Page 35 of Truck

Now, I don’t tell her that riding behind me is me making my claim. Some see it as choosing an old lady, but our club sees it as stamping our claim for everyone else to stay away from the woman I’m interested in. Everyone knows an old lady as they have a cut with ‘Property of’ on the back.

“Hold on, Rory,” I say with a huge smile on my face. She clings to me like a baby monkey, and I’ll tell you it feels great.

Parking the hog outside the steakhouse, I lay our helmets on the seat and grab her hand. I lead her inside and give my name to the server at the door.

“Okay, Mr. Whitestone, please follow me.”

Now, it’s a higher-end steakhouse, which I hadn’t realized as I’d not been here previously. We are getting some looks from people because we look like the bikers that we are. I don’t care, but I don’t want Rory to feel embarrassed. I give two or three diners a nasty look, which has them looking down at their plates or anywhere but at us.

Rory giggles, but it is so low I nearly miss it. I hold out her chair as she sits before taking my own. “Are you okay, Rory?”

“Yeah, I’m fine. I’m amused at the looks we are getting. We are in a steakhouse, not some top-tier restaurant. People make themselves look like idiots,” Rory says all this loud enough for most of the dining area to hear. I note many of them look away, or give Rory a nasty glare, which doesn’t bother her at all. Yeah, she’s a biker’s woman but doesn’t know it–yet.

We place our order, noting the server was polite and shows no sign of worry that we are bikers. I order a hickory-smoked steak with mushrooms, served with rice. Rory orders grilled combo, which is steak and chicken marinated in a spicy garlic and herb butter. She forgoes anything along with that which surprises me, but when she tells me she had a phase of not eating I understand why she’s choosing a smaller plate of food.

“How are things at the gas station?” Rory asks while we wait for our food.

“Good. We are opening on Tuesday of next week. Well, that is what we have planned, but you never know what can happen between now and then.”

Rory takes a sip of the soda that she had ordered, and I take a sip of the beer I ordered. It’s the only one I’ll have tonight. That is always the maximum I drink when driving.

“I passed by this morning, and the front of the station looks nice. You’ve all done a great job on the landscaping. I know it wasn’t easy, but to only clean it up it has made a vast difference. I don’t even think you need any more bushes or shrubs added,” Rory places her chin on her hand as she leans her elbow on the table. I’m not sure she knows, but that has brought her significantly closer to me.

“We will keep it weed free, and the grass short, but apart from that we need nothing else. It’s a gas station, not a house yard,” I lean forward slightly, and it places us much closer.

“Here we are, your meals,” the server is standing with an amused look on her face. I’m sure she sees we were getting quite close to each other.

“Oh, thank you,” Rory quickly sits back, allowing her plate to be laid in front of her.

I give a nod of thanks and look at my meal, which looks appetizing. We eat quietly for a few minutes before I ask what could be the elephant in the room. “You are a widow, Rory, is that right?”

“I am.” Rory places her cutlery down and looks me square in the eye. “I’m moving forward with my life. My husband always told me if he left me I had to live my life. I’ve moved here and am starting a new chapter in my life, and I’m grateful that I was able to be Terrence’s wife for the short time that I was. I will always treasure that.”

“Was he sick?” I ask, trying to find out what actually happened without being too pushy about it.

Sighing, Rory takes up her fork but doesn’t spear any food, she looks up at me again. “Terrence had a heart condition, and we were waiting for him to have an operation. Sadly, his heart let him down before that happened.”

“I’m sorry for your loss, Rory.” I reach across the table and take her hand in mine, giving it a small squeeze of comfort. “He was obviously too young to die.”

We speak of her husband for a few minutes, and after she tells me a few things about him that were highly amusing, I tell her about Rum and my conversation with Cilla.

“You did not ask her to get a ghost to stuff Rum back into his body?” Rory giggles.

I chuckle, “I did, and Cilla told me they’ll practice as a just in case.”

“No! Oh my, that is too funny. I’m not sure I believe in ghosts, but your story is amusing.”

Knowing she’ll meet Cilla eventually, I chuckle. “You’ll meet Cilla eventually…”

Rory interrupts. “Oh, I’ve met Cilla. I liked her. But she'd best not tell me Terrence is talking to me, or I’ll lose my shit.”

I don’t inform her that Terrence has already reached out. I’ll let Cilla do her thing, if and when it’s needed.

The rest of the evening was spent smiling and enjoying each other's company.

When the evening ends, I leave Rory at her door. I make no effort to enter her home. But I lean toward her with my hands on the door, on each side of her head. Lean forward and hold my mouth an inch from her own. “Can I kiss you, Rory?”

“Yes,” she replies, and I don’t wait for her to change her mind. I lower my mouth over hers, not fast, not hard, not demanding. I tease her with my tongue until she opens enough to allow me entrance. I can taste the meal she has just enjoyed, and the sweet noise she makes as she grips the front of my Henley. I run my tongue over the entirety of her mouth, and I can’t describe the feeling that washes over me.