Page 106 of Colt

Donovan’s eyes slid to his brother, who was looking between us interestedly. “Did you know little Freya Stone grew up to look like this?”

“Not exactly,” Tadhg replied. “I’ve been away as much as you. But I saw her at seventeen, I suspected then.”

“Damn!” Donny repeated, before addressing me once more. “You goin’ to the big birthday party at the club next weekend?”

“Of course,” I told him. Smiling at how well my brother had done to arrange all of Kennedy’s Vegas friends to be flown over for the thirtieth birthday. “It’s gonna be a great night.”

“It’s the hottest invite in town,” he agreed. “Me and T are helpin’ Cal out in the bar and going down the clubhouse later. Can you believe Kit’s got DJ Raven on the decks? We saw her in Ibiza. She’ll have the crowd rockin’ out.” Donny cocked his head, his eyes roaming over my face. “You gonna save me a dance?”

My lips twitched. “You wanna fill in my dance card, your Grace?”

He barked a laugh. “I’d rather be the sexy, dark pirate than the Duke.”

I looked up at him over the rim of my coffee cup and took a sip, studying him.

Donovan was handsome and had that thing about him that drew women in like magnets. Tall, built, cocky men with swagger seemed to be the women of this town’s catnip, as evidenced by how well all the other younger bikers did getting the girls when they came out on the prowl. Hell, Kit, Bowie, and even Cash, back in the day, went through the town like walking STDs.

Obviously, I’d been a little more sheltered. It was no wonder I’d fallen in love with a biker. They were all I’d ever really known.

Draining my cup, I placed it back on the table and twisted around to retrieve my purse from the back of the chair where I’d hung it. “Thanks for the coffee, Tadhg.” I sent him a bright smile and went to stand.

Donny got to his feet. “You goin’ already?”

I nodded. “I’ve got plans later.”

“With the dude you’re,” he raised his hands and bent his fingers into speech marks, “seein’.”

Ignoring him, I smiled to myself and gathered my things together. “See you soon, guys.” I hooked my bag over my shoulder and walked to the counter to pick up sandwiches, pastries, and water for later.

As I walked out into the now-dark Main Street, I felt a presence behind me. “Hey, Freya.”

I turned to see Donovan zipping his jacket up and following me outside. “Don’t run off. I wanna talk to ya.” He approached, collar up and his hands in his pockets to brace from the cold. “Who ya seeing? Is it serious?”

The question made me wince internally, though the fifteen-year-old who crushed on Donny, along with every woman in town under the age of eighty, could’ve squealed. Colt was screwing me around for sure, but no part of me was tempted. Now I’d got my man. I wouldn’t let go without a fight.

“It’s heading toward serious,” I explained. “I’m falling for him.”

His face dropped, and he looked downcast. “Fair enough.”

I laughed. “You’ll be fine, Donny. I’m sure you can go to your little black book, make one call, and get a date.”

“Maybe, but it wouldn’t be with you.” He studied my face. “Tell ya what. If things don’t work out with your mystery guy, come to the bar, and I’ll buy you a drink. I’m on leave until New Year.”

“I’ll keep it in mind,” I promised. “I’m sorry, I have to go. I’ll see you around.”

“Yeah.” Without warning, he leaned forward, tucked my hair behind my ear, and kissed my cheek. “You better.”

Squeezing my eyes closed, I tried to build a wall between Donovan and my senses. His cologne smelled like summer rain mixed with sage and citrus, which, combined with the leather scent of his jacket, was manly and I had to admit, incredibly appealing.

Donny pulled back, flashed me a grin, and sauntered back into the coffee shop. “See ya around, Freya Stone.” The bell tinkled above the door, and he disappeared.

I stood there for a moment, still feeling the warmth of the kiss on my cheek, wondering how Donovan could be so affectionate when the man I loved didn’t seem to be making any effort at all to spend time with me.

I shook my head to clear my thoughts and walked to my car. As I opened the door and slid in, my mind filled with my conversation with Sophie back in the club’s parking lot.

My heart beat erratically in my chest when it dawned on me how vague Colt had been. I hadn’t noticed at the time how he’d managed to change the subject pretty skillfully whenever we talked about the future.

It made my stomach unsettled, to say the least.

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