Temperance: Biker Romance (The Davis Chapter Book 2) by Davida Lynn Page A

indicated to the back of the bar, and I gave an acknowledgement. I didn’t like the look in his eyes.  

    Kyle must not have, either. “Just answer his questions. The Sons don’t work for free.”

    “What does that mean?”

    Kyle shrugged, “It means what it means. We aren’t a charity.”

    As I headed toward the back of the bar to speak with Trask, I figured that my $1,300 wasn’t going to cut it.

    Trask leaned against the backdoor of the bar for a while. A bottle of Rolling Rock dangled from his hand. A small puddle of condensation spread on the floor beneath the bottle. If he was deep in thought, I wasn’t going to interrupt him.

    When he looked up, Trask looked tired; almost sick. He had large bags under deeply bloodshot eyes. “If Bandit says you’re worth it, you’re worth it.” Another long pause. “I’m sure he told you that we don’t work pro bono, especially on something like this. We know Blythe. We know what he does for a living, and we know that this won’t be easy or quiet. We aren’t the A-Team, but we can definitely handle ourselves pretty damn well in a fight.” Looking over Trask, I could easily see that. He filled out his t-shirt with plenty of muscle, and his Devil-may-care attitude was clear.

    “Whatever you need? You’ve got it.” My poor mother was at the front of my mind. “I’ll go back to the house with you, if you need. I’ll draw you floorplans, and give you all the codes to the house.”

    “I get that, I get that. We’ll talk about the plan later on. Right now, I want to talk about payment. Bandit makes it sound like you don’t have much green, so we’re going to make it look like a motorcycle club raided the place. We’re taking any weapons, cash, and valuables we find there.”

    I lowered an eyebrow. “I don’t understand. You don’t want to cover your tracks?”

    “Not cover them, just a little misdirection. There’s another club in town that could use some attention from the law. The right evidence in the right place, and we kill a few birds with one stone.” A smile replaced some of the weariness. “Here’s some free advice. Always try to make the most of a bad situation.”

    “Take whatever you want. I don’t want a dime from Conrad. Burn the place to the ground for all I care. You just tell me what you want me to do. Conrad means nothing to me anymore. I want him gone.”

    Trask’s smile grew. “That’s what I wanted to hear. Tonight isn’t going to be easy. It’s going to be hell, actually. If what you say is true, we’re going to be going up against some trained men. I’m not worried, but I’d be stupid if I wasn’t a little scared.”

    “Like I said, I’ll give you whatever info will help take Conrad down.”

    Trask studied my face for a while. His eyes were hard, but it wasn't the kind of look I had gotten used to from Conrad. Trask was looking for strength, not weakness.  

    I followed him back into the party, my confidence all over the place. There was a redness to Trask’s cheeks that I didn’t like. The bottle that dangled from his hand swayed, too, and he seemed to be the one keeping it together the best. Some of the other bikers were downright skunked.

    I hated to do it, but I pulled Kyle aside. Speaking in a voice only he could hear, I asked, “Are they drunk?”

    Kyle looked around. “Most of them, yeah.”

    “Please tell me they're not going to be drunk tonight. I hate to sound bitchy, but my life is in their hands and their hands can barely hold up their beers.” My confidence in the Rising Sons and the plan wavered, to say the least.

    Kyle had a slight smile. “They will be stone sober tonight.”

    “Then why are they drunk now?”

    “They're celebrating life.”

    There was a lot about the biker culture that I didn't understand. I never tried to stop Kyle from living that life, but I did have to let a lot of it go. I didn't get this at all, though. “Why are they celebrating