“Oh, no. He didn’t seem too nice. He probably had an apartment with a working elevator, though, so apologies for the inconvenience.” I blinked down at her, unsure if she was joking or not. Everything about the girl had me off-kilter.
“Yeah, I’m sure he was a real gem. Look, I wasn’t expecting her to be this out of it. I only brought my bike. I need to run back and get my cage. Do you mind keeping an eye on her for another hour? Or I can call one of my Brothers to pick her up?” She blinked up at me, her eyes looking owlish in the large frames.
“I didn’t really catch all the words in there, but it sounds like you have a motorcycle and you’re worried about her ability to hold on right now?” I couldn’t help but smile at her tone. She was matter-of-fact, no judgment, no underlying meaning. At my nod, she continued.
“Yes, I don’t think she’s up for a motorcycle ride. Happy to keep an eye on her. Or, if you want to stay with her, I can make some coffee or something until a car gets here,” she offered.
I think I surprised both of us when I accepted the offer, excusing myself to call a prospect, demanding he get his ass over there with a car ASAP. When I walked into the kitchen, I could see steam coming out of a kettle. Two mismatched mugs sat on the counter. I couldn’t help but watch the girl’s movements; she seemed incredibly calm given the situation.
“Tea or coffee?” she asked me.
“What’s your name?” I replied instead, surprised to hear the words coming out of my mouth. She turned and looked at me coolly.
“Fiona. I assume you’re Bash?” I jerked when I heard the sound of my name on her lips.
“How do you know my name?” I couldn’t help but ask.
“Oh, well, when I first found Charlie, I offered to call someone for her, and she was very adamant that I not call her brother,Bash. Plus, it’s written on your vest thingy,” she said, pointing to my cut. I felt like an idiot.
“Why do you wear both a vest and a jacket? That seems like a lot of layers. Does it help protect you when you’re on the bike?” she asked, studying my outfit.
It was a strange experience for me. It was the first time a woman was staring at me and doing the exact opposite of undressing me with her eyes. Everything that came out of the girl’s mouth surprised me, kept me on my toes, and I liked it.
“I don’t ever take the cut off. Lets people know I’m in the Reaper’s Guard. The jacket depends on the weather, but it definitely is safer to ride with a jacket. Road rash is a bitch.” While I was talking, she was moving around the kitchen, filling a mug with coffee and passing it to me.
“Milk? Sugar? You didn’t answer before, but you seem like more of a coffee guy rather than tea,” she said before she dug through a box of teabags to set her own cup up.
“Black is fine, thank you.” I took a sip of my cup, grateful for the burn. It forced me to keep my mouth shut for a moment—something I seemed to have a hard time doing around Fiona.
“So, which bar did you find my sister at? What were you doing there?” I asked, trying to get back on task. Charlie specifically went to a bar she knew she wouldn’t see any of my Brothers at. I had to eliminate that spot for her.
“Murray’s Pub, off 5th street. It’s near my office, so I was there for a team celebration.”
I didn’t want to think too much about the feeling of warmth that spread through me, knowing she wasn’t there on a date. If I was being honest, she looked pretty upset about the whole thing.
“I’m sorry if you had to leave early or missed something to take care of Charlie.”
“Oh, please, it was sort of a blessing. Well, not Charlie getting sick. I wouldn’t wish that on anyone. I was desperate for a reasonto leave, though. I only went because the big boss was going, and I felt like I had to.” She shrugged, and I laughed.
“Not a fan of the big boss? Or the bar?”
“Neither? Both?” she replied, shrugging. I laughed again, and this time, she joined in.
We both took a sip of our drinks, a brief silence hanging in the air. I looked back at the bedroom, catching sight of my sister’s clothes, folded in a plastic bag, with her purse and shoes together in a neat pile.
“Thank you. For looking after Charlie. Not a lot of people would have done what you did,” I said, the immensity of that statement hitting me.
Charlie was incredibly vulnerable. She had grown up in the club, and always had a brother at her back, protecting her. Passing out in a bathroom in the middle of the city was not a safe move. Anything could have happened to her.
“You’re welcome. She seems like a good person, just a little naive. Don’t be too hard on her. At first, when she mentioned you, I thought it was because she was afraid of you. But the more she muttered about it, the more it sounded like she was afraid of disappointing you.”
“What did she say?” I asked, surprised at that take.
“That you’ll never take her seriously when you find out about this.” I was stumped by that.
I had fully planned on ripping Charlie a new one as soon as she sobered up, but now, because of a short conversation with that girl, I was rethinking everything.What is she doing to me?Before I could dig into the feelings deeper, my phone buzzed, letting me know the car was downstairs.
“Our ride is here,” I said, a wave of hesitation hitting me at the thought of ending the conversation.
