by Lane Hart
Not that I could ever pick up another woman on the road and think about anyone but Nova.
Even after only a few hours together, she’s already left an impression I doubt will be filled by anyone else anytime soon. I can smell her sweet floral scent on my skin and I never want to wash it away.
She may be the first woman I’ve ever had on the back of my bike too, now that I think about it.
After I take her to the local seafood restaurant, where we both put down our body weight in shrimp, I make a stop at the pharmacy to grab a box of condoms before pulling up and backing into a parking space in front of the Salvage Asylum. Turning off the bike’s engine, I tell her, “This is it.”
“So, this is a biker bar, huh?” Nova asks, and I can hear the smile on her face before she climbs off and stands next to me to remove the single helmet I own and insisted she wear. Which, after I think about it, was stupid of me. What if we had wrecked and I had cracked my head open on the pavement, leaving Ren fatherless?
Shaking those thoughts from my head and deciding then and there to send Maddox on a run for another helmet, I tell Nova, “Yeah, this is a biker bar.”
“What should I expect inside?” she asks softly while biting down on her bottom lip, like she’s nervous about the crowd she’s about to meet.
“A few ladies and a bunch of guys drinking, fucking, burping, and swearing,” I tell her honestly as I climb off my bike.
“Wow, that paints a pretty picture.”
Chuckling, I tell her, “They’re good guys, but I can’t vouch for any of their manners.”
“Fair enough,” Nova agrees.
I lead the way to the door and hold it open for her to go first, letting the loud voices and rock music come pouring out into the night. Before she enters, Nova’s fingertips reach out and rub over the dent in one of the bricks beside the door. “Is that from a gunshot?” she gasps, hazel eyes wide in concern.
“I promise you’ll be safe here,” I tell her instead of answering the question directly.
“If you say so,” she mutters before stepping into the entryway.
Looking around, I take in the scene from her point of view. Aerosmith is blasting from the jukebox and there’s a baseball game on the television. Maddox is behind the bar where Eddie and Turtle are sitting, sharing a bottle of Jack with a few ladies. Chase and his girl Sasha are sitting at one of the tables with Abe and Mercy, his redheaded woman, talking and laughing.
A few tables over, Sax is sitting backwards in his chair, smoking a cigar and playing what looks like a hand of blackjack with a wad of cash up for grabs between him, Dalton, and Reece. No surprise Dalton has two girls on his lap and Reece has none. Off in the corner, Miles is leaning back in his chair while one of the club sluts is under the table giving him head. It’s all pretty much par for the course, with only Torin missing because he’s home with his family, Coop, who is working at the strip club, and Gabe, who can most likely be found in his tattoo shop or hanging out in the loft above it.
“Daddy’s home, brothers!” Dalton shouts above the music and holds up his beer to me when he sees Nova and me standing in the doorway. “And check out the headlights on his new ride!”
I flip him off before I place a hand on Nova’s lower back and guide her over to the old men at the bar. “Sorry,” I tell her. “Told you they lack manners.”
“It’s fine,” she says with a smile.
After shooing the women away, I introduce everyone. “Turtle, Eddie, meet Nova. Nova, Eddie’s the one who had your car towed.”
“Oh, thanks,” she says when she holds out her hand for each man to shake.
“Did you have any problems with it?” I ask.
“Nope. It’s sitting in the yard,” Eddie responds.
“Appreciate your help,” I tell him, knowing he means the salvage yard. That’s where I’ll work on it tomorrow and maybe even find an engine for it. Not that I’m trying to be stingy, but it just means the repair will be easier if the part is readily available and we don’t have to order one.
“Nova, meet Maddox. He’s our prospect,” I tell her when the kid comes over to get our drink order. “What can he get you?”
“He works the bar? He doesn’t look old enough to drink,” she says to me.
“He is. Barely. And if he’s lucky, he may be getting out from behind this bar real soon.”
Maddox grins at that encouragement. “Pleasure to meet you, ma’am.”
“You too,” Nova responds. “And I think I could use a shot of tequila if you’ve got it.”
“Coming right up,” Maddox says.
“I’ll take a shot too,” I tell him, since I don’t have Ren tonight and I won’t be driving home. “Mad Dog,” I say to get his attention while he’s pouring, and pull out my wallet. I slap down two hundred-dollar bills and slide them across the bar to him. “Tomorrow morning, I want you at the Harley dealership when they open, buying me another half-helmet. You can keep the change.”
“Yes, sir,” he agrees before placing the shot glasses in front of me and Nova. We each take one.
“Cheers,” Nova says with a clink to my glass before we both throw them back.
I pull out my smartphone to check for any missed calls from Ren, and since there are none, I decide not to call and check up on him, trying instead to trust his mother. I’ll call in the morning to see how things are going.
In the meantime, I tell Maddox, “Keep the shots coming, kid.”
I think I’ve earned the right to get a little drunk tonight.
Chapter Seven
Nova
I’m definitely tipsy after losing count of the number of shots I did. But whatever that number was, I’m pretty sure War doubled it. He’s a big guy, so I’m guessing he can handle that much alcohol just fine.
After we talk a little with the guys and a few women at the bar, War takes my hand and leads me over to a heavy door that requires a code to enter it. He gestures for me to go first, and slowly, we make our way down a flight of stairs. His hands stay on my shoulders to keep me balanced the whole way.
At the bottom, there’s a big open room with pool tables where some of the guys that were upstairs earlier are playing and one is…oh my! One of the blond guys has a woman bent over the table, and I’m pretty sure he’s doing more to her than helping her line up a shot.
War’s hand on my back directs me toward a long hallway and then into an apartment with a made bed, dresser, and nightstand, and that’s about it.
“Get comfortable. We’re sleeping in here tonight,” he tells me while he shuts and locks the door.
“We are?” I ask. “Do you live here?”
“No.” He removes his leather cut and hangs it up in a small corner closet, then starts removing the rest of his clothes, starting with his shirt. The alcohol in my system combined with seeing War’s broad chest and defined abs make it hard to focus on words but eventually, I get a few out.
Taking a seat on the bed that’s got a nice, comfy mattress, I continue to question him. “So, why are we staying here tonight?”
“Because the salvage yard is close by,” he answers with a shrug and then his boots are off and he’s lowering his jeans down his tree trunk legs to the floor.
“Uh-huh,” I say while taking him all in, especially the outline of his thick shaft that’s obvious through the cotton boxer briefs. “And what’s wrong with your place?”
“Nothing. Staying here is just easier,” he answers before going over and climbing underneath the sheets on the other side from where I’m sitting.
“So, you don’t want me to see your house?” Then understanding finally dawns. “Why is that? Wait, are you married?” I ask, while searching his left hand for a tan line where a ring may have been. Thankfully, it’s empty.
“God, no,” War grumbles.
“Well, I know you can’t be embarrassed about your place after you’ve seen my shack.”
“Just drop it so we can get some sleep,” he says, lowering h
is head to the pillow.
“Look, I get that we just met and all, but you’ve been inside me and we’ve had our mouths on each other’s private parts. The least you can do is give me a truthful explanation.”
“We did just meet, so I don’t think I owe you all the details of my life, including where I live. I agreed to fix your car and your AC, now your bed. If we fool around some more this weekend, great. If not, that’s okay too, but that’s all this is.”
“Wow,” I say. “You’re an incredibly confusing man.” Sure, I don’t know much about him, but this War now is acting very differently from the War earlier. Is that the alcohol? Or is there some other reason why he’s suddenly so wishy-washy.
Hold on.
He specifically said he hadn’t been with a woman in a while. Maybe that’s true. “You really don’t date much, do you?” I ask.
“No,” is his one-word answer.
“And you’re not married.”
His head shakes on the pillow. “No. I’m divorced.”
“Ah! Now it all makes sense!” I say when some of the puzzle pieces start coming together.
“What does that mean?” he asks, his brow furrowed.
“Let me guess, you have issues trusting women because of your experiences with your ex-wife?”
He looks away and considers the question before responding. “Yeah, that’s actually a pretty accurate description.”
“So, it’s not just me personally?” I ask when I stand up so I can peel back the covers and join him underneath. Before I crawl in, I undo my shorts and step out of them where they fall. War’s gaze is suddenly riveted on the front of my panties.
“No,” he replies when he lifts his heavy eyes back to mine. I pull my shirt off and then slide in beside him, in just my panties.
“Good,” I say with an exhale of relief.
“If that’s all you’re sleeping in, I may end up breaking this bed too,” War grumbles, making me smile.
“That’s fine. I don’t care what you do to this one,” I tell him when I cuddle up to his big warm chest. He throws an arm around me and pulls me closer, but doesn’t actually make a move to get inside of me again. Which is fine. I think we’re both too tired from our earlier exertion, so I’m content to just let the alcohol pull me under.
…
I wake up from a deep sleep in an empty, unfamiliar bed. It takes me a few seconds to remember where I am and everything that happened the day before.
Holy shit.
It feels like a different lifetime ago since I got off work and walked into my hot box of a shack.
When I sit up with the covers clenched to my bare breasts, suddenly feeling incredibly naked in a stranger’s bed, I see a piece of paper in War’s empty spot on the bed with a messy, handwritten message on it. I grab it to see what it says.
I’ve gone to the salvage yard to start working on your car. If you want to come out when you wake up, call me and I’ll send Maddox to pick you up. He’ll stop and grab us some breakfast on the way back.
After I use the restroom and grab a quick shower, I get dressed, pull my hair up, and then I pick up the landline phone on the nightstand to call the phone number War left on the sheet of paper.
“Hello?” he answers with a gruff, growly morning voice that instantly causes a jolt of warmth through my lower belly. While we didn’t even open up the box of condoms he bought last night, I can’t wait to get to work on them, hopefully later today…
“Morning,” I say in greeting with a smile that can’t be helped.
“Morning,” War echoes. “How did you sleep?”
“Good. Too good. I think I went into a tequila coma,” I reply with a widening grin. “How about you?”
“Pretty good, actually,” he says, like getting a good night’s rest with a woman he just met is surprising. “It’s still early. You didn’t have to get up just because I left. Go back to sleep if you want.”
“Nah, I’m up and ready. It wouldn’t be fair for me to sit around here, being lazy while you’re probably already up to your elbows in my engine,” I tell him.
“Okay, well, in that case, I’ll send Maddox over to pick you up out front in the van.”
“Sounds good,” I agree.
“Grab me up some biscuits with meat on the way back?”
“I can do that. See you soon.”
“See you soon,” he repeats, his deep voice softening before ending the call.
There’s no one in the basement this morning, only a few beer bottles and cans sitting around from the night before. Upstairs the bar is also empty with all the lights out when I slip out the door and into the parking lot.
I start walking toward the road and get about halfway there when I spot a big dark stain on the pavement. God, I really hope that’s antifreeze and not blood. Maybe I should’ve done a little more research about the Savage Kings MC before I offered to let one into my home and in my body.
No, War is a good guy. I can see it in his eyes. And it’s not like I’m marrying the guy. I’m just spending a weekend with him while he kindly helps me out. So, the rest, like why he carries a gun, or what he does with the rest of the biker gang, doesn’t really matter.
A few minutes later, a black van comes speeding up and then screeches to a halt on the road.
Since I recognize the young guy driving as Maddox, the guy bartending last night, I open the passenger door and hop up into the seat.
“Hey,” I say to him.
“Hey. Sorry it took so long,” he says, sounding out of breath from driving so fast and furiously.
“It’s okay. I just walked out here,” I assure him.
“Good,” he responds with a heavy exhale before he pulls away. “War said for you to pick where we get breakfast.”
“Anything you want is fine.”
“No, really. You have to pick,” he says with a quick but serious, side-eyed glance at me.
“Um, okay. Whatever is closest with a drive-thru serving biscuits,” I direct him. “Will that work?”
“Yeah, that works,” he agrees with a small smile.
We pull up into the busy fast food restaurant a moment later, and Maddox places the order for several sausage and bacon biscuits to fulfill War’s request for meat before pulling up to the window to pay.
“I can get this,” I tell him, since it’s one of the few things I can afford.
“No, ma’am. It’s taken care of,” he says. “If War found out I let you pay…” He shakes his head like that would be horrible.
“He’s a good guy, right?” I ask while we wait for the food, wondering if there’s more to him than just deep pockets that he’s way too generous with.
“Oh yeah. He’s the best.”
“Are you really scared of him?”
“War? Not really. But am I scared of pissing off the club? Hell yes,” Maddox tells me. He holds up his finger and thumb an inch apart before going on to say, “I’m this close to patching in, so I can’t fuck it up now.”
“I’m sure you’ll be fine,” I tell him. “You seem like a good kid.”
“I hope so. If I don’t get my patch…I don’t know what I’ll do.”
“It won’t be the end of the world,” I say in response to his overdramatic statement. “Aren’t there other motorcycle clubs you could join?”
“It would be the end of my world,” he responds. “And no, there aren’t any other MCs like the Savage Kings.”
“Really? I can’t tell if that’s a good thing or not,” I say to him honestly.
“Mostly good,” Maddox says.
“And the bad?”
“Well, if I told you that, they’d kill me,” he says before the restaurant’s drive-thru window opens and the cashier hands him a bag of greasy food.
He hands it to me and when he starts to drive off, I ask jokingly, “They wouldn’t really kill you, would they?”
“I’m the last prospect left standing,” Maddox explains while focusing on the pavement in front of
us on the empty street. “But Holden had it coming. He was a rat.”
“What happened to Holden?” I wonder aloud.
“He’s dead,” Maddox answers simply, making me wish I hadn’t asked.
And then I can’t help but wonder, Who the hell did I sleep with last night?
Chapter Eight
War
“Hey, buddy. How’s it going?” I ask my son when I call to check on him.
“I’m good! Mom bought me an iPad!” he says excitedly.
“That’s great,” I say, even though I’m actually the one who paid for it. I have to say I’m impressed Marcie would spend so much of the money I give her each month on buying something for Ren. “Just don’t spend all weekend playing on it, okay?”
“Yes, sir,” he agrees. “It has to charge once in a while.”
“Yeah, it does,” I reply with a smile. When the line stays silent for several long moments, I know he’s so immersed in this new toy he probably won’t say anything more. “I’ll let you get back to it, buddy. Call if you need me, and don’t forget to charge your watch—”
“Okay, bye, Dad,” he says, interrupting me and ending the call.
I inhale a deep breath of the fresh morning air as the tension from the night drains away, knowing I was worrying about Ren for nothing. Now that I’ve checked in with him, I can try to relax and enjoy my free weekend, starting with replacing Nova’s engine.
I lucked out when I got to the salvage yard and Turtle told me he had a wrecked Corolla. Since it was T-boned, the body was destroyed but the engine was in perfect condition. In fact, finding the part in such a great condition is almost too damned big of a coincidence. While I’ve never been a big believer in fate before now, I’m starting to think I was meant to be the one to pull over on the side of the empty country road to help Nova.