Page 7 of Shine: Sins of the Father (Evil Dead MC: Second Generation #8)

Fiona—

We take a quick shower, and Shine gets a phone call.

I towel-dry my hair and slip my shorts over my hips.

Shine’s phone vibrates on the dresser where he is sliding a shirt over his still damp body.

I motion to the door and whisper. “Hey, I’m going to the lobby to see if they have any recommendations for places to eat. Just meet me there when you get done with the call.”

He nods and slips out the sliders to talk.

I grab one of the key cards and go to the lobby.

The clerk looks up from his computer and greets me with a smile. “How may I help you, miss?”

“I was wondering if you could suggest a good place to eat.”

“I’d be happy to. If you want to try one of our iconic restaurants, it’s that place right across the parking lot. Hanzel and Gretel’s Pancake House. It’s a cheesy name, but the food it fantastic.”

“Thanks. Sounds yummy. I’m always up for pancakes.”

“Who isn’t?” He chuckles, then his attention shifts when new guests approach.

I tap my palm on the counter. “Thanks for your help.”

Moving out of the way of the new arrivals, I wander out the front doors and spot the restaurant with its gingerbread trim off to the right. I’m about to go back inside when motion to my left has me turning my head.

I spot two men next to Shine’s bike. One is standing, and when he catches me looking, he slaps the shoulder of the other one, who is squatting near the rear of the bike. The other man immediately straightens.

“Hey, what are you doing?” I snap in a no-nonsense voice.

They immediately jump in a car that’s idling behind the bike. As they speed away, I catch the plate and dash inside to the front desk. “Quick, I need a pen.”

The clerk sees my fluster and passes me the one in his hand. I scribble the plate on my palm, toss the pen on the counter and dash for the elevator, mashing the button over and over. “Come on. Come on.”

I can hear it descending, and a moment later the doors slide open. Shine stands there.

The moment he sees the look on my face his smile disappears. “What’s wrong?”

“Hurry.” I grab his hand and drag him outside, then point down the road. “Two men were checking out your bike. One was squatting next to the back. When they saw me, they took off down the highway to the south.” I hold up my palm. “I got the plate.”

He grabs my hand, studying the number, then meets my eyes. “Was it a burgundy sedan?”

“Yes.”

“Had to be them. Donnie Ray Sidler and his brother Carl. They must have seen me roll through the parking lot next door. Maybe they heard my bike. I thought I saw the curtain move when we rode past. Fuck. That was a stupid move on my part. I may have tipped my hand.”

Shine moves to his bike and squats, going over it.

“What are you doing?” I ask.

“Looking to make sure they didn’t sabotage the brakes or tires, but I don’t see anything.”

“Maybe I interrupted them.”

“Yeah, probably.” He straightens and hooks the nape of my neck, pulling me in for a forehead kiss. “These guys are dangerous, sweetness. You see them again, you run the other way. Understand?”

I nod, searching his eyes and seeing only complete seriousness. He looks to the road.

“Are you going after them?” I ask.

“Nah. They’re probably long gone. My best bet is to see what I can find out at that condo tonight.”

“You think the mother is still there?”

“Probably.”

“Won’t she call the cops?”

“Don’t worry. I don’t plan to stick around that long. Come on. You pick a place to eat?”

I point at the place across the parking lot.

His brow lifts. “Hanzel and Gretel’s?”

“They’re supposed to have fantastic food.”

“Pancakes it is, then.”

We end up taking the bike, mainly because Shine wants to keep an eye on it in case the two men return and slip past us. He backs into a spot on the side near some windows, and when we enter, he asks for a booth with a view of the bike.

The waitress is happy to accommodate and leads us to one against the windows. I slide onto the vinyl seat, and Shine sits across from me. His side has a better view of the highway than mine, and his eyes repeatedly stray in that direction.

The waitress pours us both coffee and passes us menus, then retreats.

I scan the options, and glance up. Shine’s still looking toward the highway, but sensing my eyes, he gives a cursory glance to the menu, shuts it and lays it aside.

“You decided already?” I ask.

“Yep. Steak and eggs.”

I grin and set my menu aside.

Shine takes a sip of coffee and checks out the place. “This place is a trip, huh? They went all in with the gingerbread concept, didn’t they?”

“Go big or go home.” That gets me my first smile over the rim of his mug.

“Didn’t the witch try to put Hanzel and Gretel in the oven?”

“Yep. Not one of the happier children’s stories, is it? Those old European fairy tales were big on themes of abandonment and survival. Little Red Riding Hood, The Big Bad Wolf. Their kids must have been scared shitless every night.”

“I’ll bet,” he agrees. “This gingerbread room is creeping me out all by itself.”

I roll my eyes at his exaggeration. “It’s cute. I bet kids love this place.”

“Sure. Sure. Bet on Halloween they have an old witch out front, luring children in with candy.”

I almost spit out my coffee.

The waitress returns and takes our order. While we wait for our food, Shine keeps a steady vigil on the traffic on the highway. Finally, he glances at me.

“When’s your next shift? I hope I’m not making you miss too much work. Work is income for you girls, right?”

The reminder that he thinks I’m a stripper has my smile melting from my face. I busy myself, swirling the spoon in my coffee and creamer. “I, um, need to be back by tomorrow night, if possible.”

He nods and drains his cup. “I’ll try my best to get you there in time.”

“Maybe there’s a bus I could catch?” I have no desire to take a bus home, and I don’t know why I offered it.

The last thing I want to do is trade riding on the back of Shine’s bike for that mode of transportation.

I think a part of me just wants to see if he’d actually let me ride a dirty bus home with a bunch of sketchy people.

“Sweetness, I’m taking you home. That’s that. Understand?”

“Okay.” My voice comes out soft because I like his answer. I try to rein myself in. The last thing I need to do is go reading more into his words than there is.

***

It’s past midnight when Shine dresses in black and leaves the hotel on foot. From the balcony, I’ve got a clear view of the unit he’s going to, but he goes around from the front of the hotel, and I never spot him.

An almost full moon hangs in the sky, its reflection sparkling on the water. No one is out this late, but earlier there were quite a few people out enjoying the beachfront, some sitting on blankets in the sand, others walking the shoreline. Now it's quiet and peaceful.

It should be calming, but my heart is beating a mile a minute. There’s a chance someone could call the police when they see Shine creeping around in the shadows.

He wouldn’t tell me exactly what he planned to do, and that has my imagination running wild.

I hope to God he doesn’t plan to break in or accost this woman about her sons.

Surely not. But with a member of the Evil Dead, there’s no telling.

They have a tendency to take care of business, no matter what that requires.

Frankly, I’m surprised Shine told me as much as he did.

Usually, I’d expect a club brother to be more closed-mouthed about the type of things Shine has revealed.

Perhaps the trust he feels in me is due to what he perceives to be my loyalty to the club.

After all, he thinks I work for an MC-owned business, and he thinks they trusted me enough to come “do this favor” for them by being some kind of gift for Shine.

My biggest fear is he’ll find out the truth before we part ways.

I’d have a lot of explaining to do. As it is, I’ll probably never see him again.

But if he calls his club brothers or they call him, there’s always the possibility being at the cabin will come up.

I don’t even want to think of what would happen.

Glancing over at the condos, I see no activity. I also don’t hear any approaching sirens either, so that’s a good sign.

I’ve spent such a short time with Shine, but I’ve already become quite attached to him.

There’s an easiness between us I’ve never had before with a man.

Maybe he’s that way with me because of who and what he thinks I am.

He doesn’t have to worry about any relationship bullshit, because this isn’t one.

It makes me sad to think this will all be over soon, and we’ll go our separate ways. He’s already left such a mark on me, I know I’ll miss the jokes and the kisses and just the smile on his face when he looks at me.

Figures. I finally find a man I’m interested in, and he turns out to be someone so out of reach. Especially now that I’ve basically lied to him about everything since the moment I met him.

Eventually, I can’t bear the waiting and wander inside, strip to my t-shirt and panties and slip under the covers. I try to distract myself from the tension and anxiety of worrying about Shine by playing on my phone.