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“She was at the lake.” I paused, reeling in my emotions. “I couldn’t believe it. We spent the day together on Sunday. As we were going back to her room, I started thinking about how bad I was for her and how she deserved better.”
“Aw shit, Storm.”
“I took her to the room and left her. Walking away is for the best.”
“Not if it’s making you an angry cuss.”
“I was angry before Madeline.”
“You spent the day with her? The whole day?” His lip curled.
Asshole.
“Most of the day. Took her out to Mason City for a steak dinner, a little dancing, and a whole lotta kissing. It ranked up there as one of the best days of my life. But like she said, we’re different. The Easter Bunny and the Big Bad Wolf.”
He screwed up his face. “Yeah, no idea what you mean, but I’m sorry, man.” He shook his head, sighing. “Wait… You took her out on your bike?”
Should’ve known he’d key into that minor detail. It wasn’t so small, but more like a fuckin’ significant deal for me.
“Yes.”
“Christ, man. No woman’s ever been on the back of your bike.”
“I know. Enough. Let’s go to Jill’s boutique. I want to see the damage in person.” I rose from my chair and cracked my neck. Talking about Madeline wasn’t easy to do.
Damn, I miss the hell out of her.
Track and I rolled to a stop in front of Sister Chic Boutique. I squeezed the shit out of my handlebars as we sat on our bikes, staring at the broken glass. The front windows were gone, only gaping holes left. Black soot surrounded the windows in Jill’s second-floor apartment. My gut twisted into knots. If she and Wolf hadn’t gotten out… I didn’t want to imagine what might’ve happened.
“Incoming…” Track jerked his chin as Sheriff Jim Hendricksparked his car next to us.
The sheriff wasn’t a friend or foe to the club. He was Sugar’s father, so family. He didn’t bother us if we didn’t deal in drugs, prostitution, or sex trafficking. But we had him on our payroll, of course, and he turned a blind eye to our weapon runs. Transporting guns was the only dirty part of our club. I was working on getting us out, but we weren’t quite there yet.
I needed to fulfill the promise I’d made to my uncle before he died, getting Tina’s daughter home safely. But it required a lot of money. Weapons were where the big bucks were at.
Hendricks strolled my way. “Storm, this doesn’t look pretty.” He studied the building.
“Nope, not at all.” I followed his gaze to the shattered glass.
“Accident?” He peered through the destroyed windows.
“Isn’t it always?” As if I’d call it anything else. The club didn’t need the authorities up our asses, sniffing around. We dealt with our own problems.
“Any casualties?” He gritted his teeth.
“Not to my knowledge.” I hated this song and dance. I should be grateful to have the Sheriff on my side, but we had to keep up public appearances. Locals strolled by, eyeing us. They knew Jim’s daughter was an “outlaw’s woman” and connected to the club. To Sugar’s face, they were nice, but they talked behind her back. People sucked. Sugar was the sweetest woman and made sure the club donated to schools and homeless shelters.
Madeline came to mind. If anyone was mean to her, I would tear them to shreds. It was why I needed to leave her alone. If she was with me, it would destroy her reputation. She was a sweet, cookie-baking teacher, for Christ’s sake. Too, too good for me.
Hendricks chuckled, gripping his belt. “I hear there are some Hunters in Winters.”
I hiked a curious brow. “Oh yeah? What else you hear?”
“Sheriff Bush isn’t happy. He worries about the safety of his town, but that weasel Miller assures him they’re just passing through.” Hendricks shook his head. He didn’t like any of the deputies in Winters.
“How the fuck would Miller know anything about them?” I fisted my hands.
Deputy fuckin’ Miller had been a thorn in my side for far too long. He was a scrawny, dimwitted prick.
