Chapter 3
Chapter Three
With her arms banded around his chest, Finlay clung to him like her life depended on it. Her cheek was smashed to his back, and her bare thighs clamped around his hips. She had to be freezing her ass off.
This is wild.
Jude had only landed in Calamity an hour ago. His dad, Ava, and two of his brothers met him at the airport. Even brought him a bike to ride.
And the moment I cross the town line, I find her?
That was bizarre enough, but to catch her right as she was running from her own wedding?
Typically, they didn’t ride in December. It was too damn cold. But it was sunny, and the roads were clear. Hadn’t snowed for a week. And of course, no one had anticipated a companion in a wedding dress.
He had a lot of questions.
Like, who was she marrying, and what had the asshole done to make her pull a runner?
And had she ever gotten her house on Bloom Lane?
But he didn’t have time for that. He had to get to the club. Had to see about Marco’s son.
When he reached a safe distance from the church, he pulled onto the shoulder of the road.
“Oh, okay,” she said. “Sure. I’ll just…um…
” She released her hold on him. “Can I borrow your phone? I have to…” She glanced from the bison preserve to the motel and gas station across the street.
“Call…someone. A cab.” She set one pink satin heel on the asphalt and clutched his shirt as she tried to slide off the back of his bike.
She was a mess, and he didn’t like seeing her so rattled. It stirred something in him. Something that made his hands clench into fists. Because she wouldn’t be running if the groom hadn’t done something.
It’s none of my business.
When she pulled off his jacket and handed it to him, he shook his head. “Put it on and get back on the bike. I’m not abandoning you on the side of the road.”
“Are you sure?” When she saw his stern expression, she scrambled to slide her arms into the sleeves. She was shaking, and he didn’t know if her ghostly pallor was because of the temperature or shock. “Thanks.”
“I only stopped to find out where I’m dropping you.”
“Oh.” She looked overwhelmed and overwrought. “I don’t know.”
That fancy makeup, the shiny wedding hair, the expensive gown…none of it fit with the anxiety pinching her features. “I can’t go home. We live there together. And I don’t want to hear his excuses. I need…I need to think.”
“What about Willa?”
“I mean, she’s at the church. She was my maid of honor.” Tears glistened, and her voice was thick. “But she has to go back to the city in the morning. She’s working on a case. I can’t mess it up for her.”
No one on this earth tugged at his heart the way this woman did. But as much as he wanted to help her, he had a kid who might try to walk fifteen miles along a highway to get to school. “Look, I have to get to the club. I can drop you at a hotel—”
“I don’t have a wallet.” She looked down at her ruined dress. “I don’t have clothes.”
“Then I’ll take you to your mom or dad’s.”
“No.” She had a frantic look in her eyes. “I can’t. They’re going to want to talk about it, dissect it. Analyze every single detail. They’re going to try to fix it.”
“But it can’t be fixed?”
“No. It’s over.”
“Then you’ll have to come to the club with me.” It might not be the ideal place, but they’d take care of her. “They’ll get you some clothes, and I can give you cash. You can figure it out from there, yeah?”
“Yes.” She nodded, clearly still in shock. “Thank you. I won’t get in your way.”
That was it. He’d reached his limit. Gripping both forearms, he jerked her to him. “You are not in my way.”
She didn’t believe it. He could tell from the way she wouldn’t look him in the eyes.
She’d spent a lot of time alone as a kid, which made her self-reliant and independent. It also made her feel like she couldn’t impose on anyone. Like she was a burden.
No, she’d never told him shit like that. But he’d paid attention. He knew.
Well, he’d make it clear. “If I could help you right now, I would. But I’m in town to handle some business, and I have to get going.” He let her go. “Now, get on.” He knew he said it too gruffly by the way she flinched, but at least she did as he asked.
Whatever shit her groom had dished out, Finlay didn’t deserve it. She was sunshine and kindness and everything good in the world.
As she got settled on the back of his bike, he glanced at the gas station, half-afraid old man Keller would stalk out with a baseball bat and tell him to get the hell off his property or to empty his pockets so he could see how much candy he’d stolen.
It was only when his dad sat him down and explained the repercussions of stealing—not just for Jude but for store owners—that he’d begun to separate from his friends and make better choices.
Jude remembered so clearly being seventeen and idling in this very spot, waiting for his friends to come running out with their arms loaded with chips and beers, wondering what life would be like somewhere else.
Well, now he knew.
Which made it surreal to be back in town and with Finlay clinging to him like he was her only hope against the hordes of zombies chasing her. He liked it.
That was not good, so he pinned it and took off.
When he got to the club, he didn’t recognize a lot of the bikes and trucks. He had no idea what happened to most of the guys he’d once known.
He only knew one thing: Marco was gone.
A sharp twist of regret had him lowering his gaze to the snow-covered ground. He and his friend had gone in different directions. There was nothing he could’ve done about that, but it didn’t take away the disappointment that life hadn’t gone better for his oldest friend.
While waiting for her to get off his bike, he checked the family chat.
Dad: What the hell was that?
Ava: Need us to come back?
Boone: Jude, the legend. Bagging a date his first five minutes in town.
He wrote them back.
Jude: She’s an old friend from high school. She needed a ride.
Boone:
Dad: You need us for anything?
Jude: No. I’ll be home after I figure things out with the kid.
Once off the bike, Finlay handed over the helmet and jacket. “Thank you.”
Her shaking hands and voice messed with him. “What’d that fucker do?”
“He kept a secret.”
He studied her for a moment. That wasn’t always a dealbreaker. Not when you loved someone.
What the fuck do I know about love?
Not a damn thing.
“Don’t look so murderous.” She cracked a half-hearted grin. “He didn’t cheat on me. At least, I don’t think.”
Her hair was a mess, so he bit the tip of his glove and tugged it off, freeing his hand to brush strands off her forehead. “You okay?”
“I don’t know. I feel like a rubber ducky floating in a bathtub. I don’t have legs, so I can’t kick toward the side, and I’m just…bobbing.”
“All right, ducky. When you figure it out, let me know. For now, let’s get you warmed up.”
As she held his gaze, she broke into a soft grin. It lit her eyes and put color back into her pale complexion. “You know what I just remembered?”
“What?”
“That day you rescued me from the raccoon.”
He’d never forgotten. For a lot of reasons. First, she’d been wearing the cutest fucking slippers he’d ever seen. Second, because of the fear in her eyes. It had been real. And third, because that was the day all the pieces had come together, and he’d understood her. Her essential loneliness.
He’d never talked to Leia again.
She nodded. “Today’s the second time you happened to be there right when I needed you.”
“You didn’t need me. You just needed a ride.”
“But it was you who showed up.” Her eyes went soft. “Both times.”
“Yeah, because everyone you know was in that church.”
“It could’ve been anyone. But it was you. Thank you, Jude.”
Whatever held him upright—his bones, his resolve, his instinct for survival—softened, nearly taking out his knees.
How the hell could anyone hurt this sweet, sincere woman?
But he had a purpose, so he turned away from her. “Let’s go.” His boots crunched on snow and gravel, and he wouldn’t let himself check to see if she followed.
The moment he opened the club door, the roar of conversation and the smell of pot hit him. The juke-box blasted out a Slipknot song, while people laughed, shouted, and hung out. It was a late Saturday afternoon, and the party was in full swing.
When he was a kid, his dad would take them camping most weekends.
Of course, at the time, they had no idea he was keeping them away from the decadence of the club.
For a few years, they’d loved it, but then, they’d reached a point when they’d started making friends and had sports commitments, and disappearing every weekend hadn’t been viable anymore.
It wasn’t the reason his dad moved away—no, that was because of what happened to Wyatt—but it was certainly a major factor.
Finlay entered ahead of him but came to an abrupt stop, forcing him to grab her hips so he didn’t slam into her.
The feel of her body sent him back to all those restless nights when he’d dreamed about her. He wouldn’t say he had a type. Generally, he was attracted to a smile, confidence, and a lack of inhibitions.
But something about Finlay’s curves had always driven him wild. An image hit of pulling her up hard against him, cupping her full breasts, and grinding his cock on her ass.
He let her go as if she were on fire.
He didn’t know where that thought had come from, but it was an unacceptable reaction to someone he hadn’t seen in twelve years. Someone who’d just run from her own wedding.
She cast a glance over her shoulder as if wondering what she’d done wrong.
Trust me, Ducky, it’s not you. It’s me. He pushed in front of her and said, “Stick close,” as he moved into the room.
The massive warehouse space featured an active bar, four pool tables, and several couches that faced a giant TV with a video game playing on the screen.
An old friend spotted him. With a lift of his beer and a smile, Jordan sauntered over. “Dude. What’re you doin’ here?”
“Came to see Carlo.”