“I do,” he said. Clara patted his hand back.
“They had a fantastic Christmas together. The kids loved the toys that Rachel was able to buy them. Rachel had an after-Christmas craft fair. She and the kids drove to it and spent the weekend there. When they returned home, one of her neighbors came running over. Her missing husband had returned and had a yard sale while they were gone. He’d sold almost everything. The neighbor had tried to call Rachel and tell her but was unable to reach her. The only things that were left were the items that Rachel had in her van and the small amount of stuff that she’d started moving to a storage building as she packed. She also couldn’t go in the house because he had told the landlord that they were moving and needed thedeposit back. The landlord had changed the locks, and suddenly Rachel and the kids were homeless,” Clara said.
A wave of anger washed over Gunner. If he had her husband in front of him, he wasn’t sure he wouldn’t beat the man until he couldn’t walk.
“How could he do that if the lease was in both their names?” Gunner asked.
“Exactly what Rachel wondered. She’d noticed the landlord and her husband being very chummy a couple of times. She has no proof, but she wonders if the landlord got a cut from what her husband sold,” Clara said.
Gunner got back to rolling the cookies because he needed something to do with his hands. How was he going to show Rachel and the kids that they could trust him?
“Where’d she live?” he asked.
“Kansas City,” Clara said.
“Well, that I can work with,” Gunner said.
Clara chuckled and got up to pull a cookie sheet out of the oven and add the chocolate kisses.
“Hmm, could you be thinking of contacting the Saint’s Outlaws MC possibly?” Clara asked.
“Oh, you can count on it,” Gunner said.
He and Clara chatted as they finished the peanut butter cookies and then started on the spritz cookies. When they were finished, Gunner washed the cookie sheets and bowls after sending Clara to go sit in front of the television. She had a show she liked to watch.
Once the dishes were done and the counters were clean, Gunner walked into the front room, leaning over to kiss Clara’s cheek.
“Thank you for a fun evening. I’m going to make sure that Rachel, Chelle, and Marcus never want for anything,” Gunner vowed.
Clara patted his face. “I know you will, Gunner, because you are a good man. You’re exactly the man they need. Grab some of those cookies to take with you and share them with the boys in the clubhouse,” she said.
He nodded, grabbed one of the containers and walked out the door. Oh, he’d definitely share with the boys in the clubhouse. He’d also sharethat she called them boys just because he enjoyed teasing his friends.
Rachel took a sip of her soda. It had been a long day, and Rachel was ready to head to bed. Between not sleeping well because her head hurt and then meeting Gunner, she’d been going all day long.
Her new friends had wanted to welcome her, and despite being tired, she couldn’t say no. She’d tried to remember something about each of the women she’d met tonight. The Franks sisters were easy because Clara had talked about them so much. Remi, the oldest who ran the bail bonds, and Sarah, who was the tech person, had both given her hugs as soon as she walked in.
Winnie, who ran the bail bonds gym, and Jesse, who ran the garage, were in the kitchen fixing drinks for everyone. Beth had taken heraround to introduce her to the women, but she’d told them that they might need to tell her their names again.
“Hey, Stella, how are you doing without Rose or Tasha here?” Remi asked.
“It’s been different,” Stella said, taking a sip of her drink.
“Oh yeah, it’s been different. I’ve heard that truck pulling in as you get dropped off some mornings. It always leaves so fast that I don’t have time to get up and to the window to see who it is,” Hope said, chuckling.
Rachel was sure Hope was married to Locks and was Faith’s sister. Her son Benji had asked Marcus to play.
Stella blushed, and Rachel had to join in the laughter with the other women.
“What are you—the neighborhood watch?” Stella sputtered.
“Oh, way to try to deflect. Do we know the mystery man?” Faith asked.
Stella rolled her eyes. “It’s new, and I’m not sure I’m ready to share yet.”
“Fair enough. We have new blood to interrogate. I mean, get to know,” Frankie said.
Rachel grinned. Frankie had introduced herself and marveled over what she called Rachel’s virgin skin. She, Harry, and Emerson worked at Bluff Creek Ink and had offered her a free tattoo if they got to be the first.
