4. Piper
I can hardly concentratewhile sitting on Lightning’s lap with his arms wrapped around me, but did Atlas just say Lightning was going to escort me home?
It”s barely been twenty-four hours, but I do feel safe, and knowing he will be in Bozeman for even a few days calms me in a way it shouldn”t. The feelings I feel for him are just too much. If this is anything close to what my mom felt for my dad, I understand why she fell apart when he died. I can”t imagine that kind of pain after experiencing these feelings. So, as safe as I feel with Lightning, it”s best to get distance between us fast.
“I don”t need an escort,” I say, and all the eyes in the room turn my way.
“I”m sorry, Sweetheart. You disobeyed orders and came here after you were told not to. You are a target now, which means you get an escort, like it or not,” Atlas says with a soft tone, but one that still leaves no room for arguing. So I just slump against Lightning and nod my head.
“Okay, how soon can you be ready to head out?” Atlas asks Lightning.
“What do you think, Doll, ready to head home?” Lightning asks me softly, as if it”s just a conversation between us.
“Yeah. I have to get back to work,” I tell him.
“We can head out tomorrow,” Lightning then says to Atlas.
“Perfect. Keep me updated, and let me know what you find and if you need backup,” Atlas says to him.
“The rest of you need to double down and find out where Savage Bones is hiding out now, by any means necessary. I”m done playing nice, and I”m sick of them having the upper hand,” Atlas says.
“Let”s go pack while they hash this out,” Lightning says, urging me to stand up.
He takes my hand and leads me back down the hallway and upstairs to his room.
“Is all your stuff here?” he asks.
“Yeah, it’s just the one bag. I only planned to stay for the weekend,” I tell him.
He”s about to say something when there is a knock at the door. He holds his finger up, telling me without words to stay where I am, and goes to open the door.
“Hey, Piper. I heard you”re leaving tomorrow?” Addy says, pushing her way past Lightning.
“Yep. I couldn”t get more time off work.”
“Then come on. We’re going to take over the kitchen and have a girls’ night with some of the other women.” She walks over and loops her arm through mine, not giving me a choice as she drags me out the door.
I look back over my shoulder at Lightning, wanting to make sure it”s okay, but not sure why.
“Go have fun, just don”t leave the clubhouse. It”s not safe,” he says and nods his head.
Addy drags me back downstairs and toward the kitchen in the back. We walk in and there is a large table to one side and several of the girls are already there. I take a seat next to Ginger.
“Okay, we are all dying to know how you ended up in Lightning”s room!” Addy says, taking the seat on the other side of me.
I guess there are no secrets at the clubhouse.
“I thought it was Stone”s room. I was in bed and asleep when he came in last night,” I tell them.
“Oh, Stone”s room is across the hall. You took the door on the right instead of the left,” Addy says.
“Yeah, by the time we realized that, all the rooms were taken. It was a king bed and he stayed on his own side,” I tell them.
A few of them groan.
“I just met the man. Anyway, we were woken up by Atlas saying Lightning”s house was on fire, so we rushed there and just got back,” I say, taking the glass of the frozen drink that Ashley hands me.
“Why did he take you with him to his place? He could have left you here with Stone and me,” Addy says.
“Ahh, I couldn”t sleep after he woke me up last night. So we stayed up and talked for a bit,” I replied. As I started thinking about our talk last night, I remembered what he told me about Uncle John.
“I have a bone to pick with you! Why didn”t you tell me about your dad?”” I ask.
“Lightning told you?” Her eyes go wide.
“I think he thought I”d already know since we are family and all.”
Addy cringes, and the other girls look a bit uncomfortable.
“I haven”t told anybody outside of town. I don”t want people to worry, and I don”t want to get my dad in trouble. We are hoping he can still be of use to us in bringing down Savage Bones. I”m hoping against hope he will flip and take them down.” She whispers the last part and I pull her into a hug.
“That explains why he didn”t walk you down the aisle,” I say, and she nods. “Lightning says he”s doing this to protect you?”
“Yeah, they made threats toward me to get him to comply. He asked Stone to watch over me and that”s how we finally admitted our feelings and stopped hiding them. But when my dad tried to find a way out, they poisoned my lunch, which landed me in the hospital, and that was the final straw for both Stone and my dad. Gosh, I”m so glad you know now. I need someone else to talk to about all this,” she says and hugs me harder.
“Lightning is a good guy. He risked his life for the guys during the Savage Bones raid a few weeks ago,” Ashley says.
“Is that how he got shot?” I ask.
“Yep. He was nothing but nice when I got here, too,” Ginger says.
The girls share a bit about their stories and how they ended up with their guys. As we drink more of the fruity orange and red frozen drink, Ashley refills our glasses, and Luna warms up some leftovers from the fridge. Time seems to fly by, and I find myself laughing harder than I can remember laughing in a while.
“I hate to break up the fun, but it”s after midnight, and we have a bit of a drive tomorrow.” Lightning peeks his head in.
I say my goodbyes to my new friends before following Lightning upstairs and back to his room.
“It looks like you girls were having fun,” he says as I pull out my pajamas, replacing the tank top with a shirt.
“We did. They are so much fun to be around, and they all really like you. They were singing your praises all night,” I tell him, and I swear I see a slight pink tinge on his cheeks.
“I would have let you stay down there all night if we didn”t have to be on the road tomorrow,” he says, almost like he is apologizing.
“It”s okay. I”m sure it won”t be the last time I see them. With Addy being a part of the club now, I will be here more often.” I say, and he gives me a look like he wants to say something but doesn”t.
“Take the bathroom first and get ready for bed,” he says, and I do.
Once we are both in bed, he shuts off the light, but my mind doesn”t seem to shut off.
“Is it always like this here?” I ask.
“Always like what?” he asks.
“Like the fires, the drug deals, you being shot?”
“Recently, yes, but normally, no. It wasn”t like this until a few months ago when Savage Bones tried to move in on Mustang Mountain.”
That wasn”t the answer I was hoping for. I can”t get involved with someone who is always in danger. My heart couldn”t handle it. I watched my mom fall apart when she lost my dad, and I refuse to follow in her footsteps.