Romeo (Dark Knights MC/Blood Fury MC: Crossover)

Chapter 39

Chapter Thirty-Nine

Never in his goddamn life did he think he’d be sitting around a table and having dinner with the parents of a woman he fucked.

Like this was normal. Like they were normal.

None of them were normal.

Not a fucking one.

Despite his broken ribs, leg and arm, he had a hard time sitting still.

He might have escaped being cremated long before it was his time, but he was still paranoid about this dinner invite. This whole thing had to be a damn trap, and he wouldn’t be surprised if Fury members stormed in at any goddamn second, dragged his ass out and buried him out in one of their fields, never to be seen again.

He glanced at his still full plate, then up at Maddie sitting across from him. She chewed away unbothered like Romeo shared dinner with them every night.

But no one was saying a damn word.

Shade sat at one end of the dining table, Chelle at the other. Romeo sat along one side next to Jude, while Maddie sat next to her sister Josie.

“Why aren’t you eating?” Maddie’s adopted brother asked him.

Maybe because a few hours ago he was only a cunt hair away from being turned to ashes.

Or because both he and Maddie were being closely watched by Shade.

Or because Maddie’s younger sister kept giggling under her breath. Most likely from the awkwardness from this whole fucking situation.

He told Maddie he wanted to take her to dinner. Only, he didn’t expect it to be at her family’s house.

“You don’t like the chicken?” Shade’s ol’ lady asked him.

Romeo glanced at Maddie’s mother, then again at his plate. He picked up his fork and knife, cut off a small piece of the roasted bird and shoved it into his mouth. “It’s great,” he answered Chelle as he chewed, not even tasting it.

He had to gulp down some water just to swallow that small piece since his throat was tight.

Across the table, Josie giggle-snorted and elbowed her older sister.

“Stop,” Maddie whispered, not finding this situation as entertaining as her sister.

“How’d you get injured?” Jude asked.

The kid had to be in his late teens or early twenties by now. He’d grown like a fucking weed since he first arrived in Manning Grove.

“From not mindin’ my own business.”

Jude chuckled and stabbed the last potato wedge on his plate with his fork. “I’m assuming you killed them for what they did. ”

Maddie’s fork clattered to her plate, and she dropped her head in her hands with a groan.

Shade’s expression remained unreadable.

Josie’s eyes grew as wide as her plate before she burst out in a peel of laughter.

And Chelle scolded, “Jude! Not at the dinner table!”

But on the couch would be perfectly okay?

Jude shrugged and grinned. “That’s how we’d handle it in the Fury.”

Romeo frowned. “You a member now?”

The kid’s chest puffed out. “Prospect.”

Romeo grunted and glanced at Maddie again. She rolled her eyes at her younger brother’s boasting.

Apparently, Shade hadn’t schooled his “son” on how club business should remain within the club. That meant patched members only. “Guessin’ you haven’t learned yet, you don’t mention that kinda shit in mixed company.”

“Like they don’t know what?—”

“Jude!” Shade barked.

Jude pressed his lips together.

“He’s right,” Shade murmured. “Runnin’ your mouth’s a good way to get your cut pulled.”

Romeo got whiplash when Jude quickly switched topics. “You eatin’ your potatoes?”

He slid his plate over to Jude. “All yours.” He watched Jude shovel the crispy potato wedges into his gullet as fast as he could.

“Sorry that you didn’t enjoy your meal,” Chelle apologized softly.

Shit. “Ain’t that. The pain’s fuckin’ up my stomach.” And, of course, his pain right now was a level ten out of ten because of being manhandled by Shade and Easy. But he took his own advice and wouldn’t mention that shit in mixed company.

It wasn’t only the pain that made him lose his appetite. It was the fact he had no idea about the point of this dinner. He really needed to get Maddie by herself later and have another convo. Let her know he wasn’t blowing smoke up her ass about wanting her to wear his cut.

Maybe she believed it as much as he did.

He definitely lost his goddamn mind.

When he looked over at her, she was smiling at him behind her glass of water.

Had she forgiven him or was that some evil smile because she knew this was to be his last meal?

Was this her idea of revenge for him fucking up her future?

A buzz had his heart jumping out of his chest.

Everyone at the table checked their phones except for Chelle.

And Romeo. Because he wasn’t taking his eyes off anyone.

With his phone in hand, Shade slid his chair back. He turned his dark eyes to Romeo. “They’re waitin’ for us.”

Say what? “Who?”

“Let’s go,” was Shade’s response, along with a jerk of his head toward the front of the house.

For fuck’s sake. This day was turning out to be all kinds of fucked. “I got a choice?”

“No.”

“Can I go?” Jude asked.

“No,” Shade repeated.

Maddie’s expression told him nothing.

Shade’s face told him shit .

The taste of dread in his mouth was bitter. “You know what this is?” he asked Maddie.

She shook her head. “No. But you’re in good hands.”

She wouldn’t be saying that shit if she knew what game her stepdaddy played with him in the middle of the night.

He grabbed the crutch leaning against the table and used it to help himself stand.

“Bye, Romeo!” Josie yelled as he followed the long-haired Fury member to the front door.

He paused when he heard Chelle call out, “Good luck!”

Romeo had no idea what the fuck was going on, but he was damn sure he could use all the luck he could get.

Limping his way up the stairs to the second floor at The Barn, the Fury’s church, had sucked. When he stepped inside the Blood Fury’s meeting room, he found the officers already sitting around the solid wood table with the club logo carved in it dead center.

Shade hadn’t been shitting him when he said “they” were waiting.

Trip was leaning back in the chair at the head of the table at the opposite end of where Romeo stood leaning on his crutch.

He damn sure didn’t like being in the hot seat. Though, he wasn’t invited to actually sit, despite having two obvious broken limbs.

“Came to claim Maddie, huh?” Sig, Trip’s brother and the club’s VP, asked.

“Doin’ this backward, ain’t ya?” Cage, their road captain, asked next.

“Didn’t have to do it at all,” Romeo told them .

Trip cocked an eyebrow. “That right?”

It wasn’t, but the fuck if he was changing his answer. He had the utmost respect for Trip and the rest of the Fury members, but he wasn’t some damn chump. He was the goddamn president of the Dark Knights MC. He didn’t answer to them. He was only here out of respect.

And possibly because Shade insisted.

Forget the fact it was also strongly suggested by Magnum for the good of the alliance.

Fuck.

“Touched Fury property without askin’ first,” Ozzy, the club secretary, announced like it was breaking news.

“Think she’d disagree with her bein’ your club’s property. She was an adult when Shade hooked up with his ol’ lady.”

Ozzy, one of the Blood Fury Originals, came back with, “Don’t matter. She don’t gotta be born into the club for her to be our property and under our protection. Bottom line is, she is and that’s all you gotta know.”

Funny how Shade, standing next to him, wasn’t saying shit.

Still, why did this feel like a goddamn shotgun wedding?

“Maddie didn’t agree to wear my cut,” he told them.

“She don’t gotta agree,” Trip said. “We either approve of you claimin’ her or we don’t. You know how this shit works.”

Romeo really fucking doubted that Stella, Trip’s ol’ lady, would’ve been forced to wear his cut if she wasn’t willing.

They might all pretend their women didn’t have a choice, but the reality was, they sure as fuck did. The ol’ ladies had more power than any of them wanted to admit.

At least out loud.

“Yeah, but you also know how it works when a woman’s pissed the fuck off ‘cause she’s forced to do somethin’ she don’t wanna do,” Romeo reminded them.

Some of them murmured their agreement, while Deacon muttered, “No truer words.”

His ol’ lady was another one who wouldn’t be railroaded into shit. Reese was the kind of woman who’d neuter her ol’ man if he fucked up.

He glanced around the table. In fact, none of their ol’ ladies were spineless.

Having a strong woman at their side made them more powerful. Having a weak woman hiding behind them, while waiting to be told what to do, did the opposite.

But he wasn’t bringing that shit up right now.

He only knew, if he was to share a life with someone, she needed to be able to think for herself and know the life.

Maddie fit that bill.

Add in the fact that she was hot as fuck and smart. She wasn’t into drama or hysterics. Any fucking man would be lucky to have her. Even when she was upset with him, she didn’t shriek or scream or scratch his fucking eyes out.

Or knee him in the nuts.

Even if he deserved it.

Truth was, he didn’t want anyone else having her.

He didn’t want her name crossing any other man’s lips.

He didn’t want her saying any other man’s name.

Of course, not during normal day to day shit, but at night. When it counted.

His name and only his name should be heard when she was coming.

His name and only his name should be called when she needed some dick.

Jesus Christ , he was fucked.

Standing in front of this crew, it hit him that his life as he knew it was now over. He would be joining the “ol’ man’s club.” A club he never wanted to be a card-carrying member of.

He never understood why anyone would want only one woman for the rest of their life when there were so fucking many out there to choose from. Until now.

Every man sitting around that table, even the man standing next to him, knew that when you found the one, you did whatever was needed to be done to keep her.

He could’ve had Booger drive him back to Knights territory after Easy and Shade dropped him back off at the roach motel early this morning. He had an opportunity to escape all of this.

He didn’t.

Instead, he put on his damn clothes and had that asshole prospect take him over to Maddie’s home earlier.

To sit down to dinner with her fucking family.

“Second thoughts?” Cage asked on a laugh. “Betcha his asshole’s puckered so damn tight he’d explode if he had to fart.”

“Same as yours when your surprise baby was dropped off at your fuckin’ doorstep. Right?”

“Speaking of… How many kids you got out there?” Trip asked.

Romeo could honestly answer, “Zero. Know how to prevent crib lizards.” He glanced at the Fury’s road captain and added, “Unlike some others.”

“Damn,” Deacon whispered and dropped his head to hide his chuckle.

“All right, let’s get back to business here,” Trip ordered. “Got better things to do than listen to you assholes trade insults. Let’s wrap this shit up.”

Romeo agreed. He had better things to do than be there. Like talk to Maddie and figure shit out. She was easier on the eyes than any of these motherfuckers.

“Just to be clear,” Trip continued. “You’re claimin’ her, right?”

Was he finally pulling the trigger? “Yeah.”

The Fury prez glanced at Shade. “You good with that?”

It took forever and a fucking day for Shade to answer. In fact, they waited so long that Ozzy finally yelled, “Jesus Christ, brother! You good with this one claimin’ your girl or not? A simple fuckin’ question only needs a simple fuckin’ answer.”

“If that’s what she wants but need some guarantees first.”

But was that what she wanted? Or was she being forced into this? Or did she make up her mind in the time between their discussion in his motel room and sitting down to dinner?

“She tell you that?”

Shade turned to look at him. “You fucked up her life. You gotta fix that shit.”

“Becomin’ my ol’ lady’s gonna fix that?”

“It better,” Shade answered.

He had no fucking clue how that would work. He guessed he’d figure it out.

Or be stuck with a woman bitter about being stuck with him.

Like a goddamn arranged marriage.

Ice slithered down his spine.

He tried to swallow but it was close to impossible.

It was happening. His bachelor days were coming to an end. He’d no longer be able to smash and dash.

“Already can guess what those guarantees are,” Trip said impatiently, “so let me get to them so we can get the fuck outta here…” He met Romeo’s eyes. “Gonna keep your dick in your pants? No sweet butts, no hang-arounds, no randoms?”

“Hope to.”

Someone made a loud buzzing noise. “Wrong fuckin’ answer.”

Judge.

“What’s it to you?” he asked the club’s sergeant at arms.

“Musta missed the part where Maddie belongs to us. Not you. Unless we hear the answers we wanna hear and,” Judge circled his finger around the group, “we say she can.”

“Get that you wanna protect her…”

“From womanizers like you,” Shade said quietly.

Both Deacon and Ozzy snorted.

“Gonna tell you guys somethin’ I ain’t told anyone. Know I got a reputation. Know that reputation was true. But…” He pulled in a breath. “Ain’t been with any other woman since runnin’ into her.”

The silence was deafening until Shade asked, “Not even a sweet butt?”

“No.”

“She know that?”

“No.”

“You plannin’ on tellin’ her?”

That would probably be a good fucking idea.