Page 50 of Rooster

“I don’t want to get hurt… and I don’t want my kids to get hurt.”

“I get that, but there is a part of the club life that you aren’t getting. I wasn’t born into that family. I chose them, and they chose me. There’s a strength in that.”

“I’m not sure I understand.”

“Once you’re in their fold, there’s nothing they won’t do for you. Nothing, and those aren’t just words. I truly mean that.” He reached over and took my hand. “I’m not going to sugarcoat it. The secrets are tough. All the ol’ ladies hate ‘em, but we do the things we do to protect and take care of the people we love the most. I’d never put you or those kids in danger. Hell, I’d die before I let that happen.”

“But...”

“You can trust me, Maggie.” His eyes never left mine as he said, “I know that’s hard for you, especially after what you’ve been through, but you can. And one day, I’ll prove that to you.”

“It won’t be easy. I’ve all but forgotten how to truly trust someone.”

“I know. But I’m here, and I’m not going anywhere.”

I needed him to know how hard it would truly be, so I told him, “You can have your club secrets and you do what you have to do there, but that’s where I draw the line. No lying to me or keeping things from me. Just like this. You should’ve just told me from the start.”

“You’re right. I should have, but it’s a lot, especially for someone who’s never been a part of the club life. And I didn’t want to scare you off.” He gave me a snicker. “I was kind of hoping I could get you to warm up to me before I hit you with the heavy stuff.”

“That’s not really fair.”

“I know, but I’ll make it up to you.”

“And how are you planning to do that?”

A sexy smirk slipped across his face as he said, “Oh, I can be creative when I wanna be.”

“Oh, really?”

“Yeah, you just wait.” He pulled me close once again. “Little by little, I’m gonna wear you down, and one day, you’ll give into me. Just wait and see.”

Rooster

It had just begun, but winter was already kicking our asses. Because we’d had several big bouts of snow and ice, it had been weeks since we’d been able to ride. However, today was turning out to be a real beaut, so Torch and I decided to take advantage of the brief thaw and ride our bikes over to the construction site. The cold winter air was biting at our cheeks as we revved our engines and pulled out onto the road.

The snow had melted, leaving behind glistening patches of damp asphalt, but thankfully, there was no sign of any black ice or lingering patches of snow. The motorcycle's tires hummed against the pavement, drowning out any thoughts that might be lingering in my head, and by the time we arrived at work, I was feeling better than I had in days.

Unfortunately, the good mood didn’t last. Torch and I had barely parked when Savage and Wrath started over to us, and I could tell by their fierce expressions that they weren’t bringing good news. As they drew closer, I asked, “What’s going on?”

“We’ve lost track of Beckett,” Wrath answered. “When he wasn’t at breakfast, we just assumed that he’d come in to work early, but there’s been no sign of him.”

“I’ve tried calling him, but he’s not picking up.” Savage sounded concerned as he said, “He was on another bender last night, so there’s no telling where he ended up.”

“What do we need to do?”

“Preacher trusted us to keep an eye on him,” Savage explained. “Last thing we need is for something to happen to him.”

“Then, we’ll find him.” I looked over at Torch as I said, “We’ll go over to the clubhouse and give it another once over while you guys check around town.”

“Sounds like a plan.”

Torch and I started up our engines and wasted no time getting over to the clubhouse. When we pulled up, I wasn’t surprised to find that it was pretty cleared out. It was a weekday, so most of the guys were either at work or off on their own. Knowing Savage and the others were waiting to hear from us, Torch and I quickly parked and made our way inside.

You could hear our boots trudging against the worn floorboards as we made our way down the hall. We started opening doors, and with each empty room, the sense of urgency grew stronger. We called out his name, but time after time, there was no answer. After an exhaustive search, we were about to leave when Torch hesitated outside of Addison and Michele’s room.

They were a couple of the club’s hang-arounds, and Addison hadn’t been bashful about letting everyone know that she had her eye on Beckett. Hell, she’d been after him since the day he arrived. Torch motioned his head towards her door as he asked, “You think?”

“I don’t know, brother. His wounds run pretty deep. I’d think it’s a bit early for that.”

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