Page 17 of Ride or Die
“The shooters are gone, it’s safe to come out,” I tell her, walking to where she is. She’s sitting on the floor, hugging her legs.
“Are you sure,” she stutters. I crouch next to her.
“Yes, I’m sure.”
“I’m going to have to call Cali, aren’t I,” she asks, turning to face me. I give a light chuckle.
“Yeah, probably,” I tell her. She sighs, slowly standing. She stares at the front of the bakery and her eyes go wide.
“Holy shit. She’s going to freak.”
“Ms. Emma, are you alright,” the Russian guy asks her.
“Yes, Yury. I’m alright,” she replies to him and turns to me. “That’s Cali’s bodyguard.”
“Buster,” Sketch calls. I walk over to him.
“What’s up?”
“I called Prez. He said to get to the clubhouse asap,” he tells me as the cops pull up. This is gonna be fun.
Once we were done dealing with the cops, we left the bakery. Since it’s Cali’s shop, she had to come back and talk to them too. I kept my distance and let Sketch and the girls talk to her. I didn’t want to leave her, but she had her bodyguard watching after her. As soon as we walk into the clubhouse, Bull is signaling for Church. As soon as everyone is settled, he gets started.
“Sketch called and said there was an incident. What happened?” Bull requests.
“We were hanging out at A Novel Bunch bakery. The girl who owns it is someone I’ve known since I was young. Some guys in a white van drove by and shot at the place,” I explain to him. “No one was hurt.”
“Did you see the guys in the van?”
“No, the men had masks on,” Sketch tells him. Bull nods.
“We’ll keep doing what we’ve been doing until we get confirmation it’s the cartel or not. If anyone wants their family to stay at the clubhouse, go ahead and bring them in. We have plenty of room,” he tells everyone. He hits his gavel down, dismissing us from Church. As soon as I get my phone, I send Cali a text.
To Cali:I said I would give you time, but I need to know you’re okay.
I don’t expect to get a response back from her right away so I put my phone in my pocket and head over to the bar. Lolita is there, putting clean glasses away.
“Can I get ya a drink,” she asks me.
“Yeah, let me get a Jameson on the rocks.”
“Rough day?”
“Something like that,” I tell her as she sets my drink in front of me.
“I can help with that,” Lexus says behind me. She runs a hand across my back. “Let me help you forget whatever is bothering you.”
I throw back my Jameson, trying to ignore Lexus. My phone vibrates in my pocket, but I ignore it too.
“Lo, let me get another,” I say, sliding my glass toward her. She fills it up and slides it right back. I shrug Lexus’s hand off me.
“Get lost, Lexus.” She does the opposite and slides up next to me.
“Give me a little bit of your time and I’ll make you feel better,” she whispers in my ear. Diesel sits on the other side of Lexus. He takes her hand and pulls her into him.
“I don’t understand why you waste your time on him,” he tells her in a softer tone. “Why don’t you and I go have some fun.”
I shake my head as the two of them walk off together. I finally decide to pull my phone out and Cali texted me back.
