by Blair Grey
“Clearly, nothing,” he said with a shrug. “But whatever. He got it fixed, and you got your ass whooped.”
“More like he took my cell phone and social privileges. I would have rather taken the ass whooping,” I shook my head with a smile. I had been so social when I was younger, and it hadn’t really changed much before all this shit happened with Kline.
“Serves you right, if you ask me,” Adam said. He finished the last of his beer, and I noticed there was a slight flush to his cheeks. I wanted to believe that he was happy, laughing over our past and thinking about the trouble we’d gotten ourselves in to – that the flush was from me.
It could have been from the beer, but it made me feel better thinking that I could still have that effect on him.
“Well, I’m going to call it a night,” he said as he rose from the couch.
“Alright,” I said. “Goodnight.”
He headed for the hall leading back to the bedroom, and I switched off the TV. He paused, and I looked over at him in surprise.
“Oh,” he said. He didn’t turn around, and I said nothing. “And don’t come visiting my bed tonight, little girl, unless you plan on staying.”
My jaw fell open, but he didn’t even turn around. He just kept walking, and I heard his door close behind him. I settled on the couch, my heart racing and my mind spinning. What the hell did he mean by that? Would he let me stay? There were so many questions I now had, and I hardly dared to think that he meant being in a relationship.
But still, even if he did, I wasn’t sure I was ready for that. It was one thing that I always dreamt of, but nothing that I ever let myself take too seriously. That was entirely on him, and it made me feel so much better about what had happened the night before.
I settled into the couch, pulling the blanket up to my neck and shaking my head. I was so shocked, I couldn’t even smile. One thing was for damn sure.
I was confused as hell.
11
Adam
I was back at the shop the next day, Erika once again sitting in the corner. She’d taken some of the money she’d stolen and purchased herself another sketchbook with art supplies. I was surprised to see how inexpensive she’d gone with the purchases considering how much she’d stolen.
Then again, perhaps she felt guilt about the entire thing, even if the man she stole from did deserve it.
Clients drifted in and out of the shop throughout the day, but it was difficult for me to keep my concentration on them, and not Erika. Having her over in the corner with her sketchbook was so much like how things used to be, it gave me chills.
It made me heartsick for Cooper, and I wanted to give the man a call. But, I thought it best that I wait until the thick of this had past. I didn’t want to worry him, and I didn’t see any way to talk to him without the truth coming out about Erika.
We hadn’t discussed how she’d handled her coming back to California with her father. She’d just begged me not to tell him about her trouble. I’d said I wouldn’t, and I didn’t want to fuck that up. So, I was forced to put my sentiment behind me and focus on the day.
Every now and then, between clients, she would walk over and show me what she’d drawn. She had gotten good, really good. I was almost tempted to tell her that I still had some of the art tucked away in the drawer, but I decided against it.
That was something that could also wait. Instead, I told her to work on a couple of bigger pieces, and I’d hang them, just like her dad used to. She grinned, agreeing to the task, and once more took her seat in the corner of the room.
We were interrupted that afternoon when Carl walked in. Zach was right behind him, a plate with rhubarb pie in his hand. It was my favorite from the diner, and he knew it. I was surprised to see him there, as it was one of the busiest times of the day at the diner.
Though Zach had never chose the diner for himself, I knew it was still a big deal for him to leave it during this time of day, and it made me feel good knowing that he’d do that for me.
“You got a minute?” Carl asked when the client’s arm was wrapped and she left.
“Yup, I need a minute if I’m going to eat this,” I said.
“Are you going to share?” Erika piped up from the corner. Zach and Carl both ignored her, but I rolled my eyes.
“If I have to,” I said. “I’ll save you half.”
“You better,” she said with a grin.
I shook my head and turned my attention back to the guys in front of me. “Have you been keeping in touch with Aaron?”
Carl posed the question with his ever humorless stare, and I nodded. “He stopped by the other day and told me that Kline bought a plane ticket.”
“And, we’re assuming that he’s coming up here for the girl, aren’t we?” Carl pressed.
“Considering he’s from the East Coast without any other business here that we know of, and the timing of it all, I would say that it’s a safe bet to think that he’s coming for her,” I said.
Carl and Zach both nodded. “We don’t’ want to cause trouble if there’s no reason for it, is why I ask. If the man is here out of coincidence, that’s one thing. Not to say that we want him in our town regardless, but if he’s not coming for her and we jump him, we could be looking at more trouble than we need.”
“I’ve thought the same thing. But again, circumstance seems to point to the fact that he’s coming for her,” I replied.
Erika was clearly trying not to look up from the art she was working on. I knew she felt nervous around Carl and Zach, but they were the two highest guys in the MC. Hell, Carl had been president likely longer than she had even been alive, and I trusted him explicitly.
I would tell him anything I knew, and I’d be honest about it. I wasn’t going to try to make it sound any worse than it was, but I wasn’t going to sugarcoat anything, either.
“Well, with that in mind, I talked to Aaron this morning,” Carl said.
“Oh?” I asked in surprise. “He didn’t say anything to me.”
I checked my phone to be sure I hadn’t missed any calls from him, and there were none. It was a surprise that he hadn’t tried to contact me, but had gotten a hold of Carl.
“He said he didn’t have time to stop by. He’s got business a couple of towns over, but he wanted me to know directly since it’s so important. The man, Kline, is on his way, but we now know that he’s going to be here in two days.”
“Two days?” I asked, looking gravely from one man to the other. They both nodded with the same solemn look.
Fuck. I was glad this was moving rather quickly, but I didn’t think we were going to need a plan that soon. How the hell are we going to get this figured out in two days?
“With that being said, it seems to me like we need to get our shit together, get some sort of plan going,” Carl continued. I nodded again.
“What do you propose? A meeting for the MC?”
“I don’t think we’re going to need to bring everyone together so soon. Nathan is still recovering from his beating, and with Aaron out of town until tomorrow night, there’s really not enough time to get us all together and talk about it,” Carl replied.
“Okay,” I let the word hang in the air, letting him take the lead.
“So I’m going to send Zach and Spencer over to your place later this afternoon. The three of you can talk and figure out what we’re going to do, and we’ll go from there. Keep me in the loop with what you figure out. I know you’ve got this,” he said.
I nodded, turning to Zach. “If you want to, come over around eight. I get out of here then, but I’ll close down a bit early to make sure I’m there to let you guys in.”
“Great,” Zach said. “I’ll let Spencer know, and the two of us will be there.”
“Great,” I patted my hands on the counter, and the two walked out, leaving my mind spinning.
“What’s that mean?” Erika asked timidly.
“It means,” I said, turning slightly to her. “You are going to go
to the store and buy more beer.”
Erika and I left the shop half an hour early. I wanted to be home before Zach arrived, and though he wasn’t like his dad with timekeeping, he did like to show up on the early side. It was nice at times, but it did make it difficult at others.
Still, since Erika had gone to get the beer earlier that afternoon, we were ready when the two knocked on the door. I wasn’t quite sure how the meeting would go. Zach and Spencer didn’t see eye-to-eye on many club issues, and I knew Spencer had a level of jealousy toward Zach for being the next president of the MC.
But, they were often able to set aside their differences when it came to important issues, and I had confidence we’d be able to work through the night.
“Boys,” I said when they walked in. “There’s cold beer in the fridge, and lots of it. Let’s have a couple before we get into this.”
I wanted everyone to be open and loose. If they were, it was less likely Zach and Spencer would end up in some sort of argument over who was right. Sure, Zach had grown up a lot since he got with his girl, but that didn’t tame him entirely.
And Spencer… Well, he was just a dick.
After I introduced Spencer to Erika and the four of us drank a couple of beers each, Zach started the discussion.
“So we know that this guy isn’t afraid to pull the trigger,” he said.
“That’s obvious, with him being in the mob,” I said.
“And, we know that he’s after her on a personal level,” Zach commented. I nodded.
“Then he’s definitely going to come in with guns blazing,” Spencer said. “There’s no way he’s going to just want to talk about things. Have a beer, say apologies, and go on his merry way. No, I’ve dealt with men like this in the past. If he’s coming in with a vendetta, then he’s not going to leave until he’s spilled blood.”
Erika looked sick, but said nothing.
“So what’re we going to do about it?” I didn’t want to lose focus as to why we were there, and I knew we easily could. The night could be spent on what we knew, but what we didn’t know was how we were going to keep Erika safe or what to expect when Kline arrived.
“Is he coming alone?” Spencer asked.
I hesitated. That was a good question. I’d had Aaron on Kline himself, not on whether he had a companion.
“I doubt they’d travel together if he was, which means we can’t answer that question until he gets here,” Zach said. “If he was smart, they wouldn’t book together, or Aaron would have seen that.”
“True,” I said. “Should we plan on that?”
“I think we should plan on keeping her safe, and we’ll see what happens after that,” Zach replied. “If that means we’re fighting one guy or a hundred, we’re going to be keeping the girl safe.”
“Agreed,” Spencer said. “Which means we’re going to need a base, rather than a plan of attack.”
“A base?” Erika spoke for the first time. “How are we going to do that?”
“This place works,” Spencer said. “It’s secure enough, if you ask me. I mean, we don’t know what kind of firepower this guy is bringing with him, but if we plan on you staying here and defending it, then we’re going to be far better able to protect you.”
“I’ll stay here,” Zach said. “I can call Vanessa and tell her I’m not coming home tonight. That way, you’re at least going to have two guns in the house when he shows.”
“I’d appreciate that,” I said with a serious nod. “Really.”
“Looking out for my brothers,” Zach said with a shrug.
“It’s decided then,” Spencer said. “Zach, call Carl and let him know and let’s drop this shit. I need another beer, and I’m heading out.”
“I’ll grab it,” I said as I rose. Zach headed outside to make the phone calls, and both Spencer and Erika stayed in the living room. I felt a lot better knowing Zach was going to be there with us. He knew how to handle a gun, and with his former military experience, I knew his aim would be sure.
At the same time, I knew that this meant he was going to have to sleep on the couch. There weren’t any other options in my apartment, and I wasn’t about to have Erika sleep on the floor.
She’d have to camp out in my room with me – and without letting her sleep on the floor, that meant she was going to have to stay in my bed. I wasn’t the least bit upset about it. Hell, it felt like it was really meant to be, no matter how much we thought it wasn’t.
Fate was pushing us together, and I wasn’t fighting it any more.
12
Erika
I woke up with a muscular, tattooed arm draped over me. Immediately, I smiled and snuggled in. I had listened all night to the men talk about how they would handle the situation with me, and for the most part, I had a raging stomachache.
At the time I was working with Kline, I didn’t think I was in such a serious situation. Sure, I knew it was bad that I was stealing, and I knew I shouldn’t by lying to my friends about where I was getting my money. Hell, I even knew it was a bad idea that I was forging artwork to sell to the mob.
But, even during all that, I didn’t realize I was working with a man who would kill me if all went wrong. I told him that I didn’t want his advances, and he lost his shit over it. I couldn’t stay. I could argue with him that it was his fault that I left – besides the forged art, that is.
He was the one who had gotten handsy with me that night, that was why I stole from him. I felt he deserved it. I would have been glad to just cut my own losses and leave, but he mistreated me.
But even through all that, I didn’t want to believe he would come after me to kill me. It seemed too far-fetched to be actually happening in my life, but here I was. They were after me, and I could only hope to God that I’d stay one step ahead.
Now, with these men surrounding me, I felt like I had a fighting chance. But I didn’t want to think that one of them might be injured or even killed while protecting me, that also made me feel sick to my stomach. They didn’t ask for this shit. I was the one who brought it down on them.
And, they were there for me.
Then, when Zach and Spencer decided Zach would be staying with us for a while, I tried to ignore the flutters in my stomach. I knew that meant I would be forced to share a room with Adam – and there was no way he’d make me sleep on the floor.
He was far too much of a gentleman to even consider something like that, and with his leg, there was no way I’d let him sleep on the floor, either. We would have to share the bed, that’s all there really was to it.
I played it cool the rest of the evening. It was a little awkward with Zach in the living room as we went to bed. I tried not to show how giddy I really was. I wanted to leap onto the mattress and bounce up and down like the teenage girl I used to be. Happy and carefree, eager to be in bed with the man I loved. But, I knew that would be every bit as foolish as if I jumped him again.
No, we would be in bed together for the night, and all I could hope for would be for one of us to make a move. I decided before we went to bed that I would try to wait for him, though I couldn’t promise myself I wouldn’t be the one to do it. Perhaps he wouldn’t tell me to stop if I did.
Perhaps I’d get the chance to have sex with him again.
But, as we settled under the covers together, I knew it would be rude of me to do something like that, especially after the last time. Zach was right down the hall, after all, and I didn’t want to be that girl. I couldn’t be. What would he think of me then?
I had been scared to question what Adam thought of me since it happened the first time. Now, I didn’t want to press my luck. If he wanted me, then he would be the one to have to do it.
As it turned out, neither of us made the move. Hell, we didn’t even start to cuddle with each other until some point in the night. Adam fell asleep with his back to me, and I didn’t want to be so needy that I put my arm around him. So, I turned my back to him and fell asleep facing the opposite wall.
/> Now, feeling him pressed against me this morning, I was going to take full advantage of what was going on. I might not have gotten the sex I’d hoped for the night before, but I sure as hell was going to take advantage of the morning cuddles I was now being presented with.
He subconsciously pulled me into him, causing an even bigger smile to spread across my face. He wanted me, I knew he did. Even in his sleep, he pulled me close to him. He might be in denial over the fact, but he wanted me.
It felt good to be against him. So safe. I could have happily lain with him there all morning until it was time to head down to the shop and open for the day, but it was far more short lived than I hoped.
Just as I really got comfortable, I could hear Zach out in the other room. Clearly, the guy was used to getting up early. With a silent sigh, I slid out from under the covers and pulled my bra on beneath my shirt. I’d kept my clothes on throughout the night, hoping that taking my bra off would be seductive enough, but now, I had to put it back on.
Clearly, Adam didn’t have any intention of getting up yet. Perhaps he didn’t feel the need to be a good host to other members of the MC. Perhaps it was a guy thing. Either way, he lay in bed as I pulled my jeans on and slipped through the door, out into the other room.
I could be a good hostess, even if it technically wasn’t my place to be one. Zach was making coffee in the kitchen when I walked out, and though I still felt rather nervous around him, I forced a smile and a warm greeting.
“You should let me do that. You’re a guest here,” I said with a smile. He gave me a look as though I was crazy, but headed back into the other room. I made toast and a cup of coffee, carrying it out to him with a smile.
“I appreciate what you’re doing for me,” I said as I handed him the food. He nodded, but said nothing. So brooding, I wondered how this Vanessa they kept mentioning was able to put up with him. But, I didn’t want the moment to get awkward, so I headed back to the kitchen just as Adam was coming out from the bedroom.