MICHELLE

 

I held Declan tight as we rode through the outskirts of town.

The rumble of the engine underneath me. The wind blowing through my hair. The smell of his leather kutte filling my nostrils. Pressed up against him with my arms tight around his stomach. There was no better feeling than hitting the pavement.

The rest of the Reapers rode with us. That was the kind of security that every woman wanted. Even with a man like Tony on the horizon, I didn’t feel the need to worry about anything.

It was a warm day with the sun shining high in the sky. The weather was perfect for a race.

Ivory was a small town but as soon as we left it, we saw just how deserted the surrounding areas were. We kept riding until we could finally see Tony and the other Vultures standing in the distance.

Declan rode right up next to them and screeched to a halt. Tony had the same sadistic look on his face he always did.

“You made it,” he said with a smile. “It was a good decision for you to accept my offer.”

“Shut the fuck up,” Declan said. “Let’s just get this shit over with.”

“Hold on now. There’s no need to be in such a hurry. I kinda like hanging around this town.”

Declan stayed on his ride and glared at Tony. Tony smirked back at him. He eyeballed me for a second before turning back to my man.

“I just wanna make sure we have everything straight,” he said. “I win, I get Michelle for the night.”

“You lose, you leave,” Declan said. “Don’t ever come back.”

“Yes, yes. That’s not gonna happen though. I know my shit better than anybody. You boys ain’t never seen a ride like this.”

Tony burst into laughter, sticking his tongue out at me. I looked away from him. The rest of the Reapers were all staring at the Vultures. They were ready to do something if the out-of-towners tried anything.

“I’ll meet you at the starting line,” Tony said.

He rode up the road along with the rest of his boys.

I turned to Declan and saw him addressing the rest of the Reapers.

“When’s the last time you actually raced someone?” Blake said.

“It doesn’t matter,” Declan replied. “I can beat him.”

“I worked on his ride myself,” Jon added. “Unless the motherfucker has rockets built into his shit, he’s got no chance.”

Declan looked at me and smiled.

“I’ve been riding for a long time. I’ve got oil pumping in my veins. He doesn’t stand a chance.”

Hearing his voice was enough to reassure me. His confidence was just another thing I craved about him. It was easy to see why I fell for him in the first place.

“You go on up ahead,” Declan said to the others. “Make sure they don’t try anything.”

The Reapers rode up to the starting line. Some of them moved farther down the road toward the finish line.

I walked up to Declan and put my forehead to his. He kissed me then looked me right in the eye.

“I beat this guy and we go back home,” he said. “Maybe we’ll celebrate a little.”

“Yeah, that’d be nice… I still don’t think I’m…”

“I got a lot of bullets left in the chamber.”

He smirked at me and gave me another kiss.

He hopped on his bike and rode up to the starting line. Then Declan and Tony lined their bikes up.

“Half a mile,” Tony said as he pointed down the road. “Don’t worry. My boys will call it straight if it’s close.”

“It won’t be,” Declan responded.

My husband turned his attention down the road. I stared at him then suddenly felt a hand on my shoulder.

“Come on,” Jon said to me. “Let’s wait for him at the finish line.”

I gave him a nod then got on his bike. Jon took me to the end where everybody else was waiting.

Half a mile on a bike wasn’t much. There were times when I got on Declan’s ride and he burned all the rubber in his tires. I knew how fast he could move.

They were both lined up in the distance. Their engines rumbled. Their bodies shook with anticipation. Even though they were so far away, the focus in their eyes was unmistakable.

One of Tony’s men pulled a gun from his waistband and held it up into the air. He pulled the trigger.

Bang.

The shot rang into the air and they were off.

Declan pulled ahead and immediately took the lead.

“Come on, Garnet!”

“Smoke this motherfucker!”

“You got this!”

Men from both clubs started cheering them on. I stood there helplessly and watched. The nervous feeling in my stomach twisted it to the point that I thought my breakfast was going to come back up.

But Declan wasn’t a slouch. He was moving so fast that the distance between the two only grew.

That’s it. He’s gonna do it.

I’d never seen his ride move so fast in my life. Tony looked like he was stuck in mud.

“Just a little bit more…”

Only a few seconds more and Declan would get to us.

I looked at Tony and watched as he suddenly reached into his waistband. He raised his arm up so fast that I barely had time to react.

“Declan! Look out!”

Tony squeezed the trigger.

Bang.

The bullet sounded like thunder. It hit Declan’s back tire and sent his bike swerving.

“Declan!”

I shouted as I ran out onto the pavement.

Declan fell to the ground and rolled over. His bike flipped through the street.

While I rushed up to Declan along with the other Reapers as fast as I could, Tony zoomed by me toward the finish line where the rest of his club was waiting.

I didn’t care about the race though. The only thing on my mind was making sure Declan was all right.

He laid on the ground, barely moving. I rushed up to him and pulled his helmet off of him. I felt a bit of relief when he blinked his eyes and looked up at me.

“Declan! Are you all right?”

He gritted his teeth and muttered at me like he was lost.

“Fuck… What happened?”

“It was Tony. He shot your tire out.”

“What?” he exclaimed.

He immediately pushed himself back up to his feet. He wasn’t bleeding and didn’t appear to have any injuries but the way he limped, I knew something was wrong.

But that was the least of my worries.

Both clubs were now standing on opposite sides of the road, guns drawn and pointed at one another.

“Declan! Declan, wait!”

I rushed up behind him as he hobbled his way to confront Tony. Tony stood next to his bike and had his hands out. The sinister smirk on his lips had never looked so obnoxious.

“Looks like I won,” he said. “That was the deal—”

“Motherfucker!”

Declan threw a punch and connected right on the side of Tony’s face. Tony fell and struggled to get back up to his feet.

“Hey now,” he said, his hands up as he continued to feign innocence. “We made a deal.”

“Cheating motherfucker!”

“Wait!”

I rushed up in front of Declan and stopped him before he could do anything more.

“We made a deal,” Tony said. “We raced. I won. Now I get a night with Michelle. I know you’re an honorable man, Cunningham. Don’t back out of our deal now.”

“You cheated.”

“I never said anything about other things that might happen. Strange how shit just happens like that.”

Declan was fuming. There was nothing I wanted more than for him to knock Tony’s head into the next town. That couldn’t happen though. Not right now. It would start a shootout in the middle of the street.

“Declan,” I said. “Declan, look at me. Look at me, babe.”

I put my hands up to his face. I finally got through to him when I pressed my palms on his cheeks. The fury in his eyes would have been frightening if I didn’t know him so well.

“Don’t,” I said. “You can’t do this.”

“Step aside, Michelle. This is what you want.”

“No, it’s not. Look around. Look!”

I turned his face to the clubs. Both men were pointing their guns at one another. Just a few seconds and the scene on the road would turn into a bloodbath. I was at the center of it all. I couldn’t let it happen.

“I can’t let you and the club do this,” I said. “Not for me. It’s not worth it.”

“Michelle—”

“Let me deal with Tony. It’s just one night. I’ll see what he wants.”

“You know what he wants.”

“He can never have that. You know that. You’re the only man I care about.”

“What’s it gonna be, Cunningham?” Tony shouted. “You gonna honor the deal we made or you gonna back out of it? This isn’t the first time my boys have been in a firefight. It doesn’t even look like your men know how to handle their pieces.”

Declan turned his head back up and glared at Tony.

“You wanna test ‘em?” Declan said.

“Declan! Stop! Please!”

I took a step back from Declan to make sure I was standing between him and Tony.

“There’s no need for this,” I said. “I’ll go with you, okay? One night. That’s what you wanted, Tony. I’ll give it to you. Just tell your boys to put down their weapons.”

“Putting down their weapons wouldn’t be very smart with guns pointed at them.”

“They won’t shoot you if Declan doesn’t tell them to. He’s a man of his word.”

Declan was still fuming. He was trembling to the point that he could snap at any moment. I had to trust my instincts and know that he wouldn’t try anything.

“All right,” Tony said. “I trust you, Michelle. I think that’s why I care about you so much. Boys! Put your shit away!”

The Vultures all slowly put their guns back into their waistbands. The Reapers kept their guns pointed forward, waiting for Declan’s orders.

“Now,” Tony said. “We made a deal—”

“We heard you the first time,” I said. “I’ll… I’ll go with you. Just give me a chance to talk to Declan.”

He motioned for the other Vultures to head back into Ivory and they did. Then he leaned forward on his bike and waited for me.

“Come on,” I said to Declan. “You’re hurt.”

Declan reluctantly limped back to where the other Reapers were waiting for him.

“You want me to shoot this guy right now?” Blake said.

“I’ll put a bullet right between his eyes,” Jon added.

“No!” I said. “If you kill him, you’re just giving the rest of his club more reason to start shit.”

“He’s already started shit!” Declan said.

“Just… Just let me talk to him. I’ll get through to him. I’ll tell him there’s nothing in Ivory.”

I sighed a deep breath. Getting through to the club seemed like an impossible task. They were all staring at me like they didn’t give a shit about what I was saying. I knew they were capable of killing Tony right then and there. The only way I could get through to them was through Declan.

I turned to him and looked up into his eyes.

“I’ll deal with him,” I said. “He’s my problem. I never should’ve got you involved in the first place.”

“If you think I’m gonna let you just ride off with him so he could do God knows what to you—”

“He won’t put a finger on me. If he does, I’ll put a bullet between his eyes myself and I won’t fucking hesitate.”

“Shit, man,” Blake muttered. “What a bunch of bullshit…”

“It’s your call, pres,” Jon said.

I stared at Declan, my eyes wide as I tried to get through to him.

“I’ll just talk to him,” I said. “I’ll spend one night with him. He won’t touch me.”

“Let’s go already!” Tony shouted.

Declan sighed a hard breath through his nose. He wrapped both hands on my head and brought my face to his. A deep kiss made me forget about everything for the moment. I’d never wanted it to end so badly.

I eventually pulled away from him and the reality of the situation came back to me. I turned around and made my way over to Tony.

“Don’t even think about trying anything,” I said to him.

“I just wanted to catch up on old times,” Tony said with a smirk.

Against my better judgment, I got onto his bike and rode back into Ivory with him. I turned around just long enough to see Declan and the others standing in the distance.

I knew that they were all planning on killing Tony. That much had already been decided. I’d just saved Tony’s life for the moment. Now it was just a matter of whether or not he wanted to ride out of town alive.