2. Chapter Two
Chapter Two
Carson
We pull up in front of the pizza place. “Calm and cool, brother. You remember the stories Rage told us about his sister.”
He nods, kicking his leg over his bike.
We’re a lot more levelheaded than we used to be.
Not that either of us will really ever grow up.
Cole and I are lucky. We had a dad who kept our asses grounded and a mom who fostered our restless spirits.
They kept us balanced, for the most part.
I know it was no easy task to wrangle the two of us.
We are blessed to have the best parents in the world.
Luna wasn’t so lucky.
I saw her name in the delivery app, but I didn’t even think about it being Rage’s sister. Even when Serenity reacted the way she did, it still took my brother and me a minute to figure out what was happening … that our friend’s stepsister was the woman delivering our pizza.
I feel bad we’re missing his wedding, but if he knew she was here, this is what he would want us to do … tail her.
“Boys!” Robin shrieks, rushing around the counter. “You’re back in Cheyenne!”
She gives Cole a hug before turning to me.
“We’re just back for the big wedding,” he tells her.
“That’s right, today’s the big day. Gosh, it’s been almost a year since I’ve seen the two of you.”
“So you finally told that old bastard off over at the Kwik Stop?” I ask, patting her on the back.
Robin is the sweetest. She spoiled the shit out of Cole and me when she worked over at the gas station on Second Street.
“Oh, I still work there, but you know how it is, the bills keep rising, so I needed to take a second job.”
My brother shakes his head. “That’s a damn shame, Miss Robin. You worked too much the way it was.”
She hobbles behind the counter. “It’s okay, honey. I don’t have anything to complain about. My kids are housed and fed, and that alone is a blessing.”
I scan the room for Luna.
“What can I get you boys?”
“Well, we’re actually looking for your delivery driver,” I tell her. “She just dropped a pizza off to us out at the ranch and she forgot her tip.”
“Oh, that was Luna. She went home early. She wasn’t feeling the best.”
My brother looks at me, and an entire conversation passes between the two of us.
“Aw, that’s too bad,” he says.
“No worries. You can leave it with me, and I’ll make sure she gets it when she comes in tomorrow.”
“Is everything okay with her, besides not feeling well?” I ask.
Robin visibly relaxes. “You know, I tried to get her to reach out to the club. I told her they might be able to help her out. I thought maybe she could do some work for them in exchange for one of the guys working on her van. It’s broke down out at the state park.”
“Fuck, Carson and I could help her out,” Cole says, falling into a seat at the nearest table.
She rushes to sit down next to him. “Oh, that would be wonderful. She’s the sweetest girl.”
“How long has she been here?” I ask.
“Oh, I guess about six months. The water pump went out on her. She was just traveling through. The poor girl has probably made the money to get it fixed ten times over, but she’s always giving it to someone,” Robin says, shaking her head sadly.
“Me included. She gave me two thousand dollars to get my youngest’s teeth fixed.
They’d been hurting her so badly, and I just couldn’t refuse Luna’s offer.
I’ve tried to pay her back, but she won’t accept it.
I tell you, she’s been a straight-up angel to a few of us around here.
I hate to think about the day she does get her van fixed, and she leaves us. ”
“You don’t think she has any intention of sticking around?” Cole asks.
“No. That girl is longing for the open road. I don’t think she stays in one place very long. She’s a bit of a wandering soul. I think being trapped here has been hard for her.”
“Do you think she’s running from something?”
“Honestly, I don’t know. She’s a great listener, but not much of a talker. All I really know is that she’s a traveler living in her van.”
My brother and I exchange a glance.
“We can head out to the state park and take a look to see what it will take to get her going.”
Robin leans over and places her hand on mine. “That’s wonderful. I’ll pay you boys what I can.”
“No, ma’am. You keep your money. We owe you for all those times you let us fill up for free,” I tell her.
She rolls her eyes. “There is no way all that soda is anywhere close to the cost of replacing a water pump.”
Cole chuckles. “Aw, Miss Robin.” He taps a finger under her chin, and she blushes, giving him a shy grin. “You underestimate how much seeing this smile is worth.”
Cole has always been the smooth one. He talks. He flirts. He reels them in.
Me? I’m better after all that.
Hell, sometimes we’ve even pulled the old bait and switch. I know it ain’t right, but we’ve been doing this shit so long I don’t know another way.
Bottom line is, I need Cole.
Cole doesn’t need me.
Don’t get me wrong, I have my own strengths. We all do. But being a twin means he picks up where I leave off and vice versa. Together we can do fucking anything.
I slip a couple of Benjamins into Robin’s apron pocket while my brother keeps her distracted, and then I stand. “Don’t you worry about Luna. We’ll get her taken care of.”
My words break the spell Cole has her under and she looks at me.
“I can’t tell you how happy that makes me.
Like I said, she’s done a lot of giving while she’s been here, but she hasn’t allowed herself to take anything from anyone.
” She wags a finger in my brother’s face.
“I know you boys will convince her to accept your generosity.”
He flashes her an ornery grin and rises from his chair, pulling her with him. “You take care now, you hear? Don’t be afraid to reach out for anything. You still have my number?”
She nods and walks with us to the door.
I check my watch when we get outside. “The wedding has already started. I think we should handle this ourselves. Rage and Serenity deserve to have their special day without interruption.”
“I agree, brother. Luna’s been here for six months and hasn’t reached out to him. That alone tells us she doesn’t want him to know she’s here.”
“Yeah, we need to figure out why that is.”
“He said they haven’t seen each other since they were kids. Maybe seeing him brings up memories about her dad she doesn’t want to face.”
The thought makes me want to punch something. “Well, we won’t know until we ask.”
He smiles at me. “Not going to lie. I’m excited to see her again.”
I wave him off, but his thoughts mirror my own.
As we drive around the campground, we realize there’s only one van in the park; the rest are your traditional campers. That narrows it down considerably.
We both chuckle when we get off our bikes. “I don’t know about you, but I was not expecting something quite as vintage,” I say, heading over to run my hand over one of her tires. “Jesus, not a bit of tread on this fucker.”
My brother does the same over the back tire. “She’s been rolling on racing slicks.”
“Not cool.” I walk back to my bike to grab the small notebook I keep in my bag. “Those fifteen-inch rims?”
“Yeah.” He squats down to get a better look. “Better get all four, the two on the other side are shit as well.”
“Rage would be pissed if he knew she’d been driving around like this.”
Cole knocks on the door of the van. It’s quiet. When she doesn’t answer, he pulls on the handle, and the fucking thing opens.
He and I exchange a look. “Not okay,” he whispers under his breath as he steps inside.
My gaze roams over Luna’s space and I smile.
“This is cool as fuck. Mom would love it,” Cole says, tapping a little plant that’s hanging beside her sink.
“Yeah, she would. What do you think this is? A seventy-four?”
He heads over to the glovebox and rummages through it for the pink slip. “Spot on, brother. Should we wait for her?”
“Naw, let’s just get started.”
He pops the hood before we head outside.
“Fuck, I wish we had the keys, so we could hear it run,” Cole says as we take a look at the engine.
“Let’s just get the water pump and tires. Maybe grab some filters, oil, and new spark plugs,” I say as I pull one out, holding it between us so he can look at it too. “That will be a good start and maybe she’ll be here by the time we get back.”
“Sounds good. I’ll text Carver and ask if we can borrow his truck.”
The hairs on the back of my neck stand on end as I scan the park. Something catches my attention that I hadn’t noticed before.
“Carver said the keys are in it.” He chuckles, looking at his phone. “He’s going to meet us over there.”
I laugh. “Didn’t figure he’d last long at the wedding with Jesse being there.”
“I bet she’s been busting his balls all day.”
“Hey, I think one of us should stick around.” I nod toward the bicycle dropped haphazardly at the front of the van. I scan the area again. “Something tells me she’s here somewhere.”
“Give me the list and I’ll run into town. It will give me a chance to talk to him about patching over.”
I hop off my bike and hand him my notes. “If anyone can convince him, it’s you.”
“There’s no challenge for him here. He’s miserable.” He hands me the ten-dollar bill he snatched from Serenity’s hand. “If you coax her out of the bushes, here’s her tip.”
It makes me laugh, but it also reminds me we didn’t get our pizza. My stomach growls. My brother reads my mind.
“Mushrooms?”
“Fuck no.”
He smirks and pulls away. It’s a running joke between the two of us, because neither of us can stand them.
I go over to her bicycle and lift it from the ground, resting it against the kickstand. The chain is loose on the damn thing and the tires are low.
After sending my brother a text to remind him to grab the air compressor, I grab the tools out of my saddlebag and get to work on the van, removing the old part.
When I take my hat off to wipe my brow, I notice a man fishing down by the lake. I recognize him from the pizza place. He waves to me, and I make the mistake of waving back.
Fuck, he’s heading my way.
It’s not that I’m not social. I am. Can be. Well, mostly because my brother is, and I’ll do anything for him. Even if that means I’m uncomfortable once in a while.
“Carson, I’m surprised to see you here. When I left work, you were still at the pizza shop,” he says as he approaches, his gaze sliding over Luna’s camping space.
“I was. Robin told us your co-worker broke down. Cole and I thought we’d come over and offer her a hand.”
“That’s nice,” he says. “I wish I knew more about vehicles. If I had, I’d sure have helped her out. She’s saved my ass a few times. Sweet girl.”
“So I’ve heard.”
“Oh, you haven’t talked to her?”
I shake my head. “She must not be around. I thought I’d just get started. My brother went to town for parts.”
“She’s not here?” His gaze rests on her bicycle.
My hunch was right. “Maybe she went for a walk,” I suggest.
“Yeah, there’s lots of trails around here.”
“I know.”
He laughs nervously and taps his fishing pole on the ground. “Well, I got to go. Robin called me back in to work. I guess a big order came in a bit ago and she needs my help.”
“That sucks.”
“It does. I’ve been looking forward to fishing all day.”
He gives Luna’s van one last glance before walking away. I watch him until he slips around the bend in the road. Then I walk around the van and open the door.
All is quiet. I step inside as stealthily as I can, and then slide the door shut behind me. I wait several minutes to see if she’s going to reveal herself.
Now that I’m alone in her space, I can feel her. I know she’s here somewhere.
I make my way toward the back and lower myself onto her bed. Something draws my attention to the small closet separating the sleeping quarters from the rest of the van. I press my hand against it and close my eyes.
A protective spark ignites, rushing through my system like wildfire on an open prairie.