“But you only need protection because you took me from Mendoza.”
After shifting my bag on my arm, I shook my head at her. “Even if I had left you to die, I would still be a marked man. I helped storm the home of a Rodriguez cartel boss where not only was his latest batch of girls ‘destroyed’, but there was also a substantial amount of money taken as well.”
“I guess I didn’t realize how much risk you had taken on.”
Without thinking that she was probably still skittish when it came to being touched by men, I reached over and brushed a strand of dark hair out of her face. Her green eyes widened, but she didn’t jerk away.
“Sorry I had to rain on your little martyr parade.”
She gave a bark of a laugh. “Smartass.”
It was good to see her being lighthearted. We were interrupted by the roaring sound of incoming bikes. I jerked my head to the left to see Bishop and Breakneck pulling up to the curb. Following close behind them were two cars.
Even before I was told, I knew which one was for us. It looked to be a mid to late 80’s Oldsmobile. It was the kind of car you didn’t have to worry about getting stolen because no one would give it a second glance because it was so hideous looking. But the engine sounded good, so it would do its job by getting us back to Georgia.
“Glad to see you guys. For a minute, I thought you had forgotten us,” I said.
Bishop grinned. “Forget your pain in the ass? Never.”
“Yeah, yeah,” I muttered with a smile. “You guys holding back for an hour or two before heading to the border?”
“Yep. Don’t want to draw any unnecessary suspicion,” Bishop replied.
When my gaze cut over to Breakneck, I couldn’t help feeling a slight pang in my chest at the sight of him on my bike. “You take good care of her, okay?”
Breakneck smiled. “Quit wringing your hands like an old woman. I’ve been ridin’ longer than you’ve been alive, you little jerkoff, so get it out of your head I’m going to fuck up your bike.”
I punched him playfully in the arm. “Thanks, asshole.” Truth be told, I was thankful to see him smiling period.
“Whatcha think of the car?” Bishop asked Annabel. I knew he was goading her just to get a reaction. He couldn’t seem to let go of the fact she was an “Uptown Girl”, as he jokingly called her. He had thought the same thing about our now sister-in-law, Alexandra, when we first met her, but Annabel even put her to shame with her privileged upbringing.
Although I’m sure she had never ridden in anything which wasn’t brand new, Annabel smiled sweetly at Bishop. “Looks great. You know, if it’s older than twenty years, you can consider it an antique, and I love antiques.”
Shaking his head, Bishop grinned. “Oh, I do think I’m going to like having you back with us in Georgia, Uptown Girl.”
“Okay, we should get going,” I said.
As Annabel started to the car, Breakneck said, “I put a pillow and blanket in the back. The moment you get through border check, you need to lie down.”
Annabel whirled around. “I don’t think that’s necessary.”
“I do. And last time I checked, I was the physician here.”
I braced myself for an argument considering Annabel’s stubbornness, but instead, she merely held up her hands in defeat. “Fine, fine. I’ll rest.”
“Good. I’m glad to hear it. Another good thing about that car is the wide backseat.”
As Annabel started to ease into the backseat, Breakneck reached in the pocket of his cut and pulled out a bottle of pills,which he handed to me. “Those are some painkillers in case she needs them.”
“Thanks. I’ll make sure she gets them.”
“There’s enough for both of you in there.”
“I’m fine.” With a smile, I offered him a joke fromMonty Python, “Tis just a flesh wound. I’d hardly admit to being shot when it barely got it.”
Breakneck gave me a no nonsense look. “You still need to take care of yourself. I know you’re going to be busting ass to get out of Texas, but you’re going to need to stop and stretch your leg some.”
“Okay. I will.”
