“What’s your plan for today?” he asked between bites. “Are you going to turn off your tracker app and disappear like you did last night?”
I snapped my gaze to him as I sipped my coffee, and he gave me a knowing look. But what did he know was the question.
“I didn’t mean to disappear. I just needed some fresh air, so I took a ride, stumbled onto a gathering, hung out for a few minutes, and came straight back here.” He narrowed his eyes to me, and I casually added, “It wasn’t a big deal, I promise.
“Was someone harassing you? Is that why you needed fresh air?” he inquired before draining his cup of coffee.
I shook my head and gave him an indication I would be right back before quickly walking over to the table with pastries and coffee and returning to Ghost. Placing them onto the table, I poured more coffee into his cup before speaking.
“Yesterday was fun, but I didn’t expect it to be so . . . overwhelming,” I answered, having to search for the right word.
“I warned you the Rally could get to be too much.” He took a swallow of coffee and picked up another donut from the stack I’d given him before he asked, “Have you seen anyone you know? Maybe one of the clubs that traveled through Minneapolis?”
I shook my head and responded, “Popeye kept me far enough away from the club that I don’t really know anyone, but I appreciate you letting me tag along with the Phantom Renegades.” Standing, I looked at him as I added, “I’ll try not to be a worry to you again.”
I went to walk away when he called my name. Turning, I looked back at him as I observed a few of the other brothers finally starting to wake up and move around. “Why don’t you hang close to me today? We’re going to ride over and catch some local singer everyone has been raving about, and that way, I can keep an eye on you.”
I didn’t like the thought of being monitored by him or anyone else, but this wasn’t the hill I was willing to die on. Smiling, I acknowledged, “That sounds fun. Thanks, Ghost.”
He pushed his cheeks up in what I assumed was a smile before going back to his sugary breakfast. I was almost backto my trailer when he said to the club in a booming voice, “Phantom Renegades, thank my sister for breakfast and coffee.”
Various voices mumbled their thanks from around our area, and I smiled as I unlocked my camper and stepped inside. The facade dropped as I sat down on the little bed and thought about my life.
It wasn’t what I wanted, but it was what I had, and I remembered something my mom used to say to me before she got sick and passed away.
She’d say,“Willow, wallowing in self-pity doesn’t do anything but age you prematurely. If you want something, go get it. If you’re trying to change, make it drastic. And most importantly, be true to the voice inside telling you when something feels right or wrong. It’s usually correct.”
I hadn’t thought about her advice in years, but today, it seemed to be guiding me.
I just had no idea where I was going.
Chapter 6
Jigsaw
The ride over to Sturgis took longer than I would have liked, but there were so many riders on the road that we creeped along. Our parking area was being manned by three prospects, and as we pulled into town, the deafening roar of engines was music to my ears. Raven signaled we were turning, and I watched everyone in front of me to make sure we didn’t get separated. One-by-one, the Sinners walked our bikes into the spot we’d paid high dollar for.
Roughstock gave me a chin lift as he helped Cheyenne off the back of his bike. I walked up to him as a few of the ol’ ladies joined Cheyenne. Looking around, I didn’t see Laura with Phantom, so I asked Roughstock, “Where’s Laura?”
Cheyenne heard my question and turned to answer. “She’s back at the ranch with Charlie and the pups. She wanted to come, but her feet were swollen from yesterday, so Charlie offered to sit with her.”
I gave a knowing nod as she turned back to speak with the other ladies. Roughstock stepped closer to me and lowered his voice as he spoke. “I heard about Willow. Is this something we need to worry about?”
“Nah, man. I’m sure she was just looking for a hook-up. I don’t expect to even see her again.”
He clapped me on the back and warned, “You never know when fate is going to step in.”
His gaze was locked on something over my shoulder, and on instinct, I turned to see what had his attention. It could havebeen anything from a bad-ass bike to a fight in the middle of the road. At the Rally, anything goes.
What I wasn’t expecting to see was the Phantom Renegades pulling down Main Street and past the Sinners Revenge. I certainly wasn’t expecting to see Willow with her ass popped in the air as she drove her Kawaski Ninja H2 at Ghost’s side. And what really caught me off guard was when Ghost turned and looked right at me. He was wearing the ‘President’ patch on his cut, and his smile was almost feral as we watched each other.
They pulled down the road and turned onto a side street as I looked back at Roughstock. “Do you want to revise your statement?”
“Fuck,” I remarked and ran my hands through my hair.
“We’ve got your back, brother. But it didn’t look like he was edging for a confrontation, so maybe if we avoid them, they’ll avoid us.”
Raven walked up and looked down the road to where the Phantom Renegades had turned before he said, “Well, this is either really good or really bad.”
