Chapter 3
3
TAMARA
“ T his is it,” Lainie murmured as the guy at the gate waved us through.
In all the years I’d known Lainie, I’d never come to the clubhouse with her. I had only ever met her brother a few times, so I wasn’t surprised he hadn’t recognized me.
My dad hadn’t been a fan of my best friend being connected to the Iron Rogues, but he no longer got a say in my life. Not when I was no longer under his roof. Especially when he sold the house and other properties he owned near Old Bridge the second I got a job and moved in with Lainie. He packed up and moved to Florida because, as he put it, “I don’t have to worry about you now that you’re an adult.”
Talon pulled his bike up next to us. He hadn’t said a word when we left the bar. Just glared at the passenger seat of Lainie’s car like it had personally offended him. I’d caught the look and felt it all the way to my toes, but I hadn’t understood it—not really. Lainie hadn’t been any help, either. She just muttered something under her breath and rolled her eyes when she turned the key in the ignition.
I was hyperaware of him stalking behind us as I trailed Lainie into the clubhouse. I tried to focus on where I was walking, but it was difficult when all I wanted to do was turn around and ask him why he seemed so pissed off.
“You good?” she asked under her breath.
“Yeah,” I lied. “I just didn’t know what to expect.”
She glanced at me and grinned. “Don’t worry. Nobody here will be dumb enough to mess with you while Savage glares at them.”
“Except he won’t be here all the time,” I muttered.
“That’s what you think.” I didn’t get the chance to ask her what she meant before a man at the bar called us over. Lainie laced her fingers through mine and whispered, “That’s Fox, the club prez. If you think he looks scary, just wait until you see him with his twins. Jett and Violet aren’t even two yet and already have him fully wrapped around their little fingers.”
Picturing the big biker at the beck and call of his toddlers eased a lot of my tension. Clearly, she hadn’t been exaggerating when she said these were family guys.
“Maverick said you need a place for you and your friend to stay?” he asked, looking at Lainie.
She nodded. “Yeah.”
He jerked his chin toward the hallway on the far side of the room from us. “President’s quarters are open since I never use ’em. Has its own bathroom so you’ll have as much privacy as you want.”
Lainie smiled. “Sounds perfect. Thanks, Fox.”
A low sound from behind me cut through the room like a blade. The deep growl made me freeze, but Lainie just giggled while Fox shook his head with a sigh.
Talon moved to my side, his shoulders tense and his eyes locked on Fox as though he was seriously considering attacking his club president.
I looked at him, but he didn’t say anything. I didn’t even think he blinked while he stared at me. Suddenly, I couldn’t breathe right…and it wasn’t due to fear over my situation. It was all about my reaction to the sexy biker at my side.
He stepped closer, and I noticed again how big he was. Easily nine inches taller than me, his broad shoulders were tight with tension. His hair and beard were both the same thick, sandy brown, and his gray-blue eyes filled with an intensity I didn’t understand.
But then his gaze shifted to me, the diamond in his ear catching the light from the recessed bulb above us as he tilted his head, and something in my chest stuttered.
A pretty redhead walked up to Fox and leaned against his side as she beamed a smile at us. “Hey, Lainie.”
Fox brushed a kiss against the top of her head. “Will the kids be busy long enough for you to show Lainie and her friend Tamara to our room?”
“Yup, they’re playing with Luna, so Molly told me to escape while I could.”
Fox’s lips curved into a grin that made him so much less intimidating. “Wanna bet Mav’ll check on them when he hears she’s on her own with three kids?”
“Nah, that’s a losing bet if I’ve ever heard one. He’s just as bad with her as you were with me when I was pregnant.” She turned to us and asked, “Ready to head up there now?”
“That’d be great, Dahlia.” Lainie tugged on my hand. “After classes all day and the drive, I’m wiped. And I’m sure Tamara is too since she worked for eight hours before we left.”
“I’m sure.” Dahlia gave her a quick hug, her affection for my best friend clear. “Two hours didn’t sound that far away when you left for college, but it’s been forever since we’ve seen you.”
Lainie rolled her eyes. “It’s only been three months.”
“We were all starting to think college swallowed you whole,” Dahlia teased.
“Close enough,” Lainie joked back, already falling into step beside her as though she’d never left.
I followed them across the big room and down the hall, feeling like the awkward tagalong who was out of place in their easy rhythm. It wasn’t anyone’s fault, not really. Dahlia had been nothing but nice. But I couldn’t help noticing how easily Lainie fit in here. She was as comfortable as I’d ever seen her.
Dahlia stopped in front of a thick wooden door and turned the handle. Then she pushed it open to reveal a small apartment-style suite that was bigger than I expected. Between the en suite bathroom and kitchenette, I could hide out in here the entire time I was here if I wanted. Except then I wouldn’t see Talon, which bothered me more than it should’ve. I didn’t even know the guy, but that didn’t seem to matter
“If you need anything else, just holler,” Dahlia said with a smile.
“Thanks. This is way more than I expected.”
“You’re family by extension,” she replied. “Which means we take care of you.”
I didn’t know how to respond to that, so I just nodded and rubbed my palms over my thighs. As Dahlia and Lainie chatted about something I couldn’t focus on, I felt it again…that low buzz under my skin. I turned my head to glance at the doorway and found Talon standing there with one hand braced against the frame.
His broad chest rose and fell as though he was holding something back. He didn’t step inside, just guarded the door. Maybe it should have freaked me out, but I felt safe instead.
Any ideas I had about hiding flew out the window when Dahlia suggested, “You should hit up the kitchen after you drop your bags in here. Sheila has been cooking up a storm since Tank told her you were coming home tonight.”
“Her famous mac and cheese?” Lainie rubbed her hands together. “With roasted chicken and glazed carrots?”
“Yup,” Dahlia confirmed with a grin. “Sadie also baked a few pies—cherry, apple, and chess.”
“Yum.” Lainie dropped her bag on the end of the bed, then grabbed mine and did the same. “We better get down there before all the food is gone. Sheila is Tank’s old lady. He’s been a patch for basically forever, and her food is amazing.”
Talon stepped away from the door, giving us room to get through.
“I could eat,” I agreed as my best friend led me back downstairs.
Lainie wasn’t exaggerating when she said the kitchen was packed. A few men in leather vests leaned against the counters, eating chicken legs over paper towels. I hovered in the doorway behind Lainie and Dahlia before taking a small step forward.
Talon was right behind me. He didn’t say anything and didn’t brush against me. Heck, he barely even breathed. But I felt him all the same. His presence filled the space between us, and I didn’t have to turn around to know his eyes were on me.
They hadn’t left me since I’d stepped out of Lainie’s car.
A woman old enough to be my mom rushed over to give Lainie a hug, then surprised me by wrapping her arms around me too. “You two look like you haven’t eaten all day. Sit and enjoy a plate of some of Lainie’s favorites.”
“Thank you.” I flashed her a grateful smile. “It’s been a while since lunch.”
“If you want to call a granola bar lunch,” Lainie teased.
“That barely counts.” The woman tsked and handed me a napkin. “I’m Sheila. You’ll find I don’t take no for an answer when it comes to food.”
As I sat at the end of the long table, Talon leaned against the wall behind me, arms crossed and jaw tight.
Still silent. Still watching. And somehow, I was more than okay with that.
I kept mostly quiet while I ate, letting the chatter swirl around me as I focused on the plate in front of me. The chicken was juicy, the carrots glazed just right, and the mac and cheese was so creamy it practically melted on my tongue.
When I only had a few bites left, I stole a glance over my shoulder at where Talon still leaned, half in shadow. His silence wrapped around me tighter than any blanket could’ve.
My dad had basically bailed as a parent when my mom passed away, so I didn’t trust easily. But something about the sexy biker made me feel safer than I ever had before. It was why I’d taken my time eating…because I found myself wishing I didn’t have to go back upstairs with Lainie. That I could stay in his orbit a little longer…and pretend that I hadn’t come here because of the situation I’d stumbled across at work.
The meal finished too soon, and by the time we made it back to the room, my body felt heavy with exhaustion. But my mind wouldn’t shut up.
Lainie flopped onto the couch with a dramatic sigh, stretching her arms over her head as though she didn’t have a care in the world. “Okay, the food coma is setting in. You good to grab the bathroom first?”
I hovered near the edge of the room with my arms crossed, my pulse still a little jumpy. “Uh, yeah. Maybe in a minute.”
She blinked at me, then shrugged and started scrolling through her phone, completely unaware of the storm swirling inside me.
I didn’t even know what I was waiting for…until a knock came at the door.
I startled slightly, then padded across the room to open the door. Talon was in the hallway, a folded black T-shirt clutched in his hand.
He stepped close enough to hold it out to me, his eyes heavy-lidded and unreadable. “Brought you this in case you need something to wear to bed.”
I clutched the soft material to my chest, barely resisting the urge to sniff it to see if the shirt smelled like him.
“Need the flash drive,” he said gruffly.
Hesitantly, I dug into my pocket for the security badge I’d clipped the drive to.
He watched me with those intense gray-blue eyes, and I marveled again at how this stranger could make me feel so safe.
Holding out his hand, he murmured, “Trust me, baby.”
I was completely shocked to realize that I did. Somehow, in the small amount of time I’d known him, he’d managed to gain my trust.
When I set the badge in his hand, his fingers curled around it. Then he leaned in and brushed his lips over my forehead in a firm, lingering touch that sent a shiver down my spine.
“You’re safe now,” he murmured, the words like a vow. “I won’t let anything happen to you.”
He was gone before I could react, the door clicking softly shut behind him.
I stood there for a long second, shirt pressed to my chest, heart racing like I’d just run five miles.
“You gonna sleep in that or just stand there holding it all night?” Lainie asked with a smirk.
Heat rushed to my face as I turned away. “Shut up.”
We both knew I didn’t actually mean it. Not when I curled up on the bed twenty minutes later with Talon’s shirt hugging my body…and his scent wrapped around me like armor.