much Talon might want it and how much Anna would want him to have his birthday wish.
“Not to mention Arrow,” I add, picking up my fork.
“Bring them, then,” Talon says, dipping a fry into his mayonnaise. “If they can manage to keep their fists to themselves, I’ll make sure my men do the same.”
Anna puffs out a breath and looks down at her plate. “You’re asking the impossible this time, Talon.”
“Try” is all he replies. “Sneak out if you have to. Come on, Anna, you’ve done it before.”
“And look how that ended,” she replies dryly.
“Kill anyone who tries to touch you,” he says so casually that it makes me feel a little uncomfortable.
Anna glances up at me. “Let’s talk about this later; we’re being rude to Bailey.”
“Bailey is coming with you, so she can pipe up any time she likes,” he says, winking at me again.
“Hey, don’t bring me into this,” I say. “I’m going to pretend this whole conversation never happened.”
“Good idea,” Anna says, strength in her voice. “We’re not going, and that’s final.”
* * *
“I can’t believe you’re making me do this!” I growl at Anna a week later.
“We’ll just stop by for an hour and that’s it! The men will never find out; they’ll just think we’re having dinner and drinks,” Anna says, sounding like she believes what she’s saying, even though I know shit’s going to happen tonight. The only reason I’m going is because otherwise she said she’ll go alone, and I can’t let her do that, nor can I be a snitch and tell the men of her plan. Basically, I’m damned if I do and I’m damned if I don’t. At least this way I get to keep an eye on her and hope that we can pull this off and both end up home safely without starting an MC war.
“They’re so going to find out,” I tell her grumpily, staring out the window. “Rake’s going to kill me. I just know it.”
“Don’t think about it,” Anna says, putting the volume up on the music. “Let’s just have a good night and we’ll both pull this off. Don’t worry so much, Bailey.”
Don’t worry?
I listen to “No Love” by August Alsina and Nicki Minaj while contemplating whether Anna is crazy or not. She has to be, of course, to think we’re going to get away with our plan tonight. I place my hands on my thighs and wonder, for the tenth time, if I chose the right outfit. I went with black skinny jeans and a black top that isn’t revealing at all but still looks good on me. I don’t want to get any attention from the Wild Men bikers, but I don’t want to look like shit either. My hair’s up in a high ponytail and I have a little makeup on, a natural look. Anna is dressed similarly, in jeans and a red top, with her hair down and dead straight, her makeup a little heavier. We soon pull up to the clubhouse, and Anna parks out front, a little away from everyone else.
“Easy access to get out of here, don’t you think?” she asks, getting out of the car and waiting for me. I count to ten in my head, then get out, pulling at the hem of my top.
“Let’s do this and leave,” I grumble as she slides her arm in mine and leads me to the entrance. The man standing there eyes us warily.
“Talon’s expecting us,” Anna says, sounding confident.
The man nods. “Anna and Bailey?”
“Yeah,” she replies. “Where is he?”
“Go straight, then turn right,” the man replies. “You’ll hear them, don’t worry.”
Anna and I share a look before we walk into forbidden territory.
“It’s a lot less scary than I remember it,” she says, following the noise of the men, hollering and cheering.
“It’s so weird being here,” I whisper, coming to a stop when I see Talon and his men. They’re standing next to a pool table, playing . . . beer pong?
“I didn’t expect this,” Anna says, taking the words right out of my mouth.
“Anna! Bailey!” Talon cheers, throwing the Ping-Pong ball to one of his men and coming straight over to us. “You made it.”
He wraps us both in his arms, pressing our faces to his chest. He smells good. Really good. He turns around, both of us still in his hold.
“Happy birthday, Talon,” Anna says, handing him the small gift we got him. I wish him well too, and he kisses my cheek.