“Maybe Stel will let me borrow the Jeep.”
Her hazel eyes lit up, as did her face. “Yes! A ride and loaded French fries!”
“Whatever you want, baby.”
Whatever she wanted. At least for the next two months.
Autumn sat low in the passenger seat with the Jeep’s doors locked, a baseball cap pulled low on her head and an oversized pair of sunglasses covering her eyes. She kept those eyes focused on the entrance to Dino’s Diner, waiting for Sig to return with the huge order of food he had called in.
Because she was so focused on that front door, she jumped and squealed when a loud tap came from the passenger side window.
She swallowed her pounding heart from her throat back into her chest and turned her head to see a man standing right outside her door. He made a wind-down-the-window motion with his hand.
She frowned.
The man, who was tall and slender and had the most beautiful high cheek bones, squinted at her for a second, then his mouth formed an O. “Oh, sorry! Thought you were Stella and maybe that gorilla of hers was inside Dino’s.”
This man knew Stella and Trip. Which meant he wasn’t a Shirley. Since Sig had left the old Cherokee running, she powered down the window.
His high-pitched squeal and him reaching through the window to snag the cap off her head made her want to roll the window right back up.
As he tossed the hat to the floorboard and dug his fingers into her hair, he gushed, “Oh... my... God! Look at that color. And that is one hundred percent natural! You know how I know that?”
Autumn just stared at him as he fluffed her hair around her face.
“Oh my God, this needs some work and I know the perfect fella for that. You know who?” His question ended on a higher pitch than it should.
When she didn’t answer, he yelled, “Me! I am such a lucky, lucky boy to get to do something with that fiery mane. You know why?”
Autumn blinked.
“Because you are my newest customer and you’re lucky, too. All my new customers get their first cut for free!” He squealed the word “free,” released her hair, leaving his right hand jutted towards her. “I’m Teddy and you must be new in town. I am the proprietor and head hottie of Manes on Main.” He curved his left hand around the side of his mouth, leaned in and whispered, “That’s on Main Street right here in town, so it’s easy to find.”
Autumn took his extended hand and before she could shake it, he gasped and yanked her hand out of the window, inspecting it with a look of horror. “What the hell happened to your nails? Oh... Em... Gee... This is not right, not right at all. A pretty sprite like you shouldn’t have nails like this. I’m going to fix you right up.”
“I—”
“Yep. You just tell me how soon you can sit your little fanny in my chair and I’ll pencil you in. Again, first one’s on the house.”
“I—”
“What’s your name?”
She blinked again. Not sure how she should answer that. “Uh... Red.”
Teddy frowned. “Red? Red is the color of your beautiful, but badly damaged, locks.” He again curved a hand around the side of his mouth and loudly whispered, “But we’ll have those tresses shiny and those broken ends trimmed up in no time.” He released the hand he’d been inspecting, slapped his hands on his narrow hips and tilted his head. “But Red is not a name for a pretty girl like you.” He stepped closer to the door, glanced down, and frowned. “Wait... Ooooh, a baby. You’re having a baby. No wonder your hair is dull and damaged. Those little monsters will suck the life right out of you, won’t they? Like leeches. It took a while for my bestie’s hair to come back to its glorious splendor after she popped those kids out. But I’ll get you fixed right up.”
“I can’t—”
“No.” He lifted a palm. “The word can is a part of can’t. You can.”
“I can’t go to your salon,” she said quickly before he interrupted her again. “But I thank you for the generous offer.”
His head tilted sharply. “Why ever not?”
“Because... I... My doctor doesn’t want me to be out and about too much.”
His eye narrowed. “Your vagina doctor?”
Autumn’s eyebrows shot up her forehead. “Uh... Yes... My OB/GYN. I need to stay home and rest,” she lied, though it was somewhat true. Dr. Bryson didn’t want her doing too much since the pregnancy was still high-risk because of the baby’s underdevelopment.
“Your vagina doctor wouldn’t happen to be Dr. Carly Bryson would it?”
“Y-yes.”
Teddy squealed and bounced on his toes. “Well, I’ll ask her if it’s okay if I can come to you instead. I’m sure she’ll be fine with it. She’s practically my sister-in-law.”
“She is?”
Teddy waved a hand round. “Yes. Close enough. It’s complicated. Just give me your address and a time and I’ll be there.”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
“Honey, doing a woman’s hair and nails is always a good idea.”
Not in her case. She doubted Sig wanted a stranger coming to his apartment. Or knowing the address where she was staying.
Though, this man knew Stella and also was related somehow to Carly Bryson. And it would be nice to feel a little more human by getting her hair trimmed and her nails done. Oh, even her toenails which she could no longer reach very well.
“I don’t have any money.”
Teddy leaned into the window and gave her a great big smile. “You don’t need a dime. I can bring my stuff with me and we can get you fixed up lickety-split!”
“I... I would love that.”
His smile got brighter.
She saw movement heading toward the Jeep. “But I would need to ask him.”
“Him?” Teddy appeared confused and then looked in the same direction as Autumn was. “Oooooh. Him. Yes. Another handsome gorilla.”
The man actually licked his lips as they both watched Sig, his expression holding all kinds of unhappy, walking quickly to the SUV.
“What the fuck?” was the first thing out of his mouth.
“Hi there, handsome!” Teddy greeted, fluttering his eyelashes at him. “Ooo. I could do your hair, too.” He rushed over to Sig and when he reached up to touch his hair, Sig snagged his wrist and held it tight. “Ow. You’re a strong one.”
“Don’t fuckin’ touch me.”
Teddy nodded and, as soon as Sig released him, he stepped back. “Not secure in your manhood?”
“Plenty secure. Just don’t need you touchin’ me.” His dark eyes slid to Autumn and he moved to open the rear passenger-side door of the Jeep and put the bags of takeout inside. He slammed the door shut and spun on Teddy. “What’s goin’ on here?”
“I just offered to do her hair and nails, that’s all.”
“No.”
Teddy ignored his answer and spoke quicker. “She said Carly doesn’t want her out and about so I offered to come to her place.”
“Her place is my place and that’s a no.”
Teddy frowned. “Don’t be a jealous gorilla. I’m gay, if you haven’t noticed. I just want to do her hair, not her.”
“Hard to miss it.”
Teddy smiled and wiggled his ass. “Oh, so you noticed.” He winked at Sig who scowled.
“Why’s your hat off?” Sig asked her.
“It fell onto the floor and I can’t reach it.” She had a hard time bending over now, especially in a tight spot like in the car.
“How’d it fall off?”
Her and Teddy’s eyes met. His were much wider than hers. “I... knocked it off accidentally.”
“So, aaaaaanywaaaay,” Teddy started, “I’m coming out to your place and fixing her all up. She looks like she’s been living in the woods like a wild child.”
Sig stared at Teddy for a moment, then at Autumn. “That what you want?”
She gave him a little smile.
He frowned and faced Teddy. “You do Stella’s
?”
Teddy’s face lit up. “Yes! She comes in regularly.”
Sig pursed his lips. “How much is it gonna set me back?”
The hairdresser bounced on his toes. “Nothing. It’s on the house!”
“When?”
“Whenever you want! Tomorrow?”
Sig turned to Autumn. “You sure?”
She smiled wider and nodded.
“Whatever you want, baby,” Sig grumbled, not looking happy about it at all.
Teddy squealed and clapped his hands together. “Oh, it’s a date! And I don’t need the address, I know where all you leather-clad, motorcycle-riding gorillas live out on that farm.” He dug out his wallet and pulled out a business card, handing it to Autumn. “I’ll be out tomorrow around five after my other appointments.” He clapped his hands in excitement again. “Ooo, I can’t wait to get my hands on that mane. He won’t be able to keep his hands off of you afterward. But by that big tummy of yours, seems like he already knows how to get the job done.” Teddy gave her an exaggerated wink and an eyebrow wiggle.
A rattling behind the Jeep caught their attention, and Sig’s eyes narrowed, then he muttered a, “Fuck.”
Teddy saw what he was looking at and waved a hand around again. “Oh, those whack-a-doodles drive the shittiest cars and only come off that mountain once in a while. My fiancé hates dealing with them!” He shuddered.
Autumn’s heart began a slow thump in her chest and she turned her head just in time to see a rusty Buick sedan creeping by behind them. She couldn’t turn far enough but what she could see... who she could see behind the wheel looked like Vernon and in the passenger seat was Tomlin. And they were looking right at her.
“Sig,” escaped her on a hitched breath.
“Fuckin’ son of a bitch.”
“Oh, don’t worry,” Teddy said, unaware of the problem. “They don’t stick around town very long.”
“We gotta go,” Sig said quickly, rounding the Jeep and climbing into the vehicle without him even taking the time to turn his cut inside out. Something he always did when she’d been in the SUV with him going to the doctor.
He had explained anytime an MC member got into a cage, which is what he called a car, he turned it inside out because he was part of an MC and “an MC wasn’t a car club.” It was a sign of respect for the club’s colors.
Sig took that seriously, so for him to jump in without removing his cut or flipping it inside out scared her even more.
“Tomorrow!” Teddy called, giving them a finger wave even though he now wore a worried look on his face.
Sig shoved the Jeep into reverse with his bandaged hand and jabbed the gas, making her head jerk back. He jammed it into first gear and hit the accelerator so hard the engine screamed as he raced out of the diner’s lot and headed the opposite direction from where the Shirleys went.
“Fuck, fuck, fuck!” he shouted, his eyes bouncing back and forth between the windshield and the rearview mirror.
Autumn couldn’t help mask the shake in her voice when she asked, “Do you think they saw me?”
“Yeah, they fuckin’ saw you! Never shoulda taken that fuckin’ hat off!” He was pissed.
“S-sorry.”
His jaw got tight and his lips became an angry slash. “Told you to keep that fuckin’ thing on.”
“It fell.”
“Yeah, baby, you said that.”
“I couldn’t reach it.”
“Yeah, you said that, too. Only hope they have no fuckin’ clue who I am and where we live. But if they saw my cut, they might.”
He raced down some side streets in town, taking corners faster than he should. Then he turned onto County Line road. She had no idea what road the farm was on. She never asked and also never paid attention.
“Are they following us?” She couldn’t get a good look in the passenger side mirror.
His eyes flipped up to the rearview mirror one more time. “No. Don’t see those fuckin’ assholes.” A muscle in his jaw jumped. “Shoulda left you back at the farm.”
“Now they know I’m still in the area.”
“Yeah, baby, they know you’re still in the area,” he echoed flatly.
“I should leave...”
“Gonna get you back to where you’re safe. That’s all. We’ll be good. It’ll be good.”
“Sig...”
He shoved the shifter into another gear, then reached over and snagged her hand, giving it a squeeze. “We got it covered, Red. We’re gonna handle it. And once that kid’s born, shit will be okay.”
“But I have two more months to go!”
“We fuckin’ got this. It’ll be fine. Gonna make a plan.”
“Who?”
“The club.”
“To do what?”
“To handle shit.”
“To handle the Shirleys?” Her voice went almost as high as Teddy’s.
“Yeah, Red, just to make sure they don’t ever touch you again.”
“They only want the baby.”
“Brysons will cover that.”
“I mean before it’s born.”
“And we’ll cover that.” He pulled her hand over to his lap and pressed it against his thigh. “Baby, we got it. You’ll be good.”
She hoped he was right.
Because right now, she wasn’t feeling so certain about it.
Chapter Seventeen
She asked. And whatever Red asked for, for some reason, Sig had a hard time saying no.
Maybe it was those big hazel eyes, maybe it was that girl-next-door face, maybe it was her situation, maybe it was the fiery attitude which became stronger every day, or maybe it was just everything about her.
So, when she wanted him to sleep in his own bed, when she wanted him sleeping next to her, he didn’t say no.
He wanted to be there, anyway.
Most nights, when she wasn’t too uncomfortable, she asked him to hold her.
He did.
And doing that made him question his sanity too many fucking times.
When the fuck had he ever wanted to sleep with a woman without fucking her? He asked himself that countless times. And the answer was always the same...
Never.
And the answer was still never since he wanted nothing more than to fuck Red, too.
Even though sleeping with her helped get him decent zzz’s some nights, other nights, it put him on edge.
And that edge had been made sharper ever since the Shirleys took that slow drive past Stella’s Jeep with Red’s hair exposed like a red fucking beacon a month ago.
They needed to go up that mountain and deal with those motherfuckers and do it soon.
Judge and Trip both argued it was stupid to go up there since the clan was as heavily armed as any militia. They also had those woods booby-trapped and it was better to wait for Vernon to come off that mountain, snag his ass and get him to mysteriously disappear.
How, Sig didn’t care, as long as he did. And hopefully that “disappearance” wasn’t quick and easy.
But in reality, he knew that wouldn’t happen until Deke finished closing on the pet crematorium so they had a clean way of disposing of any evidence. It was the plan they had put in place and the one Trip wanted them to stick to.
Sig was not happy with it but, as antsy as he was, he also knew better than to go back up that mountain alone. He wanted his revenge to be successful and to make sure it was, he needed his brothers at his back.
He’d feel better going in with an army than going into battle as a lone soldier.
He fucking hated it, but he waited.
Judge and Deacon were keeping an eye out and an ear close to the ground. His other brothers were, too, when they were out and about around town. Stella and Dodge listened for any gossip about the clan at Crazy Pete’s.
Sig also took slow drives down Copperhead Road whenever he was out for a repo. And whenever he took his sled out and opened it up on the back roads just to try to blow off some steam.
/> But it was like they had hunkered down and were keeping low, just like Sig had Red doing.
Now, the only time she left the property was to go to her weekly doctor appointments.
Even that flaming hairdresser had stopped by twice to do Red’s hair, give her a facial and do her fingernails and toes.
Red had asked if she could borrow some money with the promise to pay it back to give the gay guy. But Teddy refused the cash since Carly confided in him about her adopting Red’s baby.
Sig wasn’t happy about that info getting shared and said something to the doc at their next appointment. She insisted she’d sworn Teddy to secrecy and told him nothing was set in concrete until the baby was born and Red decided to put Carly and Matt Bryson on the birth certificate.
Even so, Sig had a hard time ignoring the man’s over-the-top excitement about becoming the baby’s “uncle,” so, of course, Teddy didn’t charge Sig a dime for all the shit he did for Red.
How that man was going to be the kid’s “uncle,” Sig didn’t know or care. But what he did care about was the man’s fiancé was another of those Bryson pigs. He swore the Brysons were a clan of their own.
However, Sig did make it known during that first visit Teddy was not to run his mouth about Red at all. And warned him, if he got loose lips, he’d regret it. Teddy had pinned his mouth closed, twisted his fingers in front of his lips like he was locking them and then tossed the invisible key over his shoulder.
Whatever.
As long as Red was happy and safe, that was all Sig fucking cared about.
In another effort to keep Red safe, whenever she and Stella went for a walk, they did not go far and at least two brothers, who were packing, were with them.
Also, not long after the Dino’s Diner incident, a new prospect had shown up named Easy. Since he was currently the lowest piece of dog shit in the club, Trip had him sit at the end of the lane by the road, stopping anyone from entering unless he got the okay from one of the more senior patched members.
But this waiting to deal with the Shirleys was bullshit.
Sig wanted to do shit now. Not later.
Red still had a month to go before she popped.
Blood & Bones: Sig (Blood Fury MC Book 2) Page 23