Simply Sinful: Lost Angels MC, page 5
Uhhh, shut up inner voice! Yet I find myself saying. “Okay,” despite my inner reprimand. Regretting not taking a chance isn't something I wanted to live with.
“Good, take the time you need to decide,” he says.
“Okay is my answer,” I say.
He looks over. “Really? You're going to give us a chance?”
“Yes, I think we both deserve a second chance.”
Honking brings us abruptly out of our bubble. I grab hold of the dash as Cole swerves out of the way of oncoming traffic.
“Fuck! Jesus!” we shout at the same time.
For a few minutes there's only heavy breathing to hear inside the car.
“I'm not usually this bad of a driver,” he says. I know he's being genuine, but I can't help the bubble of laughter that bursts out of my mouth.
“I'm serious,” he states chancing a quick glance at me, which only makes me laugh harder, and when he looks back to the road there's a smile on his lips. Then he's joining me in my laughter.
When the laughter finally settles, we're pulling up into the parking lot of Billy Joe's. It's exactly what it sounds like, with its barn-like exterior, and the interior is just as you'd expect, but with a fully equipped kitchen lining the back wall, and tables running like in a school cafeteria. It keeps to the barn style with stalls on either side with long tables to accommodate larger parties. I'll give them one thing, it smells nothing like a barn. Its delicious aroma permeates the surrounding air even before we stepped inside.
The owner, Joe, is pleasant and has premade several options for us to try. I found it a challenge to not eat every bite of what he prepared.
“Something wrong with it?” he asks as he waits for my verdict.
“Not at all, I'm just saving some of everything to take back to the actual bride,” I smile at him.
“You two aren't the couple I'm catering for?”
“No, I'm the maid of honor, and he's the poor sap that I've roped into helping,” I point over towards Cole.
“It didn't take much convincing on her part," Cole assures him.
Joe looks between us, “Well you could have fooled me, and it's not often that happens.”
Before we leave, he hands us a page with the prices, and circles all the food we are bringing over to Lydia's house as soon as we get back into town.
“That barbecue sandwich was the best, especially with those salted sweet potato fries in that special dipping sauce,” he licks his lips remembering.
“God I know, it was delicious!”
“I'll definitely drive out of the way again knowing that's waiting on me when I get there.”
“Don't forget to bring me along.”
“You got it.”
“Do you think Lidia will want it at the wedding? It's not steak or fish,” I ask.
“I don't know much about this kind of stuff, but I know I'd choose that exact meal at my wedding.”
“Me too,” I agree. The image comes to me unbidden, sitting with family and friends dressed in their best, a hand holding mine under the table as we eat our salty sweet potato fries, and his crystalline eyes catching mine as he flashes a brilliant smile. It could have been a memory from our time together as teenagers if it weren't for the tux and white dress. Though it’s far from the first time dreaming of us in one situation or another over the years, I can't decide how I feel this time. Before it had been bittersweet, sometimes sad or maddening, even a nuisance at times, but now the prospect of a second chance those feelings just no longer seem to fit. Maybe… it's hope…
Chapter 9
Fuck, that’s dangerous knowledge to have. God damn it, this whole thing has the power to fucking destroy me. Gambling with my heart, now that's something I haven't done since the last time she was in my life. If she doesn't choose me...I can't think that way. I need to be thinking of all the ways to convince her it's the wrong decision to leave.
Once we pull up outside Lidia’s house, I let my mind wander. I follow Em as if on autopilot, I've got too many things at once on my mind. As we enter, I’m jolted from my thoughts by the tone alone, displeasure dripped from the tone.
“What are you doing here?” When I look towards the speaker, Lidia is glaring at me.
“What do you mean?” Em asks her, leaving me unable to respond. “He is the one my dad volunteered to help me.”
“He’s also the rude asshole that left me to tend bar on my own,” she crosses her arms over her chest, and her face tightens even harder.
“You were being annoying as shit,” I defend myself, though from the twist of her mouth it doesn’t help my case. As if I fucking care.
Her arms untangle and one of them comes up to point an accusing finger. “You were a pretentious prick, and even if I was being annoying, which is impossible, you walking out on responsibilities, that tells me one more thing about your poor character,” she glances at Em. “Ric trusts him to stick around and help, are you serious?”
I answer before Em gets a chance to respond. “Opening up your big mouth to spill out judgments and questions you don’t have a right to know the answers to, tells me you are a nosy bitch.”
“Whoa,” Em raises hands between us. “Cut this shit out right now,” she looks between us in turn, then turns to look at Lidia.
“I’m sorry Cole was a prick to you, but I really need you to get along with him since he’s helping me with all the wedding preparations that you can’t do yourself. It won’t help anyone if you guys are fighting.”
“What did you call him?” Lidia looks over Em’s head to look at me, her brows creasing, mouth turned down, and she looks me over as if she’s trying to strip me to my bones.
“Umm, his name, Cole,” Em says slowly, and Lidia looks back down at her.
“Cole...as in your,” when Em nods Lidia lets out a feral sound. “NO!”
Oh fuck, her face is a mask of rage, and she’s heading my way like a bull seeing red. I take a step back towards the door. My hands ball into fists, though in my life I have never hit a girl, and I don’t plan on starting now. I’ll admit, her charging at me, doesn’t make me feel confident that I won’t have to do something to protect myself. She’s fucking scary. Hell, I’ve been attacked by several things, some of them not human, but a woman is a different creature altogether. From an early age seeing how my mom was treated by the men she allowed in our lives, I saw first-hand how wrong they were to treat her that way, and I wouldn't dare lower myself to their level. That still leaves the case of how to defend myself.
Thankfully, she doesn’t throw a punch, instead she points her finger into my chest, and spouts some clever, yet hateful words into my face. It isn’t anything I’m not used to, but as Em yanks Lidia from my space I can't help but feel stunned. No one ever comes to my defense.
“Lidia, stop that, look at me.” When Lidia finally jerks her eyes from me, Em says, “He didn’t do what we thought.” They both look at me briefly before she continues, “Turns out Candy was trying to get me out of the picture.”
“Fucking bitch,” Lidia spits.
“What?” I find myself asking.
Again, they both look towards me, Lidia automatically crosses her arms. “What isn’t there to get?” Lidia asks.
“The whole thing.”
Lidia makes a noise in the back of her throat and her eyes roll around in her head showing her annoyance. “Candy has been trying to get into your pants forever, you can’t possibly not know that, and she was a bitch to Em the entire time you guys were together.”
“She’s still a bitch, but now I just feel bad for her,” Em says looking at Lidia. Again, I’m cut out of the conversation. Something about how I ignored her and how she still has feelings. What the fuck is going on? Sure, I guess Candy at one time thought she was into me, but I thought I put an end to that back in high school, and I certainly don’t know anything about Candy being a “bitch” towards Em.
“Hey, where are you going?” Em looks at me, and it’s only when she asks, that I realize I’ve started to move towards the door.
“Out,” I say.
She turns, giving me her full attention, “Where? I thought we were going to stick together. Plus, it’s not like you have a vehicle here,” and again she’s caught me at a disadvantage. I left my bike in Ric’s driveway. I’ll have to wait.
“You’re right,” I agree, “I’ll be right back, I’ll get the rest of the food from the car.”
Her smile still tugs at me in all the right places, even after all this damn time. I would do anything to get her to smile.
When I come back inside there are three women crowded by the kitchen island. Brook, Lidia's neighbor, must have slipped in while I grabbed stuff from the car. They don’t look up from the binder that they are hunched and talking over. Leaving the bags of food on the counter, confident they will be noticed eventually, I sit on the couch letting them do their thing. Closing my eyes, I lean my head back on the cushions. An unexpected smile comes to my lips as I listen to them chattering in the kitchen and can pick out Em’s in the line-up every time. Even my ears are attracted to her.
I can’t believe she agreed to try. Now I just have to figure out what I meant by that. Does that mean we start back at square one? Dating. Inwardly groaning I recall how unpleasant it had been to get past the awkward stages of first becoming intimate with someone new. It’s probably why I haven’t made a real effort since her. Sure I have had my fun. I’ve been far from celibate since being a teenager, sometimes it happened to be the only way to work out stress, but everything else I am out of practice on.
Poppy, she had been the only exception, but I messed that up almost as soon as I entered the relationship. When you think you’re ready to move on, trying to be with someone else is a quick way of finding out how wrong you are, and I still hold onto guilt for what I did to her.
“Fuck it's loud in here,” I try saying over the bass pouring from the speakers. Kyle, this week’s foster brother just shakes his head as he points to his ears. I wave him off since his gesture just proved my damn point. Why did I even agree to come out tonight? If I get in another fight, my social worker, Jules, will have my ass. This place is teeming with energy, and that sure as shit didn’t exclude hostile varieties. As if proving my point a few guys over were throwing punches, and from what I could tell it’s about a girl...I whip back and do a double take.
Is that...no, even from this distance I could tell her eyes weren’t of whiskey but of the sea. Despite knowing it wasn’t one of my brighter ideas, I make it to her side to whisper in her ear. “Want to get out of here?”
She jumps slightly, but after a careful inspection of me, to my surprise she nods.
“Thanks for getting me out of there,” she says as soon as we go out a side door and into fresh air. Well fresh may be pushing it for a side alley, but air just the same.
“Sure thing,” I push the strands that flop into my eyes away and take her in again. She does have a striking resemblance to Em. Height, hair color that hits just about to her shoulders, her eyes that almond shape. “So what was that about back there?”
She shrugs. “My brother is a bit too protective.”
“Shit,” I stand from leaning against the wall. “Look, I don’t want any trouble,” I put my hands out in surrender, though I doubt it would help me if her brother found us.
Her face registers my panic and she starts to shake her head. “No,” a giggle escapes her full lips. “That guy deserved it, he grabbed me in passing and wouldn’t let me go.”
“Your brother, is he an ask questions later kind of guy?”
Her fingers come up to twine a strand of her hair, and she nods.
“So if he finds you gone, only to find you here alone...shit!”
The door bangs open missing me by inches. Though at the accusations in the guy’s face when he looks between me and the girl I knew Jules was going to turn purple with anger. I get into a defensive pose, ready if he was. Not wanting a fight doesn't mean I don't know how. I'm finding it almost as necessary as breathing in my new life.
“Danny, it's not what you think!” I could see her reach out to him from the corner of my eye.
“Then what are you doing out here with this…” he looks me over and decides on, “punk.”
“He offered a way out of watching your display of testosterone,” she says.
“He needed to be shown a lesson,” he spits and looks out of the eye not swelling up, at her.
“Maybe,” she shrugs, then points to me, “but he doesn't.” For several seconds they stare off until Danny breathes out a sigh.
“Fine, but I told you this was a bad idea. You're too young to be in places like this,” he turns back around and instantly I ball up my hands. “How old are you?”
“Seventeen.”
“Oh...well, then both of you are too young. What are you doing here?” he crosses his arms over his chest.
“Hanging out, I guess.”
He snorts. “Some place. You can't even talk, shit, you can't even think in there.”
When he had offered to take us back to a coffee place down the street instead, I didn't turn him down. He even left after a while with a promise from me that I'd see her home safe. That of course was after he had gathered all information about me aside from my social security number, that's only because I told him he couldn't have it.
Poppy and I began and then ended six months later in that coffee shop, right before I turned eighteen.
Someone shakes me awake, saying, “Dude, you can saw some logs.” Of course, it's Tank.
“What?”
“You fell asleep, man.”
I did? I look around and jump to my feet when I find the house is empty, “Where's Em?”
“Outside, Lidia walked her out to say goodbye. I'm the lucky one to kick you out so you can follow her.”
“Alright, thanks,” I move past him towards the door.
“Wow, that was almost pleasant. Whatever has helped you not be an ass all the time, do more of it.”
“Fuck off,” I say not turning to acknowledge him, but smiling as I say it.
“Just overdose on it, you big softy.”
Despite the pang of loss I have for my mother that the word overdose brings, I almost laugh along with him. I slam the door instead but keep the smile a bit longer.
Chapter 10
“I can't believe you're considering giving him another shot,” Lidia berates me for the fifth time since I've let it slip.
I open my mouth to respond but hear the door of Lidia's house slam. Seconds later Cole comes into view. His already too long hair is ruffled, eyes still a bit sleep dazed, his cheeks flushed, and a smile playing on his lips. It all goes straight to my head, making it light. He's more like a dream than reality.
“Enjoy your nap?” Lidia asks him. Her arms cross over her chest.
The smile disappears from his mouth, and I hit Lidia's arm, “Knock it off,” I hiss.
“What?” she rubs the spot and pushes her bottom lip out.
I point a finger towards her, “You know what, you brat.”
“Come see me later?” she asks as she backtracks towards the house.
“Maybe,” I shrug, noncommittally.
“Such a tease,” she looks over towards Cole when they pass. “Thanks for your help.” I think she means it but with her face turned away from me now I’ve no way of knowing. I know she did it on purpose, she really is a brat.
When Cole makes it to my side, I watch him lean against my car. “I would have never guessed that was the Lidia attached to your side while we were in high school. She wasn’t around long, but she made a lasting impression.”
“She grew up,” I look towards the house. “We all have. It was kind of inevitable.”
“Yeah we have,” he says, and when I turn my head, he’s looking back at me too. Twisting towards me he lifts a hand to my face, his eyes never leaving mine, and something passes between us. I’m about to ask him what he’s not saying, when a moan then a giggle breaks the moment. We both look around, and when a grunt follows another moan, we know it’s coming from Lidia’s house.
“And…that would be our cue to leave,” I say, my cheeks turning pink.
“Oh, honey, that’s nothing. They are just getting started,” I hear the now familiar voice coming from across the lawn. Brook is sitting in a lawn chair, straw hat on her head, sunglasses hiding half her face, her lips in a smile, “It’s like a sound track of the kama sutra.”
My cheeks turn even hotter. “Are you serious?”
“You have no idea.”
“Get in the car,” Cole is already getting himself settled in the driver's seat. Good idea.
“I don't want to either; see you later, Brook,” I wave in her direction before jumping in the passenger seat.
It’s quiet in the car for several seconds until it’s not. I can't hold back my laughter.
“Oh my God,” I wipe the tears from my cheeks.
“Do you think it's the sex that has her agreeing to marrying them?” he asks.
“I can't see a downside to it. At least one of them will be in the mood.”
“At least someone is getting laid.”
Feeling myself get hot I look out the window. It's been awhile for me. Not since Adrian, and that's been months ago.
“Em, can you come in here, please?” he says over the receiver.
Glancing around the nearly empty office, I respond. “Be right in, sir.”
He's pulling off his tie behind the large mahogany desk as I enter his office. “Lock the door,” his eyes are promising all things dirty. My insides are ready for him. Part of why it is so easy to start seeing the boss is the constant anticipation, he could call me in at any point throughout the day. Any job worth doing, you can find some pleasure in doing it. I switch the lock and head towards his desk.
Before I can meet him on his side, he stops me. “Place your hands on the desk,” I do what he asks and watch him as he stands. He's slow to make his way to me.
