Dirty Cowboy

by Alycia Taylor

  “No way,” I said. “You gave it to me.”

  Chris chuckled. “Well, if it’s not there when you come out, it’s not my fault.”

  I grabbed the roll and put it in my pocket, and then headed over to my father’s office while Chris shouted obscenities at me. I decided not to tell him about what I had learned about my father. If my father hadn’t even told me about it, then I wasn’t sure he wanted everyone to know.

  “Hi, Dad,” I said as I walked in.

  My father looked up at me. I now knew why he was looking older these days. He wasn’t just tired; he was ill.

  “What’s all the commotion about?”

  I pointed to the foil sticking out of my pocket. “Ah, just Chris trying to steal my food. Nothing unusual.”

  “Yep, that sounds like a regular day for the two of you.”

  “Listen, Dad, Patriot told me about the cancer. I’m not sure why you didn’t tell me, but I just wanted you to know that he told me.”

  My father shrugged. “Oh, it’s no big deal. It’s treatable. I’ll be fine.”

  I knew my father well enough to know that it wasn’t fine. But like me, he wasn’t one to show when he was upset.

  “Anyway, I just thought I’d let you know that I know. Also, I’ve given some thought to the whole club thing. And yeah, I’ll give it a shot. But I’m only going to watch the club until you are well enough to take over again. You are meant for the job, Dad. Not me. But I’ll help out until you get better.”

  My father looked at me and nodded. “Okay, thanks, Ian,” he said.

  Thanks, Ian. Was that it? He’d been begging me to consider taking the position all week, and that was all that he could say to me. I thought about saying something else but then decided that I didn’t want to get into it, either. I stood up to leave.

  “Okay, then. Well, we can discuss things further another time. For now, I better get back to work. It’s another busy day in the shop.”

  “Great,” my father said. “Good luck. I’m sure it will go fast. And tell Chris to stop stealing your food.”

  I walked out and told Chris what my father had said, which resulted in another string of obscenities thrown my way. I then went straight to the bikes and started working on them. I put the music up loud and tried to drown out my thoughts. But it wasn’t easy. I kept going back to the conversation with my father, and the conversation with Patriot. The whole thing made me uneasy.

  I worked about two hours late that evening, which was quite normal for a Friday. I tried to be quick so that I could go home and see Eliza, but I simply couldn’t rush some of the work. I wondered if she was waiting for me at home.

  I saw her car the moment I arrived, and when I opened the door, I was greeted with the strong of spaghetti bolognese. She walked up to me and handed me a glass of red wine and kissed me gently on the mouth.

  “Sorry,” she said. “I didn’t know where the beer was. And anyway, it felt like a red wine sort of night.”

  I took a sip and smiled. “It’s perfect. You’re cooking?”

  She grinned. “Yeah. It felt like an Italian sort of night.”

  “I thought you weren’t great in the kitchen?”

  “Ah, but anyone can make spaghetti bolognese,” she said timidly.

  “You’re wonderful,” I said and pulled her in again.

  “You know,” she said as she looked me up and down. “You could pass for an Italian. What about me? Think I could?”

  I chuckled. “Your bright-blue eyes give you away, Lashes. You’re a California girl.”

  She looked down at her feet, and I knew that I’d said the wrong thing. “I think I’m an Arizona girl,” she said quietly.

  “Oh, you are. But tonight, we’re Italian.”

  She looked up and grinned at me. “We are! I like your house, by the way. I hope you don’t mind that I took over in the kitchen like this.”

  “Are you kidding me? You’re making me dinner. I don’t mind at all. I’m glad you like my house. I do, too.”

  “I’ll be honest though; it wasn’t what I expected.”

  I groaned. “Here we go again. You keep getting me wrong. What did you expect?”

  She giggled. “I don’t know. I guess I thought it would be more manly.”

  I looked around in horror. “It’s not manly?”

  “Well, it’s not girly, either. But it’s nice. You look after your place. And it’s actually very creative. I studied interior design for a year. I changed my mind when I realized it wasn’t for me, but I learned a lot in that year. And you actually have a good eye for it.”

  “I’m not sure whether to be happy about that statement or not. I mean, I have a reputation to uphold you know.”

  “Big, bad biker? Don’t worry; I won’t tell anyone that you have a softer side.”

  “You better not,” I said and laughed. “To be honest, about two years ago my house did not look like this. I lived in a rougher part of town, and the only decorations I had in the house were empty beer cans, which I had stacked proudly against the wall.”

  “Really? So, what changed?”

  “I guess I grew up,” I said.

  “Do you miss that lifestyle though?”

  “Do I miss coming home to an apartment that smells like stale beer? Not so much. I’m a lot happier with who I am now.”

  Eliza smiled. “I like who you are too. And I feel the same. I’m a very different person to who I was last year. Hell, I’m a different person to who I was a month ago. So, did you talk to your father today?”

  I took a sip of the red wine and watched as Eliza did the same. Her lips were beginning to turn red, and it was starting to turn me on. The red wine was tasty, but I had a feeling I’d enjoy it a lot more if I drank it off of her. I shook my head to stop my thoughts from going that way and concentrated on the conversation instead.

  “I did. He was a bit funny about it, to be honest. He didn’t say much other than that it was no big deal.”

  “He sounds like you,” Eliza said.

  “You’re not the first person to say that to me these days. I’m starting to wonder if it’s true. Anyway, I guess he just didn’t want to speak about it. I suppose I can understand that. I told him that I was going to look after the club while he was getting better.”

  “You did? That’s wonderful news!”

  “Well, I didn’t say that I would take over from him for good. I just said that I would do it while he was away. Patriot told me that he would be in an out of the hospital for a few months. So while he’s recovering, I’ll look after the club. But after that, he must take it back. It’s far more suited to him.”

  “I think you’re doing a lovely thing. In fact, I happen to think that what you’re doing is incredibly sexy.”

  I looked at her in surprise. “Sexy? Why do you say that?”

  “First, it’s always a turn on to see a guy do something nice for his father. Second, I quite like the idea of you taking control of the club. You have a lot more power and influence than you realize, Gunner.”

  “I have a question,” I said suddenly. “How come sometimes you call me Ian, and sometimes you call me Gunner? It’s usually one or the other with people.”

  She smiled bashfully and took a sip of her wine before saying anything.

  “Are you blushing?” I asked.

  “Maybe. It’s just . . . I guess I do it automatically. You’re Ian to me most of the time, I suppose. But, sometimes you become Gunner.”

  “But why?”

  “You’re Gunner when I’m thinking of you sexually?”

  I grinned. I had not expected her to say that. “Didn’t you just call me Gunner?”

  She bit her lip ever so slightly, and I felt my entire body give way to her. She nodded. “I did.”

  “So, you’re thinking of me sexually?” I asked.

  She nodded.

  I put my glass of wine down and moved over to her. I took her glass and put it down too.

  “I’m thinking about
you in that way too, Lashes. Although, I don’t think I ever stop thinking about you in that way.”

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Eliza

  Oh thank God, I thought when Gunner moved toward me. I’d been thinking about having sex with him since the moment he walked in. I was glad that he seemed to want me as much as I wanted him.

  I thought about suggesting that we move to the bedroom. I’d taken a sneak peek at it when I’d been in the house without him, and his bed was big and inviting. But the sofa seemed good enough, and I wasn’t sure that I could make it all the way to the kitchen. I pulled off my dress as he got nearer and he grinned at me.

  “You’re making this easier,” he said. He stood up and took off his clothes and then lay me down on the sofa.

  Okay, I thought. The sofa is big enough.

  I spread my legs and then as he moved on top of me I wrapped them around him.

  “I had no idea you were so flexible, Lashes,” he said and sucked on my neck.

  “All those years of yoga are finally paying off,” I said and then used my legs to pull him tighter. He groaned, and it immediately turned me on.

  While he kissed, he reached down to feel me. I was wet and ready for him. With his mouth against mine and his fingers inside me, I thought I was going to totally lose control. How did he always know exactly how to turn me on?

  “Gunner, wait, stop!” I said.

  He stopped and looked at me. “What’s wrong?”

  “I’m going to come,” I said breathlessly.

  “So? That’s what I want,” he said and reached down for me again.

  I groaned and felt myself start to lose control all over. I was just at the edge of no return when he stopped and climbed off me. I almost cried out, but then I saw that he was reaching for a condom. He slipped it on and then moved inside me. I cried out in pleasure and bit my tongue to stop myself from coming. But it didn’t take me long to lose myself again, and soon I experienced an orgasm even stronger than the times before.

  Afterward, I stretched and fell off the sofa, and he laughed at me and pulled me back up. We lie side by side for a while, not saying anything.

  “How do you keep doing that?” I finally said.

  “Doing what?” he asked innocently.

  “Every time we have sex, it’s better than the time before. I know you think you’re only good at motorcycle stuff, but I think sex is your main calling in life.”

  He laughed. “Well, that’s good to know.”

  A thought occurred to me. I wondered how many times Ian had slept with a girl on the very same sofa before. I thought about asking but changed my mind. I didn’t want to ruin the moment. Instead, I turned to face him.

  “So, you hungry?”

  He laughed. “I am, now that you mention it. I’d actually forgotten how hungry I was for a while.”

  “Me too,” I said. “Thank goodness the food wasn’t cooking on the stove. We would’ve burned it. It was ready just before you got here, so I just have to heat it up. I have most definitely worked up an appetite for it, though.”

  “Sex followed by spaghetti. I can get used to this.”

  “Yeah, me too,” I agreed.

  I dished up for both of us and then brought the bowls to the living room. It was so comfortable there that we decided to just eat on our laps. I thought back to the very first time that I had met Ian at the fundraiser. Back then, I was still living in my car and worried that the club was filled with dangerous men. The last thing that I would’ve expected was to be sitting in his house eating dinner together on our laps.

  “This is amazing,” he said.

  “I think everything tastes good after sex. I’m going to have to have sex with you before each meal that I cook. That way you’ll always think I’m amazing in the kitchen.”

  “You are amazing in the kitchen. But I’m definitely not going to complain about that deal. So, how was everything at work? Good day?”

  “Wonderful day!” I said.

  “Oh yeah? Did something happen?”

  I took a bite of the spaghetti and then smiled at him. “Well, John has asked Mae and me to organize this huge party next week Saturday. He hinted at it a while back, but he called us into his office to say that it’s definitely happening now. He wants the two of us to work on it together.”

  “That’s cool. You’ve been saying ever since the fundraising event that you wanted to work with Mae on a big project again.”

  “Yeah,” I said, impressed that he had remembered. “We can’t wait. And it sounds like a fun one to be involved in. I’m so glad that John feels as if he can trust me with the assignment too. Because I know this is one that he doesn’t want to see messed up.”

  “You won’t mess it up. This sort of thing is in your blood. I’ve noticed that about you—you’re good at figuring out what people want, even when they’re not sure about it themselves. And that’s what party planning is all about. You make their day into something they will never forget.”

  That was by far one of the nicest things anyone had ever said to me. “Thank you,” I said. “I really appreciate that, Ian. I’m very excited. We’ve already started planning a few things, but we’re going to be working more seriously on it in the upcoming week. I love the fact that I’m excited to go to work.”

  “You’ll do great!”

  “There’s one other thing. And, of course, you don’t have to if you don’t want to,” I started and then laughed at Ian’s startled face. I wasn’t sure if I was going to ask him to come with me to the event, but at the same time, I wasn’t sure that I wanted to be alone at it, either. It would be fun to show off what I had created with Mae.

  “Uh oh, what is it?”

  “Well, we’re allowed to bring a date. I’m planning the event, but also going to it. And I’d love to take you. Now, I know it’s not your thing. But I’d love to have you there if you’d like.”

  “A party? Do I have to dress up?”

  “I guess so. But I suppose you don’t have to. It probably doesn’t matter,” I said. I already felt bad for asking him. It was clear that it wasn’t the kind of thing he enjoyed doing. And we weren’t even dating, so why was I asking him to do something he clearly hated? I was just about to backtrack when he interrupted.

  “I’ll be there.”

  “You will?”

  He laughed. “Don’t sound so surprised. I might not dress up, though. But I do want to see what you’ve put together. I’m sure it will be nice. Will there be food?” he asked.

  I chuckled. “Of course. It’s not a party without food.”

  “Then I’ll definitely be there. What about Mae? Who is she taking?”

  “She’s going solo.”

  “She is?”

  “Yeah, but so is John.”

  “Ah!” he said. I’d told him about the attraction between the two of them before, so he knew what I was hinting at. “Are those two ever going to admit that they are crushing on each other?”

  I shrugged. “Who knows? Maybe at the party they’ll be suitably drunk to finally let it out. We might have to nudge them in the right direction. They’re hopeless.”

  “And you say he definitely likes her?”

  “It sure seems that way to me. And she is all for him. And really, they would make a great couple. They’re perfect for each other.”

  “I’m looking forward to seeing them. And I still need to thank Mae. If she hadn’t walked away at the fundraiser that day, I might never have had the chance to talk to you alone.”

  “Well, I’m glad you’re coming.”

  I smiled at him and changed the subject. I didn’t want him to change his mind or for him to know what a big deal it was that he had agreed to go with me. But I was happy. Happier than I even wanted to admit to myself.

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Ian

  I spent the rest of the weekend with Eliza. On Saturday, we woke up late, and I took out to what I thought was the best café in town. There I introduced
her to chocolate dipped croissants and perfectly brewed cappuccinos. After that, I took her for another ride on the bike, and then took her to an empty lot to teach her how to ride. I had her fully kitted up from the shop so that if she fell, she wouldn’t hurt herself. She looked slightly ridiculous and incredibly cute. She was terrible, but she tried. And afterward she declared that she was more of a backseat rider. I didn’t mind. I liked having her arms wrapped around me. We bumped into Chris later that day, who raised his eyebrows when he saw us together. I knew that he was wondering what was going on between us, and I still didn’t have an answer. For someone that wasn’t my girlfriend, I sure was spending a lot of time with her. But I wasn’t about to just leave her with her crazy ex-boyfriend on the loose. That night, we stayed up late watching movies and eating popcorn. There was no sex involved, and yet I felt closer to her than ever before.

  That morning I woke up early and decided to make Eliza breakfast. I eventually settled on peanut butter on toast and coffee. She seemed delighted, and I counted my lucky stars that she was the sort of girl that liked pretty much anything when it came to food.

  “I love peanut butter!” she exclaimed as she took a bite. “And I haven’t had this for breakfast in ages. I’m so going to buy myself a jar later. When I was a little girl, my mom caught me so many times with my finger in the jar. I was constantly getting into trouble for that.”

  I chuckled at the thought of her as a little kid stealing peanut butter, and then laughed even more when I looked at what she was wearing. She had on one of my t-shirts and a pair of her own bright yellow socks, and just seeing her dressed like that while eating toast made me laugh.

  “Are you laughing at my outfit?” she said between mouthfuls.

  I nodded. “Who on earth owns such bright socks?”

  “I do,” she said without shame. I liked that. I once had a girlfriend who decided that she was going to dress like some sort of punk rocker just to match my style. It didn’t suit her at all, and I hated how uncomfortable she was in her own skin. It didn’t matter what a person wore or what they did, as long as they were true to themselves. And Eliza was very true to herself. She never wavered.