Chapter 18 LEXIE
LEXIE
“Jordan, can you take the foil off the mac and cheese and set the broiler for five minutes?”
I dropped another piece of chicken into the fryer.
The kitchen in this clubhouse wasn’t anywhere near as nice as the Reapers’, but I was making it work.
The mac and cheese was almost finished and the banana pudding was chilling in the refrigerator.
I had to throw out a shelf full of moldy food to make room, but that was probably for the best. And proof they needed to hire me more often.
I was already planning out a weekly meal service in my mind.
Next I needed to work out the pricing. My fingers itched for my binder, but first, chicken.
Jordan had turned out to be a great assistant.
I’d already decided to pay him a share of the night’s profit.
He’d earned it. Even if he hadn’t been a good helper, he was a good bodyguard.
While I tried not to be quick to judge others—I’d had enough of that growing up—these bikers were nothing like the Reapers.
They had a different edge about them, and I didn’t like the way the guy that brought us in here stared at me.
If it wasn’t for Jordan kicking him out of the kitchen, I think he’d still be in here staring at me with his creepy serial killer eyes.
I shivered and reached the tongs into the fryer to turn the chicken.
I’d make sure my weekly meal plan was drop-off only, not to cook on site.
My spidey sense was tingling, and I knew this wasn’t a place I ever wanted to be alone.
But I was clever. I could listen to my gut and make money at the same time. Life was all about balance.
My phone vibrated, and since my chicken had a few more minutes, I answered. I didn’t like to be distracted while I cooked, but it was the fifth time in two hours it had rang, so maybe it was important. Like a pipe burst in my apartment or something.
The name on the screen caused my heart to flutter. I took a deep breath and answered. “Bear?”
“Lexie, where the fuck have you been?”
I blinked and pulled the phone back to look at it. Did he think he could talk to me like that?
“Sorry, you’ve dialed the wrong number.” I moved my thumb to press the red cancel button when he spoke again.
“Shit, sorry. I didn’t mean it like that. I was worried, that’s all. I called you several times. I thought something had happened.”
I snorted. “I’m out here living my life, like I have been for the last seven days.”
“Aww pixie, have you been counting the days since I left?” I could hear the smile in his voice, and I hated it. Hated that I could picture the way he bit his bottom lip as that sexy grin spread across his stupidly handsome face.
“Definitely a wrong number.”
“I’m sorry I couldn’t come to you sooner. But I’m almost back. In fact, I’m about thirty minutes out. I was hoping, if you weren’t busy, I could take you out for a date. I need a quick shower, but I could be at your place in an hour or so.”
“A date? You just assume I have nothing at all going on? Maybe I’m already on a date.”
A rumble erupted from his end of the line. “Are you on a date right now, baby girl?”
I closed my eyes, willing myself to find the strength to resist the guy. But dang it all, it would be a lot easier if he’d quit calling me baby girl. And didn’t buy such amazing gifts.
“Hold, please.” I had chicken to fry and this banter was going to make me burn something.
I took the last of the chicken out of the fryer and set the pieces on the rack to drain. The oven beeped and I motioned for Jordan to pull the mac and cheese out, only to realize he’d left the kitchen. Bathroom break?
“No, I’m not on a date. But I am busy.” I switched off the oven timer and grabbed a hand towel.
Bear started to speak, but I told him to hold on again and set the phone on the counter.
I pulled the mac and cheese out of the oven and smiled.
The cheese was ooey gooey goodness and had browned perfectly on top, the way everyone loved it.
I set it in the chafing dish next to the beans and potato wedges. Almost ready.
I put the phone on speaker and transferred the fried chicken to the table.
“Busy with what? What’s all that noise?”
“I’m on a job.” I took a deep breath. Maybe I was being unfair. He’d apologized for not saying goodbye. And now he was back in town and asking for a date, like he said he would. In my experience, once a family let me go, they never reached back out. So maybe this wasn’t the same thing.
“That’s awesome.” His voice echoed across the table. “How’s it going so far?”
My heart swelled with pride. “Great. I mean, the guys here don’t have quite the same vibe as your guys, but the food looks good and I think I can book them for future gigs. I’ll have to remember to thank Mav for the referral next time I see him.”
“Referral?”
“I mean, I assume Mav gave the referral. Seemed like too much of a coincidence since it’s for another MC. And speaking of, I’ve got to get back to it. It’s time to serve.”
“Another MC? Are you out of town?”
“No, they’re local. Which is a good thing, since transportation is still a bit of an issue.”
“The Exiled Reapers are the only MC in Atlantic Shores. Where the hell are you?”
I threw my hand into the air. “I guess you learn something new every day. There’s at least one more because I’m at their clubhouse right now.
I thought you guys had referred me, but maybe it was a coincidence and they saw one of my flyers.
” I shrugged, looking at my watch. They wanted dinner at 6:00, and we had about five more minutes.
“Can we talk about this later? They’ll be in here any minute. ”
“Please baby, stop and listen to me for a second. This is very important. What’s the name of the club?”
I rolled my eyes. “The Diablos. Want me to send you their contact info? Then y’all can meet up and you can ask them all these questions.”
“Fuck! Lexie, I need you to get out of there, right this fucking second. Just walk out that door and don’t look back.”
I chuffed. “I haven’t even served the food yet. And then I have to clean up and—“
“Trust me on this. I don’t know how you ended up there or what game these guys are playing, but you are not safe. Now get the fuck out.”
“Not safe? Of course I am. I mean, sure, these guys are a little… edgy. But Jordan’s here. He hasn’t let anything happen to me so far. Although, he has been gone for a while…” Where had he gone? If he was still taking a bathroom break, he might need to see a doctor.
“Jordan? How the fuck is the prospect involved in this?”
“I needed a ride. My, uh, van is still in the shop.”
“Fuck,” he swore. “Do you have his keys?”
I laughed. “No. But even if I did, have you seen the size of his truck? I drive a Vespa. I don’t even want to think of the damage I’d cause in that thing. Plus I doubt I’d even reach the pedals.”
“You need to take this seriously. You’re in danger.”
“Okay, and you need to stop overreacting.”
“Overreacting?” I heard him take a deep breath. “Lexie,” he began in a lower, but more serious tone. “What did Tracker say when he was bleeding out from a stab wound?”
I shivered as the image of the bloody gash in his side flashed across my eyes. “Poor guy. Is he out of the hospital yet?”
“Lexie!” Bear shouted. “What did he say? When he thought he only had moments to live, what word did he choose to say?”
“He said Di—“ My breath caught and my heart thudded in my chest. “Well, crap.”
“Exactly. He wasn’t seeing the Devil, baby. He was telling us who stabbed him. The Diablos.”
My stomach swirled, and I backed away before I hurled on the food. I might be in a life-or-death situation, but I’d worked hard on that meal. I took several deep breaths and grabbed a knife from the drawer.
“You need to get out of there.”
“Yeah, I’m with you now. I’ve got to find Jordan. I got him into this mess, so I can’t leave him here.”
“Jordan can take care of himself. If he’s not already part of this, the fact that he hasn’t come back might mean he can’t.”
“You mean they might have ki—“ I couldn’t say it. I couldn’t think it. “Knocked him out?” I asked hopefully.
“Yeah, we’ll go with that. Ping me your location.”
I flipped to the map app and did as he asked. “Maybe we’re freaking out over nothing.” They did need a caterer. The state of their kitchen proved that. No way anyone cooked in here on a regular basis.
“I’m not supposed to tell you about club business, but fuck it. We’ve got a rat. That’s how Tracker was stabbed inside our own clubhouse.”
I snorted. That was hardly a state secret.
“That rat must have told the Diablos that you were a witness. And from the looks of things, Jordan could very well be that rat.”
“But I’m not a witness and Jordan knows that. I didn’t see anything. I dressed a wound. I’m nobody special.”
“That’s not true, Lexie. You’re special to me. The brothers saw it. The rat saw it. If they don’t want to kill you as a witness, they may want to hurt you as leverage against me. Against the club.”
The flutters in my heart returned, although the timing was terrible. “I’m special to you?”
“So fucking special. And I’m not going to let you get hurt. We’ve caught a lucky break. You’re at the northern end of the county, but I’m about fifteen minutes from there. So hang tight, and I’ll come for you.”
“I’ll admit I don’t know a lot about how this works. But I don’t think you can ride up into their compound and take me away.”
“Don’t worry, baby. I’ve got a plan.”
“But Jordan—“
“Lexie, Jordan is a prospect and entered a rival MC’s clubhouse. He knows better than that. Which tells me he’s up to no good. So we’re not going to worry about him right now. Okay?”
I took a deep breath. I didn’t like it, but he knew this world better than I did. “Fine. Just hurry up.” I slipped the phone into the back pocket of my jeans as the door to the kitchen opened.
The creepy guy with the serial killer eyes—Cyclops, according to his patch—stepped up to the table. His head was shaved bald and he had a thick black goatee. His arms were massive, like he could crush a watermelon with his bare hands.
“Is dinner ready?” he asked.
I nodded, willing my hands to stop shaking.
“Come and get it!” he boomed and grabbed a plate. He piled on food as the others lined up. If only I’d had more time, I could have sprinkled sleeping pills in the food. But that probably only worked in movies. And I didn’t have sleeping pills.
Cyclops came to the end of the table and stared at me. “Come.”
I looked behind me, but there was no one. “Are you talking to me?”
“Yeah, bitch, I’m talking to you. Now come.”
My mouth dropped. “I, uh, I don’t think…” I took a step back, not wanting to know where this was going.
“Lexie.” Jordan stepped into the kitchen. One of the Diablos stood behind him with a gun to his head. “I think you better do what he says.”
Cyclops grinned. “Yeah, listen to your friend.” He turned toward the man holding Jordan. “And take him to the shed.”