Page 40 of Iron Hearts

“Because if the shit goes down again, and you’re caught in the middle, I’m going to feel like it’s my fault,” I said.

She laughed and shook her head.

“I’m a big girl, too, Rarity. I think as long as you’re around, I’ll be all good. You go, I know it’s time to go, though. For sure.”

I laughed at that and said, “If I go, that’s your sign it was time to leave ten minutes ago.”

She looked at me, her eyes going a bit wide, and we both started laughing.

“I guess I’ll see you when we all get back together,” she said, and I nodded.

“Yeah. Right now, I gotta get home. Aden Braden and Caden all have some kind of nasty stomach bug and were up pulling an exorcist all night last night.”

“Oh, ew!” she cried. “Have fun withthat.”

“Oh, the fun just never stops,” I cracked sarcastically, rolling my eyes.

She giggled and stepped back, going around the back of my Jeep to her little car on the other side. I let her pull out first, and when she’d gone, I carefully backed my Jeep off the grassy shoulder and onto the pavement of the side street.

No sooner did I put it into first and start to let up on the clutch, a motorcycle turned in off the boulevard. I rolled down my window to tell the rider that we were closed until further notice and to check our social media when he stopped next to my driver’s side and lifted his mirrored aviators to hold back his dark hair.

“Well, well, well, fancy meeting you here,” Striker said with a grin that looked a whole lot like the cat that ate the canary.

“Hey, you,” I said with a soft smile.

“Wanted to come by and leave this for you,” he said and produced a postcard from his back pocket. “I think I’d like to stay in touch,” he said.

I plucked the card from between his fingers and looked at the mermaid on its face,Ponce Inletwritten in block text below her. It was a pretty postcard.

“Anyway,” he said, revving his bike motor, distracting me from the postcard. “Call me!” he shouted, and then he disengaged the clutch, gave the throttle a twist, and rode down the way past me. Mystified, I set the card aside on my passenger seat and pulled forward, stopping at the stop sign and turning on my right signal.

I watched in my rearview as he swooped in an elegant turn and rode up behind me before ditching off to my left to put on his signal to head back for the interstate. Likely to go north to St. Augustine.

I realized he wasn’t wearing his cut as he pulled up even with me. It came as a shock when it hit me that he’d come incognito, especially to seeme. Why did that warm me to my damn toes?

“I’ll call!” I shouted at him over the combined noise of our engines, and his smile split into a wide grin.

I made my turn and headed for home. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t hurry up to get there just to see what the postcard said.

I pulled into my driveway and parked, turning off the ignition and setting the parking brake. With shaking fingers, I picked up the card and let my eyes rove the mermaid on the front, the coral she was nestled among, the way her hair floated freely, her curving teal-blue tail, and how the fins swept out and around her. It was a beautiful piece of art, and I loved that he’d picked it.

I turned the card over and blinked in surprise at the elegant script it was written in.

Rarity…

Can’t seem to get you off of my mind. Would like to just talk some and see where it goes. Gimme a text or call any time. If I don’t hear from you, I’ll take the hint, I promise.

Yours,

Striker

He left his phone number and then…

PS. There’s no time limit on this. Hours, days, weeks, months, or heck – even a year or two. I can wait.

I didn’t know what to make of it. I certainly wouldn’t keep him waitingyears. Days, maybe, depending on how the boys were doing.

Shit.

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