It had seemed strange introducing the bikers as friends. I knew nothing about them other than their road names, and the obvious. When I"d told Grace that they would be staying with me for a couple of days she just smiled and started talking to them like they were old acquaintances. She kept a few lawn chairs beneath the old maple tree next to her house for when she had company. Many times I"d come home from work to find her and someone else sitting there, talking and laughing.
Reluctantly, the guys had let me come inside without them. I suppose they"d been told not to leave my side, so Lenny had walked through my apartment to make sure that no one was hiding in any closets, until they knew I was safe. Besides, there were some things I had to do on my own, like shower and get ready for bed, which I did as soon as I was inside. It was early, but for some reason the thought of two strange men inside my apartment while I showered made me feel uneasy.
I slipped into a pair of boy shorts and a long tee-shirt that almost reached my knees, and braided my hair before deciding to make a pot of chili. Once I put all of the ingredients into a pot I made a pan of sweet cornbread to go with it. When everything was done, I went back to the window, opening it to let in some fresh air, and to get everyone"s attention.
"I made a pot of chili and some cornbread. Would anyone like some?"
"Sounds good."
"Yeah, please."
Both prospects were smiling and they seemed to be more at ease now than when they"d first got here. They"d put away their bad-a.s.s att.i.tude but I knew it wouldn"t take much for their biker personas to be back.
"No chili for me, dear," Grace began, "but I"d love a piece of your cornbread."
"Coming right up." I turned back to the kitchen, took out a tray, put three bowls on it and filled them up with chili. The cornbread I cut and put onto a plate. I grabbed spoons and napkins and headed outside. "There"s more if you want it," I said as Red and Bullseye each took a bowl. They both mumbled thanks while reaching for a piece of bread.
Silence followed for the next few minutes as we focused on eating. Red looked at me, chewing a mouthful, and bobbed his head in appreciation. Bullseye just gave me a thumbs up. Grace nibbled at her bread, staring off at something that held her attention. I glanced in the same direction to see a beautiful b.u.t.terfly flying around the flowers against her house. The sun was slowly going down and the drop in temperature was noticeable.
I began to worry about Grace, and her arthritis, noticing that she didn"t have her walker with her. "Grace, let me help you inside, it"s getting a little cool out here."
"Nonsense, dear, one of these big strappin" boys can help me. That way if I fall I won"t crush anyone." Bullseye jumped to his feet when she made an attempt to get out of her chair. Grace grinned and gave me a wink. A wink! All I could do was watch her accept Bullseye"s arm and begin her slow shuffle toward her door.
"You said there"s more?"
Red"s gruff voice drew my gaze to his. "Yes." I got to my feet. "Let me get you another bowl."
"Nope. I don"t want you waitin" on us. Appreciate the meal though." Before I knew it Red was right behind me as I walked up the stairs to the door. "Think it"s time you go inside anyway."
I hadn"t been outside that long. I turned to him after we entered my apartment, wondering where they intended to sleep while they were there. I didn"t expect them to sleep outside, but where else was there? "I"m sorry, but I don"t have a spare bedroom."
"We won"t be doin" much sleeping," he said, surprising me. "Bullseye and I will take shifts but we"ll be outside most of the time."
I stared at him with confusion, glad that I didn"t have any neighbors close enough to wonder why there were two bikers hanging around outside. Luckily Grace"s house was located far off the main road, and was hidden behind a row of thick hedges and trees. "What will you be doing outside?"
"What prez ordered us to do."
I didn"t mention the obvious, that it was going to be cold and dark out there. The door opened and Bullseye stepped inside. He walked silently to the two windows and pulled the curtains closed.
He turned my way when he was done. "Is there a window in your bedroom?"
"One." I usually cracked it open at night because the cooler air helped me sleep better.
"Keep it shut, locked, and the curtains drawn."
I felt safe living on the second floor, but supposed if someone wanted in they would find a way. I acknowledged Bullseye with a nod. "Would you like more chili?" Red was at the stove helping himself.
"Maybe later," he said. "What time do you go to bed?" His gaze moved over me as he asked it, and I suddenly felt self-conscious of what I was wearing.
"Usually around nine on a work night." The clock over the TV said that I had a couple of hours. Well, there was no way I was going to stay and watch TV with them here-I planned on going to my bedroom and watching TV there. The whole situation was uncomfortable. I don"t know what they thought they were protecting me from.
When Red was done filling his bowl I decided to put the food away and clean up. My apartment had an open concept except for the bathroom and bedroom, so I was able to see Red and Bullseye at all times. The sink was facing the living room so as I was washing the dishes I was able to observe them standing, with their heads together as they mumbled something back and forth. After that Bullseye walked to the front door and left. At about the same time Red walked over with his empty bowl.
"That was good sweetheart." I took the bowl from him. "A lot better than some of the s.h.i.t Tiny serves up."
I had to grin at that, recalling the meal I"d helped her with when I was there. He turned from me when his phone began to ring. It didn"t take me long to finish cleaning up and then I set the coffee maker up for the morning. Usually I made my lunch, too, but on Thursdays the clinic was closed for two hours because the Doctor liked to have lunch with his ailing mother at her retirement home. The rest of us drove into town and had a long lunch at Mama Kay"s Diner.
With nothing left to take care of, I headed to my bedroom, closing the door behind me. I started to lock it, hesitated, and ended up locking it. I turned my bed down, and just as I had flicked the TV on my phone buzzed, letting me know that I was receiving a text. It was Lynch. I smiled.
You there babe?
No.
Lol. All good?
Yes.
What you doin"?
Playing with myself. I laughed, waiting for his response. Silence followed. I waited some more. You there?
You"ll pay for that next time I see you.
That sounds like a threat. What took you so long?
Couldn"t get my zipper down.
Are you playing with yourself, too?
Have a big one thinkin" of your fingers in your p.u.s.s.y.
My p.u.s.s.y"s wet thinking about your tongue there.
f.u.c.k! I can almost taste your sweet juices.
Before I knew it I was laying back against my bed, lifting my shirt and slipping my hand inside my shorts. I parted my p.u.s.s.y lips and slipped my finger inside.
f.u.c.k I"m so wet!
How many fingers?
One.
Add another one.
I did. I was a lot slower texting with my left hand but I managed to type, Feels so good!
Wish it was your hand on my c.o.c.k.
I chuckled. Wish it was my mouth.
f.u.c.kin" tease! Where are you?
On the couch in the living room, entertaining your boys.
Make sure you treat them right. He didn"t fall for it. f.u.c.k babe...
Silence. I didn"t know what was going on but my c.l.i.t was so hard and sensitive and ready to blow. I closed my eyes and pictured Lynch there, f.u.c.king me with his tongue, deep, while rubbing against my G-spot. When I came I had to bite my lip to keep from making a sound. Certain noises were easily identifiable and there was no mistaking the sounds of a woman climaxing. Or a man for that matter. But I had to worry about Red and Bullseye, and the last thing I wanted was to face their knowing smirks in the morning.
Babe?
I"m here.
I just came like a f.u.c.kin" geyser thinking about you.
I was still trying to catch my breath. Did I want to confess that I"d climaxed, too, and give him that much power over me? He already thought he owned me.
Baby? You still there?
Trying to catch my breath. I had my own o.r.g.a.s.m thinking about some bad-a.s.s biker.
Lol. Go to bed. You"re safe with Red and Bullseye.
Thank you.
For what?
I thought about it for a second. For caring about me. Silence. Goodnight Lynch.
He didn"t respond. I tried not to let it get to me. I knew he cared about me, why else would his men be here? I got up, turned off the TV, cleaned up, and decided to turn in early. I just wanted the next few days to be over with.
Chapter 12.
Kat I yawned behind my hand as I closed the door to the examining room where Ronald Simpson was waiting for Dr. Putter. In spite of the presence of Bullseye and Red the night before, I hadn"t slept very well. It had nothing to do with not feeling safe and everything to do with comfort. I"d grown used to having cool air come in through the bedroom window, and keeping it closed had made my room stuffy. Several times during the night I had woken up, either too warm from being covered up, or too cold from being uncovered.
Glancing at the clock, I was glad to see that the morning was going by fast. Maybe I should head home during lunch and grab a nap. The extra hour would come in handy. But then, I always enjoyed our Thursday lunches in town. It gave us girls" time to unwind, and get to know one another a little better.
Today of all days we"d had two call-ins, so I was acting receptionist and nurse"s aide. With only one doctor, the clinic wasn"t all that big. Most of our clients were locals who didn"t have insurance, or people with non-emergencies. We didn"t take appointments so there were lulls when it was too quiet for someone operating on too little sleep. I moved around as much as I could, without actually breaking out in exercise, to try and stay alert, and had drunk several cups of coffee. The problem with coffee, for me, was that it usually didn"t affect me until much later in the day.
Mandy, our regular receptionist, had the flu, and Polly, another nurse"s aide was tending to her sick mother. They would probably be out again the next day, but at least it was Friday. I had the whole following week off. I frowned, thinking to myself that I probably should have changed it, and not taken the time off, but at the time that I requested it Ben and I had made vacation plans. Even though Dr. Putter didn"t have to honor the plans I"d made at my last job, he was kind enough to let me have off. Breaking up with Ben, and having to find a new place to live in and get settled had made me forget about the week off, until I was reminded of it this morning.
"Oh my G.o.d, somebody slap me," I spoke through a noisy yawn.
"Ten more minutes and we go to lunch."
"I might just go home and take a nap."
"You can"t!" Stella practically yelled. "I mean, this is the first time we will all be able to make it. It will be fun."
Sounded like a lame reason to me, and she"d obviously forgotten about the two call-ins, but who was I to point that out? Since the incident at the club, she"d been going out of her way to be extra friendly towards me, going beyond the lack-l.u.s.ter good mornings and minimal office chit chat. Though she"d attended our Thursday lunches, she hadn"t made any real attempts to get to know me, willing to let the other girls dig into my background.
Yeah, she"d talked about the local MC eagerly enough but, thinking back, it"d been about the only thing she"d contributed to the conversation at the table. Once she began she became the center of attention as we all listened with intense interest to anything she shared about the outlaw bikers, which was never very much. Still, some of the women in the group hung on to her every word, and looked at her in awe.
Now I could understand why. The short time that I"d been there had shown me that Stella hadn"t embellished her stories. The men I"d seen so far were hardened, modern-day outlaws, wearing their bad-a.s.s personas as obviously and easily as the leathers, chains, and boots that adorned their weathered, muscular bodies.
"Even Rose and Bonnie?" Book keeper Rose never joined us, preferring to meet her husband at home for lunch, and Bonnie was saving for her big cruise to Europe and always brought her own lunch.
"Yep," Judy confirmed. "Rose"s hubby flew out to Florida for some fishing tournament, and Bonnie won big at bingo the other night and has decided to give herself a treat."
Should I tell them about Red and Bullseye? I didn"t know where they had disappeared to, but I was sure that they were some place close by. Ten minutes later, Dr. Putter walked through the office. "See you ladies in two hours." That was our cue to flip the sign on the door showing that we"d be back at two, and lock up.
"There are six of us, so we"ll need to take two cars. Who"s turn to drive?" This coming from Judy.
"Why don"t I drive since I hardly ever get to go?" Rose offered.
"Then I"ll drive, too," Bonnie said. "Seems only fair."
As we split up I glanced around for Bullseye and Red. They were nowhere in sight as I climbed into the backseat of Rose"s car. "Wake me when we get there." I"d said it as a joke, settling back against the soft leather of the seat. The drive to town was about twenty minutes away. I didn"t expect to doze off, but that"s exactly what I did. The power nap was just what I needed, and by the time we reached the restaurant I was somewhat refreshed and ready to face the afternoon.
Lynch After only one night of being cooped up in the warehouse I was going stir crazy, and so was the guys. We couldn"t go outside and walk around or take in some fresh air, in case Wildman had someone watching the warehouse, too. It wasn"t so much the fact that we were enclosed behind four walls that was driving us crazy; it was more an impatience to get this s.h.i.t over with. I wanted to put Wildman and as many of his crew as possible into the f.u.c.king ground.
With close to forty brothers inside, it didn"t take long for the warehouse to fill up with smoke from cigarettes and weed. Booze was limited which didn"t help the mood of anyone. Most of them busied themselves with playing cards, checking their weapons and catching up on bulls.h.i.t between the two clubs.
Making the move from the clubhouse to the warehouse had gone off without a hitch. Everything had been done under the cover of darkness. Going on a hunch along with years of experience, we had stopped at a rest stop right before getting off at the planned exit to see if anyone was following us. I was glad that we did. A lone motorcycle carrying two riders pulled in not long after we did. There"d been nothing obvious about them, no colors or cuts, yet something hadn"t jived with me. I"d learned to trust my instincts a long time ago.
They were an older couple, both dressed in the typical riding gear. After glancing briefly in our direction they had dismounted and walked to their perspective bathrooms. I glanced at Hulk, giving him a lift of my chin and a jerk of my head in the direction of the bathroom. He dismounted and followed the man there. Then I glanced at Lenny.
"Spread the word that we"re going to bypa.s.s the next exit and get off at the next one down the interstate."
Hulk and the man exited the bathroom at about the same time.
"You good now?" We made eye contact and Hulk gave me a barely noticeable chin lift. It was his way of letting me know that he thought we had something to worry about.
"Yeah, prez."
"Next time don"t drink so f.u.c.kin" much before we go on a run." I said it loud enough for the other biker to hear in case he"d found it suspicious that we"d stopped so soon after taking off from Crows Feet. My next thought was to wait and see if they left before or after us. Digging into my pocket, I pulled out a few ones. "Get some snacks." I handed the money to Yank and Fat Boy."
As they got off their bikes and walked to the vending machines, the woman left the restroom and joined the man. They didn"t mount their bike, but stood talking. When they glanced in our direction I didn"t pull my gaze away. I wanted them to know that I was looking at them. I wasn"t the one trying to be inconspicuous. Fat Boy and Yank came back, handing out a few snacks to some of the other brothers along the way.
"Candy bar, boss?"