Page 26 of Amy's Santa

“If we were putting them into Dom/sub roles?” At his nod of agreement, I continue, “I reckon Lady’s the dominant one.”

A burst of laughter gets my attention. Looking over I see Wizard slapping Throttle on his back. Hounds doubled up with laughter, and Hawk’s watching with his sharp eyes. The younger generation are our equals now. More than that, grown up and leading the club. No denying they earned their officer patches and deserved the votes they got. A new chapter in the life of the Satan’s Devils, and with Wizard heading it up, it’s a good team who’ll be leading us.

Drummer sees where I’m looking. “Suppose we ought to get Prez onside. Let him know what we’re up to.”

I shake my head. “Wiz would want to know why. It’s fuckin’ hard for me to understand the lifestyle Amy’s chosen, don’t really want to bring others into it, or at least limit the number who need to know.”

Drummer stares at me for a moment. “Am I hearing you right? You want to do something under the radar? Without the backing of the club?”

“We’re a big club now, Drummer. Old members have stepped down, but are still active, young’uns stepped up.” Viper and Bullet’s crew had to extend the meeting room a few years back. “While I trust all the brothers, this is personal shit. Rather keep it to just a few old hands.”

He gives me a considering look, then turns away for a moment. When he turns back, he gives me a sharp nod. “Okay, so you’re in the driving seat, Heart. Who d’you want?”

“Mouse, for information. Blade, ‘cause he’s good at this shit. Peg and… Wraith, of course.”

“What you two old’uns plotting?” A hefty slap to my back gets me reeling. I swing around angrily at Blade. “Who you calling old?”

Still adjusting to his new position, no longer being an officer of the club, Drummer often veers between his old role and his new one, and now he slips back into being the prez. In a voice dripping with authority, he snaps, “Need you to come up to the house later, Blade.”

The ex-enforcer pulls himself up straight. “Trouble?”

“Some law needs to be laid down.”

“Wizard know?”

I shake my head. “Prefer to have a limited team on this.” I eye him carefully in case he objects.

“Uh oh.” Blade grins widely. “Mutiny in the ranks.” But he doesn’t sound unhappy about it. “Who else d’you want?”

Drummer rattles off the names we’ve just agreed on. “We’ll get back, take a moment to freshen up then we’ll all meet at my house. Sam and the kids will be down at the clubhouse so we’ll have some space to ourselves.”

I crack my knuckles together. Despite the worry I have for the reason we’re doing it, getting the old team back together sounds like it’s going to be fun.

A loud whistle gets our attention, and Wizard gets on and starts revving his bike. Drummer and Sam, riding their vintage bikes today, show him how it’s done with real petrol engines and the genuine sounds of the exhausts rather than the electronic mimicry of the more modern bikes. As we get back into formation, I settle into my place. I fucking love this life, and wouldn’t want anything different. When things go south like they have with Amy, I’m not alone, and have good men at my back.

When we return to the compound, it doesn’t take me long before I notice something has changed, and this time, it’s an improvement. There’s a genuine smile, instead of forced one, on Amy’s face, and seeing how Xander’s got his arm around her, I think he was probably responsible for putting it in place.

“Amy looks brighter,” Marc observes, nudging me in the side. “I like Xander for her.”

“Yeah?”

“You don’t?” She looks surprised.

“Jury’s still out on that.”

Marc stares at me, then grins. “I doubt, in your eyes, anyone would be good enough for our daughter.”

She’s probably right. “I’m going to have a word with her.” I kiss Marc and then step away, heading toward the girl who looks so much like her birth mother. That she so resembles her had been hard at first, but now I’m happy Crystal lives on in her daughter. She left something of her behind when she was so cruelly taken from me, from us. And I’ll never believe anything other than she sent Marc to save me.

“Dad.” As she greets me, the smile slips away, instantly replaced by a cautious expression.

It reminds me I need to choose my words wisely. “Can we talk?”

“You go ahead.” Xander places his lips to her forehead, suggesting I’m right. In the two hours we’ve been gone, something’s changed.

“Grab your jacket.” I jerk my head toward the picnic tables outside. It’s cool, but not cold out, and it gives us the privacy I want.

She sits on one side, I sit on the other. Her arms go around herself.

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