I lifted a hand to offer a slight wave and waited between the shelves for her to checkout and leave the building. Then I slid the book back into its spot and pulled out my phone. Looked like I needed to find a cat, hopefully one that wouldn’t make my eyes water, and my throat swell up. At least not until after I had a chance to get my first kiss from Poppy.
CHAPTER 4
POPPY
He was out there.I could sense his eyes on me, even though I couldn’t see him. Standing on the front porch of my cabin with a mug of chamomile tea cradled between my hands, I took in a deep breath. The scent of pine mixed with moss centered me.
I loved living in these woods. When I first moved to the area, the solitude was more than a little disarming, but now I craved it. Would I ever find a place that soothed my soul as much as Mustang Mountain did?
Crank would never know it, but he was a huge reason I felt so comfortable here. Knowing he was keeping an eye on me made me feel safe. Having a biker watch me should have done the complete opposite, and it did freak me out a little at first. Then I got to know more about him, thanks to Ruby and her love of gossip.
Despite seeming like two complete opposites, Crank and I had a few major things in common. Neither one of us had any family. And from what I’d gathered from Ruby, we both carried scars from our past. Over the past several months, he’d earned my trust… at least as much trust as I could give a man.
I was going to have a hard time saying goodbye to this place. Taking a long look around the clearing in front of the cabin, Itightened my grip on my mug. I’d started over once. I could do it again.
Leaving the sounds of the evening behind me, I turned and entered the cabin. The door latched behind me, and I flipped the multiple deadbolts and safety lock I’d installed when I moved in. Deep down, I knew nothing would keep me safe if it came right down to it. I’d even thought about getting a dog, but that would slow me down when it came time to go and might make it difficult to find another rental. Thinking about a pet brought up the image of Crank standing in the library with that book in his hand.
Did he even have a cat? My gut said no, but beyond what Ruby had shared, I knew so little about him. I turned off the overhead light and headed to my bedroom. I’d replaced the gauzy sheer panels covering the windows with black-out curtains, but I could still feel Crank out there somewhere.
I changed into my pajamas and grabbed my ancient laptop before climbing into bed. As much as I loved the wildness of Montana, it might be easier to fly under the radar in a big city. I’d been researching the most affordable places to live and had narrowed it down to two: Oklahoma City or Augusta, Georgia. Neither location really appealed to me, but both had plenty of places I could land a server job and a large enough population that I could blend in, especially if I dyed my hair.
Feeling like I was living on borrowed time, I opened a browser to look for apartments for rent.
Crank
The light in the bedroom went out. I sighed. Another day had passed and along with it, another opportunity to tell Poppy how I felt about her. Protecting her from afar had been fine for the past several months, but I wanted more. My fingers ached to glide over her skin. I’d been imagining what she’d taste like for so long—like peaches and cream—I wanted to find out if I was right.
“Sweet dreams, my fiery flame.” I whispered into the darkness, hoping Poppy might dream of me.
The dry underbrush crackled nearby. I turned slowly, expecting to see a deer or elk. It was Hades. He padded over, his footsteps light, barely making a sound.
“Hey, buddy.” I ran a hand over his head and scratched behind his ears. “What have you been up to tonight?”
The big wolf didn’t answer, just stared up at me, with the moon reflecting in his dark eyes.
My phone pinged with a text from Atlas. A few guys from the Lonestar Riders would be arriving tonight, and he wanted me to make sure they got settled.
“Duty calls.” I rubbed the fur under Hades’s chin. “Keep an eye on her for me?”
He moved over to the porch and dropped down in front of the steps. My MC brothers swore the wolf could understand us. I hadn’t been so sure, but it seemed like he knew exactly what I was asking him to do. I straddled my bike and rolled it several hundred yards away before I dared turn over the engine. I had a feeling Poppy knew I watched over her, but I didn’t want to freak her out by firing up my bike right in her front yard.
By the time I got back to the clubhouse, the Lonestar Riders were just pulling up. I recognized Bison and Kane. We’d met a couple of times in the past when they’d joined us for charity rides, and I’d seen them again last month in Sturgis.
“How was the ride?” I held out my hand as Bison climbed off his bike.
“Grueling.” He grinned and grabbed my hand. “We probably should have stopped for the night, but we were so damn close, we decided to push it.”
“Thanks for coming.” I dropped Bison’s hand and turned to Kane. “We really appreciate it.”
“We’re happy to help.” Kane clapped me on the shoulder.
Bison introduced me to the other guys he’d brought along. When we’d talked to them at the Sturgis rally, we’d hoped they’d be willing to come help us monitor the movements of the Savage Bones. Despite our best efforts, the one-percent club seemed hellbent on taking over Mustang Mountain and they were becoming increasingly desperate and dangerous in their attempts.
“Why don’t you come inside, and we’ll get you settled?” I led the way into the clubhouse with the guys right behind me. “Atlas is off-site following up on a tip we received about the Savage Bones planning to hijack another delivery truck, but I can fill you in on what’s been going on.”
It was after ten, but someone had set out a bunch of food since we’d been expecting the Lonestar Riders. The clubhouse had become a round-the-clock headquarters in our battle against the Savage Bones. Didn’t seem to matter what time of day or night it was, there was always a bunch of activity happening on site.
I waited until everyone had filled a plate and sat down around the huge table before I started filling them in on recent events. Despite the message we’d sent last month when Bear got a little overeager in his tactics, the Savage Bones had only increased their assault on the town. Even though we had guys posted around the clock, several businesses had been brokeninto downtown, and a few homes had been burned down, including one not too far from the women's shelter.
