Page 48 of Devil to Pay: Cutter

“Thank you.”

Rough’s a good man. I wish I’d taken his money instead of Cutter’s that night. No. That’s not true. I wish Cutter would have stayed with me through this. I wish he’d have said he loved me and everything would be okay.

Sighing, I keep my eyes peeled for the closest rest stop. The first one I come to, I’ll pull into the parking lot and text Roughneck the exit. It still makes no sense to me that he wants me to wait rather than just meet him at the Waffle House, but he’s trying to be a friend and if I’ve learned one thing about the Horde, it’s that they have their reasons for everything they do.

I click my blinker to take the exit. It’s a pretty, well-kempt little park with a dog-walking trail and picnic tables sitting haphazardly around a flower garden. I find a shaded spot in front of the line of trees and back in.

The place is relatively empty. I’m pretty sure it’s because of the time of day and the fact that it’s situated so close to Lima, many travelers would rather pull off there to get food or whatever. I hop out of the truck to use the restroom and after I’m done, I grab a large cappuccino from the vending machine because they have one here, and a bag of frosted animal cookies to dunk in my coffee, then head back outside.

Instead of sitting up front again, I climb into the back to stretch out across the seat, where I relax while enjoying my treat. Once done with that, I close my eyes to rest. I’ve been so tired lately, it’s unreal.

The next thing I know, my eyes fly open to banging on the window and I jump, throwing my hand to my heart. But it’s only Roughneck.

“Aja,” he calls. Has it been an hour already?

Smiling, I climb back into the driver’s seat and open the door. “Hey,” I say around a yawn now that I’m fully awake enough to start feeling drowsy again.

“Come on, sweetheart, follow me. That Waffle House has our names written all over it. I know you like your steak and eggs.”

The man’s not wrong. “Lead the way.” I start the truck and wait for him to mount his bike. He pulls out first and I keep behind him. This is the first time all day that I’ve thought about food, that I’ve felt like eating.

The Waffle House is literally the next exit over. He parks and waits for me to get out of the truck to walk with me up to the door. Rough even pulls it open and gestures for me to go in first.

We get seated right away. Then, as we’re looking at the menu, we hear, “Hey there, big man!”

Both Rough and I look up. Rough has a big smile for the waitress. And older lady with more pepper than salt in her hair. Her name tag says Effie. I bet Effie’s been working here a long time.

“How’s my favorite biker?” she asks. “Hey—where’s my other favorite biker and who is this lovely young lady you have with you?”

“Cut’s meeting us in Michigan. This is his old lady, Aja.”

She jerks her head back, face full of surprise. “Cutter has an old lady? How’d that happen? There has to be a juicy story.”

“Sorry, Eff, no story. Aja here is a good woman. They met and clicked. Pretty straightforward.”

Straightforward, my ass. I could kiss Rough for not spilling all my secrets. He must know what I’m thinking because he shoots me a smirk and winks.

Since I know what I want, Effie takes our drink and food orders at the same time. Once she leaves, Rough cocks his head and says, “Nobody else’s business, darlin’. You can trust me.”

Yeah, he knew exactly what I’d been thinking.

Rather than reply to that, I say, “Shouldn’t tell tales out of school.”

He laughs, “What?”

“You told her I’m a good woman. We both know there’s only one good thing about me. That’s how I ended up on this little road trip to dump a kid Cutter doesn’t want so he won’t kick me to the curb.”

His eyes bug. “Cutterdoesn’t want? I thought this was a mutual decision between the two of you.”

I shrug. “He told me he never wanted to be a dad and that he wasn’t sure where that would leave us if I kept it. I’m in love with Cutter, but more than that, being with you all, it’s the first time in my life I’ve felt safe.”

He whipped his head up from looking at his plate to looking at me, tossing his fork down onto the table. “I’m gonna kill that son of a bitch—” The anger radiates off of him. I actually fear for Cutter in this moment.

“No you’re not. He’s your best friend. I can’t force him into something he doesn’t want. I didn’t think I wanted a kid, either, but now it’s here and I don’t know. I’m young. There’s no rush.”

“Sweetheart, if you want it, then let’s go home. You don’t have to do this.”

“It’s probably for the best anyway. I’d make a shit mother. Nobody knows that better than me.”

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