Page 70 of Stoker's Serenity

“We should let the girls in,” he murmured finally, and I nodded against his chest and took a reluctant step back.

He smiled at me and opened the door, and the first question out of Faith’s mouth was, “Did she say yes?”

“Yes, I said yes!” I said, and sniffed and with a soggy little laugh said, “I need to call Linny, but later.”

“Come on,” Charity urged. “Let’s fix your makeup and get you dressed to ride.”

“Oh my God,” I said horrified. “My makeup!” I’d forgotten all about it and I must have looked like a real horror show scream queen!

“You go do that, and I’ve got these,” Stoker said, hefting my single gym bag and my purse. He’d said to pack light, and I’d done my best. I was thankful he seemed satisfied and didn’t ask me to change anything.

I went into the bathroom and scrubbed my face while Charity and Faith stuck around and commented here and there on how much they loved this or that little knick-knack on one of my shelves.

I washed my face completely, changed clothes, and redid my makeup from scratch out of the meager half-dead supply that I hadn’t bothered to pack.

Faith braided my hair without asking, which I found to be nice, while I applied my face and Charity held out the bandana that had come wrapped around my new leather vest. She’d folded it into a wide swath, and Faith fixed it for me, around my head.

“When you start to sweat in all that leather, you’ll be glad for it under the helmet. Keeps your makeup from running and the salt out of your eyes,” Charity explained.

I stepped out into the rest of my neat little apartment and Stoker held out the vest, already over my jacket, for me. I smiled at the ‘Property of Stoker’ emblazoned across the back and he turned it around for me to shrug into. The name patch on the front read ‘Orchid.’

I liked that he called me that. I liked that everyone seemed to naturally fall into calling me that. I loved it even more how they all cheered for me when I stepped out onto the little landing and wrap-around porch, and I felt like a badass Cinderella as I went down the stairs.

It was the first time I ever felt like I fit.

22

Stoker…

The ride was the longest she’d ever taken with me, at pretty much a straight shot. We’d been taking long weekend rides, but no matter where we went, it wasn’t the haul from south Florida to the lakeside lodge the Sacred Hearts’ guys owned. By the time we’d ridden halfway, and stopped for snacks and something to drink, I could tell she was seriously starting to feel it.

At the lodge, we pulled down the steep drive to a line of bikes already parked and waiting for our arrival. We lined up and backed in, filling the little parking lot and drive loop out front the rest of the way out.

My little orchid got off the back of my bike and immediately put her hands to the top of her ass and pressed, arching back to alleviate her lower backache.

I heeled down the kickstand and shut off the motor, and asked her, “Doing alright?”

“Yeah! I think I’ll feel better once I’ve gotten a shower, wash the grime off – you know?”

“Absolutely, I do, and I’m right there with you – that is, if we got a room. If not, we’re camping.”

“You got a room, I set it up ahead of time for you,” Cutter called over. “Any man with a woman has a room unless she was dead set on campin’. We’re getting too fuckin’ old for tents and ground-sleepin’.”

“Speak for yourself,” Charity said as she walked by, with a wink. Galahad laughed and followed along behind her, their tent in his hands.

“Watch it, Blossom!” Hope warned her, and I had to chuckle. They had their Power Puff Girl’s names embroidered on their rags, and it suited them.

We greeted the guys from the other club and chatted amicably while we waited for the front desk to sort us out with keys for our respective rooms. Some of the SHMC women were talking to Orchid and Faith off to one side, and it felt good that despite the fact she was thoroughly a citizen with a citizen’s upbringing, she was taking pretty well and pretty quickly to our way of life.

It didn’t hurt that she was unerringly polite. It just was who she was. She only dared to be sassy when it was just me and her alone and when she did bust out the sass, it was pretty spectacular. She could be funny as hell, when she wasn’t so self-conscious and paranoid. It was something that, the more miles we’d poured on between us and Florida, she’d shed like a cloak.

“Hey, man! What’s up? Long time, no see!”

Nox came striding over with his twin in tow and held out a hand. I clasped it and we tapped shoulders.

“Hey, Orchid. C’mere a minute!” I called.

“No shit?” Rush asked, when she headed our way.

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