Page 8 of Savage Ends

With that, Pat left the clubhouse.Several of the guys were already finding women and enjoying them.

“Well, hello there, stranger,” Lidia said, sitting perched next to his bike.

He had met Lidia through Aria, who was Grant’s woman.There was nothing going on between him and Lidia.She was nice, refreshing with no filter, and she tended to speak whatever the hell she wanted to.

“I can’t stay and chat.I’ve got stuff to do.”

“Well, for an introduction that didn’t even include a hello, I consider that an improvement.”

He frowned and looked at Lidia.

“You spoke a whole sentence to me.Two, if you include a break between what you said,” Lidia said.

“I talk to you all the time.”

“Actually, you tend to grunt, say hello, and that is all,” Lidia shrugged.

Pat stared at Lidia and she pointed at him.“See, now you’re doing that long stare thing you hope will freak me out, but instead just makes me want to force you to talk more.”

“What do you want?”

Lidia rolled her eyes.“I don’t want anything.You know the garage has been closed the last two days, and you were nowhere to be seen.What about what you promised me with the whole date?”

“I didn’t promise you a date.”

“Ew, no, not that kind of date.We’re supposed to go to a bar, and you’re going to tell me which guys you think are worth my time and which ones are not.”Lidia smiled at him.

He missed Ava’s smile.

So, he and Lidia had become friends.It started a few months ago when her piece-of-shit car had broken down at the side of the road.Lidia had a bit of a temper, and was about to start hitting her car with a crowbar when he rode past.Only, he stopped, recognized her, and helped her get her car to the garage, where he then fixed it.According to Lidia, that made them friends.

At first, Rusty had convinced him that Lidia had feelings for him.He was not interested in Lidia in a romantic way, and told her that.What did he get?She laughed in his face and said he was like a brother to her, and she did not think of him in a sexual way, which he was relieved about.

Since then, with helping to save her from a burning building, they were friends.Good friends.She told him they could be the kind of friends that talked to each other about anything and everything.Sometimes, she had even stayed up with him at night when he didn’t want to sleep.Lidia was a good friend.She had Aria’s back.And, it would seem she had the club’s back.

“I’m going to have to take a rain check.I’ve got club business.”

Lidia sighed.“Figured.Fine.Fine.I guess I’ll just stick around the clubhouse again.Aria said she’d hang out, but if Grant’s around, all they do is make out and that is so gross.Not that I’m not happy for her, I am, you get it.”

Pat couldn’t help but smile.He did get it, and a little part of him was envious of what the two brothers had been able to find.

****

“You’re looking a littlepissed off,” Ava said, placing a fresh mug of coffee in front of Pat.

He was typing rapidly on his cell phone and instantly stopped.The moment he lifted his head, she got to look into his soft brown eyes.She didn’t know what it was about his eyes, but it looked like he had seen a lot in the world.He was ex-military, but there was more to him than that.

“Just having a bad day,” he said.

“Ah, you’re part of the bad day crowd?”

He nodded.

She hated that he didn’t seem quite as talkative as usual.It was a slow day.They randomly had them from time to time.

“What cake are you having today?”she asked.

He glanced past her shoulder and quickly perused the board she had scrawled all over just a couple of hours before after Lauren had finished preparing the day’s cakes and cookies.