Page 71 of Desert Heat

Raids or not, the Bastards and the Outlaws have been enemies for years and a few kisses had me wanting to forget all that.

River’s not my enemy but he can never be my lover.

“Dean? Handle this please. I know you probably hate him too but please I’ll die if he dies. I’m not being overly dramatic either. And Tank is the best man there is.”

“I’ll handle it,” he growled, dropping helmet on my head while motioning for me to get on the Arctic Cat.

“You’ll find a woman who deserves you someday. She’s just not me.” I placed a hand on his forearm, feeling it flex beneath my touch.

“Someday you might change your mind.”

Brandi was sitting in front of the fire when I got home. A glass of Tank’s favorite whisky was in her hand.

“He came back too?”

“Briefly, I told him everything. From my life in NC to my secret OnlyFans account. He just hung on every word not saying a thing. Then he kissed my head. Told me to ‘be good’ and that he’d see me again someday. It was fucking weird. I could tell he was just as cut up as I was. But he never asked for me back. Not once.”

“He can’t. Not when you’re both going in different directions.”

“And the really fucking off part? He left me this. She held up a vinyl record album.”

“Whitney Houston?”

“I know, right? He even gifted me an old fashioned record player from the antique shop downtown. He said it was an early Christmas gift and insisted I take it.”

“Did you play the record?”

“No.”

I took it from her hands, set up the player and dropped in on. Whitney’s rich voice filled the room. I poured myself a whiskey and sang along with her.

“Didn’t we almost have it all….” I belted out feeling the same heartache she sang about.

Soon after, Brandi did sang too.

We drank and sung by the fire for a good while.

“This was cathartic as fuck. Tank did good.” I yawned. “Something tells me your last chapter with him hasn’t been written yet.”

“Neither has yours and River’s.”

“Oh, our book is slammed shut and thrown into the fire. My Papa’s alive. He had to hide in Canada and have zero contact. Now with Line gone… he’s setting his sights on The Royal Bastards. Dean said he make sure Tank and River stay cool. But there; snow much bad blood and history. I fly father ever found out the game River played on me… he’d kill him for sure. I mean drop bombs on the clubhouse cartel style. He wouldn’t even care if I still loved him.”

Sh shook her head. “That’s why I need to stay out. No offense Savvy but as soon as I can afford to I might move closer to campus. It’s just all too much for me.”

“That’s fine, I’m more of a loner anyway. Although, it’s nice having you now. Are we still going away for break?”

“Hell yeah we are. Somewhere warm, where ghosts of our pasts can’t chase us.”

“I’m glad we’re both seeing college through.”

“Me, too. Let’s study and pack tomorrow. Let’s stay in Florida until after New Year’s. We’ll both come back with sick tans and Dean said we could still stay for free in a house The Club owns.”

“Fine. My dad will be busy sorting out MC shit and I want no part of any of it. Hopefully by the time we get back our hearts would’ve healed and the ghosts of Tank and Rover won’t be everywhere.”

“Agreed.”

I lay in bed later, tempted to check the burner I still kept. He was somewhere on the road, heading back to nights under the desert sky.

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