Rough Ride Read online

  “Amber, wait up!” I shouted.

  She froze and after a beat she swung around on those killer shoes. I about swallowed my tongue. Her calves looked fucking fantastic as her dress swayed with her body. I got a peek of slender thighs before her dress fell back into place. Damn. I took a breath, then looked up at her face. Judging by the glare, she wasn’t exactly pleased to see me. A second later when she spoke, I knew for sure.

  “Really? Are you actually stalking me now?”

  “Don’t flatter yourself. We reported back to Reb all the shit that went down last night, and he wants eyes on you while you’re in public.”

  “So you’ve been following me all day?” Amber slumped slightly, like all the tension had left her body.

  Weird. “No. I called Zag’s wife. She texted me your schedule for the week. I just got off work and been waiting for you to show up. She told me you always park on the fourth floor of the parking garage, so here I am.”

  Her shoulders went rigid. “Wait, so you haven’t been following me all day?”

  “No. Why? Something happen?”

  Amber crossed her arms over her chest as she shook her head. “No.”

  I didn’t believe her, but she clearly had trust issues so I wasn’t gonna push it. “Expect it in the future. We’re a little late getting the troops rounded up today, but someone will be tailing you until we have an understanding with Ruslan. Things got a little…difficult with him after you and I left last night.”

  Amber’s mouth twitched. “That’s a sweet way to put how you bodily carried me out of the club last night.”

  “You say potato…”

  “Ha ha.” Amber rolled her eyes. “I gotta get to work. Are we done here?”

  “Yup.”

  “Fantastic.” Amber whirled around on her heels again and made for the stairs.

  I was a step behind her when she stopped and glared at me. “Really?”

  “What?”

  “You’re really going to follow me to work?”

  “Boss’s orders.”

  “And you do anything the great and powerful Reb tells you to do.”

  I shrugged like I didn’t care, but her words really pissed me off. I wasn’t some mindless grunt. I was a voting member of the True Brothers Motorcycle Club. I’d die for any of my Brothers, and they for me. It wasn’t a dictatorship. We were family.

  And that was the entire reason I was following Amber. By extension, she was family, too.

  I didn’t bother to explain or justify myself. She was gonna think what she wanted to. I had to make sure shit got done right and no one screwed with club property.

  Amber leaned against the banister and rolled her eyes. “You know, we have security at the Mother Lode. It’s a casino, so it’s pretty good security. They spent money on it and everything. They’re not going to let you follow me around all shift.”

  “Really?” I turned around and surveyed the parking garage. “Because from where I’m standing I don’t see shit for security. No one stopped me and my bike from riding straight up to the fourth floor of the employee only structure. I haven’t seen a single security guard on the property since I got here. And I’ve been waiting a while.”

  “I meant in the casino, but there are cameras here.” Amber pointed to the cameras aimed at the elevators.

  I raised my eyebrows. “Cameras only prove something happened if they’re pointed in the right direction. They do fuck-all in the moment when shit is going down. If you’re lucky you might get a guard noticing it and heading out here in ten minutes. After what went down with Zag’s woman, we’re not taking any chances with you.”

  A few years back Zag’s old lady saw a rogue member of our crew dealing drugs in this very parking garage. She reported it, and a few weeks later the asshole threatened her and roughed her up in the same parking garage again. Our club knew the security at Mother Lode was lax. We’d learned the lesson the hard way, and were closing the gaps to keep Amber safe. No matter how much she protested.

  I rocked back on my heels. “Speaking of which, we should take the elevator. It’s faster and safer. The sooner you’re out of the parking garage, the better.”

  “Sorry.” Amber shook her head but didn’t look the least bit apologetic. “I don’t do elevators.”

  “You don’t do elevators? What the fuck does that mean?”

  Amber shrugged then started down the stairs. Her delicate shoes tapping on each step on her way down. “I got stuck in an elevator a few months back. Haven’t been in one since.”

  We’d have to work on that. I fucking hated stairs. But after releasing a heavy sigh, I clunked my way after her. We didn’t say a word as we walked down four flights of stairs. Amber was puffing slightly when we reached the main level. I wasn’t, but my ankles ached a bit. Motorcycle boots weren’t exactly built for stairs.

  “So, who’s the dress for?”

  Amber whirled around, and her face turned a sweet shade of red with her blush. Then she glared at me. “None of your business.”

  “If it’s Ruslan, it is my business.”

  Amber took off down the sidewalk. She was about five feet away when she tossed her hair over her shoulder and snarked, “Wouldn’t you like to know.”

  “I wouldn’t like to know.” I caught up to her and grabbed her arm, making her stop in her tracks. “I need to know. Ruslan isn’t the kinda guy you can just screw around with. He’s dangerous, Amber. Really dangerous.”

  “Well, you would know, wouldn’t you? Oh wait, that’s right—you can’t tell me. I’m just a silly girl, and you’re a big, bad biker with all the answers.” Amber shook my hand off her arm with a glare. “Fuck you. You can take your little warning and your guard duty and shove it. I don’t need you, and I don’t need any of your Brothers watching me. I can take care of myself. I’ve had enough practice over the last year.”

  I knew I wasn’t going to change her mind, so I let it go for now as I followed her across the dimly lit crosswalk. She stopped at the door marked “Employees Only” and had to use a badge to unlock it. Holding the door open, she turned to me. “Well, this is where I leave you, slick. See? Employees only.”

  I had to laugh as she let the door slam shut in my face. Did she really think it was that easy to lose me?

  Ten minutes later, Amber came out of the employee locker room and jerked to a stop. “Really? How did you get back here? It’s supposed to be employees only.”

  I shrugged as I surveyed her in her uniform and wished she could’ve spent more time in the little red number she wore earlier. At least it would’ve covered more.

  “What the fuck are you wearing?” There was no way any of the guys knew what Amber had been up to since Stitch died. No way in hell would Reb ever let her work here wearing that.

  Clad in a black and gold corset thing, Amber’s small but shapely breasts were on display. A tiny gold skirt skimmed the top of her thighs and showed off the black garter encircling her right thigh. Judging by the black lace headband and ridiculous feather plume on the side of her head, they were going for an 1800s saloon girl motif. From my point of view so much skin was on display, she could’ve been the star of any skin mag. Or my fantasies. I had no problem imagining her wearing exactly that as she stretched out on my bed, curling her finger at me as she invited me to—

  “My uniform. Sorry, did you think I was a candy striper or something? Here in the real world it’s not all rainbows and lollipops. I have to work to keep a roof over my family’s head, and that means I have to dress like this to earn a living. So if you don’t like it, you can take your fake concern about my well-being and shove it where the sun doesn’t shine.” Amber shook her head at me in disgust, her feather brushing against the side of her head. “I have to get on the floor.”

  She stomped down the hallway in an impressive show of attitude and legs. Du
mb fuck that I was, I let her go. I was still so shell-shocked. Sweet little Amber was a cocktail waitress. Suddenly Jessica’s cryptic warning made sense. After a beat, I followed her at a distance down the hallway and onto the casino floor. It’d been hard enough to sneak into the back hall. I didn’t need someone alerting security.

  This was gonna be a long fucking night.

  * * *

  —

  Three hours later, and I was still fighting a boner every time she bounced by me in her sky-high black heels with that ridiculous feather bobbing along. Thank God the bar I was sitting at covered what was becoming an increasingly uncomfortable problem.

  My phone buzzed with an incoming call. I shifted on the stiff bar stool to grab it as I watched Amber make small talk with the bartender as he filled her order. Amber looked my way and rolled her eyes at me. I lifted two fingers in salute; then, after looking at the display on my phone, I answered. “Hey, Tank.”

  “How goes guard duty?”

  “Oh, fucking fantastic. You know I think I missed my true calling in life. This is what I was meant to do,” I replied sarcastically.

  “I think Reb and his house would disagree with you.”

  I shook my head. “A guy gets knocked out one time while he’s on duty, and you guys never let me forget it.”

  “Twice, actually. Remember the fire last year at the shop?”

  “I didn’t get knocked out that time. I just didn’t see anyone starting a fire.”

  Tank’s booming laugh filled my ears. “Why the hell did Reb put you on guard duty again? Does he want Ruslan to grab Amber?”

  “Fuck you, man. If you don’t want me guarding her, I’d be more than happy to go home and crawl into my bed. Just give me the word. Some of us have got to work tomorrow.”

  “I’m just screwing with you, Bam. Unclench. We know you’ve learned from your past mistakes. In fact there’s no one I’d trust more with my own family.”

  “Like that’s a ringing endorsement. You barely talk to your sister, and your mom doesn’t even live here.”

  “Don’t forget Nicole,” Tank replied, referring to his girlfriend of more than a year.

  “If I have to watch Nicole, I expect hazard pay.” Judging by the silence on his end of the phone, that might’ve been a step too far. “Was there a reason for this call, or are you just checking to make sure I’m awake?”

  Tank’s sigh was loud and long. “Just wondering if you need a reliever. Nicole is over at Brittany’s house. I guess the girls are having an intervention. I got nothing going on, so I can come take your place if you need to get some sleep.”

  I swallowed my tongue as I watched Amber prance away, her tiny skirt swinging precariously. She stopped next to an elderly guy sitting at a slot machine. After placing his drink down on the console, she accepted a bill from him with a smile that was almost magical—all white teeth and sparkling eyes. But for her scandalous outfit, I could practically hear the romantic comedy soundtrack swelling in the background. She never smiled at me like that. All I got were sneers and eye rolls. What would it be like to have Amber look at me with those tender, soft eyes?

  “Bam? You still there?”

  I jerked back to the present. “What? Yeah.”

  “Hey, man, I can be there in, like, twenty if you need a break. It’s no problem.”

  “No. No. I’m fine. I just thought I saw something,” I finished lamely. For some reason I didn’t share the info of Amber’s actual profession with Tank. It wasn’t like we could do anything about it right now. And the thought of him sitting here watching Amber prancing around in her barely-there uniform made me oddly territorial. Tank might’ve had a girlfriend of his own, but I sure as shit didn’t want him anywhere near Amber when she was dressed like this. Brothers be damned. “We’re all good here. I’ll stay with Amber and make sure she gets home all right. I’ve got this.”

  “If you’re sure…”

  Amber finished with her guest, and her gaze flicked up to meet mine. Her slight smile slipped off her face when she bit her lip. She tilted her head while her eyes flicked down my body before meeting mine once more. I held my breath as we stared at each other. Then she blinked and shook her head slightly, the moment gone.

  “Yeah, man. I’m sure.” There was no place I’d rather be.

  * * *

  —

  About an hour later, I regretted my decision to stay. I was just starting to wonder if Amber was ever gonna take a break when someone in my peripheral caught my attention. My heart beat in a steady rhythm as I braced myself for the coming confrontation. But it wasn’t Ruslan or one of his goons bearing down on me with a glint in their eye.

  It was my mother, Evelyn.

  “I don’t know why I was surprised when my friend called me to say I wouldn’t believe who was camped out at the bar at the Mother Lode Casino.” She stopped in front of me with her hands on her hips and sneered at me. “I always knew you wouldn’t amount to much. And here you are, drinking alone in a casino on a Thursday night, proving me right.”

  I settled my hands on my stomach as I didn’t bother to get up and greet the woman. Giving her a smirk that I knew would annoy the fuck outta her, I tilted my head back and said, “Nice to see you, too, Ma.”

  “How many times have I told you? Don’t call me that. It’s unflattering and makes us sound like backwoods hillbillies.” She finger-combed her shoulder-length bottle-blond hair. Little had changed with her both in appearance and in attitude since she’d kicked me out of her house ten years ago. She might’ve only been in her fifties, but life had been surprisingly kind to her. But then maybe that was part of the deal when you sold your soul to Satan.

  I shrugged and didn’t rise to her bait. My gaze moved passed her to where Amber stood at another slot machine talking to a guest. Her eyes flickered to mine, then to my mom, before turning back to her customer. I had no idea what she was thinking, since her expression didn’t change. My gaze did another sweep of the mostly vacant casino floor before Evelyn spoke again.

  “I’m contesting the will.”

  Now she had my full attention. “Why the fuck would you do that?”

  “Because there is no way in hell that my own mother would leave me out of her will. Clearly you did something to her.”

  “No, it wasn’t what I did. It was what you did, and didn’t do. She saw the way you treated me when I was little. She watched you kick me outta your house when I was in high school. She saw how you did fuck-all for her when she was sick last year. You only have one person to blame, and it isn’t me.”

  Evelyn just shook her head and plowed on. “I also heard you hooked up with those bikers Maverick hung out with.” She paused and nodded toward my jacket. “I see that disappointing news was right, too. Did you guys intimidate her? Tie her up and make her change the will?”

  I had to laugh at that. “You’ve been watching too much TV.”

  “You did something. I’m going to find out and prove it in court, so you’ll be left with nothing.”

  “If you had put half of this effort into being a decent daughter or mother, Grandma wouldn’t have left you outta her will.” I’d watched the way Grandma deteriorated over the last year while I’d taken her—by myself—to countless appointments. Meanwhile her own daughter came to visit a grand total of two times. The bitch had even argued with Grandma about something stupid right after a brutal chemo appointment. Then, after the second visit, Grandma suddenly couldn’t find her favorite pearl necklace. She’d never said outright that my mom had taken it, but we both knew.

  Grandma hadn’t left me much, but I was going to fight like hell to make sure this woman never saw a fucking dime.

  “You were a miserable little shit, and you know it. I did you a favor by kicking you out.”

  I smiled in agreement. “Yes, you did. Because I didn’t have to live
with you and all the fucking dirtbags you brought home. So, thank you.”

  She huffed in irritation. “You think you’re so smart. But I know you. Whatever you did to trick my mother into leaving everything to you, I’m going to figure it out. Then I’m going to nail your balls to the wall.”

  “You know, we really don’t do this enough. Maybe next time we can get together at your house? Have dinner and catch up? I’ve really missed these talks.” I held my beer up. “Should I order you one, Ma?”

  “You…You…” Evelyn broke off with a screech as she glared at me. “I don’t have time for your bullshit. Next time you hear from me, it’ll be through my attorney.”

  I jerked my chin at her, then smiled.

  Which really seemed to piss her off. She shrieked again and stomped off.

  “Love you, too,” I yelled at her back, but she didn’t acknowledge me.

  I turned to face the casino again and found most of the people looking at me with wide eyes. But not Amber. Her brow wrinkled, Amber shook her head, then looked away.

  I had to smile at that. But only for a second. Crossing my arms over my chest, I leaned back against the bar and glared at everyone else who dared to meet my gaze.

  Except Amber.

  * * *

  —

  Three hours later, and I was sure I was a masochist. It was the only explanation I could come up with to explain why I’d turned down Tank’s offer. I was bone-deep exhausted. After working construction all day and then sitting for hours on that uncomfortable-as-hell bar stool, all I wanted was my fucking bed. Once I saw Amber home I’d only have maybe five hours to sleep before I had to get up for work.

  I’d long abandoned the bar stool since I was in danger of falling asleep and falling off. I’d taken up a position across the casino, holding the wall up while trying not to fall asleep on my feet. I’d had enough experience of being on guard duty during my prospecting days, but apparently I was woefully out of practice.