Mace

M ace felt as though things were looking up for him, and he wasn’t about to jinx things by not following every rule that Brooke had laid down for him. She insisted that he stay put in his shitty motel room until she could work things out with the cops. Brooke seemed to feel that his so-called alibi was enough to get him released as a suspect, and that sounded like music to his ears. Sure, he hated having to tell Brooke that he was having sex with his new waitress in his office, but it had to be done. He told the cops the same thing and they didn’t seem to care about anything he said. chalked it up to them judging him by the outside package. He just hoped like hell that Brooke could see past his tattoos and bad-guy exterior and help him.

They had spent the better part of the day going over his case in detail, and by the time Brooke left his motel room, he was exhausted. The crazy thing was that he actually missed her when she left, not that he wanted to read too much into that. He was probably thinking with his cock and not his head and that usually got him into trouble. needed to remember that she didn’t date clients and there was no way that he’d give her up as his lawyer. He needed her more than he wanted to, and that plain sucked. It didn’t mean that he’d never take his shot with Brooke. Sooner or later, he’d be free of this mess and then he’d see if she was up for a little bit of fun.

For now, he’d sit and wait for her to come back to talk about his case some more. He wasn’t sure how he’d kill time, but he could think of something. A knock at his door had him hoping that she had decided to come back a few days early, or that Brooke had good news to give him.

stood and crossed the small room, pulling the door open to find Owen, Steel, and Maverick on the other side. Steel and Mav looked pretty pissed off at him and he wasn’t sure that he could blame them. He always preached to his guys that “Brothers stood together” and here he was trying to go it on his own.

“Why the fuck did you keep us in the dark about the charges against you, man?” Steel asked.

“I didn’t want to get you both involved in my mess. Owen had some contacts at the courthouse and with a lawyer, so I called him instead. You three shouldn’t be here.” They might have led the cops right to his motel room and then he’d be behind bars for his next meeting with Brooke. He definitely didn’t want her to see him like that.

“Brothers stand together,” Maverick growled. “You can’t preach that shit to us and then not follow your own advice.” knew that Mav was right, but telling him that would only end with Maverick giving him an even longer lecture.

“I know, and I’m sorry,” said. “I fucked up. I got scared and I ran.”

“And now, you look guilty as fuck,” Steel said. also knew that too. Brooke had chided him a few times about taking off when he found out that he was the cops’ main suspect.

“I’m aware,” he grumbled. “Brooke has already told me that I’m a moron, I don’t need you three telling me that too.”

“Brooke?” Steel asked. “Who is Brooke?”

“She’s the lawyer that Owen found for me,” said.

“Is she hot?” Maverick asked. could feel himself making a face and he knew that the guys would rag him until he told them that she was probably the hottest woman that he’d ever seen. But was never one to give such secrets away, so he decided to lie to the three of them.

“Nope,” he breathed. “She’s older and not very attractive.” He just hoped like hell that he was wearing his best poker face because he didn’t want to admit to the guys that he was attracted to his lawyer.

Owen barked out his laugh, and knew that he was about to be called out for his lie. “You forget that I know Brooke, man,” Owen challenged. “She’s hot as fuck.”

“Well, I’ll be sure to let your wife know that you think so,” challenged.

“Shit,” Owen grumbled. “Never mind—she’s hideous.” His brothers laughed and turned back to . He knew that they weren’t going to let this go, but he needed them to because all he wanted now was some shut eye.

“If you guys are done giving me a hard time, I’d like to get some sleep. I’ve been on edge since I got to this hell hole, and I’m exhausted after going over my case with Brooke for hours.” The three brothers laughed like school-aged children, and he shook his head at them, knowing that they weren’t going to stop. “You three are children,” he chided.

“We are not,” Owen insisted.

“Wait,” Maverick interjected, “I was just wondering how well you were going over things with Brooke. I mean, were you thorough?”

“Get the fuck out,” said, pointing to the door. “I will call you three when I have some news. Until then, try to grow up.” The three brothers turned and walked to the door, sulking the whole way. “Guys,” said. The three of them turned back to look at him, still sulking and all he wanted to do was laugh. “Thanks for stopping by to check on me. It means a lot.” The Blaine brothers were the closest thing had ever had to brothers. Them checking on him meant more than the three of them would ever know.

“No problem, man,” Steel said. “Stay in touch.” He nodded and watched them file out of his hotel room, one at a time. crossed the small room and locked the door behind them, suddenly feeling very alone again. He should have been used to that feeling by this point, but he wasn’t. He always had his club brothers around him, helping him out, but this time, he needed to go it alone. It was what was best for his club, and always protected his club.

It had been three fucking days since Brooke was there, and now, was starting to worry that she might have written him off, deciding not to take his case. He had even tried calling her about a half dozen times a day and was sent to voice mail every time. felt like his only option was to give into despair and turn himself into the cops.

was about to crawl into bed to sleep when a knock on the motel room’s door startled him. He suddenly felt foolish for wishing it was Brooke, but he was. The idea of her standing on the other side of the store had his heart racing. pulled on his jeans and t-shirt, not wanting a repeat of their first meeting when he was shirtless. He pulled the door open, and his heart instantly sank when he found some old dude standing on the other side.

“Can I help you?” growled.

“You ?” the older man asked.

“Depends on who’s asking,” said. “What can I do for you?”

“I think it’s more about what I can do for you,” the old guy said.

“I doubt that, but let’s hear it,” insisted.

The guy looked around the parking lot and back at . “How about we do this in your room? I think that I’m being watched, and I don’t want to chance things.” wondered who would be watching the old guy and why, but he didn’t ask questions. He looked pretty nervous and that worried . But he was right—it wasn’t safe for to be standing in the doorway.

“Fine,” grumbled, “come on in.” He moved out of the way to allow the old guy room to get into the small motel room. “What’s your name?” he asked.

“Doesn’t matter what my name is,” the old guy insisted. “What matters is I think I can prove that you didn’t kill Reece Childs.” That sounded too good to be true. He didn’t believe that a stranger would show up at the motel he was staying in, and offer him evidence that he wasn’t a murderer.

“Okay, shoot,” said. “Tell me how you can prove my innocence.” The old guy sat down in the chair in the corner of the room and sighed.

“Reece was my son,” the guy said. “He broke up with his girlfriend the night before he was killed. She wasn’t a stable woman, and I believe that she killed him.”

“Why would you believe that?” asked.

“Because she left this on my son’s doorstep after he broke things off with her.” The old guy held out a piece of paper and crossed the room to take it from him. He quickly read the note and handed it back to him.

“She seemed pretty pissed off after he broke up with her,” said.

The old guy nodded, “She even said that she wouldn’t let him go without a fight. She said that if she couldn’t have him, no one would. I’d say that sounds pretty threatening, wouldn’t you?” had to agree with the guy, but he wasn’t sure that the note was enough to get him off.

“The letter isn’t signed,” pointed out. “Do you know her name?”

“That’s the problem,” the old guy admitted, “I have no idea what her name is. Reese really didn’t share information about who he was dating, and I didn’t butt in. I’ve always been a hands-off kind of dad.” was very familiar with the concept of a hands-off dad. His father had left him when he was just a baby. He never heard a peep from the guy, and that worked for him. Hell, he didn’t know if his father was alive or dead, and none of that really mattered to him. decided a long time ago that he was better off without his old man.

“I don’t know if you’ve given me enough to have the cops drop the charges, but I appreciate the help,” said. “I do have a question—how did you find me here?” He should have asked the old guy that question before letting him into his motel room, but better late than never.

“The cops told me that my son’s body was found at your bar. I saw three big guys leaving there earlier and decided to follow them. They were looking around as though trying to make sure that no one was watching them, and I took a chance that they knew where you were and were coming to see you.” had to hand it to the guy, he was pretty smart to follow Owen, Mav, and Steel to the motel. Those jackasses were dumb enough to lead the old guy right to his doorstep.

“I’m going to murder them,” he whispered under his breath.

The old guy chuckled, “Maybe you shouldn’t say that kind of shit if you want people to believe that you’re innocent.” The old guy was right. needed to be more careful about what he said. Blurting out that he was going to murder anyone might not end well for him.

“Yeah, I guess that was a poor choice of words,” grumbled.

“I think that we can track down the woman so that the cops can question her. I showed this letter to them, but they insisted that you were their only suspect and that you were guilty,” the old guy said.

“Yeah, they said that the case against me was open and shut,” said, “I guess that was the reason I ran. My lawyer has already reamed me a new one for taking off the way that I did.”

“What if I spoke to your lawyer and told him what I know about the case so far? I’d really like to find this woman, and if she is guilty of killing my son, I want to see her behind bars,” the old guy said.

“My lawyer is a woman, and if you really mean it, I’d appreciate that,” said.

“Is she hot?” the old guy asked, flashing his smile at . Something about the guy seemed kind of familiar, but he couldn’t put his finger on what it was. He’d try to figure it all out later, but for now, he needed to get the old guy out of his motel room and call Brooke to tell her about this new lead.

“Why does everyone keep asking me that?” grumbled. The old guy chuckled again, and wanted to tell him that none of this was funny, but he still needed the guy. If he was willing to talk to Brooke, then didn’t want to scare him away or piss him off.

“I think it’s a fair question,” the old guy insisted. He had a fair point, but wasn’t about to tell him that.

“So, you’ll talk to her?” asked.

“Yep,” the old guy said, “it will give me a chance to see if she’s as hot as I think she is.”

“Why the hell would you think that she’s hot?” asked.

“Because you seemed to get your feathers in a ruffle when I asked if she was hot,” the old guy said.

“Fine, suit yourself. Hell, I don’t care why you’re willing to talk to my lawyer, I just appreciate the help,” said.

The old guy stood and held out his hand to . “Anytime,” he said. “It’s always a pleasure to help out a fellow biker.”

took the guy’s hand and shook it. “You ride?” he asked. The old guy nodded his head and released ’s hand.

“Yep, I’ve been riding since before you were born,” the old guy said.

“Well, you are always welcome at the Road Reapers,” said. “That’s my club.”

“Thanks, ,” the old guy said. “Here’s my number.” He pulled out a torn piece of paper that had his phone number scribbled on it, and handed it over to . “Be in touch when you can schedule a meeting. I’ll be there,” the old guy promised. He walked over to the door and opened it, not bothering to look back or exchange pleasantries. He just left, and for some reason, felt as though his exit suited him. He didn’t seem like the kind of guy that waited around to say his goodbyes. He didn’t seem the type to make small talk, and had to respect that. He was the same way.

He checked the time, realizing that it was still early enough in the evening to try Brook again. Hopefully, she’d actually answer his call this time. He waited for three rings and was ready to give up when her groggy voice answered the call. wasn’t sure why the thought of her sleepy voice turned him on, but it did. Everything about Brooke seemed to turn him on, and if this new evidence worked out, he’d be able to ask Brook out, and that worked for him because if one more guy asked if his lawyer was hot, he was going to lose his shit.