Page 30 of Rags's Awakening
She and Zoe met at a wine-tasting a little over a year ago and had hit it off immediately. Between their love of history and old buildings, they became fast friends. Ever since, Casey had been the amateur psychologist Zoe called every time another “this is it” relationship crashed and burned.
“You need another round?” the blonde waitress asked, picking up Casey’s empty glass.
Pointing at Zoe, Casey said, “She does, but I’m good.”
“Gotcha.” The waitress smiled and hurried away.
“You’re not going to sip that all night, are you?” Zoe asked.
“I’m pacing myself. Remember, I’m the one driving.”
“I’m glad you are,” Zoe said, leaning back. “Now I can have fun and not worry about a thing.” Her gaze slid toward a manin snug jeans and a leather jacket. “That’s who I’d like to get to know.”
Casey looked over at the guy walking by their table and shrugged. “He’s a biker for sure. He’d be easy to get but damn hard to keep.”
“How can you tell he’s a biker?” Zoe asked, her eyes still trained on the man as he went toward the restrooms.
“The jacket, the jeans, the chains, the swagger. That swagger can be infuriating.”And damn sexy.Casey groaned inward.
“I wonder if he’s one of those Insurgents.”
“The what?”
“The motorcycle club. They’ve been in Pinewood Springs forever.”
“Are they one-percenters?”
Zoe tilted her head to the side, her eyes slightly unfocused. “Huh?’
“An outlaw club. You know like the Hell’s Angels.”
“Here you go.” The waitress placed a margarita in front of Zoe. “I’ll be back around in a bit.” She walked away.
“I don’t know anything about all that. I just know they’re badass, scary, and really handsome. Do you think that guy’s one of them?” Zoe sipped her drink.
“He has the earmarks of it. Maybe you should aim for someone tamer.” Casey glanced around and noticed several guys in leather jackets and cuts. “This isn’t a biker bar, is it? If it is I’m out of here.”
Zoe giggled. “No way. Blue’s Belly is cool, and the people who hang here are okay for the most part. But biker bars? Never again. I stumbled into one once with some friends. We thought it would be an adventure. We lasted less than ten minutes before we hightailed it out of there.”
“Outlaw clubs can be intense,” Casey said. “Regular bikers are fine, but outlaws? Yeah, you don’t want to be in one of their bars.”
Zoe tilted her head. “How come you know so much about bikers?”
“When I’m good and drunk one of these days, I’ll tell you.” Casey picked up her drink and drained it.
“I’d like to buy you a drink,” a deep voice said next to Casey’s ear.
She looked up into deep-set brown eyes set beneath a strong brow, stubble shadowing a rounded jawline. Zoe’s pointed-toe shoe nudged her under the table.
“She was just waiting for the waitress,” Zoe said.
“Perfect,” he said, pulling into the empty chair beside Casey. “May I?”
Before she could answer, Zoe quipped, “Of course.”
A few minutes later, Casey had another martini in front of her, and a man named Nathan in full monologue mode. He bragged about everything he’d done, was doing, and planned to do in his life. Zoe laughed and egged him on; Casey kept sipping her drink, silently betting how long it’d take him to run out of breath.
Then she felt it. Someone was watching her. She couldn’t detect a prickling sensation in her nerves, nor were the fine hairs on the back of her neck standing on end. No, she justknew.
