But this wasn't a play, this was real, his world, his family, being torn apart right in front of his eyes and he prayed that Joel would be able to figure out some way to stop it from happening. That hope flared for a moment as he finally made it to the front of the crowd and he could see his friend take a step forward, one hand outstretched in a gesture of peace.
" … Listen, Viper. I don't know what you hope to achieve with this but it's not going to happen. Not like this."
"You don't know what the fuck you're talking about, Joel," Viper sneered the other man's name but Joel didn't even flinch, just kept watching in that collected, cool-headed way he had. Always calm, always in control. And Honey could see that it infuriated Viper.
"Yes I do," Joel shot back, taking another step forward but stopped with Viper hissed, "I do know. I know this club, I know this crew. Dirty Cruisers is my family. I know every single one of you." Joel looked around the room as he said this, some of the members looking away, guilt in their eyes, but an alarming number just continued to glare right back. Shit. This wasn't good. Not good at all.
"No you don't!" Viper boasted, "I've been busy. While you've been fucking around at that stupid farm, I've been recruiting new members. Members that are loyal to me, not you!" There was a dissatisfied rumble from some of the older members at the man's irate words. Every biker was loyal to the Dirty Cruisers, loyal to the club itself. Sure, they had leaders and presidents but at the end of the day, it was family first, always.
"God, you really don't get it, do you Viper?" Joel said, shaking his head in disbelief, "You arrogant prick. You think that you'll become president and then what?"
"Then I'll be the leader. Not you. Then they'll have to listen to what I say and there won't be any more of this pansy ass talk about going straight and all that bullshit," Viper spat out, the venom in his words palpable and Honey just shook his head. Joel was right. Viper really didn't have a fucking clue.
Joel took a menacing step forward and Viper flinched before he could stop himself. Joel smiled, and it was a mean expression that drew across his face.
"You are a fucking moron, Viper. And anyone who follows you is a fucking moron. Anyone who would actually listen to you and think that you know a goddamn bit about what you're talking about obviously has less going on upstairs than even you and that's impressive because as far as I can tell, you're dumb as a box of rocks. But I guess they'd have to be, to believe that you could ever be half the leader that I am – " Joel barely got out the words before Viper's fist was flying towards him.
Without thinking, Honey was jumping forward into the brawl and it was as if he brought the whole crowd barreling down with him as the rest of the bar erupted into violence.
Well, there goes the fucking match, Honey thought to himself, but then all he could focus on was avoiding the fist that came at him, struggling through the roiling mass until he made it to where Joel was now facing off against two unfamiliar thugs. Wait a minute, one unfamiliar thug. As the taller one turned towards him, a vicious grin split Honey's face. He knew that asshole. It was Buck, the same guy that had tried to harass Elle.
He didn't wait to leap forward, a sharp uppercut landing square against Buck's jaw. He turned to Joel, the same manic smile on his face.
"Just like old times, eh Joel?"
"Shut up, Honey," his friend shouted between panting breaths as he ducked yet another cheap shot. Viper had seemed to have disappeared into the chaos. "Let's just try and get out of here with all our limbs attached, got it?"
"Got it, boss."
"Where's Carla?" he asked suddenly, distracting Honey enough to allow Buck's fist to clip his cheek. He cursed, spitting out a little blood before scanning the crowd.
"Tucker's got her. By the door. Look like he's holding her back, the little warrior."
"We have to go Honey," Joel said suddenly, and he hated the defeat he could hear in his friend's voice. But he also knew he was right. They were severely outnumbered. Viper had been telling the truth. He really had been busy.
He was about to get out of the fray when he spotted Hot Wheels' white blonde hair poking up from the middle where the fighting was hottest. Of course she would be in the goddamn middle of the fight, probably holding her own too, if he knew Wheels, but she wouldn't be able to hold these assholes off for long.
With one last look at where Joel was shoving his way towards the door and Carla, Honey sighed in resignation and took off in the opposite direction, straight towards the belly of the beast.
***
Elle's hands shook the entire drive home. She hated that they did, but there wasn't a darned thing she could do about it. She tried meditating, she tried visualizing that she was on a warm, sunny beach somewhere. She tried all the tricks that the therapists and phycologists had taught her to manage her anxiety but she had a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach that this wasn't just anxiety.
She knew how that felt, had lived with it since she was a child. This was different, and so much worse. Because every time she thought about Honey, her heart did a funny little flip in her chest and butterflies erupted inside of her.
You are being ridiculous, Elle, that voice inside her head said sharply, pull yourself together. You wanted him. And you had him. You would have had him twice if you hadn't chickened out at the last minute. It was that voice again, the little devilish side of herself that she didn't truly believe was a part of her.
I did not chicken out, Elle shot back. Great, now he has me arguing with myself! The man was a menace, plain a simple. A menace to her well being and peace of mind. Who wants peace of mind when you can have all that delicious, hard –
Okay, okay, I get it, Elle mentally shouted, He's hot. And amazing in bed, er, out of bed, um, standing. Whatever! But he's not what I want. There was a moment of silence as the thought echoed on and on in her head. I don't believe you.
Well, you are me, so you don't really have a choice! Elle shook her head at herself. Because the truth was, no matter how much she protested, even to herself, she knew the truth. She knew just exactly how much she had wanted him, no, needed him. She'd said the words out loud and she had meant every single one of them. And that's what made her hands shake on the long drive back to her house. They were still shaking as she got out of the car and walked up to the door, unlocked the deadbolt and went inside.
She'd been home for barely an hour, drinking tea in front of her fireplace when the sound of a knock at the front door startled her.
"Oh, for Pete's sake," she said irritably as she sloshed the now cooled liquid over the rim of the teacup when she jerked in surprise and quickly blotted the damp stains on the sweatpants she'd changed into. She had taken a shower and changed out of that dress as soon as she'd gotten in. It had gotten her into enough trouble.
Still muttering under her breath, she got to her feet and walked to the front door, wondering who would be knocking at this time of night. Elle grabbed the knob and threw open the door, and froze, staring wide eyed at the last person she expected, although she supposed she should have known better.
Her dark gaze widened even further as she spoke, "What the hell are you doing here?"
Chapter 14
"What the hell are you doing here?" Elle's strident question echoed into the night, through his pounding head but he just forced a shrug and a grin.
"Well, it's actually a funny story," Honey said, making a move to go inside but Elle partially closed the door blocking his entry, "Come on, Elle. It's late. I'm tired. Just let me in."
"Not until you answer my question," she said stubbornly. Well, she hadn't even begun to see stubborn yet. He leaned close, so close he could smell the fragrant lilac soap that she used. She must have taken a shower between when she'd left the clubhouse and now. The thought of her naked and wet, bubbles trailing teasingly across her skin had him groaning out as his body tightened at the mental image. Too bad he was in no shape to act on any of the desires springing up inside him.
"I'll answer your question as soon as you let me in."
"That's not how it works, Honey. You tell me first. Then I decide whether or not to let you in."
"Not this time, baby. Sorry. I wasn't lying. It's too late and I really am dead tired. Especially after the night I had."
"Well, I was there," Elle muttered under breath and Honey remembered that she'd left through the back. She had no idea about the fight. With a stuttered laugh, he reached past her waist, using the way she stiffened at the contact to push the door all the way open and then step through, all in one smooth motion that left her standing where she was in the entryway, gaping at him in effrontery.