Chapter 4: Evie

4

EVIE

" I 'm not taking no for an answer," Irene said. "In the time that you've known me, when have I taken a day off? Never. So we shouldn't waste this rare opportunity. And it's a party. Who doesn't love a party?"

"Me," I told her. It wasn't that I didn't like parties, per se. It was that the party was in Croftridge, and she'd already told me Edge would be there. Since I highly doubted he would be the only biker in attendance, I was more than reluctant to attend. But I also didn't want to hurt Irene's feelings. She was excited about the party, and it seemed like she really wanted me to go with her.

"Oh, come on. You've got to get out and live a little. Meet some people your own age and make some friends."

I didn't want to meet anyone or make any friends. I was doing just fine on my own, and I wanted it to stay that way.

"Just agree to stay for an hour. Then, if you're not having a good time, we'll leave."

"I guess that'll be okay," I said.

"Great!" she said excitedly. "I'll pick you up in an hour."

An hour would barely be enough time for me to shower and get ready. I could do it if I hurried and did my makeup in the car. I was in the middle of washing my hair when it dawned on me that I didn't know what to wear to the party. The options I had to choose from were limited, and they weren't what I would call party clothes. "Crap, crap, crap. Why did I agree to this?"

I hastily rinsed the conditioner from my hair and hopped out of the shower, slipping on the floor and almost busting my ass as I ran across my trailer to get my phone. "What are you wearing?" I said between breaths when Irene answered my call.

"Why is that question always accompanied by heavy breathing?"

"Sorry, I just got out of the shower."

"Must've been some shower," she laughed.

"I don't know what to wear," I confessed.

"You don't need to dress up or anything. A black T-shirt and jeans will be fine. Really any color T-shirt except red. That's what I'm wearing, and we don't want to be all matchy-matchy."

"Got it," I said. "See you in a bit."

When she knocked on my door, I was dressed and my hair was dry, but I was also sweaty and flustered. "You ready to go?"

"Yeah, let me just grab my stuff," I said. I also got a paper towel and used it to dry my face. "Sorry, I always get hot after I dry my hair."

"Well, it's no wonder. You've got so much of it," she said.

"Yeah, I probably should cut it. It's a lot to manage."

"Don't you dare. Plenty of women would kill for hair like yours. Keep it like it is for as long as you can," she said.

"Thank you," I said sincerely and followed her out to her car. Once inside, she put the AC on full blast, and I wanted to thank her again. "Do you mind if I do my makeup?"

"Go right ahead," she said and pulled out of her driveway.

By the time we reached Croftridge, I was much more put together and felt sort of okay about the party. Then she pulled up to a gate and rolled down her window. A man in a leather vest stepped out of the booth and asked for her name. "Irene. I'm Byte's friend."

"You're good to go. Have you been here before?"

"A few times," she said.

He nodded. "Have a good time."

"Where are we?" I asked and tried to hide the trepidation in my voice.

"The Blackwings MC clubhouse," she said, like it was no big deal. Meanwhile, I was internally freaking out. I didn't want to go inside. In fact, I wanted to run as far away as I could and never look back.

"Are you okay?" she asked.

"I don't think I can go in there," I admitted.

"You don't have anything to worry about. I wouldn't have brought you if it wasn't safe. Some of them may look a little rough, but they're all big teddy bears."

"I don't know." I hated how scared I sounded, but it couldn't be helped.

"You're really scared, aren't you?"

I could only nod. My throat felt thick, and I was on the verge of tears.

"I would never put you in harm's way. I promise. When we go inside, stay right beside me. I won't leave you for a second. They're the good guys. You'll see."

"Okay," I whispered. I trusted Irene. If she said it was safe, then it was safe, but I was still scared to go inside.

Steeling myself as best as I could, I got out of the car and walked inside, glued to Irene. A tall man with reddish brown hair and kind eyes immediately came over to greet her. "You made it," he said and wrapped her up in a hug. "And who's this?"

"This is Evie. She works at the diner with me. Evie, this is Byte. I've known him since he was a kid."

"Evie," he said, like my name sounded familiar to him. "Nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you, too." I blurted the words so fast they almost ran together.

"She's a little nervous," Irene said, causing me to almost die on the spot.

"First time at a biker clubhouse?" he asked.

No, it wasn't, which is why I was terrified to be there. "Uh, yeah," I said.

He gave me an appraising look. "We're not like some of the other clubs."

When I only blinked in response, he added, "That's a good thing."

"That's what Irene tells me," I said.

"Make yourself comfortable and help yourself to drinks and snacks. Gabby should be here soon," he said and excused himself to the kitchen.

"Gabby's his girlfriend," Irene explained. "She just finished college, and this is a surprise party for her. Her brother-in-law and grandfather are also club members."

"What did she get her degree in?"

"She's a nurse and just finished the requirements to become a nurse practitioner. I think Byte said she has one more exam to take before she gets her license."

"Really? That's impressive." From what I knew of motorcycle clubs, the women weren't exactly career oriented.

"Yeah, it is. She had a rough go of it for a bit. A girl was stalking her and shot her and the doctor she was training with. It was a mess, but they both survived and got right back to work."

"When did that happen?"

"Around three months ago. Not long after you started working at the diner," she said. "Do you remember the couple that came in and caused a scene? The one I was going to kick out, but they left before I could."

"Yes, I remember them. That happened on my second day at the diner."

"The girl is the one who shot Gabby. You want something to drink?"

"Sure," I replied distractedly. So that's why Edge was at the diner. He showed up not long after the arguing couple left and stayed for the rest of the day.

"He was watching over you," I accidentally said out loud.

"Yeah. Byte sent him. I told him he didn't need to worry about me, but that boy is protective as hell over the people he cares about." She laughed. "Listen to me. He's been a man for a long time now, but I suppose I'll always think of him as a boy."

"Seems like he's special to you."

"He is," she confirmed. "I met him right after my husband died. I took one look at him and knew he needed help. Little did I know, he helped me as much as I helped him."

"How did you help him?" I asked.

"I had a feeling he had just come from a bad situation. I gave him a job and a place to stay. Helped him get on his feet. I never asked him what happened, just like I'll never ask you, but I'm happy to listen if you ever want to tell me."

I stared at her in shock.

"What?" she said and shrugged. "After Byte, it sort of became my thing. Actually, he helps out from time to time." She glanced around and lowered her voice. "He can make IDs and do all kinds of stuff with a computer. If you ever need anything in that department, he's your guy."

"Like a new identity?"

"Yep," she confirmed. "I don't know how he does it, but he's pulled it off many times. I mean, he's not going to help a cold-blooded killer get away with murder, but he'd help an innocent woman running from an abusive husband or boyfriend."

"You're serious?" I asked.

"Oh, yeah. They don't put up with that kind of crap around here. These fellas cherish their women and children, and they'll rain hell on anyone who tries to hurt them. Like that girl that was stalking Gabby. Well, Gabby actually handled her. But the guy that was in on it. He went after the president's son and got himself killed in the process."

"How?"

She nodded to an older man across the room. "That's Gabby's grandfather. Technically, he's her great-grandfather, but that's not the point. Anyway, the crazy guy was holding the president's kid at gunpoint. Ranger shot and killed him. He may be the oldest one here, but he's a crack shot with a rifle."

Ranger's head turned, and he noticed us looking at him. Smiling broadly, he sauntered over. "Irene," he chuckled. "Were you telling stories about me?"

She laughed. "Of course I was. You have the best stories to tell."

He pulled her in for a hug. "It's good to see you. I don't suppose you brought any burgers with you?"

"I would have, but no one asked me to cater this shindig."

"I'll have to file a complaint with the management," he said, though I could tell he was joking.

He turned his attention to me. "Forgive my manners," he said and extended his hand. "I'm Ranger."

"I'm Evie," I said and shook his hand. "I work with Irene."

"It's a pleasure to meet you. We've got a number of single fellas around here, and you're a pretty girl. If you get tired of them peacocking for you, come find me."

I couldn't help but smile. Something about Ranger put me at ease. "I will. Thank you."

"I told you. Big teddy bears," Irene said after Ranger excused himself.

As the evening progressed, I was introduced to countless people, including the guest of honor, Gabby. She was kind and friendly, much like the other women I'd met. It seemed like maybe Irene was right about the bikers after all. The entire place had a warm family vibe.

Irene and I were sitting at a table near the back of the room when Edge approached with two slices of cake. "I thought I'd take the opportunity to serve you for a change," he said and placed a slice of cake on the table for each of us.

"Where's yours?" Irene asked.

He grinned. "Are you asking me to join you for dessert?"

"Of course I am. And for the record, you're supposed to flirt with her, not me."

"Yes, ma'am," he said and left to get another piece of cake.

I nudged Irene with my elbow. "What are you doing?" I whisper-hissed.

"Helping," she said and shoved a bite of cake into her mouth.

"That is not helping."

"Honey, that boy hasn't taken his eyes off you since we arrived. And you turn into a jumping bean every time he's around. Y'all might not see it, but I do."

She couldn't be serious. Yes, Edge made me nervous, but not for the reason she thought. Hell, every biker in the room made me nervous. That didn't mean I had chemistry with all of them. As for Edge staring at me, well, I didn't have an explanation for that.

Edge returned to the table and sat in the chair directly across from me. He glanced at Irene's plate. "You started without me."

"You took too long," she returned.

He laughed. "It's been a while since I've seen you. How have things been?"

"Are you asking me or her?" she asked and pointed to me with her icing covered fork.

"Both, I suppose."

"Same old, same old. The diner keeps me busy."

"And you?" he asked.

"Good," I said. "Same as Irene. Busy with work."

"That's why I brought her here," Irene added. "She needs to meet some people and make some friends."

I was going to die of embarrassment before the night was over. I just knew it.

"You came to the right place. We're a friendly bunch, and there are plenty of people here," Edge said.

I didn't know what to say, so I focused on my cake, or tried to. Edge seemed determined to get me to talk to him.

"I remember Irene saying you were new in town. Where did you move here from?"

Well, damn. He was the first person to ask me that question since I moved to Cedar Valley. It hadn't even occurred to me to think of a cover story to tell people. I swallowed the bite in my mouth and lied the best I could. "I'm from Florida." It wasn't entirely a lie. I was born in Florida while my mother was visiting her parents and moved there to live with my grandmother when I turned eighteen, but I grew up in Georgia and moved back there after my grandmother died.

"How did you end up in Tennessee?"

I couldn't tell him the truth—I stopped in Cedar Valley because I was almost out of money and gas. "I had distant relatives who used to live in the area. I loved visiting them and moved here once I had the chance." To stop his casual interrogation, I turned the questions back to him. "What about you? How did you end up in a motorcycle club in Croftridge?"

"I grew up here. The Blackwings have been around for a long time and are well known in the area. I started prospecting for the club as soon as I graduated from high school. In fact, I went to high school with Ember and Reese," he said and pointed to two women at a table nearby. "Actually, Reese and I went to prom together."

"I heard my name. Are you talking about me?" Reese asked as she approached our table.

"I was telling Evie that I went to prom with you."

The other woman, presumably Ember, came over to join us. "Did you tell her about the time I broke your nose?"

Edge sighed. "You're never going to let me forget that, are you?"

She shrugged. "It was your own fault. You offered to spar with me when you knew I was worked up."

"I was trying to be nice," he said. It was obvious they'd had this friendly argument many times before.

"So, I'm going to skip the how and why, but I was trained in hand-to-hand combat from an early age. I was in the middle of a rather intense situation, and Edge was tasked with protecting me while my man went to slay my dragons. Anyway, I was a nervous wreck, and Edge here offered to spar with me to help me work off some of my nervous energy. Long story short, I accidentally broke his nose."

"What happened to you?" I asked.

Her brows narrowed in confusion. "What do you mean?"

Suddenly, I realized what I asked and wanted to cover my face with my hands. "What happened with your situation? Were you okay?"

"Oh. Yes, I was fine. We went to the hospital, and they fixed him right up," she said and reached out to tweak Edge's nose. He dodged and gently swatted her hand away.

"Don't you have children to tend to?"

"My children are grown," she returned. "Well, one is. The other's not far behind. Why? Are you trying to get rid of me?"

"Possibly," Edge said.

"I'll come back to hassle you later," she said and got up to leave.

"She has grown children. How old is she?" I asked. She looked like she was in her late twenties.

"Thirty-eight. Same age as me. Reese is a year older." Edge turned in his chair to survey the room. "See that girl over there? That's Ember's daughter, Raven. The girl to her left is Ember's sister, Blaze. Blaze and her twin brother, Flint, are only a few weeks older than Raven."

"So Ember and her mom were pregnant at the same time?" I asked.

"Yep," he confirmed. "We have lots of fun stories like that around here. Reese is married to Duke, and Reese's brother, Carbon, is married to Duke's sister, Harper. Their kids are super cousins. I'm not sure where Duke is, but Carbon is the huge guy lurking behind Harper."

I was happy to have the focus off me, so I listened intently and asked questions when I could. Irene chimed in from time to time but let us do most of the talking. Before I knew it, the party was winding down, and it was time to leave.

"We're going to head out," Irene said to Edge. "Thanks for keeping us company."

"Anytime," he smiled. "It was good to see you again."

"He's talking to you," Irene stage whispered.

"It was nice to see you, too," I said, completely ignoring Irene.

She looped her arm through mine. "Come on, I need to find Byte to say goodbye before we leave."

She dragged me along with her until we found Byte and Gabby talking to a group of people. "Congratulations, honey," she said to Gabby and gave her a hug. Then she wrapped her arms around Byte. "Come see me when you have a chance."

"I will," he promised.

I awkwardly waved goodbye to the crowd and thanked them for inviting me. Once we were in the car, I breathed a sigh of relief.

"That wasn't so bad, was it?" Irene asked.

"No, I suppose it wasn't," I reluctantly admitted.

"You and Edge seemed awful chatty."

"Edge was chatty. I was being polite."

"Mmm-hmm," she said, as if she didn't believe me.

I did enjoy talking with Edge, but I didn't want to admit it to myself or anyone else. He was exactly the kind of guy I needed to steer clear of.