“How about a jacket?”
“Smart girl.” He released her hand as they approached his bike. He took the helmet off of the handlebars. “Here, use this.” Caroline fumbled the helmet, she was that nervous. Buster reached out and took it from her, put it on her. He was close enough to kiss. She wanted to kiss him. “You ready?”
“I am.”
<#<#<#<#
“Buster asked you out?” Jillian sat up. She had been stretched out on the couch reading a book. “Like, come hang out at the bar?” She laid the book down and eyed Caroline as if she'd grown an extra head.
“No. Like dinner,” Caroline replied even as she regretted saying a word.
“Dinner?” Jillian repeated as if she didn't understand the meaning of the word.
“Yes, dinner.” Caroline swallowed back a wave of annoyance at the astounded look on her friend's face. Was it that far out the realm of possibility that Buster could want to go on a date with her? “What's so hard to believe about that?”
“It's just... these guys don't date, at least not as far as I can tell.” Jillian reached for her water bottle and took a sip. “They hook up. They move on. I don't want to see you get hurt, Caroline.”
“You seem to know a lot about them. I guess that makes sense, since Edge is a member.” Caroline didn't really know Jillian all that well. They'd started talking one day about a television show and it had grown from there, but they really hadn't shared all that many personal details.
“Yeah, he is. He loves it. Loves them. I actually used to worry about him before he met them. Now, I know he's always got someone watching his back.”
“I've heard the parties at the bar can get pretty wild.” Caroline was fishing for information. All she knew about Nightshade was that they were badass, according to Wayne but had never been anything but polite, even sweet, to her.
“I've only been to one. It's not my scene.” Jillian got to her feet. “I'm just saying, be careful of what you expect when it comes to this date.”
“They can't be all bad. Ace buys cupcakes for you all the time.” He was in the bakery at least once a week for them.
Jillian's head snapped towards her. “He told you that?”
“Was it a state secret or something?” Caroline frowned. She didn't see the problem, but obviously there was one. Jillian's body language had completely changed. She was no longer relaxed, in fact she looked like she might just turn around and leave. “It's a cupcake, Jill. It's not a big deal.”
“I don't know what you're talking about, Caroline. I've got to go to work. I won't be back until early morning. I got a double. Make sure that you lock up.”
“I will.” Caroline almost apologized for bringing up the cupcake. It had all been innocent enough, Ace had simply asked her if she knew Jillian and what she got when she came in. It was odd that Jillian would have such a strong reaction, unless there was something that Caroline didn't know. “Jillian, I....” The door slammed before she could say anything else.
Alone in the house, Caroline decided to take her bag into the bedroom that was now hers. It had been Edge's until he'd completely moved out, into his own apartment, a few weeks ago. He'd told her the bed was nearly new, but he'd had to leave it behind because it wouldn't fit in the new place. It sure had been comfortable the night before, but maybe she'd been so tired that anything would be comfortable.
She was surprised when she opened the bedroom door and found the boxes she'd packed up at her place were neatly stacked against one wall. Not one to complain about getting some unexpected help, Caroline decided that she'd kill the hours until she had to get ready for dinner with Buster.
Dinner with Buster. Just thinking it made thousands of wings start to flutter in her stomach. Buster, who had been flirting with her for months. It was embarrassing that she'd been so clueless, but he didn't seem to mind. Caroline realized that she didn't know much about him. She couldn't remember telling him anything personal about herself.
They'd have a lot to talk about over dinner, though the idea of small talk made Caroline sigh. She hated the whole never knowing what to say thing, or she'd try to be funny and it would backfire and she'd just seem weird. Weird. Awkward. So she'd probably have one too many drinks to loosen up. Hopefully she wouldn't get too loose, though the idea of getting loose with Buster made warm spread through her.
Maybe she should have a drink before he came; she really didn't want to screw this up. She wanted to have a nice dinner and see where the night took them. If it so happened to lead to a bed, or against a wall, then so be it. Caroline wasn't a reckless person, not in the least, but she was tired of always making the safe and smart choice. Maybe it was time that she followed her gut instead.
It didn't take long to unpack everything. Caroline had never been much for clutter. She did have a lot of books, but those were in a storage unit, carefully packed away until she had her own place she knew she wouldn't be moving out of after a year when the lease was up. Lately she'd been thinking about trying to use her savings to purchase one of the newly renovated houses popping up around town. They were relatively cheap, and it would be nice to put money to something more productive than rent.
She was in the middle of putting her jewelry away when her phone rang. “Hello?” Caroline answered even though she didn't recognize the incoming number.
“Caroline, hey. It's Buster.”
She didn't need him to identify himself. His voice was doing lovely things to her insides. “Hey,” she replied as casually as she could. “What's up?”
“I feel like a real heel for doing this but I've got to cancel dinner tonight. Something came up.”
“Oh.” Caroline felt the tingly feeling she'd been holding onto all afternoon fade away. “Okay. Thanks for letting me know before I got ready. That would have really sucked.”
“I'm sorry. I really am. I can't really talk right now, but I'll call you tomorrow. We'll set something else up, alright?”
“Sure,” Caroline replied. “Talk to you later.” The call ended without him saying another word. She tossed it to the bed. Maybe something really had come up, or maybe he'd just changed his mind. Either way, she was on her own for tonight and suddenly craving Italian.
Chapter Three
“This is some serious bullshit,” Rock grumbled. “We didn't do anything.”
“That doesn't matter to Harris.” Buster looked over at the younger man. He understood his frustration but right now their hands were tied. They just had to wait it out.
“She's not going to have anything to charge them with. Figure she's going to hold them as long as she can, though. Thought that you had plans for tonight, Buster?” Ace asked.
“I canceled them when Harris showed up at the job site. Figured I was going to be tied up for a while.” He hadn't figured he wouldn't even be taken in. He'd been pissed to make the call. He'd been looking forward to it, especially to Caroline riding with him again. It was rare that he had a passenger, but the way she molded her body to his was a feeling he wanted to repeat. Her hands had been low on his stomach, her breasts against his back, and he'd sworn he heard her laugh over the roar of the engine.
“You could take off now if you wanted. I think me and Rock can handle waiting for everyone else. No sense in three of us sitting around with our thumbs up our asses. I've got nowhere to be.”
“Yeah,” Rock chimed in. “Because if we're talking about Caroline, she's fine. I can't blame you for wanting to tap that. She's got an ass that...” He trailed off, swallowed hard when Buster turned his head towards him. “Shit, I didn't mean anything, I was just...”
“Shut it while you're ahead kid. Trust me.” Ace chuckled. “I've got to say, I never thought I'd see the day when you had such a thing for a chick, Buster. Especially one that you haven't even slept with yet.”
“You think it's funny?” Buster looked over at Ace.
“Pretty much, yeah.” The man grinned.
“Interesting that you find it funny, considering
your current situation,” Buster pointed out. “Last time I checked, you weren't sleeping with Jillian but she's got you wrapped around her finger. Now if you could just convince her she wants to be wrapped around yours.”
“Fuck you,” Ace replied. His easygoing smile remained in place but no longer reached his eyes.
“I rest my case.” Buster leaned back against the wall. “She working today?”
“How would I know?” Ace huffed.
“Hey. Isn't that Monroe?” Rock motioned towards the street where a truck had parked. “Haven't seen him around much lately. You think he's a problem?”
“He's not a problem.” Buster had given plenty of thought to the former police detective, who was now working security at a strip club near the casinos. He was a different man than he had been before, a colder man, no one could fault him for that. “Let's see what he has to say.”
Monroe didn't waste time when he approached. “They should be released within the hour. There's nothing to connect them to Wayne or the drugs that led to his death. Anyway, unless Harris finds something directly to Nightshade, she's been ordered to stay away from you. The powers that be are not happy with her.”
“How do you know all of this?” Buster asked.
“Turns out that no one is happy with her. She's got no friends here, but for some reason she's not getting booted out the fucking door.” There was a bitterness to Monroe's voice. Of course he would be bitter. He had been a good detective, worked hard at his job, and he'd been let go without hesitation while Harris was given another chance. “So fuck her.”
<#<#<#<#
It took Harris more than a few hours to release them; it was after ten o'clock when she finally did. Everyone was in a shit mood, so Buster made a judgment call, instead of having them go back to the bar, he told everyone to follow him . The ride to Gino's was pretty short and the place was still open. “We're going to eat and have a few beers. I think we all need it.” They'd be able to talk somewhat freely inside. There was a back room, mostly used for parties, which was pretty private. Buster figured they needed the down time of eating pizza and drinking more than they needed to rehash the day.
The owner wasn't inside, but much to everyone's surprise, Jillian was behind the counter. She finished with the people in front of them, looked up and her smile faded a bit. “Hey. You want a couple of tables?”
“We want the back room and a few pitchers of beer,” Train told her. “And since when do you work here? Where's Ella?”
“You mean Emma? She got fired for skimming from the till right before they hired me,” Jillian replied. “I'll have someone get the back room ready and send back the beer. Just give me a couple of minutes.”
She hurried away and Buster couldn't blame her. Ace was glaring at her. He didn't know why. He didn't need to know. He just hoped it wasn't going to become a Nightshade problem. The way that Edge was staring at Ace made it obvious he wasn't happy.
Buster looked around the restaurant and was surprised when he caught sight of Caroline. She was at a table for one with a glass of wine in her hand. Her attention was focused on her phone; she hadn't noticed him yet.
She looked up just before he reached the table. “Hey.”
“Hey yourself,” he replied. “I didn't expect to see you here tonight.”
“Well, I did have a date, but he canceled, so I had to feed myself. I had a taste for Italian.” She took another sip of her wine. “I guess you did, too.”
“I'm going to have to figure out somewhere else to take you for dinner tomorrow night. I'm sure that you're not going to want the same thing two nights in a row.”
“They've got a lot of different things on the menu. And at least I know that the food will be good.” She looked past him, frowned slightly. “I think the guys are trying to get your attention.”
Buster glanced over his shoulder, saw them all staring. They were worse than teenage girls. “Ignore them, I try to.”
“Okay. So, what time are you picking me up tomorrow?”
“Let's say seven o'clock, does that work for you? You could join us now if you want, instead of sitting here by yourself, and we could go back to the bar after. Have a few drinks.” Buster didn't realize what he'd said wrong, but he knew he had. Maybe she was offended he'd commented on her sitting by herself?
“Thank you, but I'm pretty tired. I was just waiting for the check so that I could get back home. But I'll be ready at seven tomorrow.”
“You need a ride?” Buster offered.
“No, you should get back to the guys. They look like they're getting a little restless,” she replied. He could hear Train talking loudly, talking to Jillian to rile Ace up while everyone else was laughing because they knew it, too. “Ace looks like he's ready to punch someone.”
“Probably because he is,” Buster answered. He still wasn't sure what he'd done to make her smile turn from genuine to almost forced, but now wasn't the time to try and figure it out. This was one of the reasons why he didn't date much as a rule. It was just too much work when there was someone warm and willing always around. “You sure about that ride? It's pretty late, you shouldn't be walking.”
“I walk basically everywhere, Buster. Day or night. Cabs are too expensive. I'll be fine,” Caroline told him.
Buster wanted to push the point, but he figured since he was already on thin ice it was better to just let it go for now. “Alright. I'll see you tomorrow at seven o'clock. I'm looking forward to it.”
“Me, too.” Caroline looked away from him, reached into her purse as the waitress approached. “Have a good night.”
“You too.” Buster turned and walked away from the table. The guys had finally gone into the back room, with the exception of Edge, who was at the counter talking to Jillian. The conversation looked tense. Edge stopped speaking when he got close; his sister just looked pissed. Something was brewing.
There were already pitchers of beer set out in the back room. “We just ordered.” Train picked up a cup of beer and walked over to Buster. “You look like you need this.”
“I do.” Buster took the cup. “It's been a long day.”
“Fuck yes, it has been. Harris just doesn't stop talking. She just goes on and on.” Danny shook his head. “She's a special kind of crazy.”
“And thanks to Monroe,” Buster motioned to the man, “we know that she's going to back off of us.”
“Unless being told to back off makes her more determined to fuck us over,” Train pointed out. “That's something we need to consider, hell, I'd say we plan for it.”
“You're right. We will. And we'll be careful. As careful as we can be. And we'll hash all the shit out tomorrow. Tonight, we're going to eat, drink and get some sleep. Can't think without a clear head.”
“Sounds good to me,” Rock called out. “And I know the perfect way to clear my head.” Laughter followed and then Jillian was coming through the door carrying a large tray. Edge was right behind her and went directly over to the table where the pitchers of beer were. A little chaos formed and then there was a second waitress with another loaded down tray.
<#<#<#<#
Buster pulled up in front of the house at just after seven. He got off the bike and walked to the front door. Jillian answered when he knocked. “Hey Jillian, Caroline here?”
“She's just putting on the finishing touches.” Jillian stepped aside so that he could walk in. “She shouldn't be long.”
“You heading to work?” Buster shut the door behind him and looked around. He'd been inside maybe twice before.
“Yeah, I'm going to be late if I don't move my ass. See you around, Buster.” She was out the door before he could say anything at all, which seemed to be something that she was very good at.
Buster sat on the couch. He only had to wait a few minutes before Caroline emerged from the bedroom. “Hey, sorry about that. My mother called before and she just had so much to tell me. I just didn't have the heart to cut her off.”
“No worries.” B
uster rose to his feet. “I wasn't here long and you look amazing.” She'd remembered what he'd told her, worn jeans and boots despite the heat. Her thin-strapped top left a lot of skin exposed, so he was relieved to see she had a jacket tossed over her arm.
“Thanks. So, did you decide where we're going to eat?”
“I know this place that makes a really good steak. How's that sound?”
“Is it the bar?”
Buster laughed. “No. The only food that you're going to find in the bar is going to come out of a microwave or in a take-out container.”
“Steak sounds good,” she said after a pause. “I'm ready to go when you are.”
“Let's get going then,” Buster suggested. The ride to the restaurant wasn't long, but there wasn't much time for talking on the way. She wrapped her arms around him the way that she had the day before, but there was a difference. What the hell had he said? And why in the hell did he care so much?
The hostess recognized him at the restaurant. She showed them to a table and took their drink orders. Silence filled the table. “So, how was your day?”
“It wasn't bad. Spent most of the day looking around to see if anyplace is hiring.” She made a face. “No one really is, but I'll keep looking. There's got to be something. There's always something.”
“What are you looking to do?” Buster asked.
“Anything, really. I didn't always work in a bakery, it just sort of happened. I've worked in offices before, done retail.” She sighed. “I'd really rather not do retail again unless I've got no choice in the matter. I know the bakery was sort of retail, but people who are buying cakes and cookies are normally pretty agreeable.”
“Office work, huh? Like answering phones and making appointments.”
“Yeah, I've done that before. I can pretty much do anything in an office. Gets a little boring, though. I liked the bakery, doing the baking and all of that.” She blushed slightly. “And here I am rattling on and on.”
Through The Weeds (Nightshade MC Book 2) Page 3