Tony texted her back. Meet me tomorrow night at the boardwalk.
She groaned. Not having any idea where that location was, she replied that she had a job. She couldn't go anywhere at night, except on Sundays and Mondays. Besides, Tony wasn't supposed to travel out of Idaho. If he was in Portland, he was in big trouble.
When no reply came, she set her phone down and jotted the information Monica gave her in a notebook. Somehow, she needed to link all the little details together to get the bigger picture.
She stared at the bag Monica had brought with her. Her stomach fluttered. Despite being confident that she could tend bar at The Fire Ring, last night's test was hell.
On top of being clueless of the layout behind the counter, having Brage show up and watch her from the other side of the room made her self conscious. She couldn't read what was going through his mind.
Was he wondering what she was doing at the bar or if she'd come there to see him?
She had no desire to hook up again, despite how good the sex was with him. Though she couldn't deny her attraction to Brage was off the charts.
Stretching her legs out, she looked around the room. The bareness matched her mood. What did she really have in her life?
Nothing was permanent, except her brothers, and even they came and went whenever it pleased them. They never thought of her. Brad certainly hadn't when he broke the law and ended up in prison. She'd tried to convince Tony to leave Moroad Motorcycle Club and live with her, get a normal job, and get back on his feet, but he only told her to shut up.
She picked up her phone to call Tony back and then let her hand fall to her lap and closed her eyes. Tony wouldn't care if he could get in trouble.
He never cared.
Chapter 5
Brage rode his Harley in front of the bar. The inside lights already dim and the closed sign hung in the door. He'd come back later than expected from his rounds.
He turned on the side street and headed for the gate to the alley. A figure in the distance showed in his headlight.
Stopping outside the gate, he lifted his chin at Dag, a prospect for Slag MC. "What was the walker doing?"
Dag stepped out onto the sidewalk and peered behind the clubhouse. "That's the new woman who works in the bar."
Brage's chest tightened. "What's she doing?"
"Going home after work." Dag pushed the gate open more, making room for Brage to ride through to the alley. "She mentioned last night that she lives on the other side of the tracks."
"Close the gate." He turned the front wheel of his Harley and rode forward, getting back on the dead-end street.
Dinah looked over her shoulder the closer he came, walking faster over the tracks. He stood on the pegs, looking for a way over the rails. Spotting a switch, he revved the engine and crossed the eight train rails and cut off Dinah before she could go wherever she was going.
Cutting the engine, he toed the kickstand and took off his helmet. "What are you doing walking by yourself in the middle of the night?"
"God, you scared me. I thought someone was trying to run me down." Her shoulders sagged.
"It might not have been me. It's dangerous out here, not to mention sometimes there are two or three trains going by at the same time. You need to stay off the tracks."
She stopped chewing her gum and raised her brows. "I'm not going to walk out of my way to get home, and I can't park my Jeep in front of the bar."
"Mhm." He held her gaze.
She pointed to a run-down white ranch style house. "I live right there. It would be stupid to walk clear around two blocks when I can walk home in a few minutes. There's nothing out here but trains, and as long as I get across them before three o'clock, it's safe."
"It's not safe." He clamped his teeth together and exhaled through his nose.
She frowned, snapping her gum. He made her nervous.
There were a hundred things that could happen and being close to the Slag clubhouse meant there could be dangerous men out for blood. For a female to get caught between two different clubs while adrenaline ran high would be foolish. Not to mention she was a beautiful woman any man could take advantage of.
For some reason, it angered him that she was here, hanging around the club. There was something about her that made him think her motives were questionable and he couldn't pinpoint what it was that raised his alarm.
Dinah stepped backward. "Then, I'll go home and lock the door."
"Do that," he muttered, watching her turn around.
She wasn't his responsibility. The woman could do whatever she wanted.
Dinah's ass swayed, reminding him of what he'd sampled, as she hurried into the yard. He started the Harley and followed her before he could talk himself out of changing his mind.
She jumped onto the porch and fumbled with the key in the lock, finally opening the door. He parked in the grass and got off the motorcycle. In two strides, he was in front of her.
She gazed up into his eyes. He waited, giving her every chance to tell him to leave, and he would if she opened her mouth.
He dropped his gaze to her mouth. Her tongue came out. Thick tension pulsated between them.
His gut tightened, and he squeezed out an exhale. "Babe?"
She blinked slowly, breathing hard.
"You better stop me if you don't want me to take you inside and fuck you again." He cupped her cheek, tilting her head.
"I'm not stopping you?" she whispered.
He
