15. 15
15
S avage watched Donna as she headed off toward the field where the tents were set up. He didn’t doubt that she was tired. He would be too if he’d spent the night before the way she had. But he suspected there was something more to it. Something she wasn’t telling him. He moved to the picnic table and sat. He faced away from the table, leaning back against it, elbows resting on the surface.
Not that he expected her to tell him all her secrets. No. they were barely getting to know each other, she had no reason to trust him, at least not yet. Did he want to get where she trusted him like that? Yeah. He liked that idea.
“What’s up with you?” Jake asked as he sat down beside him. “You look like someone just slapped you upside the head with a dead fish.”
Savage turned and stared at the man he’d only been getting to know when he’d left several months before. “Where do you come up with these things?”
“What things?” Jake said, looking as if he had no idea what Savage meant. “I don’t say anything weird, but back to my original question. What’s got you looking so shocked?”
Savage shook his head, remembering what he’d been thinking about when this friend had come up and pulled his mind away from her. Donna. Not just her but that he wanted her to trust him with her secrets. When had he decided he wanted that? from anyone?
“Just thinking.” He wasn’t sure he wanted to look too clearly at where his thoughts had come from, much less what they might mean. He sure as hell didn’t want to talk about it, or worse, his feelings. He tipped his bottle back and took a long pull, hoping Jake would let it go, but suspecting that wouldn’t happen.
“If I had to make a bet, I’d say it had to do with that piece of ass you brought in with you today. A couple of the others told me you picked her up in Casper this morning. But you know this isn’t an event for a casual backpack, so there’s got to be more to it that I’m not seeing. Especially since none of the older brothers seem to care. Then there’s the women. they seem to have taken her in like she’s one of them.” Jake tilted his head and watched Savage from the corner of his eye.
Savage clenched his teeth and fought the urge to go after Jake for calling Donna a piece of ass. He had no way of knowing different. “Never call her that again. And I’m not sleeping with her.”
Jake turned to stare at him, one brow lifted. “I know I saw you haul two sleeping bags into your tent this afternoon.”
“I didn’t say we aren’t sharing a tent, I said I’m not sleeping with her. She needs help. She’s running from something, more than she’s told me about yet.” He told Jake about how he’d found her that morning, but he didn’t mention that his gut wouldn’t let him leave her behind, not if she was willing to go with him. He wouldn’t have forced her, but he wouldn’t have liked leaving her behind either.
Jake looked like he wanted to say more about Donna, or Savage’s reaction to what he’d said about her but thankfully, he changed the subject.
“I hear Sadist is giving some ink while he’s here.”
“I don’t know that anything is set in stone, but we brought what he said he needs to do it. Are you looking to have something done?”
“I don’t know. I was thinking about it, but we’ve got a couple of newer brothers who want to get their colors done. I think they were waiting for this, or to have the time to go see him. This works better, at least when it comes to running this place.”
“Speaking of running this place, how’s it been? You ever worked a ranch before coming up here?”
“I like it. It’s different, and no. I’d never been on a ranch, or a horse before. But I like it. I do wish there was a bit more on the tech side, but we’ll get there. There’s talk of adding to that barn,” he tilted his head toward the large building where they’d parked the bikes, “and making it a club house but there’s other shit that’s more important. Maybe next summer? I don’t know.”
“You think you’ll stay up here? Or are you looking forward to getting back to Tucson?”
“I don’t know. I’m not going back this trip, I know that much for sure. I’m going to stay here, help Lurch and the others get this chapter up and running a little better. I honestly don’t have any plans past that.” Jake drained the bottle in his hand, then gave Savage’s a pointed look. “I’m going for another, you want one while I’m up?”
“Sure.” Savage scanned the gathering and wondered what was planned for the next few days. Maybe he’d have a chance to take Donna into town. He didn’t know what Gillette, the nearest town to the ranch, had to offer, but he’d find out and see if she wanted to go do something. From what little he’d told her about where she’d been living, he thought maybe she’d like to go see a movie. He didn’t know what else she might enjoy, not yet but he’d find out.
“You look deep in thought again. Anything I can help with?” Jake said as he returned. He handed one of the two bottles in his hand to Savage, then sat.
“Not unless you can tell me what’s planned for the next couple of days? I’m sure there will be a ride or two, maybe something else to keep this bunch entertained and out of trouble. Or at least too much trouble.”
“There are a couple of rides planned, you knew there would be but there are days where the activities are optional. Things that you can choose to do or not, and find thing to do on your own.”
“Like?”
“We’ve got horses available if anyone wants to ride, though if any of the women are along, they’ll need one of the locals along.” Jake met his gaze for a moment then looked away. “There’s places to hike, both off and on the ranch, if someone wanted to. Then there’s plenty to do in town, as well as places to ride if you want to ride without the rest of the group too.”
Savage tipped his beer back and took a long pull as he thought about all that. He couldn’t help but wonder what, if any, of it might interest Donna. He didn’t need to ask about the look or why any riding group with the women along would need one of the locals. There were things on the ranch the women didn’t need to know about, and they wanted to make sure they didn’t stumble across them. All the Souls knew about them, but the men from Tucson wouldn’t know exactly what areas to avoid.
“And I’m sure there will be a chance to do some ranch work, if you’d like to get your hands dirty and see what real work is like.”
Savage didn’t justify that with an answer, just shot the other man a look from the corner of his eye. Again, his mind turned back to Donna, he didn’t know why he couldn’t keep from thinking about her. It wasn’t like he’d known her even twenty-four hours. There was no reason she kept creeping into his thoughts.
“How was the ride up?” Jake’s voice pulled him from his thoughts.
“Long. Never thought I’d say it but after four days straight of riding, I’m glad we aren’t getting back on for another tomorrow.”
“But we’ve got a ride planned. We’re going to take you all up to the Devil’s Tower. You can’t be this close and never go see it!” Jake sounded disappointed that Savage didn’t want to ride tomorrow.
“Do you really? You planned a ride for tomorrow?”
Jake couldn’t hold a straight face any longer and burst out laughing. “We have the ride planned but not for tomorrow. I made that ride a few months ago, we did it faster than four days, and thankfully not on our bikes.” His brother made an admission few members of the club would ever say out loud. The prospects who had been in the truck, towing the trailer full of gear, had bitched about not being able to make the ride on their bikes. And while four days on his bike had left him sore and tired, he’d rather that than four days trapped in the cab of a truck, or worse, a car.
“You enjoying yourself?” Savage watched his friend with raised brows. It took Jake several minutes to stop laughing, then to catch his breath.
“Dude,” Jake said once he’d caught his breath, a grin still covering his face. “You should have seen the look on your face. It was almost a sad, dejected look but so filled with something, I’m not sure what. Like you wanted to go but you didn’t.”
Savage watched as Jake started laughing again, laughing so hard he almost fell off the bench they sat on. Savage could only watch, drinking from the cold bottle in his hand while he waited for the laughter to end. Or something else to come along to distract him.
After a minute he gave up on Jake finding an end to the hilarity and turned to watch the flames of the bonfire that had been built in the middle of the clearing. As he watched the flames lick toward the sky his mind once more turned to Donna. He wished she had felt better, he’d like to have her here with him now. Somehow, he thought she would enjoy sitting around the fire, just enjoying time with the others. He sure as hell wanted her here and in his arms, or on his lap.
And with that thought he’d had enough for tonight. He finished the beer in his hand, found a can for his empty bottles and headed for the field where the tents sat.
He nodded to several people as he made his way past and pulled the flashlight from his pocket where he’d put it when he’d given one to Donna earlier, just in case he needed it. he didn’t turn it on until he got closer to some of the tents, then only to make sure he wasn’t going to trip over anyone’s tie-down lines.
Tomorrow he wouldn’t be so tired. And he’d try to get Donna to talk to him some more about herself. He did his best to stay quiet as he reached the tent, kicked his boots off and brought them, and Donna’s shoes, inside then undressed and slid into his sleeping bag. The last thing he wanted was to disturb her.
He didn’t know if it was exhaustion from days on the back of a bike, the sweet smell of Donna just a few feet away or the soft, even sound of her breathing as she slept, but he drifted to sleep far faster than he could remember doing in many years.
S omething tickled Savage’s nose. He moved his face to one side, but it didn’t stop. He started to reach up and brush away whatever it was, but his arm was pinned. That wasn’t right. There was no reason he shouldn’t be able to move his arm.
He tried to remember if he’d done anything last night, but no, he hadn’t even had much to drink before he’d called it a night and gone to bed. Now though it felt like he wasn’t in bed alone. Well, as close as it got when you were in a tent and supposed to be alone on your side.
He opened his eyes to find that he lay in the middle of the tent instead of on his side where he’d started, and as he’d suspected, he wasn’t alone. They were both still in their own sleeping bags, but Donna lay curled into his side, her face on his shoulder and her hair in his face was what had woken him.
Savage wondered for a moment how they’d gotten this way, he normally didn’t move much in his sleep. But to find not just him, but them both in the middle of the floor, something probably happened. If only he could remember what.
She stirred against him, making him look down at her again. Her nose crinkled as her hair brushed across it. her lashes fluttered, then her eyes blinked open. He watched emotions flit across her face as she realized where she was and how they were laying. Then, moving slowly, as if trying not to wake him, she tilted her head back to see if he was awake.
“Morning,” he said, hoping she wouldn’t panic.
“Um. Morning.” She started to move away, but he tightened his arm around her, he wouldn’t keep her from moving if she wanted to, but he didn’t want her running just because of where they woke. She didn’t fight him but when she met the resistance of his hold, relaxed against him.
“I’m not complaining. This is a nice way to wake up, but do you know how we got like this?”
Her face turned pink. “Yeah. Sorry. I got cold last night. I didn’t want to wake you. I don’t know how I didn’t, but before long you’d moved closer, then pulled me into you.”
Now that she said that it came back to him. He remembered hearing the movement of her sleeping bag. It had taken him a moment or two to register that she was shivering. “Were you warm enough the rest of the night?”
“Yes, thank you. You didn’t have to, but I appreciate it. You’ve done so much for me. I don’t know how to thank you.”
“You don’t need to. I want to help you. Help you find your feet, whatever you need.”
“Thank you anyway.”
“I guess I should get up,” he said. “I found out yesterday that the men are in charge of the food this trip, which makes sense there are a lot more of us. I should go help.”
She started moving, trying to get away from him and out of her sleeping bag. Her movements seemed almost frantic.
“Are you all right?”
“Outside. I need to get outside. Now.” He sat up, made it to his knees and unzipped the tent door while she struggled out of her bag. She hurried out, before he had a chance to say anything more. He didn’t think he’d shed a bedroll faster, and in moments he was outside, barefoot and following Donna as she hurried away from the tents, then fell to her knees and vomited.
At a loss as to what might be wrong, he bent, pulled her hair back out of her face to keep it from getting dirty, then knelt beside her and gently rubbed her back while he waited for her to finish. Was it something she’d eaten? Unless she’d taken a bottle back to the tent with her, he didn’t think she’d had too much to drink the night before, and it didn’t smell like alcohol.
Several minutes passed, she vomited several times then sat hunched over, while her stomach heaved, trying to rid it of anything else. He wanted to help but knew until her stomach settled there was little that could be done. Eventually, her stomach seemed to calm. Donna slowly sat up then ran the back of one hand across her lower lip.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to do that.”
“Are you okay? Was it something you ate?”
Her face turned pink. She looked down and shook her head.
“No. Not something I ate and now that I’ve been sick, it will pass.”
“Are you sure? Do I need to take you in to see a doctor?”
“I’m sure. It’s gone for now, but might come back.” She looked down at her hands, then lifted her gaze, but looked out across the prairie, refusing to meet his gaze. “A doctor won’t be able to help.”
Savage couldn’t keep the concern from his voice. He couldn’t help but wonder what was wrong. He put a finger under her chin and gently turned her to face him, but she dropped her gaze, still not meeting her eyes.
“Tell me what it is, babe. I’ll help if I can.”
Her face turned pink again, then she spoke, her voice so soft he wasn’t sure he’d heard her right. “I’m pregnant.”