Duke (Aces MC Series Book 2) (15 page)

“Taylor where have you been?” Maggie asked clearly drunk.
Savannah started to laugh, “Don’t say a word!” I held up my finger indicating
for her to keep quiet. I wasn’t in the mood for banter.
“Where’s Chanel?” I asked looking around the club.
“Buster took her home earlier and Amy’s gone home with James. Chloe went home
upset, Paige went home on her own for a change and Louise went home with Spike.
Harlow went home with Diesel and it looks like Locke will be getting it on with
Keira, which leaves us five!” Savannah slumped in her chair out of breath from
her little rant and disdain of not being with anyone.
“Well I’m going home on my own but I need a lift. See you girls Saturday.” I walked
off to the sound of goodbyes as I stuck up my hand to wave.

“Tyler I need a lift.” He looked uncomfortable looking
around the room.
“Where’s Duke?”
“He said it’s okay, I’ve asked him already.” I wasn’t in the habit of lying but
I wanted to go home.
“As long as he’s okay with it. Come on let’s get you home.”
I walked quickly towards the door encouraging Tyler to walk faster so that we
weren’t noticed sneaking out.

Duke

I knocked back my drink and pushed the empty glass towards
the bar tender.
“Do you want another?” he asked picking up the glass.
“I better not I’m driving.” I scanned the club looking for Ash but I couldn’t
see her. I turned towards the guys at the bar, “Have any of you seen Ash?”
“She left with Tyler.” CJ stated as he took a swig of his beer. The group of
guys at the bar looked uncomfortable at his statement.
“Tyler! You better hope he hasn’t laid a finger on her Hound.” I fastened my
jacket and took out my keys. “Make sure Savannah gets home safely.” CJ nodded
understanding the importance of what I’d just said.

I walked out into the cold night air and stood in the middle
of the car park assessing tonight’s events. I dragged one of my boots in the
dirt moving the loose stones from side to side as I contemplated everything.
Viper would kick my arse if he saw me acting like such a cock, especially over
a girl!
I wanted her that was for sure but unlike my comment earlier, I didn’t just
want to get in her panties. I liked spending time with her and I wanted to get
to know her better. I decided that I wouldn’t go after her this evening as we’d
only end up fucking, which would be nice but would muddy the waters further. I
needed to lay everything on the line so that she stopped blowing hot and cold.
She was either in or out, I just hoped it wasn’t the latter!

Duke

“Congratulations Hound, Maggie. It’s a huge achievement,
being married for twenty five years but even more of an achievement because you
still like each other.” The congregation started to laugh. “Please raise your
glasses to toast the happy couple. To Hound and Maggie!”
“To Hound and Maggie!” The congregation cheered.
“Now you can get pissed!” Maggie shouted to the cheering crowd.

Hound and Maggie were a great couple and acted like the
parents of the club. Many club members didn’t have families of their own for
various reasons but everyone knew that they could go to either of them for a
chat or friendly advice. It was just a shame that their own kids couldn’t learn
from them. Chloe and Paige had a huge row on Thursday and had carried their
spat over until today. I fucking warned them that they’d better not ruin their
parent’s special day or they’d have me to deal with. That seemed to stop any
scrap developing but the snarky comments and dirty looks were getting beyond a
joke. I was getting
pissed off with all the drama and
was grateful of not having any kids of my own.

“Hi Duke, can I have a word?”
Savannah asked as she linked arms with me.
I’d met with her earlier in the week and she’d informed me about the offer to
go to Paris. This was the break she’d been looking for and I was pleased that
she’d get way from all this shit. She didn’t belong at the strip club. Okay she
made a fucking good wage and she was able to pay her own way and make her
outfits but she’d always dreamt of working in a fashion house and now it looked
like her dream had come true.
We walked over to the seating area in the furthest corner of the compound to
give us some privacy.
“What’s on your mind?” I asked inquisitively. I’d known Savannah for long
enough to know when things were eating her up.
“I’m gonna miss you Duke.” She stated as she leant over to give me a huge hug.
“I’m gonna miss you too beautiful.” I pulled back to look at her to see her
unshed tears mount and it looked like the dam could break any minute. “You can
come back and visit us any time you like. There’ll always be a job, bed and a
family here for you. We are your security blanket Savannah.” I pulled her close
for another hug.
“I just wanted to take this opportunity to thank you for everything you’ve
done. I’m forever in your debt Duke, I mean that.”
Savannah placed her head in the crook of my neck and I felt the sheer weight of
her tears as they streamed off her face and onto my skin. I gently smoothed the
hair out of her face.
“You’re more than welcome. I’m glad that skanky arse of yours turned up at our
club on that cold, wet November evening.”
She looked at me surprised that I remembered the details but gave me a slap at
my comment.
“This is a party so I don’t want any more tears.” I stated as I wiped the last
of the water from her face. “You’re celebrating too so I want you to grab a
drink and start off the dancing.”
She nodded as she stood and sighed gaining a little more composure.
“Thanks.” She said before spinning on her heels.
I lightly slapped her on the arse as she walked off.

It had been an overall enjoyable
day and it was quickly approaching evening. We had a rule at the club that kids
had to leave the compound by 6.00pm. The rules were there to protect the minors
and we couldn’t have them around when people were intoxicated and this included
Chanel, much to her disgust.
“Duke, do I have to go, I’m nearly eighteen!” She whined with her pleading
eyes.
“I’m afraid so babe.” I embraced her and gave her a chaste kiss on the top of
her head. I looked over at Buster assessing him and could see him become
uncomfortable under my scrutiny. “Have you been drinking?” I asked him in a
clipped tone.
He shook his head vigorously, “No Duke. Why? Do you need me to do something?”
Buster was shaping up to be a good prospect. He was loyal, honest and above all
doted on Chanel.
“I want you to take Chanel home.” I looked at him with a menacing stare as he
nodded his head, understanding my request. “I’m trusting you to look out for
her and if she should come to any harm, I’ll have your balls. You got me?”
I saw him gulp at the brash statement but I needed to make sure he looked after
her.
“Oh Duke is that really necessary?” Taylor said as she joined us in the yard.
I hadn’t spoken to her since her outburst on Thursday night, but was hoping
that she’d calmed down within that time and even missed me.
I didn’t take my eyes off of Buster, “Yes, it’s necessary.”
Buster continued to nod his head. “I totally understand Duke and I wouldn’t let
anything harm her.”
I glanced at Chanel as she swooned at his declaration. The whole fucking club was
going soft! I watched as they left the compound together, chewing over if I was
truly happy with Chanel seeing one of us. One of us! I said it like a bad thing.
“He’ll look after her, stop worrying. Now, where can we go to talk?”
“Come with me, you’ll need to put something on first.” I said as I dragged her
towards the club house.

“Quit whining, you’re gonna need to wear this Ash.” She reluctantly
let me help her into Amy’s leather jacket, I kept at the club house. “It looks
good on you babe.” I stated as I readjusting my cock from getting a hard at the
close contact.
Ash rolled her eyes with a disapproving look, which made me snigger. She came
across as a prude sometimes but I knew differently.
“You ready for this?” I held the two lapels either side of her jacket with a
reassuring look.
Ash nodded her head slightly and I could see the reticence on her face. “Come
on, let’s go for a ride.” I took her hand gently and lead her outside towards
my motorcycle.

“Well is it as bad as you thought it would be?” I spoke to
her over the mic.
“No but I’ve only just opened my eyes.”
I chuckled at her response. I loved the way that she could tell me exactly what
was on her mind or even how she was feeling, a quality that I noticed the first
day I met her at the salon. I started to think how far we’d come over the past
month. In normal circumstances this would seem crazy but our lives were just
that. I needed to speak to her about how I felt. This wasn’t something I was
particularly good at so she would have to bear with me but I needed to get a
lot off my chest and decided that this was the day to do it.

We pulled into the lodge, a pub the guys and I regularly
visited if we wanted a change from the club. It wasn’t very busy, which I liked
and we easily found an unoccupied table under the heaters outside.
I nodded at the waitress indicating that we were ready to place our orders.

I pulled my phone out of my pocket as I’d received a text.

Can I please speak to you about something really
important? Paige x

I didn’t know why the fuck she was contacting me? Everything
in Paige’s life was a fucking drama. She’s Hounds daughter so we’d always look
out for her but I didn’t have time for trivia things.

Can’t your dad deal with it?

No, I really need to speak to you. Paige x

Drop by the club tomorrow lunch time.

That’s great. Paige x

I put my phone back into my pocket and turned towards Ash. “You’re
quiet tonight. What’s on your mind?” I asked scratching my chin thoughtfully.
“You…me…us,” she let out a loud sigh, “I like you Duke. I think I’ve made that
perfectly clear over the last couple of weeks.”
We were interrupted by the waitress. “Can I have a Jack and a coke with ice?”
She nodded and wrote the order down on her pad before disappearing into the
pub.
Taylor picked at a piece of loose thread on the seam of her jeans, not wanting
to make eye contact. This fact alone made me dread what may come out of her
mouth as I could sense a but somewhere.
“The problem being I don’t think you’re ready for a relationship.” She was now
looking at me with unshed tears. I went to grab for her hand but she pulled
away.
“Don’t, I need to get this out or I’ll regret it.” She paused for a while and I
didn’t push. I was a big boy. I’d seen things and participated in things that
people only dreamt of in their worst nightmares. I knew what was coming and was
starting to think of how I would actually feel when the words come out of her
mouth.
“As much as I’m attracted to you and the chemistry I think we have, I can’t
live the life you lead. It’s too dangerous Duke. I’m a normal girl and want a
normal life.” She stopped talking as the waitress placed our drinks.
There was a long silence before she smiled sweetly, “Don’t get me wrong the
whole biker thing is so freaking hot and you are just simply…well just simply
amazing but we both want different things and to be honest, I’m not willing to
compromise Duke.”
Where did I go from here?
Her last statement made it perfectly clear
that whatever I said wouldn’t be good enough to change her mind. Shit!
I continued to make eye contact with her as I picked up my drink and took a
quick swig. Her facial expression didn’t change but it was as if she was
bracing herself for my reaction.
“Ash, how did we get here babe? You were supposed to be just a bit of fun.” She
raised her eyebrows slightly but smiled as I reached over to take her hand.
This time she allowed me to embrace her.
“You have such a way with words.”
“I’m gonna tell you how it is and be totally honest with you. You can ask me
anything and I will do my upmost to tell you the truth. If at the end of
tonight you want to call it quits, I won’t like it but I’ll respect your
decision.”
This caught her attention as I’d obviously taken her by surprise from my
response.
“I’ll go first. As of two weeks’ time, the club will be totally legit. Therefore
all business activity is legal and can’t get anyone into trouble. Your turn,
now ask me a question.”
I could see that she was chewing over the information I’d just given her.
“Would there still be people from the past, that may want to hurt you or the
club?”
“We haven’t stepped on too many toes since I’ve been President but there will
always be that possibility. We have provisions in place to protect the club and
its associates as you found out earlier in the week.” I said smirking at her.
“Next question.”
“Have you EVER been in a relationship?”
“No. Next question.”
“Hold on a minute. Never as in your whole life?”
“Like I said no. Next question.”
There was a long pause and I could see her struggling with what I’d just said.
“How do you feel…about me?” This came out very quiet and she began to play with
the loose piece of thread on her jeans again.
“Plain and simple Ash, I like you. You’re an Intelligent, quick witted and
beautiful lady, that I would love to spend more time with to see how things
develop.” The shocked expression on her face surprised me.
Didn’t she know I
felt this way?
“Does it scare me? Fucking hell yeah! I’ve never done any of
this shit before and to be honest, I took the fucking piss out of Diesel
watching him act like a pussy around Ink. But if the guys take the piss out of
me for pursuing what could possibly turn into something amazing between us, who
gives a shit!”
She’d now removed her hand from mine and had wrapped her arms around her body.
“Now I have a question for you Ash. What happens now?”
She looked at me with those gorgeous eyes, “I’m gonna have to think about a few
things Duke. You’ve given me a lot of information to process. The thing is I
don’t want to get hurt. I know all relationships come to an end and there’s a
chance I’ll get hurt but I mean physically. I don’t want to be put in danger.”
“Come here.” I shuffled forward in my chair and leant over to take her into my
embrace. 
It was at this moment that I wanted to tell her how I really felt but I just
couldn’t. I didn’t want to put any pressure on her. She had to do what she felt
was right and I’d just have to deal with it in my own way whatever she decided.
After a couple of minutes of just sitting there enjoying each other’s company,
my phone started to bleep.
“Yeah…Where’s Diesel?... Okay we’ll make our way back.” I put my phone back
into my pocket, “I’ve gotta get back to the club, Locke’s kicking off and they
want me to sort him out.”
She nodded her head as she stood.

We took a slow walk back to my ride.
“Am I right in thinking that Stoney’s girlfriend has nothing to do with the
club?”
I didn’t know that she knew Stoney, maybe Ames or Savannah had mentioned him.
“She’s what we call a civilian. Nikki is kept completely separate from the
biker culture. She doesn’t come on runs or attend parties and is kept out of
all club business. Both Stoney and Nikki wanted it that way so that the kids
have a ‘normal’ upbringing.”
“Does he have an old lady as well?”
Fucking hell she had been doing her research. “Some men choose to have a
civilian wife or girlfriend and an old lady or fuck about with the sweet butts
at the club but Stoney never has. He’s a one woman man.” I looked at her
confused, “Why, what you thinking? Do you wanna be a civilian?”
This is why I’ve never been in a relationship. Women send mixed messages all
the time and I was struggling to figure her out.
“I’m just thinking, weighing up all of my options.”
She was distant, I think I lost her about an hour ago but I was hopeful that
she may reconsider. Women had to label things, give it a name and put it neatly
into a box. I just wanted to go with it and see where it took us.
We got onto the motorcycle and she placed her arms tightly around my waist
holding me closer than she did on the journey here. I took in a deep breath
savouring this moment as it may be our last, before starting the engine and
driving off into the night.

We weren’t far from the club house when I noticed a car
speeding up behind us. This road was notorious for young drivers speeding because
it was a straight run without any speed cameras. I moved over to the left hand
side of the road mindful of drains and potholes so that the vehicle had enough
room to overtake. I continued to keep a sensible speed, being attentive to
Taylor’s dislike for motorcycles when the car pulled up directly beside us.
“What are they doing Duke?” Taylor screamed down the mic.
“Don’t know but hold on.” I slowed down so that the vehicle continued in front
of us. Maybe they were just simply over taking. That’s when I saw the passenger
lean out of the side window with a gun.
I knew what was coming. I braced myself as I tried to dodge the bullet by swerving
but the jerk of the motorcycle on the damp floor allowed it to swing from beneath
us.
As soon as we hit the floor I felt Taylors grip vanish quickly and heard her
frightful screams. I hit the floor hard on my right side and skidded across the
gravel onto a grass embankment at the side of the road.
Once I’d stopped moving, I jumped to my feet but could feel the sting down my
right leg. I could also see that I’d taken away the skin from my right hand as
I’d put it out to try and stop some of the momentum and it was now pissing out
blood.
“Taylor!” I shouted looking for her frantically. I stepped out onto the road
and was grateful that the shooters hadn’t come back to finish the job.
I pulled out my mobile to call Bear.
“I’ve just got the call, I’m on my way back to the club house to deal with
Locke. “
“No I need you Bear, we’ve been shot at on Crown Hill. I can’t find Taylor.
Hurry!” I hung up stuffing the phone back into my pocket.
“Taylor!” I continued to look around the embankment for her.
“I’m here Duke.” I saw her hand waving at me further down the verge.
I slid down the ridge to where she was laying. “Where you hurting babe?”
“Everywhere!”
I took out my phone and turned on the light so that I could see properly in the
darkness. I scanned her body and felt a sigh of relief to see the helmet and
leather jacket in one piece. It wasn’t until I got to her leg when I realised
we needed to get her to hospital.
“How’s your neck and back feeling Taylor? Do you think you can move?”
“Yeah I’m fine Duke, it’s just my leg that’s throbbing.”
“I need to get you up to the road. The guys will be here soon and we’ll get you
to hospital.”
I put one arm around her waist and she put her arm around my shoulders so that
I could take her weight and get her up the grass verge.
I could hear the familiar rumble of several Harleys in the distance and knew
that the guys would be here in force. That’s one of the things I loved most
about this club. It didn’t matter what was going on, each and every one of them
would drop everything to help another member out. That’s what family was for.