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I didn’t stop, passing the bikes parked out front and forgetting about the black SUV. I ran down the road in the direction we came without a clue to where I was or where I was headed. All I knew was I had been warned about the Sons of Sinister, and I hadn’t listened. Instead, I had gotten involved with one, letting him touch me, and trusting him when it was probably the last thing in the world I should have done.
24 Aiken
I REMEMBERED LIVING ON RAMENand being so hungry my stomach hurt. Those are the things that came to my mind when I found out Everly was doing the same. I wasn’t sure what the deal was with her and her family, but I knew other than Zada, she seemed to be all alone in the world.
Remembering the feel of hunger was the only reason I was determined to feed her breakfast. It had nothing to do with the way I was starting to feel for her or the way she looked at me. It had nothing to do with the feel of her against my back when she was on my bike or the way her nails bit into my abs when I went a little too fast.
Sitting across from her and watching her eat was turning me on. The way her mouth covered the fork and the way her tongue peeked out and licked at the side of her lips. I had never wanted to be a piece of bacon so badly in my entire life.
Then everything went downhill.
Saint called to let me know his cousin was in trouble. She had gotten caught up with a Border Lords, and his aunt had called him for help. The guy she was fucking wouldn’t let her leave and was beating the shit out of her.
We had to move, and I didn’t have time to drop Everly home first. Saint swore we needed to get there as soon as possible. I wasn’t in the mood to fuck with the Border Lords and deal with their dumbasses, but family was family, and that meant helping Saint when he needed help.
Shit wasn’t supposed to go down the way it did. The Lords didn’t fuck with us—especially when they were outnumbered the way they were when the four of us were standing in front of them, but the two guys in the house had been fucked up on meth and feeling froggy. The next thing I knew, my gun was pulled, and I was threatening to blow some fuck’s head off his shoulders.
It was inconvenient that Everly chose that exact moment to step into the room.
“She couldn’t have gone far on foot,” I said to Crow when we stepped outside and saw that Everly was gone.
The neighborhood we were in made our hood look like the fucking four seasons. We had to find her before some other crazy fuck did. Saint headed in the opposite direction to take his cousin home, but Crow, Joker, and I rode the streets of the neighborhood looking for Everly’s long auburn curls.
Two hours passed, and with each second, my worry grew. If we didn’t find her before dark, she was really going to be in trouble. I wouldn’t leave to head home until she was behind me on my bike, holding on and safe so that I could take her back to Zada’s place.
My phone began to vibrate in my back pocket. I almost didn’t answer since I was so involved in finding Everly, but I decided to anyway just in case. I pulled over and pulled my cell out of my pocket to see Crow’s name on the screen.
“Hey, what’s up?” I answered.
“I found her on the main road walking.” Crows deep voice filled the line, sending a wave of relief through me, followed by a round of anger. “She fought me at first, but I got her on the back of my bike. I’m taking her back to Zada’s.”
“Sounds good. Thanks, man.”
We cut the line, and I shoved my cell in my back pocket before I pulled out the neighborhood and headed home. The day hadn’t turned out how I wanted it to, but at least I knew she was safe with Crow, and I could stop worrying and try to get myself back on track.
I stayed away from Everly after that, instead sending Saint to make sure she got to work and home safely. Most of the time, he would take Crow’s car because she refused to get on the back of his bike, which made me feel some type of way. I couldn’t put my finger on it, but it filled my chest with a strange emotion knowing she trusted me enough to ride free and let go on the back of my bike.
When the following weekend came, we did our usual Friday night at The Strip, and I was glad to see that she wasn’t there. Perhaps she was finally going to heed my advice and stay away after seeing me with a gun to someone’s head. I hated wondering what she thought of me after seeing that—especially since she had no way of knowing we were the good guys in the situation.
I stayed in my room during Saturday night’s party, but only after going out and seeing that she wasn’t there. Lying in my bed, I blocked out the thumping music beyond my door and binged Netflix like an old fuck. I tried not to think about her, but I hated the way things went down the last time we saw each other—even though I would never admit that to anyone. I could barely admit it to myself.
Around one o’clock, I started to get antsy. I knew it was about the time she would be getting off work, and I knew Saint was in the living room drunk as fuck. I couldn’t sit there watching a movie knowing she was out there walking down the street alone.
Grabbing my keys from the dresser, I pulled on a hoodie and left. Zada’s house was dark when I passed, letting me know she wasn’t there. I didn’t pass her on the way to Smiley’s, but I found out from the girl working the cash register that Everly had just gotten off from work.
I drove back toward the neighborhood and found her walking on the side of the road about a quarter of a mile away from Smiley’s. I slowed and pulled up beside her before cutting my engine. She didn’t turn my way. Instead, she kept walking as if I wasn’t there.
“Hey,” I said, trying to get her attention as I walked my bike alongside her.
She didn’t respond.
“Everly.”
Again, she kept walking while looking straight ahead as if I weren’t even there.
What the fuck?
I had never had to fight to have a woman talk to me in all my life. I knew Everly was different from the others, but this was bullshit. I hadn’t done anything wrong, and she needed to know that.
