Taking a Dare - A Hellion MC Novel (27 page)

"Besides," Trey stated, using his Hellion president
voice. "Wasn't it just yesterday you were swearing no one could
make you hand over your patch?"

Dare had no fuckin' answer to that one because it was
the truth.

"Don't give up, Dare," Trey said and Dare could see
the steel in the other man's face. "I get that you want her and
know that whatever the two of you fucking have has been brewing for
fucking years. But giving me your fucking cut ain't the way to go,
amigo."

Dare felt his eyes lose their focus as he tried to
think.

"You are a Hellion, real and true," Trey growled into
the growing silence between them. "And you've found a woman that
completes you. I know the feeling but also know that you'll have
the father-in-law from hell unless we find a way to correct that
shit."

"It'll be a goddamn battle, brother," Dare admitted,
his lips barely moving. He couldn't stand that getting with his
girl was gonna cause problems with the club and the two chapters.
"He fuckin' hates me."

"Acknowledged. But he doesn't rule our turf, even
though it's clear he wants to," Trey said with a crooked smile
before turning his face to the brother that he'd known for years.
"What does Ryley say about this shit and how far you are willing to
take it in order to have her?"

"We haven't had that particular convo yet," Dare said
realizing that he and his girl had never talked about their future
in a way that wasn't without hope. "And as for us moving the fuck
forward? Don't know. Don’t fuckin' care as long as she's mine in
the end."

"Are we fucking talking the rest of your lives kind
of 'mine' or just until one of you pisses the other off and fucking
leaves?" Dare knew that was Trey's way of getting to the bedrock of
Dare's commitment to Ryley.

"It ain't temporary!" Dare yelled before realizing
he'd reacted more strongly than maybe the question had warranted
but Christ! He was so fucking tired of being accused of having just
a run crush!

Trey dropped his chin at Dare's reaction and the
younger man wondered why it seemed Trey was hiding a smile.

"Then there ain't much to fucking worry about, is
there, Dare?"

Dare's inhale was loud in the quiet room knowing
exactly what his pres meant. He needed to get straight with Ryley
and then attempt something with Leif and her dad in order for the
two of them to step forward. He'd fuckin' tried to work the
situation from the wrong end, and Trey was showing how to go about
getting a damn handle on it the right way.

He turned away from the big man at the desk almost
afraid to believe Trey's words. That there wasn't fuckin' much to
worry about when all was said and done.

"And just for the motherfucking record, I'll kick
your fuckin' ass you try that weak-kneed shit again," the other man
instructed, keeping his eyes on the screen before him. "Don't you
have some kind of goddamn crap to do? If so, I'd get to it,
brother. We're doing a Hellion brotherhood run at noon."

A brotherhood run was something typically done to
build the bonds within the ranks of the Hellion brothers. And was
something Dare knew was needed between the Missoula and Spokane
chapters, especially after that morning's meeting.

"You think it'll help?" Dare's tone clearly showed
his skepticism.

"Gotta fucking do something to ensure we're a team
before we meet with the fucking Czar's." Trey mumbled, running a
hand over his face before shooting his eyes to his brother. "Now
getcha ass outta here so I can get my shit done."

Without another word, Dare left the office, his heart
lighter than he could ever remember it feeling as he shrugged back
into his treasured vest. He made a stop in Silo's space, plopping
his ass in a visitor chair and crossed his ankles on the edge of
his council brother's messy desk.

Silo completed his phone call before he took a swipe
at Dare's boots as he rumbled, "Ain't you got shit to do? You know
we're supposed to do a run later…"

Dare grinned at the other man's exasperated tone. It
was fuckin' hilarious how big Si could use the same position in
either Dare or Bishop's office but hated anyone to have their feet
on
his
fuckin' desk. "You know that thing you offered Trey?
About getting fucking rings at a discount?"

Si didn't move a muscle or reply in any way to Dare's
question.

"I need one," Dare finished.

"One what?"

"What do you think? Fuck! Keep up, dude," Dare
chuckled and watched Silo's eyebrows lift sharply. "A fuckin' ring.
I need a ring for Ryley."

Silo shot to his feet, fists clenched, bellowing at
the top of his lungs and in a steady stream. "Goddamn,
motherfuckin', son of a bitch!" A roar that was followed by the
hard thuds of many boots that entered Si's office quickly.

"What the fuck, man?"

"Where's the fuckin' fire?"

Trey pushed to the forefront of the small crowd.
"What the fuck is the problem now?"

Silo pointed to where Dare sat in studied casualness
wearing a shit-eating grin. "He just fucking asked me to help him
get a ring! A motherfuckin' ring!"

All eyes shifted to Dare who nodded happily as he
raised a hand to inspect his nails.

"And?" Bishop seemed to ask for the rest of the
group.

"Do you know what the fuck that
means
, for
god's sake?" Silo was almost sputtering. "He's fuckin'
serious
about her!"

"Might even marry her if she'll have me," Dare added
just to ensure Silo and his brothers knew his intentions. The
group's eyes shifted between the two men at the desk.

"You ain't been serious about no shit the entire
fuckin' time I've known you! And especially not fuckin' pussy!"
Silo accused.

Dare shrugged but didn't drop his smile.

"
That's
what all the fuckin' yelling was
about? Dare and Ryley?" Bishop crossed his arms on his chest and
shook his head. "Where the fuck have you been, Si?"

Brand started laughing, which caused the other
brothers to start their own chuckles. "It is a natural progression
between a man and a woman, brother, although one that may have been
slow in coming for Dare and his woman."

"Brand's right. If Dare and Ryley want to fuckin' be
together and he wants to slip her a ring, it's all good," Huff
added.

"And something you're just gonna have to fuckin'
accept, dig?" Bishop added with a firm nod.

Dare's eyes, still twinkling with mirth, turned back
to Silo. "So you gonna fuckin' hook me up or what?"

Silo's gaze roamed over the other men before he
dropped his ass back into his chair almost in defeat. He stared at
Dare as he pulled on his soul patch before admitting, "yeah,
brother. I'll help. Under fuckin' duress but I'll see what I can
do."

Outside of his original question, Trey hadn't
contributed to the conversation. "How about all you pussies fucking
forget the drama and get back to work, yeah?"

Silo's eyes caught on Dare's and he glared. "Now see,
she's
already
fuckin' disrupting shit."

Dare stood and straightened his jeans as the other
men filed out. "She can disrupt my fuckin' shit any ol' time. Any
fuckin' time at all, big guy."

Which only got him the reply of Silo's middle
finger.

Chapter Twenty Six

After getting Rinse's assurances that he'd help Vegas
and March, I was finally able to make my way back to Lulu's to get
cleaned up and ready to meet the day. But as soon as I had those
few quiet moments to myself, my mind went into overdrive with all
that the night before with Dare had uncovered.

That the man, my man, not only wanted to be with me
but
loved
me. Loved me as much as I loved him and had even
shown me with his body, his wonderful words. Declarations I'd never
thought I'd hear again.

But.

Even though he'd finally (finally!) told me what my
heart needed to hear, we still hadn't settled the mechanics of our
situation. First and foremost in my mind was the question of him
being content with just having one girl in his bed.

From what the Honeys had confided, Dare liked the
sheer variety of the Honeys on tap. That he could pick and choose
who he wanted to be with. So what happened when our newness wore
off? Would he feel the need to be with other women while he was in
Missoula and I was in Spokane?

How would that work anyway—the whole long distance
love connection thingie? Would we be able to continue what we had
without being in the same city?

And what would happen to each of our support systems,
our clubs and family, if my dad had his way?

So many questions and too few concrete answers to
give me any kind of peace about Dare and our future together.

And as my mind kept spinning out all the things we
hadn't yet settled between us, I felt a hole begin to open up
inside me, not knowing how we were going to resolve any of it.

Standing in front of Lulu's huge mirror over her
dresser, I saw that I was about as ready as I was ever going to be
but was without remembrance of how I'd gotten that way. Obviously,
I'd done my morning routine by rote as my mind and heart worked to
formulate all the things still undecided and work through possible
solutions.

I grabbed my purse and keys, determined to shelve my
concerns until I had a chance to talk them through with Dare.

Making a point of parking my borrowed car behind the
equipment shed at the compound, I saw that the forecourt was empty
of bikes and, in being so, became an object of interest. I couldn't
remember a time when any Hellion area didn't have at least one
motorcycle parked inside it. But I could hear the music and the
loud girl giggles pouring out as soon as I opened the clubhouse
door.

"What's doin', Honeys?" I shouted as I pushed through
the double doors of the kitchen and received a wall of sound in
response, welcoming me back into the hive of activity. I went to
the sink, pulling up my sleeves and began to wash my hands in order
to join in all the slicing and dicing the others seem to be
performing. "So what's on the menu?"

"The same old burgers, steaks and chicken," Dallas
called out. "We're getting creative with the sides and desserts,
though."

"Vegas told us about your potato salad with the
bacon, onion and eggs, so you're up pretty girl," Dee added. I
glanced around and found Vegas across the kitchen but she never
raised her face to look at me. Seemed I needed to have another talk
with her to convince her she wasn't in any sort of trouble over
March.

I dried my hands and went to the center island.
"Where do you want me?"

"I could use some help with the desserts while your
spuds are cooking," Lock announced from her place by the stove.

As soon as I was by her side, I had to ask about the
lack of rides in the forecourt. "Yeah. Seems there was some kind of
brouhaha in the council meeting this morning. Lulu said she could
even hear the yelling all the way in reception. About noontime, it
was decided that a combined road-trip was in order and they all
took off."

I glanced at her and saw her face was set on serious.
"Do we know what the shouting was about?"

"Nuh-uh. Either Lulu didn't know or she wouldn't say
but that's a girl that knows how to keep her mouth shut," Lock
replied. She shoved a bowl of what looked to be cookie dough into
my hands and nodded towards an already greased jelly roll pan.
"Just spread it out in a layer and we'll cut it into bars."

Reese who was standing on the other side of Lock and
adding a long slow stream of mustard into a pan of what appeared to
be baked beans leaned over. "I asked Lulu and when she wouldn't
say, I even texted Brand. But he just said it was something to do
with the club, which for my man, means to butt out."

Yeah, that's the way it went. When the brothers had
something going on that was club business, we were supposed to keep
our noses out of it and only get involved when things with south.
Bloody bastards!

"No, he did NOT!" I heard a quavering voice yell from
the sink. Glancing over my shoulder, I saw Wanton standing next to
a young, dark blonde haired Honey who had a wet hand on her hip as
she yelled. "We were both working last night so he wasn't even
here!"

"Shoulder length blonde hair with a matching goatee
who goes by the name of Snake? Yeah, he was, honey," Wanton replied
and from her voice I could tell she was stirring up a shit-storm as
per usual. "That is one fine man and I had a hard time turning his
ass down when he asked for my mouth."

"You are so full of shit! He wouldn't go near someone
like you!"

"Yeah? He was sitting at the table next to where
Livvy was sitting in Dare's lap. Ask her! She saw the whole thing!"
I caught Wanton's hand wave towards a redhead that didn't look old
enough to be a Honey. The same girl that I'd seen perched on Dare's
leg, his arm around her narrow waist. But since she was wearing a
jean vest with the 'Bee' patch I knew she had to be at least
eighteen.

I shot my eyes back to the angry girl who's name I
thought was Jilly before turning to look at the strawberry-blonde
Livvy again. I had to admit, she was pretty in a fresh-scrubbed
schoolgirl kind of way in spite of the ruddy blush she was now
wearing.

It didn't take a rocket scientist to determine that
Wanton had been trying to spread her brand of charm to the other
girl's man, someone called Snake if I'd gotten it right. And the
pretty, blonde Honey was emphatically denying it.

Lock bumped my shoulder to gain my attention. "You
gonna shut this shit down between Jilly and your girl or what?"

I don't know what made me hesitate. Maybe I was
hoping that Jilly would take one of the large pans she'd been
washing and bean Wanton over the head with it thereby saving me the
trouble. Or that little sweet-faced Livvy would just go up in a
puff of smoke or something. But for some reason I just watched with
my heart racing and mouth as dry as crackers.