Twisted Chapter 6

It had been an eventful and busy day, but I felt good about what I was able to set in motion with the help of my club. There was no way I was leaving her and those kids to deal with this alone. For one, it went against my personal code and that of the club. Two, she already meant something to me. By extension, so did the kids. I was driven to protect them because I saw them as becoming mine. Crazy, yeah, but it was how it was. When I went to the compound and told the guys what was happening and what I wanted to do, the three married ones called me on it. Recalling it made me smile.

"Why so determined to get involved with this, Twisted?" Agony asked.

"Because we don't settle for people doing shit like this," was my response.

"So it's just because you feel a civic duty to them?" Knight asked.

We were all gathered in church, and all eyes were on me. I shrugged. "I guess."

"Well, guys, if that's all it is, I don't see why we can't have someone other than Twisted help them and keep watch. I bet several of our brothers wouldn't mind. Is she attractive? Single?" Dare asked.

Immediately, anger rushed through me at the thought of any of them going after Zahirah. Without thinking, I blurted out, "You fuckers better stay the hell away from her!"

Immediately, laughter and snickers were coming from around the table. I was busted.

"I gotta meet the woman who has Twisted all twisted up," Hulk teased.

I gave him the finger, which only made everyone laugh harder. Bastards. Couldn't a guy have a bit of time to process his feelings and figure out shit? I forgot, not with this bunch. A hard slap to the shoulder knocked me forward. It was from Cyclone, and he laughed like a hyena.

"Don't sweat it. We get it. The three of us have been there," Agony assured me.

"I don't know what this is, okay? All I know is I have to help them."

"Is she single?" Pope asked.

Reluctantly, I answered. I didn't need them to get ideas. "Yeah, she is."

"Good. Now, let's talk it through, and then we'll go meet Zahirah and her family," Agony said. It wasn't a suggestion, so I laid everything out to them, and we worked out how to approach it.

Hours later, I was riding through the gate at the compound. Following behind in her car were Zahirah and the kids. Behind them were Bodie and Atticus. They stayed and continued repairing things they'd found around the house. I'd spent the time until they got ready to go, working to convince her to let us help her. I still wasn't sure if I'd been successful. The woman was stubborn and used to carrying all the burden alone. It would take her a while, no doubt, to become accustomed to having not just me but my whole club behind her. Until she was, I'd keep chipping away at her.

I didn't want her to feel that her efforts were unappreciated. I thought she'd done an admirable job raising and caring for the kids. It was hard enough being a woman alone, but she had the added problem of people believing she didn't belong.

It infuriated me when I thought of how they were treated merely due to their culture and skin. Who gave a damn? Was everyone so stupid they thought everyone who came from her part of the world was terrorists? It was ignorant. Instead of worrying about her and those kids, more people should worry about their neighbors who were secretly homegrown terrorists, rapists, and murderers. Good ole Fred from next door could be a modern-day Jack the Ripper.

I eased my bike into my usual spot outside the clubhouse. I watched her slowly pull in at the end of the line of our bikes. Even at this distance, I saw the apprehension on her face. She was still uncertain about coming here. Hopefully, after meeting the women and kids, it would ease.

On the other hand, Aliya and Arif seemed excited at the prospect of meeting more of us. They'd pestered the prospects and my brothers while they were there with a ton of questions. I knew from the texts I got and the conversations I overheard. I hurried to get off my bike and over to them. If I left her alone, she might try to make a break for it.

I made it to their car just as she was opening her door. Both kids had already gotten out and were gazing around in awe. I held out my hand. She took it and allowed me to assist her out. Every time we touched, it was like a current or a zap of awareness went through me. I didn't see myself ever getting tired of it.

"There's nothing for you to be nervous about. No one here will hurt you guys. You met my brothers. This is so you can meet the ladies and the kids. Our club isn't like a lot of our friends. We have only three couples and not quite a handful of kids. Some of our friends' clubs have way more. Come with me. I'll introduce you, and you'll see you have nothing to fear."

"Twisted, are you sure we should be doing this? We don't belong here. Just look at this place," she said softly as she scanned the area.

I tried to see it from her perspective. To me and the others, it was just home. As I looked, I realized it was kinda intimidating. We had a hundred acres outside of Cherokee proper. It had been an old industrial type of place. We had taken an enormous warehouse and converted it into our clubhouse.

When we bought the land, there were also a couple of storage buildings. So far, Agony, Dare, Knight, Wire, Mace, and I have had houses added. The others are talking about doing the same. All of it was enclosed in a chain-link fence. We'd recently talked about changing it out for something more substantial like the Warriors'. It hadn't mattered when it was just us, but with families, we wanted to ensure they were safer.

"It's just a different kinda home, Zahirah. We're really just a big family. You'll see. Now, we need to go inside and make introductions before the ladies come out and mob us. I have no doubt they're barely being contained inside. They love to meet new people."

It wasn't a lie. They did like to make new friends, but in her case, they'd want to see and talk to the woman who had captured my interest. I had no doubt the men had gossiped about my reaction to Zahirah.

She took a deep breath, then took my arm, which I was holding out to her. The kids fell in behind us as I moved her toward the door to the clubhouse. It was early, so there was no music. I had no worries they'd see anything scandalizing. Later, it would get raunchier, but I planned to have them out of here well before it happened.

I swore I felt her tremble when I opened the door, and we stepped inside. I subtly moved her closer to me. I wasn't sure what was acceptable or not with touch in her culture. I was feeling it out as I went. We were greeted by a room full of people. Luckily, the majority were my brothers they'd already met. They were smiling at them in greeting. A few called out, saying hello. The women and kids were there too. They had inquisitive expressions on their smiling faces as they checked Zahirah, in particular, out. Yep, the guys had told them I was into her. I moved her forward to Agony and Eliana. With them was Tanamara, Agony's grandmother, and their twins.

"Welcome. I'd like to introduce you to my family. This is my grandmother, Tanamara, my old lady, Eliana, and these two squirming worms are our twins, Zoe and Zavian. Everyone, this is Zahirah, her niece Aliya, and her nephew Arif," Agony said to them as he smiled. The twins were sixteen months now and always wanted to be on their feet running. Being held was killing them.

"It's a pleasure to meet you," Zahirah said.

"No, it's ours to meet you and your family. The others can't wait to meet you," Eliana told her excitedly as she held out her hands to her.

Zahirah took them, but only after she lowered her head and presented her hands to Tana first. Relaxing a bit, we moved on to the others. Next were Knight and Natalya. Cara, of course, was busy chatting to Aliya and Arif. She was too cute. We knew we would all be in trouble when she got to Aliya's age.

Finally, Dare presented Joli and their nine-month-old son Branson, or Bran as we called him. I saw the tender looks Zahirah gave all the kids, which told me she liked children. Once she'd met everyone except Rune, who was running an errand, she greeted the room as a whole.

"Thank you for inviting us to your home. We're honored. Please accept this thank you," Zahirah said as she shifted her eyes to Aliya. I noticed she was carrying a large, wrapped box. Her aunt took it from her and handed it to Tana, who looked surprised. She sat it down and carefully unwrapped the cloth bow tied around it. When she opened it, I saw it was filled with what appeared to be an assortment of chocolates, sugary nuts, dates, and other sweets. All of them looked delicious. There were heartfelt groans from the guys who had tasted some of them at her house.

"Oh, these look so wonderful. Thank you. You didn't need to, but I won't pass up a chance to try these," Tana informed her with a sweet smile. Zahirah lowered her head in acknowledgment. It was apparent there was much to learn about her and her culture. I needed to do some research. The last thing I wanted was to offend her or overlook a custom that was important to her.

"Won't you have a seat? What can we get you to drink?" Eliana asked.

It didn't take long for her to request water. After asking permission, the kids requested sodas. We gathered at one of the larger tables. Those not seated with us gathered around us by pulling up chairs.

"I have to say, and I hope it's okay, but you all have the prettiest skin and hair. I wish mine were like yours," Natalya said wistfully. She was ivory-skinned with strawberry-blond hair. She was beautiful, so I was surprised at her remark. Zahirah seemed stunned by it, too.

"Why? You have such gorgeous skin and hair. I'd love to have yours, any of yours."

"No, no, you must never wish to be different than you are. You've been made perfect. God has made us all in the exact image he wants. You're beyond lovely the way you are," Tana interjected. I had to agree. Zahirah was beautiful, and there was nothing I'd change about her. She blushed and lowered her head in acknowledgment.

"Thank you, Ms. Tanamara."

"Oh, honey, call me Tana or enisi . It means grandmother in Tsali. I heard you're from Qatar. I'd love to hear more about it. I've always wanted to travel but never got the chance."

This remark made Zahirah relax, and she opened up to tell us about where she grew up and what it was like. Even though women suffered gender inequality there, they at least had rights. They could vote, run for office, travel freely outside the country, be part of public and social life, and study. The majority of the students in their universities were women. Where it got murky was the males who were the heads of the families. Some of them still tried to assign their women to the home. From what she said, her father hadn't been of that mindset.

"Do you mind if I ask what kind of work you do? I'm a nurse practitioner, mainly for older people. Joli is an architect, and Natalya is a translator. She speaks Russian because her mother was Russian and taught her," Eliana explained.

"Those are wonderful jobs. I don't do anything like that, I'm afraid. I merely design and occasionally make jewelry. I work mainly for a jewelry company. They do have some actual stores, but they mostly sell online." She dismissed her job as if it was insignificant. I didn't like it.

"Oh! Do you have pictures of your designs? I'd love to see them. You're like me, a fellow designer," Joli said excitedly.

As Zahirah was shaking her head, Aliya spoke up. She handed Joli a cell phone. "Here's some of my favorite ones she's designed."

"Aliya!" her aunt scolded her.

I craned my neck to see them as the ladies gathered close together to ooh and aah over them. Zahirah didn't seem to know what to say or do. Seeing her work, I was blown away. She dismissed it as nothing, but the pieces were stunning and high-end. They consisted of sparkling gems. Some had pearls and were encased in gold, silver, and platinum, if I had to guess. As they flipped through them, they paused on a ring.

"This ring is fabulous," Natalya told her.

"Thank you. I admit, it's a favorite of mine. I hated to give it up," she murmured.

"Did you attend school for this, or did you naturally develop your skills?" Joli asked.

"Both, I guess. I've always drawn, and I've been in love with jewelry since I was a little girl. When I got older, I went to university and took classes to learn not only how to design better but how to do it as a business. Maybe one day, I'll be able to sell my designs myself rather than through others. That's the dream anyway," she admitted shyly.

It would be a shame if she didn't. She was extremely talented, and the whole club told her so. She appeared taken aback by it, but the kids appeared proud. After we resolved this problem for them, I'd look into what it would take for her to design for only herself. I saw Agony give me a knowing glance and a slight chin lift, which told me he knew what I was thinking. If I needed help, the club would back me.

Eventually, the phone was returned to Aliya, and we began talking about other things. Zahirah learned more about the ladies and how they came to be with their men. Their stories weren't dull by any means. I was relieved none went into too much detail about Cara's birth mom. I didn't want to start our relationship or whatever this was by telling Zahirah about bunnies. I'd seen how it went with my three brothers. It wasn't pleasant, to say the least. In Dare's case, it damn near cost him Joli and an unborn Branson.

With each addition of an old lady, we learned that life was better when you shared it with someone special. We all saw how much happier and more content Agony, Dare, and Knight were. I was pretty sure the others wanted the same. I knew I did. I just hadn't thought it would happen, so I pretended not to care that I didn't have someone. However, after laying eyes on Zahirah and learning she wasn't involved with anyone, I was ready to start making moves, but I'd have to take it slow.

We'd been here for about an hour when Wire called me away. Zahirah and the kids seemed to be okay. When I asked her to excuse me, she nodded and kept talking to Natalya. They were having a deep discussion about languages. I followed him to a corner where no one was.

"What's up? Is something wrong?" I asked. He'd popped out of the room a while ago, but I hadn't questioned it since that wasn't unusual for him. But the frown on his face made me tense up.

"Maybe. I thought I'd get a start on finding out who those boys belong to and how to contact their parents. We've got a potential problem."

"What kind of problem? Spit it out," I said rather impatiently.

"Okay, so all three are top football players, and you know how people are about high school football and the players. That was enough of a complication, but then I discovered that one of the boys, Billy Waters, is the stepson of our assistant mayor. No wonder the cops wanted nothing to do with it. This is gonna be a sticky situation."

The news wasn't great, but it wouldn't deter me. "I'll just have to be careful how I handle it. I'll understand if the club wants to take a step back on this. I promise I won't do anything to bring heat down on the club."

He scowled at me. "Fuck that. You know we've got your back on this, no matter who is involved. I just wanted you to know. I'll fill in the others later. No way we're leaving your woman and her kids out there to fend for themselves."

I didn't bother to deny she was my woman. If the guys were thinking that way about her, then it meant no one would make a move on her. No one would poach once we issued a claim, even if it was still unofficial. It was an unwritten, although serious rule for us. I gave him a chin lift in thanks.

"We'll let the guys know after they leave. I don't want to put any new stress on her. They seem to be enjoying themselves," I told him.

"Sounds good to me. They do seem to be having a good time. Let's get back to the fun," he said as he moved toward the crowd. I was right behind him. My heart skipped a bit when she smiled up at me as I rejoined them and took my seat next to her. Progress. Hopefully, I'd continue to keep making more of it.

???

Time flew by too fast. I was sad to see them leave. I escorted them home even though Zahirah said it wasn't necessary. It was in my book. I ensured the house hadn't been messed with while they were gone, and they got inside behind locked doors and windows. I'd rest easier once they had an alarm system with monitored cameras. It wouldn't be any of this bullshit monitoring by strangers at some company, either. It would be through our personal one, which Wire created for all our businesses and the compound. She didn't know it yet, but we'd be over tomorrow to install it. Despite what she might think after our talk earlier, I wasn't done pushing for it.

I smiled at the thought of the fight she'd give me. I was kinda looking forward to it. When I caught glimpses of the fire in her, it made me desire her even more. I would never be the kind of guy who wanted a "yes" woman who never spoke her mind or let me make every decision. Talk about boring.

I was still smiling when I returned to the clubhouse after leaving them. It slid off my face when I noticed the bunnies and some hang arounds from town and the surrounding area had shown up while I was gone. I guess it made sense. Most of the club was still single. We enjoyed sex, and it was the weekend. However, I had no desire to partake of it with any of them.

Before escaping to my house, I knew I needed to say goodnight to my brothers. Thank God I had it and didn't need to stay in the clubhouse and hear the noise all night. I was too old for that shit. I hurried over to Mace. He was busy talking to Nitro. They weren't alone, though. Two hang arounds were latched onto them. They weren't paying attention to them, but the women had made their claims for the night or at least their firsts. Some of them would sleep with more than one guy tonight if they got the chance.

"Hey, you made it back," Mace called out when he saw me.

"I did. I just wanted to say goodnight. I'm heading home. I see Agony, Knight, and Dare have already left. Have fun. See you tomorrow."

"Wait a minute. I want to talk to you for a minute," Mace said as he moved toward me. The woman with him hung on to his arm. He gave her an irritated look as he shook her loose. "Let go. I need to talk to my brother and don't need an audience." She did as he ordered, but she pouted as she let go. He ignored her and came over to me.

"I just wanted to tell you that I like Zahirah and those kids. They're good people. I hope it works out for you, man." Mace's voice was wistful. Although he was only a year younger than me, I knew he was growing tired of the same scene, too. We'd talked about it more than a few times.

I slapped him on the shoulder. "Man, I'm gonna work my ass off to make it work. You know, one of these days soon, some woman is gonna come out of nowhere and knock you on your ass. I can't wait to meet her. Just be careful with these women," I warned as I gestured to the room.

He snorted. "I will, and I hope you're right. Get out of here. I'll tell everyone you had to bounce. Night." We hugged and gave each other back slaps before parting. Waving and calling out goodnight, I made my way to the door. I was almost home free when Fiona blocked my exit. Damn it.

Now, I'd been with all three of the current bunnies and some of the hang arounds. In Fiona's case, it had been a long time since we'd hooked up. Hell, I hadn't even been letting her blow me. About six months or so ago, she began to get clingy and acted as if I was only to be with her. I'd seen the danger signs and stopped spending any time with her. It hadn't stopped her from trying every chance she got, though. I hated it.

"Fiona, out of the way. I've got to get home. I have a busy day tomorrow," I told her curtly. Being nice to her got me nowhere, so I no longer bothered.

"Twisted, you never have time for me anymore. Why? Come spend time with me. Let's have fun like we used to. I know you have to miss it. I do." She mixed in eyelash flutters with a pout. It didn't convince me a bit to change my mind.

"Fiona, I thought I'd been clear, but I guess not, so here goes. I have no time for you or any women who come here looking to have a good time and hook up with a biker. No offense if you wanna do it. It just won't be with me anymore. I won't miss anything with you. I don't want a blow job or a fuck. Period. We blew off steam once in a while, but that's over. I want you to leave me alone," I told her bluntly and loudly so those around us could hear me. I was beyond over her chasing me.

Her face reddened, and her eyes snapped with temper for a moment, but then it was gone. She gave me a shy, hurt glance. "Twisted, I don't know what's wrong, but I know you'll snap out of it soon. When you do, I'll be here." She sashayed off. I threw my hands up in defeat and walked out. The woman had a few screws loose.

As I made my way to my house, I was busy not worrying about Fiona but anticipating tomorrow and seeing Zahirah again. It was a bit of a way to my place, but I didn't mind. When I arrived and entered the house, I passed the living room and went straight to my bedroom. As I did, though, I did look around my house.

Overall, I always thought it was a great house, but seeing it now, I knew it was too plain. There was hardly any color. It was all browns and muted colors or white. It had a man vibe to it. I made myself picture it with some of the things Zahirah had in her home and the rich colors she favored spread throughout it. It wasn't unwelcome. In fact, I thought it would be perfect for the house. As I stripped and got into the shower, I made more mental calculations on things to change or update. One thing I'd have to find out was if she even liked my house. Hmm.