8. Chapter Eight
Chapter Eight
Cora
I understand wanting to split the shifts between the two busiest times of day—breakfast and lunch. Dinner is busy, but not as busy. But having to change shifts at two has got to be the dumbest thing Norman has ever done. You know how hard it is to do that when the place is in a lunch rush? Damn near impossible.
Especially when there is a big, rugged biker man waiting by the front doors for you. Really makes things that much more difficult to get done because your brain keeps misfiring, thinking about all kinds of strange things.
Like him whisking you away on his bike. Taking you far away, to a place where everything is calm and relaxing. Where there are no screaming customers and dads calling you an alien. Where everything is beautiful and perfect, and he likes you and you like him. And you kiss, and get along, laugh and make meals together. Maybe even fall in love and—
“If you don’t get your butt over there, I’m gonna snatch that man out from under your feet,” Fia says, nudging me with her elbow.
I snap out of my daydream and force a laugh, but none of this is funny. I’m too nervous. Not only because it’s him, but he’s with the other guy, too. His brother. They’re both so big and intimidating and handsome. I’m not made for this sort of thing.
Knowing I’m running out of time, because I only have so much time before I have to get home and relieve Irene, I put my big girl panties back on, grab my things, and walk up to Shark.
“Hi,” I say when I stop in front of him. He looks down at me, smiling, humor in his eyes. Like he finds something funny. Me, probably, because I’m pathetic.
“Hi,” he responds.
“Fuck’s sake,” his brother mutters, pushing through the door to go outside. I frown, ducking my head.
“Sorry about him,” Shark says, pushing the door open for me. I walk outside.
“Is he okay?” I ask quietly, watching as he walks to the end of the parking lot.
“Yeah, he’s fine. Just a grumpy fucker is all.”
“Oh, okay,” I say, not sure what I’m supposed to say to that. Should I ask why? Do I want to know why? Would he even tell me? Why the hell would he tell me? Actually, how do you tell someone that? He’s grumpy because he’s just naturally grumpy? He was born that way ?
God, you are overthinking, Cora. Shut up!
“So, you finally gave me your number,” Shark says.
I blink a few times, then realize yes, I did. And for a reason.
“I wanted to thank you for helping me with the car. And let you know that I will pay you back as soon as I can.”
“Pay me back for what?” he asks.
“For the car?” I say, wondering if this is going to be a repeat of when I was at the mechanic shop.
“What car?” He tilts his head, narrowing his eyes.
I stare at him, not sure if he’s messing with me or trying to be cute.
“My car,” I say slowly, then gesture toward it. “The one you had towed. The one you paid to fix?”
“Hm,” he says, staring at the car and scratching his beard-covered jaw. “Not sure I know what you’re talking about.”
I narrow my eyes, looking from him to the car, then back to him. “You… don’t know what I’m talking about?” My heart pounds a little harder, and my vision goes a little fuzzy. Am I losing my mind?
“Right. So, you can’t pay me back for it.”
Oh… ooooh. I get it now.
“No,” I say, shaking my head. “I couldn’t possibly accept something like that. You don’t even know me.”
“Considering I don’t know what you’re talking about… I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
A smile crosses my lips, and I let out a breath .
Just relax, Cora. He’s being cute on purpose.
“You think you’re funny?” I ask.
He shrugs, giving me a cute smile. The man looks like he could kill me with his bare hands, yet he’s giving me this adorable little look.
“Sometimes, yeah.”
“Funny is good, but stubborn trumps funny. And I’m stubborn as hell. Meaning, I will pay you back for that car one way or another. I don’t care if you forgot about it. I haven’t.”
He raises a brow at me. “If you say so, sweetheart.”
“I do,” I say with a firm head nod.
“All right then.” He shoves his hands in his pockets. “So, when are we going on a date?”
“A date?” I blurt.
“That’s right. A date.”
“Oh, I couldn’t do that. I don’t have time for… Dating isn’t really…” I frown, holding his gaze, then let out a sharp breath. “Look, you’re really nice and cute—well, handsome. Hot, actually, but uh…” I clear my throat, feeling my cheeks burn. He’s grinning like a maniac. “I appreciate what you did for me, and I will pay you back, but I don’t have time for dating.”
“Oh, I think you do.”
“I don’t.”
I shift on my feet, tightening my grip on my purse strap that’s hanging over my shoulder .
His determination is attractive, so is the way he’s pushing it. It’s not weird or creepy, it’s fun. I would love to go on a date with him, but truly, I don’t have the time or the mental capacity.
“What about a friend, then?” he asks.
“Friend?”
“Yeah, let’s be friends. Let’s have some fun. You know, just hang out.”
“Hang out?” I ask.
His smile widens, that humor still shining in his eyes.
Fun sounds nice. A date sounds stressful. But fun? I could use some fun. After all this stuff with Dad, I could use a break. All I do is deal with him and go to work. And don’t get me wrong, I love him, and I love helping him, but it’s tiring. It’s so tiring.
“Fun sounds nice,” I admit, and don’t regret it. Not yet anyway. I’m sure I will, but not right now.
“Fun it is then. When are you free?”
Free? When am I free? I’m not really free at all.
“That’s the thing,” I begin.
“How much longer you going to be?” Snapper shouts. Shark holds his hand up, giving his brother the middle finger while keeping his eyes on me. His brother scoffs, the mutters something under his breath.
“Is he…”
“Just grumpy. Ignore him,” Shark says. “Back to fun. ”
“Yeah, well, that’s the thing. I only have so much nursing to help me with my dad, and usually when they’re there, I’m here, so you see, there isn’t—”
“How about I hang out at your place?”
“My place?” I blurt, my chest getting a little tight at the thought of him being in my house.
“Sure, friends do that, right? I can bring over some food. We can have dinner together. Watch a movie.”
“The… three of us?”
He can’t mean that, can he? He wants us all to hang out? Me, him, and… my dad?
“Sure, why not?”
“Did you see what happened the other night?” I ask carefully, shifting nervously.
“I did. Would you think I’m lying if I said it wasn’t the weirdest shit I’ve seen?”
“I’m… not sure.” I shake my head, frowning. “Wait, so you want to come to my house?”
He nods. “With food.”
“When?”
“Tonight. Dinner. You like pizza?”
“Pizza?”
Why do I keep repeating everything he’s saying? I’m making myself sound like an idiot. An idiotic parrot is what I am right now.
“Pizza is fun. Let’s do pizza. ”
“Shark!” his brother shouts, this time with anger that couldn’t be mistaken as just annoyance. “I got shit to do!”
“Grumpy,” I mutter, causing Shark to chuckle. He takes a step back.
“I’ll see you tonight. Six okay?”
I nod hesitantly, not sure this is a good idea but… if he wants to do it, who am I to stop him? Maybe having a man around will make Dad happy. Or it’ll make him fly off the deep end.
Dinner goes so well. I can’t remember the last time I had greasy pizza from an actual pizza place. We don’t spend money on food like that because we can’t afford it. Dad loved it too. Though he kept asking who I was and calling Shark by the name of Jack Rivers, he didn’t freak out at all. Dad lasted only thirty minutes into the movie before he fell asleep. I was worried about waking him and bringing him to bed because that’s usually a trigger for him, but Shark offered to do it since Dad reacted to him so well through dinner. Kept talking to him like he knew him, and they were old friends. I’ve never seen him like that…
I’m fine with trying anything once, so I tell Shark to have at it. I’m glad for it because it works. Dad doesn’t yell at him or freak out. He only asks why he was there so late and not with his kids. Shark told him he was just checking on him because he wasn’t feeling well. Dad went right to bed. No fight, no argument, nothing. He just… went to bed quietly.
Now, Shark and I are sitting outside on the porch swing. I’ve got the monitor set up on the banister, the one with the camera, so I can see if Dad gets out of bed since he’s sometimes quieter than a mouse when he does. Other times he’s nearly putting himself through walls like the Kool-Aid man.
“So,” Shark says. “You wanna tell me about all this?” He gestures to the monitor.
Not really, no. But maybe. I don’t talk to anyone about this stuff other than Dad’s doctors and the nurses who come here to help. Maybe talking to someone else, someone outside of the day-to-day, will be nice?
But where do I begin? Where do I start? From the beginning, I guess.
“Dad has Lewy Body Dementia. It’s a neurological disorder. He was officially diagnosed about a year ago, after presenting with symptoms for over a year.”
“So, he just forgets stuff?”
“LBD is a little different. He has hallucinations, tremors, and stiffness, and some other stuff too. For him, the hallucinations are bad. Some days are downright awful.”
“That sounds really difficult.”
I nod, focusing on my hands that are in my lap. “It is,” I agree. “I can’t imagine what’s going on in his head, and for me?” I shake my head. “It’s stressful. ”
Shark reaches over and takes my hand, linking our fingers. It’s strange since he’s a stranger and all, but at the same time, it feels really nice. Plus, we agreed to be friends, right? And friends comfort each other.
But if we’re just supposed to be friends, why is my skin tingling where it touches his? Why do I want to lean into him and close my eyes? Inhale his scent and just let him hold me and make me feel safe?
“Do you have anyone to help you?” he asks.
“I have nurses that come every day to help.”
Shark shakes his head. “Not with your dad. With you.”
I frown. “Me? I don’t need help for me. I’ve got everything handled. When the nurses are here, I go to work. On my days off, I get everything else done. Laundry, grocery shopping, that sort of thing.”
“Sounds like you need more nights like tonight in your life.”
I huff out a laugh.
“I won’t lie. Tonight was amazing. Thank you for this.”
He squeezes my hand slightly, and I fight the urge to lean into him. I hardly know him; I can’t be this comfortable with him already.
“We could do it again.”
My stomach does a little flip as I think about that. Maybe dating won’t be so difficult after all. Not if Shark is so willing to be part of this—of all of this. Of my life. But isn’t this all a little too much, too fast ?
“Look, I’m not opposed to having a friend or having fun or more nights like this. But… I can’t do more. I don’t have time. I have responsibilities, and no room in my life to add another responsibility. You can’t have expectations.”
He holds his hands up, and I miss his holding mine. “My only expectation is you taking care of yourself. If that means I come here every night for dinner and a movie, I’ll do it.”
I narrow my eyes at him. “Why? What are you getting out of this?”
“Other than the company of you? The most beautiful girl I’ve ever seen?” My cheeks heat and I duck my head again, but not for long. His hand is on my chin, making me look at him. It’s intense but… I don’t hate it. “I really like it when you look at me,” he says softly.
“Okay.” The word comes out a whisper.
“You are the most beautiful girl I’ve ever seen. I mean that with everything in me, Cora. I’ve been wanting to ask you out for months.”
“Why didn’t you?” I ask, fighting to keep my breathing even.
He smirks, dropping his hand, but linking our fingers again.
“The club is busy. There was a lot going on over the last few months.”
Licking my lips, I take a second to catch my breath before speaking.
“I don’t know a thing about any of that. How does it all work? What’s the point?” His brow furrows. “I’m sorry, was that rude? I didn’t mean to be rude. ”
He chuckles. “Not rude, just surprised. Most of the town knows who we are.”
“I mean, I know who you are. I’ve heard of the club, but that’s about all I know.” I gesture to the house. “I kind of live in a bubble over here.”
He smiles as he settles into the swing. The crickets chirp all around us, and a coyote howls off in the far distance. It’s a beautiful night. Don’t remember the last time I spent time out here, either. Not even by myself. Usually, when it’s quiet like this, I just want to sleep.
“Back in the 70s, a rival MC was causing problems for the townspeople, and our grandfathers rallied together to start the club and stand up for everyone in Pinehaven.”
“So that’s it? You just do it out of the goodness of your heart? Sorry, but that’s not exactly the image an MC has.”
He laughs at that, and I smile back. I’m glad he isn’t offended by my ignorance over it all.
“We all do it for our own reasons. Some out of obligation, some because they want to help the community. There’s brotherhood, loyalty, pride. There are so many reasons.”
“So why do you do it?”
“Pride, mostly. My father and I were close. This club was my dad’s life, and he raised me in it, taught me all the good things it can do. I’ve seen it through the years and kept it up. This town is home, and I want my home safe. Want the people to be happy.”
“Sounds noble.”
He shrugs. “I guess so. Don’t look at it that way, though. ”
It falls silent for a few moments, and he kicks his feet off the porch, causing us to swing a little.
“So, Shark? Where did that come from?”
He groans. “Not sure you wanna know that.”
“Oh, I definitely want to know that,” I say excitedly.
I turn to face him more, wanting to hear this story.
He shifts toward me. “Well, MC stuff isn’t always roses, you know? It gets dirty. Fights happen. Sometimes illegal stuff. And maybe during some of these fights, I’ve bitten a guy or two.” He gives an innocent shrug.
“You bit them?” I practically yell, causing him to laugh and me to slap a hand over my mouth. “Seriously?” I whisper.
He shrugs. “When a guy’s got a knife to your side, threatening to carve out your kidney, you do what you gotta do.”
Wow, that’s… violent. Terrifying, if I’m being honest. Knives, biting, fights…
“All that excitement, and you found tonight fun?” I ask, shocked by my own words. Why aren’t I throwing him out? Telling him I don’t need someone dangerous in my life?
“You’re not scared?”
Surprisingly, no. I’m not. And I have no idea why.
“Of what? Are you going to bite me?”
His eyes flicker with… something.
“Not unless you ask.”
I smile, ducking my head. He grabs my chin and makes me face him again .
“I like when you look at me.” He’s more demanding this time, more stern. I kind of like it. I like looking at him too. And I like that he likes me looking at him.
“Your life sounds exciting,” I say in a whisper.
“It can be,” he answers, leaning closer.
My gaze dips to his lips, then back to his eyes.
“This isn’t a date,” I say.
“I know. But kissing is fun, and we’re supposed to be having fun.”
I nod. “Yeah, kissing is fun.”
So I lean in the rest of the way and kiss him.