“Well, Noah’s a great name. I think it suits you.”
“Don’t know about that,” he argued. “Hell, Ada’s the only one who calls me that anymore.”
“Um-hmm...They all got dem road names they use.” Ada shook her head. “Not sure I’ll ever understand why.”
“Don’t see what’s hard to understand about it,” Noah grumbled. “Just like a patch, it’s something a brother earns, like a rite of passage, and when the right name comes along, it just sticks.”
“So, you earned the road name “Shotgun”? How exactly did that happen?”
“You’re a smart girl.” An adorable, sexy-as-hell, smirk crossed his face, and a tingle went right down my spine as he winked and said, “I’m sure you can figure it out.”
I laughed as I told him, “I don’t know if I should be impressed or terrified.”
Ada shook her head and said, “Don’t let him fool ya, child. He might act all rough an’ tough, but dat boy’s one of the good ones. Got a heart of gold. Yes, he does.”
Before he could argue, Ada May walked back over to the stove to finish cooking breakfast. When I was sure she wasn’t listening, I leaned over to Noah and said, “You two seem pretty close.”
“Yeah, you could say that.”
“Have you known her long?”
“Most of my life.” He glanced over his shoulder at Ada. “She...um...kind of looked after me until my folks died.”
“Your folks died? I’m so sorry. I had no idea.”
“Nothing to be sorry about. It happened a long time ago.” His face was void of expression as he looked over to me and said, “Bad things happen. No sense dwelling on the fact.”
Just when I thought I was starting to figure him out, he proved me wrong once again. I wanted to respond, to give him some profound words of wisdom, but there were none to give—at least none that I could think of. Thankfully, Ada May came to my rescue. From the kitchen, she called out to Noah. “Okay, you two. Come and get it.”
Noah stood, then stepped over to me. “You feel up to sitting at the table, or do you want me to bring you a plate?”
“I think I can make it to the table.” I extended my hand. “Just need a little help getting on my feet.”
He took my hand in his, and a strange sensation washed over me as he carefully eased me up from the sofa. It seemed like there was some odd connection between us, one that I couldn’t begin to understand, but it was there. For a brief moment, I wondered if he felt it too, but as soon as I looked into his eyes and saw that spark of curiosity, I had my answer. The spell was broken the second he slipped his hand under my forearm and guided me over to the table. I’d barely sat down before Ada had brought me over a huge plate of food and some coffee. “Wow, this looks incredible, Ms. Ada.”
“I hope you like it.” She gave me a quick once over before saying, “You needs a little more meat on dem bones, child.”
“You think so?”
“Yes, ma’am. I sure do. You’re skinny as a rail,” Ada fussed. “Looks like you haven’t eaten in days.”
I chuckled as I looked down at the plate of eggs, bacon, and biscuits with sausage gravy. “Well, maybe this will help.”
Noah went over to the stove and made himself a plate, then came back and sat down next to me. He waited for Ada to do the same, and as soon as she sat down at the table, we all started eating. I hadn’t realized how hungry I was until I took that first bite of bacon. After that, I practically inhaled everything else on my plate, finishing well before Ms. Ada or Noah. Amused by the fact, Noah looked over to me with a playful grin. “Did you even take a breath there, killer?”
“I couldn’t help myself. It was really good.”
Ada started to stand as she said, “Let me get you some more.”
“No, no.” I shook my head. “I couldn’t eat another bite.”
“Are you sure? There’s plenty.”
“I’m positive. Thank you so much. It was absolutely wonderful.”
“Glad ya liked it.”
“The woman definitely knows her way around the kitchen.” Noah took his last bite of biscuit and gravy, then ran his hand over his full stomach. “She’s the reason why I’ve put on so much weight.”
“Hush your mouth, boy,” Ada fussed. “You’re fit as a fiddle.”
Ada was right. With his muscular biceps and chiseled chest, you’d think he worked out for hours on end. That, and the fact that he was so damn good-looking, made me regret even more that I was such a mess. I could only imagine what the man thought whenever he looked at my bruised, swollen face or saw the state of my clothes and hair. Sadly, there was nothing I could really do about it. It wasn’t like I had makeup or even a hairbrush. When we finished eating, Noah helped Ada clean up while I slipped off to the bathroom. I used the opportunity to freshen up a little and even tried to fix my hair, unfortunately, after I was done, I didn’t look much better than when I started. Giving up, I made my way back into the kitchen. They were both busy working on the dishes when I asked, “Is there anything I can do to help?”
“No, we just about got it,” Noah answered. “Go back into the living room, and I’ll be in there in a minute.”
“Okay.”
I knew I probably should’ve done like he’d said and lain down, but after being bed-ridden for the past few days, it felt good to be back on my feet again. Thinking it might be nice to get a little fresh air, I opened the front door and stepped out on the porch. The sun was shining bright and it was hotter than I expected, but it felt great to be outdoors for a moment. I inhaled a deep breath and was enjoying listening to the birds chirping in the trees when Noah stepped outside and asked, “You okay?”
“Yeah, I’m fine.” I turned around to face him. “I just needed a little fresh air.”
“Well, you should probably get back inside.” He held the door open for me. “Wouldn’t want anyone to see you out here.”
“Oh, that’s right.” I started towards him as I continued, “I wasn’t thinking.”
“Not many folks out this way, but we don’t need to take any chances.”
“I understand.” When I got closer to him, I asked, “How much longer will we have to stay here?”
“Can’t really say for sure, but Viper will let us know when it’s safe to go back.”
“Safe to go back? What does that mean?”
“It’s nothing for you to worry about.”
As I followed him inside, I couldn’t help but think there was a lot more going on than I had previously realized—which was more than a little terrifying. While I couldn’t explain why, I felt in my heart I could trust Noah would do whatever it took to keep me safe. But there was a part of me that was worried this whole thing was more than he or his brothers could handle, and it might just destroy us all.
Shotgun
“They find anything?”
“No,” Viper answered. “They didn’t find shit, but they certainly tried. Fuckers ransacked the entire clubhouse and did the same damn thing at the strip club.”