Sinner's Creed (Sinner's Creed #1)(75)
“Dirk,” Jimbo calls out, and I turn to find him pulling something from his vest. I walk back and take the black bag from his hand. “Ain’t a man here that loves this club more than you. I brought these with me, figured today was just as good a day as any.” I look down at the bag, knowing what is on the inside of it. I remember the feeling of completion the day this bag was handed to me. This isn’t just fabric. It’s not just thread woven together to create a design. It’s not something you wear on weekends or something you do for fun. It’s a lifestyle. A passion. A love for something bigger than yourself. It’s proof that you are a part of that 1 percent that differs from everyone else.
“Rookie!” The thunder from my voice is loud and carries across the yard. Silence descends, and I stuff the bag in my cut before turning to find a wide-eyed Rookie staring at me. I could give him a hard time. I could drag this out. I could make him do stupid shit to prove that his pride still belongs to the club. But my emotions aren’t where they usually are. And I’m pretty sure the woman laying in my bed is responsible for that. I’ll have to remember to tell Rookie to thank her.
The crowd has gathered and word has already spread. Everyone here knows what’s fixing to happen. Everyone but Rookie.
“There are three things a patch holder doesn’t do. What are they?” I ask, my death glare on him making his hands shake and his brain kick into overdrive, trying like hell to remember anything he might have done to f*ck up. Okay, so maybe my emotions aren’t that f*cked up. I could still be a dick.
“Lie to a brother. Steal from a brother. Disrespect a brother.”
“What is Sinner’s Creed?”
“It’s the life of a man willing to sacrifice himself for his club. It’s the blood that flows through my veins, the steady beat of my heart, and the reassurance that I’m never alone. It’s loyalty at any cost, love in all forms, and respect in the highest. It’s what I was born for. What I’ll die for and what I want to be.” His lines are rehearsed, but they are sincere.
“It’s not what you want to be.” I let the confusion sit on his face for a minute before throwing him the bag beneath my cut. “Sinner’s Creed is who you are.” And just like that, a soldier is born.
20
LATER THAT NIGHT, after everyone leaves, I’m just before dozing off on the couch when I hear the bedroom door open. Moments later, Saylor appears looking well rested and f*cking breathtaking wearing my shirt.
“Are we alone?”
“Finally,” I answer, and she walks over to where I am on the couch and curls up in my lap. “Feel better?” I ask, running my hand under her shirt and panties so I can grab her ass.
“Yes. I’m starving and thirsty and stinky, but I feel better,” she says, her face buried in the crook of my neck. I put my nose to her shoulder and breathe in, thinking she is anything but stinky. “Well, don’t sniff me!” She laughs, and I realize it’s the first time I’ve heard it today.
“I like when you laugh,” I tell her, thinking of all the things I could do to make her not stop. I’ve never tickled anyone, but I’m sure I could.
“I like when you laugh,” she says, mirroring my words. I fake a laugh, and she laughs again. “A real laugh.”
“That was real,” I lie, and she laughs again. Hell, maybe I should lie more too.
“I want to go riding tomorrow and have a picnic,” she tells me, sitting up and straddling my waist so I can look at her. I smile at her. It’s real and easy and it feels good. I move an unruly curl of hair that hangs over her eye, before telling her words that I will be saying a lot for the next six months.
“Whatever you want.”
—
Thanksgiving morning I wake up to the realization that time is flying by. It’s been two weeks since Roach’s passing, yet it seems like it was only yesterday. Saylor is already in the kitchen, preparing a feast for the club. I told her we could just invite a few people, but she insisted that we invite our whole family. I like that she sees my club as her family too.
Saylor has managed to make connections with a few of the ones I am closest to, who visit most often. Jimbo comes every Sunday, and he and Saylor play cards before he and I sit down to discuss club business, which there isn’t a whole lot of. Or maybe he doesn’t want me informed, considering, right now, I’m inactive.
Shady comes over almost every day and eats at least one of Saylor’s meals. Sometimes he stays for two. The club has him here working, so he can keep Nationals more informed of the Death Mob situation. I know the real reason is because I’m here and they think I need him right now. Hell, maybe I do.
The club has kept me in the dark about everything where Death Mob is concerned. But Shady gave me his word that if they made a move, he would be two steps ahead of them. He seemed confident that whatever they offered them to keep me around a little longer was working. I just hoped it wasn’t something that could come back and hurt the club after my time was up.
Rookie’s been transferred up here temporarily. I know that’s because of me too. When I asked him what Carrie thought about it, he said she flies up to spend her days off with him. Saylor overheard the conversation and got her feelings hurt that she hadn’t met her. This, in turn, had me pissed at Rookie. I didn’t like Saylor getting upset.