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Meadow
I COULD FEEL THEtension rolling off of Sunny and Shade in waves.
They had decided that it would be best to meet up with Tanner somewhere else rather than at his club. So I had called him and gave him a meeting point. Surprisingly, Tanner had agreed and met us outside of a local coffee shop in the downtown area of our city. It wasn’t overly busy with people or traffic, but it was safer than going to his club.
Even though it was later in the night, people still milled about. It was one thing I loved about our town. People still sat outside, enjoying their cups of coffee, no matter the weather and time. Piper had told me it reminded her of Europe in a way.
“I’m assuming I should go by myself,” I said, finding Tanner sitting at a table just outside of the café.
“As much as I don’t like it, yeah, you probably should.” Sunny killed the engine and turned toward me. “If Shade and I go, it might spook him. But we’ll be right here.”
I took a deep breath and left the SUV.
Tanner looked my way.
Knowing that Sunny and Shade were close by, gave me all the strength I needed to confront him.
As I neared the table, the hairs on the back of my neck tingled. My stomach twisted, my heart racing the closer I got to Tanner.
“I won’t hurt you,” Tanner said as I sat across from him.
“Isn’t that what the villain usually says before they kill their victim?”
Tanner searched my face. “Doesn’t matter if you believe me or not. Doesn’t matter if anyone believes me or not.”
“Good because I don’t.” I looked around me, finding nothing out of the ordinary but still feeling like we were being watched just the same. Besides Sunny and Shade being close, I had a feeling that some of Tanner’s crew were around as well. The backup from Hell’s Harlem hadn’t shown up yet and that fact alone, set my nerves on edge.
“Did you get what I asked for?” Tanner asked, picking up the small mug and taking a sip of whatever drink he had decided on.
“You never asked but yeah, I got it.” I pulled the ring from my pocket. “I’m not sure if this is what you want though. My mom had no idea what you were talking about.”
Tanner took the ring from me and read the inside of it. “I’m not sure either.”
I frowned. “What do you mean?”
“My dad was a twisted individual.” He squinted as he read the inscription.
“Why didn’t you ask my mom yourself?”
Tanner’s gaze met mine. “Have you met your father? He’s a scary fucker. I’ve toyed with death before but even I’m not stupid enough to cross his path.”
“Do you know my father?” Even though I didn’t like Tanner, for whatever reason I found him intriguing. He had an air about him where it was like he just didn’t care.
“Not personally, no. I’ve tried to stay away. Cause you know, I’m in Hell’s Harlem territory and all.” He winked.
I rolled my eyes. “This place is away from their clubhouse, so I think you’re good.”
“Listen, what happened before…” He hesitated.
My eyebrows rose. Was Tanner Horsch actually going to apologize to me?
“I’m a bastard and I’d rather deal with animals than humans but that…anyway, thanks.” He stood from the table.
“Wait.” I rose to my full height. “That’s it?”
“What more do you want?” Tanner demanded. “I suggest leaving before what happened earlier tonight is the least of your worries.”
“I just…” I shook my head. “This doesn’t make sense.”
