LYDIA

 

It was a sunny day in Ivory. Up to this point, I had no complaints about the weather and today wasn’t an exception. Everything was perfect for the moment.

I didn’t know much about motorcycle clubs. I wasn’t even sure they existed until I moved to Ivory. I was prepared to learn everything I could now that I was getting to know Sean a little bit better.

Amy had given me the weekend off. I could keep my plans with Sean.

As I squeezed my arms around him, we rode through the streets of Ivory until finally arriving at our destination.

“Here we are.”

I knew we were at the clubhouse because there were a few choppers parked just outside. I looked up at the sign hanging above the bar and read it.

“The Grindhouse. What does that mean?”

“Fuck if I know,” Sean said with a laugh. “That’s just what it’s called. Come on.”

He took my hand and led me into the bar. As soon as I stepped inside, I saw a place that definitely belonged to a biker gang.

The place was decorated with photos all over the wood walls. Pictures of bikers wearing leather vests and riding their choppers. Each one of them had the club logo emblazoned on their chests: a menacing skull with the text ‘BLACK REAPERS’ on it in big, bold letters. A giant banner hung from the high ceiling with the same logo.

Outside of the obvious influence of the club, it was a spacious bar. There were a few bikers and women scattered in every direction. The crowd wasn’t as rowdy as I was used to seeing like at Finn’s. There was no reason to big talk themselves when everybody already knew each other.

“This way,” Sean said. “I want you to meet someone.”

We walked up to the bar where a lone man was standing.

“Ghost.”

The man spun around where he stood and greeted Sean with a hearty hug.

“Brother. How are you doing, my man?”

He glanced at me and a smile formed on his lips.

“You must be Lydia,” he said.

“I must be,” I said.

“Jon,” he said as he shook my hand. “The club calls me Ghost.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

Jon had these striking green eyes. They stuck out on his olive skin so much that it was almost distracting. His black hair was slicked back over his head. He wore the same leather vest as everybody else in the club. The shirt underneath covered some of the tattoos that were hidden on his arms and chest, barely visible.

He narrowed his eyes at me, a sly smirk on his face as he examined me.

“So… You’re the woman Brash over here can’t keep talking about.”

“He can’t keep talking about me?” I said.

I glanced at Sean and raised an eyebrow. Sean would have been embarrassed if he were any other man. But he stared at Jon proudly and puffed his chest out.

“What did I tell you?” he said. “You can tell she’s not from Ivory.”

“…Yeah,” Jon said, continuing to examine me. “She’s different. She’s got that big city vibe to her.”

“Big city vibe, huh?” I said with a laugh. “What kind of vibe is that exactly?”

“Confident. Independent. I don’t know if Brash over here told you, but Ivory women are only good at bending over. You look like the type who’s got a little more going for her.”

“But she’s not above bending over, either,” Sean added.

I rolled my eyes and slapped Sean across the chest as he laughed with his club member.

“She’s a feisty one,” Jon said. “She just might be a keeper.”

Sean looked down at me and nodded.

“I hope so,” he said.

“They’re getting everything ready out back,” Jon said. “Everybody here is just hanging out until the food is ready but you’re free to head back there and get comfortable if you want.”

“I want her to meet the rest of the club. Let’s go.”

“It was nice meeting you,” I said to Jon.

He winked at me just as Sean took my hand and dragged me away. Sean brought me over to a table where some of the other club members were sitting and playing cards. They all looked different but they were all wearing the same leather vest with the Black Reapers logo on the front.

“These are some of the other patches,” Sean said.

He went around the table, pointing each of them out.

“Hey, everybody,” Sean announced. “This here is Lydia. Treat her like a queen.”

Everybody turned their attention toward me. It was somewhat awkward to have an entire table of bikers looking at me. I smiled politely at all of them, hoping they wouldn’t notice my nervousness.

“That’s Brawn over there,” Sean said. “Brawn’s an enforcer. Nobody fucks with us. Not if they know what’s good for them.”

“How you doing?” Brawn said to me.

Brawn was a big man. Even though Sean was stout, Brawn was even thicker. His biceps looked like they were going to tear his shirt apart. I imagined I could have worn his vest like a coat.

His hair was black and trimmed short like he was in the military. Tattoos decorated his chest and neck. At this point, I was beginning to think I was the only person in the building without a tattoo.

“It’s nice to meet you,” I said.

“That quiet guy over here is Petey.”

Petey gave me a wave of his fingers without saying anything.

He was the complete opposite of Brawn. He was thin and meek-looking, almost like a teenager. His messy brown hair added to his teenager-like demeanor.

“That asshole over there is Needle,” Sean continued.

“Don’t listen to him,” Needle responded. “He calls me an asshole only because I beat him at poker all the time. I can’t blame him though. I’m too fucking good. Maybe you can play a hand, Lydia. Show Sean how it’s done.”

Needle reared back in his seat and cackled to his own amusement.

He was as cocky as they came. Needle had the swagger of a man who knew exactly who he was.

It was hard to hold it against him. He was a good-looking man, his blond hair groomed perfectly on his head and shaved on the sides. He had a slight bit of hair growing on his chin. His skin was tan and it made his blue eyes that much more mesmerizing.

While I giggled softly at Needle’s amusement, Sean rolled his eyes at him.

“Don’t let him get to you,” Sean said. “Every now and then we patch in someone who we feel sorry for. Letting Needle into the Reapers was an act of charity.”

“Don’t start talking shit now,” Needle responded. “Just because you just got out of prison doesn’t mean I’m not above taking your rent money.”

“Keep talking. You know your day is coming.”

“Not anytime soon, brother. Not anytime soon.”

Sean and Needle appeared to have a friendly rivalry. If they were strangers in a bar, I would have been surprised they didn’t take a swing at each other at this point.

“Where’s Garnet at?” he said.

“He’s out back,” Brawn said. “Getting shit done with his old lady.”

“Maybe he needs some help.”

“Maybe he does,” Needle said. “You can either go help him or you can let me take your money.”

“Yeah, yeah, keep talking,” Sean muttered. “Come on… This way.”

My hand still in Sean’s, I followed him toward the back of the bar and out the exit. As soon as I stepped outside, my nose filled with the scent of sweet smoke. I looked forward and saw a man standing at a barbecue grill with a woman next to him.

“Perfect,” the man said. “This shit is beautiful.”

“Will you stop poking at it?” the woman said. “Just let it cook. You’re gonna ruin it.”

“Hey, I’m a fucking master at this. Don’t worry. Everything is under control.”

She rolled her eyes and sighed.

Sean brought me right up to them and introduced me.

“Lydia,” he said. “This is Garnet, president of the Black Reapers.”

“Well, well,” Garnet said as he looked at me. “What do we have here?”

He looked me up and down with a smirk on his face.

Garnet was maybe a few years older than Sean but he couldn’t have been older than 30. His hair was jet black and slicked back over his head. His goatee was cropped neatly around his mouth. It was easy to assume he had some authority just from the way he composed himself, his chest out and his posture stiff like he was some kind of royalty.

He kept his deep brown eyes locked on me as he shook my hand.

“This is Lydia,” Sean said. “She’s…”

“You don’t have to say it,” Garnet said. “If you’re cool with Brash, you’re cool with the club. Welcome to the Grindhouse, Lydia. It’s a pleasure to have you.”

“Thanks,” I responded. “Thanks for having me.”

“This here is my old lady, Michelle.”

“Don’t mind him,” Michelle said to me. “All these bikers act real tough but they’re just compensating for how small their dicks are.”

“Small dicks,” Garnet scoffed. “You weren’t saying that last night.”

“Last night. How appropriate. That just might have been your last night.”

Michelle was a gorgeous woman, prettier than any woman I’d seen in Ivory at this point. Hell, she was prettier than any woman I’d seen back in the big city. Her hair was black with curls. Her skin was flawless without a blemish on it. It didn’t even look like she was wearing much makeup.

“Leave the food alone,” Michelle said to Garnet. “Let the food cook. You’ve got guests to entertain.”

“All right, all right,” he said. “Just keep an eye on this shit.”

“Don’t worry,” Sean said. “I can take care of it. Why don’t you talk to Lydia? She’s got something to tell you.”

“Oh?” Garnet said, raising an eyebrow at me. “Is that right?”

“Yeah. Why don’t you two talk and get to know each other? Michelle and I can handle the food.”

I started to get nervous, remembering one of the reasons why Sean invited me in the first place.

Garnet put his arm around my shoulder and laughed and I strangely felt a little bit more comfortable.

“Come on,” he said. “Let’s go talk.”

I looked at Sean as I walked away. He gave me a wink before tending to the food.

Garnet and I headed back into the clubhouse and took a seat at a booth. Garnet looked at me with a polite smile on his lips.

“So, how’s Ivory treating you?” he said. “I haven’t been talking to Brash as much as I wanted to but there was word going around he found some new girl from out of town.”

“I guess that would be me,” I said with a chuckle. “Ivory… Ivory’s great. It’s nothing like I expected.”

“Oh, yeah? What were you expecting? A bunch of toothless farmers pushing plows and milking cows?”

“Nothing like that,” I said, still laughing.

“Yeah, it’s not like the big city. But we’ve got a nice little community here. Good people all around. And the Black Reapers have carved themselves a nice little spot here. I’m sure Brash will treat you just fine and then you’ll really enjoy it.”

“I’m already enjoying it. And Brash… Sean… He’s a great guy.”

“Is that what you think?”

“That’s what I know. I’ve been around him long enough. I think I have an idea of what kind of man he is.”

“And what do you think about him killing someone?”

Garnet’s eyes narrowed right after he said it. He stared at me like he was trying to figure out what I was thinking.

Hearing that Sean spent time in prison was always unnerving. I wondered if I would ever be used to it.

Garnet mentioning it meant I had to at least acknowledge it.

“I… I don’t know,” I said, shaking my head. “The one thing I know for sure is that Sean did his time.”

“That’s important. Sean took his time like a man. He didn’t protest or whine or deny it. He let them put those cuffs on him.”

“What… What happened exactly? Do you know the whole story?”

“Yeah,” he said with a nod. “I was there. I mean, not there for the whole thing, but I know what happened.”

Garnet looked around the bar, checking to see if anybody was listening, then leaned back in his seat.

“It was late,” he said. “It must have been two or three in the morning. It was right after Finn’s was closing up for the night. Of course, that doesn’t mean shit in this town because any time is the best time to drink.

“Brash and I, along with some of the other patches… We were walking out of the bar. Some asshole started talking shit. We weren’t involved. It was a Cobra and some other club from out of town. I don’t know what happened but next thing I know, punches start flying. Big fucking brawl breaks out.”

I had my eyes locked on Garnet as he told the story.

“Sean was with his girl… Angela… We were just trying to stay out of it. But for some reason, she got hit. One of those Cobras slugged her real nice. Laid her unconscious. Just like that.”

Garnet snapped his fingers.

“Brash… He just lost it. The guy got away on his bike but Brash just chased after him. The guy started firing shots at Brash. Every bullet missed, fortunately.

“Brash knows this town better than anybody, like every other Reaper. He eventually cornered him and took him to the ground. He just started pounding on him. By the time we got there, the cops had shown up.

“Brash was in cuffs, his hands bloody as shit. That was it.

“Cops were pissed about everything. The DA wanted to execute him. But we got a good lawyer for him. Convinced the jury that Brash was drunk, which he was, and that he was trying to defend himself from a man firing a gun at him, which he was.”

“The judge had to do something though. Can’t have bikers running around the city taking the law into their own hands. There’s no room for outlaws in Ivory. So they made the best example out of Brash as they could. Three years…”

Garnet’s eyes shifted to the table between us. He shook his head softly, his eyes lost in thought.

“It might not sound like much,” he said. “But three years is tough for any man.”

I sighed a deep breath, not realizing I’d been holding it this entire time. I went over all of the details in my head. The revelation was startling, if nothing else. But one thing stood out more than anything else.

“You said he was with a woman,” I said. “What happened to her?”

“Jealous?” Garnet said with a smirk.

“No, it’s not that. I just—”

“I’m only kidding… Angela’s fine. But she couldn’t handle it. It wasn’t just the punch she took. She couldn’t handle the lifestyle. Last I heard, she skipped town. Married some rich banker or something. She’s probably better off.”

Garnet leaned across the table.

“Being with a man in a club isn’t easy,” he said. “Being an old lady is tough, especially in this town. Some women can handle it, like Michelle over there. She’s a tough woman. But some broads can’t… I can’t say I blame ’em though.

“I don’t know what your relationship with him is now. Maybe you two are just fucking each other and enjoying each other’s company and it’s nothing serious. But… if it does get serious…”

“I get it,” I said, nodding to him.

“You seem like a smart woman,” he said. “I’m sure you do. Now…”

He leaned back in his seat and spread his arms out.

“What was it you wanted to talk to me about?”

“Oh. Right. I don’t know if Sean told you, but I work at Amy’s Bakery.”

“Do you? That explains why he wanted to help you guys out.”

“Amy’s is a place that everybody in Ivory loves. If we could just get a little bit more funding for renovation and fixing-up the menu, I’m sure business could get a lot better. Just a little bit of support would go a long way.”

“I get you…”

Garnet contemplated what I was telling him. He tilted his head to the side, staring at me like he was trying to figure me out.

“No promises,” he said. “But money in the club is tight. I’ll try to figure something out. If this is important to you, if it’s important to Brash, I’ll make it important to the club.”

“I’m not asking for any handouts. Like I said, just some support—”

“Man, they really make ’em differently in the big city.”

Garnet let out a hearty laugh. Seeing him smile was enough to make me laugh as well.

“Let’s worry about business later,” he said. “For now, let’s just enjoy our time together.”