by Marla Monroe
“Most of the guys are all hooked up now anyway. We don’t really need a lot of women hanging around,” Cade pointed out.
“Speak for yourself. I don’t have anyone. A man has needs and we’re pretty much stuck here working all the time,” Turk said.
Irish laughed. “Hell, you rarely used a club woman when we did have them. You preferred picking up one from a bar as opposed to spending time with any of the ones who hung around here.”
“Since they opened the Saturday barbecue up to some of the town folks we may get a few more women to show up. It would be nice to have someone else to look at from time to time,” Cade said.
“Dom and Reece opened it up to the town? I didn’t hear that.” Turk shook his head. “That might not be a good idea.”
“I don’t think he advertised it, just told a few key people they could invite friends. That’s all,” Walker said.
“Still worries me. Unknowns always worry me,” Turk said.
“Listen, guys. Jessie’s friend Piper is supposed to come to this thing. No one is to hassle her, got it?” Irish said.
“Sure. Why haven’t we heard of her before? Vernon, Rhodes?” Walker asked.
“They haven’t been hanging out much lately because Piper’s been away at school. She’s graduated now and moved back to town. I guess she has time to socialize now. Jessie wants her here, so she’s coming.” Rhodes shrugged.
“Can’t wait to meet this woman,” Turk said. “Ginger was Jessie’s friend, and she ended up being a pretty all right woman.
“Don’t go getting your hopes up, man. The last time we settled on a woman she turned out to be a bitch, and I don’t mean that in the nice sort of way,” Irish reminded the other man.
“Yeah, don’t remind me. I still can’t believe I didn’t see it coming. She fucked us over big time.”
“Here’s to Saturday and new women to party with.” Cody lifted his beer, and they all agreed.
“To Saturday,” Turk said.
“To Saturday and babysitting,” Irish added.
“Shit.”
* * * *
I can do this. They don’t know what I do for a living, and the stalker isn’t going to be there. He doesn’t know where I live.
Piper sat in her car staring at the turn-off to the clubhouse and the party she was supposed to be going to. Right then she felt anything but excited about going. She’d spent a restless night dreaming about her stalker after a late-night call from him. He’d made all sorts of dirty promises to her. She’d reported him to the company, but they couldn’t do anything about it as long as he called from different phone numbers. They blocked one, and he’d use another. She figured he had to be buying disposable phones that he tossed when one number got blocked.
She hadn’t dealt with The Ghost Riders at all, but Jessie assured her they weren’t the same as her brother’s biker club had been. They weren’t dirty, and they didn’t treat women like blow-up dolls where any hole would do. She claimed they respected women and weren’t violent.
Piper wasn’t sure how much of that she actually believed, but visiting with her friend for a few hours wouldn’t hurt her. She could leave anytime she wanted to. Even if the guys there turned out to be nasty assholes, Jessie wouldn’t let them grope her or hang all over her.
She let out a long breath, pressing her hand to her belly where wiggly worms had her insides all twisted up, and put the car in gear to turn down the gravel drive to The Ghost Riders’ club house. Her little car bumped down the road in desperate need of smoothing out. Since they had a garage there, she would have thought they’d keep it in better shape. Of course, there’d been a lot of rain lately. Maybe they just hadn’t had time to get to it.
She felt as if everything inside of her had been jiggled into a new position by the time she parked a little away from the building where several garage bays were rolled down for the day. She checked her watch, three fifteen. She wasn’t too late. If she hadn’t stopped before turning off to gather her nerves, she probably would have been on time.
A man approached her car with a smile on his face. “Hey, ma’am. Are you here for the cookout?”
“Um, yes, am I parked in the wrong spot?” she asked when she rolled down her window.
“Yeah, need to park you closer to the building where the lights are so you can see when you leave. I’ll take care of it for you.” He opened her car door and helped her out. “Just go right through that gate to the left and around the building to the back. Everyone’s back there getting started.”
“Thanks.”
Piper left her car in the man’s care and walked over to a gate that easily swung open when she pushed on it. She made sure to latch it behind her in case there were children or dogs in back.
Dogs. That made her uneasy. She wasn’t afraid of them so much as nervous around them. She sure hoped there weren’t any. Jessie would have warned her, right?
When she walked around back, she stopped to take it all in. There were at least two dozen people walking around with drinks while others tended two grills that had been set up on a large concrete patio. Five picnic tables took up most of the patio that wasn’t being used for cooking. There were three guys playing horseshoes while another five or six guys played basketball over to one side. It all seemed so domestic and nothing like she’d expected a biker party to be like.
Scratch that. There was plenty of booze cooling off in garbage cans full of ice and loud music. So, it was more of a cross between a biker party and a frat party, based on the few semesters she’d lived on campus before she’d figured out she couldn’t afford it.
“Piper!”
She turned just in time to catch Jessie when she flung herself at Piper. The other woman looked good. She had a glow about her and a huge smile on her face. Nothing like the beaten-down woman of their past.
“Hey, girl. You’re looking great,” she said.
“I’m doing great. I have something to tell you later. First, I want you to meet everyone.”
Piper followed her friend around the back as Jessie introduced her to Raven, Delta, and their men, as well as several other guys. Ginger hugged her, as well. She hadn’t seen the other woman since she’d moved back to Reo.
“This is Irish and his cousin, Turk. They’ll make sure you’re taken care of and that no one bothers you. I doubt anyone would, but I don’t want you to have any reason not to come back to see me.”
“We can meet in town anytime you want to,” Piper pointed out.
“We will. But I might not be going too many places in a few months.” Jessie’s smile told Piper what the secret was.
“You’re pregnant.” Piper knew she was right by the huge smile that swallowed her friend’s face.
“Ten weeks! I’m so excited.”
“That’s wonderful. Which of your guys is the father?” she asked.
Jessie’s smile flipped. “They both are. I’m not just living with two men. I’m living with my husbands. We share everything, Piper. I guess it seems weird to you, but they don’t care which one of them is the father, and neither do I. They’re both the fathers. My baby will have two amazing men to help take care of him.”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to say anything wrong. Look. This wasn’t a good idea. I should leave.” She started to turn away, but someone put a hand on her shoulder and stopped her.
“There’s no need to leave. Jessie isn’t mad at you, Piper. It’ll upset her if you go now.” This came from the giant six-foot-three-inch man with shaggy blond hair. His hazel eyes seemed a little too serious for someone with a surfer-looking body.
“Turk’s right. You’ll only hurt Jessie if you leave now.” The one called Irish had dark short black hair with dark blue eyes. He seemed to tower over her as he spoke with his thick, muscular arms and broad shoulders.
“Please don’t go, Piper. I really want to be friends again. We used to talk all the time before Tussler got weird and you went off to college. I was so excited when I realized tha
t you’d moved back.”
“Yeah, I’d like to still be friends, but maybe this isn’t the best place and time. I don’t know how to act around these guys, and I’m afraid I’ll do or say something else wrong.” She licked her lips. She remembered Ginger but not nearly as well as she knew Jessie.
“You won’t. Everyone already knows about the baby, but I forgot that you weren’t used to threesomes. Pretty much everyone here is in one though. It might sound odd to you, but it’s normal here. There’s nothing like two men to make sure you’re happy.”
“I’ll take your word for it. I’m no prude. I imagine a threesome is pretty awesome, but I just don’t see how it works long term.”
“It does. We’ve been together for over a year now, and it only gets better.
“I’m happy for you, Jessie. Really, I am.” Piper made sure her smile reached her eyes.
“Food’s ready. What do you want to eat, Piper? We’ve got steak, chicken quarters, hamburgers, and grilled veggies.” Turk was the one speaking to her this time, his hazel eyes sparkling as he spoke.
“The chicken and veggies sound good to me.” She guessed she was staying after all.
“Do you want sauce over the chicken or just like it is?”
“No sauce. I’ll be fine with it grilled.”
Irish led her over to a picnic table and had her sit down while he refreshed her drink and Turk went in search of chicken and veggies for her. She couldn’t fault their manners. Still, she was a little nervous with so many big scary men surrounding her. What if one of them was her stalker?
She cursed that she’d let the bastard enter her thoughts when she was supposed to be relaxing and having a good time. On top of that, he couldn’t be here. He didn’t know where she was.
“Hey, sunshine. What put that worried look on your face? You were smiling when I left you.” Irish sat down next to her, setting her drink on the table.
“Nothing really. Thinking about something with work,” she lied.
He sighed but shook his head. “Well, stop it. You’re not at work now, so relax.”
“Here you go. How does this look to you?” Turk set a huge plate full of chicken and steaming vegetables in front of her.
“That looks amazing, but there’s no way I can eat all of this.”
Irish grinned and plucked a slice of squash from her plate and popped it into his mouth.
“Don’t worry, you won’t have to. I got extra vegetables so Irish can have some. He doesn’t want them on his plate with his steak, but loves to eat them. Just don’t let him take more than his share.” Turk punched Irish in the shoulder.
Piper couldn’t help but laugh at the two men. They were funny if a little overwhelming with their massive tattooed bodies. They each wore T-shirts that stretched tight over their huge biceps and tight, well-worn jeans that accented their narrow waists and tight asses. All in all, they were eye candy that would make any woman go into sugar overload if they stared too long.
“Stay with her, Turk. I’ll go get our plates.” Irish winked at her and climbed off the seat, leaving her alone with the other man.
“Jessie’s pretty proud of your job, Piper.”
Piper spewed out her beer, nearly choking on the liquid at Turk’s words.
Chapter Four
“Whoa. Are you okay?” Turk beat at her back as she coughed and sputtered.
“I’m fine.” She coughed some more. “It just went down the wrong way.”
“Jessie said you went to school to be some sort of graphic designer. So, you work with computers, right?” he asked.
“Yeah. I do.” She let out a quick breath, clasping her hands to hide the mild tremor that had started.
“I handle the website and computer part of the club’s business. Irish handles the actual paperwork and accounts. What are you working on right now?” he asked.
“I just finished a website for an online vintage clothes store. I’m currently designing a web advertisement page for a company that makes boxes for specialty goods. Odd-shaped boxes and stuff like that.”
“Sounds like a challenge.”
“It is, but I like creating the pages that draw customers in.”
“So, you’ve lived here all your life?” Turk asked.
“Yeah, up until I moved to Dallas to go to the university. I’ve been taking college courses for the last six years and finally graduated a few months back. Now I’m working to pay off the last of my student loans.”
Turk nodded and studied her with such an intense look in his eyes that she swore he could see right through her to every little secret.
“What?” she finally asked.
“I’m just surprised that I haven’t seen you around before since you’ve lived here all your life. Irish and I have been here for close to ten years now. Why haven’t I seen you around?”
“Probably because I work from home now and rarely went anywhere before I moved off. I didn’t leave much time for socializing as a teen. Jessie was the only real friend I had after Ginger moved away, and she was all mixed up with her brother and his club. I wasn’t welcomed there unless I wanted trouble. I sure didn’t want their kind of trouble.”
“You were smart to stay away. Tussler was bad news. He nearly got his sister killed.”
“She told me that he’d hurt her. I was so relieved when she told me she was happy and doing fine. She deserves the best after what she lived through before. It’s great to see her so content.”
Turk nodded. “Tell me about the degree you got. I don’t have any specialized education for what I do. I just learned as I went. We could use some help on the websites we keep. I’m having trouble with our webmaster. He’s dropped the ball on updating the sites like we need.”
Piper and Turk talked computers off and on throughout the meal. Irish joined in from time to time but mostly watched them. He smiled at her when she answered a question he’d asked. She liked his smile. It felt warm and comfortable. Turk’s eyes twinkled when he talked with her about the websites, and she could tell he loved working on computers. Both men were polite and attentive all through the meal. Jessie and her two men sat down across from her about the time she’d finished her food.
“Having fun?” the other woman asked.
“Yeah. Where’s Ginger?”
“She’s coming. She was talking with River and Raven about something. She’ll be along.”
“Okay, guys. Move it. We’re taking over the table.” Raven waddled over with her protruding belly, followed closely by her two men carrying her plate and drink.
Piper thought it was amazing to see the president and vice president of the club waiting on their woman like footmen. They hovered around her as if worried she’d stump her toe or something. They sat Raven’s plate and drink on the table then helped her climb over the wood bench to sit. The other men around the table stood and allowed the other women to take their places.
“We’ll be right over there if you need anything, Raven,” Reese told her.
“I know. Now go already. This is girl time.” Raven winked at the other women as she gave the men a swooshing motion with one hand.
Another woman sat next to Raven that Piper was pretty sure they’d called River and Delta sat on the other side of her. The six women giggled as the men melted away to settle at one of the other picnic tables.
“It’s great to meet you, Piper. Jessie has told us so much about you. Congratulations on finishing school. That’s impressive,” Raven said.
“Thanks. It’s good to meet all of you.” Piper wasn’t sure what to say but didn’t have to worry as talk turned to babies, clothes, and spa time.
“I still say we need to make a trip to Dallas to be sure you have everything you need before the baby gets here,” Delta said in her southern twang.
“The guys won’t let us go by ourselves you know,” River pointed out.
“That’s fine. We need someone to carry all the bags for us anyway,” Ginger said with a huge grin.
Jessie’s face brightened like a flashbulb. “We could spend the morning at the spa getting relaxed and painted up then have lunch at that bistro near the shops. I say we plan to go next weekend. It won’t be long before Raven won’t be able to travel.”
Everyone agreed with smiles and laughter. Jessie turned to Piper. “You have to come, too. It will be so much fun.”
“I don’t know. I really need to work, plus I don’t have the money to play with right now.”
“Nonsense. I’m sure you make good money with what you do. You’re pushing yourself to pay off your loans too fast. One frivolous weekend won’t break you. Please, Piper.” Jessie’s pleading expression melted Piper’s resistance.
“Okay. I’ll go.”
The whoops and hollers from the ladies’ table had the men’s conversations stop as each of them turned to look at them with worry tight in their eyes. Evidently, they knew the women well enough to suspect that they were up to something.
“Who’s going to break it to the men?” Jessie asked.
“I will.” Raven grinned. “If I talk my guys into it, the rest of you won’t have a problem going with me. Reese and Dominic will make sure of it.”
They laughed and chatted for another thirty minutes before the men slowly drifted over and joined their women. They stood behind them and massaged their shoulders or played with their hair. Piper had never seen men so attentive or caring for their women before. It certainly hadn’t been that way with her parents, and her experience with men had been even less satisfying.
She’d enjoyed herself, despite having misgivings about attending the cookout, but now it was time to go. She needed to work, and it looked like the party was winding down now anyway. The men obviously wanted to spend time with their women.
“Jessie, I’m going to go now. I’ve really had a great time and appreciate the invitation.” She looked around at the other women. “It was great to meet all of you, too.”
The women all spoke at the same time, urging her to return anytime. Piper stood and started to climb over the bench. To her surprise, Turk took her hand, steadying her as she did so. She smiled up at him in thanks, but the man didn’t let go of her hand.
