“He called for it. But we all voted on it. And you said aye, Core. So did I. We gotta live with that. But we don’t gotta do that processin’ it.”
Core gave him a close look. “You should bring Janna to the clubhouse, we party, Beck.”
Starting how he started, then going to that, was he insane?
“I’m not bringin’ another woman near that club until I know the club is tight and the woman is tight,” he returned.
“I get you,” he mumbled.
Beck didn’t care he got him.
“We done?”
They weren’t, and Hardcore wasn’t close to finished laying it out.
“Janna okay?” he asked.
“She’s my business, not yours.”
“Just sayin’, you need anything, brother.” It was an offer.
This was him reaching out.
Beck wished Core had reached out before.
Beck wished he’d reached out to Core before.
Maybe he wasn’t the only one learning lessons.
Even so . . .
“Last time you were with a woman of mine, that didn’t go too good, so no offense, Core, but I wouldn’t wait for me to call.”
“Yeah,” Core looked off into the distance. “I get you.”
Jesus.
He felt the mantle of shame for what was done to Rose suffocating him, he didn’t need his brother to lay his guilt on him.
Core looked back at him. “Web ain’t young and he held the gavel when all that shit went down. It happened on his watch and—”
“One,” Beck cut him off, “seems you’re a big fan of layin’ blame elsewhere that rests on all our shoulders, brother. Two, you got problems with leadership, you bring them to the table, not tail me to a parking lot to scheme some fucked-up mutiny.”
“I’d tell Web this to his face,” Core ground out.
“Then why you tellin’ it to me?”
“Because I think you should be president, and I’m not alone. Muzzle, Eight and Grill agree. This shit has worn Web out. He feels it. You can see that every time he sits the table. He was our leader when that went down, and if you’d let me finish what I was sayin’, I feel it for him. We all went along for the ride, but you sit in his chair, it’s gonna lay heavier on you. Think he’s good to hand over the gavel once we got our new charter sorted. And I want you to think about taking it when he does.”
Beck stared at him.
“Once the club is solid, we can make him Chaplain. He’d dig that,” Hardcore continued.
Beck said nothing.
“Just think on it, brother. We fucked up, and we were fallin’ apart. But you’re a big part of what kept us together, even after you took the hit of losin’ Rosalie the way we made it so that happened. That loyalty has not been missed. So just think. Yeah?”
“Yeah,” Beck grunted.
“Seriously beautiful, you goin’ the extra mile to answer questions none of us thought to ask and ousting Digger and Pacino. They were both patched in before our time, and I do not get how that happened. Pacino was just a nuisance, but he was a big one. Digger,” he gave an impressive, fake, full-torso shiver, “that guy’s never been right. He did that porn girl, I would not be surprised. Kiki fuckin’ hated him. Took a lot not to go out and buy champagne, we saw the back of him.”
Hardcore grinned a grin that Rosalie used to call his Hollywood smile and Beck never got that, but now he was seeing the guy was pretty good looking.
“And I fuckin’ hate champagne,” he finished.
Core lifted a fist and Beck automatically lifted his.
They bumped them, then hooked thumbs, wrapped fingers around and held tight before they let go.
It wasn’t a secret handshake.
But all of Bounty did that.
He hadn’t done it in a long fucking time.
You asked him five minutes ago if he’d missed it, he would have said no.
Now, honestly, he’d have to take a second to think.
“Bring Janna around,” Core said quietly. “We’d like to meet her and not why you’d think. Just be good to have some decent babes around for a change.”
With that, he jerked up his chin, fired up his bike and took off.
Beck looked forward and sat there, staring at the empty spot in front of him for a minute before he did the same.
Spooked by the tail, he didn’t pull off and call Lucas.
Seeing as she was out, he’d call the man when he got to Janna’s.
And when she got home, he’d try to pull info about her dream out of her.