“It would better if you didn’t take my comment personally. It wasn’t mean to be some kind of indictment about you as a person.”

“You just said bikers trade out women quicker than socks. How am not supposed to take that personally?”

“Look, Darkness, you seem like a nice bloke, but I can’t be getting myself tangled up with a guy from the States who’s just going to trade me right out once a prettier bird comes flying by.”

“I wouldn’t do that,” Darkness argued.

“Oh really? How many women have you slept with in the last year?”

Clearly sensing a trap, the young man backtracked. “That’s not the point.”

“That’s exactly the point. In your world, women are ornamental and temporary. I’ll eventually bump into a man who wants me for keeps, so I don’t see any reason to settle for some guy who’s just going to string me along for God knows how long and toss me aside.”

“That’s goddamn disrespectful.”

“You’re right, it is. That’s exactly why I’m not getting involved with you.”

“I mean...You know something? Just forget it. I’m getting too wound up to talk to about this.”

“Great. The door’s that way,” Elsie pointed out.

“Don’t fuckin’ be telling me where the door is in my own clubhouse, you mouthy sexy bitch.”

Grinning triumphantly, she held up her shot glass. “Cheers, mate.” Downing it in one gulp, she tapped the counter with two fingers. The wide-eyed prospect rushed to refill her glass.

Margaret knew Darkness was reaching the end of his patience with Ms. Elsie. Strolling over, she elbowed him back to get to the barstool beside Elsie. Speaking over her shoulder, she murmured. “Take a walk, son. You’re about to lose it.”

Taking a step back, he glared at the prospect behind the bar. “Don’t keep pouring whiskey down her throat, I mean it.” Storming out, Elsie was already motioning for her next drink.

Dix picked up the bottle, twirled it around in his palm and dropped another ounce into her glass.

Margaret looked up to catch his eye, finding a lopsided smile on the man’s face. “It wouldn’t be the first time I’ve gone toe-to-toe with Darkness over a woman and It probably won’t be the last.”

Holding up the shot, Elsie murmured, “My point exactly.”

As the drink disappeared down the hatch, she turned to Margaret. “You and the old dude have loud sex. Is he really that good?”

Grinning, she nodded. “He is. I’m not sure that I like you noticing shit like that.”

“Are you kidding me. Every girl down here was pea green with envy. They say he doesn’t fuck often. The women here service him on their knees. Most of them have been dying to get him in the sack.”

Margaret’s eyes flew open. “I seriously did not know that.”

“You bagged a tomcat there, mate.”

“I thought you had a thing for Darkness?”

“In my world, he’s eye candy, nothing more.”

“You mean you like looking but not touching?”

“I like a little hands-on action as much as the next girl but let’s face it, getting involved with someone like Darkness is just asking for the big hurt.”

“You’re afraid of getting too attached.”

“Let’s talk about something else. We any closer to finding Donovan. I only have one week of vacation saved. If I’m gone longer, they are not going to have me back.”

“We’re trying to hurry. We’re waiting on Johnny and my sister now, so we can compare notes and come up with a coherent plan.”

“I can’t wait to meet your sister.”

“You'll like her. She really went out on a limb to find me. If it weren’t for her and her old man, I’d still be there.”

Elsie’s face contorted into a mask of regret. “Look, I’m sorry for pressuring you into wrapping this up quickly. Even if I lose my job, I won’t care. I’m just glad you’re away from Dragonfly. I still think they were planning to kill you once you weren’t useful anymore.”

“I don’t doubt they’ve killed a lot of people like me to keep their dirty little secrets from getting out.”

Dix spoke, “Heads up, your pretty twin just rolled through the front gate with her mobster.”

Swiveling around on their stools, Margaret saw Sarah. Rushing to her, Sarah stepped out to greet her. “I’m glad you’re back home, sis. Dark did a real good job looking out for you.”

“Him, and all the brothers. One of their guys even caught a bullet protecting us, so I can’t say enough about their sacrifice.”

“You all figured out that Donovan thing, so that was fuckin’ brilliant,” Johnny’s rough voice sliced through their conversation.”

Dix cleared his throat, “Dark is in his office. If you’ll follow me.”

Margaret knew the way quite well, but she let Dix do his thing out of respect. The brothers operated a certain way and Dix took pride in the little errands that were assigned to him.

Dark looked just as devastatingly handsome as when she left him in that exact spot a half an hour ago. His black cut with his club patches buttoned over a white t-shirt was his uniform of choice. Faded jeans hung low on his trim waist, accentuating the broadness of his shoulders. His long salt and pepper hair had been pulled back at the nape of his neck. Brilliant, ice-blue eyes welcomed them into the room, as he motioned to a large conference table.

Margaret instinctively moved to his side and Elsie sat across the table. Darkness came storming in at the last minute, catching Dark’s eye. The older man spoke somberly, “I don’t know what’s eatin’ at you today, son, but if you can’t get your shit together, you can take a walk. We can’t afford to fuck this job up because you can’t control your fuckin’ emotions.”

“Hey, it’s not my fault he won’t listen,” Elsie’s angry voice rang out.

Darkness stopped mid-stride and his attention shifted from Elsie to his father. Being dressed down so publicly was a slap in the face and apparently just the kind of wakeup call he needed. Jerking to attention, he responded immediately, “I’m hearing what you’re laying down. I’m here until the job is done.”

“Have a seat, son,” Dark’s calm, quiet voice got his son turned around nicely.

Dark shoved some papers into the center of the table. “I just got feedback from the London office. Donovan called, trying to reach his vice president. They were able to verify that he’s Stateside, but couldn’t pinpoint his location.”

Johnny picked up one of the sheets. “He’s a slimy fucker, but we’ll get him. That Samuel guy you sent me, is working out real good. No one’s hunting harder or longer than Samuel. He helped us break into three of Dragonfly’s overseas accounts. Donovan’s loaded. We scored twelve million from those accounts and we need to know what to do with your share.”

“You’re really going to pay the fifty/fifty split we agreed on?” Dark asked.

“My pops advised against it, cause he’s a selfish prick that way. Thank God, he ain’t involved in this leg of the operation. I think it would be kind of stupid to try to double cross the guys sitting in all my new international offices. My pops ain’t all that bright about shit like that sometimes.” Jerking a thumb towards his chest, Johnny continued, “Me, I’m all about generating the trust we’re gonna need to continue our little business partnership long-term. As you know, my pops is not involved in this project moving forward. Your club and my guys are the future of Dragonfly.”

Pulling a small business card from this wallet, Dark slid it across the table. “We have an offshore account in Aruba. Put our share in that account if you don’t mind.”

Picking up the card, Johnny took a picture with his cell phone and made a call. “Aaron, it’s me. Put the whole six million in there. I’m authorizing it. Do it now.”

“That’s a real nice payday for the brothers.”

“Thank your men for covering the international offices. We’ll trade them as soon as I can get people I trust in place.”

Dark nodded his understanding. “Fair enough. Where do we go from here?”

“Our geeks put trackers on every account we found, Donovan’s credit cards, his cell phone and his corporate account. The next time he accesses any of those things we’ve got him. We’re both short of men on the ground, so we’ll need to be ready to go on a moment’s notice and move in unison. If I should call in my pops men for backup, that’ll open the door for him to get involved.”

“I don’t think either of us wants that.”

“My old man’s got enough on his plate dealing with his own operation. Dragonfly’s gonna belong to me, Sarah, and Ms. Margaret. That is if she wants a piece of the action.”

“Dark and I have not discussed our plans. We need to get Donovan out of the way and then decide what we’re doing.”

Margaret’s effort to communicate that they were moving forward as a couple was not lost on Johnny.

“Whatever the two of you decide, we’ll back you up. Meanwhile, our geeks have thrown everything into the cloud, so your team can go through that at will.”

Dark stood. “I’d invite you to stay and have a drink, but there ain’t none of us going to be drinking until this job is finished.”

“We definitely can’t afford to be shit-faced in case we get a tip on Donovan.”

“Speak for yourself, mate. Ain’t no man telling me when I can have a drink.”

Johnny didn’t even look up. “She’s a liability. Get rid of her or I will.”

Margaret could see the shock tear through Elise. She quickly spoke up, “She’s my best friend.”

Johnny broke it down for her, “I don’t give a shit if she’s the second coming. The little bitch has Darkness all turned around. She’s stinking drunk in the middle of the day and mouthing off to mafia boss during the most important meeting of our fuckin’ lives. Either she’s not smart enough to understand the gravity of our situation or she just doesn’t give a shit. Either way, if we’re not real careful, she’s going to get a fuckin’ bunch of us killed.”

A short silence spun out as Margaret struggled to figure out how to handle the situation.

Dark spoke, “I’ll deal with her. She won’t be a problem.”

Although she was clearly angry, Elsie mercifully kept her lips sealed.

Nodding, Johnny stood as he extended his hand. “It’s always a pleasure doing business with you and your MC.”

“Likewise. We’ll be in touch.”

Johnny headed to the door with his arm wrapped around Sarah. Margaret shot her sister a dark look. Her gangster could be an absolute ass sometimes.

As soon as the door closed behind them, Elsie spoke, “That was absolute rubbish. Who in the hell does he think he is?”

Dark began gathering the pages back up off the table. “Lock her up and put the key in my desk, son.”

Pressing his lips into a solid line, Darkness stood up and began walking over to her.

Elsie sprang out of her chair, “You wouldn’t dare. I haven’t done anything.”

Dark finally looked up at her. “It’s not that you’re intentionally trying to be difficult or anything like that. The problem is; even after the gangster broke it down for in plain English, you’re still mouthing off and starting drama.”

“What you call drama, I call my fucking life, mate.”

“You still don’t get it. We were sitting around this table discussing multimillion- dollar deals that will set my brothers up for life and you’re running off at the mouth like an adolescent.”

“You’re acting like the sky is falling. This Donovan is just one man.”

“The bottom line is, we’re in a life or death situation here and I just can’t have my son distracted by whatever’s going on with you.”

Darkness cut into their conversation, “I’m not distracted anymore. You don’t have to worry about that shit.”

Margaret cautioned him gently, catching Dark’s eye, “We’ll do whatever you want, baby. Are you sure you want her locked up with the Dragonfly witch? The woman is pure evil and Ms. Elsie is just naive.”

Glancing at the defiant young woman, he frowned, clearly torn by the decision.

Darkness spoke up, “I’ll lock her in my room. How about that? My head’s screwed on straight. I promise, Dad.”

Dark’s head jerked to look at his son, “You haven’t called me that in a very long time.”

“I’d consider it a personal favor if you let me handle the situation.”

“This is going to be one of the most complex and difficult positions you’ve ever found yourself in. It’ll be a struggle between listening to your heart and doing what’s best for your brothers and family.

“I won’t disappoint you,” Darkness promised.

“You never have. I’m sure with so much riding on this job, you won’t put a woman who doesn’t give a shit about you before your club brothers.”

“No, sir.”

“Fine. Take her and go before I change my mind.”

“I’ll have them close down the bar until further notice.”

“Thanks, son. Keep your ward sober.”

When the door shut, Dark sat down at his desk. Picking up his cell, he scrolled through it a bit before, putting it back down. “The money got transferred. I guess we’re rich.”

Margaret kneeled beside him. “You don’t sound very happy about it. It’s because of what happened with Elsie, isn’t it?”

Nodding, he acknowledged the truth they both knew, “I knew she was jerking my son around, that he was getting distracted, and how dangerous that could be for all of us right now. Because she was important to you, I let it slide. It’s humiliating that the damn gangster had to tell me how to handle my own affairs.”

“I know it is. You did the right thing though.”

His eyes came up to look her in the face. “You backed me up. Even though your friend’s life was on the line.”

“Jesus, that was all kinds of strange for me. The bottom line is, I trust you. You’re the one I want making the decisions if someone I love is in trouble.”

“Most women would have turned on me when Johnny said what he did.”

“I love you and you’re the most important thing to me. Ms. Elsie is young and naive about the world we’re forced to operate in. She’s going to have to get with the program or we’re going to have to drop her somewhere safe. Those are the only options I see right now.”

Nodding he pulled her into his arms, “Days like this are real shit and no amount of money makes up for it.”

Guiding his head down to rest on her chest, she whispered, “Having you in charge feels right because you understand how wrong it is to be forced to make decisions about someone else’s life that way. You’re torn up about it because you have a good soul.”

“I’m ready for this to be done with already.”

“You have to be feeling the strain. Let’s go for a ride on your bike. Feeling the air blowing over your face always makes you feel better.”

“Can’t argue with that, sweetness.”