“You should go back to bed, Ms. Jalinski,” I said. “I’ll be okay now.”
She patted my arm and leaned close.
“Are you sure, sweetie? These boys look a bit rough around the edges.”
I glanced at the hulking presence of Vlad, one of Ryker’s biker friends. I’d seen him before a few times, usually from a distance. Never up close and personal like this. His stony expression gave nothing away, while he remained completely, utterly silent and unmoving.
The Blackjacks MC was a huge part of Ryker’s life. He didn’t talk about them much though. Hell, prying anything out of him was like pulling teeth—an excruciating lesson in frustration.
But I’d managed to glean information over the years, piecing things together.
These men didn’t meet up for a lazy Sunday afternoon ride in the countryside. They had criminal records, and they tangled with the police on more than one occasion. Last year, they had a full-blown shootout with another biker gang, wrecking the local auto shop.
I knew Ryker. It was nearly impossible to earn his trust. He would never leave me in the hands of someone who might endanger me, or cause me harm. If he thought I was safe with Vlad, then I believed him.
“Ryker is practically like a big brother to me.” I smiled reassuringly to put Ms. Jalinski at ease. “I’ll be fine, I promise.”
She pursed her lips as she considered.
“What about Noah? Are you sure you don’t want to call him?”
Definitely not,I thought.
“No, no,” I hurried to reply. “He’s…been working a lot of overtime lately. I don’t want to worry him with this.”
I felt nauseous lying to such a sweet little old lady, but she didn’t understand how suffocating my brother could be, even if he did have good intentions.
I loved Noah with all my heart. The problem was that he didn’t back off to let me breathe. Growing up, when I attempted to exercise a little autonomy and independence, it would lead to a blow-up fight. Something as simple as going to the movies with a group of friends resulted in a shouting match because we were both so hard-headed.
If there was even a marginal risk that someone broke into my apartment, Noah would never let me know peace again.
At last, Ryker finally appeared, striding toward us. His expression was a flat, unreadable mask—piercing blue eyes, his mouth set in the usual firm line. During the course of my entire life, I never saw Ryker smile. Not even in old pictures.
“Coast is clear,” he declared.
Bittersweet relief flooded through me. I felt bad that I’d caused a lot of trouble over nothing. On the other hand, my apartment was safe again, so that was good news.
“Glad to hear that’s all sorted out,” Ms. Jalinski replied. “Now, I’d better get back to my beauty sleep. Kelsie, dear, don’t hesitate to knock on my door again if there’s any more trouble.”
“Thank you, Ms. Jalinski. I appreciate it.”
After she shuffled back into the building, Ryker moved to Vlad’s side. They spoke in low tones for a minute or two. Then Vlad climbed onto his bike and took off.
“I’m spending the night." Ryker's tone indicated there would be no discussion, since the decision was already made. “Just as a precaution. Vlad will be on-call if we need him.”
Ryker came to stand next to me, close enough to feel the heat radiating off his body. But he didn’t touch me. Tilting my head back, I gazed up at him. Standing six-foot-two, he had a considerable height advantage over my five-foot-three frame.
“So, the coast isn’t actually clear,” I replied.
Ryker shrugged.
“It’s not looking great, no. But it’s not enough to get the cops involved. And you must have had a good reason to call me instead of your brother.”
A blush warmed my cheeks.
Ever since I was a teenager, I’d been plagued by a crush on him. My brother’s best friend. Older than me by two decades. There was something wild about him, feral and untamed, like a snarling stray dog left to fend for himself on the streets. Underneath that hard shell he wore to protect himself against the world, I caught glimpses of a soft, kind heart, bruised, scarred from things he had to do to survive.
“Why did you call me, Kelsie?” Ryker asked in a low, quiet voice.
