"And then you're starting at Roxie's?"

Her eyes lit up; I knew she was looking forward to this. "Yes, on the Monday after I finish at Indigo, so it's all worked out really well. She's set a room up for me to rent off her, and she's got ladies booked in already."

I loved seeing her happy. I brushed a kiss over her lips, and murmured, "We've come a long way, haven't we?"

Nodding, she asked me, "Have you thought anymore about going to see Gabriella?"

Velvet and my family all thought I needed to go and talk to Gabriella, for closure or some fucking thing. I wasn't so sure, and was stalling on it. "Babe, it's only been two weeks since I last saw her. I'm still fuckin' angry at her, and that's not gonna go away anytime soon. Let me get through this shit in my head, deal with that first, and then I'll think about going to see her."

"Okay. You're probably right. At least you'll consider it; that's all I really wanted you to do at this point."

I pulled her to me. "How the hell did I get so lucky?"

"Why? What do you mean?"

"I mean, you don't fuckin' nag me, you don't bitch about shit to me, you haven't tried to change me, and you cope with my addiction to your tits and pussy. How did I get that lucky, woman?"

She grinned. "Oh, there's still time, baby. I can do all that stuff if you want."

I grinned back at her. Two could play this game. "Okay, how about we work on curbing my addiction first? Get that one out of the way before you start in on the nagging and bitching."

She pulled my face down to hers. "I'll make you a deal, Nash Walker. You keep that addiction for the rest of your life, and I promise not to start with the nagging and bitching."

"Done," I agreed, and smacked her on the ass. "Now, get your shit together, and let's get you to your exam."

After I dropped Velvet off at her exam, I headed to the clubhouse. The last two weeks since Kick left had been tense. Marcus was rounding his troops up so to speak, making all sorts of promises to the boys who agreed to Storm moving back into drugs. There were only a handful of us left who were against it, and if he called for a vote, we'd be outnumbered.

From the moment I entered the clubhouse, I knew something was off. And when I found Scott in the bar area, he confirmed it. "Dad's gonna make his move in the next couple of days, brother."

I sat at the table with him. He was in the corner by himself, with his morning coffee. I drowned out the noise of the other guys talking and laughing, and gave Scott my full attention. "Who told you that?"

"Wilder. Dad's taken a liking to him, and is using him for all sorts of shit."

I liked Wilder, even after my run in with him, but I was wondering what was in it for him to be playing both sides. "Can we trust Wilder? Why's he giving you that information?"

Scott leaned forward so he could drop his voice. "You remember how Wilder became a prospect?"

I searched my memory, but came up with nothing. "No."

"I brought him in. And I did it intentionally. It was after I found out about Dad. I had a gut feeling that shit was going to go south, and then I met Wilder. He'd been screwed over by Dad, and was looking for payback. I figured it would be useful to us to have a member I could be sure of if shit ever hit the fan, so I sponsored him."

"Fuck, it could have gone the other way; could have backfired on you."

He nodded. "Yeah, brother, it could have. I was willing to take that risk though, and I'm glad I fucking did. Wilder's proved himself, and I'm pretty sure he's going to be patched soon."

"Any news on Blue?"

"No, still coming up empty on that one. You heard anything from Kick?"

"They're convinced Marcus is their man, but because of his ties to Adelaide and some of the other chapters, are reluctant to move without proof. Marcus has been busy making friends; seems he's got allies everywhere."

"Fuck," Scott muttered.

"How the hell did he screw Wilder over?" I asked.

"He - " he began, but stopped talking because Marcus was headed straight for us.

"Nash, Scott," he greeted us, clearly not pleased to see us.

"Marcus," I said, jerking my chin at him, but Scott didn't say a word.

He scowled at Scott before saying, "Church tomorrow. Don't be late. We've got a lot of shit to discuss."

I nodded, and he left, as quickly as he came. Mind you, it couldn't be soon enough as far as I was concerned. Giving my attention back to Scott, I shared my thoughts. "Not looking forward to tomorrow, brother. Christ knows what surprises he's got in store for us."

Scott was deep in thought, and slowly nodded as he took in what I'd said. "I hear you, man. I fucking hear you."

A few hours later, I parked my bike and waited for Velvet to come out of her exam. She'd told me she would catch a lift with a friend, but I'd had the urge to see her, so here I was. While I waited, I reflected on the last two weeks. The day at the cemetery had been life changing for me. Opening up to her had changed everything; it had scattered the demons in my soul far and wide. Some still lingered, and I knew it would take time to clear them out completely, but I could breathe again. The weight of regret and guilt had lifted, and the pain had dulled a little. It would never go away, not fully, but it was becoming bearable. Having Velvet in my life helped. I wasn't a talker, but having her to go home to, to laugh with, just to be with, helped get me through. And she gave me hope. For the first time since Aaron's death, I wanted to make plans; plans for my life, plans that included someone else.

I heard her laughter, and looked up to find her walking towards me with a huge smile on her face. She threw herself into my arms. "What are you doing here, baby?"

Fuck, I liked it when she called me baby. I wrapped my arms around her, letting my hand glide down her back and onto her ass. "Thought I'd pick you up, take you back to my place and fuck you," I growled, both of my hands on her ass now.

"You say the sweetest things," she purred.

"I told you I'm all about the sweet talk, darlin'."

Her eyes glazed over, and a smile slowly made its way onto her face. "Yeah, you did, and I've learnt that when Nash Walker says something, he means it."

"I do. And on that note, you need to get your sweet ass on the back of my bike so I can make good on my promise."

She didn't waste any time. Yeah, Velvet was addicted to me as much as I was to her.

Chapter 30.

This Means War ~ Nickelback Velvet Dark glasses covered my eyes as I walked into Roxie's salon early the next morning. She took one look at me and burst out laughing. "That man of yours wearing you out, hon?"

I took my glasses off and slumped in a chair. "Like you wouldn't believe."

Madison started laughing. "I knew it would take a strong woman to crack Nash, but I'd never factored in that it would take someone with a lot of stamina to keep up with him."

"You need to make me coffee, woman," I begged Roxie.

"Make your own damn coffee," she said with a shake of her head. "I'm thinking you actually might need some Redbull or something like that." Then, looking at Madison, she suggested, "I think you should tell Nash to get his shit together and stock his fridge with energy drinks for his woman."

I dragged myself out of the chair. "Fine, I'll make my own coffee," I grumbled as I trudged to the back room. "Don't come running to me when you're down and out though, babe. I'll remember you letting me down in my hour of need."

They both laughed, and I had to smile. As tired as I was, I was more than happy to be worn out from Nash loving. I thought about him while I made coffee, and by the time I got back to my chair, I was grinning.

Madison narrowed her eyes at me. "You perked up. What gives?"

"I was just thinking about how happy I am with Nash. I never in a million years would have picked that I'd end up with him, but I'm glad I did."

Madison smiled at me, warmly. "I'm glad you did too. There's something special about Nash, and I love that you are helping him deal with his pain. He seems so much happier these days."

"Yeah, he is," I agreed.

Roxie cut in. "What are we doing with your hair today, Velvet? You want a colour or just a cut?"

"A colour and cut, but just trim the ends. Nash would hate it if I cut any of the length."

Roxie rolled her eyes. "Ummm, where's the real Velvet? She doesn't let any man tell her what to do."

I laughed. "He hasn't told me not to cut it, and trust me, I'd never listen if he did. But, let's just say my man likes to pull my hair, and I kinda like it, so there's no way in hell I'm cutting it."

"Of course he does. My bad," she muttered, and went out the back to get the colour ready for my hair.

"I'm so happy for you and Nash. You both deserve happiness," Madison said.

"Thanks, babe." I sighed, and added, "God knows, Nash really does after everything he's been through."

She nodded. "Yeah, my heart breaks for what he's gone through. I can't even begin to imagine losing a child."

My pain surfaced. I could imagine, but not fully. It had been devastating enough to lose babies before they were born; the thought of losing a child that had lived and breathed, caused actual physical pain.

I didn't want to have this conversation so I sat in silence. Madison must have felt it too because she didn't say anything further. When Harlow stepped through the door of the salon, I was happy for the distraction.

Standing to greet her, I said, "Thank God, you brought cake with you."

She put the cake down on the counter, and gave us both a hug. "I brought you half and half, Velvet. We've got celebrating to do."

I frowned. "What are we celebrating?"

"You passing your exams," she said as if I'd asked the dumbest question on the planet.

I grinned at her. "I love you. Yes, let's celebrate that because I'm pretty sure I did. And when I find out for certain next week, we can celebrate again."

"Yes!" Harlow exclaimed. "I like the way you think, honey."

"What kind of cake did you bring?"

"Hummingbird and caramel mud."

"Oh my God, woman, you're gonna kill me. I love those."

She smiled, and said, simply, "I know."

Roxie came out with the hair dye ready to go. She greeted Harlow, "I just heard the words caramel mud. Your hair cut is on me today because I fucking love caramel mud."

Madison laughed. "I think you should be thanking me, Roxie. I mean, if it wasn't for me, you wouldn't know these two. Which means you wouldn't be getting cake and you wouldn't have a beautician starting here soon."

Roxie's trademark sarcasm was in full force today. "You want a medal, babe? I'm sure I could round one up for you."

Madison poked her tongue at Roxie and we all burst out laughing.

These women made my life so much better just by being in it. I'd never been big on friends; I'd resisted opening myself up to women as much as I had to men. But sometimes in life, people managed to work their way into your heart. It happened slowly, until one day you realised how big a part they played in your happiness, and just how lost you'd be if they weren't there.

Nash Church.

I had a sense of foreboding about today, and it unsettled me.

Taking my seat at the table, I looked around to gauge the mood of the room. Marcus was emanating control. Fuck, he looked like he was ready to take on the world. And like he knew he would fucking win if he did.

Smug bastard.

This wasn't going to be good.

Scott sat next to Marcus, a fierce look on his face, his body tense.

And, Griff, our Sergeant-at-Arms, was on Marcus's other side. He too, looked ready to go to battle.

The room filled quickly, and Marcus called the meeting to order. He ran through the usual business, fairly routine stuff. I sat back and watched it unfold, wondering when his agenda for today would be realised, because he sure as fuck had one. There was a nervous energy in the room; watchful eyes everywhere were taking it all in.

Everyone knew that something was going down today.

Fuck.

When it finally happened, I sat in stunned silence, not believing my eyes or my ears.

Marcus asked if anyone had business to bring to the table. I looked around to see who it would be; I figured Marcus had someone primed for this.

I wasn't the only one looking around the table. Anticipation pervaded the room. The tension our club had been under the past couple of months had stretched us and placed us in a precarious position. Like a house of cards, all it would take would be one knock, and everything we'd worked hard to achieve would be threatened.

Griff stood.