“A few more weeks,” he answered, pushing his glasses further up his nose. “You could risk reinjury here, Jill. It’s crucial you take it easy. Wear your brace every day. Do the physical therapy exercises that we talked about. I don’t want to put you in a cast again.”
I groaned. That was the last thing I wanted. The last few months had been hell trying to take care of Mason on my own. My friends had been lifesavers, but there was only so much help I was comfortable accepting.
As a single mother it was important to me to establish our family, the two of us. Even when I’d been married, I’d taken care of Mason on my own most of the time. Now being free of that life, even though I was alone, was a hell of a lot easier than bracing anytime Tim walked through our door.
“If you take it easy you should be able to come back in two to three weeks,” Dr. Peters continued. “We miss you around here. You’re a hell of a nurse.”
I smiled gratefully. “Thanks, Bill. I miss it. I promise to take it easy so I can get back to it.”
How did it go?
The text from Sophie pinged as I was walking out to the parking lot.
Good. Free at last!
Awesome! The girls and I are at Dixie’s, why don’t you swing by?
Sounds good. I’ll pick up Mason from day care and be right over
See you soon. XO
I had my eyes to my phone as I made it to my car. I saw his boots first, crossed at the ankle. I looked up in surprise into the eyes that made my entire body hum in response.
Cal Jackson.
From the moment I’d first met Cal, I’d been completely overwhelmed. As president of the Knights Motorcycle Club, he was well-known, and depending on who you talked to, feared or revered in the town of Hawthorne.
It wasn’t fear that made my heart quicken every time I saw him.
With his strong build, startling blue eyes, and soft, full lips, the man was gorgeous.
I wasn’t sure exactly how old he was but I guessed somewhere in his mid to late forties. He had at least ten years on me, but his age did nothing to squelch his good looks. If anything it had the opposite effect.
He had a presence that owned any room he walked into and every available woman’s heart along with it.
Including mine, if it hadn’t been caged.
The man was a force of nature and I was in no place to weather that type of storm.
My heart thudded painfully in my chest as I fought the realization that I’d missed him.
I was careful about not asking too much about him. Sophie and the girls were all like rabid dogs when it came to Cal and me, wanting us to get together with a desperation I was more than daunted by. So I didn’t ask. Instead, I listened. What little I’d gleaned from careful eavesdropping was that he’d been in Las Vegas helping the Sinners, a club the Knights were close with, open a new chapter. The one abandoned since the Riders had been wiped out, a decimation I’d been closer to than I would have liked.
“Hi, darlin’,” he greeted, his voice a familiar deep rasp as he pushed off from my car, drawing close, leaving mere inches between us as he peered down at my face.
“Hi,” I replied, proud that my voice came out strong and firm without the tremor I felt in every cell of my body. “What are you doing in town? I mean, er, here,” I amended quickly.
His smile was nearly predatory as his gaze slid from my lips back to my eyes. “How’d you know I wasn’t here?” he challenged with a tilt of his head.
Dammit.
He took a step closer. “You keeping tabs on me, babe?”
I felt the blush that heated my cheeks but remained silent, determined not to give him the satisfaction of a reply.
He smiled knowingly, as though he could read my mind. His gaze tracked my face as though memorizing my features. “Why am I here?” he repeated my question, his eyes burning into mine. “Well, I came to check on things.”
Did I imagine the insinuation thatIwas one of those things?
