Page 39

“Yeah. Must’ve had some water on the floor. Slammed his face on the sink.”

“I think he broke his nose. Anyway, I sent him home.”

“Is the administrator in?”

“Yes. I’m going to check on Helen. She’s probably ready to go back to bed.”

After Goldie told the administrator that he didn’t want Kevin anywhere near his grandmother or he’d pull her out, he gave Helen a kiss on her cheek, grabbed Hailey’s hand, and headed out to the parking lot. In less than fifteen minutes he had a shot of whiskey in his hand and she had a bottle of beer in hers as they sat at a small table at Cuervos.

“How long have you been with the Night Rebels?” she asked.

“Since I got out of high school. I’d started hanging around their bike repair shop ever since I heard they had a used Harley for sale. I put a small down payment on it and would turn over most of my paycheck every two months to get it paid off. I got friendly with some of the guys and they invited me to a couple of their parties, and I ended up prospecting for them. I really liked the feeling of brotherhood among the members. I don’t know. It was like for the first time in my life, I belonged. I fit in.” He placed his empty shot glass down and gestured for another one.

“You didn’t like high school much, did you?”

He laughed. “I liked the parties and the chicks, but that was about all. There were so many pompous assholes. I see some of them in town in their suits acting so important. They glance at me and I see hints of respect and fear in their eyes when they pass me and my brothers on the street.”

“It must’ve been hard not having your dad around.”

“Yeah, well, that’s not why I joined the Night Rebels. Don’t try to psychoanalyze me. My mom bailed when we were young, then came back and tried to make us a family. The truth was my parents never should’ve been together. They fought all the time and we were caught in the middle. My grandparents saved us. If it wasn’t for them, I don’t know where we would’ve ended up.”

“I can’t imagine how hard it must’ve been with your mom and dad going back and forth like that.”

“Yeah. There’d be periods when they were all lovey-dovey, but then they’d start fighting and throwing punches and shit at each other. They’d be separated for a while and we’d end up at my grandparents. When they’d reconcile, we’d move back in with them and the shit would start up all over again. It was fucking insane. But it was still better than them not being there anymore.”

“I can’t even imagine losing my parents, especially at the same time. It must’ve been real hard.”

Goldie’s jaw tightened. “Life happens. The good is great, the bad sucks, and you just have to deal with it. I take life as the moments come. How the fuck are you getting me to talk about all this shit?”

She smiled. “We’ve known each other a long time. I thought you were the coolest kid in the neighborhood. I used to wonder how you and Ryan got together. You guys seemed to be the opposite.”

“For the record, Iwasthe coolest kid in the neighborhood. And I met Ryan when he was on the ground and three older kids were using him as a punching bag. I jumped in and we became close friends. He was the rational one and I was hot-tempered. We had a balance to our friendship. We still do.”

“And you’re still hot-tempered. I can’t believe you punched Kevin in the nose in your grandmother’s bathroom.”

He shrugged. “I didn’t like the way he treated my grandma.”

“Do you usually resolve your conflicts that way?”

“Pretty much. It works for me. End of story.”

“Aren’t you gonna introduce us to your pretty chick?” Army asked as he pulled out a chair and joined them.

“Move on, dude. She’s my best friend’s little sister.”

“And who isshe?”

The lustful sheen in Army’s eyes pissed the hell out of Goldie, but before he could say anything, Hailey smiled and held out her hand. “I’m Hailey.”

Army grasped it and held onto it a bit too long for Goldie’s liking. “I’m Army.” His gaze slipped down to her ample bust.

“Let go of her hand,” Goldie said.

Army raised his eyebrows and grinned as he released her. That grin told Goldie he was going to have a good time ribbing him later on after he told all the brothers that Hailey had Goldie’s balls.

“Hey, who’s your lady?” Sangre said as he and Paco came over to the table. The vulture-like attitude around a pretty, stacked woman was one aspect of the brotherhood he didn’t like, especially since their hungry eyes were fixed on Hailey’s tits. Although, he couldn’t blame them—Hailey was a biker’s wet dream. Hell, she was most men’s wet dreams. And he’d be acting just like his brothers if he’d spotted one of them with a woman like her. But since she was someone he knew and respected, he didn’t like the way they were looking at her.

“Back the fuck off. She’s a good friend of mine. Show some respect.”