, he doesn’t have the balls to try and pull one over on us. He knows what we’d do to him.”

“You’re right about that,” Lynch scoffed. “You thinking it’s his supplier?”

“Don’t know yet, but we’re sure as hell gonna find the fuck out, and when we do, there’s gonna be hell to pay,” Viper growled. “Nobody pulls this kind of shit on the Sinners and gets away with it.”

The room fell silent as we considered what Viper had just told us. The possibility of going to war with a drug lord wasn’t an easy pill to swallow, especially considering the timing. Stilettos was booming, and we were under the gun to get the second club up and running. There wasn’t time to deal with any distractions, which was one of the main reasons we’d decided to be done with Danny in the first place. We knew something was up with him but made the mistake of trusting him with one last delivery anyway. That mistake wasn’t sitting well with Viper. He was a man who was always a step ahead. He caught problems before they happened, so it only made sense that all the unknowns of the situation were getting to him. We were all lost in our own thoughts when the back door of the bar flew open and Danny stumbled inside.

“What the fuck?” Viper roared as he shot up and rushed in that direction with the rest of us following closely behind. Danny’s hands were bound behind his back, and he could barely see through his swollen eyes and the blood running down his face. Just as he was about to topple over and fall flat on his face, Viper grabbed him by the arm and shoved him into a chair. “Sit your fucking ass down and don’t move.”