Some part of her wanted to say, What about all that stuff you taught us about loyalty and brotherhood? Doesn’t that mean having his back no matter what? But how could she say that when she didn’t have Dare’s back, either?
“I’d have gone, but I had to do surgery on a horse this morning,” Doc said.
“I had to run a crew on the ranch,” Cowboy said. “I asked him to reschedule, but it’s not that easy when buses are involved.”
Her heart beat faster, thinking of Dare getting into trouble and none of them being there. It made her sick to her stomach, just thinking about it. “I just hope he’s okay.”
“I’ve got to believe he will be, darlin’,” Tiny said with a nod. “As long as no one gets him riled up before the jump.”
The words cut like knives as she realized she’d probably gotten him riled up by getting so upset. Shit. Her mind reeled. How could I have done that to him? Her nerves were fried, and her heart felt like it was being crushed. She quickly took their orders, feeling like she was going to cry or scream or both. But as she turned to walk away, her thoughts returned to the things her mother had said, and she had to ask, “Is Wynnie okay? My mom said she was going to see her this morning.”
“Our mother is strong,” Doc said. “She’s been through this type of thing time and time again with Dare. But what about you, Billie? How are you holding up?”
My nerves are shot, and I’m terrified that something horrible is going to happen.
“I’m fine,” she said as convincingly as she could. “I’ll bring your drinks right over.” She went to fill their drinks, throwing extra prayers out to the universe to make up for her big fat lie.
DARE LED THE pack of motorcycles down the street, the roar of their engines as comforting as the sight of the neon ROADHOUSE sign as he pulled into the parking lot, conflicting emotions pummeling him. He parked by his father’s bike, telling himself he’d done the right thing as he climbed off his bike and locked his helmet.
He fell into step with Rebel, Flame, and Taz, following the other guys as they headed inside.
Flame clapped him on the back. “Great ride, man. You doing a’right?”
Finn “Flame” Steele had grown up a few towns over in Trusty, Colorado. He and Dare had met several years ago, when he’d prospected the Dark Knights, and they’d hit it off. The smoke jumper thrived on risks, and he’d come from a big family, like Dare’s. He was a good guy, despite his twin sister, Fiona, dubbing him the evil twin.
“I’m cool.” It was a lie. He wouldn’t be cool until he and Billie worked their shit out. He’d worried about her all day.
They walked inside, and all eyes turned toward them. But Dare’s gaze was riveted to Billie as she spun around behind the bar. Her eyes went wide as saucers, and she launched herself over the bar and sprinted across the room, throwing herself into his arms, her legs wrapping around him like Velcro. What the…?
“You’reokayou’reokayyou’reokay.” She took his face between her hands and planted a kiss on his lips, earning whoops, whistles, and cheers from around the bar. This was a far cry from the girl who was afraid to kiss him at work a week ago.
“Damn. Where can I get one of those, bro?” Flame teased, earning laughs from the others. “Come on, let’s let these two have their moment.”
As the guys filed past, Rebel said, “When you’re done making out, we’ll have a round of beers, but you’d better get that baby some milk.”
“Fuck off, Rebel,” Dare gritted out as Billie’s feet hit the floor.
Rebel chuckled and walked away.
“I’m sorry for getting so upset this morning,” she said quickly. “I shouldn’t have acted like that when you were on your way to do something so dangerous.”
“It definitely fucked with my head.” He guided her away from the entrance. “But that’s okay. Don’t ever apologize for telling me how you feel. I want to know what you’re thinking, even if I don’t like it. I was an ass for springing it on you. I’ve never had to think like a couple, and I need to work on that.”
“Maybe that would help, but we said Daredevils for life, and I didn’t have your back today. I’m so glad you’re okay. I don’t want you to change, and I won’t ever try to stop you again. We only get one life, and you need to live yours the way you want to, but I don’t think I can watch you do some of your riskier stunts, like jumping over buses.”
He couldn’t believe his ears, and he pulled her into his arms, holding her tight. “Thank you.” He drew back and kissed her. “But I didn’t do the jump.”
She blinked several times. “What happened?”
“I got ready to do it, but with what had gone down between us, I wasn’t feeling it. That’s why Rebel made that comment about milk.”
“Oh no. I suck. I’m so sorry I screwed it up for you.”
“No, darlin’, you’re amazing. You’re trusting me enough to open up, and that’s so much more important than me making a jump. We’re going to have a lot of things to figure out, and this is just one of them. I rescheduled for about a month from now. That should give us time to deal with some of these feelings and give you time to get used to the idea.”
“Okay,” she said softly.
“And, babe, I already have tickets to run with the bulls in Spain, so I think we should spend some time talking about that, too. I’ve wanted to do it for years.”
“Oh boy,” she said exasperatedly, but then she squared her shoulders and lifted her chin, her eyes serious. “Okay. I’d better start buying preparations.”
“Preparations?”
“I’m thinking about massive, inflatable stunt pads all around the buses in case you miss and full-body armor for running with the bulls. Do you think they sell that on Amazon?”
He laughed and hauled her into a kiss.
“You think I’m kidding, Whiskey?”
“No, Mancini, and I love you even more for it.”
“I need to get back to work. I’ll bring you guys a round of drinks.”
He kept her in his arms and couldn’t stop looking at her. Did she have any idea how much what she said, and what she did, meant to him? “You realize you just claimed me in front of everyone in here, right? I’m pretty sure Kellan was one of the guys whistling.”
“Don’t make me regret it,” she warned teasingly.
“Baby, I’m going to make you wish you’d done it sooner.” He lowered his lips to hers, earning more hoots and hollers. They came away laughing, and he swatted her ass as she headed back to the bar.
She glowered over her shoulder as Dare went to join the guys.
“What kind of bullshit is this?” Rebel said before Dare even reached the table. “You didn’t do the jump, and you still got the hottest girl in town?”
“That’s because Dare’s the man,” Flame rebuffed.
“He’s packin’ a magic pecker, unlike your pinkie package.” Taz barked out a laugh.
Rebel scoffed, and as they joked around, Dare took a seat by his father and brothers.