4. Chapter Four
Chapter Four
Cole
My brother works beside me, each of us predicting the other’s move before it happens.
“Something happened while I was gone,” I say quietly.
Our friend Carver tosses the last tire in the back of his truck. “I’ll head to town and get the new ones you bought put on the rims,” he says before jumping in the cab and taking off.
Carson waits until the dust settles before speaking. “I found her keys. They were on the dash. Oh, and Luna’s here. She’s hiding in the closet inside.”
The stories Rage told us play through my mind. “Fuck.”
“She’s okay. I think she just feels safe in there.”
“You talked to her?”
He nods as he looks away.
My heart plummets to the pit of my stomach. I’ve been waiting … no, I’ve been dreading this moment my entire life. His interest in her runs deeper than the physical.
“Luna doesn’t want to see Rage. She was only here to make sure Mila was doing okay,” he continues, still refusing to meet my eye.
“And you’re going to let her get away with that?”
“No, but I don’t think we should force her. I was thinking maybe we take her back to Nevada with us until she’s ready to see him.”
When I don’t say anything, he finally looks at me.
“This is going to piss Rage off,” I say.
“I know.”
I wipe my hands off on a rag. “Is this about helping her or is it about keeping her close to you?”
“Both.”
My brother never lies to me, and I don’t lie to him.
“That must have been quite the conversation,” I say, letting my gaze roam across the area.
I don’t like the thought of her sleeping out here all alone.
“We didn’t discuss anything past us fixing her van,” he admits, tightening the last bolt on the water pump.
My eyebrows shoot up because I get the sneaky suspicion he’s not going to tell her about this plan of his. “Carson, we have to talk to her about this.”
“I already have,” he says.
“You just said you hadn’t talked to her about anything beyond us working on her vehicle.”
“She said she wants out of Cheyenne. Nevada gets her out of Cheyenne.”
“That’s not the same as her agreeing to go with us.” I glance around again, wondering if he hit his head while I was gone.
He sets his wrench down and looks at me. “Then I’ll ask her.”
“Do you want me to talk to her about going with us to Nevada?” I offer. No use fighting it. It’s clear he wants her. All I can do now is offer my usual help. Once I get the ball rolling, he’ll have no trouble taking over …
“No. I’ll handle it.”
My brows pull together.
“I’m sure I can convince …”
He interrupts me a second time.
“She won’t need any convincing. She said she wanted out of Cheyenne. I’m taking her at her word.”
I sigh, because I know just how stubborn my brother can be. Once he decides on something, there is no changing his mind.
“Okay. So are we letting Carver in on this plan?”
“Is he in?”
“He is.”
“Good, he can haul our bikes back to Nevada for us.”
“She needs us to drive her?”
“She does.”
“Why?”
“Because I don’t trust this thing on the road yet. Not until I’ve had it on a lift.”
It makes me laugh. “Brother, brother, brother, you’re forgetting who you’re talking to.”
His face falls, and he drops his head. “Fuck,” he says, running his fingers through his hair. “I’m sorry. I’m just anxious to get her home.”
Home? To the home we share … to our cabin?
My brother and I share most things, but there are some things we don’t. Toothbrushes, showers, shits, and women, just to name a few.
We don’t bring our women home either. There’s a reason for that … it’s a promise we made our mama a long time ago.
I rest my hands on my hips. My intuition was right; everything is about to change. “Alright, let’s get this finished up. We need to get on the road before Rage finds out.”
He gives me a smile and goes back to work, happy that I’m on board.
When Carver gets back, we’re just finishing up under the hood. We’ve changed the oil and given everything a quick once-over. Barring any surprises, it should be good to hit the road.
“I didn’t even know Rage had another sister,” Carver says after my brother explains his plan as we’re putting the tires back on. “Sounds like she’s a wanderer. Why do you think she’s going to want to stay in Nevada?”
Carson shrugs. “Maybe she just hasn’t found the right place to settle down.”
Carver releases a short burst of air between his teeth. “I don’t know, brother. I’ve never found a place that’s made me want to stay.”
“Yet,” my brother says with a confidence we share. Both of us have money on him planting roots on Rebel Skull ground.
“Besides …” Carson continues, “I just want to get her home long enough I can take a look at her ride a little better. Get it up on the lift.”
It doesn’t go unnoticed by me that this is the second time he’s referred to getting her home.
“That’s probably a good idea,” Carver says, taking a look at her brake pads before putting the tire on. “Is she?” He taps his forehead.
The way my brother’s jaw clenches has me laying a hand on his shoulder. “I think he’s just asking if the shit with her dad is the reason she’s hiding,” I explain on our friend’s behalf, but it’s something I would like to know as well.
“I don’t know,” Carson answers honestly. “I only had a few minutes with her, but it’s just one more reason to keep an eye on her for a while. I want to make sure she’s okay.”
Carver stretches and then jumps on his toes from foot to foot. “All this talk of her old man has me jacked up to get to Nevada.” His crazy dark eyes dance with anticipation. He’s hungry to take out some bad guys.
My brother and I laugh simultaneously. “I told Jackson you’d be down for this.”
“I’m so fucking bored running guns. I need something …”
“Bloodier,” I joke.
“Exactly,” he says. “You fuckers finish this up. I’ll pack my bags and grab the trailer for our bikes.” He walks backward as he steps away. “I can’t believe I’m sayin’ this, but I’ll see you in Nevada.”
We watch him drive away. “His only concern is our women. He’s afraid one of them might set his nuts on fire.”
Carson laughs at this. “He’s not wrong to worry. Jackson told me Katie is pretty pissed the club voted to patch him over.”
“She’s just jealous because her old man won’t let her in on the action.”
“Can’t say that I blame him on this one. I wouldn’t want my old lady around any of those assholes either,” he says.
We finish up with the tires, but my mind is still stuck on what Carson said. Now he’s envisioning a scenario where he has an old lady. Maybe this is something we should have talked about. I’m not sure why it’s never come up before.
“So, when we get back, what does that look like?” I ask. “Is she going to stay at the cabin with us?”
His brows pull together. “I was thinking she could park her van on the pad dad poured for Grandpa’s camper out back. She could plug into the electricity there.” When I don’t comment, he continues. “Or she can stay at Mom and Dad’s house.”
My shoulders fall in relief. Maybe this isn’t as serious as I was thinking.
“Sounds solid.”
I watch as he airs up the tires on her bike. Really, he’s not acting all that different. Carson is as steady as they come. We’re helpers. This is what we do.
He secures it to the back of the van when he’s finished while I strap down the lawn chairs she had set up outside.
There isn’t anything about his plan that doesn’t make sense. I don’t know why I’m freaking out about all of this. I mean, he doesn’t even know this girl. I’m making more of it than I should.
“Ready to fire her up?”
“Let’s do it.”
He gets in first, going right to the little closet near the back. I wait up front while he opens it. The look that passes over his face stirs the embers of my anxiety until it’s a roaring fire.
He places a finger over his mouth and waves me over. It reminds me of when we were kids and he would find something cool in the forest behind our house.
I walk over and peek inside. The pizza girl is curled up in a ball, sleeping soundly. Something tugs in my chest, but I ignore it, because my brother rubs his hand over his chest too.
“I’ll take the first shift of driving,” Carson says, closing it quietly.
My eyes stay focused on the door of the closet while he heads up front, turning the engine over. He gives me a thumbs up.
I reluctantly head to the front and take the seat beside him.
“Don’t look so worried, brother.” He taps the little crystal dragonfly hanging from her rear-view mirror. “We’re definitely on the right path.”
Or at least one of us is.
For the first time ever, I wonder if the road we’ve been traveling is about to take us in different directions.