Page 52 of Last Mile

I knew I had to choose my next words carefully— I could either drive him away or reel him in. “Regardless of what’s in your head, any woman would be flattered to be asked on a date by you.”

“Is that right?” he questioned.

“Yeah, it is.”

Bishop coughed. “That’s good to know.”

“I’m glad I could help,” I said honestly. And it was the truth. I did want Bishop to see he was more than he thought he was.

“So I’ll see you Saturday night, then.”

“See you then.”

CHAPTER ELEVEN: BISHOP

Iglanced down at my watch and grimaced. It was half past six, and I only had thirty minutes before Samantha was supposed to arrive for Rev’s party. At the moment, grease stains blackened my hands all the way up to my elbows, not to mention that I was wearing the rattiest pair of jeans I owned.

All day, I had fought a fucking nervous energy at the thought of being close to Samantha. I didn’t know where the hell it was coming from. It wasn’t as if she and I hadn’t had dinner a couple of days ago or talked on the phone the night before. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that I had invited her to Rev’s party. I had never invited a woman, even as just a friend, to the clubhouse, least of all to a family party. Although she had been around with Marley, she was still an outsider when it came to the club.

I felt like a fucking pussy for being nervous. I had never spent a day of my life worrying about women. Now Samantha had me spinning twenty- four/ seven. Part of me was nervous about what my brothers were going to say when they saw me with her. Of course, I didn’t know why I gave two shits about what anyone in the club had to say about me inviting her. It wasn’t any of their damn business. But even though I tried telling myself that, I knew it was still going to be an issue.

Since I had needed an outlet for my restless energy, I thought it would be a good idea to put the finishing touches on the bike Deacon and I were giving Rev for his birthday. But my dumb-ass self didn’t keep a good eye on the time, and the last thing I wanted was for Samantha to see me looking like the grease monkey I was.

Although tonight wasn’t a date, I still wanted to look good. Sam was a real catch— the kind of woman a man went above and beyond to impress. Since we had reconnected after Marley’s death, I felt I had been busting my ass whenever it came to her. Every fucking day I thought about her, and I couldn’t wait to talk to her on the phone. She was the first woman I had really enjoyed spending time with outside the bedroom. She was so easy to talk to, and she seemed generally interested in me as a person, not as a Raider. Most of the women I came in contact with were all about the sex or being an old lady in the club.

Of course, the way I felt about Sam did little to ease the guilt that still resided within me about Marley. No matter how good things seemed between us, it was as if Marley were always a silent specter. I didn’t know how to get past the guilt. It wasn’t something I felt comfortable talking to Samantha about. I was afraid that if she felt the same way, I might scare her off, and that was the last thing I wanted to do. I wanted to be with her, even if it had to be just as friends.

After tossing my wrench into the toolbox, I wiped off my hands and then headed out of the garage. Instead of taking the time to go home, I hustled over to the clubhouse. I could take a quick shower and shave and then grab some clothes from my room.

The moment I swept in the door, I was bombarded with party central. Streamers and balloons hung from the ceiling while a giant happy birthday sign took up one of the walls. Out-of-town brothers called out my name and raised their beers. I threw up my hand as I headed across the room to the bedrooms.

Just as I stripped off my jeans and shirt, a knock came at the door. “Yeah?” I questioned as I turned on the water in the shower.

Rev’s voice came from the other side. “Emergency club meeting in five.”

“Are you fucking with me?”

With a grunt of frustration, Rev replied, “No. I’m not fucking with you, although that seems to be everyone’s consensus about this meeting.”

I eyed the stream of water longingly before I reached over and turned off the shower. “Fine. I’ll be right there.”

“Good.”

Without time to shower, I cleaned off my greasy arms as best I could in the sink. I sure as hell hoped the meeting wouldn’t take long, and I could grab a shower just before Sam arrived. After drying off, I pulled on a fresh pair of jeans and a T-shirt. As I pulled open the door, I threw on my cut.

Out in the hallway, I ran into Willow taking an armload of towels into Deacon’s room. “Hey, rug rat,” I called.

She threw a look at me over her shoulder. “What, Uncle B?”

“I need you to do me a favor.”

“Will it get me out of helping Grandma get ready for the out-of-town visitors?” she asked with a hopeful gleam in her eyes.

“Not exactly.”

Her face fell. “Oh, well, what do you want me to do?”

“I’ve got a friend coming to the party tonight. I’m supposed to meet her at seven, but Uncle Rev’s called an emergency club meeting. Can you be on the lookout for her?”