Page 36 of Mace
She snorted a laugh. “Old ladies are off limits for all their shenanigans. They have to treat those of us in a property cut with as much respect as they treat the brothers. If not, Storm will bounce them out of here on their ass.”
“But Amelia was arguing with you,” I pointed out.
“Yeah, they’re allowed to have their own opinions. Storm isn’t a tyrant. Thunder threw Amelia out for the day because she upset me, and she got that message loud and clear. Being thrown out by Storm is an entirely different matter because she wouldn’t be allowed back on any of the club’s properties.”
I nibbled on a piece of bacon as she explained. When she was finished, I had to ask, “Why do they tolerate the troublemakers?”
Rosie finished chewing the bite of food in her mouth and took another sip of coffee before answering. “That’s a really good question. The truth is they’re all troublemakers on some level.Women willing to hang around the clubhouse and entertain bikers often but not always have issues of their own. They’re attention seeing, have low self-esteem that they cover by acting like they’re all that and often have a gigantic chip on their shoulder when it comes to women who get chosen as old ladies.”
“Wow, I never would have thought that. They seem so strong and self-confident.”
“The club girls aren’t the bad sort. Once I got to know them, I tended to think of them as a work in progress. Some of them work hard to overcome the bad things they’ve been through and come out the other side people that I’m proud to call my friend. Being strong is the one thing most of them have going for them because if they weren’t, they’d have given up on life long ago. I try to support and guide them in the right direction. Some listen and unfortunately some don’t. Amelia is walking a thin line right now.”
“I feel like I just learned more about club girls than I ever wanted to know.”
Rosie gave me a knowing smile. “Yeah, the thing is, club girls aren’t all that different from the rest of us, except their issues run deeper which leads to more dysfunction. Now, do you want to tell me why you took the fall for Amelia?”
I sighed and gave Nine the piece of bacon I was holding before wiping my fingertips on a napkin. “She was already trying to lay the blame on me. I just thought it was better to apologize than to take a chance on Mace picking me if he had to choose.”
“That’s crazy talk. Of course Mace would pick you. Even if he didn’t, the other brothers would make sure you were okay and hold up the bargain you made with Storm this morning. Youwouldn’t have been thrown out on the streets. The Slayers aren’t like that.”
I grimaced, “I’m already sleeping with Mace. I wouldn’t want to have to pick another brother to provide protection because I’d end up in his room and he might expect sex as well.”
Rosie was staring at me, and I watched her expression turn into one of shock. “I’ve never known the Slayers to trade protection for sex. Like I said, they’re not like that. They’re all good men, some may be a bit rough around the edges, but they’re gentlemen in their own way.”
I shrugged. “I grew up with a father involved with the cartels. They trade protection for sex a lot and my own father was set on trafficking me to his right-hand man. Only he pretended like he was doing me a favor by calling it marriage.”
Rosie’s voice turned furious. “Fuck your dad, Alicia. Fuck him and the horse he rode in on.”
I couldn’t help but smile at her odd turn of a phrase. “That must be an American saying, I don’t think I’ve heard that one.”
Rosie grinned, lightening the mood. “It is, and I’m sorry your dad was trying to marry you off to a criminal.”
“Yeah, me too. It’s lucky for me that Mace rescued me. I don’t know that I would have found my way out of that forest on my own.”
“Mace is a good man,” she assured me. “You’re better off with him than anyone else. I promise you that much.”
I glanced away, noticing that Nine was all curled up on the rug apparently having had his fill. “When Thunder asked if Iwas more than just his guest, he didn’t say that I was. I thought that Amelia was right about him not thinking I’m good enough now that his dream of being a member of the Dark Slayers MC has come true.”
Rosie started shaking her head before I even finished talking. “It’s not that. He almost got into a fight with Thunder after you left. He accused my old man of sticking his nose where it didn’t belong and trying to scare you off. Mace made it very clear to him that you were his, but that he wasn’t going to rush you into a property cut. He said you had a lot on your plate and until you got out from under the threat your father poses, and your mother was free he wasn’t going to start pressuring you about a relationship.”
Something tight loosened in my chest. “Did he really say all that?”
Rosie nodded and took a big bite of her eggs before mumbling with her mouth full. “You better believe it.” She swallowed and pointed to my plate with her fork. “Eat up, before your food gets cold. All the people who count around here like you. That means you’ll always have a place here for as long as you need it, regardless of what happens with Mace.”
That was a gigantic relief. I tucked into my food as I turned her words over in my mind. Regardless, of who else liked me among the brotherhood, I only had eyes for Mace. That much was clear in my mind, along with the fact that I was suddenly starving. Rosie and I ate, chatted about more lighthearted things and, once I’d finished my breakfast, I followed her down to the bar to wait for Mace to come out of his meeting, feeling more secure about my place here than ever before. Nine was a prettygood protector when Mace wasn’t around. He never left my side, not once.
Chapter 14
Mace
My club brothers were not happy to find out that Alicia was an informant for the feds and didn’t tell us. They saw that as a breach of trust, considering we took her in. Celt was the only brother on my side when I argued that at twenty-one, she was young, scared, and unsure who to trust in this dangerous situation. She should have trusted us, me in particular since we had grown close. But after hearing her talk about how she grew up, I knew that trust was difficult for her. After much debate they came around to my way of thinking, mostly thanks to Celt.
The Dark Slayers helping her was never in doubt because our club had nothing to fear from the feds the way a one percent club that ran drugs or guns would have. Helping her was different from trusting her. Several brothers wanted her out of the clubhouse while we dealt with her father. In the end they agreed to give her the benefit of the doubt. By the time I made it out of what eventually turned out to be full blown emergency club meeting with all the club brothers, she was waiting at the bar teary-eyed and anxious.
When I came to her, she flew off the barstool and into my arms. I was worried that Thunder had scared her off with his point-blank question about our relationship. It was his way of trying to strongarm me into claiming her, but she wasn’t ready to take our relationship to the next level, not with her mother beaten, bruised, and being used as a pawn to manipulate her into coming back to their family. No, any fool could see that I needed to make sure both she and her mom were safe before weeven considered taking things further and deciding what it was that we had going on.
I calmed her down and then we had to part ways. Rosie again agreed to look out for her while I went out with my club brothers to check out possible hideouts her father might use on his return. The fact that he was planning on returning to the US was good in a way. It meant that me and my club brothers didn’t have to take an unscheduled vacation to Mexico.