Page 81 of Eagle

“No can do,” I was quick to respond.

“It’s Sunday, you know Eagle has a standing dinner with Aunt May,” Snake joked in a childish tone.

“Fuck you, Brother.” I laughed in spite of myself. “Leo is going with me tonight.”

“So it’s serious between you two.”

“No shit!” Mac said to Knuckles’ remark. “You’re not very observant, dumb ass.”

“When are you making it official?”

“This is me making it official, Prez. And I want to keep someone on her until we find Mandy.”

Wolfe nodded. “We’ll put one of the new prospects on her.”

Coke chuckled as he stretched. “Put Owen on her.”

“Don’t put Owen on her.”

I ignored the laughter that followed.

Owen was a pretty boy. Young and charismatic, when he smiled, I swear a twinkle bounced off his perfect white teeth like the kind you see in some of those toothpaste commercials. I didn’t need Leo being followed around by a man women couldn’t resist. Christ, the man didn’t even have calluses on his hands yet.

“Okay, Owen it is,” Wolfe grinned. He held up a hand when I opened my mouth to complain. “Kidding, Brother.”

“I want my cut on her ASAP.”

“Don’t you think you’re rushing it?” Tank asked with a frown. I frowned back, even though I knew why he was concerned. “Not too long ago it was Jillian you thought you wanted.”

Mac laughed. “Think being with Mandy messed him up in the head.”

Buck followed that up with, “Maybe Mandy had a golden pussy.”

“I don’t know, man, that woman is scary and unstable. No woman’s pussy is worth that kind of trouble.”

Knuckles was right, but it hadn’t just been about pussy. I sat back and released a loud exhale, a little pissed. “Fuck all of you.” They laughed in response.

I wasn’t about to go into the differences between Jillian and Leo, and I sure as fuck wasn’t going to tell them that I’d known there was something special about Leo the second I’d gazed into her pretty green eyes. I wasn’t going to tell them that the attraction between us had been fast and intense, the kind that you wanted to act on right away. That spark had turned into an inferno surprisingly fast. But church wasn’t the place for that kind of talk. Fuck that, it was none of their business anyway, and I knew they were just giving me a hard time because that’s what we did.

“Okay, enough!” Wolfe’s voice cut through the bullshit. He looked over at me. “Any brother in this room with an old lady or a girlfriend knows what you go through before you meet ’the one.’ The others will find out when their time comes. Now, anyone got anything to discuss?”

“When do you want to leave?” Bear’s question was directed at me.

“Noon tomorrow.” He acknowledged me with a nod.

Wolfe waited for a minute, and when no one else had anything to say he made a move to stand up. “Then church is over.”

Leo had been waiting for me out at the bar with Ella and Val, and as I entered the room, I noticed that Delta had joined them. They were at one of the tables, laughing at something someone had said. The way Leo’s beautiful smile lit up her face caused one to automatically spread on mine as I made my way to them. I knew I was making the right decision in claiming her to my brothers. It might have been fast, but it felt right, and once she wore my cut everyone else would know. Val and Ella were wearing theirs tonight, and I suspected that it wouldn’t be long before Delta was wearing Buck’s.

I sensed that there was someone behind me. It didn’t surprise me when I reached Leo and turned to see that it was Bear, Wolfe, and Buck. The others had gone on to the bar. Since the girls were occupying the chairs, Bear and Wolfe grabbed up their old ladies, sat down, and brought them down onto their laps. Buck grabbed a nearby vacant chair and dragged it over. It seemed he and Delta weren’t there yet.

Leo stared up at me in amusement. “You’re not going to sit down on my lap, are you?”

I grinned and reached for her hand and pulled her to her feet. “Ready to go meet Aunt May?”

Her head bobbed with an eager nod. “Yup. Are we coming back here after?”

I had plans that didn’t include anything but her, me, and my bed. I hadn’t taken her over to my house yet. “I doubt it.”