Reese let her leave. He knew Josie was too hotheaded to keep arguing with her. He knew forcing her to stay would only make things worse. And Steph couldn’t handle the clubhouse life just yet. She was barely able to understand her own pregnancy, even though she was more than halfway through.

Once the car was out of sight, he turned his head and the first person he spotted was Hawk.

Which wasn’t a good thing at that moment.

Hawk stood with his foot up on the bench of a picnic table, holding a beer bottle. Zac leaned against the edge of the table, while Ellis looked like he was sleeping on it.

Reese walked toward the table, the devil and angel on his shoulders really going at him. Screaming right from wrong. But all Reese could see, and feel was fire. A fire that raged so wildly and so deeply that there was no stopping it. It wasn’t just the Digg thing. The shooting. The killing. It went well beyond that. The fact that they voted to go after DRM before having information. The messy situation down at the strip club with drugs. Because whether anyone admitted it or not, everyone took their eyes off the end game which pushed them off course.

“No, no, no, brother,” Hawk said, “Here’s what you do. You take your middle finger and thumb… and you spread her open… so you could see everything…”

Reese slammed the palms of his hand into Hawk’s shoulder. His beer bottle went flying through the air. He stumbled to the left and somehow spun and kept his balance.

“You motherfucker,” Reese yelled.

He went after Hawk again.

“Christ, VP!” Zac yelled.

But Reese was right on Hawk again. Throwing a right, smashing his jaw. Following up with a quick left, getting Hawk in the eye.

Hawk was a fighter. A killer. He didn’t back down from anything.

He planted his feet and swung, hitting Reese in the gut. It stole all of Reese’s air; that gave Hawk a two second breather so he could retaliate with a vicious right that made Reese feel like his cheek had exploded.

“That’s enough,” Zac yelled at both of them.

Reese felt Zac touch his arm, but he moved away and dove at Hawk again. The two tangled up tightly, tearing at each other’s leather cuts, pushing and pulling, looking for dominance so they could keep swinging hard punches.

“What the fuck is your problem?” Hawk growled as Reese drove him back toward a metal railing.

They broke apart long enough so they could each throw a punch, landing them on each other.

Zac was then between them, making a decision on who to block, throwing his arms around Hawk, pushing him back a little.

Someone grabbed Reese and he threw an elbow. He hit Ellis in the face, busting his nose open. Ellis was still half drunk and half dead from the night before. He collapsed to his knees, holding his face.

“Oh, fuck,” he groaned.

The rest of the guys showed up, gathering around Hawk and Reese to keep them apart.

“What the fuck is this?” Levi bellowed as he pushed through everyone.

“This motherfucker attacked me,” Hawk said, trying to force his way out of Zac’s hold.

Levi looked at Reese.

“Fuck him,” Reese spat. “He fucking killed that guy. DRM or not… the heat we’re under right now. And we’re just going to show up and kill someone? And he was the father of Steph’s fucking baby.”

“Jesus Christ, Reese,” Levi said. “He fucking protected you.”

Reese gritted his teeth.

“Last time I checked, VP, that guy had a gun pointed at you,” Hawk called out. “You had no idea it was happening. You weren’t fucking focused. You were going to take a bullet to the fucking face, VP. I stopped it. It didn’t matter who the guy was…”

“I don’t give a fuck,” Reese said. “We should have never gone up there to fuck around. Now look what happened.”

“To be fair, VP,” Brett said, “What kind of situation would we be in if he was alive? Lasz’s little sister knocked up by a guy in DRM? That smells worse than the women Hawk sleeps with.”

“I don’t give a fuck,” Reese said. “Another kid has to grow up with a dead father now.”

Everyone went silent.

That’s when it hit Reese too.

He wasn’t lashing out about one thing, but a hundred things. The underlying reason being the way he grew up. His father living the outlaw life too hard, on the edge and falling off. Leaving Reese to live a life of something like destiny that brought him here.

“No more of this shit,” Levi said. “One thing Reese is right about is that the heat is on us. I don’t need my fucking club imploding.” Levi looked at Reese. “You should go take a ride. Clear your fucking head and think about everything bothering you.”

Reese backed away. “Right. Sure.”

“I protected you, VP,” Hawk called out. “You don’t think it fucks with me?”

Reese paused.

Luca grabbed his leather cut, forcing Reese to look at him.

“Listen here, Reese,” Luca said in his rough voice. “This club doesn’t work like this. Fighting from the inside? No. You have a problem, you take it to the table.”

“You voted to go up there too,” Reese said through gritted teeth.

“And you know what? I didn’t vote for Lasz’s little sister to spread her legs after a few drinks. And I didn’t vote for you to fall back into old habits with Josie.”

Reese broke away and walked away.

He turned his back on his brothers, but he didn’t take his cut off. That would be treason and a bullet would eat through the back of his skull before he could take another breath.

Reese would never take his leather cut off though.

He would die in it. Die with honor and loyalty to the club.

As for his heart… it was loyal to one thing - Josie.

* * *

Reese made his rounds on his own. He went to the storage unit again to dig around in memories that smelled of must and time. Looking at pictures of days gone by and letters his father had written about the club only pissed him off even more. He even found the letters he and Josie used to write to each other when they weren’t allowed to see each other. They had a secret meeting place where they would leave letters for each other.

From the storage unit he went to the cemetery to visit Lasz. There wasn’t much to say, so Reese crouched and thought about a lot of things. Everything went back to Josie though. That was just how life worked out. When it came to the MC life, at least they knew DRM had nothing to do with the drugs. And the little spat with DRM would definitely kick up some extra heat, but that’s how it went. Now they needed to shift their focus to the runners, who had been on good terms with Back Down Devil for almost a year now. If they were starting to run rogue and force a supply through town, then things were going to get very messy.

After the cemetery visit, Reese cruised the open and winding roads for a little while longer. One thing that caught his attention was the police activity. He felt watched and he felt followed. He was certain that Colt was going to be pushing harder at the club sooner rather than later. The big heads that tried to break up Frelen and Daurian would definitely make their way into Watersald. It was only a matter of time. What they needed to do was find a way to contact the guys from Frelen and ask what to look for and how to prepare. Miller was loyal to the MC and would help.

But before all that…

Reese had one more place to go.

He went to Josie’s and had a smoke before walking to her door and knocking. When she answered, she was in a hoodie and a pair of jeans. No shoes. No socks. Her hair sloppily pulled back. She was the most beautiful sight that Reese had ever seen.

And she was surprised to see him.

“Reese…”

“Where’s Steph?”

“Working.”

“What?”

“She got a job at one of the diners. She insisted on working to make her own money.”

“Okay then… wow…”

“She’s working until nine and then going to a friend’s.”

“Why?”

“She’s eighteen, Reese. She’s an adult. I don’t really know anymore.”

Reese gritted his teeth. “She’d better not do anything stupid…”

“Her life, Reese.”

“Now you’re a hard ass?”

“What choice do I have?”

Reese slowly nodded. “Hawk was right. Protecting me was what he did.”

“What?”

“We’re trying to figure out this drug thing, Josie. What Starla had on her was serious.”

“Come in here, Reese.”

He stepped into the apartment and shut the door.

Josie went to the fridge and got two beers.

It made Reese feel a certain way that she knew everything about him.

“So, this is all about Starla?” Josie asked.

“I’m not making excuses, sweetheart. You wanted the story, this is the story. That kind of movement through town isn’t good for anyone. The MC has been a target for almost a year. Charters are getting hit hard. Guys are spreading out across the country, trying to stay safe and out of jail.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah. Oh. Lots of heat. And Colt has it in for us to begin with. So, anything he can find to hit us with, he will. Plus, what’s been going on makes it worse. We had a few ideas in mind over the Starla situation. So, we went for a ride.”

“To attack another club?”

“No. That wasn’t our intention. They were pissed that we showed up unannounced, which I could understand. It wasn’t supposed to turn into a fucking war. But it did. Punches were quickly thrown, and guns were drawn. That’s the way it goes, Josie. You know that by now.”

“Yeah, I know,” Josie said.

“The guy… Digg… Aaron… whatever you want to call him. He started acting weird. I saw him with some junk in his hand. I thought he was the one working the stuff with Starla. So, I went after him. We got into a scuffle and he took out a knife. He sliced up my arm.”

“He gave you that cut?” Josie asked.

“Yeah.”

“So, the cut I cleaned up on your arm was from the guy that got Steph pregnant.”

“Yeah.”

Josie touched her forehead. “How much more fucked up can this all get?”

“The guy took out a gun. I lost focus for two seconds. Two fucking seconds. He took out a gun and was going to blow my brains out. That’s the truth, Josie. Hawk’s job is to protect me and Levi. And he did his job. When you try to hurt the President or the VP… it’s done. You put your life on the line and that guy lost.”

Reese saw the way Josie covered her mouth. “Holy shit…”

“That was that,” Reese said. “Hawk covered my ass and we got out of there. We had no idea who that guy was, sweetheart. And even if we did… it’s us against the world. I mean, I can’t defend Steph and her actions. She didn’t know either. Truthfully, that guy would have gotten his ass tagged because he wasn’t wearing his cut outside the MC. Maybe he didn’t want that life. Maybe he would have been a great father to the baby. I don’t know. But you’re talking a family member of this club having a baby with another club’s member. That’s twisted. What you said to her was right.”

“About what?” Josie asked.

Reese inched closer to Josie. He touched her wrist and frowned. “This life. Yeah, the kid is going to grow up without a father, but the kid won’t know this life. The pain and hell. The wars. The everything.”

Josie shook her head. “You’re wrong, Reese. You said it’s family. And Steph and her daughter are family. They’re going to need everyone.”

“You know we’ll protect you all. Right down to our last breaths.”

“That’s what scares me.”

“Why?”

“Because sometimes I don’t understand it. And when I think I do, something like this happens.”

“You can never turn your back for a second,” Reese said.

“I know,” Josie said. “I just didn’t expect…”

Reese inched closer. “Expect what, sweetheart?”

“This,” she confessed, looking up at Reese. Her hazel eyes were beautiful. “Between us. But it shouldn’t surprise me.”

“We went through a lot back then,” he said. “We were too young to handle it all. Blaming each other.”

“We both lost someone in a stupid mess. I’m afraid that’s going to happen now. Again.”

Reese shook his head. “No, Josie. That’s not going to happen. This isn’t some rogue shit going on. We know what we’re doing.”

“Like going after another club and killing someone?”

“Don’t worry about club business.”

“How can I not? What if Hawk hadn’t…” Josie turned her head. “Christ, Reese. If Hawk hadn’t killed that guy, then Steph’s baby would have a father. But I wouldn’t have you.”

“You can’t think like that,” he said.

“Then how am I supposed to think?”

Reese gently touched Josie’s cheek and forced her to look at him again.

Words were done now.

He lowered his mouth down to hers and kissed her. It was a long and drawn out kiss. It broke with a wet sound and they just stared at each other.

“I love you, Reese,” Josie whispered.

“Ah, shit, sweetheart, I love you too,” Reese whispered back.

He kissed her again. His hands touched the curves of her hips and he pulled her tight to his body.

Then he lifted her off her feet… with one intention in mind.

* * *

There was no getting to the bedroom this time.

Josie pushed his leather cut off his shoulders, this time not worrying about it hitting the floor. Reese wasn’t worried either. She moved fast, clawing at the bottom of his shirt, lifting it up as he put her on the kitchen table. His hands flicked open the button on her jeans before his shirt even hit the floor. Josie’s nails scratched as his chest, drawing red lines down his muscles to the top of his jeans.

He pulled her off the table with a hard tug, making her gasp as he quickly pushed her jeans and panties down, not wanting to waste another fucking second. He pulled at her hoodie, gritting his teeth as he ripped it up over her head. Under the hoodie was a spaghetti strapped tank top with no bra.

“Fucking hell, sweetheart,” Reese growled.

He went right for her chest, kissing her. Josie slid her hands around his neck and cried out with a sigh. He trailed a line of kisses down between her breasts, his fingertips pulling at the straps of her shirt, tearing them down her arms, pulling the tank top down to expose her breasts. His hands quickly cupped under her breasts, feeling them full and warm. Growling like a hungry animal, Reese flicked his tongue to her left nipple and then engulfed her.

Josie’s hands were shaking as she fought with his jeans to open them. Once they were down enough to expose him, her hand gripped the root of his thickness.

Reese hissed and began to kiss up her chest to her neck. He kissed her hard and fast, the kisses loud and messy.

“Oh, Reese,” Josie groaned. “Right now. Please. Right now.”

Reese took his mouth from her neck and slapped his hands on her waist and put her back on the table. He came forward and with force, Josie’s hand releasing her hold on his cock and sliding around to his ass as he touched her slit.

She was burning for him and he felt her swelling even more as he pressed forward, opening her. He held right there and put his hands to the small of her back. He was holding back, every muscle in his body flexed as he stared into her eyes. This was more passionate than Reese ever imagined they could be. Their mix of the past, present, love, hate, and anger.

Josie reached up and touched his face. She took a shuddering breath, gritting her teeth, the lust pouring from her eyes like Reese had never seen before from her.

He stared into her eyes as he thrust forward.

She jumped back a little and gasped. He thrust harder at her. She crunched forward a little, her lips kissing the air, wanting to kiss him. But Reese held back from kissing her. He pumped himself into her, watching the reaction of her face and his eyes looking down at her body. The way her breasts moved with his thrusts. The way her hips bucked at him, trying to match his speed.

Reese finally slammed himself forward as hard as he could, bringing himself to her and kissing her. Josie’s hands dug up into his hair as he began to love her, right there on the table. He moved fast, hard, his kisses matching the lower half of his body. He broke the kiss and rested his nose against Josie’s so he could hear her groan and taste her sex laced breath. Her nails worked their way down and around to his ass, clawing at him, pulling and wanting him even more.

She tried to kiss his neck but ended up biting it as she reached climax. But Reese wasn’t done yet. He never wanted to be done. With his jeans down at his knees, he felt a vibration and knew it was someone from the MC calling him. He ignored it because there were more important matters at hand.

But then the phone started to vibrate again…

Reese ignored it.

He slid his hands up to Josie’s sides and pushed her back. She moved down to her elbows and stared up at him as he had her.

He loved her.

He fucked her.

Josie put her head back and arched her back, thrusting her chest up into the air at him. That was all he could handle at the moment. Reese put a hand to the middle of her back and pulled her up to him again.

They kissed wildly as Reese reached his climax.

All the while his phone kept vibrating.