Total pages in book: 40
Estimated words: 37734 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 189(@200wpm)___ 151(@250wpm)___ 126(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 37734 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 189(@200wpm)___ 151(@250wpm)___ 126(@300wpm)
“Well, I wouldn’t say he was happy about the situation.” I reached under the table and squeezed Talia’s knee once before taking a sip of my coffee. Her eyes were wide and slightly panicked. Her hand trembled when she took a drink of her water. Caroline chatted happily, seemingly oblivious to the tension between Talia and me. I leaned in to whisper to her. “Relax, Lia. I ain’t gonna hurt you.”
“I know,” she said, looking up at me with wide eyes. “I know.”
I winked at her. “Good.” Caroline didn’t miss a beat. She talked nearly nonstop. I’ve never been so amused in my life. Caroline saw my interest in Talia. Hell, she’d probably set up this very thing. Minus the part where Talia’s dad was coming after her. And the part where Talia’s car was shit. Worked, anyway. The longer she talked, the more amused I became. My daughter was playing matchmaker. Much as I knew I should be irritated, I found it rather cute. My daughter. Setting me up with a woman. Not just any woman, either. A woman of Caroline’s choosing. Yeah. I got it. My heart melted a little.
It wasn’t long before a Ford Bronco pulled into the parking lot of the diner. Talia stiffened, her breathing quickening. I frowned down at her. She was really stressed, but why?
“Caroline, why don’t you go see if Elaina needs help with the cookies in the kitchen.” I grinned at my daughter. Marge heard us and quickly ushered Caroline out of the booth and toward the back. I heard something about Marge getting Caroline “the biggest milkshake you’ve ever seen” and figured I was destined to spend the evening with a teenager on a sugar high.
Caroline slipped through the doors of the kitchen, but not before Rocket entered the diner. The man saw my daughter leave the room before he made eye contact with me. He nodded to me, acknowledging both my presence and that I’d let him see my daughter before I sent her out. Grim Road wasn’t a bad club. It tried to stay under the radar, and I was under no illusion they didn’t have their own questionable activities, but I didn’t believe Rocket was a bad guy.
“Talia. You good?” Rocket held my gaze, not even looking at his daughter.
“Yes. Doc gave me a ride. My car broke down.” Lia was obviously nervous. Rocket looked pained at her subservient tone of voice.
“Talia, relax. I needed to make sure you were really OK. When you didn’t come home this afternoon, I got worried.” Though I wasn’t expecting the confession from Rocket, it made me feel better about the situation. Showing any kind of emotional attachment in the presence of another club wasn’t something most guys did. Especially if the clubs weren’t at least a loose ally. Though our clubs had crossed paths, we were neutral at best.
“I’m sorry, Rocket.” Lia spoke softly, looking at her hands where they rested on the table, fingers laced tightly together. It was telling that she addressed her father by his road name. Probably because they weren’t alone. “I didn’t mean to worry you. I didn’t want to be a bother.”
Rocket scrubbed a hand over his face. He glanced over at Tito. There were no other customers in the place, so we had some privacy except for Tito, Marge, and Elena. “Can I get a burger, Tito? Maybe some fries and a beer.”
“Sure thing.” Tito used his spatula to point at Talia. “That one is a good girl. She takes care of Caroline when that mother of hers is so wicked.” The older man made the sign of the cross before turning back to the grill to start Rocket’s order.
“I know she’s a good girl,” Rocket said, giving Talia a soft smile. “I’ve tried to do right by you, baby girl. I know it hasn’t been easy living in my world.”
“I was grateful you took me in when Mom died. I know it’s been hard on you and the club.”
“Talia, it’s not that it’s hard on us to have you around or that anyone doesn’t want you in the compound. It’s that the men in Grim have their own codes. They don’t always conform to society’s rules, but they always fall into line with the club’s code. Following the few rules the club has is our way of trusting each other. As long as a member follows those rules, he can be trusted within our group.”
“And by having me there past my eighteenth birthday violates a rule. I get it. It’s just --”
“Hard. Yeah, I know. And you’ve done everything the club asked of you. You’ve never once broken a rule we gave to you. It’s why you’ve stayed as long as you have.” He reached out and covered Talia’s hands with his big one. “Baby, I love you more than life itself, and I’ll do anything I have to, to keep you safe. But I’m going to have to move you out of the compound. Tonight.”