Boomer Chapter 8

It took everything in me not to go see Bella after Sunday's fuckup. I was desperate when I left her place. I knew I had to do something to try and change her mind about me before I lost any chance with her if I hadn't already. I spent the evening brainstorming and coming up with the horse treats idea. After that one and her text saying thank you, it got easier. I had some input, just not from the guys. I asked a few of the old ladies. I swore them to secrecy so they wouldn't tell Londyn, who would tell Bella. It wasn't like I had experience with this kinda stuff. Not all ideas were theirs, but they got me thinking, and I stumbled onto my other ideas.

The texting conversations we'd been having were great, and I had hope when I asked her to go on a date, she'd say yes. I was waiting until she went out with the other two fuckers first. I told myself to save the best for last. If I had my way, I'd make them call the dates off, but Sin and Saint had been clear. It was up to her. This thought was acceptable up until Friday came, and then I broke.

I'd been avoiding the clubhouse so I wouldn't see them and be tempted even more to beat their asses. It wouldn't end well for me. Or at least not unless I got Bella to agree that she wanted me. Then, if they kept after her, I could unleash whoop-ass on them without any backlash. My restraint came to an end, and I had to go hang out at the clubhouse for a bit, but it was for a reason. I wanted to see if I could overhear where Vicious was taking her for their date. If I couldn't, I planned to find out another way. I might not be able to prevent them from going out, but I could run some light interference.

I left work early to do it. Since he was likely at the compound most, if not all day, doing whatever we charged him with, I wanted to be close. Entering the common room, I found him cleaning the floors. He gave me a scowl when he saw me. I just smiled back at him. Then I went to the bar to grab a drink. Milling about were a couple of the guys and even an old lady or two with a few kids.

I was there for well over an hour, and nothing. I was about to give up and leave when the stool beside me was pulled out, and a body dropped onto it. Glancing over, I saw Trident had joined me. I gave him a chin lift. "Hey, what's up, Trident?"

"Not much. You?"

"Nothing, just having a drink and relaxing."

He leaned close to whisper. "Don't think you fool me. You're trying to find out where V is taking Bella tonight. You plan to crash it, don't you?"

The thing about me was growing up the way I had. I could lie and be damn convincing. I could either give off an innocent look or a puzzled one or whatever was required to go with the circumstance. I frowned at him. "You heard what Sin and Saint said. I have to let her choose, which means their dates have to happen."

"I did hear them, but they said you couldn't stop the dates. They didn't say you couldn't sabotage them in some way. Hey, all's fair in love and war, remember? Those fuckers wouldn't have sat back and done nothing, and don't let them tell you any different. I sure the hell wouldn't with Sara. It's Bella's choice, but you can stack the deck in your favor. In the interest of supporting a brother, I'll tell you."

I was shocked he'd be willing to do it. He was right, though. They didn't say I couldn't mess with the dates. I knew they would've done whatever to make sure their women ended up with them. Maybe it was splitting hairs, but so be it. I could argue the point if they called me on it. Even if he was Sin's stepdad and friend, I had no worries he was setting me up, but I was curious.

"Why're you helping me?"

"Honestly, I think she's great and would make a great old lady for any of you, but my gut tells me she'll be the making of you, and you'll love her like no other. Sure, they're attracted to her. Who wouldn't be? But they're way too laid back about her dating others for my liking. So you wanna know?"

"I do, but how do you know? Did Vicious tell you?"

He laughed and shook his head. "No, but I overheard Sara talking to one of the women about it. She found out somehow. The woman can find out anything. Anyway, he's taking her to Arabian Spice at eight o'clock. I suggest if you plan to go, you get out of here before he does."

It was after five already. I slapped him on the shoulder as I stood. "Thanks, man, I won't forget this. I gotta get ready and bounce."

He chuckled and gave me a fist bump. I didn't waste time hightailing it to my trailer to shower and change before leaving. I needed to get myself into position. I was feeling Middle Eastern food tonight.

I made sure I was there and seated before they arrived, although waiting had been killing me. I got a table at seven forty-five. I might've tipped the hostess to make sure to seat them not far from me. It would've been suspicious if she put them right next to me. I held off ordering anything but a drink until they came, but a few minutes before eight, I got up and went to the bathroom. I spied from there. I stayed hidden until I saw them enter and be taken to their table. The hostess had come through. It was close to mine.

Was it crazy to go through all this? Maybe, but call me crazy. If I had doubts that I wanted her, this past week of texting conversations would've put those to bed. I got a couple of weird looks from people going down the small hallway to the bathrooms, but I ignored them. The hostess saw me, and all she did was grin and wink. I gave them a couple of minutes to settle and order a drink before I casually strolled out and over to my table. I made sure I wasn't turned toward theirs.

I was barely seated before I looked up to find the waitress there to take my order. I gave it to her. As she left, she was replaced by a scowling Vicious. I had to fight not to smirk. I gave him a fake, surprised look.

"What the fuck are you doing here, asshole?" he growled.

"Watch what you say, prospect, I'm a goddamn patch. I'm having dinner. What's it to you?" I snapped.

"Don't play innocent with me. You're here to ruin my date with Bella."

"That's tonight? Fuck, how would I know that? I came here for dinner. It's not my fault you did too. Go enjoy your night and let me enjoy mine."

"You need to leave, Boomer. I mean it."

"I'm not leaving until I eat. You should be paying attention to your date, not harassing me."

His expression became even more thunderous, and I saw him clenching his fists. Surely, he wouldn't be dumb enough to swing at me. A part of me hoped he would. In the end, he held back and stomped off. I followed him with my gaze, and that's when I made eye contact with her. She appeared to be blushing and a little uncomfortable if I was reading her body language right. I hated to make her feel like that, but it was necessary. What I didn't see was anger. I gave her a nod and then looked away.

It was hard not to stare, but somehow, I did it and made my glances on the sly. I saw Vicious was still upset, and I caught more than one glare he sent my way. What they didn't do was leave. I fiddled and pretended to be deeply interested in my phone. It was all bullshit. I sat where I could see their reflections in the window. I did some searching for other gifts I could send her. Even if I didn't for a while, it was good to have some in reserve. I knew I'd fuck up again and need help.

The food was delicious, and I enjoyed every bite of it. No wonder Saint and some of the others liked it so much. I was about done when I saw Saint walk in with Piper. I wanted to groan. Was this merely a coincidence, or had V texted and tattled on me? I pretended like I had no clue they were there. Wouldn't you know it, they were seated next to me. I had no choice but to acknowledge them then.

"Hey, guys, date night, I see," I said pleasantly.

Piper sent a smirk my way. Saint was up and walking over with a frown on his face. He sat down across from me and leaned forward. "Don't play innocent. You haven't been innocent since the day you were born. What the hell are you doing here?"

"The same as you, eating. You guys have raved so many times about this place, I decided to give it a try. You were right."

"Don't play me. You knew V was bringing Bella here. I thought we told you not to interfere?"

I gave up my pretense with him. "You and Sin said I couldn't force her choice or lay a hand on the guys. You never said anything about fighting for her in other ways. I didn't stop their date. I haven't broken any of your rules."

He swore under his breath. I waited to see what he'd say or do. After a tense minute, he sighed and sat back. "I can't fault you, and I can't fuck you over for going against us since you're technically right. Shit. How did you find out this was where they were going? Did you follow them?"

"Nope. I was here first."

"Who told you?"

"A little birdie."

He chuckled as he stood. "I hope you know what you're doing. So, I guess tomorrow night, Daredevil better be prepared for his date to be crashed."

I gave him a smile and shrugged. He walked back to their table. Piper sent me a finger wave. I winked at her. It wasn't long after that I paid and got up to leave. As I did, I caught Bella staring at me. I gave her a smile and nod, which I was happy to see pissed V off. I took a ride before going back to the compound. When I got there, I didn't bother to go to the clubhouse. I went to bed with a smile on my face.

???

I waited until mid-morning the next day to go to the clubhouse. I knew I'd have Vicious coming at me, which I looked forward to. Plus, I figured Daredevil had heard and would want to warn me away from his date tonight. I wasn't afraid of the confrontations. I wanted to fuck with them and make them wait.

I barely made it inside, grabbed a cup of coffee, and took a seat before I saw V storming over to me. He was really angry. The place was rather busy. It was Saturday, and most people were off work. I guessed they'd all heard based on how they got quiet and watched him coming toward me. He stopped on the other side of my table and slammed his hands down on it. I gave him a bored look and raised my eyebrows at him.

"What the fuck is your problem? That was a fucked-up move. Wait until I tell Saint and Sin," he shouted.

I knew I didn't have anything to worry about. After I left the restaurant last night, I texted Sin to tell him what I did. I thought it would be better if he heard it from me. He swore a bit and called me an asshole, but, in the end, he agreed that I hadn't gone against him and Saint's orders.

"Prospect, I'll tell you one last time. You better watch your tone and mouth with me. Get over it. If my being there upset you so much, you should've left. Feel free to tell Sin and Saint."

He was about to blow, but he was stopped by Sin walking up behind him and saying, "Tell me what?"

V whipped around to face him. "He went against your orders, Pres. He was at Arabian Spice last night and tried to ruin my date with Bella. He followed us."

"I didn't follow you. I was there first. And I didn't say a word to either of you. You were the one to come over and get in my face. It's a free country, and I can have dinner wherever I want. You can ask the hostess if you don't believe I was there first."

It was almost impossible not to smirk. He was still facing Sin.

Sin shrugged. "He's right, Vicious. We said he had to let Bella choose, and he couldn't fight with you over her. He didn't."

"That's bullshit, Pres!"

"Watch it, V. I'm still your president. If the competition is too much, then bow out."

"It's not too much." Vicious swung back to face me. "May the best man win."

I raised my cup to him. "He will."

This made him stomp off and out the door. The others were chuckling. Sin gave me an eye roll before moving off. I sat there enjoying my coffee. It wasn't long before I got a text. I saw it was from Trident. He was in the room, but I guess he didn't want to be seen talking to me.

Trident: Do you wanna know where Daredevil is taking her tonight?

Me: You know I do.

Trident: Cost ya.

Me: What?

Trident: Make one of them take a swing at you. Or at least make one of their heads explode.

Me: LOL, I can't promise they will, but I'll do my best.

Trident: Good enough. He's taking her to dinner at Sapori. Their reservation is at seven-thirty.

Sapori was a newer Italian restaurant.

Me: How did you find that out? Sara?

Trident: No, Sin mentioned it to me. Lyric must've told him. Good luck.

Me: Thanks.

I looked up from sending my last text to find Daredevil standing there. He didn't appear very happy. "Hey, man," I said as a greeting.

"Are you gonna try and ruin my date with Bella like you did Vicious' date?"

"If me being in the same place as them ruined their date, he did something wrong. I didn't say a word to them. I minded my own business and ate. It was damn good food."

He didn't say a word. He just walked off and out the door. He had more control than V. I wondered what it would take to make him lose his cool. Would he change his plans? In case he did, I needed a way to find out where they were going. I'd have to leave way ahead of him and wait to follow him. I knew my bike would be too obvious, so I'd take my car. It was still distinctive, but it was better. Besides my Harley, my pride and joy was my Ford Mustang Shelby GT350. I had one in the dark gray color they called Magnetic. It had a killer V-8 engine nicknamed the Voodoo. I loved my car.

I stuck to the clubhouse for a while longer. I caught Dragon and Ashes giving me worried looks, but they didn't approach me. The others weren't shy. They came, and I heard a lot of probing questions from them about what I did and asking if I planned to fuck over Daredevil's date. Most seemed amused more than anything, except for Rampage. He sat down and scowled at me.

"What's up?" I asked.

"Don't do it."

"Do what?"

"Don't fuck up Daredevil's chances with Bella."

"Why do you care if I do or not?" I was mystified.

His scowl got worse. "Because I want the bastard to settle with an old lady! I'm not risking my daughter hanging onto her dream of marrying the fucker. She's never dating or getting married. She's stubborn like her momma, though, so I have to eliminate him. Since I can't kill him, too bad because it's my first choice, I have to go this route. Sorry, love ya, brother, but not that much."

He stood up without another word and walked off. He left me roaring with laughter. I waited until he was almost in the kitchen before I called out to him.

"Hey, Rampage, I love you too, but I'm determined my woman isn't saving you from Daredevil being your future son-in-law!"

He glanced back and gave me the finger. He didn't swear due to the kids in there. This set everyone off, and he had to put up with their teasing comments. The best was when Morgan yelled at him.

"Daddy, I'm marrying Daredevil, and you can't stop me! He's not marrying someone else," she told him as she chased him into the kitchen. I knew he'd get me back, but it was too good to let pass up.

???

I left the compound at five. I was willing to bet that even if Daredevil changed his mind about the restaurant, he'd still take Bella to a nice one, which meant a reservation would be needed. I called all the ones in town and made one at each of them for seven-fifteen. I knew if I asked, they wouldn't tell me if he had one. I was tempted to ask Phantom to track his phone and tell me where he went so I didn't need to follow him, but I wasn't sure he'd do it. It was one thing to go up against the prospects, but Daredevil was another brother.

I took a risk and decided not to lie in wait and to follow him after all. He'd likely be expecting it. I hoped it wouldn't come back to bite me in the ass. I arrived early and parked my car two streets over. No use advertising that I was in there. I arrived over fifteen minutes ahead of time. I was seated right at seven-fifteen. I was perusing the menu as I waited for the waiter to bring back my drink when my phone chimed. I took it out of my pocket to see who was texting. I saw it was Phantom. Opening it, I wondered why he was messaging me.

Phantom: I knew it. Devil is gonna kill you for crashing his date.

Me: How do you know I am?

Phantom: Your ass is sitting in Sapiro's. I tracked you. By the way, they're only a couple of minutes out. Have fun.

I sent him back a thumbs-up emoji. I guess more than one person was backing my play to win her. About five minutes later, I was taking the basket of bread the waiter brought me and my drink and preparing to give him my meal order when they came walking in. Like last night, I had to check her out. She was beautiful as always. She'd worn a dress last night, and tonight, she was in a skirt. All were tasteful but only accentuated her body. I grew hard just looking at her. I imagined all the delicious things I could do to her and her to me. Thankfully, the table hid my erection. I didn't want the waiter to think I was hard for him. He was already trying to flirt with me.

Unlike a lot of men, I didn't get upset or uncomfortable when a guy came onto me. I was secure enough in my sexuality that having another guy hit on me didn't bother me. I'd had more than a few do it in my lifetime. I made sure not to stare at Daredevil or her too hard. They were placed across the dining room from me. I quickly gave the waiter my order. His name was JC. He wrote it down, then gave me a coy smile. "I'll get it right in for you. If you need anything else, and I mean anything, just let me know." He walked off, practically shaking his ass.

I kept a sneaky watch on them. I'd seen Daredevil scanning the room a couple of times, and every time someone new came in, he glanced at the door. I hated to admit it, but they seemed to be at ease and talking a lot. Both were smiling, and I saw her laugh a couple of times.

I hadn't heard from her today. I resisted texting her since I didn't want her to ask me if I was intentionally at the restaurant last night. I didn't want to lie. I kinda wished I had now. I was growing concerned she might be into him. I knew marching over there to interrupt them was out of the question. Wouldn't he shit if I did and sat down to join them? This image made me chuckle softly under my breath.

It was a good ten minutes before they noticed me. I was back behind a large potted plant, so I wasn't easily spotted. I think the only reason they did was because of my waiter. He brought my food and then poured more water into my glass. I didn't know what caused him to do it. It might've been a true accident or a ploy on his part, but he somehow ended up moving and dumping some of the ice-cold water onto my lap.

It was a shock, and I reacted automatically by coming to my feet, but not because of the cold. It was him trying to use my napkin to wipe it off my damn crotch. I had no doubt that he was doing it to cop a feel.

"Oh, I'm so sorry, sir. Here, let me help you with that," he cooed.

Standing, I towered over him. He seemed to realize it, and he paled when he saw how tall I was. Or maybe it was my scowl. "Get your damn hands off me," I barked at him. The commotion drew a bunch of eyes, including Daredevil and Bella's. I knew because as I was trying to chase off Grabby JC, Daredevil came up to my table.

JC ran for it when I leveled him with a death glare. I had no choice but to acknowledge Devil's stare. "Hey, man."

"I knew it! I knew you'd try your shit. Well, guess what? You're not ruining my night like you did Vicious'. You wanna watch us like a creeper, go for it."

He turned on his heel and went back to her. I saw her watching me. She had a slight frown on her face. I tilted my head to her. She turned her back on me. Shit, that wasn't good. I sat down. My appetite was gone, but I refused to leave. I ate, but I didn't even taste it. The manager came over to apologize for the accident soon after. I had to inform him I didn't think it was one and why. He was mortified and wanted to comp my meal. I told him instead to talk to his waiter, tell him to cool his overtures toward men and to send me someone else, and we'd call it even. He did.

In the end, I finished and left before they did. I was sick with worry. What if, by doing this, I pushed her into his arms? I knew I wouldn't be able to rest until I knew. When I got outside, I happened to see her truck parked next to his bike. A plan began to form. Before tonight was over, hopefully, I'd know if I had pushed her too far. I hurried to my car.