"My ass will be there. I'm craving some new pussy," Sangre said.
"You guys will have a good time. I'm passing. Breanna wants to go to the Wildlife Museum in Durango. We're gonna make a day of it." Steel pulled his black hair into a ponytail.
"Sweet pussy or a museum. Damn, that's a hard choice," Paco joked.
"Not for me. I get both. I wouldn't want it any other way," Steel replied.
"You down?" Sangre asked Goldie.
"I think I'm going to pass. I don't feel comfortable leaving the shop for the weekend."
"Tattoo Mike's not going. There's no way his old lady's gonna let him spend a weekend with a shitload of chicks," Paco said.
"What the fuck's up with that? He's the man. If he wants to go, he should go." Sangre frowned.
"He could do that, but he probably wants to have some peace for the next few months," Steel replied.
"And some lovin'," Paco added.
"That's why I'm aiming to stay single. No way am I having a chick tell me what the fuck I can and can't do. That's bullshit." Sangre motioned the prospect to bring him another beer as the brothers laughed.
"There's definitely something to be said about the single life. I'm not planning on changing that either." Paco took the beer from the prospect's hand.
"Me neither. There're plenty of chicks around. Who needs one to mess with your head and life? Just because she's fuckin' hot doesn't mean shit. There're plenty of hotties who're more than willing to spread for biker cock." Goldie stretched out his legs and looked at his brothers, who just stared at him. "What? I'm right, you know."
"Who's the chick who has your cock?" Paco asked as he scooped up a handful of pretzels the prospect had just brought over.
Red spots clouded Goldie's view. "No woman's got my cock. No way that shit's happening."
"Really? You sure are making a lot of fuckin' noise about it." Steel's blue eyes twinkled.
Goldie's jaw tightened. He turned to Sangre. "You know what I'm saying."
"I guess. But it does seem like you got someone's pussy on your mind."
"No fuckin' way. Pass the goddamn pretzels."
Paco pushed the bowl to Goldie, and Skull and Army came over. Soon the brothers were talking about their favorite topic-Harleys. As they conversed, Goldie's mind drifted to Hailey, as it seemed to be doing far too often. It pissed him off that he couldn't forget her and just take up with another chick. He'd thought that once he'd kissed her, he'd be done, but it'd only gotten worse.
When he'd seen her in his grandma's room, he'd almost left before she spotted him, but he couldn't. Watching her bent down, her shapely legs looking damn good in her shorts, he'd been rooted to the floor. All he'd wanted to do was watch her big tits sway as he took her from behind. He groaned at the visual in his head and quickly looked at his brothers to make sure no one heard. They were still enthralled with motorcycle talk.
He blew out a deep breath. What the fuck's up with me? Hailey's just a chick. A fucking hot, tempting one, but a chick nevertheless. There're a ton of them. I could call Kelly over right now and have her suck me good. Easy. But he didn't want Kelly down on her knees; he wanted Hailey's pink full lips wrapped around his hardness, her mouth gliding up and down it.
"Fuck," he muttered under his breath. He'd never been as attracted to a woman as he was to Hailey. And it wasn't just the "forbidden fruit" crap-although that was a huge plus. No, he'd felt a spark between them the night she'd come into the ink shop. Before he'd known it was her. When he'd seen her on her stomach, her cute ass waiting for him to design it, it'd taken all his strength to not run his finger between her folds. "Damnit!" he hissed as his cock throbbed, punching against his fly. I gotta stop this shit.
Goldie had to get his control back. As far back as he could remember, he'd never let a chick bother him. Even when he'd been attracted to Hailey back in high school, he hadn't acted on it. But it'd been different back then. She'd only been fourteen and he'd just turned eighteen, and she was Ryan's sister. She still is. Nothing had really changed except that she was a woman now and had needs he was dying to fill. When he was standing behind her in his grandmother's room, desire ribboned through him as the subtle scent of her perfume lured him closer. He'd almost dropped his head down near the curve of her shoulder and nuzzled her creamy flesh, just below her ear. It was a good thing Shelly had come by.
"Sign me up for the poker run." Jigger's hand on his shoulder pushed Goldie's thoughts backstage.
He looked up. "Sure. Bring your bike to Skid Marks and Diablo will check it out. He's putting a priority on all bikes that are going on the run next week." Jigger nodded and joined the growing number of brothers at the table.
Goldie's phone rang and he slipped it out of his cut. Ryan. Fuck. He jumped up and to the back porch.
"Hey, dude," Ryan said.
"Is your ass hot enough over there?" Goldie asked.
Ryan chuckled. "You can't believe how fuckin' hot it is. What laws have you broken since we last spoke?"
"Too many to tell you."
"I gotta ask a favor of you. Hailey's moved back to Alina. Our aunt Pat's laid up and needed her help in the flower shop," Ryan's voice crackled.
"We got a shitty connection here." Goldie sucked in his breath.
"Can you hear me better?"
"Yeah."
"Anyway, I just found out that her fuckin' ex-boyfriend's found out she moved to Alina. This guy was obsessed with her to the point that she had to take out a restraining order. It's times like this that I wish I were home so I could bust the fucker's face. The asshole hit her and she got out of there real quick, but he started stalking her."
Picturing Hailey with bruises on her from some sonofabitch made his blood boil. "You want me to watch out for him?"
"Yeah. It'd make me feel a lot better if I knew you had your eye on her. I'm not sure this asshole will come there, but he still tells people they're together."
"I got this. You gonna tell Hailey?"
"Not sure. She's been in Alina for eight months. I didn't tell you because I know what a wolf you are." His laugh broke up.
"It's hard hearing you, dude. I'll take care of it."
"Yeah, I can't hear you very well either. Watch Hailey."
"What's the fucker's name?"
"Nolan Colley. Fuck! I gotta go. Later."
"Ryan?" Silence. Goldie took out a joint, lit it, and inhaled deeply as he watched the leaves from the trees sway in the warm breeze. Ryan wanted him to protect Hailey from some asshole. He could do it, no problem. But who was going to protect Hailey from him?
You gotta get a grip on all this. Ryan was his best friend and needed him to help out his sister. Easy. All he had to do was remember he was there to watch out for Hailey and nothing more.
Nothing. More.
Right.
Fuck.
Chapter Eight
Sheriff Wexler chomped on his gum as he looked at Terri Crews, Mrs. Heller's daughter. The blonde lady leaned over his desk, her charm necklace clanking against it, and said, "Someone killed my mother. What're you going to do about it?"
He cleared his throat. "We have to first establish that your mother didn't die of natural causes. I spoke to your brother yesterday and he doesn't agree with you."
"He doesn't want any delays that will tie up his inheritance. He's only ever cared about the money since our mother became ill. He came by to see her maybe two times in the six months she was at Cherry Vale. I know my mom. I know how she was right before she died. I spent most of the day with her. She ate well, she was laughing, and she told me if she kept feeling better, she'd be home soon. Then she died? No. Something's wrong here."
"Your mother was eighty-three years old. Sometimes a person feels great right before they die. It happened to my grandfather. I'm just saying that, according to the medical reports, your mom was a very sick lady."
"Is that what Dr. Daniels told you?"
"I'm just going by the medical reports I reviewed at Cherry Vale."
"Well, talk to Dr. Daniels. He's as surprised as I am that my mom died. He told me she was doing well."
Wexler sighed and leaned back in his chair. He knew how hard it was to lose a parent. He'd buried his mother the previous Christmas, and it still made him choke up when he thought about her. Mrs. Crews was understandably upset over the death of her mother and was trying to make sense of it. Death slipped in when people least expected it, and for those who couldn't handle the shock, they tried to find ways of showing that the loss of a loved one happened too soon. Hell, whenever someone you love dies, it's too soon. We're never prepared.
"So are you going to look into this? I insist on an autopsy." Mrs. Crews rummaged through her purse, smiling wanly when he pushed the tissue box closer to her.
"Let me do some digging. If it looks like an autopsy is warranted, I'll order it. At this point, that's the best I can promise you."