SHAY:

I walked into Pepper’s and had to blink a few times as I saw Kylie in between Dessy and Franco. Her arms were extended as she was pointing at Franco in an angry way. Quickly, I moved to the three of them and asked, “What the hell is going on?”

Kylie turned to face me and said, “Oh, it was just a slight misunderstanding, right?” Her eyes hit Franco, who decided to curse under his breath.

“Right,” he grounded out and walked away.

Dessy’s eyes were huge, and her mouth was open in shock. It was only her first week of work, so I wasn’t sure what to make of the misunderstanding.

“What’s going on, here?” I asked Dessy and looked to Kylie.

“I, uh,” Dessy started. “Well, I was talking with Franco since he gave me his number and I was talking to Ren as well.”

Kylie and I groaned.

“What?” Dessy exclaimed. “What the fuck?”

“Girl, you cannot talk to two members of the same club at the same time,” Kylie answered.

“Hell, no,” I added.

“Those men are like brothers. Even though Franco is a prospect and Ren is patched in, they are near to kin. Believe me, when I tell you this.” Kylie was shaking her head like she had some stories or at least heard them from Razor.

“Yup,” I exhaled. “Even when I wasn’t talking to Bronx, I would not dare talk with another Guardian. That would be like the ultimate mistake.”

“Are you fucking kidding me?” Dessy asked in disbelief. “These guys are that in tune with who everyone is fucking?”

“Yeah,” Kylie and I answered at the same time.

“What kind of motorcycle club is this? The ones in Harrisburg are cut-throat. I mean, fucked up. This is like some fairytale shit.” Dessy exclaimed.

Kylie and I looked at each other and laughed.

“Yeah, maybe. But, you got to understand something. These guys are more than a club or a group of men who ride motorcycles. They are brothers who’ve banded together to do something greater for the common good. That’s not something you see all the time even with public servants who get a salary and pension for that shit. Guardians are the real deal and if you don’t believe me, ask Shay. You think she’d align herself with someone or a group that wasn’t?” Kylie asked. “Absolutely-fucking-not.”

“This is true.” I nodded. “They really are the shit.”

“I’m starting to see that.” Dessy contemplated her shoes for a bit. “So, these brothers, if you’re feeling one, should you approach or let them approach.”

Oh boy.

“Depends. They are all different. You have someone in mind?” Kylie asked.

Oh shit. If she said...

“Yeah, Bear.”

Great.

“Bear?” Kylie exclaimed and looked at me. “Really?”

“Well, yeah.” One side of Dessy’s mouth turned up. “What?”

“Did you tell her?” Kylie asked me.

“I sure did.” I laughed. “She’s smitten.”

“Holy fuck,” Kylie chuckled. “That’s some funny shit.”

“What?” Dessy frantically looked between the two of us. 

“Guess you like getting tied up and spanked. Might have to crawl and I hear he’s HUGE!” Kylie made her eyes big. “Oh, let me not forget to mention the collection of whips he has.”

I erupted in laughter as Dessy blushed a bit.

“I don’t mind.” She smiled.

“Shit, as long as Bronx is doing it, I wouldn’t mind either,” I kept laughing.

“Touché,” Kylie nodded. “Razor can do just about anything to me. I trust him.”

We continued to talk about guys, the Guardians, and Bear, of all people, as the night continued. Razor, Apollo, and Bronx walked through looking a bit perplexed.

“What’s wrong?” I asked Bronx as he pulled me in his lap, burying his head in my chest.

The man was not ashamed to show affection for me in front of his brothers or the entire bar. This was beyond encouraging, so I wrapped my arm around his shoulders, pulling him into me further.

“Long day,” he murmured.

“Want me to make it all better?” I asked.

He moaned and squeezed me tighter.

“Not tonight. I just want a beer and to sleep,” he answered.

Okay.

“Okay. I’ll go get you a beer, so you can retire early.” I went to get up, but my body didn’t move.

“No.” He kept his head in my side, under my arm. “Come home with me.”

This wasn’t a question but more of a demand. At first, I didn’t respond then he said, “I sleep better with you.”

“I snore, remember,” I joked.

“Yeah, but it’s a soothing snore.”

Bronx started to rub my stomach, sending all sorts of endorphins through my body.

“Ready?” he asked.

“Okay, tonight is fine.”

“Not tonight,” Bronx stated. “Every night.”

His fingers expanded on my stomach as he continued to rub.

“What are you doing?” I pointed to his hand. “Must you point out my abdominal flaws?”

I needed to decrease my beer intake. My stomach had protruded a bit over the past year. Kylie thought I was nuts, but I had noticed.

“What?” Bronx asked. “There's nothing there and I want something in there.”

“What?” My head pulled back to look at him.

“Kitten, you heard me.” His head came up, and his eyes seemed to speak the same thing.

Yup, I hear him.

I nodded my head and pulled his face up to mine. My lips grazed his as I said, “Okay, Mr. Wilson. You would be a great Dad. Is this why you aren't putting a glove on it?”

“Fuck, yeah,” he replied.

“So, what happened to the plan?” I asked.

“Same plan.” His hands moved up my spine to the back of my neck. “We can get hitched today.”

“What?” I pulled back so I could see his face.

“Kitten,” he murmured. “You think I'm joking.”

One eyebrow raised on his beautiful, smooth face.

“We haven't even exchanged the ‘L’ word, yet,” I whispered close to him.

Everybody in Peppers didn't need to know our business. Even though we were in our own little world where it was just me and him, I wanted to keep our private moments between us.

The back of his hand came up and caressed the side of my face, moving the hair from my eyes.

“You don't know,” Bronx chastely kissed me on the lips. “Been in love with you for a long time now.”

“Bronx,” I gasped.

His hand put pressure on the back of my neck, bringing my face forward so he could kiss me senseless. The guys were jeering us on, the women were howling and the music was playing but we did not stop. My body started to squirm on his lap but Bronx held my hips in place, then stopped the kiss.

“Kitten, let’s go home.”

He didn’t say it, but I knew he meant his house. Somehow, I knew that would become home.

Our home and very soon.

******

BRONX DID EXACTLY WHAT he said, went home and laid down. He held me close to him all night, and when I woke up, he was mussing through my hair. My scarf must have come off in the night, but it was hard to keep it on with Bronx.

It just wasn’t cute, but my hair would be a beehive the next day if I didn’t do something.

“Morning,” he breathed in my hair.

“Morning.” My head fell on his hard chest as I didn’t want to get up. “I’m tired.”

“I know, but your training starts today,” Bronx reminded me.

“Oh my God!” I exclaimed. “Yes! I got to go.”

In an attempt to leave, I was nearly off the bed before I was suddenly brought back down.

“Bronx, I have to go,” I said.

“Okay, but first, hear me,” he said. “Bring some clothes over so we won’t have this sort of shit again. I want to spend times like this, in bed, with you. Fucking, cuddling, talking and shit. Didn’t get a chance last night and now I’m aching for you. So, tonight, bring clothes. Lots of them.”

Wait.

Wait, one minute.

“Bronx?” I raised an eyebrow.

“Already told you.” He let me go and rolled out of bed. “Let’s go. I’ll take you home and to work.”

We made haste, so I was early for work and in time to meet the traveling nurse who happened to be a guy that I would shadow.

His first question to me was, “Why do you want to be a nurse?”

Well, so much for not getting deep on the first day.

“I’ve been thinking about it off and on for the past few years. I’ve been on the clerical side of things but there are so many things that happen from the time a nurse enters a patient’s room until when the person gets to me. It’s one thing to see a diagnosis on paper, but it’s another to be able to assist someone with their diagnosis.” I didn’t know if I was making sense. So I concluded with, “I want to make a difference on the front lines instead of when it’s all said and done.”

He was a medium-height Hispanic man and from the rock on his left hand, he was married. From the gray streak going through his brown mane, he probably had kids.

“Okay, Sharon,” he smiled. “I like to find out where my shadow is in regards to their intentions as it helps me tailor my training. You will be following me for the next two days, so I’d keep up and keep notes.”

“Yes, I can do that,” I smiled.

“Good. Then we’ll get along splendidly.” He smiled and said, “My name is Nurse Hernandez.”

That evening, I was at Bronx’s place again with lots of my clothes. He ordered out and we talked about my experience when I noticed he was smiling from ear to ear.

“What?” I asked before putting the Udon noodles in my mouth.

“You’re excited about this. I think we have a winner.”

I laughed out loud.

“I guess you’re right.” I thought more about it. “Shit, yeah,”

Bronx smiled, then took a sip of his beer. “You should go to school for this? Make it legit.”

“Hm, I don’t know. It might take me awhile but I’ll get to it.”

“What’s the hold up?” Bronx said with leveled eyes on me.

“I have a lot going on right now. Dessy’s new to town, so she’s getting her bearings, and I’d need to increase my nest egg, which I could do later when she’s on her feet and...”

I didn’t get to finish that thought because Bronx held up his hand for me to be quiet.

“You think I wouldn't help with that burden?” he asked.

“Well, no,” I said honestly. “I wouldn’t let you.”

“Kitten, I let you do your little shit because I’m head over heels for you. Anything you want, it’s yours. But, know this. When I say, you’re mine. I mean that in every way.  Meaning,” he pointed to me, “whatever you decide to do, I foot the bill. You don’t need to work, but I know you want to. You don’t need to have a house, I have one. You don’t need a car, I have two. I’ll get you one. You don’t have to worry about tuition, I got you. You’re with me. Just need to make it legit on paper, cause it’s legit everywhere else.”

Well, hot damn.

“Bronx, I’m not going to lie. I love it. This is something I used to dream about. You, me, dinner, talking, fucking,” I giggled. “At some point, I killed that dream, and then you resurrected it. To the point, that even I have to yield. It’s foreign, and it’s weird, but I’ll do it because I trust you. I, uh, respect you. However, I’m nervous. I’m concerned. I’m scared, Bronx. I don’t know if this dream is going to end and I am stopping myself at every turn to keep from sabotaging it. Throwing around my ‘I am woman, hear me roar’ card, or ‘I can carry a gun if I want’. I’m tempted. But, more importantly, I want this to work. So, we don’t have to rush. I’m not going to run anymore. I’m staying until you tell me to leave, or I’m forced to kill you. However, I need to let you know where I’m coming from.”

“Obliged,” Bronx nodded. "We good?"

I sighed, "Fuck! We're good."

What did that mean? I knew the definition of it, but in biker language, I had no idea what it meant.

There were many battles to fight, so I decided not to press the issue. The next day I got to know Mr. Hernandez and he was much nicer than he came off initially. He seemed to relax more as he realized I wasn’t in it for the hours, money or thinking that it was easy. There were way more things that I needed to know like focused assessments, prioritizing, critical thinking, medication knowledge, disease process and treatments. He explained that he was trained by some of the best. Travel nurses with extended contracts, nine months who taught him everything from how to link theory to hands-on application and even how sometimes you can’t go by the book. There were also the soft skills of having compassion and being an advocate, teacher, counselor, shoulder to cry on and a professional. I was honest with him that I probably needed some assistance with those skills. He said, I probably had more than I gave myself credit for.

I didn’t know about that.

After our shift ended, I took him back to Pepper’s for a drink, since he had to leave in the morning. As we were drinking at the bar, I felt an arm come around my waist.

“Who’s your friend?” Bronx asked.

“Hey,” I turned around to face him. “This is Mr. Hernandez. He was my trainer for the past two days. Remember?”

“Hmm,” Bronx muttered in my ear.

Then he pulled up to greet the man. “I’m Bronx and she’s mine.”

He looked up as Mr. Hernandez turned around.

“Well, I’ll be damned. Blair?”

“Jose, what the fuck are ya doing here?” Bronx exclaimed.

“Training Sharon, here.” He smiled, “She’s yours huh?”

“Oh yeah.” He pulled me into him. “Small damn world.”

“Wow!” He took a drink. “It is. Even smaller is I’ve been thinking about talking to you anyway, since our last conversation.”

“You both know each other?” I finally got a word in.

“Oh yeah. This man here. Stand up!” Mr. Hernandez said. “Some shit went down years ago, and he did what real men do. Made that shit right. My wife still can’t believe it.”

What?

Bronx was looking down at his feet when I looked to him. What the fuck would he be ashamed about?

Fuck.

“Stand up. I’ve never met a man quite like him,” Mr. Hernandez said to me. “You’re a lucky lady.”

“I know,” I smiled.

“I talked it over with the wife, and she thinks that I should do it. So, I’m in,” he said to Bronx.

“Fuck, that’s good.” Bronx’s eyes met with him again. “Let me have you talk to Razor and he can give you details. He’s the district President.”

“Right, you mentioned him,” Mr. Hernandez said. “Another stand up guy.”

“Oh yeah,” I agreed.

“Razor!” Bronx turned and waved him over. “Got somebody for you to meet.”

When Razor came over, and Bronx made his introductions to Jose Hernandez, I pulled him away to the empty side of the bar and asked, “Is his wife the woman that you left at the altar?”

His eyes assessed me like they normally did, but he was looking extra hard.

He nodded his answer.

“You went to fix it?” I followed up.

Bronx’s already low eyes, squinted further as he nodded. Then I moved into him, grabbed both ears and pressed my body against his.

“I love you, Blair ‘Bronx’ Wilson,” I whispered against his lips. “With all my heart. Love. You.”

He quickly moved and picked me up so my back was against the bar as he took my lips in a scorching kiss. We were semi-hidden, but we were about to light a fucking fire. My fingers had his ears, and his hands were full of my ass.

My head pulled back and breathlessly I said, “When we get home, I want it. Hard, tied and a red ass.

“Fuck,” he hissed.

“Put me down. I still have to be a good host.” I patted his chest. “You need to handle your business, so later, I can handle mine.”

My tongue sneaked out as I licked my lips.

“Goddamn you, Shay.” He squeezed me. “Your ass will be red for this.”

“I’m planning on it.”

Bronx let me go and I rubbed his bald head, then patted it and said, “I want that too.”

He erupted in laughter as I turned to find Kylie.

“Fucking crazy ass woman.” I heard him say.