Page 38 of Shine: Sins of the Father
“He was amazing.”
“So you spent the weekend together?”
“Yep.” I think about telling her about Lake Tahoe, but I’m not ready to admit I murdered a man, not even to my best friend. “Then there was a fire up there, and we were worried it would come toward the cabin. So, we got the hell out of there, and he gave me a ride home. I had him drop me at the Sonny’s because I didn’t know what else to do. Have you heard any news about the fire, by the way?”
“It turned south toward Madera County.”
“Good. I was worried the cabin would burn to the ground.”
“It should be safe. I was more worried about you. Well, you certainly had a more exciting weekend than I had.”
She has no idea.
“Did you and this guy exchange numbers?”
“Um, no, actually.”
“Oh.” Her face falls. “So, it was just a fling, huh?”
“Yep.”
“I’m surprised he wouldn’t ask for your number.”
“I think because of the situation, he didn’t think this was like a date or hookup. You know?”
“Did he think you werepaidto be with him?” she squeaks.
I shrug. The thought of that makes me sad. “I guess so.”
Her shoulders drop. “Oh.” We sit quietly, and then she smiles and continues. “Well, at least you got you some.”
I roll my eyes. “I sure did, and I don’t know how another man will ever compete with what I got this weekend.”
“Really? Wow, he was good, huh? Well, I’m happy for you. At least you have that.” She sips her coffee. “Do you think your father or the club will ever know you were up there?”
“I hope not,” I reply, thinking about the body buried in the woods.
“Now you have to do what you promised, Fiona.”
I frown. “What’s that?”
“Tell your parents you’re dropping out of college.”
Oh, right. That. Now I’m really depressed.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Shine—
Climbing the entrance ramp for the interstate heading south out of San Jose, I gun my engine. Exhaustion hits me about three and a half hours into the ride, and I get a motel in Bakersfield. There’s not much at the exit except one motel, two gas stations, and an IHOP.
The room is decent. All I really care about is that the bed is comfortable, the a/c works, and there’s hot water.
I drop my bag and take a shower. The heat of the rivulets running over my body takes away some of the stiffness. Bracing my palms on the wall, I let it pour over my neck and shoulders. Visions of Desiree fill my head. No, scratch that. Her real name is Fiona. I try it on my tongue. It’s weird to call her that, so I settle on my nickname for her. Sweetness.
Images of her naked, wet body in the shower with me fill my head. Her touch when she soaped me up was gentle, but she didn’t play shy, and I loved that. There’s something about a woman’s touch and one who’s not afraid to touch me. I find plenty of women may want me to fuck them, but they aren’t much into giving back any kind of intimacy. Maybe it’s the whole MC thing. Maybe I scare them, so they hold back.
Becca was the first one I’d found in a long time who didn’t let the whole badass biker stuff frighten her. At least, that’s what I’d thought. Even she couldn’t handle it when it came down to making it last.
