Chapter 57 Kiera
KIERA
A few days had passed since our explosive breakfast, but after Dom’s little show, no one felt comfortable leaving me alone with her. Which was fine by me: it meant I got to spend more time at Lucky Strike, learning about the bikes I’d one day be driving if The Oracle had their way.
“Okay, what’s step one?” Leo leaned against a tool chest as I hovered in front of her bike.
“Unscrew the drain bolt?”
She shook her head. “Oil fill cap. You want to allow for airflow.”
“Right,” I groaned, pouting over my shoulder. “You sure I can’t just learn how to ride it?”
From one of the wheelie stools, Spencer smirked. “I’ll show you how to ride it, Bunny.”
I hardly had time to roll my eyes at the innuendo before Leo crossed her arms. “No. You need to know how this thing works before you get behind the handlebars.”
“Laaaaame,” Spencer teased, spinning in her seat.
Despite myself, I’d gotten back to my usual comfort with my two captors since The Hollow. Nothing had changed really, just that I couldn’t leave if I tried. But I still needed their protection. My mom’s incessant calls hadn’t slowed which told me one thing: Gabe was still looking for me.
Dr. Leo kicked her stool, spinning her wildly through the shop. I laughed at the sight of her spinning out, but bit my tongue as Leo leveled me with a stern look. “Back to work, Princess.”
Thanks to Leo’s calm guidance, I made quick work of the oil change considering Spencer wouldn’t stop heckling.
While my other two captors could be quite solemn, Spencer always knew just how to make me laugh.
And laughter was something I was needing more and more of as I adjusted to the chaos that was my life.
But even the life of the party had her limits. And that phone of hers was often the catalyst of cloudy moods.
As I kneeled on the floor to get a better angle on my wrench, I prepared for a joke about getting down and dirty. But the familiar ring of her cell sapped the smile from her face in an instant.
“I’ve gotta take this.” She frowned, standing abruptly and walking off from the work station. She always deflected when I asked about her mysterious callers, but I figured it was the same person based on the furrow in her brow. But her tone, usually hushed and irritated, swiftly shifted to panic.
“Kiera.” Leo barked as a metal clang hit the floor, followed by a flush of liquid.
“Crap!” I muttered, looking down at the stinky brown liquid spilling all over the floor from the motorcycle. Distracted, I must have unscrewed the drain bolt without realizing it, and now, the piece was lost in a mess of used oil.
“The drip pan.” Leo rushed from the tool cabinet toward my workstation, shoving the tin under the spill with a boot.
“Fuck, that’s such a mess.” I muttered, shaking my head. “Sorry I don’t know what—”
“I’ve gotta go,” Spence muttered as she hung up the phone.
“Where are you heading?” I asked, curious what had her twisted in such a knot.
“I’ve gotta run some errands for my niece and nephew. I’ll be back late.”
But before Spencer could head for the door, I caught her eye. “Hey, are you okay?”
Leo never asked these questions. Which meant she either already knew the deal with Spencer’s family, or she just didn’t think it was her business to pry.
After the stunt they’d pulled at The Hollow, my angels both knew they owed me some honesty.
“I’ll be fine,” Spence let out a shaky laugh. “They just know how to keep me on my toes is all. No need to worry.”
She tried to plaster on that charming smile, but at this point, I could see through the act. “Why don’t we come with you? Maybe we can help.”
“You don’t have to—”
“No, no. We can help. Right, Leo?”
I turned to look at her, but her hands were already filthy wiping up the motor oil I’d spilled. “Go ahead. I’ll finish cleaning up here.”
Spencer bit her lip. “Kiera, seriously, I can handle it myself. I’ve done this stuff plenty already. You should stay and chill.”
“I know you can handle it alone, but you shouldn’t have to.” I stood up, wiping the grit off on my jeans. “Come on. We can grab some Chinese food while we’re out and make a date of it.”
“Date?” Spencer’s eyebrow rose, the word choice bringing back a hint of that usual charm.
I smirked. “If I call it a date, will you say yes?”
“Alright.” Letting the smile take over her face, Spencer waved a hand for me to follow her out of the shop.
As I slipped on my coat, I turned back and mouthed my thanks to Leo, who nodded from where she knelt on the ground, dirty rag in hand. “Don’t have too much fun.”
“No promises.” I teased, dipping through the garage door after Spencer.
Hopping on the back of the Suzuki, I had no idea where we were headed. But for once, it didn’t matter. For once, I wasn’t just volunteering to go along so I could get some freedom or dirt.
I genuinely wanted to make sure Spencer was okay. And that level of care for this mysterious biker, the warmth that blossomed in my chest when I was around her, was more alarming than anything I’d learned about my captors in the past few days.
My arms tightened instinctively around her waist as she let the engine roar, drowning out everything else. “Hold on tight, Bunny.”