Page 8 of Skid
“You don’t know me. How could you understand me? I hardly understand myself,” she muttered, and I stroked the back of her hand, hoping to reassure her.
“I see something in your eyes that tells me you’re looking for the same thing I am.” Her forehead drew into confusion, so I explained. “A friend. I don’t have many in my life, and from what you said, it’s just you and Eddie. I’d like to get to know you, as a friend. Maybe we’ll get a laugh or two out of it.” I shrugged and waited with shallow breaths for her to respond.
She tilted her head to the side an insignificant amount, but after watching her for three weeks, I’d learned that’s what Grace did when she was making up her mind about something. One cheek lifted in a smile. “I’d like that.” I gently squeezed her hand as the hallway lights turned off outside the office.
Eddie walked in a moment later and stumbled when he found Grace and I holding hands across the center cushion of the couch. His eyes grew wide, and he glanced quickly at me before recovering and offering Grace a smile.
“You ready to head home?” he asked, and she stood from the couch, dropping my hand in the process. “I’m going to drive you, and you can get your car in the morning.”
“I can take her home,” I offered, knowing she lived twenty minutes away in an even smaller community.
Eddie’s house was next to the bar, and I may have followed her home the last week or so. He wrinkled his forehead and went to speak when Grace interjected. “That would be great. Thank you, Dalton. Can you pick me up tomorrow?” she asked him, and he nodded before responding.
“Grace, are you sure?” They had a silent conversation as I stood there, watching.
After a minute, he turned fully to me and rose to his full height, almost looking me in the eyes.
“Straight home, and if anything happens to her, I’ll hunt you down,” Eddie threatened.
“You have my word that I’ll make sure she gets home and inside without a scratch on her.”
Reaching my hand out to her, I waited for her to decide, and when she linked her hand with mine, Eddie shook his head with a small smile. We followed him out of the darkened bar and waited for him to lock up before watching him walk across the parking lot and open the fence to his yard.
“Are you ready?” I asked her, and she looked up at me, her gaze still distant.
“Sure.”
Walking over to my new bike, I pulled an extra helmet from the saddlebag and placed it over her head before securing the strap under her chin. I could feel Eddie watching us as I climbed on the bike and offered her my hand to sit behind me. Grace slid her small body against my back and wrapped her arms around my waist, linking her fingers together. I put my helmet on and cranked the bike, the loud pipes on my 2021 Harley CVO Street Glide. She was painted bright red with enough chrome to make her unique.
There was a tremble in her hands, and I reached up and placed my hands over hers, gently rubbing the backs until she relaxed. “Hang on,” I instructed, pulled the kickstand up with my foot, and put the bike into gear. Pulling away from the Backwater Bar, I drove slow on the dirt road until we hit asphalt.
When I ensured we were clear, I squealed tires on the blacktop and skid through the turn, laying rubber down before shooting down the road lightning fast. Grace gripped me harder, and I slowed down to the speed limit, not wanting to scare her. When we got to the end of that road a minute later, I yelled over my shoulder, “Which way?”
I knew exactly how to get to her front door, but I didn’t want to scare her off, thinking I’d been stalking her. Even if I had been. Having spent so many years with Callahan, I learned that a little surveillance was a good thing when it came to protecting someone you cared about. It only took two visits to the bar until I was busy installing cameras in and around her small house while she worked. She lived secluded near a large expanse of thick pine trees, and I didn’t trust anyone—especially where Grace was concerned.
My brain told me she was meant to be mine, but I knew she wasn’t going to be easy to convince. She needed to learn to trust me, so I would take it at a snail’s pace until she made the first move. Grace would yell where to turn, and soon, we were pulling into her yard. Motion-activated security lights flooded the yard in bright light as I parked my bike and killed the grumbling motor.
She removed her helmet as I stood from the bike and extended my hand to her. She placed her soft hand into mine and carefully climbed down. I pulled my helmet off and set it on the seat as she wrung her hands in front of her, unsure of herself. This wasn’t the same Grace I witnessed earlier this evening knocking an asshole unconscious, and to see her vulnerable was killing a piece of me. All I wanted to do was pull the beautiful woman into my arms and shield her from any harm.
She tucked a lock of brown hair behind her ear and looked up at me. “Thanks for the ride. I guess I’ll see you later.”
She went to turn toward her house when I spoke her name. “Grace.”
She looked back at me, and I stepped closer to her. She maintained her stance, and when I was inches from her with her bright eyes looking up at me, I grazed my thumb across her cheek and whispered, “Sweet dreams, beautiful. I’ll see you soon.”
A genuine smile pushed at her lips, and she blushed slightly before responding. “Good night.”
I watched from the yard as she unlocked the front door, and when she looked back at me, I stood taller. Her beautiful face slowly disappeared behind the closing door, and I listened to hear two locks and one chain slide into place. Knowing she was safe for the night, I cranked my motorcycle and drove the three minutes down the road to the trailer I rented. Climbing the rusty stairs, I unlocked the door and secured it behind me.
My laptop was open, and I immediately sat down, watching Grace’s house but not allowing myself to see into her bedroom. That was her privacy, and I wouldn’t invade it. Yet. One of the cameras covered the entrance to the bedroom. She left the door open as she changed out of her shorts and T-shirt from work and into a pair of pajamas that showed more skin than I was ready to handle.
I watched as she rolled another joint from a small metal jar on the kitchen counter and switched cameras when she stepped onto the covered porch spanning the entire front of the small house. She kicked her feet up on a table as she settled into an oversized chair and smoked the joint in peace.
Her shoulders relaxed as she opened a book under the light from the porch and began to read. For an hour, she sat outside in the cooler evening air and turned page after page until I saw her eyes blinking heavily. Closing the book, she walked inside, and I witnessed her secure both locks, slide a chain into place, and with a glance at a small table next to the door, she turned and walked into her bedroom.
The door was open, and I could see the pillows on her bed as she laid her beautiful head down and closed her eyes. For an hour, I watched her sleep peacefully before carrying my laptop into the bedroom and placing it on the other pillow facing me. After kicking off my boots, I slid my pants down and kicked them against the wall of the room, followed by my T-shirt. I hung my cut up the moment I walked into the trailer, and I glanced at it, missing my family, my brothers, and knowing I’d need to get home sooner rather than later.
I rolled onto my side in the bed and turned the fan on, cooling off the warm bedroom as I watched Grace sleep. Closing my eyes, I left the monitor in front of me, allowing me to check on her throughout the night. It was my own way of sharing a bed with Grace without actually being next to her. It would have to do until I could have her in my arms every night, where she belonged forever.
