Chapter Four
G
“Ack,” I squawk, throwing out my hands and shifting away from the sink as drops of water sluice down my cheeks.
Wide-eyed, I slowly turn my head up to look at Harley. Her shoulders are at her ears as she sheepishly stares back with her teeth sunk in her lip as she does her best not to smile. I hate to break it to her, but she’s failing miserably.
“Did you just flick dirty dishwater at me?” I laugh, dipping my hand in the water and flicking my fingers through the suds to splash her back. She flinches away when the drops connect.
“Yeah.” Releasing her lip, she finally smiles, but it’s short-lived as her expression turns serious. “You zoned out on me.”
“I…” I shake my head. “I just spaced out, is all,” I lie, forcing a smile.
The truth is, the anniversary of my son’s murder is approaching, and it always messes with my head.
It’s been three years, and “they” say it gets easier with time, but I think that’s a load of shit.
I’m not sure who “they” are, but “they” don’t know what the hell they’re talking about.
There’s not a single thing that will ever be able to make the hole in my heart go away.
Harley searches my face and smiles softly. Thankfully, she knows me well enough to read that this isn’t something I want to discuss and leaves it alone.
I’m lost in my thoughts most of the morning, and before I know it, it’s time to go home.
Harley unties her apron and asks, “Ready to get out of here?”
“More than,” I reply, hanging mine up next to hers. My feet are killing me, and I’m in desperate need of a nap.
“I’m going to head on out so I’m not late to class, but are you sure you’re okay?”
“I’m sure,” I assure her as we make our way out the door.
“See you later?”
“Yes, ma’am.” I smile, not wanting her to worry about me. Her focus needs to be on ending the semester on a high note.
Once she pulls out of the lot, I slide behind the wheel, put the key in the ignition, and turn.
Nothing.
“Come on, baby,” I whisper, turning the key again. “No,” I groan when nothing happens.
I bite my lip and look through the windshield at the sun shining down in full force.
My head falls. It’s probably not the best idea to attempt to walk home on one of the hottest days of the year.
I blow out a heavy breath and reach for my bag. “Shit,” I hiss.
Pulling out my phone, I scroll through my contacts, my finger hovering over Knox’s name before I shake my head and scroll again until I come across Wrath’s number and hit call.
It rings a few times, and just as I’m about to hang up, he answers. “What’s wrong?”
Wait. Knox?
I yank the phone from my ear and look down at the screen. I sigh. I called Wrath because I don’t want Knox all up in my shit again.
“I—”
“Babe?” Gooseflesh covers my arms from the deep timber of his voice.
Feeling a bit flustered, I clear my throat. “My car won’t start.” I hate having to admit that to him, but at this point, beggars can’t be choosers, and it’s only getting hotter out here.
“Where are you?” he asks.
I bit my lip, looking at the sign above the bakery, wondering if walking home in this heat would really be that bad. A bead of sweat drips down my cheek, reminding me that I don’t really want to die of heatstroke.
“Work —”
“Be there in ten,” he grumbles, hanging up before I get another word out.
Great. I hang my head.
Knox is a hard man to figure out. Something I learned when he hauled me out of my apartment.
For days, he kept me locked in his room at the compound.
The thing that had me confused was him constantly acting like he couldn’t get away from me fast enough one second to losing his shit when I was out of his sight the next.
Sierra kept saying that he had a thing for me, but I knew for a fact that wasn’t the case — the man couldn’t stand me.
Throwing open my car door, I hop out and then kick it closed behind me. Damn, it’s hot. The weatherman said it was going to be a scorcher today, but this is something else, I think as I hurry to the door.
When I reach for the handle, barbs prickle at the back of my neck.
I glance over my shoulder, but just as it’s been for the last few days, there’s nothing there.
I hate feeling like someone’s watching me.
I’m not sure what the deal is, but I’ve been more paranoid lately, and it’s starting to drive me crazy.
Turning back to the door, I push inside, and unsurprisingly, Carla’s got her face glued to her phone.
It takes her a few seconds to look up. Her lip curls as she scans me from head to toe.
I don’t know what her problem is, but for some reason, she doesn’t like me.
To be honest, I’m surprised she hasn’t fired me.
If I didn’t need this job so bad, I’d tell her exactly what I think about her judgmental ass and quit.
“What are you doing back here?” she asks, annoyed by my presence.
“My car won’t start. I won’t be here long, just waiting on a friend to come look at it.” I smile, trying to be friendly. I’m not about to tell her who’s coming to look at it, considering how openly she dislikes bikers.
“Whatever.” She waves me off.
“Actually, I think I’ll just go wait—” I pause when I hear the sound of Harleys thundering in the distance. My eyes close, knowing she’s going to flip her lid about who’s come to my rescue. She’s always a bitch when the guys come around.
Just as I’m about to head outside, Knox, Wrath and Thorn pull up outside the front door. “You called your dirty bikers?” Carla shouts over the noise from behind me.
I don’t dare turn around, not that I’d have to. I can feel her disdain burning into my back as she fumes behind me.
I completely forget about her snarky comment when Knox’s arms flex as he unclasps the dohickey under his chin. My attention is completely lost on anything but him as he slides off his helmet, revealing dark hair that I’d give anything to run my fingers through.
His signature black tee is like a second skin on his massive chest, and those dark denim jeans are stretched beautifully across his thick thighs. His eyes scan the area, then come back to the window and narrow on mine.
“Damn.” I sigh. Even pissed off, the man is gorgeous.
“You’re drooling,” comes sniped from behind me.
I roll my eyes at Carla’s snarky tone but wipe my chin just in case.
I don’t want to be caught looking like a fool, seeing as the man can’t stand me. He’d be appalled if he knew he was the star in most of my fantasies.
Transfixed and hyperaware, my eyes track his every move as he climbs off his bike and prowls through the front door. Knox places his hands around my neck and uses his thumbs to lift my face to his. “You okay, baby?”
Baby?
Embarrassingly, the endearment sends a rush of wet between my legs.
I try to look away, but he dips his face closer, not letting me off the hook that easily.
“G?” he asks, lifting a brow.
“I’m fine, but my car…” I look over his shoulder as the door jingles again to see Thorn pushing through the door. “Need your keys, doll.” He holds out his hand. I pull away from Knox, quickly dig into my pocket, and hand them over.
Knox growls for some unknown reason, but I ignore it. Whatever’s going on between these guys, Thorn is clearly getting a kick out of getting under the big guy’s skin.
“Ain’t poaching, brother.” He grins, then turns on his heel, going back out the way he came.
“Poaching?” I ask, tipping my head up at Knox, wondering what exactly that’s all about.
He shakes his head like that’s supposed to explain the weird comment.
“Whatever.” I don’t want to know. I just want to get my car running so I can go home and take a nap. I’ve been up since two this morning, and it’s starting to catch up to me.
“Giselle.” I flinch.
Damn it. I close my eyes, wishing I could be anywhere else but here. “If I could have a moment of your time before you leave.” Opening my eyes, I look over my shoulder at my boss and nod. I already know she’s going to chew my ass for the guys being here. Not that it should matter.
“I’ll wait outside,” Knox says as I move to step away from him. Before I can get too far, he grabs my arm and stops me. My eyes fly up to his, but he’s watching as my boss disappears behind the swinging door.
“Who’s that bitch?”
“My boss that hates me.” I sigh.
“Want me to shoot her?” I throw my head back and laugh. I’m not used to this side of Knox. I get myself under control and smile when I look back up at him.
Shaking my head, I answer softly, “No thanks. I’d never forgive myself if you got locked up because of me.”
“It’d be worth it to see you laugh like that again, babe.”
Ignoring his throwaway compliment, I motion to the swinging door. “I need to…”
“I’ll wait for you out by your car.” His lips touch the top of my head, and then he’s gone.
What the hell is happening?
“Giselle!”
“Shit,” I murmur.
I step into the kitchen and know things aren’t going to go well by the way Carla’s leaning against the stainless steel table with her arms crossed.
“I told you I didn’t want those ruffians anywhere near my shop.” I open my mouth to apologize, but her hand flies up to stop me. “You’re fired, Giselle.”
“You can’t be serious.” I haven’t done anything to deserve losing my job.
“I’d like you to leave. Now.” I run my hands through my hair.
Shit. She’s for real.
“Okay.” I throw my hands up like I don’t care. I’m not going to let her see me cry—no way in hell I’ll give her the satisfaction.
With my head held high, I turn on my heel and leave with my dignity still intact.
As I get closer to the parking lot, the magnitude of what just happened starts to hit.
I wedge myself in between Knox and Thorn. I glance to my left, then to my right, noting they both have their arms crossed over their chests and are staring at the mess under my hood.
“What’s wrong with it?”
Thorn dips his chin and raises his brow. “Sugar, the better question is, what isn’t wrong with it.”
“Stop calling her that,” Knox says through clenched teeth.
Thankfully, before the two of them can get into a scuffle over stupid nicknames, Wrath steps between us and elaborates. “What he’s trying to say is that it’s a piece of shit that should have been put out of its misery a decade ago.”
I bite my thumbnail. That’s not what I was hoping to hear. I mean, I knew my car was having some issues, but I didn’t think she was in danger of dying.
I look up at Knox. “Can you fix it?”
He rubs at the stubble on his cheek as he looks over at Thorn. Thorn shakes his head, and my heart sinks.
I start to panic. “What the hell am I going to do?” I shake out my hands as my breathing starts to accelerate. “I don’t have a job, and now this.”
“G?”
“Shit. This is bad,” I say to myself as the tears silently drip down my cheeks.
“Baby, look at me.” Knox tips my head, and when I see the pity in his eyes, I cover my face and sob brokenly.
“That bitch fired you? I’m going to shoot her.”
“No!” Frantically, I reached for his hand. Carla’s a vengeful woman. If he goes in there, she’ll make it her mission to cause trouble for him. “No, Knox. Please,” I beg, dissolving into a full-on crying jag.
“Shhh. Okay, baby. Okay. Calm down.” Knox clasps his hand around mine and pulls me closer while using his free hand to press my cheek against his chest. “What happened in there?”
“She fired me,” I whisper, wrapping my arms around his waist. For the first time in months, a veil of safety wraps around me. I lean deeper into him, holding onto it for as long as I can.
“Baby,” Knox sighs at the same time Thorn growls. My stomach does another dip when he calls me baby again. I know it’s stupid to get butterflies when he hates me, but it’s been a long time since a man’s made me want things.
“Fuck her. You’ll come to work for us. We can use your help in the office anyway,” Thorn demands.
When I pull back to ask him what he means, he’s staring at Knox with a shit-eating grin on his face.
“Are you okay with that?” I ask. When I look up at him, he’s staring at Thorn like he just might pull his gun out and shoot him instead.
“If you don’t want me working for you, have the balls to say so,” I snap, pulling away from him.
“Giselle,” he sighs. Fuck him. I’m sick of the mixed signals.
“To hell with you, Knox. I’ll find something on my own,” I yell over my shoulder, throwing up two middle fingers for good measure.
I know it’s childish of me to react this way, but I’m exhausted, and I just don’t have the energy to deal with anyone else’s shit today.
Feeling a little better, I lift my head and keep putting one foot in front of the other. It’s going to be a hot walk home, but it’ll give me time to think about what I need to do next.