Page 24 of Lick

I sigh and yank the bottle from his hand and gulp down a few mouthfuls before handing it back over to him. “I’ll do some digging. I can’t make any promises right now, Moe. But I can look into shit and see exactly what we’d need to pull this off.”

“Alright. That’s all I’m asking. I know you have other shit to handle. I just wanted you to know I’m with you, whatever you choose. Jacko will be too.”

“Not TJ?” I ask, amused.

“I suspect he’ll try to make it as a solo artist the second we hit the mainstream, and I have no doubt we will if that’s the route we decide to take.” He shrugs like he doesn’t care.

I get it. I also get why TJ would want to go get a solo career if given the chance. He has the drive to push this all the way with none of the ties and responsibilities at home. It’s not like that for the rest of us, at least not now.

“As I said, I’ll look into it. And hey, if TJ doesn’t decide to go solo, he can take Tash with him.”

“Now that deserves another fucking bottle.”

When we get back, I head straight to Shooters to make sure I don’t have any fires to put out before I crash for the next day or so. Thankfully, there was no major drama, if you don’t count the flood in one of the men’s bathrooms or a missing shipment of top-shelf bourbon.

Marcus and the team had it under control, and I’ll admit it felt pretty fucking good knowing that. Some days it feels like everything is on my shoulders, but half the time I’m the reason for that. I take on too much. I think it stems from being the president’s kid. I feel like I need to prove myself. I’m my own worst enemy.

I’m getting ready to head home when there is a tap at the door. “Come in!” I yell out as I shut down the computer. I grin when Jacko walks in, looking a little pale and moving like an old man. “Shouldn’t you be resting?”

“I have been resting. Right now, I’m trying to figure out how my mom had her appendix out when I was fifteen and then got up and carried on right after she was released from the hospital, like it was the most natural thing in the world. And worse, we all expected it. My father too.” He eases himself down into the chair and takes the bottle of water I grab for him from the mini fridge.

“So, what brings you by?”

“What, I can’t just come visit? And here I thought you’d have missed me.” He pouts.

I flip him off. “Didn’t you hear? We replaced you.”

“As if you could replace all this. Even you’re not that much of a dick.”

“Well, it’s not me you need to worry about,” I joke.

He grimaces. “I heard her cowboy pussy struck again.”

“Her what?” I snort.

“Cowboy pussy. It lassoes unsuspecting victims.”

I shake my head, amused despite how much the whole thing pissed me off. “Well, I don’t think Mike put up much of a fight.”

“Men rarely do when offered the chance to get their dicks wet. We’re different. We know that Tash’s clit is like a harp—fun to play with for a minute or two, but comes with way too many strings.”

I roar with laughter. “Where the fuck do you come up with this shit?”

“What can I say, I’m a man of many talents. Speaking of talent…”

“Moe spoke to you?” I sigh.

“He did, and he said to leave it be for now because he wasn’t sure if it was something you could swing, and he’d be okay with whatever. I just wanted you to know that you’ll get no pressure from me one way or another, but I always fancied myself as a music mogul. And as long as we get to play just for shits and giggles a few times a month here, I’d be happy.”

“Thanks. That means a lot.”

And it does. My MC brothers will die for me, but it’s expected when you become a brother. They’d do it for each and every patched member. But these guys are different. They owe me nothing, and yet they’ve put their trust in me time and time again, a trust I’m not sure I’m worthy of.

“So, you came all the way down here to tell me that when you could have just picked up your phone?”

“Well, yeah, but I also wanted to take a second to talk about the bitch. She’s gotta go, Lick. This time was bad enough, but a fuck-up like that again, or worse, could have this place and us in the news for all the wrong reasons. If you ever want to get a label off the ground, you don’t need shit like this floating around.”

“You talking about her fucking in open?”