Gonzo (Rolling Thunder Motorcycle Club Book 7) by Candace Blevins Page A

line of coke. We don’t allow drugs in our compound at all, and we do our best to keep them out of the territory we’ve claimed around our compound.”
    “Do you do illegal things? I know you have the motorcycle repair shop and the bar, do you have illegal things you do for money, too?”
    “I can’t talk to you about club business, Connie. It’s a hard and fast rule.”
    “Constance. I don’t shorten it to Connie.”
    I’d been calling her Connie in my head for so long, I hadn’t realized I hadn’t been saying it aloud. I grinned and said, “I think you look more like a Connie. You can be prissy-assed Constance to everyone else, but you can relax and be Connie around me.”
    She pursed her lips, and I stood and walked to the door of the den before she could argue, saying, “I’m going to get some more barbecue and beans, maybe some slaw. Do you want anything?”
    “No, thanks. Do you need me to help?”
    “Nope, I know where everything is. I’ll be back in a few minutes.”
    I looked for a coaster when I returned and didn’t see one. I asked where they were and she told me, “We eat and drink in the kitchen and dining room.”
    Okay, I wanted to be asked back, but I also wanted to stay with her and talk while I ate. “Would it be okay if I sit on the floor and eat?”
    She rolled her eyes and started the Sons again, and I had her giggling as I commented on the characters.
    I took my dishes back to the kitchen when I finished, rinsed them and put them in the dishwasher, and returned to the den. I sat on the sofa beside her this time, and she went stiff for a few minutes, but gradually relaxed. I was a good six inches away but I really wanted her closer. I wasn’t interested in sex with her, but I felt like she needed touch.
    I hadn’t heard from my wolf since Randall fucked us up. Normally, he’d have been egging me on, and I missed him. Duke assured me he’d be back, and said my first full moon would be hell but things should be back to normal after the run.
    “Do you still own guns?” Connie asked during a huge shoot-out between SAMCRO and another club.
    “I do. I have a license to carry one legally, though I haven’t done so around the kids because I didn’t want them to feel it and ask what it was. We’ll have to broach the subject at some point, and I’ll need to be able to teach them the proper respect for firearms.”
    “My dad brings one when he comes, and he’s taught the kids about them. He made Sandy and I learn to shoot as kids, but I’ve never bought one.”
    “I’m glad he’s set the groundwork, and I’m relieved you’ll be okay with my teaching them how a gun works. It’s important to take away their curiosity so they won’t be tempted to investigate if they should come upon one.”
    “I… I find that I want to hug you, again.”
    I turned sideways and pulled her to me gently, and she rested her cheek on my t-shirt covered chest. God, I wanted to be skin to skin, but she felt good in my arms.
    Part of me wanted to teach her that sex can be good, but a much bigger part of me wanted to make sure I did nothing to jeopardize my friendly access to the twins.
    When the hug was over we went back to watching Sons of Anarchy, and when the episode ended she said she was turning in.
    “I’ll head downstairs, then. Thank you again for welcoming me into your home.”
    She shook her head. “It looks like you’re family now. We still have to figure things out, and I don’t like not having a blueprint for where we’re going, but I also agree we’ll have to play it by ear and do things as the twins are ready.”

Chapter 9
    C onstance

    I made pancakes the next morning while Gonzo fried bacon and sausage to go with them. We worked well together in my kitchen and I was starting to feel… if not comfortable, at least not as uptight around the gruff, burly biker.
    I still couldn’t believe I’d told him I wanted a hug last night, and in the light of day I was a little mortified