“Retaliation?”
Joey had the decency to look ashamed. “We weren’t sure, ya know? In my gut . . . yeah, it was the Fists. But retaliation would mean war.”
“And you didn’t want war.” Not even on behalf of Teresa. AJ would have gone full throttle against the Fists if it had been his sister. But it wasn’t his club and it wasn’t his decision to make. Guilt pounded at him. If he’d been here, if he’d never left, things would have been different.
This would have never happened to her.
“Does she know it was the Fists who did the rape?”
The misery on his face gut punched AJ. “I don’t know. We don’t talk about it. She won’t talk about it.”
“You sure that’s a good idea?”
“She had plenty of rape counseling. The Fists were all investigated, fingers were pointed at them. But there wasn’t a scrap of DNA to identify anyone.”
AJ leaned back and let out a breath. “This sucks, Joey.”
“You’re telling me? I’ve lived with this guilt for five years, that my sister had to suffer for something I did. How the hell do you think that feels?”
“She doesn’t blame you.”
“Of course she doesn’t. That doesn’t mean it wasn’t my fault. I should have protected her better.”
And if AJ hadn’t turned tail and run out of town to escape the miserable existence of his life, a lot of things would have been different. And maybe he’d have still been here to protect Teresa. Guilt weighed heavily on him, too. “Teresa’s a strong woman.”
“She’s doing okay. But I still hate leaving her alone. She likes living in our parents’ house by herself, craves her independence, refuses to let the rape change who she is.”
“Good for her.”
“But it did change her, AJ. As much as she tries to pretend it didn’t, it changed who she is. There’s a light that used to shine in her eyes that isn’t there. And her fear of men and relationships—”
“Yeah, I’ve caught a glimpse of that.”
Joey’s hands clenched into fists, and he turned away to face the window again, but not before AJ caught the tears brimming in his friend’s eyes. “If I ever find out who did this to her, I’m going to rain down hurt on them like the fires of hell.”
“I’ll help you.”
PAX WASN’T SURE WHY HE’D JUMPED ON THE IDEA OF TAKING
Teresa to Sturgis, but she seemed determined to go and no way in hell was he going to let her go alone. AJ argued that it was a bad idea for her to go at all, but Pax figured she was going to be too stubborn to let someone else deal with it. It was important to her to find this guy and save her brother, and she wasn’t patient enough to let the cops do it.
Though he couldn’t blame her, since the local police seemed to think they already had their man and would probably be slow about gathering any additional evidence or suspects, even minus a murder weapon. That he didn’t understand, but then he was always pretty thorough about everything, no stone left unturned and all that. How they thought they could convict Joey based on blood evidence on his clothes alone made no sense. Sure, there had been animosity between Joey and Larks, but that wasn’t enough. And the Fists as eyewitnesses? Come on. The police needed to be hunting and hunting hard for the murder weapon. And if they weren’t, then Pax agreed with Teresa—they’d go find the actual guy who did the deed, and hopefully he’d have the knife on him, especially if it was a one-of-a-kind. Guys who had knives custom made for them didn’t ditch them in a Dumpster. Guys tended to be sentimental about their weaponry anyway, but especially one-of-a-kind weapons, which were definitely keepers.
They lucked out because General Lee had his own place in Sturgis. He usually went up there for the annual rally, but this year he was stuck on an assignment and couldn’t make it. One phone call and Pax had secured the property for them, plus filled General Lee in on what was going on with Teresa and her brother. General Lee’s only advice was to lie low and not blow their covers unless absolutely necessary. The entire Wild Riders organization operated under security and stealth. They didn’t exactly flash their badges on a regular basis, and General Lee hadn’t been happy AJ and Pax had done so in order to walk into a murder scene. Pax got that, understood the ramifications of too many people knowing about a secret organization that wasn’t even supposed to exist. He promised the general they’d keep it low-key in Sturgis.
Which didn’t mean they wouldn’t be locked and loaded.
They packed up early that morning, the sun still nothing more than a glint of gray light over the horizon as they took off. Teresa climbed on the back of Pax’s bike again. He liked having her back there, liked feeling her thighs sliding alongside his, the press of her breasts against his back when she leaned forward. AJ didn’t say a word or look like he was unhappy about it. Then again, sharing a woman was normal for them, so jealousy had never been an issue before.
Sharing Teresa—a woman AJ had a past with—that might be something different.
But they weren’t really sharing her, not after finding out what had happened to her. They were protecting her. That was it. That was all there was going to be. At least for now. Teresa was going to call all the shots, and that’s the way it should be. She had to be in charge, at least of what she wanted as far as her body. As far as the investigation—Pax and AJ would have to take the lead on that since they had more experience, and he was afraid Teresa would go balls to the wall trying to clear her brother. There were better ways to get what you wanted.
The trip would have been nice if they’d taken it for any other reason, if they’d been able to take a slow and easy back-roads pace. But they weren’t on vacation any longer, so they stuck to the interstate and got to the general’s place late that same night. It was a grueling ride, but Teresa was a trooper about it, didn’t complain once about her butt being sore or how long the ride was. They stopped plenty of times for gas, meals and drinks and to stretch their legs, but she seemed just as anxious to get there as Pax and AJ were. It probably helped that she swapped, periodically riding on AJ’s bike, then back to Pax’s, giving her ass a different seat to rest on.
Pax had to admit that the bike rally in Sturgis was one of his favorite places, so he didn’t mind combining a bit of business with pleasure. It was the be-all, end-all of bike rallys. If you were a biker, this was the place you wanted to be, along with hundreds of thousands of other bikers. How they were going to find the Fists—and the guy who stabbed Joey—was another matter, but if Teresa was determined, he’d back her up.
TERESA HELD HER BREATH AS THEY WOUND THROUGH ROADS
that made the bike turn nearly on its side. It was a good thing she trusted Pax to know what he was doing, but she still held on like she might be tossed off at every curve. She wasn’t a novice at riding, but these were some steep curves, and she’d always had her own bike. Being on the back was a lot different than controlling your own destiny. When she wasn’t fearing for her life, though, she was absorbing every inch of the breathtaking scenery as they cruised into the Black Hills of South Dakota. And she only caught a glimpse of the stunning beauty of the area as they cruised down the highway. Miles of majestic forest still awaited her, and she knew Mount Rushmore was nearby, as well as a rally filled with bikers and motorcycles of every kind. Despite being here for a genuine purpose, she couldn’t help the rush of adrenaline.
Being on a bike again had been therapeutic, had forced her to face the trauma of that night at least in one way. The motorcycle hadn’t caused the rape. She could ride without fear, and the itch to climb on her own bike again began to grow in earnest. Trouble was, she had sold her old bike. It was time to start thinking of getting a new one.
Progress. She liked that. It filled her with hope.
They drove up a long, single driveway, and Teresa held her breath as they climbed off. A light shone at the top of the yard, spotlighting the hill they stood on. At the top of the hill she saw . . . everything. Sloping hills, steep mountains, miles of trees, an entire landscape spread out before them. Behind them stood General Lee’s house separated by private fencing and a big yard. The large cabin had a wraparound porch that looked as welcoming as anything she’d ever seen. It was wood-roofed and stone and rustic, with hanging pots swinging in the breeze. The porch light was on, and Teresa saw several Adirondack chairs with deep cushions, and could already imagine putting her feet up on the rail and watching what must be an incredible view from the porch. She couldn’t wait till morning.
“We’re staying here?”
AJ nodded. “Grange comes up here a lot on his time off. He likes the rides around the hills and into Wyoming.”
“He must do a lot of traveling.” She pointed to the RV parked under cover of the carport.
“He likes to see as much of the country as he can when he has downtime,” AJ said.
She grabbed her bag and followed AJ up the front steps. He slid his hand under one of the potted plants and pulled out a key, then opened the front door and turned on the lights.
THE INSIDE WAS JUST AS GOOD AS THE OUTSIDE. RUSTIC, BUT
homey, with a huge L-shaped sofa, a cushy oversized ottoman set in front of it, a fireplace, wood flooring throughout and scattered area rugs. The place was huge, with three bedrooms plus two bathrooms. Much more room than Teresa had expected, enough to give her some distance from AJ and Pax, some time to think.
But did she really want that distance? Wasn’t that what the last five years had been about—distancing herself from men? Maybe it was time to bridge the gap.
No. That wasn’t why they were here. She had come here to find Larks’s killer and clear her brother, and that’s what she needed to concentrate on, not her personal hangups and finding a way through that particular mess.
“I put your stuff in the master bedroom,” AJ said.
Teresa turned around. “Why?”
“Because you’re the lady and you need the most room. Pax and I can crash anywhere.”
“Hope there aren’t bunk beds in those other two bedrooms,” Pax said.
Teresa laughed at the visual of two men over six feet tall trying to squeeze into beds made for kids.
“I don’t mind taking one of the smaller rooms.”
Pax slung his arm around her. “I was kidding. AJ is right. We could take the floor if we needed to. We’ve slept outside before. It doesn’t matter.”
“They aren’t bunk beds, dipshit,” AJ said. “I already checked out the other two rooms. They’re regular beds. Though Teresa has a nice king-sized bed.”
Built for three?
The thought entered her head, unbidden, and stayed there as she went into the master bedroom and unpacked, then freshened up after the long ride. She couldn’t seem to take her eyes off the bed. Big enough for her and Pax and AJ.
She felt the pull of desire as she imagined just what she could do with those men in her bed. Both of them.
Wasn’t it time she took back control of her sex life? Wasn’t it time she stopped being afraid of a man’s touch? Wasn’t it time she stopped letting those assholes who hurt her have power over her life?
Yes to all those questions. Hell yes. She was stronger than what had happened to her, physically and psychologically. It was time to put it to rest—not to forget, but to not let it lead her.
When she came out of the bedroom and into the living area, the sliding door was open. She stepped onto the back deck, her eyes widening at the sight of a sizeable hot tub and cushioned lounge chairs. The view from the back was just as good as the one from the front. There was a bit of a chill in the air tonight, and the thought of sliding into a steamy hot tub and watching the stars overhead appealed.
Pax and AJ were out there leaning against the wood railing.
“You bring your swimsuit?” AJ asked, his gaze shifting to the hot tub. They’d pulled the cover off and steam lifted off the top of the water.
She shook her head. “I didn’t even think about it.”
“Too bad,” Pax said. “Nice night for a soak in the tub.” Pax pushed off the railing and went back into the house. Teresa turned to AJ.
“I suppose you guys have swim trunks.” She was already jealous, thinking how great a hot soak would feel on her tired muscles.
AJ laughed. “No. But if you want to get in there and relax your muscles from the ride, Pax and I can make ourselves scarce.”
They’d do that, too. Would let her get in the hot tub all by herself. It was a lonely thought and didn’t appeal to her at all. She wanted to share it with them. With both of them.
“How about we all get in and relax together?”
She refused to look away, wanted to see what was in his eyes, needed to know if it was going to be too much. She wasn’t sure if what she suggested was a sexual invitation, or just an invitation to get in the hot tub and have some company.
AJ shrugged. “Fine with me. Why don’t you get in. I’ll go see if Pax wants to join us.”
He left and she was out there alone. Plenty of privacy for her to strip. It was now or never.
She wanted this now. At least the hot tub part. She undressed and slid over the rim of the tub. The water was hot, but perfect. She found the button for the jets and turned them on. Bubbles obliterated the view of her body, and she leaned her head against the edge and stared up at the stars blanketing the night sky. They were so close they seemed about to fall down on her at any moment.
It was breathtaking out here, the air cool and crisp, which made the temperature of the water just right. Her muscles melted as the jets worked the soreness out of her back. She closed her eyes and drifted away, until a hand touched her face. She didn’t flinch.
“You falling asleep in there?”
She smiled at AJ. “No. Just relaxing.”
“How about a beer?”
She lifted her hand out of the water to take the can of beer from him, engaged by the steam rising off her arm. “Sure.”