by King, Jayna
I pulled out of the lot and made sure Max followed. While I drove, I thought about what Tombley might want from me. I got that he didn't want his agent at risk, but what the hell did he think I could do about it? I wondered if he was thinking about pulling Max out altogether. I figured that the only way I was gonna find out was to call him.
When I pulled into the drive from the road, I didn't feel the sense of relief that I was used to. I hadn't realized quite how anxious I was going to be about having Max around. I felt like my privacy was being invaded. It was just over a mile down the drive before we finally reached my house -- set into a shallow depression that hid it from view from all directions. The only way you'd be able to see the house at all would be if you were on a mountain with binoculars. I took my privacy seriously. I'd always fantasized about having a house so remote that I could fuck on the front porch if I wanted to, but in the years since I'd built it, I hadn't found a single girl that I even considered taking home. I laughed as I thought to myself that maybe that meant that I should quit fucking hookers.
Max was the first woman I'd ever brought home.
Chapter 23
Max
Moses hadn't been kidding when he said he lived pretty far out of town. It had taken us about fifteen minutes to get to his driveway, and when we turned, I was surprised that I didn't see a house. After about a mile-and-a-quarter, the house came into view. And what a house it was.
It looked like it belonged there, like it had grown all on its own. The site was perfect -- so secluded that I couldn't see another building anywhere -- and with a spectacular panoramic view. The house itself was a combination of what looked like sandstone and natural cedar colored wood -- the same colors I saw all around me. The building was long and low to the ground, and I pulled up to the huge garage at the near end.
I was about to park and get out, when the garage door on the end opened and Moses waved me in to the empty space in the garage that housed three motorcycles, an old Ford pickup, and now, my car.
"Wow," was all I could manage as I opened my car door and got out. "Moses, this place is gorgeous."
He simply nodded as he parked his bike and closed the garage door.
"Was the previous owner an architect? This house just feels like it belongs here -- like it's part of the natural landscape."
Moses looked at me with surprise. "There was no previous owner. I built it." He looked at me like he was seeing me for the first time. "You get it."
He opened the door that led into the house, and I was looking forward to seeing inside.
I stepped into the kitchen, and it was like a dream. The cabinets were simple, light wood that reached all the way to the ceiling. An island in the middle was half cooktop and half bar with seating on the opposite side. The terra-cotta tiles of the floor added warmth in color, and the whole impression was of sleek, simple, unfussy luxury.
"Oh my God, Moses. It's gorgeous."
I walked through the open kitchen to the living room. The open floor plan with high ceilings and the fact that the entire back wall of the house was full of floor-to-ceiling windows meant that the house was full of light and featured the spectacular view as its main focus. A huge double sided stone fireplace gave me just a glimpse of the master bedroom on the other side of the wall. I could imagine being curled up in bed with Moses on a cold snowy night with a fire in that fireplace.
"I figured the view was enough. Didn't want to fuck it up by doing too much."
"Seriously, this is one of the coolest houses I've ever been in. Mind if I look out back?"
"Make yourself at home." Moses waved me to the door as held out his hand for my backpack. "I'll take your bag."
I didn't care where he took it. I couldn't imagine that there was a lousy room in the whole place. I unlocked and opened the door that led to the low deck on the back of the house. No railings marred the view since there were only two steps down at either end. I walked the length of the deck toward the master bedroom and decided that if I had a dream house, this would be it. I turned at the sound of the door opening from the bedroom.
I'm pretty sure my jaw fell open when I saw the master bath. The shower was a room, for heaven's sake. The whole back wall of it was glass and looked out onto the deck with its spectacular view. The tiles and the double waterfall shower heads, combined with the fact that I felt ridiculously grubby, made the shower look like heaven. The bedroom itself was huge, with a bed that faced the fireplace and a back wall full of bookshelves.
Who was this guy? Bikers didn't live in homes that looked like they belonged in architectural magazines.
Moses joined me on the deck.
I pointed to the bathroom. "Guess you don't take showers when you have guests?"
He laughed. "No, I don't guess I would."
I must have looked puzzled because he explained further.
"I don't really have guests."
"What? Like ever?"
"Not ever. You're actually the first person I've ever brought here." He must have seen the shock on my face. "I built this place so far out -- and so far from the clubhouse -- so that I could get away from it all. The drugs and the parties and the hookers. I mean that stuff's all fun, but I need a fuckin' break every now and then"
"It's your sanctuary," I said softly, understanding completely.
"I guess, if you want to give it a fancy name."
Moses seemed kind of embarrassed by my marveling at his house, so I resolved to try to keep my awe under wraps.
"So I guess we need to call Tombley, huh?"
"Yeah."
Moses led the way back inside, and we sat down at his dining room table. I was surprised to see that it would comfortably seat eight, and the thought of Moses having built this lovely house and having no one to share it with made me surprisingly sad.
Moses picked up one of his prepaid cell phones and dialed Tombley. When he answered, Moses pressed a button and set the phone on the table between us.
"I'm putting you on speaker. Max is here too. I got your messages. What's going on?"
"You okay Max?" Tombley asked.
"Sure am. Just got to Moses' house."
"I told you not to go back to your apartment last night. We can't afford to have your cover compromised."
I rolled my eyes to Moses. "I didn't, Jeff. I was at the Sons' clubhouse last night. It's all fine."
Tombley sounded relieved. "Has Moses filled you in on the new mess we have brewing?"
"Yes."
"Any news, Moses?"
"None yet. We have our regular meeting on Sunday, and some of the guys from Fort Collins are coming down to sit in. We're supposed to decide how to handle it then."
"Any thoughts on how it'll go down?"
"I know that some of the guys are gonna want to go blow some fuckin' Vandals to kingdom come. I'm working on getting Joker and some other brothers on my side -- finding some other way to handle it. I haven't really come up with a good plan yet."
I sat still, not really having much to contribute. I had a hard time picturing the guys I'd hung out with the night before actually committing murder, but I knew that I was being naive.
Tombley sighed. "Moses you have to find a way to contain this. We can't have Max hurt, and I can't knowingly let a gang war start. I'll have to put a stop to it, and that'll delay -- or maybe even kill -- this case."
I had an idea. "What if we could somehow get evidence before the Sons can act? You know, step up the pace?"
Moses shook his head. "Max, it's not that simple. I can help to influence what the Sons do, but there's a chance that the Vandals are gonna bring the fight here. They fucked up one of our girls, but that may not be enough for them. I can't control what happens if they show up ready to get revenge."
"My sources tell me that's not going to happen, Moses."
Moses sat back in his chair. "Your sources? Tombley, you have sources in the Vandals? When were you gonna fuckin' tell me?"
"You didn't need to know. What matters is that they're
not gonna show up ready to settle any scores."
Moses shook his head and looked disgusted.
I decided to wrap things up. "So Moses and I will work on a plan to start collecting evidence. Maybe we can move things along -- create a situation where we get everything we need a little sooner. That sound like a plan?"
"Sounds good, Max," Tombley said. "Under no circumstances are you to take unnecessary risks, though. Your safety is our primary concern. That and the evidence being collected in such a way as to make it absolutely airtight in court. Is that clear?"
"Absolutely," I answered, looking at Moses -- his arms crossed, looking furious.
"Anything further?" Tombley asked?"
I answered. "Don't think so."
"Okay. I'll expect an update later today."
He hung up, and I looked at Moses, a little perplexed by the anger he radiated.
"What's got your boxers in a bunch?" I asked.
Moses stood up from the table. "Why wouldn't he tell me that he has informants in the Vandals? Why would someone want to work with him?"
I shook my head. "No clue why he wouldn't tell you. Probably didn't think it mattered. As to why a source would work with him, the DEA pays its informants. I'm sure it's all about the money."
Moses was visibly agitated. "I guess it shouldn't matter since I'm trying to send my brothers away, but I've been honest with him, and something about this just sticks in my craw. Like I've been giving him inside information, and he's been hiding shit from me."
"What possible motive could he have for hiding things from you? It't probably just irrelevant. Little petty BS that doesn't have anything to do with the Sons."
Moses sighed. "I guess you're right. Doesn't matter anyway, does it? I know now."
"Exactly." I stood up as well and stretched. "Hey, I hate to be a bother, but if I don't take a shower, I'm gonna start driving off all your wildlife. I'm filthy."
"Yeah. Sorry. I just wanted to get Tombley dealt with."
"Totally agree."
"This way."
Moses led the way toward the bedroom, and I was a little confused. Surely he wasn't going to give up his gorgeous master bedroom for me.
"So there are some weird things about the house," Moses explained as we walked. "There's only one full bath, and really only one bedroom. I turned the other two into an art studio and a workout room. So we're going to have to share the bathroom and you can sleep in the bed. I'll take the couch."
"No way am I going to turn you out of your bed. I'll take the couch. I'll confess that I'm looking forward to that shower though."
Moses looked at me like he was undressing me in his mind and thinking about me in his shower. I have to admit that I didn't really mind.
"We can sort out the bed later, I guess. I put your bag in here. Is there anything else you need to bring in from the car?"
"Yeah. I need to grab a couple more things."
"If you'll tell me what you need, I'll go get them and set them outside the door for you. After that, I'm gonna go work out. Helps me clear my head."
I described the bags and the jacket I wanted, and I closed the bedroom door behind Moses. I looked around the amazing room. The huge bed was centered on the far wall, facing the fireplace to my left. The light streamed through the tall windows and illuminated the bookshelves to my right. The door to the shower was to the right of the bed, and the double sinks and huge mirror faced me. I assumed that the door to the right of the sink led to the toilet.
Moses had put my backpack on the sink, so I went over to unpack my toiletries. Since I knew that he wasn't used to having another person around, I was determined to be a considerate guest. I lined up my stuff neatly and pulled my dirty clothes from the night before out of the bag. I tossed them on the floor since they smelled like stale smoke, and I didn't want to put them on the nearby upholstered chair.
I decided that I didn't really need my clean clothes until I got out of the shower. Since Moses knew I was there, surely he wouldn't be walking around on the deck trying to catch a glimpse of me naked, would he? I smiled to myself as I thought about seeing him naked, glistening in that gorgeous shower, water running off his tattoos and muscles. Holy shit. I might need a cold shower. He was way too hot for me to think about that way. Nothing good could come of that.
I shucked my boots, peeled off my socks, slipped out of my jeans, and took of my top and bra. I couldn't believe that I was standing naked in front of a wall of glass and that there was no one to see me. I tossed my clothes onto the chair, grabbed my shampoo, conditioner, and razor, and headed into the shower room.
I hadn't noticed earlier that a low bench ran the length of the room, perpendicular to the window. I was glad I'd have a place to put my foot up while I shaved. My face flushed as I thought about other uses for the bench. I turned on both shower heads, waited until the water got hot, and stepped beneath.
Heaven.
I felt like I was in the shower for thirty minutes, and when I emerged, I had wrinkled fingers and toes, but I felt like a new person. I smoothed on some of my favorite citrus body lotion and crossed the bedroom to the door. I listened carefully because I didn't want to open the door to find Moses in the living room staring at me naked. I could faintly hear thumping bass, though, and I guessed that he was still working out. I opened the door, checked to make sure I was alone, and grabbed my bags.
Realizing that I had no idea what we had planned for the rest of the day, I decided to go with comfortable and sexy. Thinking about Moses had made me crave sexy lingerie next to my body. I pulled on navy blue panties that were low cut in the front and had lace that looked great on my ass. The matching bra was all lace in the back, and the hook between my breasts pulled the cups together in a way that made me look quite well endowed. I looked at myself in the mirror -- wet hair making the tacky blonde dye job less obvious -- and thought that I would love for Moses to see me that way. What was I thinking, though? I couldn't possibly be his type. He was used to women who made out with other women on pool tables. There was no way I could compete with that.
I slipped on a loose, soft white button down, knowing that the navy bra would show through a little bit. I buttoned the buttons over my breasts and left the rest open. As I pulled on my favorite comfy, filmy, low-rise black knit pants, I thought that I didn't look half bad -- sexy without being slutty. Perfect.
Stowing my bags out of the way until Moses told me where he wanted my stuff, I finally -- at about 11am, felt like I was ready to start my day.
Chapter 24
Moses
Music cranked, I pushed myself a little harder than I usually did in my workout. Between having Max in my house and being pissed at Tombley, I was all out of sorts. I couldn't actually figure out what had me so mad. I just felt like Tombley should have told me that he had informants in the Vandals. Maybe I was worried that somehow his rats would somehow jeopardize my safety -- I tended not to trust anyone other than myself to do things properly. The man was a federal agent, though. Surely he knew what he was doing. There was something about the situation that just didn't sit well with me though.
Sweaty and exhausted, I turned off the music and was startled by the sound of Max in the kitchen. Just that quickly, I'd forgotten that there was someone else in the house with me. I hoped she'd just make herself at home and not expect me to wait on her. That wasn't gonna fucking happen.
I walked out into the living room and saw her opening cabinets in the kitchen.
"Make yourself at home," I said with a smile, hoping she knew that I wasn't pissed.
"Oh, I am," she answered cheerfully. "I'm about to make some coffee. Want some?"
"I will after I take a shower."
She turned to face me, and she looked like she wanted to take off the little bit of clothing I had on. I usually just worked out in a pair of shorts, and I hadn't seen any reason to change that, just because Max was here.
"I feel like a new person," she said as she measured out coffee into t
he filter.
"I feel better, too, after the workout." I headed toward the bedroom. "Back out in a minute."
I walked into the bedroom, afraid that I was gonna find girly shit all over the place. I was pleased to see that she'd neatly set her stuff up out of the way. Good sign. The room smelled like lemons, and it was fresh and erotic all at the same time. I peeled off my sweaty shorts and tossed them toward the laundry basket. As I went into the shower, I saw a beige lace bra hanging over the shirt Max had worn earlier. So she hadn't been naked underneath after all.
Showered and dressed, I went back out to the kitchen and laughed when I saw Max holding a Waffle House mug, with another set out on the counter for me. I poured myself a cup of coffee.
"I had these brought in special for you," I said, as if I were completely serious.
"Does Lily know that you've been absconding with her coffee mugs?" Max asked.
"Yeah, the girls knew I was stealing them. I just wanted six. Full set, you know."
Max shook her head and laughed. "You're something else, Moses Hall."
"It's probably warm enough to sit outside. The humidity's low and the sun's out. You mind?"
"Absolutely not," she answered. "Coming from the East Coast, I'm loving the sunshine. I thought Colorado would be really cold, but it's been gorgeous while I've been here."
"It ain't always this nice, but I try to enjoy it while I can. I don't have many days off when I can sit in the sun."
We settled in a couple of chairs facing the mountains.
"You're not working today?"
"Not at the studio. I figured we needed to get some things sorted out, and I only had a couple of people to reschedule. No big deal."
"Good. I'm glad we'll have some time to come up with a plan."
"Yeah. So where do we start?"
"Well, one of the things we need to accomplish is getting you comfortable with the recording equipment. I've already tested it, but we should probably run through everything one more time and make sure it works properly."
