Authors: Jamie Begley
Willa cried out, her hand going to her cheek. Lucky grabbed Jenna back while Shade stepped forward, fury storming through his eyes at Jenna’s unnecessary violence toward Willa.
“Go to work, Jenna. I’ll deal with you later,” Lucky said harshly.
Jenna paled as Lucky let go of her roughly, causing her to stumble. Nodding her head, she went to her car and got inside, but not without shooting a retributive look toward Willa as she drove away.
“If she touches Willa again, we’re going to have a problem,” Shade warned. “She’s a friend of Lily’s.”
Lucky didn’t need Shade’s warning; he planned to deal with Jenna himself when she got off work.
“I’ll talk to her tonight,” Lucky promised before reaching out to pry Willa’s hand away from her face, but Willa jerked away from his touch.
“Since you don’t want my help cleaning the paint off, there’s no need for us to be here. Shade, go ahead and call Knox. I’ll talk to him when he comes. Let’s go, kids.” Willa bustled the kids inside her house, the flaming red handprint on her cheek standing out starkly.
Lucky winced at the sound of her front door closing. Any other woman would have slammed it shut, yet the quiet sound of the door closing was a testament to the embarrassment the woman had just suffered. Not only did he feel like an ass, but Shade had been there to witness the fuck-up.
“Don’t say a fucking thing,” Lucky warned between clenched teeth.
Shade remained silent as he took out his phone, calling Knox and asking him to come to Jenna’s house.
Willa was hurt, Shade was pissed off, and his bike was going to have to be repainted. His afternoon fuck session with Jenna hadn’t been worth any of the hassle.
As soon as he hung up, he told Lucky, “I have to get back to the hospital.” Then he slid the phone back into his pocket and nodded at Willa’s house where the two older girls were staring out the curtained windows. “You going to send Knox over there?”
“No, they didn’t see anything. If they had, they would have said something.”
“They didn’t do it. Whoever trashed mine and Razer’s bikes did this.”
“I figured that out too late. I let my temper get away from me when I saw that word,” Lucky confessed. When Shade didn’t say anything, Lucky added, “I’ll stop by in a day or two to apologize since I don’t think she wants to hear anything I have to say right now.”
“I don’t think that woman wants to ever see you again, much less hear anything you have to say,” Shade said wryly.
“I won’t be getting a cupcake from her anytime soon; that’s for sure,” Lucky agreed glumly.
“I’ve had Jenna’s pussy and Willa’s cupcakes. I know which one I would’ve chosen, but you were never the smartest brother in the club.”
Lucky had to silently agree with him, even if he hated it when the fucker was right.
Chapter 1
“May I get you something to drink?” Willa jumped at Rachel’s voice behind her.
“No, thanks.” Willa turned to face the woman who had talked her into coming to Lily’s baby shower despite her intention to stay away.
Willa felt an unwanted flash of envy at Rachel’s red hair. Her hand unwittingly went to her own lackluster brown hair to make sure it was still in a neat knot at the nape of her neck, wishing belatedly that she had left it loose.
“The cake is beautiful, Willa. You outdid yourself.”
Willa smiled, blushing. She had taken extra time to make the cake special for Lily who was being released from the hospital after being kidnapped by her adoptive father. The State Police had led a search for several days to find the town’s former pastor before releasing a statement that they had found evidence that Saul Cornett had managed to escape the country.
Not only had Lily and her husband Shade had to deal with her kidnapping, but their home had been wrecked by a storm that had swept through the town. The baby shower today was to replace the items that had been destroyed.
Willa had never been in The Last Riders’ clubhouse before. She had somehow expected broken-down furniture and beer cans sitting around; instead, it was clean and furnished with leather furniture that actually looked very comfortable. There was a bar at one end of the room and a pool table with several other tables with chairs positioned around the room.
Winter came down the stairs from the upper floor, approaching her and Rachel. The wife of Viper, the club president, looked pretty in a blue maxi dress that showed off her slim figure.
Willa always felt huge and graceless when she was near the other woman. Not only did she outweigh Winter by over eighty pounds, but her own five-foot-eight height made Winter seem even more diminutive.
She was angry at herself for her envy of other women that went to the extent of constantly trying to reinvent her own appearance. Her hair had gone through several color changes recently from blonde to different shades of red to finally admitting defeat and returning to her plain brown hair color. Her makeover attempts hadn’t stopped at hair, either. Trying to transform her large body into their dainty sizes had been another failed attempt.
“How are you coping with the children?” Winter questioned, her friendly gaze making Willa feel even guiltier for yearning to be as attractive as they were to the men who filled the motorcycle club.
Willa couldn’t explain to herself why she felt that way, though. The Lord knew she wouldn’t be able to handle the attention from the alarmingly lethal-looking bikers.
“It’s been a transition for them,” Willa admitted carefully, not revealing how difficult it had been to go from living a solitary life to one filled with tantrums and broken china, some of which didn’t stem from the toddlers she was caring for until a relative could be located. The older children were proving to be the bigger challenge.
“I’m sure it has been,” Winter said sympathetically.
Willa glanced away from Winter’s astute gaze. The school had notified her two days ago that, unless Sissy quit missing school so often, she would be moved to the alternative school where Winter was the principal as well as a member of the committee that placed problematic children in the school. As a result, Winter was probably more knowledgeable about Sissy’s academic failings than Willa was as her foster parent. However, she didn’t say anything about the child in front of Rachel, which Willa was grateful for.
The problem was that Willa had never had any idea Sissy hadn’t been in school. Although she had dropped her off each day with Leanne at the high school, the girl had been sneaking out and skipping. Leanne had known, yet hadn’t told on her sister.
When Willa had confronted Sissy, the girl had gone upstairs to her room, locking Willa out, and now Willa was at a loss on how to deal with the girl.
“Cash needs some help. Excuse me.” Rachel left, going to her husband’s side as he haphazardly stacked baby presents on the bar.
“Any advice on how to deal with Sissy would be appreciated. I’m ashamed to admit I’m not handling her very well,” Willa confessed to Winter as soon as Rachel moved away.
“Be patient. If you like, I could try to talk to her,” Winter offered.
“I’ll take any help I can get. I’m afraid, if she gets into anymore trouble, Child Services will reconsider my ability to foster the children. The sheriff and the state are trying to find Georgia and Lewis’s half-brother. As soon as they find him, I won’t have to be so worried about having them broken apart.” That fear had been keeping her awake at night.
“Don’t worry; I’m sure it won’t be much longer.” Winter touched her arm, and Willa instinctively drew away.
“Hi, Willa.” Evie and King stopped as they passed through the crowded room.
“Hello,” Willa responded, suddenly becoming aware the women in the group were trying to make her feel comfortable. It wasn’t going to happen with Dean—or Lucky, as everyone was calling him now—in the room. She forced herself to keep her eyes averted from where he was standing, dressed in jeans and a T-shirt like the rest of the men except King, who wore his usual slacks and dress shirt.
“Your cakes are selling well at the restaurant, Willa. We need to talk about increasing our order.” King was one of the few men who had the power to get under her guard and make her feel relaxed.
“I can’t. I can hardly keep up with the orders I have now.” Willa bit her lip, not wanting to disappoint her most lucrative customer.
“You could take the diner off your list. I could buy what you’re selling them,” King offered with a suave smile that had Willa considering the option for a brief second.
Willa shook her head regretfully. “That wouldn’t be fair. I’ve sold my cakes and pies to them for years.”
“I would pay you more,” King tempted.
Willa could definitely understand how he had managed to steal his wife Evie away from the men of The Last Riders.
“It isn’t about the money,” Willa refused. “If I have any openings during the week, I can make a few extra desserts. We can do it on a week by week basis.”
King grinned. “I’ll take what I can get.”
Evie leaned against her husband’s side. “Isn’t that the truth?”
Willa blushed from witnessing the sexually heated look between them. Thankfully, Shade brought Lily into the room at that moment, providing a welcome distraction.
Whenever she saw Shade and Lily together, it brought a lump to her throat. She was fortunate to have seen several extremely happy marriages in her own family, but what Lily and Shade shared was beyond explanation. Their love was a gift. It was special. It also reinforced her own sense of loneliness.
She had thought she would have been married by now with a couple of children, not alone and taking care of five children who belonged to two people who had made her childhood and adulthood miserable.
She had originally taken in the children as her penance for taking the life of Lewis, the father of the three younger children and the guardian of Leanne and Sissy, his sister Georgia’s children, but it had evolved into her having a genuine care for all of them.
Willa stayed toward the back of the crowd as Lily began to open her presents while Shade held his small son in his arms. The harsh, azure-eyed man was smiling down at his wife indulgently.
Unable to keep watching without feeling envious, Willa moved to the large table set up with drinks where Bliss, an attractive blonde, was watching with a pained expression she was unable to disguise. Willa could sympathize with her. She constantly wanted what she couldn’t have. Every night, she prayed to be a better person, but so far, her prayers had gone unanswered.
Willa took a bottled water, moving to stand next to Bliss so no one would overhear. “I brought you some of the peanut butter candy you like. I hid it in the kitchen cabinet by the back door.”
Bliss looked at her in surprise. “You brought it for me?”
Willa nodded. “I remembered how much you like it. Did you use the last batch to bribe Rider?”
“Yes. He fixed the garbage disposal and cleaned the gutters.” Bliss laughed.
“I made you a double batch. You can keep it for yourself or share.”
“No one will take it from me. Everyone’s pissed off at me because I said something I shouldn’t,” she blurted out, surprising Willa with the confidence since the club usually kept all their relationships private.
Willa watched the sensual woman who was staring unhappily at Shade and Lily. “Did you tell them you’re sorry?” She didn’t have to ask if it was Lily she had offended. Everyone loved the soft-spoken woman and would rally around her if they thought she was hurt. The party surrounding them was proof of their love for her.
Bliss gave a bitter laugh. “It’s not the first time I’ve put my foot in my mouth, and the club is getting tired of me saying I’m sorry. They don’t believe I mean it when I keep doing the same stupid shit.”
“Then prove them wrong,” Willa said gently. “Do you really think Lily and Beth are capable of holding a grudge?”
Bliss stared back at her, startled. “You know what happened?”
Willa smiled wryly. “No, they don’t confide in me, but I overheard you at the hospital telling Jewell they’ll never forgive you.” At Bliss’s worried expression, Willa attempted to soothe her fears. Since The Last Riders made it a point to keep their business private, and Bliss was already in trouble with the club, Willa wouldn’t want them to think she was gossiping. “I only heard that before I went in to see Lily. I don’t make a habit of snooping.” Bliss relaxed at her words. “Go talk to Lily. Avoiding her isn’t going to make it easier.” Willa gave Bliss a small nudge in Lily’s direction. “By the way, she loves the peanut butter candy, too. She was constantly asking for it when she was pregnant, but because she was eating so many cupcakes, Shade drew the line at the candy.”
“That’s why you made a double batch? So I could bribe Lily into forgiving me?”
“I made enough for the whole clubhouse to forgive you.” Willa smiled, unconsciously showing her dimples.
Bliss gave her a strange look before heading toward the kitchen where she had stashed the candy for her.
Willa noticed Lily had sat down on one of the large couches next to Beth, who wasn’t looking well. She walked toward them so she could talk to them then make her escape from the torture of being in such a large crowd.
As she moved forward, she felt someone staring at her. Always sensitive to being the center of attention, she glanced to the side and caught Lucky’s eyes on her.
When she had heard the name the other club members called him, she thought the name suited him much better than Pastor Dean. When she had looked at his tall, muscular body and face that held a ruthlessness he kept carefully concealed behind a façade of affable charm, she had never been fooled. Not once. Not from the first moment she had walked into the church several years ago and seen Pastor Saul’s replacement behind the pulpit.
The sun had been shining on his chestnut-colored hair that was slightly longer than most pastors she had ever seen. His hazel eyes had stared at the congregation as if he had known their innermost secrets. Willa had sat, stunned in the pew, feverishly wishing for his sermon to end so she could escape the feelings going through her body that were completely inappropriate to experience during a church service.