Primal Fury (Primal Howlers MC Book 5) Read online

  It gave me time to take her in. She wore dark blue skinny jeans, a red hoodie that was unzipped slightly to reveal a low-cut T-shirt underneath. On her feet were a pair of red low-rise go-go boots that looked like something out of the sixties. Her dark hair was pulled into a high ponytail, and it meant I got to see all of her gorgeous face. Almond-shaped eyes, full lips, and a smattering of freckles over her nose made me want to paint by numbers and see what I came up with.

  Jesus.

  Since she didn’t seem to be gathering the courage to approach me, I went to her. “You Indigo?”

  She nodded, taking a deep breath, and squaring her shoulders. “Did you hurt Leo?”

  “Not yet.”

  Her eyes narrowed but that was the only indication she might be irritated. “Can I talk to him, please?”

  “In a minute.”

  Her eyes met mine again and she looked both terrified and obstinate. “I’d like to speak with Leo now. If you don’t allow me to do that, I’ll call the police.”

  I glanced over my shoulder at my brothers and smiled. “She’s gonna call the police if we don’t let her talk to Dipshit.”

  “Well, you better let her do that then,” Wrath lobbed back. “Don’t want her to call the po-leeeece.”

  Indigo glared at me, still obviously scared shitless, yet willing to put herself in perceived peril in order to get to Leon.

  My brothers separated slightly so Leon and his friend were visible, and Indigo let out a quiet, “Goddammit.”

  I raised my eyebrows and faced the delinquents.

  Leon stepped toward her, but Wrath slapped a hand on his shoulder.

  “Indy—” Leon started.

  “Shut it,” she growled, cutting the kid off.

  “It was—”

  She raised her hand. “I said, shut it, Leo, and I mean shut it.”

  “I—”

  “Oh my god, kid, you need to shut your mouth,” she snapped. “Chucky was off-limits.”

  “Chucky?” I asked, biting back a laugh. “Like the fuckin’ doll? Oh, shit. That’s even better than Pissface.”

  “Fuck you,” Chucky bit out and received a slap upside the head from my VP. “Ow!”

  “Get in the car, Leo,” Indigo ordered, then focused on me. “I’m very sorry. I will pay for any damage Leon did your motorbike.”

  “My motorbike?”

  Her cheeks pinked. “Yes. Ah… your motorcycle.”

  “He didn’t do any damage.”

  “We’ll just be on our way, then.” She let out a quiet breath and nodded. “Leo. Car. Now.”

  “Yeah, that doesn’t really fly, beautiful,” I countered, and I saw her shudder.

  “If no damage was done, then there’s no reason to hold Leo,” she said. “We’re going to go now.”

  “Leon and his friend aren’t goin’ anywhere.”

  “I’ll call the police and see what they have to say,” she threatened.

  “The police aren’t gonna do shit, babe,” I said.

  Her face hardened. “You can keep Chucky, but Leon is coming with me.”

  “Is that so?” I challenged.

  “Enough, brother,” Sundance said.

  I sighed. He was right, I was intentionally scaring her, and I needed to stop, but I liked that this woman wasn’t backing down. She was scared, but she was still pushing through that fear to stand up to me. “You can take him, but he’s gonna need to make amends.”

  “How exactly is he going to do that?” she asked, her expression softening, ever so slightly.

  “He’s gonna come work at my shop. I’ve got a pile of junk in the back that needs sorting, and the toilets could use a good scrubbing.”

  “What shop?” she asked.

  “Potion.”

  “Fuck, yeah,” Leo hissed.

  She jabbed a finger toward him. “First of all, clean up your language. Second. This is a punishment. Not a reward.”

  Leo had the sense to lower his head in contrition, but he did it smiling.

  “What kind of auto shop is called Potion?” Indigo asked.

  “Tattoo,” I corrected, and Leon groaned, rolling his eyes at her ignorance.

  “I suppose your tattoo parlor is downtown, right?” she asked.

  “Parlor?” Rocky coughed out.

  I smirked. “Shop, but yeah, I’m downtown.”

  “I need to do a background check on your par…er…shop first.”

  I shrugged. “Have at it.”

  “He has to go to school,” she continued. “That’s the priority.”

  I nodded. “Yeah, if he misses school, he’ll clean the shitter with a toothbrush.”

  Leo’s face scrunched up in horror which made Indigo smile slightly. Jesus, she was pretty.

  “If everything checks out, what time do you want him there tomorrow?” she asked.

  Leo crossed his arms. “But I have—”

  “Shut it, Leon,” she said. “You’re grounded.”

  “You can’t ground me, you’re not my mother.”

  I didn’t miss the second of hurt that flashed over her face, but she hid it quickly and focused on me again. “Never mind, you can keep him.”

  She turned and walked toward her car.

  “Fuck,” Leon hissed, and rushed to catch up. “Wait! Indy, I’m sorry.”

  Indigo said nothing as she climbed into her car and slammed the door closed. Leon scrambled to climb in beside her as she cranked her engine.

  The squeal of the fanbelt was louder than before, and I frowned. Someone really needed to look at that, but I didn’t have a lot of time to ponder that fact as her car limped out of the parking lot and onto the street.

  Indigo

  My terror was warring with both my anger at Leon, and my relief to be away from the Primal Howlers’ gang. They were notorious in the area, and not people you wanted to run up against.

  “Of all the people to fuck with, Leo, you pick one that happens to be a member of one of the worst motorcycle gangs in the state?”

  “I know. I’m sorry. It was Chucky’s idea.”

  “How long are you going to use that excuse?” I hissed. “At some point, you have to decide if you’re going to be a man… a good man, or you’re going to be like Chucky. You’re on my last nerve, punk, and I honestly don’t know why I keep giving you chances.”

  “Because of my good looks and winning personality?”

  I sighed, glancing at him before focusing back on the road. “There are currently ninety-seven kids on the wait list for your bed, Leo. Give me one reason why I don’t send you back into the system and find you a foster family?”

  “Because I promise I’ll tell Chucky to fuck off next time.”

  “You said that last time,” I pointed out.

  “Please don’t send me back,” he begged, touching the tips of his fingers together like he did when he was nervous. “I swear I’ll do better.”

  I narrowed my eyes. “One more chance.”

  “Thanks, Indy.” He slid his hands into his jacket pocket and swore.

  “What now?” I bit out.

  “That guy still has my phone.”

  “When you get it back from him you can hand it straight over to me. I meant it when I said you’re grounded.”

  “I know,” he grumbled, then brightened a bit. “Are you really gonna let me work at Potion?”

  Several of the older kids at Walker House were obsessed with tattoos and were counting down the days until they turned eighteen so they could get their first ‘ink.’ They knew the names of all the top artists around the world and followed their careers the same way other kids followed athletes and musicians.

  I was quick to remind them that tattoos cost money. Money that first needed to be earned, then used on essentials like food, rent, utilities, and the rest put into savings. Once a surplus in savings occurred, things like tattoos, concert tickets, and the like, could be assigned to their budgets. I was committed to educating the kids about managing their finances i
n the future. Most of it seemed to fall on deaf ears, but I never stopped trying. For Leon, any job at Potion was an instant feather in his cap within the house and he knew it.

  I rolled my eyes. “This is not a reward!”

  “Yeah, yeah, I know, I know.”

  The little shit didn’t look at all remorseful. He grinned and I seriously began to question the wisdom of letting him work at a tattoo parlor, um, shop.

  Whatever.

  On the other hand, at least I’d know where he was, and it might keep him out of trouble for a few hours a week.

  “I’m going to do a background check on him, then I’ll decide what to do.” I glanced at him again. “Is that okay with you, not my kid?”

  He grimaced.

  “I know I’m not your mom, bud.”

  “I shouldn’t have said that, Indy,” he admitted. “I’m sorry.”

  “I appreciate your apology.” I pulled into the gated lot of the halfway house and parked, turning to face him. “You’re on dishes for the rest of the month, and I’m adding bathroom duty back onto your chore list until summer.”

  “Aw, man…”

  I raised an eyebrow. “Really?”

  He shook his head. “Yeah, yeah, okay, okay. Bathrooms. Summer. Got it.”

  I pushed open my door, patting the dashboard and saying, “Thanks, Shrek for getting me to point B safely. Just keep going for a little while longer.”

  I then climbed out of the car and closed the door, locking it even though there was no point. If someone wanted it, locking it wouldn’t keep them out.

  “Why do you talk to your car?” Leon asked. “It’s weird.”

  I stroked the hood. “Don’t listen to him, Shrekky. He’s a punk who didn’t have to walk home because you gave him a very nice ride.”

  Leo rolled his eyes and strolled into the building.

  I followed.

  I smiled as I walked into the large great room that separated the girls’ dorms from the boys’.

  “Indy!” Brianna called, rushing toward me.

  At twelve, Brianna was our youngest resident. She was a beautiful child with an even more beautiful soul, which put her on the radar of predators in almost every foster home she’d been in. But now she was safe, and I planned to keep her that way.

  “Hey, sweetie,” I said, wrapping my arms around her as she hugged me. “How goes it?”

  “I got an A on my English paper.”

  “Of course you did,” I said. “I had no doubt.”

  “My teacher said it was my best paper yet.”

  “Wow, honey, that’s fantastic. I’m so proud of you.”

  She beamed up at me. “Thanks.”

  “How about we celebrate with milkshakes this week? I’ll pick you up on Friday after school.”

  She clapped her hands. “Really?”

  “You bet. My treat.”

  She hugged me again. “Okay. Thanks, Indy.”

  I cupped her face and smiled. “Super proud of you, sweetness.”

  She grinned, then skittered away to join her friends. I continued through the great room and back to my office where I fired up my desktop and went about running a background check on Potion.

  * * *

  Jekyll

  I spun Leo’s phone between my fingers as I thought about the beautiful Indigo and her heart-shaped ass that had me hard as a rock the second she strutted her way to her car.

  “You gonna bronze that thing or give it back to the kid?” Stoney joked, handing me a beer before flopping down in the chair across from me.

  I grinned. “Deciding.”

  “You could always pull her number from the phone before you give it back.”

  I sighed. “Yeah, decidin’ that too.”

  “Deciding what?” Stoney’s old lady, Sabrina, asked, sitting on his lap.

  It was an impromptu family night, with just a few of the old ladies and their kids who hung around after Church. It was noisy as hell, but it was also fantastic.

  “Jekyll’s got a crush on some social worker hottie and her number’s on that phone,” Stoney said.

  “Jesus.” I rolled my eyes. “Not in fuckin’ high school, Stoney.”

  “Whose phone is that?” Sabrina asked.

  “It’s the phone he confiscated off a kid.”

  “Wait, the one who messed with your bike?” she asked.

  “Yeah,” I said.

  Sabrina cocked her head. “Okay, so it’s this kid’s phone, the said hottie’s number is on it, and you’re ‘deciding’ whether or not you should get her phone number from his contact list?”

  “Pretty much, yeah,” I admitted.

  “Well, I can answer that,” Sabrina said. “You should not.”

  Stoney frowned. “Why not?”

  “Because it’s an invasion of her privacy and incredibly stalkery.”

  “What if he doesn’t use it?” Stoney asked.

  “Doesn’t matter. If he wants her number, he needs to put his big boy undies on and ask her.”

  Done with this conversation happening as though I wasn’t there, I pushed up off the chair and nodded. “Good talk.”

  “Wait, sorry,” she called, but I was already halfway down the hall.

  She was right and that was probably why she pissed me off so bad. I wasn’t one to ask for some chick’s number. Had never had to. I had no problem gettin’ pussy and I wasn’t about to start weaslin’ around for it now.

  “Hey, Jekyll,” Ilene called out, as if on cue. “You want some company?”

  Ilene was a reliable “no strings” kind of girl who hung around the club a lot. She was a great fuck, but not much else.

  I turned to face her when Wrath came tearing down the hallway with Scrappy on his back. Our youngest patch was riding Wrath piggyback, whipping at him furiously with a switch.

  “Giddyup, you fat fuck!” Scrappy shouted, gleefully spurring on his valiant steed.

  “Ow, you little shit. That fuckin’ hurts,” Wrath huffed.

  “Less talking and more running,” Scrappy shouted as the pair barreled through the cabin and out the back door.

  After the shit-show outside the club, Wrath had decided to get his crap together and employ Scrappy as his “fit and sober” coach. I’m fairly sure Scrappy held zero qualifications in the fields of sobriety or physical fitness, but with methods like this, I was sure it was only a matter of time before Scrappy opened a chain of treatment centers all around the country.

  I returned my attention back to Ilene. “Not tonight, sweetheart. Sorry.”

  She looked disappointed for a moment, then nodded, and bounded off, most likely to find someone else to fuck.

  Shaking my head, I headed into my room, dropping the phone on my nightstand, and heading to the shower. I needed some fuckin’ relief and my hand was gonna have to do. I could have used Ilene, and god knows she would have let me, but I wanted to be alone with my thoughts. Thoughts of Indigo.

  * * *

  Indigo

  The next afternoon, I parked my car in front of Potion and faced Leon. “Best behavior.”

  “Yeah, I know.”

  I’d done an in-depth background check on Potion, which was owned by one Hyde Roberts, also known as Jekyll.

  Cute.

  If scary biker guys could be cute.

  “You do whatever this guy tells you, unless it’s illegal,” I bossed.

  He scoffed. “He’s not gonna make me do anything illegal.”

  “Well, if you feel weird at all, you call me, and I’ll come get you.”

  “Got it.” He got out of the car, and I did the same.

  “You’re not walking me in, are you?”

  “Yes, yes, I am.”

  “Indy—”

  I raised my hand. “I’m coming in and discussing your job with your employer because I am your guardian. This is not up for discussion.”

  “Fine,” he hissed out and stomped to the door.

  I had to give him credit, he opened the door and wa
ited for me to walk through first, so at least some of my tutelage had taken hold. The bell rang over the door, and I noticed a scantily clad, drop dead gorgeous young woman behind the counter. Pretty much every inch of her body was tattooed, at least what I could see, and she had piercings in her nose, her lip, several in her ears and when she opened her mouth to greet us, I noticed a piercing in her tongue.

  Ouch.

  “Welcome to Potion, can I help you?”

  “They’re here for me, Vanna.”

  I turned to the sound of Jekyll’s voice and shivered.

  Lordy, he was pretty. Tall with a beard I was dying to run my fingers through, every inch of his body (again that I could see) was covered in ink, and he was just… I don’t know… beautiful.

  And scary.

  But, oh, so pretty.

  “Hi,” I said. “I just want to go over what Leo’s going to be doing for you and find out when I should pick him up.”

  “He’s gonna do whatever I need him to do, and we close at eleven.”

  “Well, he can’t be here until eleven. Curfew’s at nine.”

  Hyde leaned against the counter with a frown. “Right. Then pick him up whenever.”

  “He cannot leave the shop,” I said.

  Hyde nodded. “He’s not gonna leave the shop, except maybe to take trash out to the dumpster in the back.”

  “Right.” I glanced at Leon who nodded to the door. “Okay. I’ll pick you up at eight-thirty. Call me if you need me.”

  “I won’t need you,” he said, and I forced a smile.

  “Eight-thirty.”

  “Yeah, Indy. Got it.”

  I walked out the door, climbed into my car, and drove away, shaking until I reached the freeway.

  What the hell had I just done?

  I’d let a very impressionable kid walk into a den of vipers is what I’d done. This was all going to end in disaster. By the time I picked Leon up tonight he’d probably be initiated into the Primal Howlers. Heck, for all I knew, they’d already given him a nickname and started working on his neck tattoo. Leon would go on to lead a highly publicized life of crime and it would all be my fault. I would lose my job and Walker House would lose all its funding. All because I chose to put Leon in the hands of a biker.