Page 67 of Single Mom's Biker Brigade
“Something to do.” She avoided my gaze as her chin quivered. “I hate feeling helpless, Diesel. I’m not helpless. I need to be active and take part in making sure Cody and I are safe.”
I understood that…more than she realized. Standing still while a threat circled ranked way the fuck below what I was willing to tolerate. The difference between us was that I’d learned how to convert that feeling directly into work. She was about to learn. She wanted to be active in her own protection, and I wasn’t about to tell her to let us handle it. Everyone had the right to be part of their own survival.
“I’m making a hardware run at seven. I need to upgrade the lights, cameras, and motion sensors. Son of a bitch won’t get through my line again.” My neck creaked when I turned to stare over my shoulder at the night sky giving way to dawn.
“I’ll come with you.”
I’d expected that. Hoped for it really. She’d figure me out if I gave in too easily. “You’ve been up all night.”
She snorted, some of her snark coming back and showing its teeth. “So have you. We’ll keep each other awake.”
I started a pot of coffee while she backed out of the kitchen, probably to go check on her son. By the time the coffee finished, she’d returned, her face washed and wearing a different flannel shirt she’d knotted over her belly button. The green material popped against her eyes and I appreciated her curves as she walked toward me.
Later. Once we had everything secure, I could think about her, about us. But not after some bastard snuck into the property and left that mark.
The trip to the hardware store took two hours. Callie settled the bill while I carried everything to the truck. We didn’t say a word the whole way there or back. Callie, unlike many people, never felt the need to push me into a conversation. She accepted that I’d talk when I wanted and as far as I could tell didn’t feel slighted by my silence.
The installation would take most of the day, and Callie stuck to my side tighter than sticky paper on a hot day. Cody ran back and forth between us and the shop while Colt kept an eye on him. Every now and then, Callie’s gaze drifted to the shop where she’d spent most of her time.
“You miss it?” I stretched a wire overhead and attached it to the new camera, then started the connection test.
She tented a hand over her eyes and stared up at me. “Need a bit more than that to know what you’re talking about.”
Right. “The shop.”
“I miss working on stuff. It’s my peace, you know?” She shrugged and dropped her hand, her eyes going to the phone she held in her hand. “Shift the angle a couple degrees to the left. There’s still dead spot at the gate.”
I adjusted, watching her for my sign to stop, freezing when she raised a hand.
We never did learn as much as I wanted about Callie. I’d run a couple searches once she vanished. Learned about her asshole of a stepfather. Her reactions to loud noises and belligerent men made more sense once I’d read the man’s file. I barely had to think about him before my blood boiled. If I ever managed to get my hands on him, he’d never touch anything ever again.
By early afternoon, we’d added two flood lights to the stretch of service road that curved toward the house and I’d rerouted the sensor triggers to close the gap that had let our visitor through last night. I ran the full system test while Callie watched over my shoulder.
A spot of grease speckled her forearm, but the burn on her neck had started to heal, leaving a pink stain in its wake. We sat on the porch with cups of coffee and sandwiches Cody had helped make. He’d insisted mine needed twice as much meat as everyone else’s, and I overheard him tell Colt something about a man named Alfred.
Callie picked at her food until I nudged her knee with mine and raised an eyebrow. She huffed but took a bite. “They’re going to come back.”
Did she need my confirmation? I finished my coffee and opened a bottle of water. “Yes. When they think they have somethingto gain. Right now, they’re looking for weaknesses, checking our response time and watching how we react.”
“So last night was a test.”
I nodded.
Her cheeks filled with air and she held her breath several heartbeats before releasing it with a rush. The afternoon temps had risen enough to put sweat on her forehead and make my skin sticky.
Cody ran past us, leaping off the steps and sprinting toward the little red tricycle Hawk had brought over the morning after their arrival. He’d gone to their house and brought back what he could, which he admitted later was next to nothing.
Leave it to Callie to suffer in silence.
Callie’s boy threw his leg over the tricycle seat and started pedaling before he’d fully sat down. He rode the same way Callie drove her bike, committed but not exactly cautious. The cowlick on top of his head lifted in the breeze, and he let out a whoop.
“Wait for me.” Colt jogged down the steps, shooting Callie a look as he passed. “You sure you didn’t give him a basket of energy drinks or something? He’s nonstop.”
“Welcome to parenthood.” She said it with a smile that almost reached her eyes. “He’s excited. It’ll wear off in a bit and he’ll sleep good tonight. A tired kid is a blessing.”
Cody zoomed around the yard on his tricycle, leaning forward and pedaling as fast as he could.
Colt followed along behind, never letting Cody get more than two feet away.
