10. 9 - Territorial

9 - Territorial

Walker came to my house to pick me up. He wore dark jeans, black boots, and a royal blue button-down shirt with the sleeves rolled up on his forearms. It was almost a shame he had to cover the tattoos that were prevalent on the rest of his arms, but the man would look amazing in completely virgin skin too, so I guess it didn’t really matter. The blue of his shirt seemed to make his eyes a bit more luminescent under the light. His hair was also blessedly down and hanging free around his shoulders.

All of that dimmed in comparison to the fact Walker had not come to my home empty handed. “These are for you.” He offered me a beautiful bouquet of wildflowers as his lips turned up at the corners in a subtle smile that made my insides tingle. He glanced over my shoulder and grinned. I turned to see Ariel peeking around the corner as she giggled with her aunt.

“I have something for you as well, Miss Ariel," Walker called out to my daughter.

“For me?” I didn’t miss the surprised tone of her voice as she shyly stepped around the corner and made her way to us. “These are for you.” He handed her a slightly smaller bouquet. The ones he picked for Ariel were brightly colored daisies. It just so happened that they were the flowers her eyes always tracked to in the store when we passed by the display.

“Seriously? You brought me flowers, too?”

“Of course. I’m taking time away that your momma has to spend with you and your brother. I wanted to show my appreciation for allowing that.”

My heart lodged somewhere in my throat. There stood a man with no kids of his own, a biker who was used to a rougher lifestyle, and he wanted to make sure my kids were basically thanked for giving the adults a little time to themselves. How could so many people have misjudged him? I knew his history, but this couldn’t possibly be the same man everyone warned me about. If it was, then they all somehow missed the fact that he had changed.

“Me too?”

“Got something a little different for you, buddy.” Walker leaned down and produced a miniature, Matchbox-sized Harley Davidson motorcycle for my son. “I thought you might like a motorcycle more than flowers.”

“Yeah!” My son cheered as he made a vroom sound and ran the motorcycle right up his sister’s arm. To my surprise, Ariel giggled at her brother instead of getting angry with him. I owed Walker for that too. He gave me my girl back. She still had some residual teenage attitude, but after our talk about her father and the potential for there to have been another woman, it was like a weight was lifted from her shoulders and she was able to be a teenager again instead of struggling with adult worries.

Walker stood at my side as he ruffled my son’s hair and watched my daughter admire her flowers. “How about I take those and put them in some water, so you two can go enjoy your night?” My sister asked from where she stood, leaned against the wall near the kitchen.

She gave me the slightest nod, meaning she approved of everything that just happened. Walker had certainly won points with the Ambrose family, and it appeared he did with my hard-to-please sister too.

“Sorry, didn’t realize there would be someone else here with them.” He took a couple steps and met my sister halfway. “I’m Walker.”

“Tillie,” my sister offered as she reached out and shook his hand. “That was awful sweet of you.”

“Would have brought you some too, if I’d known.”

“No need,” she waved his words away. “Seeing you include those kids was my present. Thank you for making all of them smile.”

“My pleasure.” Walker turned back to me. “Ready to get on the road?”

I nodded and handed my flowers off to my sister, though parting with them was done reluctantly. I couldn’t remember a time, outside of my senior prom when someone had given me flowers and then it was because Josh’s mom had picked up a corsage for him to give me – not because he thought of it himself.

I kissed each of the kids and told them to behave before we made our way out the door.

“Thank you for thinking of them.” We were already in his truck when I finally found my words.

“It was the least I could do for stealing time with their mom.” His grin was infectious.

“So where are we going?”

“The Coppertop for dinner, then after that, I figured we could make a decision together depending on how you’re feeling about things.”

I smiled over at him as he maintained his focus on the road. “You mean, in case we end up disliking one another?”

Walker chuckled. “Nah. Already know I like you. We did the histories and backgrounds at the clubhouse the first day we met.”

“I guess we did. Whatever are we supposed to talk about over dinner now?” I teased.

“Anything. Everything. How was your day?”

“Well, I received flowers for the first time in my life that wasn’t prom, so it’s been good so far.”

His head snapped around and he stared at me for a minute, as if he was checking to see if I was serious. “Never?”

I shook my head pathetically. “Seems unreal, right? I was with my husband since high school. Our senior prom was the last time he got me flowers, and if we’re being honest, it was his mom who remembered to get my corsage, not him.”

“Why in the hell did you marry him?”

I laughed at that. “Got pregnant at 17 with Ariel."

“Parents force you to marry?”

I shook my head again. “Nope. We thought we were in love. At least I did and he claimed to be in love with me.”

“I know what you found out about him was shitty, but that doesn’t mean your entire relationship needs to be painted with the same dirty brush.”

I shrugged my shoulders. “We all went to school together. He’s gone and who knows if I would have ever gotten the truth from him if he’d been alive. She would only tell me exactly what she thought would hurt me. They dated briefly before he and I got together. We were together for two years before I got pregnant, but she swore that he was going to come back to her before I got myself knocked up. Maybe she didn’t lie back then. I’ll never know, and it makes it hard not to wonder if something was going on with them the whole time. Honestly, no one knows who Dina’s father is either. What if it was my husband?”

“There are ways to find out, if you really want to know. I don’t think it would give you the answer you’re looking for if she turned out not to be his. It wouldn’t prove things weren’t going on between them back then, just that she was with someone else too.”

“That’s what I keep coming back to. I wanted to ask his friends, but I don’t think they’d tell me the truth either. Maybe because they don’t know, but mostly because they are the type to remain loyal to him, even in death.”

“You could change your perspective a bit.”

“Yeah? How do you figure?”

“Whatever he did or didn’t do doesn’t change who you are. It doesn’t change who your kids are or who their father was. They got to know their dad, well, your daughter did anyway. I’m assuming she has good memories with him.”

I nodded my head because it was too hard to speak over my emotions.

“Well, that’s really all that matters now. What’s done is done. You either find a way to move on or you don’t. You were moving on before you found out the latest news. You were ready to move on from him even before he died because he wasn’t the same man you had been married to for years. Treat it like your marriage was already over and headed for divorce because of his lies and gambling anyway. Any other lies that were stacked up on top of that – including being with another woman – are moot at that point.”

“Yeah, I guess you’re right. I’m just waiting for that bitch to come at me over some money.”

“She won’t do that.”

“Why?”

“Don’t you think she would have already done that if what her daughter told Ariel was true?”

“Yeah, you’re right. She wouldn’t have waited for me to possibly spend any money that was left to us.”

“That’s what I figured too. Sounds like she was just running her mouth about shit to someone and maybe her daughter overheard. I’d bet money that her kid isn’t your husband’s. They might have slept together, but if she could prove paternity, she would have tried for a payout immediately.”

“You gave this some serious thought, huh?”

“I’ve been worried about you and Ariel. It’s not right that she got put in the middle of shit and had her dad’s name and reputation trampled on.”

“I don’t understand why you ever thought you weren’t worthy of dating again. Seems to me, you’re doing a better job than most of the supposed good men I’ve known my whole life.”

If there was more light in the truck’s cab, I might have seen the man blush a bit at the compliment. It wasn’t just lip service. He thought of me, my kids, and our plight. He took them into consideration and did his best to make me comfortable and try to give me a brighter side to look at.

“I’m curious about something.”

“What’s that?” He asked.

“Well, since we’re riding in your truck, is it true that you only put your old lady on the back of your bike, or is that some bullshit made up for Hollywood?”

His laughter was infectious. “Honestly, it depends on the biker. Some don’t give a damn who hops on the back. Others only allow family. Some will only put their old ladies on the back and not even allow kids on. There are a few who won’t allow their old ladies on either because they’re afraid they’ll get hurt.”

“That’s weird and hypocritical of them.”

“Nah, if they’re not comfortable with a rider, then it’s better for them not to have one. I’ve only ever seen two instances of that in my life though. One was because he had lost an old lady who rode with him when they were in an accident. She didn’t make it, and he was left with a huge helping of survivor’s guilt.”

“That’s understandable and incredibly sad.” Walker nodded his head. “The other?”

“He didn’t have the sense God gave a turnip. I don’t know how he ever got a motorcycle endorsement on his license to begin with, but he could barely keep the thing upright.”

“And he was in an MC?” I asked aghast that they would allow that.

“Fuck no. That dipshit somehow made his way to one of the rallies we attended. After he laid his bike down the second time, the road captain, for the charity ride portion of the event, booted his ass out. Made him sit on the side of the road and wait to be picked up by prospects.”

“That must have been embarrassing.”

“I don’t know that he was even capable of embarrassment. Never seen anything like it in my life. Hope to never see it again.”

I laughed along with him at the thought of a biker who couldn’t keep his bike upright. “So, what about you. Where do you fall into the spectrum?”

“Haven’t had anyone sitting bitch in a long time.”

“Your ex-wife was the last?”

“Sadly, no.”

“Aww, Walker. I bet that hurt her.”

“Not even sure if she knows. It wasn’t someone I was with on the side or anything. Just gave someone a lift to the clubhouse one day. After Poppy left me, I realized I couldn’t even remember the last time I took her for a ride, and I knew my fuckups with her were bigger than I ever imagined. It wasn’t just the cheating. When I felt like I wasn’t good enough, it was like a switch flipped inside me and I set out to prove myself right in all the ways. I stopped including Poppy in just about every aspect of my life, except for when I went home.”

“Do me a favor,” I demanded.

“What’s that?”

“I know we’re just testing the waters here with a date and in the big scheme of things, we don’t mean anything to one another, but if things head in a serious direction, don’t forget to talk to me.”

“Talk to you?” He asked.

“Yeah, you know, if you’re feeling a certain way, I’d rather know than play guessing games. I’d rather be told to my face that it isn’t working out – even if it is for a dumb reason like you not thinking your worthy. I want to know before you try to prove something to yourself.”

He looked almost embarrassed to have to address that. “You have my promise as long as I have yours in return. I’m not proud of how I behaved with my ex-wife. It taught me a lot of lessons that I’ve taken to heart though. Rest assured, that shit would not happen again.”

“I believe you.”

His head snapped around and his eyes found mine and searched for something in their depths – the truth of what I’d said, if I had to guess. “You do, don’t you?”

“Wouldn’t say it if I didn’t.”

“I like that about you.”

I smiled and reached over to take his free hand in mine. “Good, because so far, I like that about you too.”

Dinner was a good time with great food. Honestly, if our date had ended there and he took me home, I would have been happy. Thankfully, Trinity showed up at my house to take over for my sister, so that I wouldn’t have to end the night early. Since we had more time, we headed to a little hole in the wall bar where The Brass Values band was playing.

“Is it weird to go to a bar when you don’t drink?” I asked Walker as we made our way inside the unique establishment. As long as I’d lived in the area, I’d never been there before. I knew they had an open mic night and karaoke nights sometimes, and that both were really popular, but I’d always been too busy working nights at Paramour or home with my kids to go out and have a real adult life. When my husband was still alive, he always demanded casino nights with the boys but never actually followed through on allowing me time for girls’ nights while he stayed home with the kids. I couldn’t remember the last night we had together.

“Nah. The worst thing about bars when you’re the only sober one is you realize how stupid you must have looked when you were the drunk one.” I laughed because I’d told Trinity and Shaina that very thing the last time I was pregnant and went out with them for a bit. “Besides, it's better when it comes to watching the entertainment because I remember the bands I see instead of forgetting if they were any good or if it was the alcohol making them better than they really were.”

“Oh, thank God, someone else who understands that some bands are only good because their audience is drunk!” He laughed with me as we found a seat toward the back of the bar. It was one of the only tables left, but I was thankful it wasn’t closer to the front. We would still be able to chat and watch all the night’s entertainment – not just the band.

“My guilty pleasure is people watching,” I admitted as we settled in and ordered drinks. Water for Walker and a salted, spicy watermelon margarita for me. It would be my one and only drink with alcohol, but I couldn’t resist.

“I used to think people watching was overrated, but I agree with you now. The more I study the way others behave, the better my understanding of who they are and what to expect from them.”

I tilted my head to the side, interested in where he was going with that. He pointed to a couple on the other side of the bar. “Just a couple minutes here, and I already know those two will be fighting before the night is out. He’s been eye fucking other women, but he also noticed that other men were doing the same to his woman. She only has eyes for her man, so she’s noticed exactly where his attention has been.”

“Not on her,” I commented.

“Exactly.”

“He’s jealous because he knows where his mind has gone and thinks she’ll do the same.”

“Probably. He’s an idiot who doesn’t see what’s right in front of him – a devoted woman until he breaks her.”

“That’s sad.”

“For her, it’s sad now. For him, it will be a whole level of hell he wasn’t prepared for later on when he loses her.”

“I hate that for you.”

“What?” Walker asked.

“That you experienced that.”

“I think my ex-wife would say I got what I deserved.”

I chuckled. “No doubt about that. I’m sure past you deserved every bit of hurt that came your way. You were already in pain when you sabotaged things though, so it sucks that you created more for yourself.”

“Yeah, well. Live and learn, I guess.”

“Exactly. Don’t ever forget those lessons, because I’m not one to wait around and let karma handle shit for me.” I winked at him, and he grinned back.

“Thanks for the warning, as unnecessary as it is.”

Our drinks were delivered pretty fast and then the lights dimmed even more, and a spotlight lit up the stage. “I heard they’re pretty good. Trinity said they’re right up my alley musically.”

“They are fantastic, especially if you’re a fan of blues, rock, and country fusions.”

“That is my sweet spot for music,” I admitted giddily. “I can’t wait!”

As the band started, Walker reached over and took my hand in his. My dopey smile probably gave away just how much I enjoyed that little gesture. It had been so long since a man paid healthy attention to me, that I honestly didn’t know how to behave. I leaned in and put my head on his shoulder. Whatever subtle cologne he wore was enough to tantalize my senses and make me want to burrow in closer.

It didn’t help that I’d felt an immediate connection with the man when we first met and that hadn’t waned one bit since then. The danger in feeling so connected to someone new was that it felt perfectly acceptable to lean in closer, wrap my arms around him, and get cozy next to his warm body. The reality was, we didn’t know one another like that yet, so I lifted my head back off his shoulder, offered a tiny smile, and picked up my drink to take a sip.

“I liked having you there,” he murmured close to my ear just as the band started up with a twangy guitar riff and fast-paced drum beat that immediately made my heart thump to the rhythm.

We snuggled up for a bit, listening to the music and enjoying one another’s company until a shadow fell across the table as a curvy body blocked our view of the stage. I glanced up to see a woman staring down at Walker. She seemed angry and immediately my hackles went up.

“I thought you didn’t date anymore?” I wondered, briefly, if she was his ex-wife, but immediately dismissed the idea because he told me how happy she was with her new man and new life. No woman who was happy with a new man worried about whether the other was dating or not.

“I don’t see how my life, or who I date, is any of your business.”

“It’s my business when you have me banned from the clubhouse because you ‘don’t date’ anymore.” She emphasized the same two words with the use of air quotes.

“That is not why you were banned from the clubhouse, and you know it.”

“What I know is that I waited around for you for fifteen years. When Poppy was finally out of the way, you went through your depression stage, especially after you lost your patch, but now… It was supposed to be my turn.”

Walker’s harsh exhalation of breath was followed by the meanest sounding laugh I had ever heard. “It was supposed to be your turn?” He questioned as he threw the woman’s words back at her. “Do I look like a fucking ride you can buy a ticket for?”

She took a step back and seemed shocked by his response as she glanced around to see if anyone else heard, since his voice was raised.

“I saw you way back when I first came to Sierra High. Saw you and immediately knew you were not the one. Then I saw Poppy and chose her because you still were not the one. When I stepped out on my wife, it still wasn’t with you. When I had dalliances after my divorce, they were also not with you. I don’t know why in the hell you thought for even a minute that waiting around for me was a good idea. I sure the fuck do not know what possessed you to come over to my table and interrupt a perfectly good night with my woman to spew your bullshit.”

“It’s not bullshit. We were meant to be together.”

“You’re fucking delusional. We were never together. You kissed all over me once when I was drunk and passed out in your car as I tried to get my sorry ass home to my wife. You wanted her to think we were together, even though you knew I’d never fucking touched you.”

The woman glanced nervously between Walker and me. I shrugged my shoulders. She was ruining my date, so there wouldn’t be any help from me. It sounded like she was one more Lithium prescription away from being locked up on a mental ward for good.

“Tanya, I’m telling you now, go back to whatever fucking hole you crawled out of because if you ever approach me again, I will take measures to make sure it will never happen again.” He glanced around, as if looking for someone and then his eyes caught on two women who seemed pretty invested in what was going on in our little corner. “Tell Missy and Devon that they are no longer welcome back to the club either.”

He sent a text from his phone as he said that.

“What? Why?”

“Word was put out that you were banished, that means anyone affiliated with the club that is caught anywhere near you is treated to the same punishment.”

“You can’t do that; they’ll never forgive me.”

“Already done and not my problem. Now, get the fuck out of here before you make this situation worse.”

The woman huffed and flounced off to the other side of the bar where we watched her inform the other two women of their fate. The blonde stood up and slapped her while the other threw her drink on the woman who had apparently gotten them banned from the clubhouse.

All three of them were quickly escorted out by security. “Be right back, I’m going to make sure they all three get gone before we call it a night.”

I nodded my agreement and sat there to wait for Walker to come back to me with the all-clear. I could not imagine waiting around for fifteen years for a man who clearly had never shown an interest in me. There was a part of me that wanted to sympathize with her because the Walker I was getting to know was a man worth waiting for, to an extent. Not fifteen years of waiting with no reciprocation though. That was just nuts.

The minute Walker opened the door to look outside, a man in too-tight jeans and a muscle shirt sauntered up to the table. “Hey little lady. Looks like your precious, long-haired date abandoned you. Don’t worry, you just upgraded.

I scrunched my nose up in disgust. He wasn’t terrible to look at, but the man had an ego that his image couldn’t hold up. “Not interested.”

“Everyone is interested in getting a piece of this, sugar. Besides, didn’t you ever hear that the best way to get over someone is to get under someone new? I have a special injection for what ails ya.” He wiggled his eyebrows. “Nice to meet ya,” he grinned too widely as he spoke. “I’m someone new.”

“You’re gonna be someone dead if you don’t get the fuck away from my woman,” Walker growled from over the idiot’s shoulder. Mister ‘Someone New’ startled, and nearly pissed himself as he turned to see that Walker had not abandoned me as he originally thought. I covered my mouth with my hand to hide my laughter as the man backed up two steps.

“My bad, I thought you left her here.”

“I’d have to be a moron to do that. Do I look like a fucking moron to you, asshole?”

The swift head shake in answer was followed by another step away from us that subsequently caused the man to stumble into a couple headed to the dance floor.

The man he stumbled into shoved him back toward Walker who then shoved him toward the door. “Might want to call it a night, asshole.” To my complete surprise, the douchebag listened and allowed the momentum of Walker’s shove to carry him right along to the door.

“Can’t leave you alone for a minute without the fucking vultures descending.” My date grumbled in a teasing tone as he took the seat beside me again.

“Imagine the vultures descending while you’re still sitting there…” I laughed as I said it. “I guess we’re both in high demand for crazy tonight.”

“Should probably take that as a warning and walk away now,” he insisted. The playful twinkle in his eye gave away his game though.

“Yeah, you’re probably right. I don’t think I’m medicated enough to truly appreciate the whole package.” I swished my hands up and down in front of him to indicate his body.

“Reesa, I think I have just the medication you need.” He mocked, wiggling his eyebrows. “It’s a type of injection and it’s steamy.”

“Oh my God!” I laughed hysterically. “No, you did not just reference a hot cock injection like the moron you basically just tossed out of here.”We were both doubled over into each other’s space laughing so hard I thought I might embarrass myself.

“It’s hard to believe that assholes like that think those lines work.”

“He probably should have used it on that Tanya lady. I think they work on a certain type of person. Definitely not me.” I wrinkled my nose again. “That was so gross. Thank you for stepping in to save me from the sleazeball.”

“My pleasure, beautiful. I think we might need to get out of here before we attract too many more nut jobs though. A few of those drunk bastards over there have been eyeing you up since we got here, and I don’t want to take the chance of getting blood splatter on your pretty cream shirt when I fight to defend your honor.”

“My hero!” I fake swooned and allowed Walker to help me up, so we could leave.