She nodded. “The guys here think that’s how many months it’ll be before you have our Maisie knocked up.”

He flashed a wide smile and picked up the first glass. “Thank you and fuck you all, very much!” Like a real pro, the man picked up each glass and tossed them back like water.

“All right, boys, come and get it!” With a flourish, she tipped the bottle of Velvet Fire on its side and filled up enough tumblers for every man in the room. “Congrats, Virg. You’re one lucky bastard.”

“The luckiest, Mo. The goddamn luckiest, and I know it.”

Jasper grinned at the banter between Virgil and Maureen, making me wonder if she was just another Ashby employee, or something more. “One more day, and the wedding hoopla is over.”

I laughed and shook my head. “Over it, already?”

“No,” he sighed and took a long sip of whiskey. “But between the arson at the caterers and all the other shit that’s going on, this is a big damn distraction. Plus a wedding is the perfect time for Brendan or the Black Jacks to strike.”

“No shit. Those assholes, at least I’m pretty sure it was the Black Jacks, took a couple of our girls.”

Surprise flashed in Jasper’s all-seeing eyes. “Fuckin’ sucks, man. I’ll let you know if I hear or see anything. The Crusaders are still out there bringing in girls from overseas.”

“Fuck that shit.” Before I could say another damn word, the lone door that fed into the VIP room was kicked open with enough force that it bounced off the wall. “Holy fuck!”

“What the fuck!” Jasper and I shouted at the same time as two figures came into focus.

Brendan Rhymer stood in the doorway with a smarmy smile on his face. The sight of him knocked me back a step as a thousand questions shot through my mind. It wasn’t my place, but I knew how the Ashby’s rolled. Same as the Bastards would if we owned this club. So, how the fuck did he and the asshole he’d brought for backup get past security?

Next thing I saw was how oh so fucking proud Brendan was that he’d gotten the jump on a bunch of Reckless Bastards and Ashbys. “Am I interrupting anything?” he said with a smirk I couldn’t wait to wipe off his hideous face.

It wasn’t my show, or I’d have dropped him by now. I stood there trying to gauge what would happen next? Was this a parlay? Would Jasper make a move?

Before I could finish that thought, Brendan moved for his gun and in that split second, Jasper got off two shots before I even aimed and fired.

It all happened so fast; I wasn’t sure I heard Jasper answer Brendan’s question. “Not anymore,” he’d said. And it was true. Jasper squeezed the trigger one more time into Brendan and we watched him crumple to the ground. The last time he’d interrupt anything.

It all happened so fast. Before I knew it, I’d put two into his sidekick. One in the head and one in the chest took out the guy in the Black Jacks kutte.

My ears rang, the smell of gunpowder burned in my nostrils, and the whole shit show made my head spin, but I got it together enough to ask, “What the fuck was that?”

Jasper aimed his gun at the bodies as if it were a pointer in a lecture hall. “That’s a dead fucking Rhymer and reason enough to party,” a slow smile spreading across his face. “Always hated that motherfucker.”

My stomach turned, and it wasn’t the food. I wasn’t sorry to see the end of Rhymer, but I didn’t revel in death, nor at the blood seeping toward my boots. Yet, from the glee in Jasper Ashby’s eyes, you’d never know he’d just snuffed out the life of his enemy.

“Party on guys!” Jasper raised his hands, a tumbler in one hand and his nine mil in the other.

At the same time, I knew it was Rhymer or us. “Great shot, Ashby!” I said and took a pull of my beer in his honor. He’d just saved my life.

“Not too bad yourself, Charlie.” Jasper said and raised his glass.

Stilettos had laid out a silver tray with about fifteen lines of blow on it, so I strode over to her and snorted up a few lines. I didn’t want to seem greedy and still had to ride home.

Jasper looked around, taking in the shocked, drunken expressions of the men who thought they were safe here. Jasper owned the Lucky Lopez, even though it was in the Green Zone. I wasn’t sure how many people were aware of that fact. Hell, I’d just found out today. But these guys were his people.

“What I want to know,” he said, all trace of the party guy gone. “Is how the fuck this happened?”

Tags: K.B. Winters Romance
Source: readsnovelonline.net