Chapter Two
SAY WHAT YOU LIKE about motorcyclists, but most of us were pretty genuine people. I still didn’t know how I’d ended up at the old club. Bad luck, I guess. I was lonely, fairly new in town, and fell in with the wrong crowd. What a cliché, right?
I unlocked the shop, and flipped the sign, heading to the open bay, and sliding the roller door up.
Ready for business, and with final checks to do on the gorgeous Night Rod waiting for collection.
One day I’d upgrade to one of these fuckers.
Fully tricked out, of course. I just loved my old ride, that’s what it was.
I’d built my Norvin clone eight years ago, and I’d spent those years perfecting every fucking inch of her.
I guess having a second ride wasn’t out of the question, but that put me back in mind of the fact that the clubhouse needed somewhere safe for us to park up.
I’d made some notes last night, but by the time I reached the clubhouse tonight, I’d have a proposal ready for Micro.
Around ten, Rocket showed up, bringing two coffees from the shop down the road, and some Danish pastries.
“Aw for me?”
He looked away, scratching the back of his neck. “Uh… wasn’t sure what to do. You’re doing me a favour, man. I’m not… not used to people helping me out with no demands for reciprocation.”
I would have pushed it, messed with him a bit, but he looked so uncomfortable that I didn’t have the heart.
“It’s all good. Good timing actually, I’m starved.
” We sat at my counter, tucking into our early lunch, while I explained my set up to him.
I was pretty proud of my business, and the client list I’d built, not just with guys like us, but with all walks of motorcycle life, from the weekend riders, to the midlife crisis bunch, and everywhere in between.
I’d had a stand at a few bike rallies and shows too, and always picked up some interest. Maybe that’d work for Rocket too.
“It’s pretty sweet, man. And you don’t mind me renting that space at the back there?
I’d cordon it off,” he paused, getting up to stroll over there, while I let his words sink in.
When was the last time someone got offered a favour and didn’t take it for granted?
He didn’t assume he could use the space for free, which was literally what I’d offered.
He expected to pay rent. Huh. Maybe I’d been misjudging him ever since the day he rolled into the compound, mouthed off at Micro, and got laid out.
Ha. At least he didn’t punch the Pres, like Grease did.
“This’ll be perfect, man,” Rocket turned to me with a wide grin, while I surveyed the area.
“I could move this storage that way a few feet, and give you a larger space. You could use this counter, or add one of your own along here,” I waved my arms to demonstrate my idea, grinning as his face lit up.
“I’d love to put up my board here with the examples and testimonials. It’s free-standing, so it could go here, with the counter alongside it.” I could already picture it, and I loved the idea. What better way to enhance both of our businesses than to combine them?
“Sounds good to me, man. If you wanna help me move this stuff further down, we can free up the area right away for ya.”
He reached out a hand and I shook it. “Thanks, Harley. For the first time in a while, I feel like things are looking up. This could really work.”
“Yeah, I’m excited too. I mean, this’ll be like a one stop shop, right? Tweak your ride, get it tarted up, all under one roof.”
I could already see it, just how well it’d work. I had a fairly large client list already, and once word spread that Rocket was set up here too, it could bring in more business for both of us.
The door opened, a low buzz humming through the shop, since I wasn’t always in the shop part of the business. That’d be another benefit to having Rocket around too. Extra eyes, and an extra person to greet customers.
“Hey, Harley, is she ready?” I grinned at Jeff, and waved him over to us.
“Sure is, Jeff. First I want to introduce you to my associate. He’s a specialist in custom spray jobs, and he’ll be setting up right here.” Jeff lifted his eyebrows, shaking Rocket’s hand as he introduced himself.
“A match made in heaven,” he commented, noting the patches on Rocket’s cut. I didn’t wear mine in the shop, because it could tend to make customers wary, especially women. We’d have to discuss that later.
“Club brother?” Jeff asked, reading between the lines effortlessly. Hell, that’s why he’s making the big bucks in London. He found me years ago at a show, and had been making the trek here to get work done, because you know what? I’m the best, and he can fucking afford to.
“Yeah,” Rocket said, his eyes suddenly landing on my check shirt, over a t-shirt, and he grimaced.
“Shit, did I fuck up?”
We both laughed, and Jeff shook his head.
“Jeff’s been coming to me a long time. He knows I’m in an MC, and that it’s a better one now than it was.”
Rocket nodded, glancing down at his cut, which honestly was a treasured, and essential, part of both of our wardrobes. Taking them off always felt like removing a part of ourselves.
“Yeah, I’ll keep this off when I’m here, man, sorry.” He took it off, and tucked it carefully beneath the counter, spying mine beside it and laughing softly.
“It makes some customers uncomfortable,” I explained as I led Jeff to see his tricked out Night Rod, with Rocket trailing us.
“Fuck me, that’s sweet.” I stayed out of the way as Jeff inspected my most recent mods, and they talked among themselves. Jeff had three other motorbikes, and this was my favourite of the lot. Yeah, one day, I’d fucking get one.
“You could add detail here,” Rocket was saying, already selling his services to Jeff, just as we’d planned. It was already working.
A buzz from the door had me giving them a mock salute, as I strolled back into the shop side, to see who my next customer might be.
Caroline
ILOVED VISITING HARLEY’S workshop, especially when I saved up to get a new modification to my sweet Suzuki SV650.
The man knew everything there was to know about two wheeled vehicles, and he was fun to talk to.
A lot of men talked down to me, because they figured I couldn’t possibly understand anything about motorcycles, being just a woman.
He never did. He’d even offered to teach me how to do some of the repairs and things, which would almost do him out of work.
That had to be the sign of a decent person, right?
I loved the freedom of being out on the open road, just me, two wheels, and the thrill of the speed.
The fact that any ride could be my last. I never told people that part, in case they thought I was literally aiming for that, because I wasn’t.
There was just a special kind of excitement in doing something others deemed so dangerous.
“Well, if it isn’t my favourite customer,” Harley said, offering me that usual easy grin as I approached his counter.
I loved the smell of this place, the hints of motor oil, and metals, and all the things that came together to make these beautiful machines.
I rested my blue helmet on his counter, and he immediately reached out, moving it further into the centre, preserving the one thing that did its best to protect my head when I was out there.
“How’ve you been, Harley? Bet you’ve missed me, huh?”
He laughed, leaning on both hands as he peered down at me, because yeah, I was about a foot and a half shorter than him. He wasn’t hugely built, but strong and so masculine, I wanted to stroke those firm arms, and see just how strong he could be.
He had dark hair, shorter in the sides than on top, and always shuffled a little to the right. He had the usual scruff along his jaw, and he focused those dark blue eyes on me as he leaned closer.
“You’ve disappeared on me, little lady.”
Oh. I had a tendency to do that around him, because, you know, hotness.
“Sorry. Duh. One of those days. You know what I need, right?”
He grinned, turning to set the coffee machine bubbling away with my usual coffee. He stocked the mocha ones I liked, even though he made some snarky comment about them every time he made one for me.
“I’ve got you well trained, Harley.” He winked at me, and leaned on the counter, while the air filled with the scent of my coffee weakness.
“So, what are we up to today? You weren’t booked in, right?” He didn’t need to check his books, because he was an organisational demon. He never missed a trick, and never had to look up who was due in and when.
“I just… the brakes are sticking a bit. I was wondering if you’d take a look for me? If you’re busy, I can-”
“Nope. Never too busy to keep a valued customer safe, Caroline. We’ll get that sorted for you.”
He turned to grab my finished coffee, grimacing as he passed it to me.
“Here’s your sweet shop flavoured crap.”
I found myself giggling as he rolled his eyes. “You know you’d love it if you tried it.”
“Hello hello, who’s this sweet thing?” I tensed the instant I heard a voice behind me.
The guy was too loud, too gruff, and when I spun on my heel, because I didn’t like the idea of someone unknown being behind me, I realised he was huge too.
I gasped as hot coffee spilled on my fingers, and the paper cup fell onto the polished concrete floor with a splash that coated my new boots too.
“Ow ow ow!”
“It’s okay, little lady. Just get over here.” Harley was already leading me into the small restroom just off the shop, so he could get my stinging fingers under the cold water.
“Rocket, you wanna clean that up? There’s a cleaning cupboard in the-”
“Yeah yeah, I remember. Sorry I startled you, love. I’m a prick sometimes.”
I hissed with pain as the cold water fought with the burning itch in my fingers.
“He’s telling the truth,” Harley murmured close to my ear, sending a little shiver down my spine, and frying the last of my brain cells or neurons, or whatever the hell got fried when hot men got so close.
“Huh?”
A low chuckle filled my ear next, as he turned my hand over, pushing it further under the painfully cold water.
“He’s definitely a prick sometimes. Pretty often, actually.”
A giggle bubbled up, despite the shock and pain of the last five minutes.
“He is?”
“Oh yeah. All the time, actually. Also, never play pool with him, because he’s a freaking hustler too.”
I turned to look at Harley, wanting to see his expression while he was being cute and playful, although I knew he was just doing his best to calm me. It hit me then that I was perfectly calm, even though I was in an enclosed space with a bigger body than me taking up most of it.
Our proximity put my face so close to Harley’s that I couldn’t actually focus on him, but I could see the deep darkness of his eyes, focused on mine, and despite myself, I leaned closer.
My lips touched his, and we both hissed in a shocked breath.
Why was I shocked? I was the one forcing my lips on another person.
I pulled back, wrenching my hand away from the water, flicking icy cold drops in both of our faces as I retreated against the wall.
“God, I’m sorry! I’m so sorry. I’m a freaking idiot!”
Harley reached out, resting a hand beside my face, not moving fast, not ringing any alarm bells in my head, even though, how could he?
“Take a breath, little lady. It’s all good.
Lucky you didn’t get a sip of that chocolate monstrosity first though, or I’d be able to taste it.
” His tongue dipped out to wet his bottom lip and I wanted to drag him closer, but this was my problem and I knew it.
Social cues. I couldn’t read them well. I couldn’t…
people weren’t easy for me, because my reactions weren’t always the appropriate ones.
I tried. I really tried, but it was just something in my head that made me react strangely sometimes.
“I just…” coward, I berated myself in my head, “I just wasted a perfectly good coffee!”
Harley blinked, suddenly chuckling and shaking his head.
“Well, that’s where you’re wrong, but we’ve had this discussion. You know that stuff’s an abomination.”
“All clean out here, but what the fuck was that stuff? It smelled like crap.” Harley stepped back as his friend interrupted us again, and he gestured to me to step back out of the bathroom, and I breathed a sigh of relief as the large open area of the shop let the air back into my lungs properly.
Small spaces were definitely not my friend.
“For your information, that’s perfectly good coffee,” I said, lifting my chin and offering the new guy a sassy glare.
He held both hands up, backing away from us.
“My bad. Not my place to besmirch your shady coffee choices.”
Harley stepped between us, and nudged him out of my way. “Can you go and measure up your space over there, while I sort Jeff’s account out, and help Caroline?”
“Caroline, huh? I’m Rocket. I’m not a cock, I swear.”
Harley rolled his eyes and forcibly shoved him away from us.
“Let’s get you guys sorted, before he offends everyone.”