I’d long ago given up trying to figure out where we were. Our route seemed to loop around and back, but as we crested a hill, my eyes caught on the little green sign on the side of the road that said, Gnaw Bone. I perked up hoping that we'd stop at the diner there for lunch. As soon as we entered town limits, our little group started to slow and I let out an internal whoop! when Calix clicked on his turn signal and eased his bike into Harper's Home Cooking's gravel parking lot. The Heretics seemed to be the only group stopping there as bike after bike continued on through town, the sound of so many engines a continuous roar in my ears.
Once we were parked and Mace had turned the bike off, I said, "I might have to take you up on that ass massage." Mace laughed, unbuckling his helmet and hanging it off the handlebars before offering me his hand. Carefully, I eased myself off the bike, this time expecting the jelly feeling of my legs and groaning at getting to stretch and move.
"Still love it?" Mace asked, watching me with a smile.
"Definitely, but I think my ass needs to build up a tolerance."
At that, he threw back his head and laughed before wrapping an arm around my shoulders and pressing his lips against the side of my head. "If I have anything to say about it, it will," he said, his warm breath ruffling my hair. I turned toward him, sliding my arms around his waist and tilting my chin up, asking for a kiss. He didn't disappoint, cupping my face in his hands and kissing me slow and easy, right there in the parking lot.
"Lord, we aren’t going to be able to take them anywhere," I heard someone say, but my brain was too focused on Mace's lips moving with mine to parse out who it was. There were more wolf whistles and catcalls, and Mace finally pulled away with a chuckle and shot a glance around at our companions.
"Y'all are just jealous."
There was some good-natured grumbling at that and some protests from the Heretics with boyfriends of their own, but it was all in good fun. We were halfway to the diner's door when I realized I’d just thought of Mace as my boyfriend. I must've stuttered in my steps because Mace gave my fingers a squeeze and glanced over at me. "You okay?"
"I really am.”
Inside, the host pushed tables together for us, and we all took turns making use of the facilities. As I was washing my hands, Leith stepped up to the sink beside me to wash his.
"How are you enjoying yourself?"
It could have been from the sun, but I swore pink bloomed in Leith's cheeks. "I'm having a great time. Thank you for asking if I could come."
"No need to thank me. You were looking awfully cozy on the back of Axel's bike.”
"He's great, but before you get any ideas, I'm not in the market for a daddy."
"Understandable, but it’s nice to have friends."
"Absolutely." Leith turned off the sink and grabbed a handful of paper towels. "And at least he seems the type that would show up when he says he will."
That morning I’d found Leith sitting on the steps alone, looking dejected. When he'd told me that the guy he was supposed to be going on a hike with hadn’t shown, I’d felt bad for him and was glad to be able to offer an alternative.
“Come on, y’all,” Arden said, hip checking me out of the way so he could use my sink. “Let’s get back out there. I’m starving!”
Two days later walking into work, I was still smiling. We'd ended the day of the charity ride out at Lex and Arden's cabin with a bonfire and plenty of laughs. Toward the end of the night, Mace had brought a lounge chair down from the porch and set it back in the grass, just on the edge of the firelight. He'd stretched out in it and patted the space between his legs, so I'd sat there, my back to his chest and his arms around me as we listened to the Heretics swap war stories from times out on the road in the soft light of this flickering fire and the stars overhead.
I didn't think I'd ever had a better day in my life. And if teenage me had known that someday we’d have found a family, a real family in Arden, Vivian, and now Mace. I'm sure I wouldn't have believed it.
I stepped through Spritz's basement door and made my way through the still empty lounge. I was early, something I hadn't been in too many months, and I waved at the guy setting up the bar as I made my way to the opposite door and the stairs that would take me up to the main level. As soon as I stepped into the club proper, one of the bartenders lifted their head from where they were stocking glasses and waved at me.
"Hey, Pax, Vivian was looking for you. She wanted you to step into her office before shift starts."
Nervous flutters flared up in my stomach, because even with all the warm thoughts. I’d just been having, my first instinct was always disaster. My mind raced with possibilities of what I could have done wrong, but I took a deep breath and told myself that I was being silly, and that jumping to conclusions wouldn't do anyone any good. I made my way to the back and knocked on Vivian's door.
"Come in," she called.
Pushing open the door, I walked inside and was relieved when she smiled at me the same way she always did.
"Hi, Pax, please have a seat." She must've been able to see the trepidation on my face because she added, "You're not in trouble."
A little chuckle escaped me and I shot her a smile as I settled into one of the comfy seats across from her desk.
"How have you been doing Pax? It feels like forever since we caught up."
"I've been good, honestly. Things have gotten easier in the last couple of months."
"I've noticed which I think is excellent, and I've noticed that you’ve been spending some time with Mace."
I shifted in my seat, not so much uncomfortable as concerned about how I would answer questions if she had them. Because I was certain that I didn't have all the answers myself. "Yes, we've been, uh, seeing each other for a little while now."
"I think that's great. Mace is a standup guy, but that's not what I wanted to talk to you about." Vivian folded her hands together and leaned forward, resting her elbows on the sleek black top of her desk.
"Pax, how would you feel about training to step into the assistant manager spot for the lounge?"
I was stunned. It was like my brain forgot how to make words and I stared at her, my mouth flopping open like a fish, as warmth spread my chest. When my brain came back online, my smile split my face. "I would love to. Are you sure? I've never been a manager before."
Vivian chuckled, but she had that knowing smile on her face. "I know, but I've been watching you for years now and you have the qualities that make a good manager, Pax. You really do. With training, I think you would excel in this kind of position."
Tears stung my eyes, and I said the only thing that I could say. "Thank you, Vivian. I would love the opportunity."
We chatted for a while longer about salary and benefits—both of which blew me away—and about the added responsibilities and type of schedule I would have to keep. When it was almost time for the club doors to open, she and I made our way out onto the club floor, still talking and bouncing ideas about how we could improve the lounge area. The same bartender that had told me Vivian wanted to see me looked up at our approach.