the lurch. She wants out of the biker world and she wants to protect her daughter. Rex threatened to fight her every step of the way if she ever tried to divorce him, so she needs to get her evidence together before she files her divorce papers. I just need one picture of him doing something wrong—infidelity, drugs—anything that makes him look like a bad father and a bad husband. Problem is, I’ve been following him for a week and he’s been squeaky clean.”
Jackie refilled the bowl from the bag of chips on her lap and handed it back to Lana. “Well, if you won’t drop the case, you need to get closer, maybe even into the clubhouse.”
“As a matter of fact, I have an invitation.” Lana shoved a chip in her mouth and savored the crisp saltiness on her tongue. “From the high king himself.”
“So what’s the problem?”
Lana sighed. “I might have acted a bit rashly.”
“You?” Jackie widened her eyes and grabbed at her heart. “Rash? I can’t believe it.”
“Sarcasm is the weapon of the weak.” Lana glared, but Jackie just laughed her off.
“So is self-delusion.”
Lana’s shoulders sagged. “Heartless Bastard does it to me every time. He makes my blood boil faster than anyone I’ve ever met. I really don’t want to go to the clubhouse. But Rex invited me to the barbeque and almost immediately Heartless Bastard said no. Then Heartless Bastard called me this morning—he still has my number, although his showed up as unlisted—to warn me away. That just got my back up. I mean, it’s the perfect way for me to get the evidence I need, and he didn’t even open it up for discussion.”
Jackie rolled her eyes. “Uh-oh.”
“Can you imagine?” Lana shook her finger at her friend and lowered her voice to a deep, menacing James-like growl. “‘You are not going anywhere near that clubhouse’, he says to me. ‘No fucking way.’ He swears a lot now that he’s a biker. I mean a lot . He said ‘fuck’ more times in our two meetings than I heard him say in the six months we were together. And his hair is deliciously long. And he wears hot biker clothes. And he has a mouth-watering bike.”
A grin spread across Jackie’s face. “You’d think after going out with you for almost six months he would know he was pretty much waving a red flag in front of a bull by telling you how it is.”
“Actually, we never talked that much when we were dating. He was always busy, and I was busy, and when we got together we usually had wild sex and then went to sleep, and then one of us would have to leave to go to work in the morning.”
“Sounds rough. Where can I get some of that?” Jackie’s eyes dimmed for a heartbeat, and then she looked away.
Lana immediately regretted bringing up James. Although Jackie always had men panting after her and took a fair number to her bed, she couldn’t sustain a relationship. Something had happened to her during her years on the streets that made her run whenever she thought things were getting too serious. Lana had tried to drag it out of her, but Jackie had always kept that vault firmly closed, hiding it, like her other secrets, behind her infectious exuberance and outgoing personality.
Lana handed over the chip bowl and rolled her eyes as Jackie nibbled on a crumb. “We don’t have to talk about him. I mean, you must be sick—”
“So you told him you were going?” Jackie cut her off with an admonishing eyebrow, and then licked her lips as if she’d just eaten a family pack of chips instead of a fingernail-size morsel.
Lana shrugged. “Of course I did…for Angel’s sake.”
Jackie snorted. “Sure. For Angel’s sake. Even if I did buy that line, what’s the problem? Go to the barbeque. Get the pictures. Stare at Heartless Bastard’s leather-clad ass. Case closed. Move on.”
“I don’t think I can do it.” Lana’s voice dropped to a hoarse rasp. “I haven’t been in a biker clubhouse since I escaped from Levi. After I cooled off
Jackie refilled the bowl from the bag of chips on her lap and handed it back to Lana. “Well, if you won’t drop the case, you need to get closer, maybe even into the clubhouse.”
“As a matter of fact, I have an invitation.” Lana shoved a chip in her mouth and savored the crisp saltiness on her tongue. “From the high king himself.”
“So what’s the problem?”
Lana sighed. “I might have acted a bit rashly.”
“You?” Jackie widened her eyes and grabbed at her heart. “Rash? I can’t believe it.”
“Sarcasm is the weapon of the weak.” Lana glared, but Jackie just laughed her off.
“So is self-delusion.”
Lana’s shoulders sagged. “Heartless Bastard does it to me every time. He makes my blood boil faster than anyone I’ve ever met. I really don’t want to go to the clubhouse. But Rex invited me to the barbeque and almost immediately Heartless Bastard said no. Then Heartless Bastard called me this morning—he still has my number, although his showed up as unlisted—to warn me away. That just got my back up. I mean, it’s the perfect way for me to get the evidence I need, and he didn’t even open it up for discussion.”
Jackie rolled her eyes. “Uh-oh.”
“Can you imagine?” Lana shook her finger at her friend and lowered her voice to a deep, menacing James-like growl. “‘You are not going anywhere near that clubhouse’, he says to me. ‘No fucking way.’ He swears a lot now that he’s a biker. I mean a lot . He said ‘fuck’ more times in our two meetings than I heard him say in the six months we were together. And his hair is deliciously long. And he wears hot biker clothes. And he has a mouth-watering bike.”
A grin spread across Jackie’s face. “You’d think after going out with you for almost six months he would know he was pretty much waving a red flag in front of a bull by telling you how it is.”
“Actually, we never talked that much when we were dating. He was always busy, and I was busy, and when we got together we usually had wild sex and then went to sleep, and then one of us would have to leave to go to work in the morning.”
“Sounds rough. Where can I get some of that?” Jackie’s eyes dimmed for a heartbeat, and then she looked away.
Lana immediately regretted bringing up James. Although Jackie always had men panting after her and took a fair number to her bed, she couldn’t sustain a relationship. Something had happened to her during her years on the streets that made her run whenever she thought things were getting too serious. Lana had tried to drag it out of her, but Jackie had always kept that vault firmly closed, hiding it, like her other secrets, behind her infectious exuberance and outgoing personality.
Lana handed over the chip bowl and rolled her eyes as Jackie nibbled on a crumb. “We don’t have to talk about him. I mean, you must be sick—”
“So you told him you were going?” Jackie cut her off with an admonishing eyebrow, and then licked her lips as if she’d just eaten a family pack of chips instead of a fingernail-size morsel.
Lana shrugged. “Of course I did…for Angel’s sake.”
Jackie snorted. “Sure. For Angel’s sake. Even if I did buy that line, what’s the problem? Go to the barbeque. Get the pictures. Stare at Heartless Bastard’s leather-clad ass. Case closed. Move on.”
“I don’t think I can do it.” Lana’s voice dropped to a hoarse rasp. “I haven’t been in a biker clubhouse since I escaped from Levi. After I cooled off
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