I finish the test drive, take the car back to my house and clean her up a little more. I’m about thirty minutes into the detailing process on the exterior. The interior was handled by Red earlier today while I was stuck at the shop when I find something I don’t often see. Popping out the taillight to put a polish on the glass, I find a surprise.
A tracker.
Now, why would Amanda Horton, known to me as Fox have a tracker in her car? Who would need to keep tabs on her?
According to the search, she’s an only child born to Clyde and Mary Horton. Her father died in a farm accident when she was four years old and her mother died from cancer last year. She inherited some money and after paying off her mother’s debts she was left with a lump sum that allowed her to purchase a piece of property not far from me. It took some digging, but turns out the family used to vacation in Emerald Isle when Amanda was younger. I can only assume that is why she decided to settle here and dump all of her money into a converted rail car.
It’s surprising really to have her so close. Sure, she doesn’t know that I know she’s practically my neighbor. The bottom line is she knows how close she is and yet, in all the texts and the few conversations we have had she has failed to share this with me.
Pulling out the tracker without disconnecting it or disarming it, I make a call to Swift.
“Yo,” he answers on the second ring.
He is our tech guy. He knows more about this than I do and definitely can help me find out who is monitoring it.
“Need ya to ride to my house, bring your shit. Got a tracker I want you to sort out.”
“Someone trackin’ you, BW?” He asks as I hear him moving around no doubt getting his gear to head my way.
“No, I’ll explain when you get here.”
I end the call and study the encasement of the tracker. Does Fox know someone is tracking her? Was this put in by her to protect the car should it get stolen?
If that is the case, why is she so paranoid? Why would she need to track her own car?
The more I let my mind race, the more questions I come up with.
Kevin “Swift” Jackson went to school with Red and me. He graduated a year before us and went on to some technical institute where the man got a degree in some sort of engineering. He’s a damn genius and does all the wiring for our security systems in the Hellions properties.
After a quick hello, I take him straight to the car knowing I have to hurry because Fox will be here after work to get her car and return my truck. Any minute she could pull up and well, if she planted the tracker I’ll have to explain to her why I was even touching the back-end of her car. She isn’t expecting us to detail it too. She thinks we focused our attention on the damage to the front end and the engine.
Swift pulls out a machine that looks like the readers we hook up to car ignitions. Scanning around the device he studies the machine in front of him.
“Leave the tracker in place. I’ll have what you need within the hour,” he explains. “Whose car is this?”
“A broad named Fox.”
He raises an eyebrow at me.
“Look dumb move on my part at a street race where someone wrecked her out at the tree. The only name she has given me is Fox. Now obviously, I know more about her from the registration on her car, but she doesn’t know the pull I have. Finding this little bug, well, it’s unexpected. So I need to know who is tracking her.”
“Understood,” Swift says packing up his equipment.
He’s just in time as my truck pulls up with her blonde hair flying out of the driver’s side window. Her eyes meet mine and she smiles.
I feel like everything stops and she is all I see. Swift swings, backhanding me in the chest. “Got it bad, brother.”
“Not yet. Don’t know her.”
“You look like you wanna eat her for dinner. You got it bad, BW.”
“Not yet,” I repeat. “If she’s a risk to the club, my family, then I walk the fuck away no matter how strong the pull.”
He laughs. “Yeah, you do realize your dad was the charter president for Catawba and came to the coast because Roundman asked him to, and of course for Doll to be back home. He had a life and a solid club, he gave it up to come here for your mom.”
“Got it wrong, bro. He did that shit for Roundman and the Hellions. My mom did what a good ol’ lady does and went with her man. I’m loyal to the Hellions above everyone else. Fox can either accept it, and be on the up and up with me, or it ends here.”
She climbs out of my truck and behind her jumps down a dog. A large German Shepard to be exact.
“I’ll leave you to it, bro. Check your email in an hour. I’ll leave everything you need from this there.”
I nod. “’Preciate it, Swift.”
He gives a half wave before going back to his bike and loading his equipment in his saddlebags. With a twist of his throttle, he takes off leaving me standing in my front yard with one sexy as fuck woman and a big ass dog standing in front of me eyeing me like it would eat me.
“Who do we have here, Fox?”
She reaches down and pets the dog. “This is Cleo. Sorry to put her in your truck. She’s a stray and I just hate leaving her every night at work. So I’ve been taking her home with me at night.”
“She seems to like that plan,” I say stepping forward. The dog doesn’t move. “Where are you working?” I ask even though I already have the answer.
“Salty Dog Styling and Sitting for pets,” she says happily.
I know of the place, but I’m not about to tell her why.
“So my car?” She asks allowing the dog to stand between us. “What’s my total? I brought cash.”
“So eager to leave me?”
She swallows hard. The air between us is electric as the sun still shines bright. I want her to relax, take in everything the Crystal Coast has to offer.
The Carolina spring time is beautiful. As May moves into June the days are longer. We have periods of showers but overall the sun always wins and the evenings are cool with the humidity going down.
Since she doesn’t answer and looks like she wants the ground to swallow her whole, I change the subject. “How about you and Cleo come on in? We can have some dinner.”
“You don’t have any food,” she mutters before covering her mouth and catching herself.
“You checkin’ out my fridge, Fox?” I tease her calling her out for the few things she did check out in my place. “Ya know they say women scope out potential mate’s den’s looking to see their ability to provide a future. Did you scope out my den and not like what you found?”
She laughs. “You have beer and water. I like food, Blaine.”
I smile. “Your wish is my command. I have steaks ready to grill, along with vegetable skewers to grill, and salad. Sound good?”
“You cook?”
It’s my turn to laugh. “Fuck no, I grill. If I can’t grill it, then baby, we’re shit outta luck unless you wanna eat cereal.”
“You fix my car and you want to feed me, and what do I need to do for you in return?”
I study her expression. She seems skeptical of me. Why?
What has happened in her life to make her so skiddish of everyone?
“Just wanna get to know the most beautiful woman I’ve ever encountered.”
She looks to the dog and back to me. “You get Cleo inside and you’ve got a dinner date. She doesn’t go, I don’t go.”
I look at her dog and then back to Fox’s face. She’s setting me up. This is some sort of challenge. I turn and start to walk to my house. The dog doesn’t move.
Neither does Fox.
“Cleo let’s go,” I command the dog. She tilts her head at me and then looks up to Fox. “Don’t be a cock blocker. I just wanna get to know Fox. You might learn something too,” I tell the dog which gets another beaming smile from Fox.
She steps forward and the dog then moves toward me. Pattin
g my leg, I call the dog to me and after a moment, she comes.
I reach down and pet Cleo. Squatting, I look the dog in the eye. “Alright, we gotta get on the same page, Cleo. We’re on the same team. Look out for Fox. So you and me, we should work together.”
The dog stays focused on me as I talk and when I stand she falls in line with me all the way inside the house.
As Fox steps in behind us, I hear her mutter to Cleo, “traitor dog. You don’t give me easy times like this.”
I want to laugh, but refrain.
“Get the plates out and I’ll start grilling.”
Fox nods and we both go about our tasks. She goes through a few cabinets ‘til she finds the plates and I head outside to the grill. There’s this ease between us as we settle into our jobs, me cooking and her preparing the salad and table.
Cleo follows me and I sneak her some fat I trim from the steaks. Her ears stay forward and her tail moving happily so I think I have a new friend. After I get the food done, I come inside with the dog on my heels.
Setting the plate down, I smile over to Fox who has made herself comfortable in my kitchen and I find I like it. Never having shared my home like this before I wasn’t sure if it would be awkward and uncomfortable. But I find it’s actually very natural as if this is how it’s supposed to be. Before I address her, I go to the coat closet in my living room and pull out the dog bed I store in there.
Dropping it in the dining room floor, I call Cleo over. She sniffs it for a few minutes before settling down into it.
“You have a dog?” Fox asks looking at the bed.
“No, I’m not home consistently so I can’t have a pet right now since I travel. My sister, Dia. She has a Chow-chow that has dog-aggression issues so she can’t kennel it even though she works at a place that boards dogs and grooms them. She actually works at the Salty Dog too but she’s off right now working for our family instead. Dia loves animals and Sheba is no different. Before Dia dropped out of college Sheba stayed with me unless I went out of town and then my parents kept her. So we have stuff for her at every house, not that we get to keep her much now days. Dia decided being a vet assistant wasn’t for her and now is apprenticing as a dog groomer. She went to school and got her certification for grooming and some pet care thing. I don’t care what she does as long as she’s happy.”
Fox takes in every word like it’s some great proclamation. She’s trying to get a read on me when the truth is there isn’t anything to figure out. I’m a man and as much as women want to make men out to be complicated, we’re not. Shit, shower, fuck, and sleep, if all the basics are covered we’re fine. I don’t overthink things, I tend to react to whatever situation I find myself in, period.
Moving back to the kitchen, I plate the steaks and give each of us two vegetable skewers.
“Are you close with your sister?” She asks as she gets her salad bowl and moves it to the table.
I shrug my shoulders. “Are we close in that she is six years younger than me so I don’t give her my every secret but I always answer her calls, yes. There are some things I don’t share with her and I’m sure things she doesn’t share with me. She’s not my best friend, she’s my sister. There isn’t anything I wouldn’t do to protect her, or any length I wouldn’t go to in order to make sure she has what she wants and needs. We just don’t get into the personal stuff.”
“I understand that,” she sighs a little sad and lost. “I miss having my sister.”
I almost ask her what sister since nothing in the information we pulled up on her mentions a sister. I don’t though. If she slips up again, I’ll be all over it. Until then, I’ll give her this pass so I can get to know her better. Tomorrow I’ll dig a little deeper into her background because there was nothing found ever mentioning a sister.
“What was her name?”
“Sammi,” she whispers and blinks like she just realized she’s making a mistake.
“And what is your name, Fox?”
She clears her throat. The twitch in her eye gives away her lie as she looks me in the eye to answer. “Amanda.” What is she lying about? I don’t push because I can tell there is a storm brewing behind her eyes and if I don’t play my cards right she’ll be gone.
“Beautiful name for a beautiful woman,” I whisper as I reach out and cup the back of her neck tilting her head to look up at me as I close the space between us and crash my lips to hers.
Her name doesn’t matter. Her history doesn’t matter. Right now, she’s here with me and I plan to enjoy every second of it I can. I may live to regret it later, but something about her tells me if I push to hard, she’s going to bolt.
For some reason I can’t explain the thought of her disappearing bothers me. I don’t know why because I know nothing about her really and what I do know doesn’t match what just came from her mouth. I’ve never been so twisted over someone.
More so, I’ve never had to wonder what really makes a woman tick before.
My curiosity may bite me in the ass, but I can’t walk away, not until I figure her out. I just hope whatever I find doesn’t burn more than just me.
Chapter Seven
Karsci
Five Days Later
A lioness studies her landscape and uses every angle to her advantage.
“Come on Cleo,” I tell her as I park the car at work. “We have poop to scoop, dogs to shave, and fleas to kill.”
Reaching over to my passenger seat, I unclip her after petting her. Climbing out of my car, she follows as I make my way inside for the day.
My car drives better than before and I can’t help but wonder what all Blaine and his crew did. I know better than to ask. He did me a solid favor. At every turn the man continues to surprise me. I have never encountered people who don’t have an agenda. So far, though, he hasn’t asked anything of me I haven’t been willing to give.
With his job and mine, I haven’t seen him since he grilled dinner, but we have text as we both find free time in our days. Cleo is good company though and together we have settled in.
I walk in since the door is already open to see a woman behind the counter with blonde hair in a high ponytail on her head and some head band that is like gold leaves from some college toga party accessory. She’s in a tie-dye t-shirt that has been cut on the sides and tided leaving peeks of her tone, tan skin.
“Hi,” she greets happily. “You must be Amanda. I’m sorry I haven’t been in to introduce myself, I had to fill in at my family’s mini-storage office the last few weeks while Vida, our usual secretary, went on vacation,” she rambles excitedly and I struggle to take all of her in. She has this overpowering energy. “I’m Dia Crews.”
Her blue eyes lock onto mine and I swear I stop breathing.
She has his eyes.
It can’t be.
Fate wouldn’t do this to me.
Who the fuck am I kidding, of course fate would. How am I supposed to distance myself from him when his sister works with me? How am I supposed to build up the resolve to walk away from him when the time comes for me to leave after I spend the next few months looking at his eyes in her face every day? How am I supposed to complete my assignment with this added distraction?
I don’t like gray areas. I like my life in black and white. I like the cut and dry.
Dia Crews makes every day become gray because she is a reminder of the one man I can’t seem to stay away from. The one man I don’t want to hurt and when I leave he’s going to have questions.
Thinking quickly, I remember Blaine saying they were close but didn’t share everything so for now I decide not to discuss knowing her brother. I don’t really have a chance since Blakely walks in and rushes to hug her friend.
“Girl, I am so glad you’re back. The Miller’s mean kitty is coming in today for grooming. She bit me last time, so that Persian cat is all yours today!”
Dia laughs. Reaching under the counter, she pulls out the container of kitty treats.
“Kitty crack. You gotta use the kitty treats.” She looks to me. “We call this the kitty crack because the way the cats go after it, well, it’s like they’re addicted.”
I give a small smile as I make my way to the back to let the dogs out. Cleo follows and goes to what has become known as her spot in one of the bottom kennels here at the Salty Dog.
“Did you adopt Cleo?” Dia asks as she takes out a beagle named Betty.
“Oh no, I just moved here and I’m getting used to my new place. I thought she could use the company for a bit and so could I.”
“No one has claimed her and it’s been over thirty days. You could keep her. I’m sure Mr. Anthony who owns this place with his wife Sherri wouldn’t care.”
“I don’t know. That’s a big commitment,” I tell her honestly.
“Girl, I know. But when it’s meant to be, it’s simply meant to be. My dog lived in two other homes before she landed her fuzzy ass in my hands. I can’t imagine not having her now. I used to call from college and make my mom put her on the video so I could talk to her.”
“What did you go to college for?” I decide on keeping casual conversation with Dia as I take out a Great Dane named Tiny.
She laughs. “Well, all my life I told my parents I want to save the animals. That’s it. So I thought that meant vet school because that would be the best way to save them, right?”
I nod because it makes sense to me.
“Well, my freshman year, I was homesick. I missed my mom, my dad, my dog, and even a month into it I was missing my brother. No one ever misses their sibling, sorry you just don’t. I decided vet school took too long so I should become a vet tech, an assistant.”
Again I nod because this too makes sense.
“Except, my summer break my dad decided it was a good idea for me to intern at a local vet’s office. Day one, I was given the chance to sit in as they euthanized a fifteen-year-old lab named Pigs. He was so kind, so gentle for being a big dog,” she tears up at the memory and I can feel the way this impacted her. “His owners, they loved him. And all that stuck with me was he was a good dog. As they sat with him in those final moments telling him how good he had been to their family, watching over their kids as they grew, and moving from place to place as they had to, and all these special moments, I couldn’t take it. I wanted to say stop, don’t do it.” She pauses as the emotions become too much and her eyes glass over in unshed tears. “Except he was old and had a stroke. There was nothing that could be done to save him. He had no control left of his body. It wasn’t anything his owners did, they were helpless. I have never felt so much pain for someone I didn’t know before.”
Born to It Page 7
