Page 16 of Biker's Babygirl

“What do you do?” I ask, directing the question at Elvis before I can be interrogated again. “I mean, I’m guessing you’re some kind of medical team, or…” I trail off, at a loss for how to finish that sentence.

“Something like that,” Duke answers. “We all have medical backgrounds.”

I lean forward, knowing I need to keep my distance from these people, but interested despite myself. “Like what?”

“Well, both my brother and I were in the military first. I was a medic in the Army. When I got out, I decided to continue pursuing medicine. Long,longstory short, we sort of have formed this group of doctors without borders.” He grins, clearly amused at his own pun. “We go wherever the need is, and there tends to be needs in rural areas, and people who don’t want to or can’t go to a traditional doctor. So that’s where we come in.”

“Doctors without borders?” I giggle. “I thought that was a real thing.”

“It is,” Ellie joins in. “People call our rag-tag group the ‘Wilderness Warriors’. And we’ve adopted the name as our official name for our not-so-official MC.”

“Rag-tag?” Shep scoffs. “Speak for yourself.”

“Wilderness Warriors,” I muse aloud, liking the way it rolls off my tongue. “That sounds pretty badass.” Then suddenly without meaning to, I glance over at Duke to see if he caught my swearing.

Almost as if he’d been waiting for my eyes to find his, his brow furrows and he gives me a little shake of his head.

I turn away and duck my head, blushing.

But the rest of the group either doesn’t notice or doesn’t care, because the conversation keeps swirling around me.

“It is badass,” Shep declares, the pride evident in his voice. “And so are we. Our motorcycle club is pretty well known aroundhere, and we’re getting calls from counties farther out all the time. We help people, and word gets around.”

“How do people know to call you?” I chew on a fry as I consider what he said. “Do you just, you know, help someone and hand out a business card?”

Duke chuckles. “No, but word of mouth is everything in small towns.”

I nod without thinking about it. I know from my own experience how true that is.

“So that means that sometimes people call us when they’re hurt and the hospital is too far, or they don’t think they have enough time before there’s serious damage,” Ellie put in while Elvis echoed her words with a serious nod. “And in those cases, we handle it for them. Sometimes they still have to follow up with their doctor or the hospital if it’s too serious.”

Uh-oh. That sounded pointed. Does she thinkIshould have gone to the hospital?I shift my gaze to Duke, who doesn’t seem bothered by the comment. But before I can think any more on it, the one that looks like Duke, but younger, pipes up.

“Speaking of rural areas… What were you doing hiding out in the woods?”

No sooner than the words leave his mouth, my throat tightens. All of the comfort I’d felt fades with that one question, and suddenly, the heat of their stares feels like too much to bear.

Duke

I’m just as curious as everyone else at the table why a pretty, young girl would be hiding—because there’s no doubt that was exactly what she’d been caught doing—in the woods. I find myself leaning toward her, ears straining.

Then she turns her head just a bit and catches my eye.

I can read thesave memessage in the depths of her green eyes clearly, and for just a second, I consider doing just that. I could tell Shep to back off and leave her alone, but it’s a questionthat has to be asked sooner or later, especially if she’s going to stay.

When she gets the message that she’s on her own for this one, she turns back to my brother, reluctance etched in every line of her face. “I’m sorry, who are you?” she demands, with so much self-possession and sass that Elvis is coughing to cover his amusement and Ellie doesn’t even bother to try.

She’s a fiery little thing.

Shep, however, looks back at her, his expression neither amused, nor annoyed, though I have no doubt he is both of those things. He’s a man on a mission, and he rarely gets sidetracked. “Oh, sorry, where are my manners?” he deadpans. “I’m Shep, Duke’s brother.”

As soon as he answers, she pulls the platter of fries toward her and begins stacking golden, fat French fries onto her plate.

Is she still hungry, or avoiding the question?My interest has been piqued ever since we found her—even before I knew shewasa her—and I, along with everyone at the table, watch in silence as she reloads her plate.

She bites into a fry and regards Shep. “Maybe you left them back in the woods,” she suggests.

Elvis and Ellie hoot with laughter, and the sound wrings a reluctant smile out of our guest.

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