Retribution: A Motorcycle Club Romance (13 page)

She made a face when she looked in at
the cramped space. “What… you want me to clean it, or something?”

“No,” said Will. He pointed to the
set of three tiny, mismatched TV monitors stacked in the far corner. They were
the closed-circuit feeds for the security cameras positioned around the bar’s
perimeter. “This is a compromise between you staying close and staying safe.
You can hang out in here, watch what’s going on…” He pointed again. “Be our
lookout.”

Eva turned back to look at the dingy,
dim office and felt her heart sink. “How is this better than being confined to
the house?”

“I didn’t say it was better,” said
Will, folding his arms. “You’re the one who didn’t want to feel trapped over
there. I’m offering this compromise.”

She pointed incredulously to the tiny
office. “This is your offer to help me
not feel trapped?
”

He shrugged again, nonchalant.

What the hell is the
matter here?
Heat began to crawl up the bottom of
Eva’s face as she realized he was purposely being cold with her. The Will from
last night, the soft, intelligent man who had her begging for his touch was
nowhere to be found. Laura was right. Eva’s own fears were right. She was just
another fuck to him.

She folded her arms in front of her
and cleared her throat as that realization washed over her.
So much for a
happy morning.
“Fine. Being the lookout is better than not helping at all.
I’d rather not be treated like I’m helpless.”

“You have to stay back here,” said
Will. “That’s the deal. I don’t want anyone knowing you’re here.”

“What happens if they search around?”

“They’d find you just as fast at the
house as here. The distance might keep you safe from gunfire, but otherwise
it’s only the illusion of safety. And they’re not going to get far enough to
search around, anyway.” Will looked her straight in the eyes with an intense
gaze that made her shiver. “Just stay in here, read, whatever. And call for me
if you see anyone suspicious coming around outside. Understand?”

Eva was already fed up with his
coldness. “I think I can handle it.”

She thought she saw Will’s gaze drag
down her body before he turned away from her without another word.
He’s
treating me like I’m a complete goddamn stranger
, she thought.
Figured
I’d at least get another round in bed out of him before that happened.

After that awkwardness had passed,
she was almost glad to be hanging out in the back office and away from Will and
her brother. She could hear the jukebox playing quietly as she slipped off her
shoes and propped her feet up on the desk. For at least an hour, she fought
intrusive thoughts of the dark and brooding man in the other room, both happy
and sad.

It took her a while to find some
rhythm between reading parts of her book and checking the monitors, especially
with the distraction of Charlie going in and out the back door just next to the
office as he knocked chores off the daily list in his pocket. Whatever Will was
doing, she couldn’t see or hear it, and that was just fine with her.

It was less than two hours later
when, out of the corner of her eye, Eva spotted movement on the video feed for
the parking lot. A big black SUV pulled slowly into the gravel lot and damn
near right up to the door, looming large under the bent perspective of the
security camera lens.

Her feet dropped to the floor as he
waited, not wanting to unnecessarily panic the men until she was sure. It could
just be a customer, after all. But when all four doors of the SUV popped open
at the same time, Eva felt her heart drop into her stomach.

“Will,” she said. It came out a
choked whisper, quieter than the jukebox music.

Men hopped out of the vehicle and Eva
jumped to her feet, rushing into the bar space without putting her shoes on
first. Will was poking mindlessly at the video poker machine at the end of the
bar while Charlie stared at his repair manual, oblivious. She grasped onto the
back room wall.

“Will,” she said again, louder this
time. Her voice was already trembling.

When Will looked up at her wide eyes,
the cold version of him from this morning was gone, replaced by the passionate one
from the night before, his gaze burning with worry at the sound of her voice.

He straightened like an arrow in an
instant, reading her face just like he had that first night. “They’re here,” he
said, stealing the words right from her mouth. At the bar, Charlie came to
attention with a dark look, his eyes moving from Will to the door in an
instant.

“Charlie,” said Will with a nod. Her
brother swept the manual off the bar and out of the way, then leaned down and
dug up the shotgun that Owen usually kept in the office. He cracked the barrel
to make sure it was loaded, and then did his best to hold it out of sight on a
shelf below the bar, as Will must have instructed him to do. Eva felt her chest
tighten up.
Christ, am I about to see someone die?

Will stalked across the bar as the
sound of doors shutting snapped outside. He came right in front of Eva and put
his hands on her shoulders. “Get back in the office and stay quiet.”

“What are you going to do?” She
didn’t know why it mattered at that moment, but it did.
Stupid, naïve girl.
What did you think was going to happen?

Will swallowed. “Get back in the
office.” He gave her a push that was both urgent and gentle. Then he turned and
looked at Charlie. “Like we talked about—don’t draw until we have to.”

Charlie nodded, his nerves clearly
battling with his anger as he shifted on his feet, waiting.

Eva backed up into the office and
immediately sat down to put on her shoes, readying to run if she had to. She
turned off the overhead light and sat huddled, watching the men on the overhead
monitors as they came into a group to talk for a small moment.

Suddenly Will appeared in the doorway
of the office. “Do you see guns?”

She startled. “What?”

“Guns—are they armed?” He pushed in
and leaned over her to get a closer look at the monitor, his face hovering
right next to hers. His breathing was steadier than hers, but surprisingly she
could hear a ragged, nervous undercarriage to it.

His eyes narrowed as he focused on
the view of the four men huddled in grainy black and white on the TV screen.

“Are they?” she asked breathlessly.

She saw something hopeful cross
Will’s face. “I don’t think so. Or if they are, it’s sidearms. No one looks
like he’s packing anything automatic.”

“And that’s good, right?”

Will looked down at her. Their faces
were close enough that his lips hovered dangerously close to hers. She could
feel the heat from his skin and thought she saw the tiniest of smiles touch his
eyes.

“Yeah, that’s good. Less guns is
always good.” His voice was barely a whisper, words crawling on her skin.

Eva swallowed, somehow both
frightened and racing with bold adrenaline.
Is this what Will feels like all
the time, if this is his kind of lifestyle?
It was exhausting—and
intoxicating.

He straightened and put a hand on her
shoulder, squeezing gently. “Stay here. I mean it.”

He didn’t wait for an answer before disappearing
back into the bar. The men on the video began to move for the front door, and
Eva’s nerves started to crackle under her skin, her breath racing.

The bar door groaning and squeaked as
it opened, the men paying no attention to the fact that the open sign remained
dark. The tiny hope that Eva had that maybe they
were
just customers
dissipated as she listened to footsteps shuffle in. At first she heard what
sounded like casual, friendly conversation between the men entering, like they
were trying to play it off as if everything was normal. There was something
unsettling about that for her.

Will’s voice came from the bar room
next, somehow both forceful and quiet. “State your business here.”

The buzz of conversation stopped and
the bar door slapped closed on its doorjamb. The song on the jukebox faded out
before changing over to Three Dog Night.

“Ah, this must be the
pendejo
I’ve heard so much about,” said a Spanish-accented voice. “What happened to the
civilized gentlemen, eh? What happened to those days?”

“State your business or get the fuck
out. We’re closed.” Will’s voice was louder now, still firm.

The tension in her little room was
suffocating, and Eva couldn’t stand it. She took her shoes off again and, in
her slowest, most deliberate steps, crept out of the office and against the
wall that separated the bar from the employee spaces. She sank to her knees
quietly and, holding her hair back with one hand, peered around the wall as far
as she dared to get eyes on what was happening.

Charlie shifted nervously behind the
bar, hands on the surface itself, as she was sure Will instructed him. Hidden
hands didn’t inspire trust. But the shotgun was stretched out on the nearest
shelf below, waiting patiently for him. In the middle of the bar room, Will
stood like hero cut out of stone, or stepped out of a painting, his shoulders
square and back straight. Fists fell at either side of his wide, dominating
stance. The four men stood in a half-circle, watching him lazily, confidently.
Except for the one in the bun, who had a sling on his arm—he glared at Will
with a fiery hatred.

“Are you the owner, finally?” asked
the Latino man standing next to the man with the broken arm. “All of these
dramatics—this is all we asked for in the first place.”

“I’m not going to tell you again,”
said Will.

“We are here to make a simple
business offer,” said the man, spreading his hands out in front of him.

Will looked from him to each of the
other men. “Not interested. Get the fuck out.”

“You haven’t even heard our offer.”

“This is not cartel territory.
Get
the fuck out.
” The danger in Will’s voice made Eva shiver.

Their eyes widened at mention of the
cartel, and the men exchanged looks with one another, surprised. “Ah, this
little birdie knows more than he lets on,” said the leader, walking a few steps
forward. “Who are you?”

Will didn’t move as he approached.
“I’ll count to five. One…”

Two of the men laughed at each other.
Smiles spread to the rest, including the man with the bun. The leader turned to
look at them in amusement before he looked back at Will. “Are we children who
did not finish our vegetables?”

“Two.”

Christ, what does he
think he’s doing?
Eva’s heart raced as she
grasped at the wall in anxious agony.

“Three.”

“I do not think this cowboy
understands what’s going on here, gentlemen,” said the Latino leader. As if
that was some cue, two of the men shifted and started taking off their jackets.

Eva saw Charlie stiffen at the bar,
his hands dropping down, shaking as they waited for the cue to grab the gun.

“Four.” Will still hadn’t moved. He
stared at the leader, unflinching.

“I’m bored with this,” said the
Latino leader. He took a few steps back and flicked his hand. The two men who
had taken off their jackets revealed thick, hulking arms under tight black
shirts, and now they both stalked toward Will with murderous intent.

A scream got caught in Eva’s throat
as she felt her heart stop.

Underneath it all, she heard Will say
quietly: “Five.”