Chapter Nineteen
Oliver
“Wrecker.”
The room had been buzzing with conversation one second. Next, it went dead silent.
I watched Wrecker’s expression harden as he listened to whoever was on the other end of the phone. He didn’t say anything for a couple of seconds before looking around the room. “Yeah, Basil. Let me put you on speaker.” He tapped the screen before setting the phone on the table. “Go ahead.”
The first thing that came through the speaker made half the room groan. “It’s B.”
Wrecker slowly closed his eyes. “You just called to tell us that?”
“Well, no,” Basil answered. “But it’d be real nice if you’d listen to me when I tell you to call me B.”
Wrecker pinched the bridge of his nose. “Yeah. I’ll work on that.” A few snickers echoed around the room. “Now tell me why the hell you called.”
“The van.”
Every muscle in my body locked.
Jude straightened beside Ever, and Lark instinctively reached for my arm. The only people who looked completely lost were Drew and Demi.
“You found it?” Wrecker asked.
“Yeah,” B said with a laugh. “Turns out all we had to do was walk out of our hotel room. It was parked right out front.”
“What?” Pipe muttered.
“Archie says nobody checked into the motel last night, though.”
“Holy shit,” Jude breathed.
“At the motel?” Demi asked.
Every head turned toward her.
“Yeah,” Wrecker answered.
Drew looked between all of us like she didn’t understand why everyone suddenly looked ready to start a war. “When we checked in late last night...” she said slowly, “...it parked next to us.”
Silence.
Complete silence.
It was like she’d sucked every bit of air out of the room.
“You what?” Pipe asked.
Drew blinked. “The van.” She pointed toward the window as if the motel was visible from here. “It parked next to us.”
“There were people in it?” Mason asked.
She nodded. “Yeah.”
B’s voice crackled through the speaker. “Who the hell is that?”
“Demi and Drew,” Demi called loudly enough for him to hear.
“You guys having a party there?” B asked.
A grin tugged at the corner of my mouth despite everything.
Wrecker rolled his eyes. “Don’t worry about what we’re doing here.” He grabbed the phone. “You keep your eye on that van. We’ll be there in ten minutes, Basil.”
“Wha—” Wrecker ended before B could finish whatever smart-ass comment he’d been about to make.
Wrecker looked directly at Drew and Demi. “You remember what the guy looked like?”
Demi nodded immediately. “Guys.” Her emphasis wasn’t lost on anyone. “There were three of them.”
The room seemed to get even quieter.
Pipe let out a long breath. “Fucking shit. They’re all here.”
Wrecker looked toward Mason. “I need descriptions.”
Mason nodded. “I’ve got it.” He motioned to Drew and Demi to follow him over to the couch.
Wrecker was already moving. He pointed around the room. “Nickel.” Nickel was on his feet before Wrecker finished. “Cole.” Cole stood. “Fox.” Fox tossed the rest of his coffee into the sink. “Maniac.” Maniac cracked his neck. “We’re heading to the motel.”
“I want to come.” The words were out of my mouth before I thought about them.
“So do I,” Jude said immediately. His jaw was tight. “Those assholes tried taking Lark and Ever.”
Exactly. Every part of me wanted another shot at the bastard I’d punched yesterday.
No... I wanted all three of them. The image of that hand wrapped around Lark’s arm flashed through my mind. If those guys were still anywhere near that motel, I’d happily beat every one of them until they forgot their own names.
Wrecker looked between Jude and me before shaking his head. “No.”
Neither of us said anything.
“You two stay here.” His tone left no room for argument. “We don’t know what we’re walking into.” He looked at me specifically. “For all we know, the van’s there and they’re long fucking gone.”
Didn’t matter. If there was even the smallest chance, I wanted to be there.
“So what the hell are we supposed to do?” Jude asked.
To my surprise, Wrecker laughed. He slipped his phone back into his pocket. “Don’t you have an ice cream shop to open?”
Ever looked over at Lark. “We really need to hire some more people.”
Lark sighed dramatically. “That sounds fantastic for my sanity.” She looked toward Ever. “I’m just not sure my wallet will appreciate working fewer hours.”
Ever laughed. “Fair.”
“I like eating.”
“So do I.”
“I also like paying bills,” Lark waxed on.
Wrecker shook his head. “You four worry about the ice cream. We’ll worry about this.”
With that, Wrecker headed for the door. Nickel fell into step beside him.
Fox grabbed his cut from the back of a chair.
Cole checked the magazine in the handgun at his waist before sliding it back into the holster.
Maniac was already halfway out the door.
Within seconds, the roar of motorcycles echoed through the clubhouse, and the room felt strangely empty.
Alice clapped her hands together. “Well. I, for one, refuse to let dangerous motorcycle nonsense ruin breakfast.” Several heads turned. “I’m making a French toast tower.”
Penny’s eyes lit up. “A what?”
“The greatest breakfast known to mankind.”
Bell was already following Alice toward the kitchen. “I’m in.”
“So am I,” Calla called.
Alice pointed dramatically toward the pantry.
“I’ll need flour!”
“I’ll grab it,” Star offered.
“Somebody find cinnamon!”
The clubhouse slowly came back to life.
People drifted toward the kitchen.
Coffee started pouring again.
Conversations picked back up.
I stayed where I was.
Lark hadn’t moved either.
I stepped closer until only a few inches separated us. “You okay?”
She looked up at me. “I think so.”
“You think so?”
She nodded. “I feel better today.”
Her hand rested lightly against my chest.
“I think sleeping helped.”
“I think so too.”
She smiled softly.
It struck me then how natural this felt. Her standing close enough that our shoulders brushed.
My hand settled against her hip, and neither of us questioned it.
Neither of us asked what we were.
We just were.
Around us, nobody stared.
Nobody teased.
Nobody made a comment.
The only thing I noticed was Mom. She glanced our way while handing Bell a carton of eggs.
Our eyes met and she smiled like she’d been waiting for this without ever pushing for it.
Lark must’ve noticed too because she looked up at me with a tiny smile. “I would be a lot better...” She lowered her voice. “...if I could kiss you right now.”
I didn’t hesitate. I cupped her cheek and leaned down. Our lips met gently. Soft enough that it felt private despite the dozen people moving around us. The pull that always seemed to exist whenever she was close.
She sighed quietly into the kiss before I pulled back.
Her eyes were wide and a little stunned. “You actually kissed me,” she whispered. A beat passed. “In front of everyone.”
A smirk tugged at my mouth. “I’m quiet, baby.” I brushed my thumb across her cheek. “Not a fucking monk.”
For a second, she just stared at me, then she burst into laughter.
She reached up, grabbed the front of my shirt, and pulled me down for one quick kiss.
When she let me go, she smiled so brightly it almost made me forget about the black van sitting outside that motel. “Noted, handsome.”