Total pages in book: 69
Estimated words: 69775 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 349(@200wpm)___ 279(@250wpm)___ 233(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 69775 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 349(@200wpm)___ 279(@250wpm)___ 233(@300wpm)
When he came home, he ran the mechanics shop he bought from an old mechanic when he moved to town.
Seeing as he’d gotten home to catch up on some of his backlog of work not too long ago, Court might not have time to look at Holly’s car.
“The new vet that works with Boone is having car trouble,” Denver said, watching as Nettie pushed Holly to her car and yanked Holly’s keys out of her hand. “You got time to take a look at it? Sounds like more than the battery.”
“You can get it down here. I can work on it.” He paused. “Tow truck’s currently in my bay right now with a fucked-up tire.”
“What happened to it?”
There was a long pause and then, “Saw Charleigh at the store when I pulled up. She was parked in a tow-away zone and I threatened to tow her car. Came out and the tire was slashed.”
There was a long moment of silence, and then we both started to laugh.
“Fuck off,” Court said, then hung up.
We laughed some more.
“What’s so funny?”
I’d seen her start heading our way, of course.
I was so attuned to the woman that there was no way that she would ever slip my awareness.
I wrapped my arm around her shoulders and explained.
“You know Charleigh Kensington?” I wondered.
“Seen her around. She went to school somewhere else, though, so not as well as most.”
“Charleigh had Court as a bodyguard a year or so ago. They get along like oil and water. Charleigh parked in the tow-away zone, and Court offered to tow her car away for her, and she took offense.”
Nettie smiled when I finished the story.
“Court, being Courtland Navarro? The one that bought Pop’s Garage?”
“That’s the one,” Denver confirmed as he watched Holly drive out of the parking lot. “Come sit in the car, you can steer.”
We got it to Court’s a couple of minutes later—one of the benefits of living in a small town. Everything was close to everything. Blink and you missed it.
Court took the keys and studied Nettie. “Watched your last game.”
Nettie’s smile was small. “Yeah?”
“Yeah.” He nodded. “You could use some work on your place kicks.”
Nettie’s mouth dropped open.
“Did I forget to tell you that Court was once a professional soccer player?”
Nettie’s eyes narrowed as she studied Court.
Then her eyes widened.
She didn’t say anything, but I knew what she was thinking.
Emory Fox, star forward of the Netherlands.
Moved to the US, got his citizenship, played for Texas City FC for all of six months before tragedy struck.
He’d killed his wife and unborn child in a drunk-driving accident.
Though, that accident wasn’t his fault.
A man driving a big rig had pulled out in front of him, and Courtland had nowhere to go but straight at it. It’d decapitated his wife, and would’ve killed Court, too, had his seat not malfunctioned and broken, forcing him flat on his back.
After the accident, they’d taken Court’s blood alcohol and found him over the legal limit.
Though Courtland had vehemently denied being drunk, or having a single ounce of alcohol, no one believed him.
Not until a year later when it was found out that he had what doctors called Auto Brewery Syndrome. A condition that ferments ingested sugars into significant amounts of alcohol, leading to intoxication without drinking.
Even after discovering the syndrome, the courts refused to hear arguments about appeals, which eventually led to Apollo breaking him out.
Needless to say, Court hated the world.
And Charleigh…well, she was going to be the one to eventually break him out of his downward spiral.
He tossed the keys into the air, caught them, then helped us push it into the bay, and waved us off without saying a word.
Denver and I were laughing, while Nettie was confused.
“What the hell was that?” she asked when we were far enough away.
“That was Courtland,” Denver said simply. “And he was in a good mood.”
The rest of the evening went really well, despite my exhaustion.
Several of the Dixie Wardens MC Montana Chapter were in attendance for the dinner, as well as Romeo and Mable.
There was Creed and Birdee, Denver and his girls. My uncle Major and my aunt Sorcha, Hux, and Gentry. Black came by for a bite to eat, but didn’t stay long because he had to get back to the sheriff’s station where he was busy with a case.
Several of the prospects were in and out, grabbing a quick bite to eat as well.
Weaver and Eddy didn’t come, having decided on a quiet night in, but that didn’t seem to bother Nettie at all.
I wasn’t joining in on the conversation too much. I had better things to do. Like watch Nettie smile. Watch her laugh. Watch those little lines at the corner of her eyes crease. Watch the way her head tilted back when someone said something hilarious to her. Watch the way her hand paused midway to her mouth with a fry when someone said something that caused her to think.