THE DUCHESSAn hour later, I had all of the patched Valkyrie members rounded up in Ragnarök, trying to work out what the hell to do about my dad. “If it was anyone else, they’d have a bullet in between their eyes,” I rubbed my eyes. “But this is my dad.”The room was silent. No one envied me this choice.I let my head fall back on my shoulders. “Fuck.”I took a deep breath, forcing my boss face back on.“That’s a problem for later. Right now, all of you get ready to roll out. Someone is going to have to drive the truck because we will take Zodiac and Bull with us, and hopefully bring Blaze and co back.” “Karma, pick the two newbies that are closest to patching. They can take the truck. Stock the boot with whatever weapons you find necessary. I’d rather too much than not enough.”“On it, boss.”“The rest of you get yourselves ready to go. All of us need to be fully armed. Make sure you all eat something, we roll out in three hours. Got it?”“Yes, boss.”I nodded, dismissing them all,
THE DUCHESSThe sound and smell of motorbikes is addictive. The feel of the road, the feel of the bike, all of it. I love it. I couldn’t help but smile as we tore up the motorway, it was almost enough to forget the reason for the trip in the first place. We had a four hour ride ahead of us. Three hours up boring-ass motorways followed by an hour through beautiful countryside. We’d hardly gone fifty miles when I saw Shorty make our signal for needing fuel.I directed everyone off at the next service station, shut off my engine, and got ready to rip her a new one. “Shorty! Why didn’t you fill up before we left?”She glanced over at one of Rogue’s boys, a shy grin on her face.“Seriously, Shorty?! Fuck one of Rogue’s boys, be my guest. How did you forget to fill up?!”I shook my head as we waited for her to sort her shit.“You know what, Karma. I’m gonna put a fuel pump in at the bar.”She sniggered. “Sounds like a plan, boss. Getting laid before a run is no excuse though, I mean. I saw
GHOSTStanding behind the Duchess, my Alex, my Duchess, I could not believe the audacity of her ‘dad’. I didn’t intend on letting her go, not again, but him immediately offering me the club she grew up in had him immediately even further in my shit books.If she hadn’t already done it, I would have gladly put a bullet in his head for her. Or killed him with my bare hands if that was what she wanted. Hell, I’d tear the town apart if it was what would make her happy.She walked forwards towards the clubhouse, gun by her side, almost daring any of them to attempt to shoot her. “Rogue, keep the peace out here whilst we’re in church.”He nodded, turning back to face our group at the bottom of the driveway.Karma and I fell into step behind her; we were there if she needed the backup, but this was very definitely her show.She walked right up to the second in command, motioning for him to follow her inside. We all headed for church, mine and Karma’s guns constantly trained on the second.Th
KARMAI practically skipped through the clubhouse towards the truck where we’d left Zodiac and Bull, with Ghost just behind me, a murderous expression on his face. It was safe to say we were both looking forward to kicking these two around a bit.As far as I saw it, the two of them threatened my best friend and my club. As far as Ghost saw it… well. It was the woman who he’s loved and who has loved him (even if neither of them wanted to admit it) since they were eighteen.We dragged them from the truck towards the enclosed basketball courts around the back of the clubhouse, bringing a handful of newbies and prospects with us to stop them running for the gates.This was gonna be fun!Of course, tying them to a chair in a basement is how I normally get information out of people, but that’s boring. Sometimes, an actual fight is more fun, and it's a better way to make a point too.“Ready to do this, Ghost?” I asked, even I could hear just how overjoyed I sounded.“Absolutely, Karma.” He j
THE DUCHESSWell, it was safe to say this trip hadn’t entirely gone as I thought it would.But then again, at the same time, what did I even expect? At least Razor killing my mum and not actually being my dad made that part so much easier.Once Tank and I finished up with Blaze, I shoved his phone in my back pocket and we made our way back up to the bar. I needed to wash my hands, and pour myself a glass of rum. It looked like Karma and Ghost planned the same thing since they were sitting at the bar drinking when we got back up there.I could just about hear their conversation when we walked into the room. Not enough to know exactly what they were talking about, but I could hear odd words. Enough to know that Karma had started calling Ghost ‘Duke’.I stopped dead in my tracks when I heard that. Now he was back in my life, I wanted him to stay there. But I hadn’t thought about what that meant in MC terms yet.We’d have to work out what the hell that looked like, especially if Ghost sti
GHOSTWhen I heard the sound of a gunshot from inside the chapel, my immediate reaction was to run in, to make sure my Duchess is okay. But… Rogue and Karma stopped me.“Ghost, I know it's hard,” Karma's voice was strong, with no room to disobey. “You have to let her do this. One shot is all that was taken. If she was in trouble, our signal to each other is two shots in quick succession.” She paused for a moment. “That shot was from her gun. No one in this club ever uses a silencer of any kind, so we can assume hers is the only shot that was taken. Someone disagreed with, threatened or offended her and she killed them.”My eyes were wide. I was surprised she had managed to come to that conclusion, but I guess they had worked together for a long time.Fortunately for my sanity, Duchess and Tank walked back out the clubhouse, heading in our direction. They were both laughing, so it couldn't have been too bad. There were fresh blood splatters on her jacket, so whoever she shot must have
THE DUCHESSFortunately, the trip back was easy and smooth sailing. No one needed to stop for fuel because they fucked up, and everyone even stopped for a piss before we left. They were just as eager to get back as I was.Once we were back, I pulled just Karma into Ragnarök, leaving Rogue and Ghost at the bar, and the rest of Valkyrie and the Henchmen drinking hard.“What do you think, K?” I asked, my voice quiet. I was well aware that this place wasn’t actually soundproofed. I should probably fix that…“What about?” she smirked.“You know what I mean. Ghost.”“Boss, the benefit of being the boss is that you can do whatever the fuck you want.” My face must have been sceptical. “Patching him won’t change anything, D. He can stand beside you without having to take over.”She sighed when she saw my face. “What is bugging you, boss?”I pulled a face. “We operate in an incredibly misogynistic world, K. I’ve had to do a lot and fight a lot to get to where I am. I don’t want to fuck up ever
THE DUCHESSFortunately, the two of them left quickly, both with knowing smirks on their faces.I took Ghost’s hands, pulling him up to stand, and helping him slide his existing jacket down his arms. “Close your eyes,” I whispered, and when he did, I helped him pull the new jacket I’d ordered him on, before leading him towards a mirror.Once there, I faced him away from the mirror and stood at his side, before telling him to open his eyes. He looked over his shoulder to the mirror, and as soon as he did, the biggest smile appeared on his face at the sight of my wings, the Valkyrie wings, with ‘Duke’ across the middle on his jacket. A replica of mine.“It suits you,” I whispered. “My Duke,” I kissed his cheek. “What do you think?”He turned to face me, one of his hands tangling in my hair, tilting my head so he could crush his lips into mine. I leaned into the kiss, my eyes falling shut as tingles of pleasure ran through my body. His tongue teased my lips apart, before immediately delv
KARMAI dragged the Duchess to the clubhouse’s bar. A shooting range would have been better for venting anger, but the one here wasn’t on the club’s grounds and I knew she wouldn't want to go that far. This one also doesn’t have the stash of axes and throwing knives we have at home, and that was really what she needed at this moment in time.The one thing Thunderstruck did always have going for it though was a well stocked bar. “Not having a great time with relatives at the moment, are you, boss?” I couldn’t hold back the chuckle in my voice as I spoke, pouring us a hearty glass each from the bottle of whiskey I’d grabbed when I leaned over the bar.She scowled at me, downing her drink. It was a good thing I’d known her as long as I had and that we were as close as we are because otherwise she’d have killed me by now, second or not.An hour and lots of drinking later, I watched her pull out her phone, put it on speaker phone and dial someone, stalking back towards the chapel as she d
THE DUCHESS“You actually have a face?”She spun the laptop to face me, looking very proud of herself.“Smashed it, Shorty. Can you run facial and see if you can ID the guy?”She shrugged. “Hopefully, boss. The quality is not good. I might be able to get a shortlist, but if anyone can get any further information, that would be handy.”“Thanks, Shorty. Can you send me a copy of that photo? We’ll see if anyone knows our mystery crap arsonist. Tank, can you show a printout of that around the club and see if anyone recognises them?”They both nodded.Now, to call Fishnet and my Duke.The phone rang for what felt like forever. Fishnet can be pretty bad at picking up the phone when she wants to be.“Duchess!” she shouted when she eventually answered.“Hey, Fishnet. Can you grab Rogue and the Duke, drag them into Ragnarök, and stick me on loudspeaker?”A couple minutes of shuffling and they were all there.“Alright, boss. What's going on?” Fishnet's voice was all business.“I'm about to emai
THE DUCHESSI was finally ready twenty minutes late, but I'm the boss, so phooey.“Hey, boss?” Karma shouted when she saw Duke and I walking down the stairs.“What's up, K?” I raised one eyebrow.“Just wanted to let you know I've requested a quote for soundproofing for your bedroom, and, because that will take a while, I've ordered noise cancelling headphones for all patched members.”The Duke snorted, trying to hold back his laughter and failing.“I hope that includes Duke and I, K, you’re just as bad and you are right next door.”“Of course, boss,” she grinned. “No one would have heard me over you two just now though, trust me.”“Alright, alright,” I chuckled. “Everyone ready to roll?”I glanced around the room, meeting Shotgun and Shorty’s eyes, both of whom nodded.“Okay then, let’s get going. The sooner we get this done, the sooner we can come home.” I turned to face Duke. “I’ll see you later.” I pressed a chaste kiss to his lips. “I love you.”“I love you too, my Duchess,” he ki
THE DUKEI knew my Duchess needed to do this and I even knew why she wasn’t taking me with her, but that didn’t mean I liked it. She’d been in the business long enough that knew what she was doing, so her decisions would always be perfect. I trusted her with my life, and in an MC world, it could quickly come to that, and there’s no bigger praise.I meant it when I said I’d do whatever she needed me to because this is her show, the Valkyrie is her baby, and if she needed me here, that is where I’d be.I was so lost in my own head that I didn’t really notice my Duchess had been pulling me along behind her until I heard a door lock and she pushed me up against it.Her arms wrapped around my neck, her hands in my hair, tugging me down and capturing my mouth in a passionate, deep kiss.She was fighting me for dominance, but I wasn’t going to let her win. THE DUCHESSHis left hand gripped my hair close to my scalp, and I gasped at the slight bite of pain that somehow left me even wetter. H
THE DUCHESSAfter his dance… we got dragged back down to the party, and then he immediately crashed afterwards, so he still owed me one. That, plus the fact I got woken up early by my phone ringing constantly with Tank freaking out meant I was in a horrifically bad mood when I sat down at the bar with a cup of coffee at 8am the next morning.I needed six cups of coffee before I could even think about dragging everyone into Ragnarök to talk about the upcoming hostile takeover.“Duchess,” Rogue nodded as he sat next to me with his own cup of coffee.“Morning. I noticed you had company last night, Rogue?” I smirked. I’d seen two newbies sneaking back out of the guest room he was staying in when I got up this morning.“I did indeed,” he grinned. “No Duke yet?”“Still in bed,” I grumbled.“Trouble in paradise, Duchess?”I rolled my eyes, but before I could talk, Duke’s hands appeared on my shoulders.“Morning, my Duchess,” he kissed my forehead.“Morning,” I grumbled.“Are you mad about la
THE DUCHESS“Come along, my Duke,” I held out my hand once we got back to Valhalla. “Let’s go enjoy your party.”“Do we have to?” he pouted. “Can’t we just go to bed?” His hands slid around my waist, tugging me against him. “I’d rather take all your clothes off.”“Sorry babe, parties are tradition. Not only are we celebrating a run well done, but three new members patched today, and being one of those members… you’ve got to be there.”“Fine,” he sighed sarcastically, pouting, but I could see the smile in his eyes.“You’ll love it,” I winked. “We can have a few drinks, a joint or two, then fall into bed and stay there for the rest of the night.” I wrapped my arms around his neck, tiptoeing so I could whisper in his ear. “I promise it’ll be worth the wait.”I ran my tongue up the shell of his ear, enjoying the shiver that ran through him in response.He smirked, before bringing his lips down to meet mine in a deep, passionate and tongue-filled kiss that promised dirty things.“Are you s
THE DUKEI’m not too proud to admit that I squealed like a schoolgirl when I saw the blue YZF-R1 parked out the front that matched the keys in my hand. Exactly the same as my Duchess’, just bright blue to her yellow.She'd even added a ‘Duke’ Valkyrie decal that matched the one on my cut. Stickler for the details, my girl.“Shall we go for a ride?” she asked, a smirk on her face. She knew she’d got this bike spot on.“Let’s do it, my Duchess,” I replied, pulling her into my arms for a kiss, spinning her around. Whilst I was distracted, Karma had brought the Duchess’ YZF around the front, parking it next to mine.“Come along then, Duke,” the Duchess grinned. “Are you going to stare in awe at me all day, or shall we go take your new bike for a spin?”I watched her swap her cut back for her full leather jacket, pull on her gloves and tuck her helmet under her arm. “Ready?” she asked with a grin when she noticed I'd not even moved.I nodded, turning to look for my helmet, before noticing
THE DUCHESSFortunately, the two of them left quickly, both with knowing smirks on their faces.I took Ghost’s hands, pulling him up to stand, and helping him slide his existing jacket down his arms. “Close your eyes,” I whispered, and when he did, I helped him pull the new jacket I’d ordered him on, before leading him towards a mirror.Once there, I faced him away from the mirror and stood at his side, before telling him to open his eyes. He looked over his shoulder to the mirror, and as soon as he did, the biggest smile appeared on his face at the sight of my wings, the Valkyrie wings, with ‘Duke’ across the middle on his jacket. A replica of mine.“It suits you,” I whispered. “My Duke,” I kissed his cheek. “What do you think?”He turned to face me, one of his hands tangling in my hair, tilting my head so he could crush his lips into mine. I leaned into the kiss, my eyes falling shut as tingles of pleasure ran through my body. His tongue teased my lips apart, before immediately delv
THE DUCHESSFortunately, the trip back was easy and smooth sailing. No one needed to stop for fuel because they fucked up, and everyone even stopped for a piss before we left. They were just as eager to get back as I was.Once we were back, I pulled just Karma into Ragnarök, leaving Rogue and Ghost at the bar, and the rest of Valkyrie and the Henchmen drinking hard.“What do you think, K?” I asked, my voice quiet. I was well aware that this place wasn’t actually soundproofed. I should probably fix that…“What about?” she smirked.“You know what I mean. Ghost.”“Boss, the benefit of being the boss is that you can do whatever the fuck you want.” My face must have been sceptical. “Patching him won’t change anything, D. He can stand beside you without having to take over.”She sighed when she saw my face. “What is bugging you, boss?”I pulled a face. “We operate in an incredibly misogynistic world, K. I’ve had to do a lot and fight a lot to get to where I am. I don’t want to fuck up ever