Swerve Chapter 8
Last night was a shitshow for me. After the day I had at the office, I was in no mood to go to the clubhouse, although I had planned to do so.
I stayed away because I was in a foul mood, and I refused to take it out on my club.
I made up the excuse that it had been a long day and I needed an early night.
I wasn’t sure if Scorpion bought it, but he and Paige let me get away with it.
I had been restless and was unable to prevent myself from going over and over in my mind what had happened.
I’d been surprised and slightly worried when I came into the office to find Micro and Electra arguing.
However, after filling me in on what the deal was, I’d become alarmed.
That was what had me getting on Electra’s case about entering the building when she believed someone who shouldn’t be there was inside.
Her outburst about Annette had surprised both Micro and me, but not as much as her walking away and locking herself away in her office until lunchtime.
I let her cool off while only asking to speak to her twice. I’d been preparing to go to her door again and demand she let me in so we could talk the fiasco out when she was passing my door.
Her stride and the expression on her face told me she was a woman on a mission, and she was carrying her handbag. She was leaving. My calling her name didn’t stop her. She told Annette she’d be back after lunch and was out the door.
I couldn’t recall the last time I resented my wheelchair as much as I did then.
I wanted to run after her and make her talk to me, but I couldn’t.
It was fortunate that I had my van keys in my pocket.
I zoomed out the door, after telling Annette I’d be back, and I left Dozer there to watch over her.
There was someone outside doing the same.
I caught sight of Electra’s car pulling away when I got outside. I hastily wheeled myself to my vehicle and swore the entire time it took to load my chair into the back and move it into position in the driver’s area.
Knowing I had no hope of finding her on my own, I’d called Micro and told him what was up.
Five minutes later, I headed out of St. Augustine.
Micro was able to pinpoint her because she was on the phone while driving.
I’d been puzzled why she went outside of town for lunch.
There were plenty of places to eat there.
Entering the restaurant’s parking lot outside of town confirmed that Micro had steered me in the right direction. I saw her car.
I sat in the parking lot. I decided it wouldn’t be a good idea to confront her inside.
The decision to wait and then, when she exited, to reveal myself and ask her to come with me to somewhere private to talk was my plan.
It all went to shit when I happened to glance through one of the restaurant’s windows and I spotted her. Electra wasn’t alone.
There was a tall, attractive man with her.
He was holding her hand, and she smiled up at him with an adoring smile on her face.
I tried to tell myself they were friends or he was her brother.
That hope was dashed when he brought her hand to his mouth and kissed the back of it.
She gave him a sweet smile. They kept talking.
There was no doubt they were extremely close.
Unable to take another second of it, I got out of there before I did something stupid. The idea popped into my head to go inside and demand to know who he was. Why were they meeting here? Were they having an affair and didn’t want to be seen? That was the only thing that made sense.
From her paperwork, Electra was reportedly single.
She could have a boyfriend, but why sneak around?
The answer was that he must be married or in another relationship.
Disappointment warred with anger inside of me.
Back at work, I knew I had to get away before Electra got back, so I made up a bogus excuse and took Dozer with me.
I had arranged for someone to be there in case of any trouble.
I dwelled on it all afternoon and evening, getting no real work done for either job, leaving me pissed off and volatile.
I tried to reason with myself. There was no reason to be upset.
Electra wasn’t anyone but an employee of Wrath’s Recovery, just like Annette or anyone else we employed. Her personal life was her business.
That’s what I told myself, but my head and heart refused to listen.
The reality was, I’d become nearly obsessed with Electra in the short time she worked with me.
I found everything she did and said appealing.
I wanted to be in her presence more and more.
I certainly didn’t want another man in her life.
I refused to acknowledge that it was happening until today.
I made excuses to myself and blamed it on every other possible reason I could.
However, that didn’t change the fact that Electra would never be mine.
Even if she weren’t with that guy she had lunch with, a woman like her could have any fully functioning man she desired.
After lying awake most of the night and debating with myself, I knew I needed to get away.
Wind therapy was the only way to go. I thought about asking if Scorpion or any of the others wanted to go for a ride, but I’d be terrible company, and they’d demand to know why.
I wasn’t about to tell them what a fool I was.
I got everything arranged, then put Dozer into his harness and goggles.
The process wasn’t a quick one or easy, but I had it down now.
I could do it in my sleep. The roar of my bike’s engine made me grin.
I loved that goddamn sound and the vibrations that coursed through me. I felt whole when I rode.
I got a kick out of the response we got when people saw Dozer. The best were the kids. I’d grin and wave when I caught them staring or pointing. I’d point them out to Dozer, and on command, he held up a paw. They thought that was hilarious, and they’d get so excited.
After riding for a few hours, I was ready to go home.
First, though, I had to refill my bike. The way the tank was situated, I could reach the pump and fill my bike without having to get off it.
I was sitting there, doing that, when a car pulled up on the other side of the pump.
I didn’t pay attention to it because the gas station was busy, and it was the middle of the day on Saturday.
The weather was great, and lots of people were out enjoying it.
Foot traffic in and out of the station’s store was heavy, too.
I rubbed Dozer’s head as I held out a collapsible bowl I carried on my bike. It was filled with water from the bottle I had brought with us. “You’ve been a great riding partner, Doze. How about we go home and get you a snack? How does steak sound tonight for dinner?”
Some might be self-conscious about talking to their dog this way, especially in public, but I wasn’t.
The hell with what others thought. He was more than a pet or support animal.
Dozer was a friend. As he drank, I overheard a male voice coming from the other side of the pump. He wasn’t trying to be quiet.
“Do you see that crip on that stupid bike? And he’s talking to a damn dog. He looks ridiculous.”
Usually, I’d ignore shit like this, but I wasn’t in the mood for it.
Plus, if they said that about me, what would they say or do to someone else, say a woman or child who was handicapped?
I glanced over and saw the arm of a guy.
He was at what would be the front end of my bike.
His body shifted as he peeked around the pump.
When he saw I was staring at him, he scowled.
“What’re you staring at, cripple?” he growled menacingly.
I had news for him. I wasn’t afraid of him. I took the water bowl away from Dozer and dumped the small amount of water in it on the ground. I collapsed it before placing it in the saddlebag on my bike. My companion’s head was up, and he was watching the man.
“I’m staring at a moron who should learn to keep his ignorant mouth shut. You don’t know me. You have no reason to judge or say anything about me. And my bike and dog aren’t your concern. Get your gas and leave. You’re ruining my good mood.”
He straightened and puffed out his chest. He was fit and had some muscle.
His wife-beater tank showed off his arms and some of his chest. However, I had news—if he wanted to compare, my muscles were far more immense than his.
I saw another man appear next to him. That must be his buddy he was trash-talking to about me.
The new one, a blond, glared. The original guy had a shaved head, and his eyebrows and lip were pierced.
There were tattoos on his exposed skin. By the looks of them, he let just anyone do his ink.
The blond had gauges in his ears and the same shitty tattoo art.
“Why don’t you shut your mouth before you get your ass beat,” Shaved Stupid said.
I pretended to look around, then back at them before I answered. “Who is gonna give me the ass whooping? Surely, you don’t mean you two.” I sneered as I scanned them.
Was I instigating them? Yes. I was in the mood to work off my anger and disappointment. I hadn’t had a fight in a long time. Both of them appeared surprised at my answer, then they switched to rage. They moved closer to me. When they did, Dozer gave a warning growl. They shifted their eyes to him.
“That fucking dog of yours tries to bite us, I’ll shoot the fucker dead. I have a gun.” Blond Bonehead patted his waist.
“You try to hurt my dog, and that’ll be the last thing you ever do,” I warned him.
“And what do you think you can do about it, freak? What the hell are you doing on a machine like that? Shouldn’t you stick to home?” Shaved Stupid taunted.