Moving to You (Rolling Thunder Book 5)

by Pj Fiala

  13

  Driving along the darkening roads between Sturgis to Shady Pines, his truck hummed as the tires hit the pavement. The soothing sound, the darkening sky, and the soft music made JT feel peaceful. But having Kayden sitting next to him, her perfume filling the cab of the truck teasing his nostrils made him semi-hard most of the ride home. Remembering her taste from not long ago made him lick his lips. Recalling how she felt rubbing against him made him want to tromp the gas and get there sooner. He glanced over at her, sitting with her left foot tucked under her right leg, softly singing to the music on the radio.

  “You have a beautiful voice.”

  Kayden turned her head and looked over at him. Her lips parted in a perfect smile, and he felt the knot form in his stomach.

  “Thanks. Daddy says I sing like my grandma, his momma. I never met her, though, so I’ll have to take his word for it.”

  She giggled. And JT had to work hard to concentrate on driving.

  “Tell me about Dakota’s father. What’s the story with him?”

  JT saw her reflection in the windshield from the soft lights on the dashboard. She scrunched her face. “He’s gone. He worked for Daddy when I came home from school. New York, I mean. I was sick and weak, and he seemed so helpful and interested. One thing led to another, and we sort of got together.”

  JT bit the inside of his cheek to keep from swearing. Not wanting her to stop, he remained silent, alternating between watching the road and her reflection.

  She continued, “Then, I got pregnant, and he floated away. Then Daddy caught him stealing money from the bar right after I had Dakota and fired him. I didn’t want to have anything to do with him after that, but he gave me a hard time about Dakota being his and all. I tried to keep it somewhat peaceful because I didn’t ever want him taking her for the day on his own. As long as I let him come and see her, things were okay.”

  She paused and took a deep breath. “By the time Dakota was two, I realized he was deeper into the Devils than I ever knew. I thought he was just friends with some of them; I didn’t realize he was one.”

  JT quickly glanced at her, then back to the road. “Rog is a Devil?”

  Kayden nodded her head silently. Then softly she said, “Yeah. He began pressuring me about selling the bar to the Devils. Then he went to jail the first time for theft. He only did six months, but it was enough time for me to put the parental dissolution in place in the courts. He and the Devils dragged things out, made me go to court for every little thing, I almost got sick again from the stress of it all.”

  She picked at a thread in the seam of her jeans and JT’s stomach tightened.

  “Sorry. I didn’t mean to make you sad.”

  “You didn’t. I’m more embarrassed than anything. I feel stupid for being with Rog in the first place. I didn’t love him; he was just nice to me.” She looked out the side window. “Pathetic, right?”

  “Nothing wrong with liking someone for being nice to you. Sometimes that’s how it starts.”

  “Right. Except, he was only nice to me because they wanted the bar. I was too stupid to see it. Then I got pregnant, but Dakota is the best part of me.”

  JT smiled as he thought about those cute little red boots, always moving and the pretty little girl years wiser than her age.

  “She’s pretty special, all right. You’re doing a great job with her.”

  Kayden chuckled. “Thanks. She’s a little smarty. Cute as a button and wise for a little girl. She just loves her grandpa.”

  “What are you going to do about the Devils?”

  Kayden shrugged her shoulders. “I don’t know.” She turned to face him. “I’d be open to selling the bar to them for the right price, but Daddy bought it for me, and he wants me to have it. As long as he’s alive, I can’t sell it; it’ll hurt him.”

  JT furrowed his brows. He stretched his shoulders forward and then back. A small group of bikes roared past them, and JT watched the tail lights dim as they sped along out of sight. Selling the bar would be the best thing all the way around. Oakes was sick. JT was willing to bet he was sicker than he let on.

  “Have you talked to him about it?”

  “No, of course not.”

  “If you don’t talk about it, how will you know?”

  “Don’t say anything to him, JT. I don’t want to hurt his feelings. He’ll think I’m ungrateful.”

  JT tapped the turn signal to turn into the lot at OK Leathers. He leaned forward as he saw a man with a noticeable limp scoot from the bar and climb on a bike. When the headlight turned on as he started his bike, the light shined on the broken front door, hanging from the hinges at an awkward angle.

  “Look at that,” he managed before the man started his bike and peeled out of the parking lot. Another bike, at the edge of the lot started and followed the first one.

  “What the hell?” Kayden whispered. Her head immediately turned to look at the front door of the bar. She reached over and unbuckled her seat belt while at the same time unfolding her leg. She had her hand on the handle of the door before JT came to a complete stop.

  “Hang on. You can’t run in there until you know what you’re running into.”

  “The hell I can’t.” She jumped from the truck and pulled her gun from her corset before she reached the door. JT slammed the truck into park and jumped out running after her, pulling his gun from his belt at the same time.

  14

  Stopping suddenly at the open door, Kayden peered into the bar to see if anyone else was around. The lights were on, and she saw some stools laying on the ground and broken glass on the floor. JT stood next to her, and she looked up at him and whispered, “I don’t see anyone. You?”

  He shook his head and stepped in front of her to enter the bar.

  Quietly, he said, “Let me go in first, just in case there’s someone hiding.” She began to shake her head when he said, a bit sterner, “Please.”

  Her shoulders lowered as she watched him quietly walk around the door and into the bar, his pistol held up just in case. His steps were soft but the glass crunched under his shoes, and he slowed his gait. Once past the half wall at the entrance, he looked back at Kayden and tilted his head toward the inside.

  She slowly followed his footsteps. The odor of beer and gun powder hung in the air. She glanced up at JT, and he nodded but put his fingers to his lips, asking for silence. She nodded once and began scanning the room for anyone hiding. No one knew this bar like she did. There was a storage closet just off the bar to the left as you walked into the kitchen. The kitchen had several nooks and crannies to hide in as well.

  But mostly she was worried about her dad. It was still fairly early, and the bar should have been open. Why would someone break the door off its hinges to get in? And where was he? If someone shot off a gun in the bar, he would have heard it from his apartment. Her heart began racing, and she fought off the urge to run in and shout for her dad.

  A grunt and a shuffling noise sounded from behind the bar.

  “Daddy?” she yelled. JT’s brows furrowed and he leveled his gun in the direction of the bar. Kayden followed suit but strode to the open end of the bar.

  “Kayd.” Huffing out a breath, Oakes was lying on the floor, blood dripping from his head. His pistol laid next to him, glass and spilled beer all around him. “Get. Out.” He struggled to speak, his eyes closed, his face contorted in pain. “Not. Safe.”

  “Daddy, what happened? Who was that?” Kayden quickly dropped to her knees. She reached under the bar for a clean towel and laid it on his head. She grabbed his left hand and placed it over the towel. “Hold this in place and put some pressure on it to stop the bleeding.” She looked up at JT. “Can you call an ambulance?”

  JT nodded and pulled his phone from his pocket. Kayden watched as he dialed.

  Looking at her father, she quietly said, “Daddy, tell me what happened. Was it the Devils? How many of them? Are you shot?”

  Oakes groaned as he once again tried to
sit up. “No. You need to lie down,” Kayden said. “You’re cold as ice. I’ll run and get a blanket from your apartment.”

  His voice gravely, Oakes managed to say, “No.” He hung on to her arm as he scooted himself to lean his back against the cabinets behind the bar. They both looked up as JT came around and knelt alongside them. Oakes’ breathing was raspy and his color pale.

  “Oakes, can you tell us anything?” JT lifted the edge of the towel on the top front of Oakes’ head. Blood again began pouring out of the cut, and JT put the towel in place and held it there with his hand. Kayden watched as he took care of her father. He checked his legs for injuries and his chest, abdomen, and back. He reached forward and picked up Oakes’ gun and checked the clip. “You shot three bullets, did you hit them? One of them was limping as he ran out.”

  Weakly, he said, “I got one in the leg. They got the money, though.” His eyes welled with tears, and Kayden’s stomach twisted. They needed that money so damn bad. But, nothing was worth it if they weren’t safe. Now, they were being physically harmed. When would it end? When someone died?

  Kayden swallowed her sadness. “It doesn’t matter. Were you alone in the bar when they came in? Why did they bust the door down?”

  Hearing the faint wail of sirens, Kayden looked into JT’s eyes. Her jaw tightened. Her body was as taut as a high wire, her nerves at the breaking point.

  He reached forward and cupped her chin. “We’ll get the answers we need, but let’s get your dad taken care of first. Deal?”

  Staring for a few moments, she swallowed then nodded. She’d get her answers. That was for sure.

  15

  JT sat in a chair in the emergency room waiting area, elbows on his knees, his head bowed down and resting in his hands.

  “JT, what the hell happened?” Dog strode toward his son; Ryder and Gunnar close behind.

  JT stood and hugged his father and then his brothers as he relayed the story as he knew it. “Dad, there is so much bullshit going on here. I’m worried we don’t even know the half of it. The mica might be valuable, but something else has to be going on. The little bit of money that would have been in that till wouldn’t be worth committing a crime. It just doesn’t make sense.”

  Dog heaved out a breath, and JT watched his father and brothers take seats alongside and across from him.

  Ryder leaned forward. “Where’s Kayden and Dakota?”

  “Kayden’s in with Oakes right now. They stitched him up, but she was needed to answer some health questions. Dakota is with Kayden’s friend, Payton, for the night.”

  Gunnar leaned back in his chair and ran a hand through his short dark hair. His bright blue eyes searched his brother’s. “Are you in danger, JT?”

  JT’s eyebrows raised and he sat back in his chair. His lips turned down into a frown. “I don’t think so. Why would I be? They don’t know me or who I am.”

  Gunnar sat forward. “If they’re after Oakes and Kayden, you could get in the way.” At the furrowing of JT’s brows, Gunnar quickly added, “Just thinking out loud, bro, and you should be thinking of all the angles, too. And after last night in the bar, they just might know who you are.”

  Dog cleared his throat. “Gunnar’s right, JT.”

  JT quickly stood and began to pace. Rubbing his forehead, he turned. “I’m not leaving them by themselves. Clearly, they need help.”

  Dog stood. “I agree. But we don’t know what with. Possibly the Devils. Possibly something more than mica, but we need answers, and we need to be careful.”

  JT watched Kayden walk toward them from Oakes’s room. Her hair was disheveled, her jaw tight, and her back rigid. She looked into JT’s eyes. “Daddy’s going to be fine. He was hit on the head with a bar stool, and he needed fifteen stitches. His vision was a bit blurry, so they want to keep him overnight. I’ll come back and get him in the morning.”

  JT nodded but continued watching her as she glanced around at his family. Dog stepped forward. “We’re here to help, Kayden. All of us. And, I think we all need to talk. Oakes, too.” He looked at JT. “We’ve boarded up the door and locked up the bar and Oakes’ apartment.”

  Kayden let out a deep breath and looked up at Dog. “Thank you all for everything.” She turned to JT. “I’m ready to go if you are.”

  He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her close. “Yeah. We can go.”

  He took a step forward and nodded to his dad. “I’m bringing her to the house tonight since we don’t know what else might happen there, and she would be alone.”

  Kayden looked up. “No. I’m not going to the house like some little maiden who needs to be protected. I’ll stay at my place.”

  JT continued pulling her along with his arm firmly wrapped around her shoulders. “We’ll talk about it in the truck.”

  As they walked down the corridor in the hospital, JT heard his father and brothers chuckling behind them.

  “Do you know what’s going on, Kayd?” She swung her head to look at him from her side of the truck. “Did Oakes say anything?”

  She pressed her lips together as she slowly shook her head. “He refused to say anything further. Said he was tired.” Which is bullshit, she knew he was hiding something.

  She turned toward him. “I can stay at my place.”

  JT had shaken his head before she was finished speaking. “I need to make sure you’re okay. If I’m not there with you, I won’t know what’s going on, which means I won’t sleep. Dakota isn’t home; there’s no reason for you to risk yourself.”

  “JT…” She stopped at the look on his face.

  “Kayden. Please don’t argue. It’s been a bitch of a day. My nerves have been on a roller coaster with the Build-Off, you, and your father.” He blew out a breath, glanced into her eyes and then back to the road. “Let’s go hunker down in a big beautiful house, get a good night’s sleep and tomorrow we’ll get up and assess the damages at the bar, figure out what needs to be done to fix it, and pick up your dad before we head back to Sturgis.” He rotated his head. “Already sounds like a full day.”

  Kayden turned toward the front of the truck and stared out her window. The darkened trees whizzed past her, barely registering what they were. She could see the reflection of the dashboard lights on the glass as her mind wandered to her dad. What was he into? Feeling the truck slow, she turned to look out the windshield as JT turned onto the road to the house. She simply couldn’t believe she was spending the night in the big house. She’d dreamed of it, sleeping there, but as the owner and lady of the house, not as a guest. It was bittersweet.

  The truck slowed and turned up onto the steep stone driveway; gravel crunched under the tires. The large imposing house nestled halfway up into a hill, stood proudly waiting for her. Light shown from some of the windows, as its occupants had recently returned, probably waiting for them to arrive safely before turning in for the night. Kayden sighed.

  JT glanced over. “Don’t worry, you’ve already met everyone. They like you.”

  She frowned and studied his face in the dim lights from the dashboard. “It's not that,” she whispered as she watched his jaw tense.

  Her eyes traveled the length of his strong muscular arm, the rippling of muscle, the fine hairs decorating the taut skin. She felt a tingle climb her spine and shivered. His hands tightened on the wheel then released as he reached the shifter with his right hand. He put the truck in park. She watched his nimble fingers turn the keys in the ignition and the motor quieted. Her eyes sought his, and her stomach flipped when they caught and held. His soft full lips hitched up on one side as he watched her assess him.

  She heard him take a deep breath, and she stared at his lips. She moistened hers with her tongue, and he growled from deep in his gut. That sexy arm of his reached around the back of her head, pulled her forward and his lips touched hers ever so softly. Light feathery kisses tingled her lips, then his mouth completely covered hers and consumed her. His tongue slipped into her mouth and slid along hers; the
velvety softness raised gooseflesh on her arms. His breathing increased and the scent of his cologne made her senses fire with lightning speed.

  16

  JT pulled his lips from Kayden’s and touched his forehead to hers. Willing his breathing to return to normal, he inhaled deeply, and the soft, clean scent of her shampoo and the powdery aroma of her cologne hit him in the gut. Actually lower, but still, like a sucker punch. He lifted his head, the illumination from the house was soft, allowing him to stare into the deep hazel irises staring back at him.

  “They’re awake and waiting for us. We should go in,” he croaked out. She smiled, and his gut tightened. Her full, velvety lips, still damp from his kisses, made him think differently than he’d ever thought. This girl spun his head.

  “Yeah,” she said softly.

  Even the way she said, yeah was sexy. She turned to open her door, but he caught her with his hand at the back of her head.

  Looking deep into her eyes, he said, “I’ll leave you alone tonight, but tomorrow all bets are off.” He stared until he heard her sigh and then felt her shiver.

  A smirk slid across his lips. He winked at her and said, “Ready?”

  She nodded, began to turn toward her door but paused. A sly smile graced her lips, and his heart hammered. Her voice deepened, and the words that floated from her sexy lips stopped him in his tracks. “We’ll see if you leave me alone tonight. I’ll be sleeping in your bed, naked and lonely.”

  She slipped from his truck as he stared at the spot she left empty. His eyes tracked her movements, gracefully walking toward the door, her sexy ass swaying slightly, her long hair swishing with her movements. She glanced back at him, and the wanton smile on her face instantly hardened his cock.

  “Well, fuck me,” he muttered as he opened his truck door and strode to catch up.

  Reaching Kayden, he opened the door for her. They stepped into the lower level of the house; the lights above the bar were on, and Ryder, Molly, Gunnar, and Emma were having a drink and chatting. They turned toward JT and Kayden, each smiling.