Chapter 1 #2
“Well, damn. That’s a shame. How do you know all this?”
“Dad, I live here. Remember?”
“Oh, sure.” He paused. “Well, your brother’s arrest makes more sense now. If he’s hanging out with that gang, it’s no wonder he’s in jail.”
“It’s not a gang, Dad. It’s a motorcycle club, a MC.” I smiled, shaking my head. He was so behind the times.
In my rearview mirror, I saw motorcycle approaching fast. Something told me it was Slay coming after me. Why he felt the need was beyond me. He wasn’t responsible for Steve, and he owed me nothing.
“I don’t care. It’s all the same to me. I should be there in a couple of hours. Will you meet me? Maybe we could grab a coffee or something.”
“Are you bringing your wife?” I had to ask so I didn’t assume anything.
“No, she’s working late tonight.”
“Okay, sure. You haven’t been to my café in a long time. We could go there.”
“That sounds great. See you soon, sweet pea.”
“Okay. Bye, Dad.” I ended the call with warmth in my heart.
My dad had called my sister and me sweet pea since we were little girls. He’d told us we were the sweetest girls and as pretty as the flowers. Now that we were adults, he rarely called u s sweet pea, but it was sure nice to hear once and a while.
I laughed as I remembered the good old days.
A time when my family was whole and we were all together.
I was only five when my parents divorced and my dad married Jackie.
From then on, life had been tumultuous to say the least. Getting lost in a book, a fantasy world I could escape into, had gotten me through some rough times.
Escaping reality in a compelling story was how I coped when times were difficult back then and now.
An engine roaring behind me snapped me out of my thoughts. The biker caught up to me and pulled alongside me.
As I suspected, it was Slay.
“Pull over!” he shouted, pointing toward the side of the road.
I did as he said, only because I was curious what he would say about Steve. If Slay had a part in my brother’s arrest, I would never forgive him.
Parking on the shoulder of the road, I put the car in park and got out.
“Why did you leave?” he shouted as he got off his bike and removed his helmet.
“You were taking too long.” I shrugged and leaned against my car, crossing my arms over my chest. “What did you find out?”
He stalked toward me with lips pursed tight. Yeah, I knew the angry look well. Had seen it throughout the years since we were teenagers. Admittedly, I found it kind of sexy the way he tried to hide his frustration.
But.
His leather cut was a stark reminder of why we could never be together.
Nonetheless, my heart rate kicked up a few notches as I let my gaze drop to his thick thighs. I gave myself permission to ogle him, something I rarely did for fear I wouldn’t be able to resist him.
I was confident I could throw myself at him and he wouldn’t reject me. It was me who’d done all the rejecting for over a decade.
My gaze lifted to his broad shoulders, then up to his handsome face. I wished he looked like a menacing, gritty biker. Someone who terrified me and I would never desire.
God, why couldn’t he look like an outlaw biker?
Chris’s… Slay’s hairstyle hadn’t changed since high school; a flattop and shaved on the sides. He had sexy scruff which annoyed me. It was like he’d kept his beard neat because he somehow knew that it was one of the things I found most attractive on men.
“Silvia said you rushed out. Has something happened?” he asked, staring into my eyes.
Did he have to be so intense and interested in everything regarding me? He’d been this way for as long as I’d known him.
If my brother hadn’t died, our lives would be so different.
We might have been together. In love. Married with a family…
“No. Just got bored waiting for you,” I replied in a neutral tone.
“Why don’t I believe you?” He tilted his head, trying to read me.
“I don’t know, Slay.” I threw up my hands and gave him attitude. “Can I go now?”
“You wouldn’t have left unless something happened. Family means everything to you. You wouldn’t leave without finding out the situation with Steve.”
I sighed and crossed my arms over my chest. He’d ignored my request to go.
“Tell me what happened,” he said in a demanding tone. I wished he didn’t turn me on so much.
“Nothing happened, okay? What did you find out about Steve?” Of course, I wanted to know what happened to my brother. Family meant everything to me as Slay said. They could be gone tomorrow, so I would do everything possible to cherish them while I had them in my life.
“It was a misunderstanding. I’m going to pay the bail, then he’ll be released.”
I furrowed my brow. “A misunderstanding?” Was he lying to me? Dad had said Steve was arrested for shoplifting, but I hadn’t really believed that either. My brother was always with the Kings of Anarchy MC. It was only a matter of time before he got caught up in something illegal.
“Yeah, the shop owner mixed him up with someone else. I’ll take care of it.”
“If it was a mix up, then why do you have to pay to bail him out? My dad is on his way to bail him out, but if it was a mix up, won’t the police just release him?”
Slay stiffened as if realizing his blunder.
“Don’t lie to me. Tell me the truth, that’s all I ask.” Now I was the one trying to read him. The situation with my brother had to be bad. Why else would Slay lie?
“There are things I can’t tell you. All you need to know is your brother is going to be released, and his record will be clean.”
“Great, so you’re keeping information from me. Thanks.” I opened my car door. Why would I expect the truth from him?
“Cass, I can’t give you more.” He reached for my elbow, but I pulled away before he could stop me.
“No worries. I expect this from you.” I got into my car and tried to shut the door, but he held it open.
“It’s club business. I’m sorry.”
We stared at each other for a long beat. My pulse pounded in my ears, emotion building in my chest. I hated that I believed him. Still, if he wasn’t in the MC we wouldn’t be in this situation to begin with.
“Please let go of my door.” I needed to get away from him. Also, I needed to call my dad to let him know he didn’t have to come to San Diablo after all.
He released it and stepped back. His jaw twitched as his piercing blue eyes bore through me. I felt his frustration in my core like when I’d reject him after he had tried to convince me to give him another chance.
This was how we’d been for more than a decade.
I didn’t see us ever changing.