Afternoon around the Square in Bowling Green was different depending on what time of year it was, Christine was learning. In the late summer or early fall, there were usually concerts in the park, or they were setting up for the Saturday "buy local" events. Now that they were moving into the winter months, she noticed that it wasn't as busy throughout the day, and at lunchtime it was downright dead. She never seemed to know what would happen from day to day, but she liked that. Routine had been something that Clinton had thrived on, and while she did like a little bit of routine, there was another part of her that liked to live by the seat of her pants. That part of her was Jagger through and through. The phone rang, and she jumped before shaking her head and picking it up."Thank you for calling the Curly-Q, can I help you?"She always had to bite back a snicker whenever she pronounced the name of the hair shop she now worked at, but she loved this place. She didn't know now what
"It was the summer we turned sixteen," Rooster started. "We were wild," he pointed to Liam, "and my parents didn't know what to do with me. Up until then, I had done whatever they told me to do, but that summer—it was all about rebellion."Liam couldn't help the half-grin that spread across his face. "Hell, even old William didn't know what to do with me. We'd both gotten a couple of piece-of-shit bikes out of the scrapyard, and we'd worked the last half of the school year putting them together. They were in good enough shape to run—not to run for a long time, but run, and that's all we needed."Rooster picked up the sentiment. "We just needed the wind through our hair and the open road in front of us. The open road didn't care what kind of grades we made, what time we came home, who we made out with behind the clubhouse." His eyes sought out Roni and a flash of recognition showed there."As much as Rooster's parents didn't want him hangin' out with a boy whose dad was the leader
Waiting until Christine got off work was one of the hardest things that Travis had ever done. He'd given himself a pep talk about what a pussy he was being, how he needed to man up and tell this woman what he needed her to do. He'd told himself he needed to tell her there would be no more of this secrecy, that she was going to be truthful with him. If she couldn't be truthful, he was going to cut her loose. That's what he'd told himself.As her car pulled into her driveway, the fight almost went out of him. He had never been the one that all the women looked up to, he didn't have the air of authority that Liam had, the dangerous edge that Tyler did, the good looks that got Jagger everything he wanted, or the wounded soul that Layne carried around (as he should) like a badge of honor. Travis had always been plain Pete. Nothing was special about him, except for his mind. Now, he was scared that this woman had used it, not in the way that other people used it, but used it to get to him
"Clinton was a very bad man," she started. Finally, he had a name. Even with just a first name, sometimes he could find out who people were. He was one of the best at what he did, no matter who or what he usually did it for. "In what way?" he asked, even though he had some sort of idea. It seemed like it would help to ask her questions, that way she didn't have to necessarily offer anything. She appeared to struggle with the answer, even though he had provided the question. "He was mean. You know how some people are just evil? That was him." There had been a glint to his eye, even the first day she'd come to the home. The way he looked at her, it was as if someone was walking on her grave, and at that point, she'd known she was in trouble. She had begged her father not to leave her there, had prayed that Jagger would show up every day, but he never came, and her father never came back either."When did you find out?" He was storing all the information in his head, so that he co
The thought of running had crossed Christine's mind many times the night before, especially after she had put on her show for Travis, but something happened in the early hours of the morning. She wondered when it would stop. When would she be able to stop running? When would she ever be able to have a normal life again? It was at her fingertips right now, and she knew that. What would it help anyone if she just gave up? Why did she fight so hard to leave if she was going to live the rest of her life in fear? It was 5 AM when she texted Travis and let him know that he could come get her. The best place for her to be was obviously at the Heaven Hill clubhouse, even if that meant seeing Jagger again. She hated that she was going to spring this on him, that she wasn't going to be able to ease him into it, but perhaps that was for the best. Especially, if like everyone said, he thought her dead. Hell, he might not even recognize her now; after everything that had happened, sometimes she
"So this is the infamous Christine Stone?"Christine did her best not to be intimidated by the man who stood before her, but authority oozed off of him in waves. He wore it like a badge of honor—it almost reminded her of Clinton."This is her." The don't-be-a-dick tone of Travis' voice told Liam that maybe he had laid it on a little too thick, but they were all on edge. Someone was threatening the club and members of their family."Why don't you have a seat?" he asked, sitting at his kitchen table.She did so, breathing a sigh of relief when Travis sat down beside her. She was half afraid that Liam would say he couldn't be a part of what was starting to feel very much like an interrogation."I'm not trying to scare you, honestly I'm not," Liam started, as he reached over and pulled a cigarette out of a pack that sat on the table. "You want one?" he offered it to her.After her experience moments before, she wasn't sure she ever wanted to touch a cigarette again in her life.
Travis sat in his cave later that night, checking on Heaven Hill's interests. As he scanned the cameras, he saw a car pull up to Roni's apartment building. It wasn't unusual for someone to park in her other parking spot, but this car looked familiar. Doing what he did best, he tapped into the Wi-Fi of the apartment building's security cameras and zoomed in."Well, I'll be damned," he chuckled. Rooster was making his way up the sidewalk, and miracle of all miracles, he wasn't dressed in his sheriff's uniform. Dare he say that Rooster looked like he was about to go out on a date? He shook his head as Roni let his cousin in and quickly shut the door. He clicked out of that feed and took a look at everything else. It all looked closed up for the night, and he was exhausted. The last few weeks had taken a lot out of him, and all he wanted to do was close his eyes for a week and catch up on all the sleep that he missed. It wasn't unusual for him to go on little sleep, but it was star
Lying down in the bed together had been one of the most awkward things that either one of them had ever experienced. The tension was so thick that it could have been cut with a knife."Is lying in bed with a man always this awkward?" she asked softly as she turned to face Travis, careful not to touch him.That comment struck him as odd, but he tried to make a joke anyway. "I don't know, I've never been in bed with a man before. Besides, you were married."She still was married, but she hated to focus on that. "Yeah, but we never slept in the same bed together."His eyebrow rose. "Never?" That was supposed to be one of the major perks of putting a ring on it. The fact that you could go to bed and reach over whenever you wanted to either be close or, if you were feeling the need, fuck her until you fell back asleep. "Nope." She shook her head. The sound of her hair moving against the sheet was loud in the stillness of the room."He only came to visit me for, what do priso
The temperature in the cab of the truck was downright frigid as Remy drove to Tyler's house to drop off Addie first. Tatum refused to meet his gaze and that flat out pissed him off. If she was going to give herself to another man and then have the balls to sit in front of him like this, she should at least have the decency to meet his eyes when he looked at her."Am I going to have to explain to Tyler why I'm dropping you off at one in the fucking morning?" Remy glanced in the review mirror of the truck, looking back to where Addie sat in the extended cab."No," she shook her head, looking about as tired and unhappy as he felt. "He's at the clubhouse. He and Mom had planned to stay and they took Caelin with them."Well, thank God for small favors, because the one person besides Liam he didn't want to face off with tonight, was Tyler."You're lucky I don't call him and tell him where the hell you've been. How could you let her go up there with him?" he questioned her, the irrita
Tatum's heart beat through her chest as she followed Gavin upstairs to a much quieter part of the house. Her mouth was dry – the result of her nerves, or the alcohol she'd consumed – she wasn't sure which. Her hand gripped Gavin's tightly, but she knew it wasn't because she was excited, it was because she wanted to yank on it, and stop him from leading her into the empty bedroom. Part of her wanted to put a stop to it, the other part wanted to go through with this so she could throw it in Remy's face. Those stubborn traits she'd inherited from her dad were alive and well tonight.She glanced over her shoulder, spotting Addie pulling out her phone and making a call. The worried look on her friend's face told her all she needed to know. Addie was probably calling in reinforcements and her time had suddenly become very limited."You feelin' good?" his deep voice questioned in her ear, causing her hair to stand up and goosebumps to appear on her arms. This time it was different than wh
Remy was in a piss-poor mood, had been since the night of the Christmas party and everything that had gone down with Tatum. He bit off the head of anyone foolish enough to ask if he was okay. He'd been eating lunch by himself, and overall had been a miserable fucking loner. Even right now, while everyone else was partying their asses off, his big date was being in the gym and beating the ever-loving shit out of a heavy bag. It was the only thing that seemed to calm him the last few days.Hearing his fists connect with the bag felt good, even if it was muted by the gloves he wore. His arms burned, his shoulders and back ached, his chest heaved, and sweat poured down his forehead and into his eyes; making them sting. The sting felt good though, because it distracted him from the guilt he felt for the way he'd treated Tatum. And that guilt was pressing down on him like he was trapped under a thousand-pound boulder.He'd felt every emotion on the spectrum since she'd walked out on him
Tatum's blue eyes took in the party-goers around her. In different parts of the room, she could see members of her graduating class, some kids that were now seniors, and a few college kids. God, this had never been her thing, she'd never found high school or college parties worth anything to her. She could see everything that went on at them and more, at the club parties. Plus, this was a mob mentality – everyone here went along with everyone else, and it was so boring. Nobody had any individuality. Normally, she'd have tossed the invitation in the trash can and not even thought twice about it. She would have spent the night at the club's New Year's party and have an actual good time with her friends and family.Tonight though, she was on a mission."Do you see anybody?" Addie asked as they surveyed the room.Tatum took a drink from the bottle of Strawberry Boone's Farm she carried in her hand. It was the bottom shelf stuff, guaranteed to get you loaded in the least amount of tim
Tatum had never felt anything like the all-consuming lust that blasted through her as soon as Remy grabbed her hip and pulled her deep into his body. She'd thought she had but damn, she was wrong. Her fingers grasped at his shirt, trying to ground herself in the feelings, when she felt his bare palms slip up under the hem of her dress. The sharp intake of breath, and the way he nipped at her lip indicated he'd discovered she'd worn a thong."Fuck, Tate," he moaned as he pulled his lips from hers.She almost cried as he abandoned her lips and smeared his mouth down her neck. She felt the sharp nip of his teeth down to the core of her body. It caused her nipples to tighten further against the lace of strapless bra, and before she knew what she was doing, she was rubbing up against him."Please, Rem," she gasped out when she felt one of his hands on her ass venture back over her hip, and closer to the wetness and heat she felt between her thighs."Has anybody touched you?" he grow
He knew the second she walked in, just like he'd known when she'd entered the bakery. Even seven shots of Pappy in, he could feel her, he knew she was there by the way the hair on the back of his neck stood up, the goosebumps he got on his arms and the way his dick stirred to attention. He wasn't sure what kind of hold Tatum Walker held over him, but it was strong, maybe dangerously so, like some sort of Jedi Mind Trick he'd never be able to resist. And dammit if his hand didn't shake as he took his next shot."Too much for you?" Drew asked as he noticed the slight tremble of the other man's hand.How did he tell the man sitting beside him, he was hard up for his little sister? Easy. He didn't."Nah, I'm good, but I gotta hit the head. Be back."Plan number two when plan number one didn't work? Run and hope she wouldn't follow. As much alcohol as he had consumed, he wasn't sure he could push her away this time. After all, he was only a man and he wasn't immune to the way she lo
He should have brought a date. Those were the first words Remy thought when he walked through the door of the clubhouse. It hit him like a ton of bricks, and all he wanted to do was turn around and head back to Cash and Harper's. Normally, he lived at the clubhouse, but he'd had dinner at their place tonight. He could relieve the babysitter watching Maddy, and he wouldn't have to worry about keeping his guard up.Couples were paired off, which meant anyone without a plus one would be inevitably thrown together. Looking up, he saw mistletoe was hung randomly around the room. Shit. Since he was the youngest, he seemed to be one of the few without a woman on his arm. Sure as the world turned, he'd find himself thrown toward someone tonight.Gazing around the room, he didn't see Tatum and for that he was extremely thankful. He'd been able to avoid her since the day at Harper's bakery, but it'd hadn't been easy. Not that she'd gone out of her way to be around him but they were in the sa
Remy told himself to slow down as he grasped her neck, hauling Tatum closer to him. He cautioned his lust-drunk body not to make a fool of itself. He warned his libido not to let this go too far. They were in the middle of the bakery, in the middle of downtown. Anyone could walk through that door from some dumbass off the street, to her brother, to her dad. But he couldn't stop, couldn't force his hand not to trail down her body and grasp her tight ass in his fingers. He wanted desperately to pull her lower half into his, wanted to shove his thigh between her legs and feel the heat he knew would be there. His tongue was forceful as it made its way into her mouth, testing how far she'd let him go.Turned out she'd let him go as far as he wanted to.His brain tried to warn him that this was progressing too quickly. It was getting too out of control, too fast. If he didn't watch it, he'd be picking her up and putting her ass first against the nearest wall. He was losing his mind, losi
Son of a bitch. Something in the way Tatum's gaze met his made him think he'd said those words loud enough she could hear them. But fuck, she looked amazing. Even more than she usually did. Tatum had been gorgeous for a long time, but with her hair in this new cut, she looked sexy, and almost… sophisticated. But this was Tatum. She'd never fully be a lady, not really. She didn't do dresses unless she had to, she didn't do caked on makeup, and she could hang with the guys – no matter how raunchy it got."Do you like it?" She asked again, this time looking much more unsure than when she'd started out. Very slowly, she ran her fingers through her hair, giving it a tousle.Remy cleared his throat, not sure how honest he wanted to be, but at the same time knowing he couldn't help but be honest. If he lied to her, she would know, and it would do nothing to help the situation they seemed to always find themselves in. The two of them always seemed to be either pushing or pulling at each ot