he teased. His truck had been totaled in the blast, and he was thinking about purchasing something similar to what Steele had bought LuLu.
Sage bounded to her feet and raced for the bathroom. “Eww, no Cube car! Give me five minutes to get ready!” Ax smiled.
“I wanted to commend each and every one of you for stepping up. It has been a long time since the club has been this cohesive and worked so seamlessly together. I am proud to be your leader, and even more so to call you my brothers.” Cheers erupted around the room. “That being said, we still have shit to deal with, the most important issue being Montana. Chopper, have you heard from her?” Steele asked.
Chopper shook his head. “No, and she hasn’t called her momma and brothers either, which is unlike her.”
Steele’s gaze moved to Ink. “Anything?”
“Nothing,” Ink growled. He was clearly pissed.
Steele frowned. “She didn’t just disappear into thin air. Something must have spooked her. Buck, talk to Grover. See what you two can find. If need be, I’ll get Martin on it.”
“What if she doesn’t want to be found?” Taz interjected.
“Then she can tell us that with her own damn mouth,” Ink snapped. “Fuck it, I’m going after her.”
“That’s stupid. You have no idea where to look,” Taz retorted.
Steele held up his hand, and the conversation halted. “No one’s going anywhere until we have a lead.” His eyes on Ink, he asked, “Are we clear?” Ink conceded with a nod. “Good. Next item up for discussion is Art. His parents want to have a private burial in Wyoming. I was thinking we could do something low key here, like we did for Hannah.”
“Pizza,” Taz said.
Sledge nodded. “He loved pizza. We could order from that place in town that makes the good garlic crust.”
“Pie Hole,” Ink said.
“Pizza it is. Since Thursday is Thanksgiving, why don’t we do it Saturday,” Steele suggested.
Arson rubbed his hands together. “That’ll give me enough time to make a special brew. Instead of pumpkin, I’ll use butternut squash. It’ll still have that sweet taste of pumpkin but with more of a nutty taste. I can’t believe no one has done that before. It’s gonna be great!”
Everyone groaned simultaneously.
Chapter Twenty-Five
“NEXT ON THE agenda is the salon.” Steele’s eyes cut to Ax.
“Sage and I were there yesterday. The back of the place looks good, but the front needs a complete overhaul. If we get Darnell on board, we could be back to operational in a few weeks,” Ax said.
Darnell owned a construction business. The club sent him a shit pile of work and he owed them.
Steele nodded. “I’ll talk to Darnell.” Easing back in his chair, he thrummed his fingers across the table. “We have one more thing to discuss.” The room tensed. This is it, Ax thought. “In case you didn’t know, my wife is pregnant.” Smiling at the catcalls, he continued, “Our son is due to arrive in less than twelve weeks.”
Cheers rang out, followed by fists on the table and chants of, “Boy, boy, boy.”
Ax was fucking thrilled for Steele. He was going to be an uncle.
Steele held up his hand and the noise subsided. “I didn’t get to know my father until I was a man. I don’t want that for my son or any of my kids, but that’s what will happen if I keep going at it alone. I need a VP—someone who’ll have my back and the club’s best interests. This will be your vote, but it’s mine, too.”
“I nominate myself,” Ink said.
“How narcissistic of you,” Ax drawled. “I thought you were going after Montana?” Ink shot him a dirty look, and he gave him a wink.
“I nominate Ax,” Sledge called out.
Ax gave him a nod. Now we’re talking.
“I second it,” Taz said.
“You don’t want to throw your hat in the ring?” Steele asked.
“Naw, I got kids and shit. Plus, I’m thinking about getting into the cannabis business,” Taz replied.
Ink laughed. “Dealing or smoking it?” The room broke into laughter.
“Ha-ha,” Taz mocked. “I want to grow it for medicinal purposes.”
“Lucrative,” Arson said.
Chopper snorted. “Where are you gonna do that? I’ve been to your house and hate to say it, but your backyard is kinda small.”
Taz looked at Steele. “I was thinking that maybe the club could go in with me and we could use the back field.”
Ax knew zilch about growing cannabis, but he knew Arson was right in that it could be lucrative.
“Get me information,” Steele told Taz before turning his attention back