Page 6 of Service and Sacrifice
He hadn’t stayed after that. Made his wayback to his bike and headed out of town, mission accomplished.
In the distance, he saw the diner he’dtargeted for their meal stop and held up a closed fist in warning.A quick glance down gave him a glimpse of the still-white fabric ofhis new officer patch,andMonk’s chin liftedas a swell of pride rose in him.Wonder what Amanda wouldthink, he thought, as he turned on his indicator and patted theair in a “slow down” motion. When he’d met her at the gas station,she’d been terrified of him and his brothers. From what she’dshared graveside, her life had been tame and staid in comparison tohis, and he smiled as he angled onto the blacktop of the diner’sparking lot. She’d gotten over her fear—of him, at least.
Rumbling exhausts surrounded him, and heblinked away the shadows of nonexistent mountains, forcing hisshoulders upright. Their road captain shouldn’t be afraid, and hewouldn’t let his brothers down. He parked and got off the bike,stretching as he watched the lotfillwith allthe bikes he’d led on today’s ride. Blade and Neptune stood nearby,and he saw Wolf walking their way, an easy smile on his lips.All my brothers.
“Monk, hey Monk.” He looked over to Bladeand lifted his chin in response. “Was that the widow back there?”His chest burned and he opened his mouth to retort then closed ittight, unsure what this flare of anger and jealousy meant.She’ssupposed to be just mine, not for him. He shook his head andsawconfusionon Blade’s face. “No? You sure?It looked like her, man.” His hands passed through the air, tracingan hourglass shape that had Monk gritting his teeth. “She seemed toknow you.”
He stared a moment, then dipped his chin andlooked away. “Yeah, that’s Martin Stewart’s widow.” Maybe if hedidn’t say her name, he could get through whatever his brotherswould be throwing at him over the next few minutes without deckingone of them. His mouth had otherideas,because it kept talking. “Today marks six years for him. I figuredAmanda would be at the cemetery.”Jesus.
“Amanda?” Neptune drawled her name slowly.“That’s the widow?”
Monk pushed through their little group andangled towards the front door of the diner. “I’m gonna get a tablebefore it fills up.” They had enough men on the ride today thatsome would have to eat inshiftsor get theirfood to go and have their meal outside. He glanced up at the sun,still high in the sky. It was hotter today than last year, and hewondered if she’d remembered to drink any water. She’d been leavingthe graveside earlier than last year, and he thought that was good.Jesus. Here he was in the middle of a ride with hisbrothers, and Amanda still consumed every thought. “See youinside.”
“Monk, hey Monk.” He glanced over hisshoulder at Blade, who was standing there with his hands out to hissides, looking more confused than before. “I piss you off orsomething, brother?”
With asigh,he turnedback and shook his head. “No, man. It’s all good. Just hungry, youknow?” At Blade’s reluctant nod, he returned it and then made hisway inside, ordering a drink and a burger.
Neptune was the first to join him, slidingonto the seat facing him with a low grunt. “Blade didn’t meananything by it.”
“I know. It’s no big deal.” Phone in hand,he saw he’d missed a text from his mother, thumbing a quick replyas the other two men claimed their seats. “I got a burger,” hemuttered quietly as he flipped over to his social media. He did hisbest to maintain a low profile because of theclubbut used it to keep track of his family doings.
As he scrolled through his oldest brother’spictures of a recent picnic with the family, a friend requestpopped up, the bright, white number one flashing at him briefly.Blade and Wolf were debating the wisdom of a couple of prospectsapparently ordering Mexican before getting back on the bikes forthe last hundred miles planned for today, and he idly snorted alaugh at Wolf’s graphic description of the mistake he saw happeningright in front of him. At the phrase “exploding pants,” he tunedthe pair out and tapped the request.
Amanda Reynolds Stewart.
Reynolds must be her maiden name.
Clicking on her profile, he foundfewthings were public. An old picture of herwith a dog, an image of her husband’s headstone, and an Americanflag posted last Veterans Day, thanking the troops for theirservice. He shifted uneasily when he read her relationship statusstill said married. Uncertain if he should accept, he was staringat her picture when the request went away, a message flashingacross that it had been withdrawn.
She’d looked him up, and requested it, thenbacked out. Scared, maybe? If he hadn’t been looking at the app, hemight not have ever known it happened.She wasn’t afraid of mewhen I saw her last. There was no reason for her to havechanged her mind.Dammit. He punched the friend requestbutton and watched the pending status for a moment, then locked thephone.It’s up to her, now.
Seven
Amanda
An instant after hitting the button, she’dhad second thoughts and retracted her request.
Now, she stared at the status on the screenwith a frown drawing her brows together. It had changed again, sofast she nearly hadn’t seen it happen. She’d just fallen to herdoubts and canceled the friend request when it popped back up, butthis one said decline instead of cancel, which meant Alex hadnoticed what she’d done and issued another request from hisend.
She still had his profile page on thescreen, and the pictures he’d been tagged in went on and on. Rowsupon rows of family and friends who’d laid claim to him as theirs.Either a brother or son, an uncle in a couple ofcases,or a good friend—most of those had motorcycles inthe background.
His relationship status said married. Therewas no name, and nothing in the images spoke to a significantother, but the status definitely said married.
He hadn’t spoken about a spouse, someonespecial in his life, but to be fair, the single day a year ago thathe’d spent with her had been entirely focused on her and what she’dneeded to get through the hours spent at the graveside. He’d talkedabout the tragedy of his younger sister and how it impacted hisfolks. He’d shared a few memories of his time in the service, butnothing more personal than that.
Ofcoursehe’s married.
A man that handsome, sensitive, andself-confident?
Ofcoursehe’d betaken.
She left the friend request where it was andclosed the laptop, setting it aside.
Eight
Monk
Ass propped on a stool at the corner of thebar, Monk pulled out his phone. He was waiting on his brothersBlade, Neptune, and Wolf. Checking the time, he saw he was nearlyhalf an hour early for their plans, which meant he’d be sitting byhimself for a while.
