Page 38 of Lick

“Lick, good to see you, man. How was the⁠—”

“Mavis,” I interrupt, shutting him up. His eyes move to Emma, who is watching them both curiously, probably wondering why a grown man is called Mavis. She takes in his blue-tinted hair, and I see her lips twitch. She’s figured it out—old lady hair, old lady name.

“Guys, this is Emma. Emma, this is Mavis and Scat.”

Her mouth parts a little at Scat’s name, and I have to bite my lip to stop from laughing.

“I swear my road name is the bane of my existence. I was a scat singer long before I became a biker, but when I’m drunk, I can’t help myself. And well, the name stuck.” He gives her a little demonstration of what he can do before taking a bow when she smiles.

“That was amazing.”

“Thanks.”

I swear the man looks bashful for a moment, so I pull her closer to me just so he doesn’t get any funny ideas. “You guys heading out or coming back?”

“Just going for a smoke. We won’t be long,” Mavis answers before passing us.

“It was nice to meet you both,” Emma says as I walk her through the doors into the main space. She takes a steadying breath as she looks around. I try to imagine how things look through her eyes.

The inside of the building has been completely gutted from how it originally looked. Everything but the huge windows and stone floors has been updated over the years to reflect the change in time and, more importantly, technology.

The large room has a bar that runs down most of the left wall with a collection of tables scattered in front of it. The far left has the more casual seating—sofas, and bench seats. Hell, there is even a daybed in the back of the room near the pool tables and pinball machines. A retro-style juke box plays soft rock from the corner, and a couple of club girls are dancing provocatively to the melody, though both of them are completely off beat. Tash is watching them with a scowl, her eyes moving to me before they quickly dart away.

“This is the main room where most people gather. If you go through the door on the left, you find the kitchen, movie room, and a kids’ room.”

“A kids’ room?”

“We have a few club kids. Some are teenagers, some are still in their single digits. The room gives them their own space, an escape from all this. They have everything they could need, from Xboxes and PlayStation consoles to board games and books. Through the door on the right are the offices, security, my father’s office, and the room where we hold church.”

“Church, like a place you go to pray?”

I grin. “I’m sure some have gone in there muttering a prayer or two, but no, it’s where the patched-in brothers have their weekly meetings.”

She grins as she looks around the room, some of the worry slipping from her face now that she hasn’t been ambushed the second she walked through the door.

“Come on, let me introduce you around so you can put some names to faces.”

“You know I won’t remember half of them, right?”

I laugh. “Don’t worry, there’s no test at the end.”

I lead her to the bar first and introduce her to the prospect and get him to pour her a Coke. She takes it with a smile. I press my hand to the small of her back and keep moving her around the room, introducing people and actively avoiding the ones who I know can be dicks. Nothing to do with Emma, these fuckers are assholes regardless of who they’re talking to.

“Let’s sit for a while,” I tell her when I can see she’s tiring. I lead her to one of the sofas and urge her to sit, taking the seat beside her. “You good?” I ask, sliding my hand over her thigh.

She looks up at me and nods. “It’s not nearly as scary as I thought it would be.” She rests her head on my shoulder and then, out of the blue, tenses.

I look over to see what’s made her react. My father walks through from the back with the VP, Hauler, and the enforcer, Dot. He greets me with a nod as he approaches. His eyes drop to Emma, who tenses further.

Fuck.

“Emma. Good to see you again.”

She eyes him warily before looking at me. “I take it you learned to apologise from your mother?”

We’re quiet for a beat before I start laughing. Hauler laughs too. Even Dot cracks a smile, and that asshole is a miserable motherfucker at the best of times.

My father rolls his eyes, but he looks faintly amused. “I deserved that. We got off on the wrong foot, I know. I’m Knuckles, Lick’s father and president of this here chapter of Royal Bastards. You’re Emma, right?” He holds out his hand for her to shake.