“Over at the clubhouse talking to Viper and Axel.”
“That talk have anything to do with Aubrey?”
“Yeah.” I couldn’t get into it all with Delilah and Krissy sitting there, so I simply said, “I’m gonna need you and Country to fill in for me for a few days. Maybe longer.”
“You going somewhere?”
“I am.” Again, I couldn’t tell him what was up, so I nodded my head in Delilah’s direction, giving Hawk the signal. “Marlowe should be able to handle the nightly receipts and basic inventory, but I’ll need you to check in with her now and then to make sure she’s got everything covered.”
“Shouldn’t be a problem.” His brows furrowed with concern. “Viper know about you leaving?”
“He does.” I leaned over to him and said, “He can fill you in on all the details later.”
Marlowe came over from the bar with a round of drinks. She handed the girls theirs first, and although neither of us had ordered one, she placed a couple of beers down in front of Hawk and me. Marlowe smiled as she said, “You both look like you could use a drink.”
“Definitely, thanks.” I grabbed one of the beers and took a long pull, then turned to her and said, “I was just telling Hawk that I’ll be needing you to cover for me for the next few days. You gonna be okay with that?”
“Absolutely. Is everything okay?”
“It will be. Just let Hawk know if you need a hand with anything.”
“Sure thing.” Marlowe turned her attention back to the girls. “I’ll come hang out with you guys as soon as I get my break.”
“Great,” Delilah replied. “We’ll be here.”
When Marlowe walked back to the bar, I stood up and said, “I better get to the office. I have a few things to take care of before we head out.”
“We?” Hawk asked. “That means Aubrey’s going with you?”
“Yeah. Like I said, talk to Viper. He’ll fill you in.”
“Got it.” When I turned to leave, Hawk called out to me, “Yo, Menace?”
“Yeah?”
“Be careful, brother.”
I gave him a nod, then headed to my office. As soon as I got to my desk, I started prepping for our trip to Billy’s, making sure I had everything covered so Marlowe could take over while I was gone. There was a lot to get done, so it was almost last call by the time I’d finished. Once I had everything wrapped up, I headed out to the bar and found Parker helping Marlowe with the final wipe-downs of all the counters and tables. “Hey, you almost ready to go?”
“Go where?”
“To your place to grab your things.”
“And why would I do that?” she sassed.
I couldn’t really blame Parker for being aggravated with me. I hadn’t talked to her since I left her apartment earlier that morning, which probably wasn’t the best idea considering how the night before had played out. Not only had we had sex, she’d shared her past and her fears of the future with me. That and the fact I’d gotten Country to go by and pick her up for work was enough to piss off any woman. Unfortunately, I didn’t have the time nor the patience to smooth things over, so I said, “Can we just pretend that you aren’t ticked at me right now and that you’ll go grab your stuff so we can leave?”
“Nope, sure can’t.” She continued to wipe down a table as she grumbled, “I mean, I’d like to, but I don’t have an on-and-off switch like some people do.”
“An on-and-off switch?”
“Oh, yeah. There are some people who are all hot and fiery one second, then cold and distant the next. You never really know what you’re gonna get.” She shrugged. “An on-and-off switch.”
Parker glared at me, leaving no question as to who she was talking about. I let out an exasperated breath and growled, “We don’t have time for this bullshit. We need to go, and we need to go now.”
Shaken by my harsh tone, she dropped the rag she was using to wipe down the tables, and without another word, went to the back to grab her things. Once she’d returned with her bags, she followed me out to my bike and didn’t say a word as I shoved them into my saddlebags. I got on my bike and waited as she took my spare helmet, slipped it on, then hopped on behind me—all while remaining completely silent. Parker was mad before, but now she was downright pissed. I could’ve said something to ease the tension between us, but I was too fucking stubborn for that. Without saying so much as a word, I started the engine and pulled out of Stilettos’ parking lot. Seconds later, we were on the main road and headed to Parker’s apartment. When we pulled into the lot, I was pleased to see Shotgun was waiting there with Locke.
As soon as I’d parked, Parker got off my bike and charged inside her apartment, slamming the door behind her. Yep. She was still pissed. I sat there for a moment, letting the aggravation roll off me before I dismounted; then, I pulled her things out of my saddlebags and stepped over to the SUV to speak with Shotgun. “Thanks for bringing the truck over.”
“No problem, brother.” After they both got out, Shotgun snickered. “Is it just me, or has your girl got her panties all in a twist?”
“Yeah, but she’ll get over it soon enough.” Since we’d be traveling across state lines, I’d arranged for them to bring over one of the club’s SUVs. I handed Shotgun my keys, and he offered me the ones to the truck. He would ride my bike back to the clubhouse, and Locke would drive Parker’s car. I didn’t have her keys, so I told him, “Hold on a sec. I need to go in and grab her keys.”
“Sure thing.”
I ran inside, and when I put down Parker’s things from my bike, I was pleased to see that her luggage was still packed and by the front door. She was sitting at the kitchen table with a cold look on her face. Ignoring her irritated mood, I said, “I need the keys to your car.”
“Why?”
“So Locke can drive it over to the clubhouse.”
I was expecting her to give me flack about it, but instead, she reached into her purse and grabbed the keys. As she tossed them over to me, she announced, “The ignition is a little testy, so you’ll need to tell him to wiggle it a little.”
“Wiggle it, huh?”
“If he wants it to start,” she sassed.
I should’ve been annoyed that she was being so short with me, but I liked that she had a little bite to her. I chose to disregard her little pout and simply walked out of the kitchen. I carried the keys over to Locke and said, “There’s some give to the ignition. Have one of the guys check it out and see what they can do to fix it while we’re gone.”
“You got it, brother.”
Shotgun stepped over to us. “Just let us know if you need anything while you’re gone.”
“You know I will.”
He gave me a brotherly slap on my bicep, then turned and headed over to my bike. I stood there watching as he and Locke pulled out of the parking lot and disappeared out into the flow of traffic. I went back inside and found Parker sitting in the same spot at the kitchen table. As I bent down and started collecting her luggage, I asked, “Is this all of it?”