Goldie(Night Rebels MC Romance Book 4)(5)

Being the lone rider on the road added to the experience of being one with nature. It was like he was the only one in the world surrounded by such beauty. The wind, the earthy scent, the cloudless sky all engulfed him, swallowing him and fusing with him until he surrendered to them. It was at that moment that he achieved his nirvana: head cleared, senses acute, weightless.                       
       
           



       

After a couple hours, he looped back and headed to Cherry Vale, the nursing facility where his grandmother resided. She'd been living there for the past two years after she fell and broke her hip. She should've been able to rehab and come home, but Alzheimer's made sure that would never happen. Since the disease had crept into her brain a few years before, she no longer understood how to follow the physical therapy instructions, so she ended up a permanent resident at the facility. Goldie paid for her care, which gave her a single room on the rehab floor, not the skilled nursing floor. It was a minor thing, but Goldie didn't want to think about his grandma living in a nursing home.

The double sliding doors opened into a lobby that looked like a living room on a movie set. A large aviary stood in the corner of the room, and several residents sat staring at the canaries and finches as they flitted. A few smiled and cocked their heads as the canaries' songs filtered into the area. Goldie turned the corner and entered the first door on his right.

He stood in the doorway taking in his grandma, who sat in her forest-green recliner watching the images flickering on her television set. She looks so frail and small. Even though Goldie came by several times a week to spend time with her, he was always blown away when he first entered her room. He wasn't sure he'd ever get used to how much her appearance had changed. In his mind, he still saw her as the robust, energetic woman who'd raised him, his two brothers, and his sister when their parents had crashed into a mountain during a storm. His father had been an avid pilot, having been in the Air Force. His mother was scared to death to fly in the twin-engine plane his father had bought, but she'd grit her teeth and do it knowing it made his dad happy.

His parents had gone to an old friend's birthday party in California, and when they were coming back to Colorado, a storm came up and their plane went off course. Goldie had always held on to the thought that they didn't see the mountain before they slammed into it. His maternal grandparents immediately took them in and raised them. They had taken them in on and off for a few years before his parents crashed. His mom had bailed on them and took off, and his father couldn't handle four young kids, so his grandma stepped up to the plate.

Then his mom had come back, and his parents had reconciled and family life had been back on track. Then they died. At first, Goldie's world seemed like a bad nightmare where everything was the same but it wasn't. But for a ten-year-old, life kept moving rapidly, distractions came up daily, and soon his parents became a memory. There were times when he'd think of them, but it was his grandparents who'd put up with him during his teen years and after.

"Hey, Grandma," Goldie said loudly.

Her pale blue eyes looked at him and a smile lit her lined face. "Garth," she said softly.

He went over and bent down, kissing her cheek. "How are you?"

She stared at him, the small twinkle of recognition replaced by a vacant look. He sighed and pulled up a chair next to her, grasped her bony hand in his, and watched the television. He hated the look of disconnection that had become more pronounced in the last few months.

"Your grandma's doing great," Shelly, the nurse, said as she came into the room with a small cup of applesauce.

"She looks too thin. Is she eating okay?" Goldie glanced at his grandma who didn't divert her gaze from the screen.

"She's up and down. Sometimes she'll eat real well and other times she won't take anything. We give her a protein drink on those days. How've you been?" She ran her eyes over his arms.

"Good." He knew she had the hots for him. Whenever she was on shift when he was there, she'd come into the room dozens of times. She told him she had a bike, a rice burner, and she often asked if he'd like to go riding together. Shelly was cute enough with her shapely legs, brown hair and eyes, but he wasn't interested. He knew she was the clingy type, and if he had a fling with her, she'd cause all kinds of problems. And he didn't want a pissed-off chick taking care of his grandma.

"You're looking real good. You been riding much?" She licked her lips, the applesauce still in her hand.

"I'm a biker. That's what I do. Is that for my grandma?" He pointed to the Dixie cup.

She laughed dryly. "Of course. Uh …  yeah. This is your grandma's medication." She went in front of the elderly woman and brought the spoon to her lips.

His grandmother opened up, then smiled. She craned her neck to Goldie. "Are you going to eat any? You and Chad used to love it when I made it. Homemade. None of that pre-made stuff." She smacked her lips as she took a few more spoonfuls.                       
       
           



       

Goldie laughed. "You made the best applesauce in town. Hell, you were the best cook in town. Remember how many blue ribbons you won in all those cook-offs?"

She nodded, smiling, and then the smile faded and the dementia pushed the slice of lucidity away. She stopped opening her mouth, and her gaze returned to the pictures on the screen.

"You just got to take them when they come," Shelly said softly as she ran her fingers through his grandmother's white hair.

"I do," he said in a low voice.

"I'll call in the aides to put Helen on her bed. She's been sitting too long." Shelly walked toward the door, then looked over her shoulder. "If you ever want to go out and get a cup of coffee, I'm available. I know how hard this is, and I understand what you're going through. Just reaching out to you."

"Thanks. I'll keep that in mind." Goldie turned back to his grandmother and wrapped his arm around her thin shoulders, resting his cheek against her head.

Two muscled men came in a few minutes later. One of the CNAs, Hendricks, told Goldie all about the Harley he'd just bought. Goldie welcomed the distraction, and he was always game for motorcycle talk. Kingsley, the other one, told Goldie he was thinking about buying a Honda bike, and Goldie decided it was his duty to talk him out of it.

A couple hours later, his phone pinged and he opened Chains's text.

Chains: 5605 Linda Vista Rd

Fuck yeah. He tipped his head back as a jolt of adrenaline coursed through him, and then he tightened up. What the fuck's the matter with me? I'm acting like an ass, and for what? A chick? But he knew it wasn't just for a chick. It was for Hailey, and he had to stop that shit pronto. I haven't seen or thought about her in years. This is fuckin' lame.

Well, that wasn't exactly true. He had thought about her, wondering how she was doing and how she looked. Ryan rarely talked about her, and if he did it was just in passing. Whenever Goldie would ask how she was doing, Ryan would just say she was fine and change the subject.

Glancing at his grandmother, he saw she was sleeping; she looked so peaceful. Leaning over, he stroked her cheek, then kissed it. "I'll see you soon," he whispered. He took out a CD from her drawer and placed it into the small player on the nightstand. "Moon River" was one of his grandma's favorite songs, so he hit the Play button and the piano and harp strains floated in the air. With one last look at her, he walked out the door.

Goldie jumped on his bike and glanced at the time. He had to be at Get Inked soon. He left the parking lot and headed in the direction of Hailey's address. As he waited for the light to change, a car with a couple of women pulled alongside him.

"I love your Harley," the passenger said as she stared at him.

He gave her a chin lift.

"Do you want to come to a party?" She ran her fingers right about her ample cleavage.

He shook his head.

"That's too bad, because me and my friend can be a lot of fun."

Normally, Goldie would take the busty redhead up on her offer, but he wasn't interested. He wanted something different from the same old thing.

He wanted Hailey, but he knew that was fucked.

When the light changed, he swung a U-turn.

Fuck it. I'm done with this.

He headed to the tattoo shop.





Chapter Four





"Brent is so excited about going out tonight. He really is a nice guy," Rory said as she nestled further into the massage chair at the nail salon.

"Don't make this into something big. We're just going out for dinner. And don't be pushy tonight." Hailey stared at her toes as the nail tech painted them. "I'm not so sure about this color. The blue seems too dark."

"I love the color. Do you like mine?"

Hailey looked at her friend's cotton candy pink color. "I do. It's perfect for the warm weather we've been having. This summer we've got to do a barbecue together. Wouldn't that be fun to have one around the pool?"

"You're so lucky that your aunt has a pool. It gets so hot here in the summer. I hate it." Rory picked up her bottled water.