Chapter 6: Take a Little Trip With Me

Cyrus

I knew Blayze would rip me a new one if he found out, but something in Harlow's big brown eyes made it hard to turn her down. I melted a little looking into them. So, I grabbed an extra helmet from the garage and tossed it her way.

"Come on," I said as I straddled my bike. Grinning from ear to ear, Harlow put on the helmet and hopped on behind me. Her arms wrapping around me felt natural somehow. I started up the bike and headed west.

We sped by the post office, the grocery store, the gas station, and the greasy diner, all of which were neutral territory between the Howlers and the Blood Dogs. I kept on going, and we passed the "Now leaving Gnaw Bone" sign.

"I thought you were going to show me around the town!" she said, just barely audible over the motor.

"That's pretty much it," I replied. "I'm giving you the scenic tour."

After a few miles, I went south on a dirt road toward the canyons. The Bone Hills. Soon we were winding uphill on a dirt road. The sun was getting lower in the sky, and I knew the perfect spot to watch the sunset.

Higher and higher, we climbed. I heard Harlow squeal as she looked down at the dead drop off the side of the road. We finally came to my favorite lookout over the town at the top of a plateau. A place I went when I wanted to be alone. Not even Blayze knew about this spot.

When the bike finally came to a stop, we dismounted and removed our helmets. The lights of Gnaw Bone glowed below us to the east as the sky melded into hues of orange and purple over the desert to the west.

"Wow," Harlow let out. "You can see everything from up here. It's beautiful."

"A lot better than a handful of businesses on Main Street, huh?" I asked over her shoulder. I realized then that I'd stepped really close to her. Close enough to smell her sweet scent.

Harlow

Cyrus's breath tickled my ear. I looked up at him over my shoulder and noticed that my cheek lined up perfectly with his broad shoulders. "A perfect resting spot to lay my head," I thought. But I didn't do that.

"So, do you bring all the girls up here?" I joked.

"Only the cute ones," he replied. "Actually, I usually only come up here alone."

"To howl at the moon?"

He laughed. "Sometimes. But mostly to watch the sunset or look at the stars. It's peaceful up here."

"You're so different from any other biker," I mused.

"You know a lot of bikers, I take it?"

"I've moved around a lot," I said, keeping it vague. "Been through lots of small towns. Stopped at my fair share of roadside diners and bars. Living like that, you're bound to come across an MC or two."

He stepped away from me a little. I wished that he hadn't.

"Well, I'm honored to be the one to break the mold," he said, looking off toward the lowering sun.

"Can I ask you something?"

"I suppose."

"The Blood Dogs said you all used to be one pack," I began. "But a bunch of you split off to follow Blayze instead of Bonnie."

"Yeah?"

"Why did you go with Blayze? I mean, you just don't seem to have the same…" Unsure of how to phrase it, I finally blurted out, "He's kind of an a**hole."

Cyrus smirked a little. "Yeah, he can be a d*ck."

"Did you just hate the idea of a woman as Alpha that much?"

"Is that what you think I'm like?" he asked.

"Well, the little I've gotten to speak to you, I wouldn't think so. But then why leave the Blood Dogs?"

Cyrus let out a sigh. "It's complicated."

"That's, like, the most indirect answer possible," I challenged.

"Blayze is my best friend," he replied. "I've known him since we were pups, back when Bonnie's dad was Alpha. Did anyone tell you Blayze's dad was Beta to Bonnie's dad?"

That was definitely new information. "No, I didn't know that."

"Beta Jessie Rollins," he said as if he was letting the name live in the air for a moment. "He was a harda**, but he was always kind to me. He and Blayze's mom, Arlene, took me in."

"Took you in?"

"After I lost my parents," he explained. "Blayze was a couple years older than me, and he became like a real big brother. They were my family."

"You lost..." I began but stopped myself from giving him the third degree. I didn't want to push him.

Cyrus walked over to the edge of the plateau and sat down. I followed him but remained standing.

"When I was fourteen," he said, "my dad died. He was a Blood Dog, too. Alpha Black's Road Captain. They were doing some business in Mexico. Supposedly going down there to help people get out of a trafficking ring, but it was all a front. Instead, they were met by hunters."

"'Hunters?'" I repeated, taking a seat next to him.

"Werewolves live pretty secret lives," he said. "But some people—underground organizations—know about us. They make it their life's mission to find and kill werewolves. No one from Gnaw Bone had ever seen a hunter until that day. Hell, a lot of us thought they were just a myth. A scary story to tell little pups to make them behave. But that day, a lot of good wolves died taking silver bullets. My dad was one of 'em."

"I'm so sorry," was all I could think to say.

"My mom knew the second he died. She was making dinner one minute, and the next, she was screaming on the floor in agony. Once two werewolves are mated, the bond they share is a b*tch that way."

I hesitantly reached over and touched Cyrus's hand. Almost unconsciously, he took it and entwined his fingers with mine.

"If the mating bond is broken suddenly like that, it can leave a werewolf feeling hollowed out," he went on. "It physically hurts for months, sometimes years. After a while, my mom just couldn't take the pain anymore. So she ended it."

He sat in silence for several moments. He looked down at my hand in his as if he'd just realized it was there. His lips perked up in a slight smile at the realization. It felt nice knowing I could have that effect.

"So Blayze's parents took me in," he finally said. "They became my family. His mom put clothes on my back and food in my belly. When I was old enough, his dad gave me a job at the garage. That's why I went with Blayze and the Howlers. He's my brother."

He looked me in the eyes. Before I could stop myself, I found myself confessing, "I lost my parents, too." But I didn't offer any more information.

"Recently?" he asked.

"My mom died when I was little. My dad, he's…" I trailed off and let out a sigh. "That's a conversation for another day."

He nodded like there was an unspoken understanding between us.

"But I get it," I added. "Why you would stay with Blayze. Sometimes family isn't the one we're born into."

"That's why we can't keep doing this, you and me," he said. "Whatever this is. It's not that I don't want to, but this rivalry between the Howlers and the Blood Dogs is real. It might not seem like a big deal to an outsider, but people have died over the divide. We're not just MCs. We're packs."

My heart sank a little. I liked Cyrus, and the thought of sticking around for a little while, especially with him there, brought me a strange sense of hope I hadn't had in a long time. I noticed that he was still holding my hand. A gesture of intimacy so small, but that felt so good.

But Cyrus was right. Not just for him. For me. I really needed this job. Not to mention that Bonnie and Red were starting to feel like friends.

"So I guess we should go our separate ways, then," I said.

"We should," he confirmed, but he still didn't pull his hand away.

"And we shouldn't see each other again," I added.

"We shouldn't…" he paused for a second. "And we definitely shouldn't do this."

Before I could say, "Do what?" Cyrus leaned in to kiss me.