Total pages in book: 45
Estimated words: 42332 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 212(@200wpm)___ 169(@250wpm)___ 141(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 42332 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 212(@200wpm)___ 169(@250wpm)___ 141(@300wpm)
Exhaling slowly through my nose, I hit play again.
She said something to the men, and they marched to a booth without any reaction. A few seconds later, she approached with menus and an innocent smile. Nothing seemed amiss until she went to check on them after they’d been served their burgers.
Her posture changed midway through their approach. She paused, just for a second, her shoulders stiffening and her smile faltering as her chin dipped.
Whatever those men were hiding, she felt it.
I rewound, slowed the footage, and watched her again.
It was just a slight change, small enough that most people wouldn’t catch it. But I did.
And so did one of the men in the booth.
He looked up, caught her hesitation, and stared longer than necessary.
Not flirty. Not friendly.
Assessing.
My jaw flexed as I paused the footage again. Zoomed in. And right then, I knew.
She hadn’t seen anything. Not really. But she was unforgettable. Alone, unprotected, and soft.
And she’d looked right at them. Registered that something about them wasn’t right.
That was enough.
The subtle awareness marked her. Even if she couldn’t explain it and just shrugged it off as a weird vibe, those men wouldn’t.
They’d clocked her. And if they were who I suspected, the threat would be taken seriously. They wouldn’t want her talking. Couldn't have her describing them to the local sheriff. Or worse, drawing our attention.
The pulse at my temple throbbed as fury lit behind my eyes.
They’d just marked her as a threat. A liability. Someone to be handled.
They’d come back. Or send someone.
To silence her and erase the only witness who could describe a face that didn’t belong.
My hands curled into fists on the desk.
Fuck that.
Maren didn’t even know what she’d walked into, and she wouldn’t until it was too late. Unless someone stepped in first to make damn sure that whatever these bastards were planning didn’t reach her.
My spine locked, and every protective instinct I had kicked in like a wall of fire. Possessive didn’t even cover it. This wasn’t about territory, witnesses, or club business anymore.
This was about her.
She was mine.
She just didn’t know it yet.
3
MAREN
Ilocked the front door behind me and took a deep breath of the morning air, trying to shake off the strange restlessness that had clung to me for days. It didn’t help, though. I still felt off, probably just from not sleeping enough since I hadn’t fully adjusted to working late-night shifts.
Or maybe it was the weather. Late spring was my favorite time of year. It was warm enough to make me feel antsy but not quite hot enough to slow me down. Unfortunately, I hadn’t spent much of today enjoying it since I needed to catch up on laundry.
Tucking a loose strand of hair behind my ear, I walked over to my car. The garage was empty, but I still parked in the driveway out of habit.
Opening the driver’s side door, my gaze slid to the curb across the street, where a black SUV with tinted windows was parked again, a few houses down from where I noticed it a couple of days ago. I had wondered if the Johnsons bought a new car. They were the only neighbors who parked on the street, but usually only in front of their own house. Another reason it surprised me was to see the SUV out there again.
“You’re being ridiculous,” I told myself under my breath as I climbed into my car. “Getting worked up over nothing.”
Riverstone was safe. Everyone knew the Hounds of Hellfire MC kept it that way. My parents never even bothered to lock the front door except at night when we were asleep.
Backing out of the driveway, my mind wandered back to my trip to the grocery store yesterday. I’d been grabbing cereal when someone stepped into the aisle behind me. Near enough that I’d shifted out of the way automatically, but he stayed too close for comfort.
When I’d finally looked up, the man moved away without glancing at me. Maybe I’d imagined how long he’d stood there because I was already jumpy.
I probably just needed a real vacation.
Especially since my parents were on one in Florida right now, sending me pictures of beaches and sunset dinners like they weren’t rubbing it in. I’d wanted to go with them, but I was still new at the diner, so requesting a week off was out of the question.
“I’m starting that vacation fund tonight,” I mumbled.
I clearly needed a break if I was jumping at shadows and SUVs that probably belonged to a neighbor.
By the time I pulled into the lot at Fuel & Flame, my nerves were mostly under control again. I clocked in and got straight to work, but every couple of minutes, my gaze drifted toward the front door.
After a few times, Susan noticed and poked me in the side. “Are you checking the door for customers or your big, broody biker boyfriend?”