LOGINArriving at the clubhouse, Alfie knew shit had hit the fan. There was a tension that he’d not seen for a long time. The Satan’s Crew MC wasn’t a well-liked club and they had a lot of enemies, but none of them had ever defeated the club.
His father, Eagle, was a force to be reckoned with.
“What’s going on?” he asked, Betty, one of the club whores, or at least he thought that was her name.
“Kurt’s wife just divorced his ass. She came in calling him on his shit. Putting the club first and well, you better get out of the way, Alfie. She told him about your bullying of her little girl. Eagle’s not happy.”
“Alfie, get in here,” Eagle said.
Shit! He’d been warned by his father several times not to touch Lily’s daughter. It wasn’t like he went out of his way to hurt Chloe, but she was always fucking there, and he was tired of it. Also, she wasn’t even a club girl, or any relation to the club. Her father was a fucking loser, so why did he have to treat Chloe any better? The only reason Eagle and the club brothers put up with Kurt was because
he’d become an easy target for all of them. No one liked him, but they liked to humiliate him. There was nothing Kurt wouldn’t do. Be it clean the floors, or even lick a brother’s boot. Alfie had seen him in several compromising positions, all in the name of trying to earn back his reputation within the club.
Personally, he thought the guy should have given up, and he’d asked Eagle about it some time ago.
“Son, when it matters most, he’ll run. Sure, he’s good to lick shit off your boot and entertain you, but I don’t need a man who can make me laugh. I need a man who’ll take a bullet for me without batting an eye.”
Since then, he’d never had respect for Kurt. By extension, he’d never liked Chloe either.
Standing in front of his father, he saw the anger simmering beneath the surface.
“Get in my office, now!”
Alfie walked past his father and stumbled as he was shoved hard. It wasn’t the first time that had happened, and it wouldn’t be the last.
Deep down, he knew his father loved him. One day he’d take over the Satan’s Crew Mc, and to do that, he couldn’t be soft.
Eagle had to show to the rest of the club he was a man. A man they could all trust, as otherwise, he’d be tossed out on his ass.
Ian and Riley didn’t follow. They weren’t allowed.
Alfie held himself perfectly still, arms by his sides, waiting for his father.
He’d not intended to hurt or bully Chloe tonight. He’d seen her on the school bench, bag to one side, book in hand, but it had been Ian who threw the banana and Riley who called her names. He never disobeyed his father, and when given the order to stop bullying her, he had. Sure, he couldn’t be held responsible for stopping his friends, or other guys. He watched them push her into doors,
lockers, trip her up, throw stuff at her. She was the school punching bag. Seconds passed. Then minutes. He felt like he’d been waiting for hours before his father finally showed up.
“I can’t believe I’m having this fucking conversation with you again.” Eagle walked in and slapped him around the back of the head.
“Hey,” Alfie said. “I didn’t do nothing.”
“Then why did I have to listen to Lily here less than two hours ago? You hurting her girl. Do I need to remind you what it means to disobey me?” Eagle asked.
“Why does it matter to you?” Alfie asked. “Chloe’s a fat, fucking loser. No one likes her.”
“She’s a sweet girl. Regardless of her weight. I’m not asking you to fuck her. Am I?” Eagle glared at him.
“She’s just a girl. Why does it matter to you?” he asked.
“Are you questioning me?” Eagle stepped right up in front of him.
Alfie wasn’t afraid. His father wouldn’t kill him. Sure, he’d have to take a beating, but it was being on the end of this man’s fist that had made him the man he was.
“No, sir,” he said.
“You stay away from Chloe Decker. I don’t want no trouble coming to Lily. You hear me?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Good. Now get out. Tell that to your two boyfriends as well. I don’t want to hear a single complaint from that girl.”
“Did Chloe tattle on us?” Alfie asked.
“No. Her mother caught you, and don’t even think of lying. Lily’s got no reason to lie.”
“Is she going to be your new club whore or something?”
He should have expected the slap across the face. It was hard, and the metallic taste of blood filled his mouth.
“You’re going to learn to have some respect, boy. I taught you better than that. No disrespect. Get the fuck out before I take my belt to you.”
Leaving his father’s office, he didn’t even have to nod for Ian and Riley to follow. They made their way out of the clubhouse, around the back, and down to the creek. There was a small lake about a mile off the clubhouse. He opened the gate, closing it behind him. One of the club brothers had ended up drowning in the lake, so his father had no choice but to put a metal fence around a couple of feet before the lake.
“You okay?” Ian asked.
“Peachy.”
“You don’t look it. Sorry, you don’t,” Riley said.
“You’ve got to stay away from Chloe. All of us do. It’s an order from Eagle.”
“Wow, is Lily already banging his ass?” Ian asked.
“I wouldn’t go around asking those kinds of questions. He’s likely to whoop your ass as well,” Alfie said.
“So, we just let her go? I figured being the daughter of a coward, and after tonight, I’m not letting her get away with her shit. She thinks she’s better than us, so I think it’s only fair we bring her down a peg or ten,” Ian said.
“Not going to happen.” Alfie wasn’t interested in getting a beat down from his dad in any way, shape, or form. He was done with all the bullshit it entailed, and just wanted to get through the last year of high school so he could start prospecting for real, and earning his place within the club.
“You know, we don’t have to bully her,” Riley said.
“Can’t you guys just let it quit already? We’re not going to win this, and I don’t want to be on the wrong side of my dad, okay?” He looked at Ian and Riley. They didn’t look convinced.
“You two fuckers are really not going to let this go, are you?” he asked.
“Why should we?” Ian asked. “I’ve got the perfect way to make that little slut pay, and believe me, you’re going to want in on the action.”
Thanksgiving came and went, and they moved toward Christmas. Eagle spent a great deal of time with Lily, especially after the divorce went final. The club hadn’t heard from Kurt since the morning he’d woken up with the strippers.Chloe had asked Alife about her dad, but she didn’t want him to find the man for her.For his father, he knew the relationship was going slow between Eagle and Lily, but it was happening.Every weekend, they were both at her house, and if they stayed over too late, Alfie got the spare room while Eagle slept downstairs.After putting up the Christmas decorations in Chloe’s sitting room and drinking way too much hot chocolate, Alfie couldn’t sleep.The television was playing downstairs, and he didn’t know how close their parents were getting yet.Even if they did, he had no intention of treating Chloe like his little sister. Any plan he’d originally thought to do was now out the window.Ian, Riley, and he had all agreed, especially after they saw Eagle making o
Eagle held the door open for Lily and took her arm, escorting her into the bar and grill.“I wanted to take you to some fancy restaurant, but I’m kind of banned from all of them.”Lily giggled. “It’s no problem. I’m not the kind of girl who needs fancy. This is nice though. I like it.”He’d reserved a table, and he helped her into her seat before taking the one opposite her.She was so nervous, and he wanted to calm her down, or at least to make sure she knew there was no pressure tonight.“Well, this is really amazing,” she said. “You know it has been over twenty years since I went on a date with Kurt. Shit, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said anything.”He reached across the table. “I know all about you and Kurt. You two were inseparable.”“True. You know he always wanted to be part of the club. Always. When he told me what he did, how he ran away rather than stay and fight, part of me was glad.” “Really?”“Yeah. I mean, I was young, alone, with a baby. I was also taking care of Alfie
Chloe’s life over the next month and a half was surreal. The graffiti on her locker stopped completely, which she wasn’t going to complain about. People stopped trying to trip her in the hallway, and she stopped having things thrown at her, or put in her locker.For the first time, she got to live a painless, happy time at high school.Surreal as fuck.Her parents’ divorce, against all the odds, was also going smoothly. Kurt didn’t contest it, and she hadn’t seen her dad since that time at the diner, which did suck. She had hoped he’d stop by to say hey. Even though most of his time had been spent at the club, he was still her dad, and she did love him.Day by day, her mother began to glow again.The tears finally stopped, and she was able to live her life without thinking about Kurt. What Chloe didn’t want to think about was Eagle.He’d started to hang around a whole lot more, and she didn’t know if she liked him being near her mother. Like tonight.It was a Friday night. Alfie had o
You invited them for dinner?” Chloe asked.Her mother threw more peppers into the pot and began to stir them around with more garlic and ginger. The stir-fry smelled amazing, and she’d already started to cook the coconut noodles with equal parts coconut milk and stock. This was one of her favorite dishes and her mother’s specialty.“Why not?”“I don’t know, because why invite them in the first place?“You need to stop worrying. If you must know I invited them for you.”“Why? Is something going on between you and Eagle?”Lily snorted. “No, of course not, silly. Why would you think of something like that?”“Why did you invite them for me?”“Well, if you must know, Alfie came to me and asked if he could date you. I know you’re nervous about his intentions, and rather than throw you to the wolf, I figured in this kind of controlled environment, I’d get a good reading on the kid.”“The kid?”“You know what I mean.”“I do, and I don’t think this is a good idea. You should call him and cance
You want to take her on a date?” Lily asked.She was walking around the supermarket, picking up some fresh produce.Alfie had been on his way to the clubhouse when he saw her.“Yeah. Me and her, doing something together.”Lily put the peppers into her trolley and frowned. She opened her mouth and closed it. “Why are you asking me?” “You’re her mother.”“Yes, and you’re not going to be dating me. You’re going to be dating my daughter. You see the problem here?”“I know, but Chloe and me, we’ve not had a good start.”“Believe me I know, and I can’t say that I blame her.” Lily tilted her head to the side.He didn’t know why he thought this would be a good idea. Getting her mother to like him would only allow Chloe to trust him more, right? “We haven’t always been close.”“I know you bullied my daughter, Alfie, and I’m not going to give you permission to date my daughter. I don’t trust you.”“I’m proving to you that I care. That I’ve changed.”“No one does that quick a turnaround. Belie
You can’t protect me all the time. The bullying’s not going to end until I leave here.”“You’re leaving?”“Let’s not talk now.”“Are you, like, running away?”“Hell, no. I’m not running away.” She didn’t want to talk to him about her plans.“You know, boyfriends and girlfriends share everything together.”“They do, do they? We’re not dating.”“Now you’re just being mean.”She chuckled. “We’re not dating. We’re ... abiding each other’s company.”“I’m wearing you down, and you know it. You’re going to be my girlfriend soon, Chloe. You may as well get used to it.”“Not happening, Alfie.” She opened up an alcohol wipe and pressed it against his cut. He winced. “You may have to go to the hospital and get some stitches.”“No, I won’t.”“You don’t have to be brave and tough for me.”“You think this is the first time I’ve gotten a cut eyebrow and lip? Please, this is child’s play in the club.”“It looks bad.”“I don’t care. Just put a bandage or some tape over it. It’ll be good.”“You winced







