Beard Mode (The Dixie Warden Rejects MC Book 1)

by Lani Lynn Vale

  “You be careful,” she ordered. “And try not to get too banged up your first day on the job.”

  She started to back into her apartment in the next heartbeat, and I closed the door of my own apartment.

  “I’ll call you to see if you want to meet for dinner after my shift.” I jiggled the handle to make sure it was locked. “And from what I hear, the super is supposed to be coming in later to make sure that my air gets fixed. He’s also supposed to be bringing a copy of the key that you had to give back. I told him to leave the extra key with you when he was done.”

  She smiled. “I’ll be looking forward to your call.”

  I’d look forward to the call, too.

  I was already hesitant to leave her what with the new apartment’s occupants who had moved in while we’d been gone over the weekend.

  But with no other recourse, I pulled her in for one more quick kiss and left her without another word.

  My eyes didn’t miss the way that the men who’d appeared over the weekend watched me. They also didn’t miss the way that the men stiffened the moment they saw me walking to my bike.

  Before they’d only seen me in passing as Imogen and I had made our way back from the airport.

  Truth had dropped us off in his pick-up that he’d left in short-term parking, and the men holding up the wall had only seen Imogen and I dropped off at the front door.

  I’d not had the time, nor the energy, to do anything but to go up to my apartment and collapse on the bed.

  I stopped beside the bike and looked down at Tank instead of looking at the glaring men any longer and said, “You ready to roll?”

  The dog didn’t answer, but I assumed that it was answer enough when he nudged his leash that was gripped between my fingers and thumb.

  Grinning, I straddled the bike and started it up, my eyes on the dog the entire time.

  “I hope you enjoy walking to work,” I told him. “Because I have nothing but the bike.”

  The dog didn’t answer, though that was expected. He didn’t much have anything to do with me unless it was dinner time.

  Lucky for me and him, though, I was very close to town. Less than half a mile if you went through the apartment parking lot—which would also be the way he would be getting to work.

  Not that I was worried about him getting tired out.

  Stone used to run marathons, and the dog would be by his side the entire way.

  Tank could handle a short jog to the station.

  Which he did. Beautifully.

  He loped on the sidewalk beside me all the way there, much to the excitement of three women who were out walking their Shitpoos, or whatever the hell the little white demon dogs were called.

  I’d just pulled into the first parking spot directly in front of the station, which happened to be the only open parking spot, when a car tried to swing in at the same time.

  Seeing as I was already there and swinging off my bike with Tank at my side, the car had no other recourse but to find elsewhere to park—which happened to be across the street.

  I didn’t miss the fact that the woman was pissed, though. She didn’t like that I was in the only spot which forced her to find parking elsewhere.

  It was also clear that she thought I was a thug with the way she took in my vest and attire of jeans and a t-shirt.

  Since it’d been such short notice, and I’d had to go out of town this weekend, I’d gotten the okay from Big Papa to go ahead and wear a black polo and nice jeans instead of the standard uniform that other officers were fitted for.

  The vest, I knew, would have to come off, but I didn’t have to take it off until I got inside and took it to Big Papa’s office seeing as I didn’t have a locker yet, either.

  I’d just grabbed hold of Tank’s leash and grabbed my Kevlar vest in the other hand when the woman driving the car stormed across the street and headed straight for me.

  “You can’t have a trained police dog unleashed like that,” she snapped. “That’s a misuse of city property.”

  I blinked, staring at her.

  “Is that right?” I asked, not caring one single bit what she thought about anything.

  Then I walked away without another word to her.

  I nearly laughed when she stormed by me, tossing an ugly glare over her shoulder as she passed.

  I reached for the door to open it, but she moved her body into the way, making it to where I couldn’t reach it without physically moving her.

  “I can get my own door,” she snapped.

  I held up both hands, my belongings dangling in front of my body.

  “Noted.”

  She curled her lip up at me and yanked the door open so forcefully that it nearly bounced closed before she could make it all the way inside.

  Catching the door before it could slam in my face, I gently guided Tank inside and followed behind the woman into the heart of the police station.

  The police station wasn’t much. The town we were in was small, only about twenty-two thousand people.

  There were eight police officers total—nine including me—and Big Papa who was now acting chief of police.

  Three worked during the day, three worked at night, and three worked split shifts wherever they were needed throughout the week.

  I would be working days, taking over Big Papa’s shift, which was the coveted position on the force—Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. We had ten hour shifts, and I had two weeks of orientation with a preceptor grading me on everything I did before they’d release me to shifts of my own.

  Three men met me in the main room the moment I breached the doorway.

  BP—which was what Big Papa went by at work, another man I didn’t know, and the mayor—Jay Reeves, turned as one and studied me.

  “You’re early,” BP said.

  I nodded my head. “Yeah.”

  BP grinned.

  “This is Arnie Griffinwills. You know the Mayor, Jay.” BP pointed at each man. “They’re here to meet you.”

  I offered my hand to each man. “Nice to meet you both.”

  Each man took my hand and released it before turning their attention to staring at anything but my face.

  Something I was used to by everyone, so I didn’t take too much offense.

  “And I can see you already met Stephanie.”

  My eyes rose.

  “Who?” I asked.

  BP pointed. “Steph, your preceptor.”

  I sighed when he pointed at the mad woman who’d nearly accosted me in the parking lot.

  “No, can’t say I’ve had the pleasure of meeting her,” I lied. “It’s nice to meet you.”

  Steph, who’d dropped her belongings in what I guessed was her locker, didn’t say anything, only nodded.

  “She’s going to be your guide into this wonderful world of police work for the next two weeks.”

  “Joy,” I muttered under my breath.

  “What?” Mayor Jay asked. “I didn’t quite hear you.”

  I looked at him.

  “I said ‘joy’,” I repeated.

  Stephanie narrowed her eyes.

  “No, her name is Stephanie.”

  I didn’t reply. If the man was hard of hearing, and had no clue when I was being facetious, who was I to correct him?

  “Anyway,” BP gave me a stern look that clearly said ‘stop being an ass’ and turned back to the mayor. “He’s going to be handling Tank.”

  “Why can’t a more seasoned officer be Tank’s handler?” the mayor wanted to know.

  I sighed, knowing where this was about to go.

  We’d already been over this about eight million times.

  Instead of listening to the spiel, I started toward what I assumed was the locker room.

  Maybe taking a piss would relieve some of the pressure building up in my body—though likely it wouldn’t. My head was already pounding, my blood pressure was likely skyrocketing, and
I was fairly sure I was going to hate working with this chick.

  Though, she had an unfair advantage before she’d said a word.

  She looked like Lynn.

  And fuck me, but I didn’t like the reminder. Not one goddamned bit.

  My eyes moved around the space as I walked toward the door I assumed to be the locker room, taking in the in-need-of-repaint brown walls to the rickety desks that looked like they could fall completely apart the moment another paper hit the top of them.

  Then there was the lighting.

  There were about ten lights in the whole large room. All of them were flush mounted to the ceilings with a single bulb burning bright.

  Though, two of them were out and needed replacing.

  In the direction I was heading I could see the locked doors and a sign that read: Doors Must Remain Locked At All Times.

  I assumed that was the jail part of the police station, though I’d likely confirm that suspicion at some point today.

  Tank’s nails clicked on the wood floor underneath his feet, bringing my attention down to him.

  He looked disinterested, as if he could care less about being here.

  Which I guess he could.

  He didn’t want to work without his partner, and I was definitely not his partner.

  Everyone said hi to him as we’d passed anyone on the way to the station today, but his tail hadn’t once wagged.

  So yes, I knew for a fact Tank didn’t want to be here.

  “You can’t go in there,” I heard the moment my hand met the cool wood door that led to the locker room.

  My head dropped and I contemplated my feet.

  Would it be okay to leave before I’d even gotten started? Would Big Papa hold it against me? And if he did, could I leave?

  The answer to my question was no, I couldn’t leave. Not the city and not the job.

  I knew I could get my position back with the fire department.

  Lucky for me I was still working there, though only in an as needed capacity.

  Unfortunately, hearing that I wouldn’t be returning for a couple of months, they’d filled the position that I’d been sliding into, with assurances that when the time came that I wanted a job, I’d have one.

  “Are you even listening to me?” Stephanie barked.

  Yes, barked.

  She was very stern and assertive. She expected to be obeyed, and I wasn’t much of an obeyer.

  I was more of a doer.

  “I heard you,” I confirmed. “But why can’t I go in here?”

  “There’s no reason for you to go in there. You don’t have a locker in there. They’re all full. You’ll have to put your stuff somewhere else,” she snapped.

  I pushed through despite her assurances that I wasn’t allowed in there, and came face to face with the largest man I’d ever seen.

  “Yo!” Tough boomed. “I didn’t know you were starting today.”

  I grinned at the big man and offered my hand.

  “Yep,” I nodded my head. “Start in about ten minutes. Just gotta take a leak.”

  Tough moved out of the way and pointed in the direction of the restroom door I could see hanging wide open through a sea of lockers.

  “Right there,” he instructed.

  I nodded my head and headed in the direction of the bathroom, stopping to look at a sweet AR-15 that was in an open locker.

  “Nice,” I said to the man that was sitting on the bench beside the locker.

  The man looked up.

  He looked like a younger version of Sam Elliott with his salt and pepper hair, skinny stature, and handlebar mustache.

  “New toy,” the man confirmed.

  “Looks new. How’s it shoot?” I asked.

  “I haven’t shot it yet. Just got it in today. Brought it to work with me so I can shoot it after I get off,” he grinned. “My Martha’s gonna have a shit fit when I’m late, but I’ve been dying to shoot it for the last week.”

  I grinned.

  “Take her with you.”

  The man laughed.

  “Yeah, right.”

  My brows rose.

  “Why not?” I asked, confusion spreading across my face.

  “Because my Martha is delicate.” He held up his hand. “She’s about yay high with about a buck ten to her name.”

  I grinned.

  “Don’t underestimate her,” I told him as I offered him my hand. “My girl is about the same, but she was a Marine. Know for a fact that girl can handle a gun if she was a Marine.”

  “Oorah!” The man grinned. “My name is Edwin McClain. You can call me McClain.”

  “Like the Die Hard McClain?”

  McClain nodded. “Only older, with more hair,” he confirmed. “Never brought down a plane with a car before, though.”

  “There’s always a first for everything, McClain!” Tough called from beside us. “Hey, you better go or the ballbuster will start pissing and moaning.”

  I nodded my head and started to the bathroom again.

  “It was nice to meet you,” I called over my shoulder at the older cop.

  The cop winked. “Let me know how your day goes with BB.”

  “BB?” I asked, halting right at the bathroom door with my hand on the knob.

  “BB.” Tough pointed at the still pissed off Stephanie. Then he mouthed, “Ball Buster.”

  Shaking my head at him, I walked into the bathroom, unsurprised when Tank followed me right in.

  That was normal for him, apparently.

  I’d tried to leave him outside the door at my own bathroom at home, and in retaliation, he’d eaten one of my shoes after clawing at the door for ten minutes while I’d been in the shower.

  I’d learned real fast while at Booth’s that I either took him into the bathroom with me, or he’d make it known that he was not happy.

  It was odd at first, but after the past four days of dealing with his weird nature, I just shrugged it off and did what I had to do.

  At least he didn’t stare at my scars like they were some alien life form.

  After taking care of my business, I shrugged off my cut, then followed suit with my shirt.

  The vest was bulky and tight, but it felt right.

  I hadn’t had to wear one in a really long time.

  The Marines didn’t feel like it’d been ten years ago, but it had. Though, putting on this vest brought back memories of a long time ago when life had been easier. More fun.

  Though, now that Imogen was in my life, things were looking up.

  “Are you almost done in there?” Stephanie barked from the opposite side of the door. “Other people have to use the facilities.”

  I stared down at Tank as I wiped my hands clean with a paper towel.

  “I give you permission to bite her.”

  He didn’t so much as nod in understanding—damn dog.

  Stephanie’s eyes were the first thing that met me as I got out of the bathroom.

  “What, you didn’t trust us with him?” Stephanie sneered, her arms crossed over her belly, hand resting near her gun, as she stared down at Tank before returning her gaze to mine.

  My belly tightened in anger.

  “Nothing against you, honey, but I don’t know you,” I told her honestly. “So no, I don’t trust you. I trust Tough because I know the man. You, not so much.”

  Stephanie’s mouth tightened. “That’s going to get really awkward when you’re depending on me to teach you the ropes.”

  I refused to say anything.

  She, however, had no problem letting me know how unhappy she was.

  “And I’m going to warn you, I’m not going to go easy on you because you’re the prodigal son.”

  My brows furrowed.

  “I’m not anybody’s son who’d get me a job here,” I informed her. “Now, if you’ll move out of my way, the bathroom will be all yours.”

  She moved, but only eno
ugh to allow me to pass by.

  My phone vibrated in my pocket, and I pulled it out as I walked past her, thankful for anything that would take me away from thinking about this woman who I wanted to strangle.

  “Hello?” I answered.

  “Hey,” Imogen said. “I just wanted to tell you before you started your shift that I was going to head to the shop. Is it all right that I start working a little on the Nova?”

  She sounded so hopeful that I decided to let her, even though it went against the grain to have anyone working on the car but me.

  “Sure, baby,” I agreed almost immediately. “Will you be there all day?”

  “You can’t have your phone out while at work,” Stephanie snapped.

  I covered the mouthpiece with my hand and looked at my watch.

  “According to my watch, I still have four minutes until my shift starts. So I can do anything I damn well please.”

  She opened her mouth to reply, but I chose to walk away.

  “Sorry,” I muttered into the receiver. “Did you answer me on whether you’ll be there all day?”

  “Yes,” she answered. “Yes, I’ll be here all day. At least until around five. I have a lot of backlog I need to get started on. I’m just waiting on parts for them now.”

  “I’ll call you around lunch time to see if you’re free, then maybe we can grab lunch at that diner across from your shop,” I offered.

  She hummed in content. “That sounds nice. Who was that woman that told you that you couldn’t be on the phone?” She cleared her throat. “I can let you go if you need me to.”

  “I need to go, but not because she told me I needed to hang up, because I start my shift in like a minute and a half. Want to make a good impression and all that shit.”

  She snickered.

  “I’m sure that’s exactly right. Good impression.”

  I grinned.

  “Yeah, I’m not fooling myself either.”

  Tough snorted from beside me, and I flipped him off.

  “Gotta go, baby,” I told her. “I’ll call you around lunch and let you know what’s up with me.”

  “Okay,” she whispered. “Take care of yourself and Tank.”

  “It’s nine in the morning. You’re on shift now.”

  Stephanie’s voice was already getting to me.

  “I will, darlin’,” I promised, knowing that she was nervous about the whole new cop aspect of my life. “Talk to you soon.”