by Nicole James
“He’s not wrong,” Jameson quietly corrected.
Rory didn’t give a fuck about that, but he didn’t like the fact that they would be hounding Rayne. He surged to his feet again. He couldn’t let that happen. He had to protect her. “I need to get to her. Anybody know where that shop they just mentioned is?”
Max began searching it on his phone.
Rory’s phone went off. He pulled it out and glanced down. Lou. Shit. He put it to his ear. “Yes, sir.”
“You see the story that’s breaking all over the news?”
“I just saw it.”
“We need to do damage control. So I need to know… Did you sleep with this girl? The truth, kid.”
Rory sat back down and pinched the bridge of his nose. He didn’t like where this conversation was going. “Yes, I did. I had no idea she was pregnant, though.”
“How do you want to handle this? You want us to deny it?”
“No!”
“Is it yours? You’re sure?”
“I don’t know, but if she says it is, I believe her.”
“She didn’t say shit. This is all speculations and ‘reliable sources.’”
“I need to talk to her.”
“Do that, then get back to me. I need to know something before the morning shows jump all over this. Got it?”
“Yeah, got it.”
“And just so you know, kid, won’t be long before the press find you.”
“Thanks.” Rory disconnected the call and looked at each of his brothers. “I need to find her. Will you go with me? I need you guys.”
They looked at each other.
“Yeah, bro. Of course,” Max answered for all of them.
“I think our devil may care brother has fallen hard for this chick,” Liam murmured with a smile.
Rory had been crushed, thinking he might never find her. Now, he was more determined than ever to see her again.
“Word is going to get out about you being in Denver,” Jameson warned.
“I don’t give a damn about the press, the tour, any of that shit…I just want to find Rayne.”
Jameson nodded. “Then we’d better do it quick.”
Chapter Twenty-two
Jameson pulled the F150 Crew Cab pickup to the curb in front of Connor Motor Works, and Rory stared up at the sign. The logo looked familiar. CMW. It had been on one of the girl’s hats that night in Vail.
Why had the guy on the phone lied to him when he’d called and asked if Rayne worked here? This building was definitely the one in the news report; he recognized the exterior. Had they been protecting her?
“You ready?” Jameson asked, turning off the truck, one hand on the door handle.
Was he ready? He honestly wasn’t sure. He felt a bit nervous, and a lot excited to see her again. Rayne, please be happy to see me.
“Yeah,” he answered quietly.
All four doors of the vehicle opened, and the O’Rourke brothers stepped out. Rory glanced around, taking the place in as he headed into the garage area. The voices of men talking carried to him. Stepping inside, the smell of gasoline and motor oil hit him. Several workstations were set up around the garage with bikes being repaired or modified
Two men bent over a Triumph, discussing the timing. One of them looked up, his eyes skating over them, and he straightened. “Can I help you gentlemen?”
Rory wasn’t about to tip his hand too soon. “I’m new in town. Someone told me you do good work.”
The man nodded. “What do you ride?”
“Harley Street Bob.”
He lifted his chin. “You want to see Charlie over there.”
“Thanks.” Rory looked over and moved closer. The man in question had a carburetor pulled off and was spraying it with aerosol solvent. The strong chemical smell reached Rory’s nose as the guy took a toothbrush and scrubbed, then unscrewed the top and removed the piston.
Jameson came to stand by Rory’s side, his arms folded.
Charlie glanced up. “You boys need some work done?”
Rory shook his head. “Just heard about this place. Came by to check it out.”
“Oh, yeah. What’d you hear?”
“Good things.”
“Pleased to hear it.”
“You carry gear inside?” Jameson asked.
“Yeah. What do you need?”
“Tool bag. Riding gloves. The air is pretty nippy these days.”
Charlie nodded. “That it is. You should find what you’re looking for inside on the back wall. Don’t see it, Rayne should be able to help you.”
Rory’s chest tightened at her name.
“Thanks, man.” Jameson’s eyes shifted to Rory and tapped him on the bicep with the back of his hand. “Come on.”
Rory followed Jameson through the connecting archway, Liam and Max behind them. He moved on autopilot, thankful his brothers were there. Jameson opened the metal door, and a blast of warm air rolled out of the heated store.
The linoleum floor was softer under his boots than the concrete out in the garage. It was late, and there were no customers milling through the racks of shirts and jackets. A display of riding boots and helmets took up the left wall, floor to ceiling.
In the back was a long glass display case, waist high. On top was a point of sale terminal. Several girls stood around it, three on this side and one behind it.
It took Rory a split second to realize it was Rayne. And the other three were her girl squad. He didn’t recall their names, but he remembered their faces.
Rayne looked up and met his eyes, hers widening slightly. He could see her mouth moving, but couldn’t hear the words. If he read lips, he’d swear she said, oh my God.
The expression on her face had the other three turning as he and his brothers approached.
“Well, look what the cat dragged in?” the smartass with the pink bob said, moving to face him, her arms folded.
The brunette put her hand on her hip. “Better late than never.”
He barely noticed them; his gaze was locked with Rayne’s.
His brothers came to stand beside him, their arms folded like some army of Vikings ready to stand as one.
“Hey, boys,” the one with the blonde braids said. “Welcome to Connor Motor Works. Can I show you around? I’m sure these two have lots to talk about.” She looped arms with Liam and led him toward the wall of boots and helmets.
Rory felt all three of his brothers drift away with the women until it was just him and Rayne, staring at each other. Finally, he let his eyes drop down to her belly. It was just beginning to round. “It’s true, then. You’re pregnant?”
She slammed the cash register drawer shut. “Get out.”
“Rayne, we need to talk.”
Her brows shot up. “Talk? Now you want to talk? I didn’t hear you calling to talk months ago.”
“I lost my phone and your number. I swear it. I wanted to call you. Hell, I even called this store asking if you worked here. Some jerk told me no.”
She let out a disbelieving huff. “Why would they do that?”
“You’re asking me?” He ran a hand through his hair and took a deep breath. “I didn’t come here to argue with you.”
“Fine. There’s the door.” She jerked her chin toward the front. “Hit the road.”
“Cute.”
“Not trying to be cute, Rory.”
“You have an office in the back where we can talk?” He glanced around; a lone customer by the jackets was staring.
“We have nothing to talk about.”
“We obviously do. Now are you going to show me the way, or do I scoop you up and go searching for it?”
“You’re not going to leave, are you?”
“Nope.”
She huffed out a breath. “Fine.” She flipped up a wooden board that allowed him access behind the counter.
He followed her down a hallway behind the wall of gear. She stopped at the first door on the right and held her arm out. “In here.”
She followed him in, slamming the door. He barely had time to turn and face her before she laid into him.
“So what brought you here? The letter or the news reports? Because if you’re only here because you don’t want bad publicity, the baby and I don’t need you.”
“What letter?”
“You didn’t get the letter I sent? The one telling you I was pregnant?”
He shook his head. “Where did you send it?”
She lifted a hand in the general direction of the front of the store. “Your tattoo shop, of course. Where else would I know to send it?”
The word moron was implied so hard at the end of that sentence, he swore he heard it. He ran a hand over his beard. Christ—that box! “There was a pile of fan mail in a box, but I never looked through it all. I’m sorry.”
She looked at the wall. “Sure. You’re sorry. I bet you’re sorry about a lot of things. I know I am.”
He grabbed her upper arm. “I’m not sorry about you.” He glanced down at her belly and took hold of her other arm, turning her to him. “And I’m not sorry about the baby. Are you?”
She shoved his hands away. “Don’t touch me.”
“Okay. All right.” He lifted his hands, backing off. “Sit down, please. Let’s talk calmly. I’m not here to upset you. It’s not good for the baby.”
“Oh, now you’re going to lecture me on what’s good for the baby?”
“No. Okay. Will you sit down? Please.”
She blew out a breath and sat in the armchair behind the desk and he in the one by the door. The office was small, so they were only a few feet from each other.
“I swear to God, Rayne, I lost my phone and along with it your phone number. I was an idiot for not giving you mine. I was going to call you. I wanted to show you Grand Junction, do all the things we talked about. I swear it.”
“Okay. If I believe you lost your phone, explain the song. You stole my life story and my pain and put it in a goddamn song. How do you think that made me feel, hearing it for the first time with no warning?”
“I’m sorry. I was moved by your story. That night when I got to Denver I don’t know, I just had all these lyrics flowing through my head. I grabbed a piece of paper and scribbled them down. The next thing I knew, I had written that song. I never did it to hurt you.”
She shook her head and looked away. “Why did you lie to me about being in a band?”
He leaned forward, elbows to knees. “I just wanted to be Rory with you. I didn’t want you to look at me differently because I was in a band. We were having a good time. I was afraid that if I told you, it might mess things up.”
“Why?”
“I don’t know. I guess I didn’t want you to think I was some jerk who had a line of women or something.”
“Do you?”
“Have a line of women?”
“Yes.”
“No. I mean, women are around, but I haven’t been with any of them. I haven’t been with a single woman since you.”
She actually laughed at him. “How gullible do you think I am? Am I really supposed to believe you’ve been a monk or something, Mr. Rock Star?”
That pissed him off. “Oh really, and how many men have you been with since that night?”
She looked away. “That’s beside the point.”
“Like hell it is. Tell me.”
“Fine. No one.” She made a circular motion in the air over her stomach. “Who’d want me?”
“Plenty of men.” She was beautiful and sexy as hell, and he wanted her badly. Why wouldn’t other men? Were they blind? No, they were not.
“Right. Because every man wants a woman whose belly is getting bigger every day and is sick all the time.”
He straightened in his seat. “Sick? What do you mean?”
“Morning sickness, except it’s all the time.”
“Oh.”
“Yeah, oh.”
“Have you been seeing a doctor, taking care of yourself?”
“Yes, of course.”
He nodded. “When is the baby due?”
“Why, do you want to do the math in your head? Make sure it’s really yours?”
“No, I’d like to know the due date of my child. Look, Rayne, I’m really trying here. And I get that you’re pissed at me—really pissed—but that snarky attitude you’ve been throwing at me is getting old, okay? Can we just talk like two adults or do we need to get a mediator in the room?”
She fought it, but he saw the corner of her mouth pull up, so he went with it.
“We could get Carmen in here. We’ll call her Switzerland.”
She actually smiled. “I’m sure she’d love that. She does look like the Swiss Miss with those blonde braids.”
He pointed at her. “Yes! That’s exactly who she looks like, the chick on the hot chocolate box! I kept thinking Pippy Longstocking, but she had red hair, right?”
She giggled, and her face lit up.
He took it in. “I’ve missed you,” he admitted softly.
Her smile faded.
“I’ve thought about you a million times. Hell, every damn night,” he confessed and then asked the question he was afraid of asking. “Have you thought of me?”
She arched her brows. “You’re kidding, right? I’ve got a reminder growing in my belly.”
“Right.” It wasn’t the answer he’d hoped for, so he looked at the floor.
“Yes, Rory, I’ve thought about you.”
He looked up. Her face softened, and they stared at each other a long time. Eventually, something inside him drove him to drop to his knees at her feet. He took her hands in his. “I’m sorry about everything. Everything went wrong. I wanted things to go so differently. But, Rayne, you need to believe me when I tell you this—I’m not sorry about the baby.” He searched her face. “Are you?”
She closed her eyes. “I’ve been so hormonal, half the time I don’t know what I feel anymore, except, no, I’m not sorry about the baby. I want it, and I’m going to love it so much. I’m going to be a good mom.”
He smiled. “I know you will. I’m sure of that.”
“Will this child have a father in its life, Rory?”
Honest emotion shown in her eyes. She was letting her guard down, finally. That had to be a hard question for her to ask. Hell, it was one no woman should ever have to ask. “Yes, sweetheart. I want to be here for you and the baby, every step of the way.”
“What does that mean, exactly? How will you be here? Part time? Summers and weekends?”
“We have a lot to work out.”
There was a tap at the door. Rory stood.
It opened and a man stuck his head in. “You okay, Rayne?”
“I’m fine, Charlie.”
“Is this the guy? The father?”
He said it with such venom Rory couldn’t miss the challenge. If they were two stallions, they’d be fighting until one was driven away. Well, Rory had no intention of being driven away, not by this guy or anyone else.
“Yes, I’m the father. We’re having a private conversation about our child. Do you mind?”
The man looked to Rayne. “If you need me I’m right outside, honey.”
“She ain’t gonna need you, Charlie.” Rory shut the door in his face and locked it.
“Rory, you didn’t have to be rude to him.”
“Yeah, I did, Rayne. He needed the facts laid out for him. I just laid them out.”
“What are you talking about?”
“He needs to back off. You are not available—for him or any other guy here. Now he knows it. Soon the rest will, too.”
“You’re insane. I’m not some prize mare to be fought over.”
“Men are very basic creatures, babe. We speak to each other with very clear signals.”
“Were you marking your territory?”
“Something like that.”
“You’re unbelievable.”
“We’ve got something else to talk about.”
&nb
sp; “What’s that?”
“The paparazzi. They’ll be showing up here. I don’t want you exposed to that.”
“How can you prevent it?”
“I can’t. But I can protect you and the baby from them, and that’s what I’m going to do.”
“How?”
“By getting you out of here. We’ll go somewhere they can’t get to you.”
She laughed. “Where’s that?”
“I don’t know yet.”
“Rory, I have a business to run.”
“I’m sure someone here can handle things for awhile. They did it when you went on your road trip.”
“But that was planned.”
“Stop worrying. Okay? I’ll take care of everything.”
“How?”
“Watch me. You sit here. I’m going to make some arrangements. I’ll be back in ten minutes. Okay?”
“You just want me to sit here?”
“Yes. You and the baby could use a rest right now. I’m just asking for ten minutes, Rayne.”
She shrugged. “Okay. Ten minutes, but this is silly. I don’t know what you’re going to solve in ten minutes.”
He grinned. “You’d be surprised what an O’Rourke can do when he puts his mind to it. Be back soon.”
She closed her eyes, resting back. “I’ll be here.”
He left the office, closing the door quietly. As promised, Charlie was in the hall, leaning against the wall. Rory strode past him. “Come on. We need to talk.”
Charlie gave him a curious look, glanced at the office door, then followed.
Rory walked through the store, noting the closed sign was now up, and the lights were dimmed. He didn’t stop until he got to the garage area.
The overhead doors were pulled down, but the three other employees were still there, along with his brothers and Rayne’s girl squad.
He stopped and let out a whistle, motioning the guys working on the bikes to come over.
Their eyes went over his shoulder to Charlie, as if they needed to know if they should comply.
“I know you boys don’t know me, but I’m Rory O’Rourke, and these are my brothers. I’m going to cut to the chase and be as straightforward with you as I can be. Rayne’s having my baby, and I’m happy about that. I plan to be a big part of her life. The problem is, unfortunately I come with some baggage, namely Paparazzi. They found out Rayne is having my child, and they’ve grabbed onto the story. They know about this place and already have some film of her. Not sure you were aware, but it was on the news earlier this evening. Won’t be long before they descend on this place like the plague.”
