Chapter Thirty Two
River
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Kenna stood at the tap, filling beer mugs as fast as she could. River opened bags of chips and set them down at each table where they'd placed sandwiches earlier. For the last hour, men had come in, eaten, quenched their thirst, and went back out to fight the fire.
Even firefighters came in to fill water bottles, eat, and use the bathroom. Nobody stopped for long, showing the urgency of fighting to contain the fire.
Smoker grabbed a sandwich. "Thanks, River."
"Hey." She leaned forward. "Have you seen Zane?"
"Nah. Sorry. Haven't seen him."
She nodded, biting her lip. She'd asked several of the bikers, and everyone had the same answer.
Magnum came in with a wet towel wrapped around his arm. "Anyone got some ice or butter?"
Lori stopped beside the table. "How much do you need?"
"Enough to put on my arm." He pulled back the towel. "I got a little too close to the fire."
"Don't you dare put any of that on your skin." Lori motioned him over. "Follow me. I'll get you fixed."
River met Kenna's gaze and widened her eyes. People were getting burnt. Her worry for Zane escalated.
Kenna's eyes pleaded with her. "If they haven't seen Zane, maybe they've seen Kingsley. Can you ask?"
She hurried to Banger, then Echo, then Trent. None of them had seen Kingsley.
Phil walked into the bar and shouted. "Anyone heard anything from Prez?"
"Last I saw him, he talked to Big John, and then all hell broke loose. That was a couple of hours ago or more." Smoker tipped back his drink and stood. "I need to get back out there."
"Phil?" River went to his side. "Have you seen Kingsley?"
"About five minutes ago. He was opening the garage and getting the dirt bikes and side-by-sides out for the others to use so they could get around faster." Phil patted her back. "If you see Zane, tell him I'll be up on the north ridge right off the campground, watching. I've got the water hoses running constantly, hoping it'll stop any sparks from catching."
"I wish I could help you."
"It's best you stay here." Phil patted her shoulder.
She handed him a sandwich. "Take this with you."
"Thanks." Phil mustered a nod and turned to leave.
The men's moods as they came in were solemn, but their resolve to help wherever they could was high. Everyone was doing their best to save Gem Haven. She went to her sister. While Kenna arguably denied having any sort of feelings for Kingsley, she felt the combative attitude between the two suggested something more had happened between them.
Kenna was the most passionate person she knew. She always had been, even when she was young. Once she cared about you, she never stopped. Even if you no longer deserved her unwavering support, she would believe in you until the end. Much like she always believed their dad was alive. She always fought to keep them together.
Whatever Kingsley had done must've broken Kenna's heart.
"Phil has seen Kingsley. He's okay." She lowered her voice. "He's letting the others use all the outdoor toys in the garage to navigate the forest easier."
Kenna's face paled, and she nodded. Now was not the time to ask her sister what was going on between the two of them. That could wait.
Zane was still out there somewhere, and it scared her more that nobody had seen him. He protected his club and would be at the forefront, shielding each member from the fire if he could. His heroism scared her to death.
She walked over to the window, peering out at the sky. The smoke no longer billowed in a column, making its way up into the sky. The world looked as if it was covered in thick gray fog.
The sky was hidden from her. The smoke made it impossible to judge the weather, though temps hovered in the upper eighties. She shook her head in disbelief. It was a world she no longer recognized.
Tears filled her eyes. She was frustrated that she had no one to share her worries with because her relationship with Zane was secret.
He'd never told her she couldn't share how close they were, but his actions screamed secrecy. She assumed that she had to stay quiet if she had any chance of being with him.
Now, finding out he'd lied about her dad and that she was only a job to him— she wasn't even sure they'd ever heal—and that saddened her to the point she felt like giving up.
Every minute, panic grew inside her. She couldn't stop thinking about what a life without Zane would be like, and it petrified her.
How could she stop loving him? He was everything to her. When she had no one but him, he filled more roles in her life than humanly possible.
Now the fire threatened to take him away. She desperately needed to talk to him about why he'd kept her dad a secret. And why he tried to hide their relationship from everyone.
He couldn't lie about how he felt toward her. She was there. She felt it.
How many times had he told her that she should hate him? She never understood why he'd say such a thing, especially after having sex.
Now, she understood.
She should hate him—but she couldn't.
The door swung open and Big John shouted, "Anyone seen Zane?"
River's heart plummeted, she scanned the room, hoping someone had seen him. It was as if everyone shook their head at the same time. A wave of despair wrapped around her.
Turning around, she headed toward the kitchen, away from the others.
Once she was alone, the tears started immediately. She brushed her cheeks, trying to keep them at bay.
Zane was the strong one, always the one to take control and lead the members of Gem Haven and all the employees. She relied on him to make her feel safe and loved.
Not having him here and thinking the fire would take him from her left her scared. Scared to go another day without him.
She clamped her teeth together and silently screamed in agony. Disappointed in herself, she inhaled a shuddering breath, determined not to hide away in the kitchen and do nothing.
She grabbed her backpack from under the counter and went straight to Kenna. "I'm going outside and asking the others if they've seen Zane."
"You can't." Kenna frowned. "Kingsley told us—"
"He told you ." She walked backward toward the door. "I'm only going from here to the house."
"Stay away from the fire," warned her sister.
She held up her pinky as she'd done in childhood when they made a promise and pushed through the door. Outside, she slipped her arms through the straps of her backpack.
She had no plans to get close to the fire or get in the way of those fighting the flames. All she wanted was to find someone who could tell her they'd seen Zane.
The air smelled heavily of pine and evergreen. She usually loved the scent lingering in the campground, but the smoke threatened to choke her. Her nose burned, and she swallowed the urge to cough.
She headed toward the house. Maybe others were at the garage, grabbing one of the dirt bikes. They couldn't ride their Harley's off-road, but the Stafford family had many—what Zane and Kingsley called toys—sitting in the garage that would take them through the woods.
In front of the house, dust thickened the smoke. She turned around, holding her hand in front of her eyes to see where the cloud of dust was coming from, and spotted the truck Zane had used to teach her to drive, careening to a stop in front of the bar.
Her heart raced. She changed direction and hurried toward the vehicle.
Zane stepped out of the truck. At the sight of him, a sob tore through her, and she quickened her steps.
He headed toward the front of the bar without looking in her direction. She ran faster.
"Zane," she yelled. "Zane!"
He stopped and whirled around, spotting her. She cried out in relief. He was here. He was okay.
He caught her. She smashed herself against him, wrapping her arms around his waist, needing to feel the beat of his heart against her cheek to assure herself that he was here, he was alive.
"You're supposed to be inside the bar." His hands caressing her head took the sting from his words.
"I was scared you weren't coming back. I needed to find you." She patted his sides. "Are you okay?"
He captured her face with his hands, dragged her to his toes, and kissed her. Her mouth opened in shock. They were outside in the open, with bikers, firefighters, and Gem Haven employees moving around.
He took that opportunity to slide his tongue into her mouth. She fisted his leather in her hands, holding on because the ramifications of what he was doing left her weak, confused, and ecstatic.
He pulled his mouth off her. "Feeling better than I have in a long time."
"You're kissing me," she blurted.
"They'll be more kissing. More fucking. More arguing. More making up." He inhaled deeply. "You're mine, River. I have a lot to fix. But first, you need to know, I'm not letting your dad or my dad dictate our lives anymore."
"Wh-What do you mean?"
"I'll explain later, sweetheart." He smoothed her hair back from her face. "I need to check in with Big John and meet with the sheriff to see how much of the fire we have contained. You need to get inside the bar, out of the smoke."
She clung to his hand as he strode to the bar. Kingsley rode up on his Harley.
They stood on the steps until Kingsley stopped and shut the bike off. Both men were covered with black soot. Zane never let go of her as he threw his arm around his brother.
"Sheriff's coming to hold a press conference. I told him he could use the bar." Zane pointed behind him. "Banger arrived to take my place. He'll have Echo return if anything changes."
"Has the fire breached the fire line yet?" asked Kingsley.
"No, the wind shifted, and the fire went southwest. If it continues, it'll get trapped in the canyon, and with the creek there, we have a good chance of it burning itself out." Kingsley's gaze went over River's head, and he frowned.
She looked behind her and found Kenna watching from the doorway.
"You're back?" Kenna's chin lifted.
"For now." Kingsley cocked his brow. "What are you doing out here?"
"You've got eyes. You can see I haven't stepped a foot outside the bar." Kenna shook her head and stepped back, shutting the door.
When her sister was gone, Kingsley chuckled. River studied him. She never would've believed it if she hadn't seen the change in him or heard the amusement.
Kingsley was in love with Kenna.
"Let's get inside." Zane put his hand on her lower back and walked her inside.
The next half hour was a whirlwind of fixing more sandwiches, moving tables and chairs, and setting up for the Sheriff, who wanted to broadcast the update on the fire to the local news.
When the info broke that the fire was seventy percent contained and comprised one hundred and fifty acres, she tucked herself under Zane's arm while everyone broke out in cheers.