by Jamie Begley
He gripped her upper arms to pull her into his body. If Taylor wanted to take it as a challenge to keep him in bed, then he wasn’t about to be stupid enough to contradict her. As he gave her a quick kiss that was hard for him to end, he wanted to be sucked back into the whirlpool of desire that Taylor was an expert at tempting him with and carry her to the bed to start over where they left off. If it had been any other brother, he would skip the meeting, but he needed Shade’s help if he was ever going to convince Viper to expand the business.
“Text me before you’re ready to leave for the club; we can meet up somewhere for dinner.” At that, Gavin regretfully released her from his arms.
“I’m in the mood for Italian.”
“Whatever you want,” he agreed.
Taylor brushed her naked breasts against his chest as she opened the bedroom door for him. “You sure you don’t want to change your mind?” she teased.
“Babe, I regret every fucking time I leave you.”
She leaned back against the open door as she brought her hands to his belt. “The best way for you to stop feeling that way is easy. Just don’t leave.”
“Nothing about you is ever easy; that’s why I fell in love with you.”
“Are you trying to sweet-talk me so you can get back in my bed tonight?”
Grinning, he gave her another hard kiss. “Is it working?”
“You’ll have to wait until tonight to find out.”
“I guess we will.” He pulled away from her. “Bye, babe.”
He regretfully forced himself through the door. He had planned to spend the whole day with her so that he could break it to her that he was going out of town next week. Now he would have to wait until tomorrow to tell her, since she was already angry with him. If he told her tonight, she would not only give his ring back, Taylor would shove it down his throat.
Letting himself out her front door, he made sure to lock the door behind him. Taylor lived in an upscale neighborhood where there was little to no crime, but there was no need to tempt fate. While he was out of town, he would ask one of the brothers to keep an eye on her. He had hoped to convince her to get married in the next few days and use the opportunity of his time off from the daily grind at the factory as their honeymoon.
He had to scout out several locations and thought the road trip would be a perfect honeymoon. Now he could see his half-baked idea would have met failure from the get-go.
Maybe he should ask Rider if he was up for a road trip? As soon as that idea came to his mind, he squashed it. He didn’t want to spend the next few weeks reassuring Taylor that Rider wasn’t secretly trying to break them up. He would miss having Rider as his sidearm, but Gavin would rather come back to a happy fiancé versus one who questioned every move he made while gone. Or one who would break up with him before he could get the car packed for the trip.
Starting his bike, he knew both Rider and his bike would be left behind. Not having Rider was going to suck, but not having his bike was going to be just as bad.
The trip was starting to be more than he bargained for when he had come up with the idea. Fortunately, he wouldn’t be gone long, and he and Taylor wouldn’t be apart again afterward. They would spend the rest of their lives together.
Chapter Seven
Gavin cursed as he parked his bike, then glanced down at his watch. He had spent too long placating Taylor.
Getting off his bike, he nodded to several brothers hanging outside the clubhouse. The building had once been a broken-down tavern that he and Rider had managed to buy off the owner, who’d been more than ready to head to a warmer climate. He practically had to drag Rider inside when they pulled up, and after they had gone through the guest rooms and the bathrooms, he literally had to pull him back off his motorcycle before he could talk him into the bar area. Built in the 1870s here in Ohio, it had been passed down from son to son, and the only things changed were the tap heads on the kegs.
He bought the tavern while Rider drank the beer the owner handed him. Gavin laughed to himself at the memory. Rider hadn’t stopped crying until the renovations were finished. He still thought half the tears were to get out of most of the work and the other half were for the money he had coughed up to make The Last Riders clubhouse a reality.
Striding toward the door, Moon held it open as he approached. Grinning, Gavin gave him a pat on the shoulder before going inside.
Glancing around the large room, he then made his way past the long bar to the table at the end. Gavin’s smile didn’t slip at Shade’s expression. He hated to be kept waiting, and Gavin knew the stone-cold brother wouldn’t count him trying to keep Taylor happy as a reason to keep him cooling his heels until he could get there.
Gavin didn’t think he would live long enough to see that mean fucker fall in love. If Shade had an ounce of emotion in him, he had yet to see it. They had become friends in the service, if it could be called friendship. Friendship was a two-way street. While he called Shade a friend, Gavin didn’t think Shade felt the same way soul deep. He didn’t think Shade felt anything for anyone. Hell, the brother could fuck like there was no tomorrow and still leave more than one woman begging for more.
His grin widened when he saw who was sitting with Shade, obscured by the corner of the bar. As the man rose to his feet with a returning smile, Gavin held his hand out when he got close enough.
“Will! Shade didn’t tell me you were in town!”
“Got in last night.” Shade’s father shook his hand with twinkling eyes. “I would have called and told you to get your ass here, but Shade told me that you were busy proposing to that pretty gal you introduced me to the last time I was in town.”
“I would have waited if I had known I could have missed out seeing you,” Gavin teased, dropping Will’s hand to give Shade’s father a bear hug. “Damn, it’s good to see you, old man.”
Will hugged him back before loosening his hold to stare at him critically. “She must have said yes. You look too happy for a man who’s been told no.”
“Unless he’s relieved she said no,” Shade broke in before taking a drink of his beer.
“Ignore him, Gavin,” Will said, sitting back down. “My son doesn’t have a romantic bone in his body.”
Gavin took a seat across the table from the two men. “The whole club is aware of that fact, sir,” he joked, turning to give the woman behind the bar a carefree wink. “Isn’t that right, Jewell?”
“Bliss and I were just talking about that a couple of minutes ago, when he was going to call you back to see what was taking you so long.”
Gavin turned back to Shade. “Sorry about that, but I’m here now. Have you told your dad the good news?”
Shade arched a sardonic brow at him. “That you want us to put the last of the club money into buying a new property, or that you’re wanting me to give a loan to build a new factory when you do? Yes, I told him.”
Will gave his son a censoring look. “I think it’s a great idea.” He turned his attention to him. “Where are you thinking about looking for property?”
Gavin didn’t let Shade put a damper on his excitement. “Jewell, you mind handing me the folder I left behind the counter and a cup of coffee?”
As he waited for Jewell to get the coffee, he asked about Will’s wife, Shade’s stepmother.
“Rachel is keeping busy. She should be coming … Ahh … Here she is now. I promised her a shopping trip. You mind if she joins us until we’re finished?”
“Not at all,” Gavin said, standing up to hug the smiling woman as she reached the table.
“Gavin, you get better looking every time I come to town.”
“Be careful. You’ll make Will jealous. I wouldn’t haven’t asked Taylor to marry me if I thought I had a chance of talking you into divorcing him.”
Rachel patted him on the cheek. “You couldn’t handle me. I’m in the prime of my life. You’re just getting started.”
Gavin laughed, putting his hand over his heart. “You always shoot me down. One d
ay I’m going to get you to reconsider and give Will something to worry about.”
As they sat down, Jewell set the coffee cup and folder in front of him before reaching down to place an arm over Rachel’s shoulder to give her a side-hug.
“Can I get you anything?”
“Since my husband is drinking a beer, I’ll take a cup of coffee. I don’t want him to get pulled over and have to explain why a sheriff has alcohol on his breath.”
Gavin winked at her. “Bring her a beer, Jewell. I’ll be happy to drive you around this morning. It’ll give me a chance to spend the day with you before you leave.”
Rachel scooted her chair forward. “Hear that, Shade? Someone who actually wants to spend time with us.” She gave an appreciative smile as Jewell slid a mug of beer in front of her.
“I spent the last two days taking you shopping. If Gavin wants to volunteer, he can go for it. Dad and I can stay here and catch up.”
“You mean, stay here and play poker?” She rolled her eyes at the deck of cards sitting in the middle of the table. “By the time I get back, no one in the club will have a dime to their name.”
Shade leaned forward, taking the cards to shuffle them. “I’ll need every dime I can get if Gavin manages to convince me to give him the loan he’s trying to talk me into.”
It was Gavin’s turn to roll his eyes at Shade. “You could loan the club enough to build three factories and still have enough for a happy meal.”
Shade cut the cards. “Why do we need two factories? We could just sell the one we’re using now and buy one larger.”
“We could do that, but I want to expand the business. One would be primarily used for production, and the other would be for distribution.”
“Makes sense to me, son.” Will leaned back in his chair to place his arm across the back of Rachel’s chair.
“It makes sense to you because it’s not your money.” Shade lined six cards down on the table facedown.
“We can find a small town that needs economic growth and give those who live there new opportunities to make a decent living. Give them jobs to make a future for themselves and actually build for a retirement so they won’t have to worry about not having enough money to live on.”
“Sounds like Treepoint,” Rachel said unhappily. “They desperately need jobs there.”
“Treepoint?” Gavin opened the folder he had been using to put together possible locations. “Where you and Will live? In Kentucky?”
“Yes. It’s a small town. It only has a few businesses still open. Most of the younger people have left town. Will and I have grown to love living there.”
Gavin took a sip of his lukewarm coffee, remembering exactly why Shade’s father and stepmother had gone to Treepoint in the first place. “How is the little girl you went to check on doing?”
Curiously, Gavin noticed Will’s startled expression at the question.
“Beth or Lily?” Rachel asked warmly. “They’ve been doing fine since Will’s been sheriff. Thank God that Cash asked Will to check on them after he retired—”
“Rachel …,” Will warned.
Rachel angrily snapped her mouth closed then shrugged. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said anything. It’s just that man sickened me.”
“Cash told me that he was surprised you didn’t decide to move on from Treepoint after their parents died.”
Rachel’s eyes grew misty. “I’ve gotten attached to the town and the townspeople, but I’ve always dreamed of having that RV that Will keeps promising me and traveling.” Giving her husband a loving glance, she placed her hand over his on the table. “He’s just not ready to give up being sheriff yet. It’ll probably break a few hearts if he did.”
Gavin found it strange the way Will started focusing on the cards Shade was playing with, avoiding his wife’s gaze. Attributing it to Will’s reluctance to leave Treepoint, Gavin had the feeling that Will wasn’t as anxious to hit the open road as Rachel was.
“Several women in town are always stopping by at the office to drop off pies or cakes. I swear, since he became sheriff, he’s gained fifteen pounds. The children in town know he’s putty in their hands. One in particular has to sit with him every Sunday in church, and he takes her out for lunch afterward.”
“Where are the places you’re thinking about?” Will nodded at the folder. “And I thought you wanted to spend your last day here shopping, not holed up here at the club discussing Treepoint.”
Gavin wondered at the abrupt change in subject. Something in his attitude had him thinking that Will didn’t want to discuss the girl who Rachel mentioned. He noticed Shade caught onto it as well. His fingers having paused over the cards heightened the instincts that had kept him alive in the military.
Taking out two papers, Gavin laid them on the table. Touching one with his fingertip, he explained his interest. “This one is in a small town in Florida. The space isn’t overly large, yet it has enough square footage that can be separated into different areas. It has a loading dock and is easily accessible to the interstate, an airport, and shipping facilities nearby. The only real problem I see with it is that there is no nearby property we could use as a clubhouse.”
Moving his hand, Gavin laid the other one on top. “This space in Texas has already been equipped as a factory, also has the loading docks we need. The interstate, airport, and shipping facilities are just as accessible. There is a property nearby where we could build a clubhouse. The only problem with this one is the available footage in the property is smaller than I wanted, and it’s connected to another business where we would have to share the loading dock.”
Gavin moved his hand when Will reached out to take the papers. Holding both papers in his hand, he studied them with Rachel.
“I plan to go to Texas this week to look over the property there and spend a few days in the town before going to Florida to do the same.”
He waited for Shade’s reaction, then grew disappointed when he didn’t make a move to pick the papers up when Will laid them back down on the table.
“Seems like a waste of time to scout out new properties that have drawbacks.” Shade turned one of cards faceup. “I’d rank those properties a five.” Tossing the card onto the papers, Shade lifted his steely gaze to his as he turned another card over. “You want a loan, you better be searching for one that will get that from me.”
Glancing down at the ten card, he knew he had his work cut out for him.
“The people there have a high unemployment rate and—”
“Are you sure that Rider being from Texas and you being from Florida didn’t influence your search?”
The word that Gavin wanted to use wouldn’t be possible in front of Rachel so, biting it back, he forced himself to admit the truth. “I have to admit I would like to be close to the water again, and Rider misses Texas.”
“You’d have better luck getting money from me to buy a plane ticket to go home for a visit. I’m not personally investing thousands of dollars because you two are homesick.”
Picking the papers up to put them back in the folder, Gavin knew it would be useless to try to change Shade’s mind. He would have to start his search again. Looking on the bright side, he wouldn’t have to leave Taylor so soon after becoming engaged.
“I have a suggestion.” Rachel eagerly sat forward. “You already planned on going to Florida and Texas; why not come to Treepoint and look it over? There are several empty places that I bet you could get cheap and build however you want.”
“I’ve been there. The brothers would line up to leave the club if any of them had to work there,” Shade said as he skillfully shuffled the deck back together.
“Don’t listen to him, Gavin. You’ll fall in love with the town once you’re there.”
Rachel’s appeal had him hating to be the bad guy and tell her the numerous reasons it wouldn’t work. Only one thing kept him from turning her down. There might a dozen reasons why it wasn’t feasible in the long run, but he could take advanta
ge of an opportunity to visit a friend.
“How long is the drive?”
Gavin felt Shade’s rapier-blue eyes giving a silent warning. He knew Shade was cautioning him about Rachel. The brother wasn’t taking any chances that he would unintentionally mention he knew someone else who lived in Treepoint.
“When I drive, about five hours. When Will does, about three and a half,” she teased her husband. “You could probably build two factories for the same price as paying for one where you’ve been looking. The money you’d save would allow you to hire more workers. Not only that, you may be able to find a larger clubhouse.”
The last one piqued his interest. They needed a larger clubhouse. The brothers were complaining about not having enough space. Many of them had gone in together to try to rent apartments they could share. So far, they hadn’t been successful. Gavin couldn’t blame them; some of the brothers could get rowdy, and if he owned an apartment, he didn’t know if he would rent to some of the men based on the way they looked. Knox was having the biggest problem. The large, barrel-chested brother was intimidating enough without deliberately shaving his head and flashing a tongue ring every time he talked.
All the brothers had served in the military at one time or another. Their roughened appearances had been earned the hard way, by never knowing if they would live to see another day. A few of them were still being requested for specialized missions.
Shade was able to write his own ticket, performing assignments he wanted and telling them to fuck off when he didn’t. Lucky had left the service and stepped into a law enforcement role, while Train, Rider, and he were recruited to join a team that were tasked to perform high-risk missions. Train could fly anything with a motor, Rider was a strategic mastermind who could figure out an opponent’s objective in a split second, and in the next, devise a way to stop them. He had been trained to be Rider’s support, but Gavin was the first to admit that he didn’t have Rider’s gift on land. Water was his domain.
He felt more at home in the water, able to look at a body of water and understand the mysterious depths like most people could read a map. He could swim through caverns that many considered unpassable and had the ability to swim long distances, then adapt to running extended distances, then repeating the distances over and over. He might not have Rider’s razor-sharp mind, but he couldn’t be beat on stamina. The only other person who had same ability was Shade. Gavin had bragged several times that Shade might be able to run him to exhaustion on land, but in the water, he would eventually haul Shade’s ass back to shore.