“But they don’t act like any other club we’ve got a beef with,” Rock says, stroking a hand over his jaw. His eyes connect with me, and he changes the subject. “How are things with you and Maggie?”
“Good.”
“But?” he prompts.
I sigh. “I worry about the consequences of pulling her into this world. Our life can be dangerous.”
“I think she’s already figured that out,” he replies.
“She got a taste of that when they shot up her bar,” Darko says.
“Exactly. You think I want that for her? If they hit that place because of its ties to the club…”
“I get that, Keno,” Rock says and points a finger toward the clubhouse. “Not an ol’ lady in the place doesn’t know about the dangers.”
“Still. It’s not something I want to expose her to.”
Darko shrugs. “It’s all part of it. You just have to deal with it.”
“Anything else?” I ask Rock, ready to get out of his office.
“Nope. That’s all. You can go.”
“Thanks for the advice,” I say, rising.
“Like I said, taking on that VP spot is a big commitment. Make sure it’s what you want before you accept.”
“I will.” I leave his office and head down the hall to the main room. Shack’s at the bar, and I tap his shoulder and jerk my chin to the door.
He grabs his beer and follows me out.
“What’d he say?” he asks while I light a smoke and stand at the porch railing.
“He talked to Dragon.” I glance at him. “They’re thinking about starting a new chapter in Texas. Nothing’s for sure yet, but if they move forward, they offered me the VP spot.”
“No shit. You gonna take it?”
“I don’t know.”
“Wow. That’s big.”
“Yeah.” I turn and meet his eyes. “They want you, too. Gonna need to fill the table.”
“What spot?” he asks.
“I don’t know. Can’t say for sure you’d be an officer. You want that?”
“Hell, no. Too much responsibility.”
“Yeah.”
“You want all that on your shoulders, brother?”
“I don’t know,” I reply. “Never had much ambition for climbing the ranks before. I was always content with what we had. We were free to come and go, ya know?”
“Yeah, I’ve always loved that. But the road has been getting old, and I’m not getting any younger. Maybe it’s time to settle down.” He shrugs. “Maybe Texas wouldn’t be so bad. What part? Did they say?”
I shake my head.