Chapter Three

Fade

When the garage was blown up, it had been a blow to the gut, but watching the bulldozer level it to the ground was something else.

Boone and Gibbs.

I had never known the names before they decided on a whim to choose our club to take the fall to make them look better.

The only thing they hadn't considered was that the Iron Fiends weren't known to get run over.

They may have gotten a jump on us, but we weren't going to be the ones six feet in the ground when this was all over.

"Gosh darn, that is a big… thing."

I glanced to the side when Adalee had appeared. "Bulldozer," I grunted.

She nodded and licked her lips. "Yeah, that. Big."

I studied her behind the darkness of my sunglasses.

I had never really paid much attention to her before.

She had reddish-brown hair that cascaded down in soft waves, catching the mid-day sunlight with rich, warm tones. Her figure was curvy and plumper, exuding a natural confidence and beauty. Her face was undeniably pretty, with a radiant smile that lit up her features. There was an endearing dorkiness to her that made her seem approachable.

"You get a sudden interest in demolition or something, cupcake."

Adalee wrinkled her brow and cocked her head to the side. "Uh, no."

"Then what can I do for you?"

"Why did you call me cupcake?" she asked.

I shrugged and pulled a cigarette out of my pack. "You have one on your shirt." It seemed to fit her, though. She seemed sweet like a cupcake, and with a closer look, I wouldn't mind tasting her to see if that was true.

She looked down at her shirt. "Oh, yeah. I forgot what I put on this morning."

I chuckled and took a long drag off my cigarette.

"This is from… a different lifetime," she trailed off. She brushed her hand down her shirt and straightened her shoulders. "Do you think I could talk to you for a second?"

"Isn't that what we're doing right now?" I blew out a plume of smoke and watched the bulldozer topple the last wall of the body shop.

"Well, yeah," she muttered. "But I thought maybe we could talk about doing an interview. Soon."

I shook my head. "Busy, cupcake."

"Watching the bulldozer?" she asked.

I nodded. "Yeah, supervising."

"You can't take a break?"

"No." I didn't need to look at her. I wasn't going to stop what I was doing to sit in front of a camera. It was enough that I had spotted them recording me ten minutes ago. I wondered what kind of show they would have if recording me watching a bulldozer was film worthy.

"What about tomorrow?" She was persistent; I would give her that.

"Busy."

"Thursday at four fifteen?" she shot back.

"Eh, pretty sure I'm busy then, too."

She moved to stand before me and tipped her head back to look at me. "You know you guys signed up for this, right?" she asked. "I'm just trying to do my job, and you aren't doing yours."

I slowly slid my sunglasses down my nose and stared at her. "I know what my job is, cupcake, and it sure as shit isn't what you think it is. And for the record, I didn't sign up for shit. Yarder and Compass did. You show me my signature on those contracts, and I'll get in front of your camera."

"We just want to hear what you have to say about the shooting."

I shook my head. "I've got nothing to say about it. Anthony deserved to die, and Faye should still be here."

"Then say that," she insisted.

I pushed my sunglasses back over my eyes and folded my arms over my chest. "I'll pass."

"Is it because of the police?" she questioned.

"I shot Anthony in self-defense after he shot Faye. We didn't know what he was going to do next. He needed to be put down."

Adalee took a half step back.

"That what you want me to say to the camera?" I drawled. "I don't think your audience wants to really know the world of a motorcycle club. Keep talking to Pirate. He'll spin the story you want to hear."

"I don't want Pirate," she grumbled.

"Pirate know that?"

She wrinkled her nose. "I don't know what you're trying to say, but there isn't anything going on between me and Pirate. You guys are always pushing him on us, not vice versa."

"Right," I drawled.

She put her hands on her hips and glared at me. "I don't like what you are insinuating, Fade. I'm here to do my job, and that is it. If Pirate has any feelings for me, I can tell you that I am not doing anything to encourage them."

I didn't say anything.

I had told her everything I wanted to. I wasn't interested in being interviewed, and that was it.

"I don't want to have to run to Yarder about you, Fade."

"Cupcake, run to Yarder all you want. It isn't going to change my answer."

She thinned her lips but didn't argue anymore. She turned on her heel with a huff and headed toward the clubhouse. "Later, cupcake," I called.

"This isn't the last you'll hear of this, Fade," she shouted.

"Yeah, yeah," I muttered under my breath. "Good luck."

Adalee had nine other guys she could talk to about what happened; she didn't need me.