Lexi

---

The cops asked the same damned questions over and over, and then over again. They separated me from my coworkers to ask them again, and started asking where I lived, who my boyfriend was, and a whole host of other questions. I gave them mama’s address for mine, which is the address on my driver’s license and school stuff. I told them I go to school and work, and there’s no time for a boyfriend.

One of them noted my sister works for the MC, and then they started asking about my relationship to Viper. I told them a zillion times he was just a coworker and I hadn’t even known he was in a motorcycle club.

One of them asked how I felt about my sister being a whore, and it was the last straw. I memorized his name before I stood. “I’m not under arrest, right? I’m free to leave?”

“If you leave now, it tells us you aren’t interested in helping us catch the men who tried to abduct you.”

“Surely you’re smarter than that. If not, I don’t expect you’ll catch them anyway.”

“What about Bubbles?”

“What about him? He’s a friend. He gave me a ride to work today.”

“You sayin’ you didn’t know he was in the MC?”

No one stopped me from leaving the little van they’d taken me into to question me, and I went to my boss instead of finding Viper. I needed this job.

“I’m so sorry. I should’ve been watching when I took the trash out.”

He eyed the van, put his arm around me, and walked me back into the shop.

“Why are they after you?”

“It’s a long story.”

“Yeah. I talked to Viper and got the highlights. You need to let me know about shit like this in the future.”

“You aren’t going to fire me?”

He shook his head. “I’ll need to talk to Duke tomorrow before deciding whether to give you a few days off, but that’s only to keep you safe. Viper’s back to working on his client, and I have someone coming in soon. Wash your face again, and then stay behind the counter the rest of the evening, no matter what.” He walked me behind the counter and pointed to a shotgun propped in a corner but hidden from the rest of the lobby. “I trust you know how to use it?”

“Yeah.”

He put his lips to my ears. “It’s hot. You just have to pull the trigger.”

I nodded. “Can I go to the breakroom a few minutes? I need to call Bubbles.”

“Sure thing, short-stuff. My appointment should be here in about ten minutes, but I’m already set up and ready for her. I’ll take care of the front while you pull yourself together.”

Bubbles’ phone just said he wasn’t available. He doesn’t have his voicemail turned on. I texted him to call me when he could, used the restroom, washed my face again, got a bearclaw, some chips, and a Coke, and returned to the front. Ordinarily, we aren’t supposed to eat around customers, but I was starving.

“He didn’t answer. He always answers.”

“I’m sure he’s fine.”

I wasn’t so sure, but I couldn’t say it out loud.

I texted him again.

---

When he finally called, I was ringing a customer up and couldn’t answer. My heart soared when I finished with the man buying a new clit ring for his girlfriend and I could read Bubbles’ text.

---

Viper walked out with his customer and I ooooed and aaaaahed over her eagle tattoo before telling her, “Sorry your session was interrupted, but that’s beautiful.”

“No problem. Now I have a super-cool story about my bad-ass tattoo guy rescuing a damsel in distress while he filled my eagle in.” She pointed to the spray she wanted, and I pulled it from the display unit, took the paper Viper had filled out, and cashed her out.

Viper walked her to the door with a few final instructions, and when she was gone, I told him, “Bubbles is on his way, but I haven’t talked to him yet.”

He glanced at the clock. “I have forty minutes until my next appointment, but it’s just a consult for someone wanting me to cover an old girlfriend’s name. I can hold the fort out here if you want to leave.”

“You don’t mind?”

He shook his head. “You’re a rock star for coming back to work at all.”

No one was in the lobby when Bubbles pulled up, and I was out the door and into his arms before he was off his bike. He lifted me and sat me in front of him, facing him, my arms still wrapped around his neck as tight as possible.

“I’m here, Half-pint. Fuck, I was worried about you.”

“The third guy?”

“In the wind, but the MC will find him. He’s a dead man walking.”

I stiffened. “You can’t kill him.”

“Can’t let him live.”

I closed my eyes and a sob broke loose in my chest. I couldn’t stay with this man. Etta was right. He was a complication I didn’t need. Tears formed and spilled over, and I couldn’t stop them.

“I need to get my bag and log out. Viper’s gonna cover for me so I can leave early.”

“I don’t know what brought these tears on, but we’re gonna talk about it. I’ll walk you in. If Viper isn’t with someone, I’d like to talk to him.”

I got my bag from my locker, and Viper was talking low to Bubbles when I returned, so no one could hear. Both men turned to me, and Viper asked, “Why the tears?”

I shook my head. “It’s been a long day.”

The men looked at each other in consternation, and Bubbles turned back to me. “I’ll ask you again when we get home, and you’ll tell me the truth.”

I shook my head. “Can you take me to Etta’s apartment? I have a key, and she won’t mind me crashing on her sofa.” He didn’t say anything, just looked at me as if he were trying to see into my head, so I tried again. “No one knows about her. They won’t know where to find me. I’ll text her to let her know, so she doesn’t shoot my ass when she gets home from work. She’ll sleep in tomorrow morning and I can drive her car to school until I can get mine back from wherever you stashed it.”

“You risk putting her in danger by staying with her,” said Viper. “What if someone follows you back to her apartment after school tomorrow?”

I’d stopped crying, but the tears were threatening to start again.

Bubbles squatted in front of me. “Come home with me. We’ll talk. If you need some time to yourself, you can stay in the guest bedroom. First priority is keeping you safe right now. Okay?”

I nodded, walked out with him, and tried not to burst into tears again when I put the helmet on.

I’d fallen in love with Bubbles, but this wasn’t going to work. And okay, he’d been honest with me up front about why he went to prison, so I knew he was capable of murder, but hearing him talk about it so casually had shaken me to the core.

A law-abiding citizen would let the cops know someone was planning murder. I’d never do that, but I’d feel responsible if he actually killed the guy. It’d be like a mark on my soul. A big, greasy black mark.

Once I’d seen how my foster family lived versus how mama lived, I’d vowed to grow up to live like them — law abiding citizens who see the cops as the good guys and not a threat. People who can walk into their yard at midnight to look at the stars without worry of getting shot. A family without a ton of outside drama.

Other than being able to walk outside to see the stars at midnight, I’d never have any of that with Bubbles.

Bubbles

---

Her scent was bitter. Acidic. Heading towards rancid. She’d also been lying her ass off when she said she was crying because it’d been a long day. I didn’t know what was going through her head, but I needed to get to the bottom of it.

When I’d first seen the video, I’d wanted to spank her ass for walking outside without looking around. An hour later, I’d realized the fact she’d fought back with everything she had — including pepper spray — meant I couldn’t spank her for the initial failure, but I’d planned to tell her she’d have another session with my belt if I caught her not being aware of her surroundings again.

However, that conversation was the last thing on my mind as I drove her home.

What the fuck was bothering her? She’d flown into my arms when I first pulled up and everything was fine.

She practically raced into the shower when I got her to my house — and she locked the door. I could easily open it, but I gave her a little space.

But after thirty minutes, she’d had all the time and space I could give. I disengaged the lock with a tiny screwdriver, and sat on the toilet.

“Talk to me. I need to know what’s going on with you. What’s changed?”

“I told you already. You can’t kill them.”

In that moment, everything realigned in my head. She wasn’t okay with murder, and I’d let her know I could do it without any emotion. I’d thought she’d be okay because she hadn’t freaked when I told her why I went to prison, but that had been in the past. Knowing about it before it happened probably made her feel responsible.

Some of my brothers tell their ol’ladies everything, others tell them a little here and there, but a few of them don’t tell their women anything at all. I’d assumed Lexi would eventually be able to know everything, but I’d been wrong.

“Okay,” I lied. “I was pissed and thinking emotionally, but you’re right. We have to play this smart, and that means I can’t kill him. What would you consider a suitable alternative?”

She turned the water off, pulled the towel into the tub, and opened the door with the towel wrapped around her. It came down past her knees and made me want to pick her up, but I sat still.

“Beat him the hell up, or even rape his ass, since he probably had something similar planned for me, but you can’t kill him.”

I shook my head “I’ll never rape anyone’s ass in the real world, Lex. I have zero interest in…” I tried not to shudder. I can’t explain why it’s acceptable in one place and not another, but the thoughts of doing that out here, when I had so many other options available to punish him, made me physically ill.

She bent over and wrapped a smaller towel around her head, twisted it, stood, and tucked a piece inside itself so it stayed put.

“When I first went into foster care, it was like I’d been put on another planet. Then I made friends and went to their houses, and…” she shook her head. “A mom and a dad, cutting up, working together to cook and clean, and make sure the house ran smooth. I only thought that kind of thing happened on television, but there it was, right in front of me. We all went outside after midnight to see shooting stars, and it never occurred to anyone to be afraid. Another friend had this neighborhood block party in the street, and when the cops came to check on them, they ate food with the neighbors. No one was afraid of the cops. In fact, they parked a patrol car on either end of the party to make sure no one drove through, and even played this stupid cornhole game with us.”

She gave me the biggest, saddest puppy dog eyes, and her scent went so sour I held my breath. “I promised myself I’d grow up and get a respectable job so I could live my life like that — not afraid of the cops, not afraid of my neighbors. Happy. Healthy. Money in the bank, food in the refrigerator, kids going to a safe school with teachers who can spend their time teaching instead of playing fight-club referee.”

And she didn’t think she’d get any of that with me, but she would. Well, most of it.

“You brought the first attack on yourself, and that’s okay, but I just want to point out your problems with the Playas started before you brought me in. I’m trying to fix that problem. Without me around, you’d have been hurt.”

She nodded.

“I’m still trying to fix the situation so you’ll be safe. Brain’s already told me I can’t kill them, but I was still attached to the idea when I made it to you. You’re both right, but that means I have to consider how best to convince them to leave you the fuck alone. As for the rest, if you’ll come to one of our parties, you’ll see cops and detectives there. Maybe even a few FBI guys. We invite them. Some of the cops feel like we make their job easier by keeping drug sales out of our territory, others see us as vigilantes and don’t approve. Gonzo’s kids go to a fancy schmancy private school. Duke and Gen are considering trying to get their kids into the same school when it comes time. The public school I’m zoned for is excellent, but I’ll probably consider the same school for my kids, if I ever have any.” I chuckled. “Don’t think there’s any shootin’ stars tonight, but we can wake at midnight and go look for them, if you want.”

“It isn’t the same and you know it.”

“I’m a mechanic, and I make a damned good taxable income. More than I ever thought I would. I also have a substantial non-taxable income. Yeah, I’m an ex-con on parole, but I won’t apologize for it. I’m a biker, and everyone in the MC is my family — brothers and ol’ladies. I’m just getting my new house set up, but give me some time and it’ll be a home, not just a house. This is who I am. I’m crazy about you, but if you can’t accept me as is, you’re probably right — this won’t work.”

“I can’t please you in bed. You only wanted me the one time, and you haven’t…”

I pulled her to me. “You’re still sore from that one time, and you’ve had homework every evening, and it was late when you finished. I have big plans for us tomorrow night, but I got carried away and you needed time to heal.”

“I haven’t complained a single time about being sore! How could you possibly know how I feel!?”

I could smell the damage, and I knew the raw tissues gave her pleasant memories and she didn’t regret a thing, but I also knew she needed a little more time.

“Am I wrong? Are you telling me you aren’t even a little sore three days later?”

She looked down. “Etta would’ve been able to take you and then get back to work.”

“I don’t want your sister.”

“You did.”

“No. It was a business arrangement, and you know I have no intention of following through.” I put my finger under her chin and lifted until she was looking me in the eyes. “I do not want your sister. I want you in my life, in my bed, in my kitchen, and on my bike. I want you, Half-pint.”

Please don’t break my heart.

I couldn’t bring myself to say the last part out loud, but damn, she couldn’t just walk away from me. How had I grown so motherfucking attached to her in a week?

I put my hands on her hips, picked her up and moved her, stood, and walked out of the room. I turned to look at her from the hallway.

“I’m gonna make grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup. Join me in the kitchen?”

Her face softened and she nodded.

Comfort food fixes shit.

Lexi

---

Etta hadn’t been able to cook a lot of complicated stuff when she was six or seven, but she could cook the shit out of grilled cheese when mama had actually gone to the store for groceries. Etta would make me cheese toast to go with my tomato soup, but Bubbles’ grilled cheese sandwich with the soup was perfect.

He’d used a couple of different kind of cheeses, and no telling how much butter, and it was divine. Melt-in-your-mouth good. Before Bubbles, I’d have said orgasmic, but now that I’d had them from the Master of Orgasms, I knew better.

And that thought made my heart shatter in my chest all over again. I breathed out and tried not to cry. “You made me fall in love with you, and then you talked about killing someone like it was no big deal.” I stared at my soup and spoke softly.

“I was pissed.” He sighed. “I’m not sure you saw this.” He scooted his phone in front of me and a video started playing. It took me a second to realize I was seeing the alley behind the tattoo shop, and that the woman I was looking at with hair like mine was me.

I watched it from beginning to end, and then restarted it and watched again.

My gaze rose and met his, and I saw his anger and pain.

“You’re mine, if you’ll have me,” he said, his eyes fierce. “I can’t ever watch anything like this again. I need to be sure I do something so fucking intense, it’s clear you’re off limits.”

I nodded. “I get that, but premeditated murder is too much.”

“I won’t kill them. I give you my word.”

And his word meant something. I nodded. “Okay.” I glanced at my phone to see how late it was, and looked back to Bubbles. “I need to look over my notes before a test tomorrow, but I’m beat. I’ll set my alarm for thirty minutes early in the morning. That’ll probably be better anyway — closer to the test.”