Peg's Stand

by Manda Mellett

  Chapter 4

  Darcy

  My house is dark and quiet. Pete’s must be sleeping off his drunken state. As we draw up out front—I’ve told Peg not to park on the drive else he’ll block Pete’s car in—I see my place through Peg’s eyes by the light from the streetlamps. It’s untidy and looks completely unloved. For a moment I feel ashamed. I didn’t mind doing the work on my days off, but thought it wouldn’t hurt Pete to provide some labour in exchange for room and board. But even though I’d left it, he hadn’t taken the hint.

  Why had I been so stupid to let him live here at all?

  Why had I done such a crazy thing as letting another imposing strange man, and a biker at that, bring me home? He could have taken me anywhere, dumped my body and stolen my car. But he hadn’t. My instincts, which have proved so wrong with Pete, seemed more on the right track when it comes to the man at my side. Every vibe he gives off is that he’d use his strength to be a protector, not an aggressor.

  “Prospects shouldn’t be too far behind. It won’t take long to sort your man out, and then we’ll see what’s what.”

  I look at him curiously. “What’s what?”

  He shrugs and points his index finger in the direction of my home. “Man like that, gets his feet under the table, might have got comfortable and not want to leave. If he causes trouble, threats or the like, I’ll get the prospect to stay here to make sure he keeps away from you.”

  Again, my eyes widen. “You’d have a man watching the house? Why on earth would you do that?”

  When he places his hand under my chin and raises my head, it’s the first time he’s touched me, and I notice he does so gently for such a big man. “I don’t like seein’ women hurt. Don’t like men who hurt women. I’ll ask him politely, but if he comes back, he might need a lesson to teach him he’s got to stay away.”

  As he lets me go, I look out of the other side window. “Violence, you mean.”

  “Hey, darlin’. He started this, not you. Wouldn’t do him no harm to find out what it’s like being on the other end. You gonna argue with that?”

  I work with burly firefighters all day, know enough about them to understand they wouldn’t be averse to solving arguments with their fists in a similar situation. I’m a woman in a male-dominated career, and up to now I’ve fought my own battles, have tried to be tough. But Pete’s proved too much for me. I ran, rather than stay and fight. It wouldn’t hurt to leave it to Peg. No one else need know you didn’t sort your problems alone.

  As if he’s sensed I’ve given in, he opens the door. “Stay there, I’ll come around.”

  But I don’t wait, pushing my door open, and all but stumbling out when tiredness, worry, and a bump to my head catch up with me.

  “Fuckin’ told you, Woman.” Peg’s arms are around me, holding me up, as the lights go on in my house and the front door opens.

  It’s only a second before the silence is broken. “Bitch! Knew you had another man.”

  “Pete!” If I had it’s no business of his.

  Before I can say anything else, the man who’d caused me such pain tumbles out of the door and comes right up in our faces. “What? You thought I’d be gone, so you might as well bring my replacement back?”

  I start shaking, with fear and with something akin to embarrassment or shame. The man in front of us is not someone you’d invite into your home. Peg must be wondering what I’d been thinking. But Pete’s changed, so much. He didn’t use to be this way. He’s dropped his act.

  The big biker lowers his head and speaks quietly into my ear. “He’s not just drunk, Darcy, he’s strung out.” My eyes widen at his explanation, and it makes me pause. Could he be right? But Pete’s belligerence when faced with the biker who’s even bigger than him is certainly a possible indication there’s something other than alcohol in his system. Why hadn’t I seen it?

  But I don’t continue my self-recrimination, that can come later. Pete’s standing close, too close. He sways gently, his head turning as the sound of vehicles fill the night air, huffing when he sees the bike and truck pulling up behind my car. He rolls his shoulders as though getting ready for a fight.

  Peg must see the threat too. “Fergus, Hyde.” All he does is incline his head toward the man quivering with tension, and immediately the prospects leave their vehicles and come up beside Pete before he can act, each taking a secure hold of an arm. Suddenly restrained, Pete tries to fight them off, but he’s no match for them.

  “What do you want us to do with him, Peg?” Fergus sounds almost bored, as if they do things like this all the time. Perhaps they do.

  What are they going to do to him? I want this man out of my life, but I’ve heard about biker methods of retribution. While I might not like Pete any longer, I wouldn’t want to see any man beat up or dead. But it’s clear we can’t just put him in his truck to drive away, not in the state that he’s in. I’m at a loss what to say, but one thing I know. “Don’t hurt him, please, Peg.”

  Peg’s eyes meet mine. “He hurt you.”

  I gaze up intently. “I just want him gone, please.” Yes, he hurt me. But two wrongs never add up to a right.

  Peg’s arm tightens, then he lets out a sigh and pulls me further away. He speaks quietly, as though not wanting to inflame the situation further. “He can’t drive,” he starts, giving voice to my thoughts. “You know any friends of his where we could take him?”

  I shake my head. “I don’t know much about him at all. Not that way. He never had friends over or mentioned any family.”

  I’m tired and hurting. Even though I’ve only just met him, I’m pleased Peg still has his arm around me, else I’m not sure I could hold myself up. All I want to do is take a shower, wash my blood away, and perhaps get some ice for my face. Painkillers for certain. There’s no fight left in me tonight. Now glancing over at Pete, he seems subdued, a sudden mood swing away from his rage. Another sign Peg was right in his assumption about drugs.

  Though unsure what I’m dealing with here, I come up with a suggestion. “He’s quieted down.” Seeing Pete’s head is bowed down to his chest and that he’s slumped in his captors’ hold reinforces my decision. “I’ll let him sleep it, whatever it is, off in the guest room, and then send him on his way in the morning.”

  Peg’s arm tenses a fraction, as if he doesn’t like what I’ve said. Confirmed when he starts speaking. “Not sure I like that. He’s docile now, but later? Fuck, darlin’, not gonna leave you alone with someone in this state. What guarantees have you got that he’ll pack his bags and go quietly tomorrow?”

  I purse my lips, hating to admit it, but knowing he’s right. I’m fit, I must be to do the job that I do. Able to carry a man bigger than myself out of a burning building. But I couldn’t hold my own in a brawl or know how to defend myself against a man so much larger. If Pete got rough again, then I’d come off the worst. Especially in my already damaged state.

  “You okay if we stay over tonight?” Before I can protest, he puts his finger to my lips. “Here’s my idea. Let him sleep it off in your guestroom. Fergus and Hyde will stay with him and make sure he doesn’t get out of hand. We’ll sort it out for good in the mornin’. Tonight, babe, you need to get your injuries looked at, and then have a good, long sleep.”

  Okay, I started this night with one man I didn’t want in my house. Now he’s proposing I add three more? The only thing I know about them is that they’re bikers and come with a reputation, and one which means no upstanding citizen like me would want to be associated with them. As my suspicion and unease grow, wondering whether he’s any expectation of the type of reward I’m not willing to offer, I ask, “And where will you be staying?”

  “You got a couch?” When I nod, he mimics my action. “That’ll do for me.”

  I half pull away and turn, my face staring up into his, needing to know, to understand what’s happening. “Why are you doing this, Peg? You don’t know me at all.”

  “Bit of an unusual situation. You’re righ
t, I don’t, and you don’t know me. Or my kind.” He pauses, and his hand touches my head, and not for the first time I notice how soft his touch is. “I don’t like this, darlin’. Not gonna leave you alone with him. Look, there are two options. Either we take him away and deal with him ourselves, or we stay here where we can keep an eye on him.”

  “What will you do if you take him?”

  A shrug. “Depends on how he behaves.”

  Biting my lip, I try to think which is the best of the two evils. I never intended things to go as far as they had with Pete. A stupid offer to give him a place to stay for a few days, an even more ridiculous move when I allowed that to turn into weeks. This is my chance to be rid of him.

  I don’t want to face him alone in the morning, but I can’t let him go off with these bikers, not knowing if he’ll be facing daylight alive. The rumours I’ve heard about the Satan’s Devils might well be true.

  “I know you don’t know whether you can trust me, darlin’. And just sayin’ the words won’t help.”

  That Peg’s given me the option and not pressuring me or trying to persuade me one way or another, and that the only thing he’s insisting is I’m not left alone with the man who hurt me, is what helps me come to a decision. Peg stopped by the side of the road when no one else had even slowed to help. Peg had got angry when he’d seen the damage Pete had done to me. Even faced with the man who’d hurt me, he restrained himself from violence at my request.

  Maybe I’d have taken another route if I wasn’t dead on my feet after pulling what was almost a double shift and hurting, but this way I’ll soon be in my bed, and won’t have to lie awake worrying. “Thank you. If it’s not putting you out, stay.”

  Fergus and Hyde have overheard our conversation. Not so much Pete, who barely seems awake, and is muttering incoherently to himself and no one in particular.

  “Come on,” one of the prospects says. “Let’s get you inside.” I watch, but though they’re not giving him a chance to get loose, they’re not overly rough with him. Even in my current state I wonder if they’re holding themselves back in front of me.

  Pulling away from Peg, I show them the way.

  Peg glances inside the guestroom. “You assholes stick to him like glue. He’s not leavin’ this room unless it’s to piss, and then you’ll be right there beside him.” Having barked his instruction and received two nods, Peg looks down at me. “Now, let’s get you sorted. Got a first aid kit, babe?”

  I wait for a second, seeing Pete drop onto the bed and immediately start to snore. Christ knows why I ever opened my home up to him. Then answering Peg, “Yes. I’ve got one in the bathroom. I’ll bring it into the kitchen.” I could argue I can treat myself, but there’s something about him that makes me want his company. Just for a few minutes longer, before I take that promised shower and fall into my bed.

  When I’ve collected my first aid kit, I go into the kitchen to find Peg looking so large in the small space. He’s been busy in the couple of minutes I’ve been gone, there’s the makings of hot chocolate out and ready. He raises his eyebrow, and I feel the first real smile of the night, wondering how he knows exactly what I need.

  “Help yourself to a beer,” I offer in return. The slight quirk of his mouth shows me that’s what he’d intended. But it’s little enough reward after everything he’s done for me tonight.

  Moving quickly for such a big man, his hands come to my waist, making me jump, but it’s only to lift me to place me on the counter, then he steps away and busies himself once again. Then, when a cup of steaming chocolate is placed beside me, he cocks his head to one side, examining me, and at the same time reaching for the first aid container.

  Large, but gentle hands sweep the hair away from my face, and then fingers probe, pressing against my tender skin. I flinch as he touches my cheek, and tense when his light touch smooths along the side of my nose. Taking out some antiseptic, he starts to clean the blood away.

  I reach out my hand to stop him. “I can do that.”

  “I can see what I’m doing better. Looks like a ring or something caught you when he hit you.” Motherfucker, he adds under his breath. “Your nose doesn’t seem broken, though it’s bled like a bitch.” He seems to have already familiarised himself with my kitchen. Looking right at home, he takes a plastic bag and fills it with ice. “Hold that to your face, will help minimise the swellin’.” Then turning back to the first aid kit, he finds some Advil and opens the bottle. Tapping two out, he fills a glass with water, and I’m soon swallowing them down.

  His hands probe my skull, and when I wince he reaches behind me and, peering around, lifts my hair. “Not that you’d notice it, but, darlin’, he must have pulled a chunk of your hair out. That’s going to be sore, but it’s not too much. Won’t show at all.” His hands lightly fumble me, and I realise he’s removing the band that had held my ponytail, which had become tangled and mostly undone. When he places the elastic beside me, his fingers comb my hair. Again, so gently it causes no pain, just a sensation I let myself enjoy but don’t want to analyse.

  I take the opportunity to look at his face. His hair on top is short, and he has a long, unkempt beard divided into two and plaited. He has a ring through his eyebrow, and one in his right ear, and reminds me of a pirate. He catches me eyeing him, and smirks. As the corners of his mouth rise into a smile, crease lines draw my attention to his eyes. They’re dark and mysterious.

  My saviour. My protector. What am I thinking? This man isn’t mine. I know nothing about him. I’ve already been burned by jumping into something so fast, letting another man into my space. A fire smouldering in my house that even I, as a firefighter, hadn’t caught in time to put out.

  “I’m done in, Peg.” My hot chocolate has disappeared, though I don’t recall drinking it, but must have, as it’s flavour’s still on my taste buds.

  “Go to bed, darlin’. I’ll be here when you wake.”

  “There’s blankets…”

  “I can sort myself out. Slept in worst places, I can assure you.”

  Seeing how easily he found his way around my kitchen, I expect he probably can and has. Unsure how else to show my appreciation, I put my hand to his face. So quickly, as though I’ve imagined it, he leans into my touch, then pulls away.

  “Go. Get some rest.” When he smiles, it transforms his face, and I leave him, putting my strange reaction to him down to gratitude.

  Chapter 5

  Peg

  I hadn’t lied when I told Darcy I’d slept in worse places, but that hasn’t been for a very long time. Most of the night I spend tossing and turning, trying to get comfortable on a couch which is probably fine for sitting, but not made for my tall frame to lie stretched out. I either have to contort myself into a fetal position or have my legs hanging over the end, particularly awkward when you’re wearing a prosthesis. But I’m not going to remove it and be vulnerable in a place I don’t know, and a man I don’t trust two doors down the hallway. Even with the prospects watching him.

  It doesn’t help that my thoughts are racing, thinking about how the evening before had begun and how it had come to an end. Two different women. Darcy, fuck, a firefighter, brave beyond my reckoning. What makes a woman take up such a career? The things she sees must haunt her, like the man she couldn’t save on yesterday’s shift. How does she deal with all that shit?

  She might fight fires, but it’s clear going up against another human being is beyond her. But she’s got me for that. In the morning I’ll deal with the motherfucker who hurt her, give him a lesson so that he never comes back. Yeah, she’s got me in her corner…

  No, she hasn’t. Not beyond tomorrow. I can’t take the risk. What if she has the same reaction as Lorelei when she sees I’m disabled?

  Earlier this evening I’d decided I’d take the quick fuck that shallow woman was offering, but was already having doubts about going back, even before she came out and said what she had. I’d guessed my longing for a permanent relationship was at odds w
ith her more immediate desire for my cock. Although hurt by her reaction to my disability, it didn’t upset me that things wouldn’t go further. Apart from the physical, though I’d tried hard to find something, there was nothing between us, no spark.

  Not like what I feel toward Darcy.

  But she’s a firefighter, and any spark there is she’s likely to put out. She’s a decent woman, wouldn’t want to get involved with the likes of a biker. My additional worry being I’ve no idea how she’d react to my missing limb. I’d rather leave in the morning, remembering her as a ship I passed in the night, never wanting to test her reaction, not wanting that disappointment to play on my mind. If her response was the same as Lorelei’s, I’d be ten times as hurt.

  A house, a yard, throw a couple of kids into the mix. Am I dreaming when I think that could ever be mine? Turning over again, trying without success to get comfortable, I remember who I am. Peg, sergeant-at-arms. My role in the Satan’s Devils is to watch out for the club and keep it safe. Maybe that’s all I can ask. I’ve already got a family, mismatched as they are. More than some people have. Why should I deserve anything beyond that?

  Maybe what I’ve watched my brothers bringing into their lives, old ladies and children, is something that’s never meant to be mine. Grouchy Peg with half a leg missing, why would any woman want to tie herself to me?

  Tomorrow I’ll cancel my online dating accounts, I’ve had no success with them. This woman who’s attracted me tonight? I’ll watch from a distance to make sure she’s not bothered again, but it’s not fair to bring her into my world. She’s got a respectable job, and her happy suburban existence. I could only bring chaos into her life.