“Well shit,” Death said, then chuckled. “Wreck, put the dickhead down.”
Wreck didn’t. It seemed like he wasn’t listening to anyone, and I didn’t want anyone’s death on my conscience, so I moved closer. “Hey, ah, Wreck… it’s… he’s— You can put him down. I know I say some things without thinking all the time, and, um, he says he didn’t mean to say it aloud.”
“I didn’t. I swear.”
Wreck dropped the prospect to the floor. He turned to me, glared, and then walked right to the front door. As soon as he was out, he slammed it closed after himself.
A hand slapped to my back. Zion pulled me aside while the others warned, and then teased, the prospect. “Don’t worry about Wreck. He’s a little protective of people in the club since we’re his only family.”
“But… I’m not in the club.”
Zion smiled. “You’re my kid brother, you’re family. Plus, he also doesn’t like fuckheads. The prospect has been gettin’ on his nerves all day, and that was the final straw, obviously.”
All I could think of to say was “I’m not a kid.”
Zion chuckled and went back into the kitchen, where his other friends had drifted off to. I jolted when I heard next to me, “Yeah, sorry again about that.” The prospect stood beside me, a slight pink to his cheeks. “Do you think they give a fuck I just outed myself?”
My eyes widened. “You… they, ah, you’re gay?”
He chuckled and rubbed the back of his neck. “Bi, actually. Was worried about how’d the brothers would act, but they seemed protective of you.”
This was all too much for my little but smart mind to handle.
I scrubbed a hand over my face. “Yeah, I don’t think you’ll have to worry about them.” At least I hoped not. I didn’t know how many were involved with the club, but if they were anything like the men in the house, then he shouldn’t need to worry. I really had to find out more about my brother’s friends.
He smiled. “Name’s Kylo, and I wasn’t playin’ you when I said I was gonna ask you out, but I know it’s a shit time now after everything. So, friends?”
Taken back again, my eyes widened as I looked down at his outstretched hand. Slowly, I took it and shook. I nodded. “Friends.” Because going on a date with him was the last thing on my mind when it hadn’t finished processing what had happened since I walked into the house.
“Cool. Wanna play?” He tilted his head toward the Nintendo.
“Sure,” I replied hesitantly because this whole experience seemed as if I’d been kidnapped and placed on a different planet where everyone was accepting and amazing and scary and hot.
Once I sat on the couch, Kylo passed me a controller and got onto the area where we had to pick another player. “Heard Zion say you were at college. What do you study?”
“Medicine. I’d like to become a doctor. A pediatric doctor, in fact. Um, what do you do?” I asked as I picked Luigi to help Mario through the worlds.
“I work in a gym owned by the club.” He shrugged. “I like it. I get to use the equipment whenever I want.”
Zion had said the club owned many businesses, but he was just one of the club members who had put money in with the brothels. I took a quick glance at Kylo’s body. Only when I lifted my eyes, he was already looking at me and smiling.
He winked. “What do you think, has it paid off?”
My face ignited. “Ah, yeah?”
He chuckled and bumped my shoulder with his.
“So, ah, the way Wreck was with you… were you worried?” Because I couldn’t help but think that if I’d been Kylo, I would have crapped my pants. Yet, even though his voice had been high in worry, other than that, he didn’t seem too concerned. Unless those types of situations happened all the time. I didn’t know how bikers acted or what their lives were like. Maybe I should have watched Sons of Anarchy when it was first out, then I could have some insight into what to expect.
Kylo snorted. “You haven’t been around brothers before?”
I shook my head. “No. I’ve been busy. I knew Zion was in a club, but until tonight, I’d never met anyone before.”
“Strange, your brother’s been in the club for ages.”
“Four years, but again, I’ve been busy. School has ruled my life for a long time. It still does because I know what I want in life, and I want to achieve it.” I shrugged, suddenly feeling bad because I should have known more about my brother than what I did.
“Don’t stress. I can understand that. You’re focus-driven. It’s cool. To answer your question though, you gotta understand the brothers in the club are… shit, how to explain?” He went quiet for a moment. “It’s like these men protect in their own kinda way. They have their own laws, and they stick to them. They’d do anything for anyone in the family, no matter the cost, because they believe the brotherhood, their families, are everything. They live and breathe the club. It’s their life. I’ve never had structure in my life. My parents are fucked-up drug dealers. An old friend of my father’s got me out of it and brought me into the fold by takin’ me in. I’ve been around their ways, and it suits me perfectly. It’s why I wanted to patch in and become a member.”
I nodded, not really knowing what to say.
He went on. “They deal in respect and don’t like being fucked around. It surprised me the way Wreck was, but I understood I went too far. They don’t like shit bein’ said. Wreck was only teachin’ me a lesson. Yeah, he might have been rough, but it’s their way, and by doing it how he did, I know I’ll never make the same mistake again.”
“But, ah, wasn’t it a shock he did it over you saying something that was, well,
