Page 99 of Reaper

The guys grumble but eventually agree with me.

“Come on, M.”

She follows me upstairs and I head to my closet straight away, pulling out two suitcases.

“What all do you need to pack?” Miracle asks me.

“I think at least enough clothes for a week – both casual and work. I’ve already got a bunch of bathroom stuff there, so I don’t need to worry about that.”

“Honey?”

I turn towards the doorway and realize Ma must have heard us. Shit. I was really dreading this talk. She knows about the notes and the voicemails, but I haven’t told her anything about tonight.

“Ma, I have to go and stay at the clubhouse for a while. Something happened at Forest Creek and the guys want me close as a precaution.”

Her worried gaze darts from me to Miracle and back to me. “What happened?”

“One of the guys got hurt protecting one of the ladies. That’s all I really know. I need you and Granny to be careful when you go out and about. I took the next three days off, so the guys aren’t spread so thin, but after that, I’ll need to come back and work. Erica and Michael are off this weekend. Also, don’t move my car—the guys want to get it checked out.”

Her worry increases. “Did you get another note?”

“Yeah, and once I get back to the clubhouse, we’re going to try and see if we can figure out who left it, but my guess is that it’s like the other times. Their face will be covered, their ballcap will be pulled low, and they’ll be wearing big bulky, black clothes. At some point, he or she will mess up and we’ll get a lead on them.”

Her gaze meets mine and after a few beats, she nods. “Okay. Be safe, keep us posted on your friend. I’ll let you know if we spot anything unusual as well.”

She gives me a hug. When she leaves and heads back downstairs, I walk over to my dresser, grabbing a few more pajamas, sweats, and underclothes.

“I grabbed a full week’s worth of your work gear. I know you don’t need that much, but just in case this drags out, you’ll have extra.”

“Thanks, M.”

I walk into the closet and grab some jeans, t-shirts, long-sleeve shirts, and hoodies. My gaze snags on my heavier fall coat, and after a moment of hesitation, I grab it. Walking over to my bookcases, I pick out a few more books to take over as well. While I mostly read on my Kindle, I like to read a physical book every now and then. In those instances, I always buy two—one stays on my shelf looking pretty with the spine still intact, and the other one I’ll read.

Folding my clothes, I put them in my suitcase. Grabbing the zipper, I start to close them.

“Damn, girl. Looks like you’ve almost moved in with Reaper.”

Looking over my shoulder, she gives me a grin as she steps away from my closet and plops down on my bed. My cheeks heat when I realize that after this, the vast majority of my clothes left in my closet are my summer clothes, a few dresses, and some that I’ve been holding onto because I’m hoping I’ll be able to fit into them again someday.

“Has he asked you to move in?”

I shake my head. “No, but he did ask me to stay there while he’s gone.”

She sits up, picking at her nail as she sobers. “The guys all seem to have taken to you. When the others left, which includesReaper, they all told Cannon and Atlas to take care of their Queen.”

I pause as I hear her voice waver a bit and I take a closer look at her.

Where did my confident and sassy best friend go? It’s like she has a cloud hanging over her. Her shoulders are slumped. Her fingernail polish is badly chipped whereas in the past, she always made sure to repaint them if the paint got even a slight chip in it. There are bags under her eyes and her usually sparkling eyes are dull.

Even though she laughed and talked with Cannon and Atlas, which was a little weird to see them talking with a woman so much, she wasn’t her usual self.

“Yeah, I’ve gotten to know them all even more this past week. Though, it’s still weird hearing them call me that.”

“Why do they call you ‘Queen’?”

“It’s because Reaper and I are together. He’s the President of this chapter so that’s why they call me ‘Queen’ sometimes. In Forest Creek, Levi’s their Queen since she’s with Thor. Well, she’s really with Thor and Dragon, but Thor’s the President not just of the Forest Creek chapter, but also of all the Steel Archangel’s MC chapters.”

She cocks her head to the side as she looks up at me. “So, your Reaper’s Old Lady then?”