by Hope Stone
I got to the parking lot just as the sun set, locked my bike, and walked over to the warehouse. I wasn’t expected, and I sure the hell wouldn’t be welcomed. Some guys would call me crazy for just showing up like this, but I wanted the element of surprise.
I was taking a chance that Scorpion would even be there. As I walked up, I saw him outside guarding the door with another recruit, and they were both smoking cigarettes. That would explain why Lily smelled like a fucking ashtray sometimes.
His face was pockmarked from acne and his blond hair was swept back. He was not an attractive guy, not that I found guys attractive. I just couldn’t imagine what the fuck Lily saw in this loser.
He must have sensed me because he looked up and then his body shot up in alarm. His hand went to his pocket, so I shouted, “Leave it, Scorpion. I just want to talk.”
The other prospect ran off, ostensibly to alert the other guys, and so I knew I had about two minutes. Scorpion just stood there, frozen, looking from side to side.
“I got nothin’ to say.” His jaw was set defiantly, but I could tell from the way he bit his lip and his eyes darted back and forth that he was nervous.
“Good. Then listen.” I got about four inches from his face. “You need to leave my sister the fuck alone.”
“The fuck I do. She can make up her own mind.”
I felt rage coil in my belly. This piece of shit kid was about to get seriously injured. “No, she cannot. She is a sixteen-year-old girl. You want to go to prison?”
At that, his body wilted and he looked at me. “Ryder. Give me a break, man. I love her.”
That surprised me. “You love her? What the fuck does that even mean?”
“I do. I love her. She’s beautiful, and smart, and funny…”
“And better than you in every goddamn way.” I couldn’t believe my ears. This guy actually thought he loved my sister?
He looked down at his feet. “I know.”
I sighed. “Look. If you love her—which I doubt you actually do—then leave her the hell alone. This is no life for her. You know that.”
He laughed sardonically, revealing yellow crooked teeth. “You’re saying that?”
I grabbed him by the collar of his T-shirt. “My life and choices are none of your goddamn business. Let me put it another way. This is not a request, and I am not asking nicely. Leave my sister the hell alone or you will regret it every day for the rest of what’s left of your short life. Got it?”
I could hear the rest of Las Balas coming, so I let him go and ran to my bike. Hopefully he got the message.
As I roared back to North La Playa, my mind started to wander to the place it seemed to go most these days: Paige. I needed to do something about it, but I wasn’t sure what.
Paige
“Paige. What are you doing?” Martha was standing in the kitchen like a drill sergeant, barking orders at everyone. “Take this order to table four.”
Table four wasn’t my table, it was Rocky’s, but I wasn’t about to say that to Martha, so I grabbed the plates and headed over to deliver the food. Where was she? Rocky had just disappeared about an hour after I got to work.
I was exhausted. My neighbors had another booming party last night and the smell of weed came through the air conditioning vent so strongly that I actually felt high. I’d smoked a little pot in college, but I would prefer to be the one to choose it, not have it come through the vents. I just hoped this place didn’t drug test.
“Excuse me, miss. This isn’t syrup. It’s soy sauce.”
I looked at the glass container I’d put down next to the pancakes and sure enough, I’d grabbed the wrong thing. “Oh, I’m sorry. I’ll be right back with your syrup.”
Where was my head? Out of the corner of my eye, I could see the activity at the Blue Dog across the street. I found myself thinking about Ryder and wondering what he was up to. He hadn’t come into Tiny’s in a while and I was saving my money to move out, so I hadn’t gone into the bar.
“Hello! Paige!” Martha was standing next to me, looking up and frowning. She was holding a bottle of syrup and I was still holding the soy sauce. “What is with you today?”
“Sorry, Martha, I’m just tired. I didn’t sleep well, and with Rocky disappearing I’ve been covering her tables too. I’ll do a better job of focusing.”
“Who disappeared?” As if on cue, Rocky walked up behind me holding a couple of plates and setting them down at one of my tables. “If you need to go home, Paige, I can cover your tables.”
I frowned. Part of what I was distracted from was covering for her for the last hour. “No, I’m good.”
Martha stood looking back and forth between us. “Actually Paige, Rocky is right. Why don’t you take off? Tomorrow is your day off. Come back rested and ready to work.”
Before I had a chance to argue, Martha walked off to the kitchen. Rocky leaned over and whispered, “Next time you call me out like that, I’ll get you fired. Martha listens to me.”
She sashayed back into the kitchen, leaving me to wonder what the hell just happened.
I was kind of in a daze as I left work. I wasn’t happy about being sent home, but on the other hand, I did need some time off. Maybe I’d call and see if I could reschedule that job interview. Working at Tiny’s wasn’t exactly my ultimate career ambition.
I was running a little low on gas, which is why I went to the gas station that was in the same parking lot as the Blue Dog. They had the best prices, I told myself. But the whole time I was pumping gas, I was scanning the parking lot. I couldn’t admit it, but I was looking for his bike.
“Are you done?” A teenage boy was standing next to me and I became aware that I was still holding the gas dispenser even though my tank was full. His car was behind mine, waiting for the pump.
“What? Oh yeah. Sorry.” I put the pump back and screwed on the gas cap. Just as I was getting the receipt, I heard it. The distinctive rumble of Ryder’s bike.
My body jolted with electricity. There he was. Just on the other side of the parking lot. I saw him dismount his bike and take off his helmet. His long legs were clad in faded blue jeans that hugged every muscle. His jacket was faded from exposure to the elements.
“Are you going to be leaving soon, or should I move to another pump?” The guy behind me was irritated and I didn’t blame him a bit. I was acting like a moron.
“No, I’m sorry. I’m going.”
As if it had a mind of its own, my car made its way across the parking lot to the Blue Dog. “I’ll just get a Diet Coke,” my mind said, but it was a lie. I knew why I was going in there.
The smell of Lysol, stale beer, and cigarettes hit my nose at the same time my eyes went blind from the change to darkness. I felt really out of place in my sensible waitress shoes and my Tiny’s T-shirt. I half-expected them to hand me a tray and tell me to start taking orders.
My eyes adjusted and I saw Ryder leaning over the jukebox. It was like that Taylor Swift song—he was looking like James Dean in those jeans and leather jacket.
A magnetic attraction pulled me to where he was. I had no idea what I was going to say, but I just knew I needed to be near him.
“Hey.” That was brilliant, Paige. Did they teach you that in college?
“Oh! Paige! I didn’t expect to see you here. What are you doing here?” It might have been my imagination or all the weed I didn’t smoke last night, but he seemed to be happy to see me.
“Don’t choose that song,” I said.
“Why not?” he asked.
“Because if we end up getting married and living happily ever after, I don’t want Tequila to be our song.” Who was this bold woman speaking from my mouth?
“Our song?” he laughed and asked, “Okay. What should I pick, then?”
I leaned over the jukebox and could feel his gaze going up and down my body, lingering on my ass. “What about this one?” I said, pointing to a title.
“Born to be Wild? You want our kids to play that at ever
y anniversary?”
“Okay, how about this?” I pointed to Patsy Cline’s Anything. The way he was looking at me, he could have done anything to me and I’d have agreed.
Without a word, he pushed the numbers on the jukebox and walked over to the bar. The bartender slid over a cup of coffee. I followed him like a puppy.
“Can I get a Diet Coke?” I asked her.
“That shit’ll kill you,” Ryder said, grinning at me.
“So can riding a bike,” I said.
“If you don’t know how to handle it.”
“And you do?” I said, looking up at him. “You know how to handle it?”
The smile spread across his face slowly, revealing deep dimples. “Honey, you have no idea.”
He took his coffee over to a table in the back and the waitress gave me my Diet Coke. I grabbed for my wallet, but Ryder said, “Put it on my tab.”
This was the second time someone had bought my drink here. I grabbed the glass and went over to Ryder’s table. “Thanks.”
“It’s the least I could do,” he said, motioning for me to sit down.
“Why is that?”
“You saved me from telling an embarrassing story for the rest of my life. Imagine explaining that Tequila was our song when I don’t even drink.”
“You don’t?” That surprised me.
“Nope. Never touch the stuff.”
I wanted to know why, but figured it was a topic of conversation for a different day, so I just took a sip of my Diet Coke.
“How’s the job?” he asked, staring at the word Tiny’s on my shirt.
My nipples must have sensed it because they instantly got hard. “It’s okay. They sent me home early today.” Why did I tell him that?
“Let me guess. Rocky went missing for an hour, you got stuck with her tables, and then when you messed up, Martha sent you home instead of her.”
The shock must have registered on my face. “How did you know?”
“Let’s just say it isn’t the first time it’s happened. Rocky has been there for years, and I don’t know what the loyalty thing is, but it’s real.”
“I had no idea.” The soda had gone to my bladder already, so I looked around. “Where are the restrooms?”
“Back there.” He nodded to the rear of the bar. “You go and I’ll pick out another song.”
“No Taylor Swift.”
“Are you always this controlling?” he said.
“Only if you know how to handle it,” I said as I walked down the hall. My boldness was shocking even to myself.
He was waiting for me as soon as I came out of the bathroom. I could hear the strains of some bluesy song on the jukebox as I looked up at him. The hall was slightly dark, and a lock of his hair fell forward onto his forehead as he leaned one arm over my head against the wall.
I opened my mouth to say something witty, but his lips came down on mine before I got the chance. He tasted like black coffee and gum. He was surprisingly gentle at first. Soft kisses on my lips.
The passion that had been building between us since the first moment we met ignited and we soon became a tangle of arms and hands, bodies pressing against each other, tongues exploring.
My mind shut off and my body took over. I wanted more. I was hungry for him and wanted him to fill every inch of me, deeply and completely.
“Hey, can I get in here?” Some girl was standing next to us, trying to get into the bathroom.
“Oh, sorry.” I turned around to let her in the door and by the time I turned back, Ryder was gone.
My heart was pounding and my lips were bruised from his kisses. I thought about chasing after him but realized that this was for the best. I needed to clear my head before this whole thing went too far.
Maybe it already had.
Ryder
I slipped out the back door as fast as possible. I was on the verge of making a huge mistake with Paige and needed to stop the damage before it went too far.
Who was I kidding? It had already gone too far. My bike roared to life and I headed down Berry Avenue. I didn’t know where I was going, but I knew I needed to get the hell out of there.
What was with that woman? Why couldn’t I stop thinking about her? Wanting to touch her? Even worse…wanting to talk to her?
This was not good. I was a single “parent” for all intents and purposes, and the crap with Lily and Scorpion was what needed to be my focus.
Unless she was at the age where she needed a woman in her life to talk to…
No. No. That was bullshit. Maybe I was just horny. If I just got laid, maybe I could get back to focusing on my real life and not that blonde with the blue eyes and the cherry lips that had wandered into my life.
Banking my bike to the right, my mind was made up. I knew what I needed to do, and I knew exactly who to go to and do it with.
“Hey, sexy. Long time no see.” Sofia was leaning up against the door of her mobile home wearing not much more than a slip. It was a white cotton dress and it clung to every one of the curves I knew so well. “I was real happy to get your text.” She stepped aside. “Come on in.”
As I went into the small home, it looked exactly the same as it had the first time I was here. Sofia was really into Latin art, and her whole place looked like a huge Dia De Los Muertos exhibit. Colorful skulls, half-burned candles, and paintings everywhere.
Padre had given me Sofia’s address when I was 18. He said it was time I learned a few things. I wasn’t a virgin, of course. But Sofia knew a whole lot more about sex than my high school girlfriend had.
Sofia wasn’t a professional or anything. She was just a good friend to Padre and was willing to help him out with just about anything.
“Can I get you a beer, or are you still not drinkin’?” She crossed over to the small refrigerator.
“No, I’m good, thanks.”
“Mind if I have one?” she asked.
“Knock yourself out.” I went to sit on the couch. Oddly, I felt awkward. I hadn’t been here in a good year, year and a half. Sofia and I had played around quite a few times, but it was never anything serious.
“So what’s on your mind, Ryder?” She sat down across from me and looked at me with tender brown eyes.
I tried to play it cool. “Does a guy have to have something on his mind to come see an old friend?”
“You do.” She crossed her tanned legs and for a moment I wished we weren’t having this conversation. I wished I had those legs wrapped around my waist and I could stop thinking about the reason I was here. “You don’t just come by, Ryder.”
I didn’t know how to answer that, so I didn’t. I just shifted in my seat.
Suddenly, her face broke out in a smile. “It’s a woman! You’re here because of a woman.”
I shook my head, not in disagreement but in disbelief. “How could you tell?”
“Ryder, I’ve known you since you were just becoming a man.” She took a sip of her beer. “Who is she?”
“She’s a new waitress at Tiny’s.” It felt weird even talking about Paige with her. Or anyone, for that matter.
“And you like her?”
“I don’t know what I feel.” I kept looking at Sofia and trying to find a way to stop the conversation and just get her in bed. I wanted to not think or feel or do anything for a while.
Sofia got up, crossed over to where I was, and kneeled down in front of me. I could see down her dress, and for a moment thought she was making a move. Instead, she took both of my hands in hers and said, “Can I give you some advice?”
“Sure.”
“The biggest regret in my life is not going after love when it showed up on my doorstep. I was too afraid to open up and risk getting hurt. Instead, I ran so fast the other way my head was practically spinning. Eventually he left and married someone else, and here I am, alone.”
It was at that moment that I truly looked at Sofia for the first time. Not as a person who was there to teach and comfort me, but as a person. She had fe
elings and a heart and was a woman, not just some receptacle to take away my pain. I knew that she deserved better than that.
“Sofia…”
She quickly stood up and went to grab her beer. “Don’t feel sorry for me, Ryder. But don’t become me, either. If you have any feelings toward this woman at all, follow them. Sure, you might get hurt, but at least you won’t spend the rest of your life wondering if it could have turned out differently.”
I stood up because it was time for me to leave. “Thank you, Sofia.” I hugged her warmly. “I really appreciate what you said.”
“You take care of yourself, Ryder.”
Fifteen minutes later I was headed back to North La Playa. It was a good thing I was such a seasoned rider, because my head was completely in the clouds and I’d have been a danger to myself if it weren’t so instinctive.
I couldn’t stop thinking about what Sofia had said about Paige. What if it were time to take a chance again? I mean, I wasn’t planning on being alone forever. Maybe it would be good for Lily if I had a woman around for her to look up to. Not just some biker chick but an actual lady.
I’d made up my mind to find Paige and see if she wanted to have dinner or something when I felt my phone buzz with a text message. At a stoplight, I took my phone out and read it. It was Chalupa.
U need to get to the shop ASAP. Padre is losing it.
All thoughts of Paige, Lily, and Sofia left my mind in an instant. First and foremost, I was a member of Outlaw Souls. We were brothers, and if one of us needed help, that was all that mattered. My reply was simple.
On my way.
Paige
I was digging through a box looking for the blouse my mother gave me last year for Christmas. I hadn’t fully unpacked since moving in, and really didn’t go out to the kinds of places where you had to dress up.