Vidalia

⊱✿ ✿⊰

Long after changing my clothes and calling Reg, I sit in a chair in Gunnar’s parents’ master bedroom. I run my fingers over the gray sweatpants I borrowed. My gaze flashes to his mom’s dresser and I consider changing into a pair of shorts. Except I don’t want Gunnar to see my knobby knees.

I glance to the closet and wonder if I could fit in a pair of jeans. Deciding I should focus on something beyond Gunnar’s reaction to my appearance, I stand and walk to the door.

My hand hesitates, and my heart races. I hear the shots in the alley again. Closing my eyes, I steady my breathing and remind myself I’m safe here with Gunnar –– a criminal biker I blew off a few days ago.

Still uneasy, I return to the bed and work to steady my nerves.

My brother hadn’t believed my story. However, when Reg asked straight out if he should get involved, I said no. He only agreed to back off if I’d call him every few hours.

Now I’m wondering if I should call Reg back and ask for help. In fact, the longer I’m alone in the bedroom, the more convinced I become that Gunnar is the real threat.

I look around the room, noticing family photos on the wall. They seem like normal smiling people in the pictures, but I’ve heard stories about the Reapers Motorcycle Club. Rumor has it my old elementary school principal got on their bad side, and that’s why he disappeared.

By the time Gunnar knocks on the door, I’m nearly in tears. I don’t know what to do. I could climb out the window and run to the road where I might find help. But what about the guys with the guns earlier? Do I know if Gunnar is more dangerous than the one who took a shot at me?

Unable to run, I answer the door with the plan to say I’m tired and want to rest.

Then I see Gunnar’s sad, brown eyes, and the fear fades enough for my curiosity to get the best of me.

“Did you find everything?” he asks.

His tone aims for casual. The only problem is Gunnar’s size crowds the doorway, making him more intimidating than relaxed.

“Yes,” I say, taking a step forward, so he’ll move back.

Gunnar shifts his tall frame aside and allows me to walk past him to the living room.

Sitting on the couch, I stare at the dark TV on the wall.

“Do you want to watch something?” he asks, standing too close.

“Not really.”

Gunnar shuffles to the kitchen and brings me a soda can. Once he places it on the table in front of me, he sits in a nearby chair.

“Are you hungry?”

“No.”

Gunnar chews on his bottom lip, looking like a huge, scolded kid.

“Are you close to your parents?” I ask when he stares at his hands.

His face lights up just a hint. “Yeah. How about you?”

“Reg and I are pretty tight, but he has a family and works a lot.”

“How about your mom and dad?”

“Dad’s in an assisted care facility, and I’m not allowed at my mom’s house.”

Gunnar’s expression shifts from irritation to confusion before he wears the sweetest curious face I’ve ever seen. “What’s wrong with your dad?”

“He got drunk and crashed his car into a tree. He was fine from the crash, but then he got out and walked into the street and was hit by another car. It scrambled his brain and broke his spine.”

“Does he live in Pema?”

“The facility is closer to Lexington.”

“Do you get to see him much?”

“He doesn’t understand I’m his daughter. He thinks I should still be eleven like when he had his accident. The last time I went with Reg, Dad flirted with me, and my brother went ballistic. My dad doesn’t understand who we are and Reg has trouble thinking of our father as anyone besides the jerk who messed up our family. So, to answer your question, no, I don’t visit him much.”

“I’m sorry. I have a club brother who fucked up his brain in an accident. He gets angry randomly and forgets things. It’s been hard on his family.”

“Most days, I don’t even think about my dad. I know that sounds mean, but his life and mine haven’t been connected in a long time.”

Gunnar looks awkward now, so I open the soda and take a sip. Resting back on the couch, I pull my legs against my chest and smile at him over my knees.

“It’s not that bad,” I tell him.

“It sounds pretty bad.”

“Because you hear it from outside my family. From the inside, it’s just something that happened. Don’t you have stuff like that with your family?”

Cracking his knuckles, Gunnar clearly remembers something, but he doesn’t share.

“I guess everyone does,” he says and then adds before I push for details, “What’s the deal with your mom?”

I tighten my arms around my legs and rest my chin on my knees. “My mom likes men, and sometimes, those men like me. Get it?” Gunnar’s gaze narrows, and I see a guy I ought to fear. “I moved in with my brother when I was fifteen and only see Mom when she visits Reg’s house.”

“That sounds worse than the dad stuff.”

“I’m sure it does. So, if we’re sharing, why don’t you tell me about your parents?”

Wiping his hands on his raggedy jeans, Gunnar shakes his head. “That seems like a cruel idea. I’d be a jerk to kick you while you’re down. Especially after what happened earlier.”

“I think I can handle it.”

“All right, but stop me if it sounds like I’m bragging too much.”

Sharing his smile, I love the way Gunnar looks when he mentions his family.

“My parents have been married for thirty years. Dad is the strong silent type. Mom’s got a real tender heart. They took good care of me and my younger sister, Heidi. We grew up in the club, and that probably seems scary or something, but it never was. The club guys and old ladies were extended family. Their kids are like my cousins. So, let’s just say I had a good childhood.”

“You should brag. Some people aren’t built to be parents. I’m glad yours are.”

My words awaken something intense in Gunnar’s eyes, making me shiver. His intensity is both terrifying and arousing. I’m accustomed to fear, but no man’s ever stirred hot lust in my gut before. We fall silent, both unable to put into words what’s happening between us.