“How the hell do you know they are Feds?” Wild Bill asked.
“I might be old but my damn eyes work.” I shook my head. Roach was the next oldest member in the Haven behind Shock and Freak.
“Alright, old man, we were just finishing up. Let them in the basement and I will meet them down there.”
“You got it, Prez.” Roach turned and walked out and I would have sworn I heard him mumbling about Wild Bill’s dad was probably rolling over in his grave. Wild Bill turned back to us.
“Moose, we still meeting your dad this afternoon?”
“No need now. He is going to work on Paul, to try to get him to cooperate with the Feds and the SEC. Paul’s going to lose his license, no getting around it. They got an attorney that is supposed to come by tomorrow and they are hoping he will be able to keep him out of jail. We’ll see.”
“Okay, why don’t you go home, get some rest. I’ll handle the turnover of the two downstairs. Keg, Hawk, you both can help the Feds get them loaded. The rest of you get out of here too. I’m going home when I am done. Call me and keep me posted of our last issue. My granddaughter’s birthday party is next weekend, I want that handled before Keg and I head to Black Hawk.” We all got up and followed Wild Bill out of the office. When we reached the main room, Crank, Tram, and I headed out the front door to get on our bikes and head to our homes while the others headed in the opposite direction.
It felt good when the fresh air and sun hit my face. And it felt even better when I walked in my house. I showered to wash away the stench of the hours I’d spent dealing with Stone and Jacks but they weren’t Haven’s problem any longer.
I dropped in my bed and closed my eyes and brought up Kathryn’s face. First thing on my list was done, now my woman needed claim. I smiled when I thought of how she was going to act but it didn’t matter because in the end, she’d be exactly where she was meant to be—with me.
Chapter Nine
Katie
The smoke from Charlie’s grill billowed in the air as I stepped out my back door. I debated locking it but the neighborhood was a decent one and I would only be next door. When I turned the corner of our garages’ wall, Charlie stood in front of the grill flipping steaks as she danced in placed to the music that was probably coming out of the iPod ear pieces she wore.
“Charlie!” I yelled her name so as not to scare the shit out of her by walking up behind her. She looked over her shoulder and smiled, then reached up and pulled the buds out of her ears.
“Hey, girl. I was going to get these done and come over and knock. I thought maybe you were still sleeping from your shift last night.” She grabbed the pan beside the grill and pulled the steaks off.
“No, I only slept for a few hours. I want to be able to go to bed tonight. When I have days off after coming off the night shift, it’s the only way to get back to normal hours. If not, I’d want to stay up all night and sleep all day.”
“I know that feeling. When I’m staking out a place for a jumper, I could be there hours if not the whole day and night,” Charlie said as she walked in her place as I followed with the salad I had made to go with dinner.
“I hope this doesn’t offend you, but looking at you, it is hard to believe you can take a man down.” I chuckled and so did she.
“That, hon, is why I can. Most of them don’t expect it because when they look at me, they focus on me being a woman first, before they figure out that I have skill, it’s too late.” We placed everything on her kitchen table and we sat down to eat. “Oh, I forgot to get us drinks.” Charlie stood back up and went to her fridge, when she held up the beers, I nodded. I didn’t have to worry about getting up in the morning and I wasn’t even on call either so I was going to enjoy myself.
“Yesterday, you said you moved here for a job. I can’t imagine moving across country by myself even for that,” I said.
“I didn’t just do if for the job. My grandfather was last known to live here. I wanted to try and find him. I’ve never met him. For all I know he might not be alive.” She picked up her silverware and started to eat and I followed suit.
“How did you find out about the job. Can’t say I have ever seen an ad for a bounty hunter listed under the Help Wanted section of the paper.”
“I met two of the Matherson brothers when we crossed paths on a case, seemed we were searching for the same person. They ended up with the capture because when I got to where the guy was supposed to be, they were chasing him down the block as I pulled up. At the curb I waited for the guy to reach me and I threw the door open on my truck. The guy went down and they were on him before he stood back up. They cut me in on their take and offered me a job. Hadn’t really thought about moving but when they told me their business was located in Washington state, I took the opportunity since I knew it was the state my grandfather lived in. I here I am,” Charlie finished and we continued to eat in silence. When we were done, I helped her clean up the small amount of dishes there were and then we grabbed another beer each and took our two-person party out on the patio. It was nice to sit back and relax with someone else: no drama, no men, no work.
“So tell me, why you don’t have a man and are having to sit here with me?” Charlie tipped her beer and raised her brow at me.
“What makes you think I don’t have a man?”
“Oh, hon, really? Your looks, you’re a doctor, but mainly it is because I live next door and since I moved in, I haven’t seen one guy come or go from your place. If you had a steady, that so would not be the case,” she said and laughed when I just looked at her.
“Uh, and I could say the same about you too.”
“Touché. But in my defense, I’ve just moved here.”
“You work in a male dominant field, come on, it shouldn’t be too hard to scrape up a man.”
“True, but I wanted to be taken serious at this job so mixing pleasure with it, not possible. I will say if I ever did, girl, those brothers would be prime candidates for fraternizing with. Mmmm. Mmmm. When I met Josh and Jake on that job, damn, I thought that gene pool got it right, two men who looked like they did, well, there couldn’t be anymore. Didn’t even think of it when they said they had two more brothers that were in the business with them. Flew out to meet everyone and talk about working with them and I gotta admit, those men ooze with sexuality. No mistaken they are brothers either. They are tall, dark, and their smoky grey eyes pull a look off that should be illegal. I imagine they have no problem with women dropping panties around them. Hell, I wanted to drop mine.” She laughed and then looked at me and smiled.
“What?” I asked.
“Now you don’t work for them.”
“No, no, no. I think I will keep my panties on.” I laughed then. I knew all about men who looked like Charlie’s description of the Matherson brothers. At least one and if I closed my eyes I could picture him, which I’d done the last couple days to the point that after I thought of him and wondered how much he’d changed since I’d seen him last. That was when Mr. Big was taken out of his case and used until I left breathless but still unsatisfied. Linc would have filled out, a man’s build instead of the young man he’d been when he left. I needed to push that thought away because I thought it might be considered rude to orgasm on Charlie’s patio, especially since I didn’t know her that well.
“Damn, what put that look on your face? Or should I ask, who? I was waiting for you to let out a moan.” She took a drink of her beer and watched me as I tried to get my system under control.
“Just my past,” I said and took my own drink.
“Hon, people don’t have that expression usually when they look back on their past. That had to be some past. Know what I’m saying?”
“Yeah, but the fact it is part of my past, hadn’t been my choice, it was his. So I have to respect that, right?”
“Fuck no. Does he live close? ‘Cause if he does, you should turn that frown you’re wearing now into a smile, better yet, you should be letting him do it for you.” I
couldn’t help but laugh. Charlie was too funny and I enjoyed her company a lot.
“I know he lives around here, just not where. Avoidance is a wonderful tool.”
“My ass would find out real quick like. Men who can put that look on a woman’s face don’t stay single too long. Those are the types of men that women will claw another’s eyes out for.”
“Charlie, this is great. Been forever since I’ve been this relaxed and I almost can feel the old me. The one that reached for what she wanted, didn’t care what people thought of me. So, we are going to have to do this again.”
“Yeah we are. And if you stick with me, the old you is bound to come back. How about another beer?” Charlie asked.
“Sounds good.” She got up, went inside, and when she came back it was with two beers each. “Saving another trip in?”
“Yeah, and I have plenty more where that came so drink up. Let’s get drunk, it makes the stories we tell a lot more interesting.”
We sat and talked about our jobs. Charlie told me about some of her most interesting experiences since she had become bounty hunter. I’d never laughed so hard. But when she talked about the first time she rode on the back of bike, I damn near fell out of the chair.
“Hold up. Did you just call me a dumbass?”
“No, I was too busy laughing. What the hell are you talking about?” I asked.
“Damn, I’m drunk. I closed my eyes for a minute and I heard a soft thud, which I thought you might have actually fell out of the chair, and figured I better look, but then I could have sworn you called me a dumbass. I haven’t drunk this much in a while. I’m going to feel like shit in the morning.”
“Well, probably. You drank two for every one I drank.” I chuckled and she flipped me off. I was feeling tipsy but nowhere as bad off as Charlie. “Let’s go in and have some of that cake I made and brought over. It might soak up some of the alcohol in your system.”
“You did? Hell, when did you go over to your place and get it?”
“After we drank the first six pack. Which for you was about a twelve pack ago.” I stood and helped her up out of her chair and we stumbled to her door.
“Yeah, cake would be good. It wouldn’t by chance be a sponge cake, would it?” I laughed as I closed the door behind us. My plan was to eat cake, help Charlie to her bed, and then head home to my own. No doubt I would sleep like the dead.
Chapter Ten
Moose
I walked up to the truck parked down the street from Kathryn’s place. When I reached the opened window Taylor stuck his head out.
“Brother, where is your bike?”
“Just so happens, our VP lives two blocks over. I parked at his house and walked over. See anything since you got here?” I asked.
Latch had called me right after I got back to my place and said an SUV drove by Kathryn’s place twice and then never came around again. Latch figured the driver made him considering he was walking by the place himself when they went by the first time.
He had parked around the corner where he could still see the place. But he’d gotten out to walk around the block to stretch his legs. He hadn’t been worried Kathryn would spot him because even if she did, she wouldn’t know who he was. So when he noticed the SUV that had come down the street, he acted like he was just out for a walk, and didn’t look directly at the driver of the SUV. He watched it go by from the corner of his eyes and recognized the driver. After seeing the SUV there, he also recalled that it had driven by the hospital last night but he hadn’t gotten a good look then. My plan to force her dad’s hand looked better by the minute.
“Convenient,” Taylor said, his head turned up then down the street before coming back to me. “Latch filled me in when I got here. I was parked where he had his vehicle but these yahoos were throwing a party so I moved closer and blended in with all the cars parked here. They came back just a few minutes ago but only did one pass. No way they saw me then because a bunch of people were milling up and down going into the party. That might have been why they only went by once. You want me to stay here with tonight?”
Taylor was going to make a great man to have at Haven after he was voted in, which would be soon, because the only reason Wild Bill had held off was due to the shit with Stone. He wanted something good to celebrate a new beginning for Haven.
“Nah, no sense in both of us losing sleep,” I said and then another voice joined the mix.
“You could always try walking up to the door and ringing the bell. When she answers the door kiss the hell out of her.” I didn’t even turn to look at Hawk while he spoke. Taylor laughed and started his truck.
“Going to go home since you don’t need me. If you change your mind, give me a call.” Hawk and I stepped back from the truck and Taylor pulled out.
“Do you disagree with how I would handle her?” Hawk was a go after what you want guy.
“Yeah, one time while you are using that method a chick is going to walk up that is going to take Kaden Cross to his knees.” Hawk burst out laughing.
“It’s not like I don’t want a woman with a backbone but I don’t want a ball-buster either.” He did a fake shiver that had me laughing.
“Let’s walk around the block, it’s getting dark enough that if she was looking out her window she couldn’t make me out.” We walked down past her house.
“Moose, you know with them watching her you are going to have to get her someplace safe until the Feds at least have in their hands what is needed to take Kosnoff down. Until then, she is vulnerable. We know who is watching her for Kosnoff now but what happens after we get rid of them?” I knew Hawk was right. Hell, I had at first thought just to kidnap her and make her dad think Kosnoff had done it. Then I’d even wondered what she would do if I had picked her up and brought her to my house and chained her to my bed. The image made me smile. Now I didn’t know what to do with her. A new plan popped into my head no sooner than we turned the corner giving us the view to her backyard and the neighbor’s.
“Holy shit, brother,” Hawk whispered and slowed his steps. There on the neighbor’s patio sat my girl but she wasn’t who Hawk was rubbernecking for. Well he better not be. It had to be the petite redhead she was sitting with.
“Keep walking or they are going to look our way.” We kept an even pace up that side of the block until they left our view. They would come back into view from between the houses when we turned the next corner. By the time we walked around the block and were on our way back to the street her house was on I had another plan formed, well, one to where we could stop the walking.
Hawk agreed to go too, so after we looked up and down the street and saw nothing was going on, we cut into the yard and circled to the back from Kathryn’s side because we knew we would be out of the women’s sight and if we kept our voices low, with the two car garage as a divider, they shouldn’t be able to hear us either. Now if they headed around we would be busted unless they were talking as loud as they were right then. Hawk shook his head and I smiled.
There would be two pissed off women if they knew we were there listening to them talk, and unfiltered; it would seem since they thought they were alone.
Should we have felt bad about eavesdropping on the women, probably, but with all the things I heard, I couldn’t bring myself to care. I thought it was going to be a rough road winning Kathryn back so hearing her talk to the woman she called Charlie about her and I growing up together I knew then if I played it right, she would be mine sooner than what I thought.
I don’t know how much time passed but we thought we were busted for sure when Kathryn said she’d be right back, that she was going home to get the cake. Hawk and I had moved so fast I don’t know how they hadn’t heard our footsteps, because to me it sounded like horses stomping on the ground. We’d just made it around the corner of the house when I peeked around the outside wall and saw her step onto the patio that led to her back door.
She looked beautiful as the day of her graduation and it sucked that sh
e was that close to me and I couldn’t touch her. Not yet.
“We will never live down getting picked up for be peeping Toms. You know that don’t you?” Hawk whispered and I bit the inside of my cheek to not laugh out loud.
“Ah, they would like your pretty face in lockup.” He punched me in the kidney and I grabbed the side to keep from falling out into the backyard and into view.
The door opened and Kathryn walked out carrying the cake in one hand as she reached behind and pulled the door close.
“What the fuck, the woman doesn’t lock her door.” Hawk shhhhst me and thank God Kathryn hadn’t heard. When she was out of sight we moved back to the patio and I tried the knob. Sure enough the door opened. I looked over at Hawk and he shook his head.
I closed the door and left it unlocked but that was going to come in handy, I had a little surprise for Katie Stevens.
Hawk stayed with me and we listened for a while longer. And the longer we listened, the louder they got. I was just about to go over and tell Kathryn it was late and she need to get her ass home when the woman Charlie started talking about the first time she’d been on the back of a bike. Hawk inched around to the back of the garage so he could hear better and so did I. I was sure after this night was over, it was going to be remembered as the night Hawk and I revisited our teenage boy years with how we were acting.
“Girl, that ride is what turned me on to motorcycles. I’d got on behind Rocky, wrapped my arms around him, and when he revved that engine and the pipes rattled and the vibrations went through the bitch seat, my pussy tightened. I was instantly turned on. Hell, we rode around our town and I found myself scooting my pussy back and forth on that seat, searching for my release. I felt Rocky’s stomach vibrate with laughter because he knew exactly what I was doing. We hit a stoplight and he told me over his shoulder to hold on and he would find a place to pull over and he would help me get off. As we sat there waiting for the light to change, which by the way that had to be the longest fucking red light in history, another bike pulled up and Rocky must have known the man because he called him Chief Two Hairs. Anyway, he yells over the sound of both bikes and tells Rock they he needs to get his girl somewhere and take care of business because he’d been watching for the last little bit behind us and knew I must have a snail trail on the seat. By the time we got to a spot off the beaten path, I should have finished my orgasm on the bike seat, ‘cause being bent over the handle bar is said to be sexy as hell and it might be, but I’m sure the guy behind you needs to at least have a good size dick. The only thing I felt from Rocky was a little tickle that did nothing for me. I let him finish and we got back on that bike and I closed my eyes and let that vibration take me to the best orgasm I’ve ever had. Snail trail hell, I left a stream on that seat. Damn, if I could find a dick that could please me like that, I don’t think I’d ever stop riding it.”
Snatched: MC Romance (Haven MC Book 1) Page 7