Chapter 5
Ricochet
Iwas still sitting in the same spot, a few hours later, when a motorcycle pulled up. Shifting on the swing, I watched as Smoke got off his bike.
His brows shot up as he surveyed the ground at my feet. I’d run out of beer and it wasn’t even noon. “Have any of those for me?”
“No. Planning on going to the store soon, though.”
He shook his head. “Yeah, that’s a great idea.” He sat on one of the wooden rocking chairs nearby. “I’ll get you more before I leave.”
Shrugging, I watched as a roadrunner zipped by, chasing some kind of bug. “Guess I need to find something to do besides day drinking. What’re you doing here?”
Smoke’s gaze bore into the side of my face, but I kept my eyes on the brush. “Came to check on you.”
Ignoring the way his words made my gut clench, I changed the subject. Too many people were worried about me. I hated fucking disappointing them. “How’s Hell?” Now I met his eyes. The beer swirled in my stomach as it rolled at the reminder of my friend and his condition.
“He’s doing well. Crash said he should be up and on his feet again in a day or so. Of course, Hell told him to fuck off and proved he didn’t need to be ‘coddled’, or so he said.”
My lips twitched up into a half smile. That sounded exactly like Hellfire. “So is he still in bed?”
“Fuck no. He thanked Crash Cart for patching him up and asked Kit to take him home. He’s back at the clubhouse. Lock forced him to go lay down on the couch and all the sweet butts are waiting on him hand and foot.”
“Bet he’s eating that up.”
“Hell yeah, he is,” Smoke said with a chuckle. He leaned forward, elbows resting on his knees. “How are you?”
“Fine.”
“Uh huh.”
I gave him a warning look. “I have no problem kicking your ass out of here if you’re going to be a dick.”
He grinned at me. “You like me too much to do that.”
“The fuck I do.” It was true. Smoke and Hell were my best friends. They were older than I was, but emotionally we were all pretty much on the same level. Kit always complained that we had the maturity of eight-year-olds. She wasn’t wrong. We got into a lot of shit together.
“How’s Gwen and the kids?”
That was one thing about my brothers, they made it a point to know what was going on in my life and my family had become theirs.
Any of the men in my MC would protect my sister, niece, and nephew with their lives, even if they hadn’t all met them, just like I would for their families. It was what we did for each other.
“They’re doing good. Trent’s coming back around.”
Smoke swore, making me feel justified in my own reaction. “What’s that shit stain up to?”
And this was why he and I got along so well. “Claims he’s changed and wants to be in his kids’ lives.” The disgust in my tone was mirrored on Smoke’s face.
“Sounds like a bunch of bullshit.”
“Agreed.”
“Probably just wants some pussy.”
Nausea rolled through me at that thought. “Smoke, if you talk about my sister’s pussy again, I’ll pound you into the fucking ground.”
“My bad. I didn’t mean her pussy exactly.”
I gave him a look of disbelief and confusion.
“Well, I guess I did. I just meant-”
“Stop. While you’re behind.” Shaking my head, I tried to figure out a way to bleach my brain so I’d never have to think of that again.
Smoke cleared his throat. Before he was able to shove his boot any farther into his mouth a car whipped into Jordan’s driveway. His eyes narrowed on me as I sat up a bit straighter. “How are the views out here?” he asked, gaze straying over to Jordan’s car.
“Fuck off.”
Smoke was a player. He’d fuck anything that moved. I’d be damned if I let him near Jordan. Even if I didn’t want her, which I did, I wouldn’t let him get close.
“Off limits,” I said, as he studied her while she got out of her car.
His right brow shot up and interest covered his face. “Really? You haven’t called dibs…” he thought back over the years we’d known each other, “since Suzie Hersch.”
“I never claimed Suzie Hersch. And I didn’t say I was calling dibs,” I muttered. He didn’t need to know that I couldn’t get this woman out of my mind. He’d just give me mass loads of shit, especially after finding out I’d talked to her for a total of two minutes.
“Well if you’re not calling dibs, then I can-”
“We’re not fucking ten years old,” I growled at him.
Jordan pulled a backpack out of the car, spotted us, and waved. Her smile lit up my world. It was like a punch to the gut. The good kind. I didn’t know how it was possible to have this kind of reaction to someone I’d just met, but here I was.
Smokehouse gave an aggravating laugh. “Holy shit, Bro. You’re into her.” Amazement flooded his features. “I was kidding before, but seriously, I haven’t seen you chase tail in years.”
“I swear to Christ, I’m going to make you eat your words. Shut the hell up.” The last came out as a mumble because Jordan was walking over. I kicked the beer bottles under the swing and over toward Smoke.
Her beautiful eyes watched a bottle roll across the porch. “Bit early in the day, isn’t it?” she asked with a smile. There was no accusation in her tone. More it was like she didn’t know what else to say, even though she’d approached us. It was cute.
“He’s an alcoholic,” I said, pointing at Smoke.
His jaw dropped and for once he seemed lost on what to say. For a guy that could run his mouth in any situation it was almost refreshing to see him shocked into silence.
“I just got here, you dick,” he finally managed to stutter.
Jordan’s smile grew at our banter. “Are you brothers? Gwen never mentioned another brother, but…”
“We’re MC brothers,” I told her. “This is Smokehouse.”
She shook her head. “Your names are very unique. It’s nice to meet you, Smokehouse.”
Smoke stood and leaned over the railing so he could take the hand she offered, holding it close to his chest. I rolled my eyes at his antics.
He was just trying to piss me off. He could tell I was into her and even though he fucked anytime he could, even he had a code.
He wouldn’t put the moves on a woman I wanted.
Not seriously, anyway. He’d annoy the shit out of me though by pretending to.
“It’s nice to meet you as well, Jordan. Are you new here?” He gave her a look that his sister, Kit, had termed as a smolder. “I could show you around if you wanted.”
Uncertainty filled her eyes as she looked over at me. “I-I was born and raised in Tucson.”
Standing up, I took Jordan’s hand from my friend and knocked his away. I used my free hand to launch myself over the porch railing and landed next to her. “Ignore him,” I told her, tugging on her hand.
I walked her over to her door. She hesitated as we approached it. “You have interesting friends.”
“Wait until you meet the weird ones.”
Her startled green eyes landed on mine. “Am I going to?”
“Yes.” I still hadn’t dropped her hand, so I used my free one to tuck a piece of her dark hair behind her ear. My fingers trailed lightly down her neck.
Her breathing was choppy and her pulse fluttered against her neck. I wasn’t the smooth talker that Smokehouse was, but I could tell when a woman was interested in me. I leaned forward a little and watched as her eyes widened then dropped to my lips.
“Go inside, Jordan.”
She looked up at me again and I didn’t miss the disappointment on her face. She turned and I let her hand go.
My eyes narrowed as she opened her door. “You don’t lock it?”
She looked at me over her shoulder and shrugged. “No one ever comes out here.” She walked inside.
“Jordan.”
She paused again, turning to face me. I put my hand on either side of the doorframe and leaned in until my face was in hers. Another inch and we’d be touching noses.
“Lock your doors. You don’t want strange men coming in here.”
I left her blinking after me and hopped back over the railing to take my seat again.
What did it say about me that I’d drunk an entire pack of beer and felt nothing?
It didn’t affect my motor skills in the slightest. We tended to drink a lot when we were bored and today hadn’t exactly been full of fun.
Sitting out here, away from my brothers, away from the city, with nothing to do while the kids were at school hadn’t left me with much else.
But like I told Smoke, I needed to find something else to do.
I didn’t need Jordan thinking I was a lush and Gwen worrying about me.
“Don’t,” I said as I took my seat.
Smokehouse’s grin filled his stupid fucking face. “Don’t what?”
“I don’t want to talk about it.”
“Nothing to talk about,” he agreed. “You’re already in too deep to talk you out of it.”
“I’m not in anything.”
“The fuck you aren’t,” he said, leaning back. “Can’t wait to tell Hellfire. He’ll enjoy tormenting you.”
“As if he can talk. He hasn’t shown interest in anyone as long as I’ve known him.” I frowned, thinking about my friend. “I should go see him.”
“Nah. He said he’ll come visit in a few days. We know you need a bit of a break.”
“Not from you guys. Or the others,” I said. “It’s just…” I swallowed hard. The last thing I wanted was my brothers thinking I didn’t want to see them. I could handle them individually. Couldn’t be around all of them, though. It was just too much right now.
“We get it, Ricochet. We just want to give you what you need. Sometimes I don’t know what that is,” he admitted.
Smoke never let his vulnerable side show around anyone other than me and Hellfire.
He was loud, cocky, and determined, but I knew that was all a show to protect himself.
Not that we talked about this feel good crap.
Out of all of us he probably had the kindest heart, he just didn’t ever let it show.
He always left women before they hurt him. It had become a pattern for him.
I hadn’t been around when his fiancée had fucked him over. But ever since, he’d refused to allow any female to get close to him. I did the same thing, but not because I’d been hurt by one. Who needed to deal with the shit I had going on? Why would I put that on another person?
My eyes strayed over to the house next door.
It’d always been easy before to stick to myself.
I hadn’t even fucked one of the sweet butts.
Too much damn drama with those girls. That was the last thing I needed.
Women always came with a price, theirs was too high.
Wasn’t worth dealing with just to get my dick wet.
Now that there was someone who piqued my interest I wondered if I was going to find it as easy to keep a part of me separated from her? I didn’t want to keep my distance from Jordan. Maybe she was exactly what I needed to take my mind off of things.