Page 5

Chapter Five

R age

“Where you been?” Dread called, wiping grease off his hands with an old rag as he stepped out of the garage.

“Had to pick something up.”

His eyes flicked to the truck’s passenger seat, his brow lifting when he spotted the dog. “What the hell is that?”

“A fucking responsibility I didn’t ask for.”

Dread smirked. “You brought a dog home?”

“Ran out in front of my bike last night,” I muttered, rounding the front of the truck. “Damn thing almost got us both killed.”

He whistled low under his breath, stepping closer to get a better look at Diesel who was curled up on the seat, ears pinned back like he was terrified of what came next.

Dread tilted his head, studying him. “Scrawny thing, ain’t he?”

I huffed out a dry laugh. “Yeah, well… vet says he’ll live.”

Dread nudged my shoulder with his own. “Fucking softie.”

I shot him a glare. I’d gotten conned into keeping the damn thing thanks to a sexy blonde with a sexier smile.

Before I could tell him to fuck off, my phone started ringing.

I pulled it from my pocket, checking the screen.

Unknown number.

I almost let it go to voicemail, but instead, I sighed and swiped my finger to answer. “Yeah?”

There was a beat of silence before the familiar, soft, tentative voice filled the line.

“Uh… hey. It’s, um—Mac. From last night.”

My brows shot up. Holy shit. She’d insisted we swamp numbers last night so she could check up on the dog, but I hadn’t expected her to actually call.

I glanced away from Dread, who was watching me with way too much interest. “Hey, babe. What’s up?”

She hesitated. “I, um… I just wanted to check on Diesel. See how he’s doing.”

I ran a hand through my hair, glancing through the window at the dog. “I just got home from picking him up, actually. He seems like he’s going better.”

Another pause. Then, a softer, “Good.”

Something about the relief in her voice had my grip tightening around the phone. It blew my mind that she actually gave a fuck.

I waited for her to say whatever was clearly sitting on the tip of her tongue and sure enough, after another beat of hesitation, she cleared her throat. “So, uh… this might be a little weird, but I stopped by the pet store earlier.”

My brows pulled together. “The fuck for?”

She let out a long sigh. “Well, I figured you probably didn’t have, you know, actual dog supplies. Food. Bowls. Stuff like that. So, I picked up a few things.”

Okay. She had me there. I didn’t know the first thing about having a dog and I sure as hell didn’t know what they needed to survive. Still, the dog was my responsibility so I was confused.

“You bought shit for my dog?”

She let out a small, nervous laugh. “I mean, I guess technically he’s your dog. But yeah. I did.”

That’s when she hit me with the final blow.

“I was wondering if I could bring them by?”

I blinked, thrown for the second time in sixty seconds. This woman was full of surprises.

“You wanna come here? To my house?”

“Uh, yeah. If you don’t mind.”

I hesitated, my eyes cutting to Dread, who was now openly fucking staring at me.

Then, before I could talk myself out of it, I muttered, “Yeah, alright. I’m at—” I rattled off my address. “You close by?”

“Not far,” she confirmed. “I’ll be there soon.”

Before I could say anything else, she hung up.

Pulling the phone away from my ear, I stared at the screen, trying to figure out what the hell just happened.

Dread, grinning like the asshole he was, slapped my shoulder. “Hot date?”

I shook my head. “A friend.”

“You were blushing like a virgin bride, motherfucker,” he laughed. “Must be some friend.”

I ignored him, reaching for the truck door and carefully lifting Diesel out. “Get back to fixing your bike, dickhead.”

“You got it, lover boy,” Dread called after me, laughing as he turned back toward the garage.

Jesus Christ.

Inside, I settled Diesel onto a folded blanket on the floor in the open living space near the couch. He stretched out, curling his paws, looking up at me silently with dark eyes that seemed far too aware.

“Don’t look at me like that,” I muttered, stepping away to give him a little space. “She likes you. Not me.”

A few minutes later, I heard tires crunching over the gravel outside.

I stepped onto the porch just as Mac’s white sedan parked next to my truck.

Dread straightened from where he was crouched beside his Harley, wiping at the grease on his hands as he gave the car a once over. His gaze darkened with intrigue when Mac stepped out with two massive pet store bags in her hands.

Then, the motherfucker had the audacity to whistle as he blatantly checked her out.

That had my temper flaring. “Knock it the fuck off!”

Dread grinned, not phased at all by my warning. In fact, he almost looked amused, like he’d just won a goddamn bet. He laughed under his breath and turned back to his bike, shaking his head.

Mac, completely oblivious to the pot my brother was stirring, approached. “Everything okay?”

“Yeah,” I grunted, waving her toward the door. “Come inside.”

I held it open for her, letting her step in before me. Immediately, her eyes found Diesel, and her face softened.

“Aww, hey there, handsome,” she cooed, dropping the bags in the middle of the floor and crouching beside him, gently scratching behind one of his ears.

The lucky boy raised his head slightly, sniffing at her hand before letting out a soft huff.

“Vet must’ve bathed him,” she noted aloud. “He looks way better than he did last night.”

“Guess so,” I responded idly, watching the way she smiled at him.

Pulling my focus back, I reached down and grabbed one of the shopping bags. “What’d you get?”

“Oh, just the basics,” she said, standing and grabbing the other bag. I followed behind her into my kitchen as she began pulling things out.

“Here.” I held out my hand for the bowls she’d bought and went to the sink to wash them. Once I had them clean, I filled the new bowls with water and food while watching her take the tags off a lime green collar.

“Didn’t exactly think that far ahead about dog food.”

She grinned like she’d expected that answer. “Lucky for you, I planned accordingly.”

Her confidence, her smile, the way she had no hesitation moving through my space. It all hit me at once.

I wanted her, and I didn’t have a fucking clue why.

My head tilted slightly, eyes locked on her. “You didn’t have to do all this, you know.”

She considered me for a moment, then whispered, “I know.”

My tongue swiped across my bottom lip. “So, why’d you do it?”

She swept her gaze over me, and something changed in her eyes. She might not have answered the question out loud, but I saw the answer clear as day.

She felt the same pull that I did and wasn’t sure what to make of it.

The air between us thickened. Her cheeks flushed pink, and I had the sudden urge to step closer, to find out if her skin was as soft as it looked.

Just as I leaned forward, a sharp ping broke the moment.

Mac jumped, fumbling for her phone. “Sorry,” she muttered, glancing at the screen.

“Important?” I asked, voice rougher than before.

“No, just—” She sighed, shoving the phone back into her pocket. “Just an email from a realtor.”

My brow furrowed. “You leaving Jacksonville?”

“No.” She shook her head, tucking a strand of blonde hair behind her ear. “Just looking for a new place.”

“Something wrong with your current one?”

Mac hesitated, something darker crossing her expression. “My roommate’s boyfriend gives me the creeps.”

Her roommates boyfriend gives her the creeps. That didn’t sit right with me. “Creeps how?”

“It’s nothing,” she said, waving it off like it wasn’t shit. “He just... Okay, it’s not nothing. He makes comments sometimes when Sarah’s not around. And sometimes he looks at me in a way that makes my skin crawl.”

The muscle in my jaw twitched. I didn’t like the sound of that. Not one fucking bit. “What comments?”

Mac shifted uncomfortably. “Just... inappropriate ones. I’ve told him to stop, but he doesn’t seem to get the hint.”

A slow burning anger started building in my chest. “And your roommate?”

“Doesn’t believe me.” She sighed, looking down at Diesel, who’d dozed off again. “Or doesn’t want to. Either way, it’s easier if I find a place of my own.”

“That’s fucked up,” I said flatly.

She shrugged like she was used to dismissing her own discomfort. I didn’t like that either. She should feel comfortable and safe in her own home. “It is what it is.”

“Where are you looking at?”

“A few places. Nothing special.“ She glanced at her watch and visibly winced. “Shoot, I should get going. I have an early shift tomorrow.”

Part of me wanted to ask her to stay, but I knew better. “Yeah, alright.”

She knelt to give Diesel one last scratch behind his ears before standing up and brushing dog hair from her jeans. “Thanks for letting me come by.”

I reached into my back pocket for my wallet and pulled out two crisp one-hundred dollar bills. “Thanks for the dog shit.”

A small smile crept across her face as she took the cash and shoved it in her pocket. “Can I... check on him again sometime?”

I was a little surprised she’d want to come back, but I wasn’t going to tell her no. “Yeah. Anytime.”

She nodded, a hint of relief in her eyes as she headed for the door. I followed, holding it open for her.

As she stepped onto the porch, she turned back. “Make sure you don’t feed him too much at once. The vet probably told you, but he needs to build up slowly.”

“Got it.”

For a second, she just stood there, like she wanted to say something else. Then she nodded once more and turned toward her car.

I watched her drive away, still feeling some tension from our almost-moment. The more I thought about it, the more pissed I got about some asshole making her uncomfortable in her own home.

Diesel lifted his head as I walked in, watching me with those thoughtful eyes.

“Don’t look at me like that,” I muttered. “I’m not getting involved.”

But even as I said it, I knew I was lying to myself.