Playboy (Royal Bastards MC: Sacramento, CA) Read online

  “Who is that?” a woman called in the background.

  “Leona!” I gasped.

  Leona shrieked.

  Holy cow. Tonight was full of surprises. I had been trying to get out of Leona what had happened with Barracuda, but she was like a steel trap. Not telling me a single thing. Obviously, things had worked out pretty well seeing as she was with him in the middle of the night.

  “Quiet, woman,” Barracuda grunted. “What the fuck are you calling me for, Playboy?”

  “Billie Jean just called Raelyn,” Playboy replied.

  “Holy fuck. Hell of a time to call.”

  I agreed, but I was just happy she had called me finally. I hadn’t heard my sister's voice in over a week.

  “She doesn’t know where she is but—”

  “But she said she messed up and got in deep with Chester. Mac took her.”

  “Jester,” Playboy corrected me.

  Whoops. “Jester. And she doesn’t know where she is but she saw a guy with a Double Rebels cut thing on.”

  “Devil’s Rebels,” Playboy corrected me again.

  “For Pete’s sake, woman. Try to get the details right,” Barracuda grunted.

  I was just a tad bit excited.

  “You’re doing great, Raelyn,” Leona called.

  “Anything else?” Barracuda asked.

  I shook my head.

  Playboy smirked at me. “No,” he said out loud.

  “This is a lot of shit to pile on me at two o’clock in the morning.” Barracuda sighed. “Get your ass here in the morning, and we’ll try to make heads and tails of all of this. We’re gonna have to see if we can find Jester and figure out who the hell Mac was. I’m assuming neither of them are going to be easy to find.”

  “Oh,” I interrupted. “She said she was fine right now but she didn’t know for how long that would be.”

  “We’ll find him. You and I both know that fucker can’t stay hidden forever.” Playboy reached out and laced his fingers through mine.

  “True. Get some sleep, and we’ll get this shit sorted tomorrow.” The call ended, and Playboy tossed his phone on the coffee table.

  “That’s it?” I asked. “We’re not doing anything?”

  We needed to go now. Barracuda needed to get his butt out of bed and gather the troops. This is what we had been waiting for and nothing was going to happen until morning? Adrenaline coursed through my veins. Let’s go!

  “It’s the middle of the night, Raelyn. We gotta at least wait until the sun rises.”

  But what if something happened to Billie Jean before then? “It sounded like someone walked in on her when I was talking. She ended the call quickly.”

  “She told you she was fine, right?”

  I nodded.

  “So if she’s fine now, we can at least wait until the sun rises,” Playboy reasoned.

  “How am I supposed to wait?” I demanded.

  “It’s the middle of the night, Raelyn. You need to get some sleep so you’re ready for tomorrow.”

  “It’s tomorrow right now,” I countered.

  Playboy ran his fingers through his hair. He looked tired. Really tired. “Raelyn,” he groaned.

  I folded my arms over my chest. “Fine. You can sleep.”

  “We’re both going to sleep.”

  Fat chance of that. No way I was going to be able to sleep now. “You go to bed. I’ll just wait.”

  “For what?”

  “The sun to rise.”

  Playboy shook his head. “You’re a nut.” He stood up, leaned over me, pushed me back into the couch, and then lifted me up into his arms. “You don’t have to sleep, but you’re gonna be next to me while I sleep.”

  “That’s ridiculous,” I protested.

  “So is staying awake all night,” he countered. He flipped off the lights on the way to the bedroom, and I crossed my arms over my chest. I was not happy having to go to bed after finding out Billie Jean was in trouble. He was right about us not being able to do much now, but going to sleep didn’t seem like the right thing either.

  He laid me in the middle of the bed and pulled the covers over me. “Stay.” He walked into the bathroom, and I flopped back on the bed.

  A minute later, the toilet flushed, the water in the sink ran, he flipped off the light, and then he was in bed with me.

  “I’m not happy about this.” I needed to say it out loud. I was sure he could figure that out, but I wanted it to be perfectly clear.

  “Got that, pretty girl.” He gathered me in his arms, and I laid my head on his chest. “Just try to keep still so I can get a couple hours of shuteye before you take off in the sunrise to rescue your sister.”

  “You get two hours. That’s it.” No more.

  Playboy lightly stroked my bare arm and hummed softly. “Stop talking.”

  I scoffed. “How rude.”

  “You want me to be rested to rescue your sister or dead on my feet? It was a long night at the club tonight, Raelyn. All I wanted to do was fall into bed with you and sleep until noon.” He grunted and pulled me close. “Now I’ll be lucky if you let me sleep past six.”

  Well. I guess I could shut up and let him sleep. “Sorry,” I muttered.

  “You’re fine, Raelyn. I know you’re excited. Just give me two hours, yeah?”

  “Yeah,” I whispered. I settled into his arms and listened to the sound of his breathing.

  I had thought I wouldn’t be able to sleep but with the dark room, Playboy pressed against me, and the soothing sound of his steady breaths, I drifted off within minutes.

  Billie Jean may not be home yet, but just knowing that she was still alive and I had talked to her gave me a sense of relief. We were far from being past all of this, but I knew the end was in sight.

  It had felt like ages since I had seen Billie Jean, but I knew she would be back soon.

  I slept better than I had in over a week.

  Billie Jean was coming home.

  *

  Chapter Fourteen

  Playboy

  A different world…

  “What is this?”

  Raelyn handed me a black thermos. “Coffee. We don’t have time to sit here and drink it.”

  I grabbed the thermos. “Pretty girl, you’re starting to be crazy again.”

  She rolled her eyes and grabbed her keys off the counter. “You know that it’s seven-thirty, right? I let you sleep way longer than I said I would.”

  Five hours. Not exactly the desired amount I had in mind when I pulled into her driveway last night. And for the record, I had woken up before Raelyn.

  Raelyn stood by the front door and tapped her foot.

  I grabbed my sunglasses off the kitchen counter and pulled my keys out of my pocket. “We’re taking the bike.”

  “Fine. But I need my keys to get back in the house.”

  I grabbed her keys and shoved them in my pocket. “Once this shit is over, you’re giving me a copy of your key.”

  She opened the door and motioned for me to move. “Fine by me.” She pulled the door shut behind us, locked it, and stalked over to my bike.

  “I see you’re hopped up on adrenaline again.” I threw my leg over the bike, and she was on behind me before I set my ass down.

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she muttered.

  I handed her the thermos. “Hold that since you won’t let me enjoy my coffee.”

  She grabbed the thermos and wedged it between us. “Drive, biker man.”

  I rolled my eyes and pulled my sunglasses over them. “You know, you could be a little nicer to me this morning.”

  She wrapped her arms around me and rested her chin on my shoulder. “Sorry,” she whispered. “Apparently adrenaline puts me on edge a touch.”

  “Just a touch,” I laughed. I cranked the bike up, walked it back, and pulled out of the driveway.

  We were at the clubhouse ten minutes later, and Raelyn clamored to get off the bike. I grabbed her hand before she ran in g
uns blazing.

  “Playboy,” she protested. “Would you let me go?”

  I wrapped her in my arms and pulled her close. “Gotta talk to you for a second, pretty girl.”

  She growled and bared her teeth.

  “Walking through that door is a whole different world, you get me? You can’t talk to Barracuda like you are to me.” She was pushing her luck with me, but I cared about Raelyn. I understood she was feeling a lot of shit right now.

  Barracuda was not going to be as understanding.

  “We have to get to Billie Jean,” she insisted.

  “And we will,” I reassured her. “But you gotta understand that when we walk through that door, Barracuda is calling the shots and you might not be a part of everything.”

  “What are you talking about? She’s my sister. Of course I’ll be a part of everything.”

  Jesus. Raelyn was not going to like what I had to say. “We walk in there, and Barracuda calls church. Your ass is not going to be able to sit with me.”

  “That’s crazy, Playboy. She called me. She talked to me.”

  “You’re right, pretty girl, but you need the Royal Bastards and you’re not part of the club. You’ve been lucky to hear things that most people never would. That night at the club when Barracuda sat around with you and Leona? That shit rarely ever happens. I know you think it’s all talk, but I mean it when I say walking through those doors is a different world from the one you live in.”

  “I need to know what is happening, Playboy. She’s my sister,” Raelyn pleaded.

  I ran my fingers through my hair. “The men your sister is roped into are not good, Raelyn. They don’t think twice before killing someone.”

  The Royal Bastards were the same. That was the reason why Billie Jean had told Raelyn to get us. She understood the type of world she was in and knew the only way out was to bring in the Bastards.

  “You’re scaring me, Playboy.” Her eyes were large, and she bit her bottom lip.

  Good. That was going to be the thing for her to slow her roll and let the Royal Bastards handle things. “Take my lead on this, Raelyn. You’re gonna have to trust me and believe that I’m going to do everything I can get to get Billie Jean, okay?”

  She sighed and nodded. “Fine. But I don’t like the fact you’re gonna boot me from the room because I’m not part of the club.”

  “Ask any MC, pretty girl, and they’ll laugh in your face if you ask them to sit in on church.”

  She rolled her eyes. “Whatever. This is going to be the only time where I’m gonna be involved in stuff like this. You get Billie Jean back, and I’m gonna make her sit her ass home to knit scarves and baby booties.”

  I didn’t know Billie Jean as well as Raelyn did but I knew for damn sure that she would never in a million years sit around knitting.

  “You’re dreaming, pretty girl.”

  She rolled her eyes again. The sass was damn strong with her today. “You think we can go inside now so you and your badass friends can save my sister?”

  “That’s the plan.” I pressed a quick kiss to her lips. “And try to keep a cap on the sass,” I whispered against her lips. I threaded my fingers through hers and pulled her toward the clubhouse.

  “This place looks a hell of a lot different in the sunlight,” she muttered.

  The clubhouse really wasn’t much to look at. A large brick building that didn’t reveal what was inside. The row of motorcycles out front hinted about what it was, but other than a small sign with the club’s patch next to the door, there wasn’t anything else.

  “You want a huge light up arrow pointing at the door announcing what it is?” I laughed. “Be glad it’s semi clean and doesn’t smell like ass.”

  Raelyn wrinkled her nose. “I suppose you’re right. I can only imagine how many guys call this place home.”

  “About half. Some of the guys have their own places.”

  “Do you?”

  I shook my head and pulled open the door. “Nope. The club is my life. Everything I need is right here.”

  “Is that so?’ she muttered.

  “You’re here right now so I can say that.”

  “Smooth,” she whispered and patted my chest. “Next you’re gonna tell me you were a celibate saint before you met me.”

  “Uh, well, I would try to lie but the name kind of gives away my past.” The door closed behind us. All of the guys were scattered around the common room.

  “As long as that stays in your past, I’ll be fine.”

  “That’s all in the past, pretty girl.”

  “Keep it that way.”

  “Raelyn!”

  Great. Leona was still here. How she had managed to get Barracuda in her grasp was beyond me.

  She pulled Raelyn away from me and folded her into a huge hug. “I can’t believe she actually called you,” she yelled.

  It was way too early for this. I managed to grab the thermos of coffee from Raelyn and headed to the bar. I was going to need a little bit of something extra in my coffee.

  Jet, Monk, and Barracuda sat at the bar each with cups of steaming coffee in front of them.

  “You need a little something extra in there?” Monk asked me. He grabbed a bottle of bourbon and set it on the bar.

  “Read my mind.” I pulled the cork and poured a healthy glug into the thermos. I took a sip and winced. “Now that’ll put some hair on your chest.”

  I leaned against the bar and watched Leona fuss over Raelyn.

  “Still can’t believe you’re bedding her and she doesn’t talk your ear off.”

  Barracuda grunted. “I have my ways of silencing her.”

  We watched Leona and Raelyn for a couple of minutes before Barracuda bellowed, “Church!”

  Hell. Raelyn was not going to be happy. She wasn’t going to be able to hear anything.

  The guys filed down the hallway, and I lingered behind.

  “Playboy,” Raelyn whined. “Are you sure you can’t sneak me in or something?”

  I shook my head. “It’s better this way, pretty girl. You don’t need to worry about anything. We’ll figure out how to get Billie Jean back, and you can just hang out with Leona.”

  Leona snapped her gum and smiled. “I know where they hide the good booze, babe. Stick with me. It’ll be a hell of a lot more fun than stodgy church.”

  Raelyn wrinkled her nose. “You do know that it’s not an actual church, right?”

  Leona flitted her hand. “Don’t really care what it is. Sounds boring.” She flopped down on the couch and grabbed the remote.

  “Just hang out here, and I’ll be out as soon as I can.”

  Raelyn huffed, but she didn't protest anymore. She leaned up on her tiptoes and popped a kiss to my lips. “I trust you, Playboy. Just bring my sister home and make sure you come back with her.”

  I wrapped an arm around her and pulled her close. “I’ll always come back to you, pretty girl.” I pressed one last kiss against her lips.

  “I think you two have to be the record for falling in love,” Leona called. “I mean, really. It’s like you two have known each other for forever.”

  Raelyn rolled her eyes and pressed her forehead to mine. “She said she spiked her coffee. It’s barely eight o’clock, Playboy. I’m pretty sure by the time your meeting is over, she’ll be passed out.”

  “Well, tell her welcome to the club.” I held up my thermos. “So did I and a few of the other guys.”

  Raelyn grabbed the thermos and shook her head. “That is not the reason why I gave you a huge thermos. This is supposed to keep you energized, not get you drunk off your butt.” She raised it to her nose and took a whiff. “Sweet jesus, Playboy. How much did you put in here?”

  I held up my fingers two inches apart. “Just a bit.”

  She pointed to the hallway the guys had walked down. “You can have this back after you figure out how to save my sister.”

  “Your sass is getting pretty bold,” I warned.

  She flounced ove
r to the couch and sat next to Leona. “You like it,” she called.

  She was damn right about that.

  I did like it. And I was also going to like trying to work it out of her in the bedroom when this was all over.

  The good thing was I knew nothing was going to take away Raelyn’s sass, but pretending like I needed to fuck it out of her was going to be fun.

  *

  Raelyn

  Leona and I stared at each other.

  “We’re both gonna yell at each other, yeah?”

  I nodded. “Though I think mine is just more wanting to know what you are doing.”

  She rolled her eyes. “Having fun? Getting in my kicks when I can get them? Pretty sure we’re doing the same thing.”

  Was I having fun? Yeah. But I was doing a whole hell of a lot more than that.

  She eyed me knowingly. “Except you’re in it a whole of a lot deeper than I am.”

  Damn. I hated that Leona knew me so well. Anyone else I could have sat there and agreed that I was having fun with Playboy and not catching feelings for him. Leona knew just by looking at me that I was in it good.

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  Leona silenced the TV. She turned toward me and pressed a knee into the couch. “I don’t blame you, honey. I can see the way that man looks at you. He’s in it for more than fun, too. Hell, he might be into it more than you are at the moment. I peeked out the window and saw him talking to you before you walked in. Treating you like you're a fragile package.”

  “He’s not doing that.”

  She tipped her head to the side and pursed her lips. “You must be walking around with your eyes shut if you’re gonna try to deny that he’s looking at you with some major puppy dog eyes.”

  I wouldn’t go that far. “Can we stop talking about this?”

  She shook her head.

  “I think there are some other things we should be talking about. I think we should focus on Billie Jean.” Anything other than Playboy and me.

  “Barracuda and the Royal Bastards are taking care of Billie Jean. You'd be foolish to sit there and worry she wasn’t coming back home. You know she’s alive, and there’s a room full of badass men who are willing to do anything to get her back.”