Chapter 17

Moira

"Which one do you like?" he asks me.

True to his word, we left the cabin early this morning and after eating at the diner in town, we got on the Blue Ridge Parkway, which is apparently what a lot of other bikers thought about doing as well, because we pass a lot of them, and every time we see one, Kracken makes a hand motion of some sort that they return.

Now, we're at a hole in the wall Mexican restaurant that the clerk at the gas station we stopped at recommended, eating the best chips and salsa I've ever had while we wait for our food. Hawg apparently sent him a link of the houses the club decided on and he has the page open on his phone. He's sitting next to me as we go through each one.

"I like them all, but really like the ones that have a log cabin exterior. Kind of fits with where we're going to be living, don't you think?" I question. "Plus, how big are we wanting to go? It's just us right now, so maybe one of the tiny homes would be a better option right now?"

"Babe," he says.

Since I'm still trying to decipher all the ways he uses ‘babe', I raise my brow. "What?"

"I've pretty much lived in the clubhouse my whole fucking life, so I've never moved, but I've heard horror stories and don't wanna do that to either one of us."

"Then we'll look at a bigger modular home," I declare, going back to that page. "How about this one?"

It's a bigger home, and has five bedrooms, but I figure one will be converted for use as a cat room. That way should children come along at some point, we can put a baby gate in front of the door so the cats can escape to safety once they start toddling around.

"I like it, I'll send a message to Hawg. We'll stay in my room in the clubhouse when we first get back home until we can buy some furniture and shit."

I giggle because he sounds like such a man right now, causing him to lean in and quickly kiss me, just as the waitress brings our food.

"Y'all need anything else?" she asks after warning us that the plates are hot.

"Refills on the tea, please," I tell her. "The salsa's good but kind of spicy."

She laughs while nodding her head. "Be right back, I'll get y'all a pitcher of the salsa, as well as one of tea, because it's good. Most customers can't stop eating it."

* * *

Our ride back isn't as much fun because we do it under a deluge of rain. Right now, I'm grateful that Kracken got me leathers, as he calls them, and that he also bought a rain slicker which he left in his saddlebags. After a few minutes underneath an overpass, where we put them on and he cleaned off our visors so we'd both be able to see, we get on the road and make our way back to the cabin.

By the time we pull up the drive, I'm chilled to the bone, and don't complain when he hustles me into the house. Once we get our riding gear off and he puts it over the kitchen chairs to dry out, he coaxes me into the bathroom with instructions to ‘get warm' now.

I manage to shiver my way through a warm shower, cognizant of the fact he's going to need to get warm himself. Once I've gotten dressed in some of my own sweats, complete with fuzzy socks, I head back into the living room to see a roaring fire going and Kracken playing with the kittens.

"What on earth?" I ask as I move closer to the blazing flame. He has the fire itself blocked off with a wrought iron screen, so there's no danger to the kittens, of course, but it's the middle of the summer, for heaven's sake!

"While you were in the shower, the caretaker for the place came by and told me there's a big storm followed by a cold snap of some sort coming our way. He said we might lose power and even if it is summer, as I also pointed out to him, sometimes when that happens, it gets chilled up here. So, I brought more dry wood in and built a fire, just in case," he replies.

Shivering at the prospect of no electricity and my toes being nippy, I suggest, "If we're in danger of losing power, you should get in the shower while I make a few sandwiches. I also need to feed the kittens too."

"Got that taken care of, Moira. You go ahead and relax in front of the fire. When I'm done, I'll bring out the food, okay?" he asks.

"Sounds good to me."

Right now, I'm glad this is a decent-sized place, even though there's no ‘official' bedroom, because it's nice and toasty. I settle in on the couch, both Timmy and Sushi clambering up and onto my lap and watch the flames while I think about today. In short, it's been wonderful, just like all the time I've spent with him has been. Minus, of course, that brief nightmare where my parents tried to abduct me.

I have questions, so many questions about why they tried to do that to me, and I'm hoping to be able to ask them when we get home. Maybe then I'll understand why I was treated so horribly growing up. My mother did what she could, except now, that I know better, she truly didn't protect me. Not like Selah does her daughters. She took off in search of Hannah, something I know beyond a shadow of a doubt I would do as well.

I'm so lost in thought, I don't hear Kracken come out of the bathroom, steam billowing from behind him, his head freshly shaved, and his beard trimmed, wearing a pair of low-slung sweatpants. It's not until I hear, "Moira, babe, take the drinks for me," that I turn and see him standing there, his hands full.

"You wouldn't need help if you had made two trips," I tease, reaching out for our drinks.

"Yeah, not happening, babe," he quips, sitting next to me and handing me a plate with a sandwich on it, tossing an unopened bag of chips between us. "Besides, you had me getting more than the sandwiches."

I roll my eyes while taking a bite of mine, causing him to burst into laughter. The kittens, their sleep now disturbed, prance down off the couch and head to the bed.

"What happens if we lose power?" I ask once I swallow.

"Caretaker said there's a generator that'll kick on. It covers the refrigerator, the water heater, and the television."

"Of course, it powers the television!" I exclaim, laughing so hard I snort.

"Babe," he replies, looking at me. "As long as it works, we can watch movies and shit until the power comes back. Remember, we're in the mountains, it's not always as quick as in bigger cities."

"Fine, fine," I murmur, still giggling. "So, it has nothing to do with the fact that the big, bad biker wants to watch his action movies?"

"Well, maybe? Hell if I know, I don't know the owner of the cabin, Brick does, so I can't really say. I think it has more to do with the fact there's not much else that anyone can do if the power goes out."

I shrug, ready to move on. "Thank you for the ride. Coulda lived without the pouring down rain, but outside of that, I had fun."

"You're a natural on the back of my bike," he replies. "You felt good pressed against me."

My smile is slow to bloom, because in all reality, that was one of the reasons I enjoyed the ride so much. I could feel the untapped power in his body as he maneuvered his bike. Seeing his muscles bulge during the turns, feeling the heat emanate from his body had me thinking of other, more pleasurable things. The vibration coursing through me from his bike didn't hurt either.

"I enjoyed it, Kracken."

"Good. Let's go watch a movie until we fall asleep. I'll call Brick in the morning and see what the status is in Lynchburg, because I'm sure you're ready to settle."

I nod my head so he knows I hear him, then add, "Okay. Don't forget to let Hawg know which house we picked out."

"He already knows. Shot him a text when we were eating earlier." This isn't shocking information; those guys are quick on the draw when it comes to taking care of business.

I giggle because I feel like he's always trying to stuff food down my throat. While I know I've lost far too much weight, I also realize it's highly unlikely it'll come back as quickly as it disappeared. Besides that, he might not like a curvier me, and as much as I'm growing to care about him, that would break my heart.

* * *

I wake up to total silence, save the slight hissing noise coming from the fireplace. The television is off, but so is the DVD player right below it, so I surmise that what the caretaker warned Kracken about actually came to pass. I don't know if Kracken turned the tv off or not, because the generator is supposed to power it, and I can hear the slight hum of the refrigerator. As I try to slide out from underneath his arm, it tightens and I hear his sleepy voice ask, "Where ya going?"

"To the bathroom," I softly reply. "Power's out."

He raises up on an elbow and looks around before he comes up with his phone in his hand. "Here, got the flashlight app going, use that so you don't stumble into anything, okay?"

"Thanks," I state, taking the phone from him. "I'll be right back." Once I slip free of the bedding, a chill races up and down my spine. I had doubts about it getting chilly in the summertime, but the caretaker was right, we needed the fire for warmth.

Once I'm in the bathroom, I quickly take care of business, then wash my hands and brush my teeth, since I fell asleep during the second movie. I carefully make my way back to the bed and slide in, then smile when I feel Kracken settle the blankets around us once again after he pulls me into his arms. Handing him his phone, he tosses it next to him, never letting go of me in the meantime.

"I don't much like the dark," I mutter. Despite the roaring fire going, there are a lot of places around the room that are pitch black, which remind me of when Belle and I were taken.

"Talk to me, sweetheart," he says, his fingers sliding through my hair.

"It brings up bad memories," I admit, unwilling to dissect what happened the first time.

"Then maybe we should make some new ones," he suggests.

"I think I'd like that," I reply, reaching up to stroke his face.

"No matter what, if you feel uncomfortable with anything, anything at all, you stop me, okay?" he asks.

"Okay."