“Loyal dogs are man’s best friend. And . . . women.”
“That’s very true.”
“I’ve always wanted a dog. If I had a dog, I’d probably have a Saint Bernard. They can be vicious, but they are big and lovable. No one would mess with me if I had a Saint Bernard.”
“Can’t really ride with a Saint Bernard.” I frowned.
“I could get one of those side cars. He would fit.”
“Now, that would just be silly.” We laughed about it.
“How about you? Would you ever get a dog?”
“Sure. I’d get a boxer. They’re loyal and they’re ferocious, and their sleek black muscular bodies are sexy.”
“You think dogs are sexy?”
“Well, not in the same sense as men, but yeah.”
“You think dogs are sexy. No wonder you don’t have a man.”
“Shut up and finish your muffin before your man gets here.”
“Did I hit a nerve?”
“No,” I protested. “Just been a rough couple of days. Of course, not nearly as rough as yours.”
“You don’t have to keep bringing that up.”
“Sorry. I don’t mean to.”
“It’s over. I just want to move on.”
“Of course, you do.”
“We should hang out more.”
“I’d like that.”
Chapter 3
Kara
We were laughing about something one of us said when I heard the door open behind me and caught the look in Reagen’s eyes. I turned to see Seth walking toward us with a scowl on his face.
“Hey, man, we don’t want any trouble,” I heard Draco say. Seth ignored him.
“Reagen, how many times do I have to tell you to tell me when you leave?” he demanded.
“You were in a meeting I didn’t want to interrupt— the Prez looked pissed. He kind of scares me.”
“Tony is always pissed. He wouldn’t be so pissed at you if you didn’t keep doing stupid shit.”
“Hi Seth!” I gave him a wave, distracting him for a moment from this stupid quarrel. It probably wasn't actually stupid, just me and my lack of romance and care for other fucking people keeping me from empathizing.
“Kara? What the fuck? Since when do you two know each other?” he demanded.
“We knew each other a long time ago,” I said, trying not to let my brain go there just because she was sitting in front of me like old fucking times. I don't have time for that reminiscing shit.
“We’ve been friends for a long time,” Reagen admitted. “Kara wanted to see how I was doing. I need friends, Seth.” Her voice was low, and if anything could hit me in the heart, it was that. It was the only reason she was my choice of ally. I did feel for what happened to her. I cared that bad shit happened to good people. I wasn’t that heartless of a bitch.
“I know you do.” He softened his tone. “I just wish you had a better selection than Bonnie and Kara.” He knelt beside her and ran his hand through her hair in a loving gesture.
“She’s safe with me, Seth. I wouldn’t let anything happen to her,” I promised, seeing the real worry in his eyes.
“Safe with you?” Seth laughed. “Your own father broke into your house, or did you forget that?”
“Kara is planning to take over the Midnight Saints.” Reagen let it slip and then covered her mouth and looked at me with an ‘I’m sorry’ glance. I shrugged.
“Kara? Ha! Tony isn’t going to let you do that. You can’t come barging in. Tony has things under control. At least wait till this war is over— leave it to Tony to deal with,” Seth said, getting up to stretch his legs.
“Hell no. My father started this mess, and I’ll be damned if I just sit back and watch my birthright go to hell. I’m as tough as Tony, and I ain't afraid of my father or any fuckhead he sends after me.” The other patrons were looking at us, but I didn’t care.
“Hold on a minute, you said you wanted out. We came to you and you wanted nothing to do with the club. That’s what you said.” Seth all but got in my face. I tried to play it cool. I spotted Draco watching our exchange with curiosity.
“Yeah, I did, so?”
“So, you can’t change your mind and want in now, not now that Tony finally has shit under control,” he finished, gritting his teeth at me.
“Yes, I can. When my father came after me, I realized I can’t just hide on the sidelines anymore. I’m pissed and ready to be done with our legacy of shit, and the best way to show him that is to take over and become the Prez of the MC he screwed.”
“Tony will never be okay with this,” Seth reminded me. “He’s not just going to let you waltz in and push him out.”
“I’m not going to push him out. He can be my VP if he can control his temper.”
“Oh, so then Austin is out?” Seth asked, running his hand through his hair in frustration.
“No one is out. Why do you think anyone is out?”
“If you take over as Prez, that knocks Tony down to VP, which knocks Austin down to Enforcer, which knocks me out, so I’m out.”
“Or we can have two Enforcers. In a time of war, we probably need two. Look, I don’t know how it’s going to go, just leave Tony to me. It’s not official yet, and I’d appreciate it if you two would keep your traps shut until it is.” I glared at Reagen, who cowered, and I felt bad. “You yourself came to me looking for a solution to end this fucking war before it really begins, did you not? I can do this, Seth, but I can’t do it alone.”
“But what solution do you actually have? What can you offer the club that Tony
