Author: Jaci Burton

“It’s already made.”

“It is?”

“Yeah. I brewed a pot a little while ago. Go kick the couch and wake up AJ. I’ll start breakfast.”

“You don’t have to do that.”

He gave her a look over his shoulder, and a smile that made her toes curl. “I want to.”

A guy who made himself at home in her kitchen. That was also a little disconcerting. And comforting. And sexy.

It had been five years. And maybe it wasn’t freaking her out as much as it used to. She’d wanted to get back in the game again for a long time now. She was tired of being afraid, of letting what had happened rule her life. She wanted to be a woman again, and damn if she was going to let those guys ruin her. Every man wasn’t like they had been.

Every guy wasn’t going to hurt her. And maybe every guy wasn’t going to run away when he found out the truth about her.

She moved over to the sofa. AJ was too big for her average-sized couch. One arm was slung over his head, his booted feet hung over the edge of the arm. Beard stubble peppered his jaw, making his face look dark and ruthless. AJ had never been ruthless. A bad boy, yes, but he’d always been the fun kind of bad boy.

And he’d never hurt her.

Once, he’d loved her. And she’d loved him. But that love hadn’t been enough to keep him out of trouble. They’d just been kids, on the verge of adulthood. Neither of them had known what they were doing back then. It had been innocent and intense, as all teenage romances are.

Ten years later she still didn’t know what she was doing. Nor did she know who AJ really was now, other than he was one of the good guys.

She smiled. She liked that he was one of the good guys. It suited him. But he still carried an edge of danger that fit him well, too.

“You’re staring.”

Startled, she jumped back, realizing he’d moved his arm and his eyelids were partially open, revealing smoky grays studying her. She tried to calm her racing heart. Goddammit, when was she going to relax? “Sorry. I debated waking you.”

“I was already awake. Pax walks like a herd of elephants.”

“Fuck you,” Pax said from the kitchen.

AJ sat up and swung his legs over the edge of the sofa and planted his feet on the floor. “Plus, I smelled coffee.” He dragged his fingers through his hair, winked his sleep-laden gaze at the window, then turned his attention on her. “It’s still dark out. Why are you up?”

“I slept enough.”

He tilted his head to the side, examining her with his intense gaze, then stood, came closer. He reached out and grasped a strand of her hair in his hand. He held it lightly, not demanding, just let it sift through his fingers, his gaze focused on her face. “You look tired.”

She inhaled, let it out on a shiver of awareness. What was it about these guys that got to her, that made her so cognizant of them as men? Her usual wariness was absent when they were around, the blocks she put up nonexistent. She knew AJ, but he’d been gone a long time. She didn’t know Pax at all. And yet she’d let them stay in her house last night.

None of this made sense. She was usually a lot more guarded.

“Who’s hungry?” Pax called from the kitchen.

AJ’s lips curled in a way that made her stomach tumble and made heat flush her skin.

“I’m hungry,” AJ whispered, so only she could hear.

He let go of her hair and walked away.

Her heart was pounding and her palms were sweaty. But it wasn’t from fear.

She took a full minute to get her body and emotions under control, then went into the kitchen to join Pax and AJ.

BY THE END OF THE DAY, THE NEWS FROM THE POLICE STATION wasn’t good. Teresa was strung out and ready to pull every hair out of her head.

Blood samples on Joey’s clothes matched Larks’s blood type, though DNA matching would take a little longer. Since Larks and Joey had been engaged with each other the entire fight, Teresa already knew what it would show—it would be Larks’s DNA on Joey’s clothes. With no murder weapon and no one else in Larks’s proximity, and of course the rest of the Fists loudly pointing to Joey as the one who had stabbed Larks, there were no other suspects. It wasn’t looking good for her brother.

Russ hung out there with them that day, worried as much about Joey as they were.

“You know anything about the Fists?” AJ asked him while they waited in the cafeteria.

Russ shrugged his wide shoulders and chewed the hell out of a toothpick. “Not much. Larks was a dick. I’m glad he’s dead.”

Pax snorted. “Some of them need killing.”

“Yeah well the whole Fists gang needs killing.”

“Who takes over now that Larks is dead?” Pax asked.

“Walter Rinks. He was Larks’s right hand.”

AJ slung his arm over the brown metal chair where Teresa sat. An unconscious gesture, but she felt the heat of his body against her back. “Walter have any reason to want Larks dead?” he asked.

Russ shook his head. “They were tight. Like brothers. Like me and Joey.”

Teresa described the guy who she saw kill Larks. “Does that match Walter Rinks’s description?”

“Not at all. Walter is skinny with long dark hair. No ink on his neck. His tats are on his arms.”

She knew it had been foolish to hope it would be that easy. “What about on our team, Russ?” Teresa asked. “Anyone with a personal grudge against Larks?”

“Nah, honey. Not any more than the usual. We follow Joey and are loyal to him. We defend what’s ours and will retaliate if we’re hit, but we don’t instigate for no reason. Murder isn’t our style.”

She blew out a breath. “Until now. Someone killed Larks and wants the police to think Joey did it.”

IT WAS AFTER NINE WHEN AJ AND PAX FORCED TERESA OUT of the police station and made her go home. Again, they had followed her there, though she honestly didn’t think anyone intended to do her harm. Wouldn’t someone have made a move already if he thought she’d seen who’d killed Larks? Not that she wanted someone to, but she figured if someone had seen her, he would have wanted to get rid of her right away.

She didn’t want to think about the possibility at all. But she of all people knew that being prepared and on your guard was the smart thing to do. So like it or not, she still had bodyguards. And as bodyguards went, they weren’t too much of a hardship to endure.

When they got inside, Teresa tossed her purse on the table near the front door, then collapsed on the sofa and swept her hands through her hair. She was drained, physically and emotionally; she felt powerless to do anything to help her brother and didn’t like being in this position. She’d always been proactive, always known what to do to step in and fix things when something went wrong.

This she couldn’t fix and she hated it. There had to be another way.

Pax flopped down on one side of her and AJ on the other.

“Joey’s attorney said the evidence was circumstantial, since no one witnessed Joey actually stabbing Larks, and they still haven’t found a murder weapon.”

Teresa turned to Pax. “Yes, and I know why. The murderer has run off with the knife he used to kill Larks.”

AJ rubbed her back. “You need to let the police do their job.”

“They’re not going to find the guy. They’re not even going to look for him.”

“You gave them a description of him.”

She laughed. “Right. Like they even believe me. You know as well as I do they think I’m making up the other guy to save my brother. The detective said no one with the tattoos I described came up in their database.”

“You don’t know that’s what they think,” Pax said. “Not every biker has a police record. Obviously that’s why the guy you spotted didn’t pop up in the NCIC. They’ll follow every lead.”

Teresa lifted her chin. “You put too much faith in law enforcement because you’re one of them.”

Pax laughed. “Honey, I’m hardly one hundred percent on the side of truth, justice and the American way. But you have to give them the benefit of the doubt until they do something to fuck things up.”

Her lips lifted. “I know. I just don’t want to do nothing and wait while Joey sits in jail. Not when I could be doing something to help.”

Pax arched a brow. “What do you think you can do to help?”

“I could be out there finding the guy who stabbed Larks.”

“Really. And how are you planning on finding him?”

She looked away for a second, then back at him. “I haven’t figured that out yet. But he’s wandering out there getting away with murder. And I’m the only one who can identify him.”

Pax stood. “Okay. Let’s go.”

Teresa tilted her head back and stared at Pax. “Go? Go where?”

Pax smiled. “For a bike ride.”

“Why?”

“Let’s go find the Fists and see if you can spot your guy.”

She stood. “Really?”

“That’s a good idea,” AJ said, already grabbing his helmet and heading to the door.

“Wait. We’re just going to ride up into their territory?”

AJ shrugged. “I don’t see why not. They rode into yours, didn’t they?”

“Yeah. With a gang. We can’t just—”

AJ put his arm around her. “Yeah, Teresa. We can. Don’t worry. Now, go put on some boots and let’s take a ride.”

She hurried to her room, put her hair in a ponytail, grabbed her boots out of the back of her closet and shoved them on, her heart pumping double time as she did.

She really didn’t ride. Not anymore. But for the second time in twenty-four hours she’d get on a bike again. For Joey, she’d do anything.

AJ and Pax were on their bikes as she closed the front door and headed out to the driveway. Pax had an extra helmet in his hand, so she went over and put it on, forcing her pulse to stop jackhammering.

“You look a little scared. You’ve ridden before, haven’t you?”

She gave him a quick nod, hating the paralyzing fear that always came over her whenever she thought about climbing on a bike again. She was just going to have to suck it up and deal with it. “Of course.”

“She’s been riding for years,” AJ said to Pax. “We used to ride dirt bikes together when we were kids. Then Teresa and Joey both got Harleys.” His gaze slid to hers. “You sell your old bike?”

She climbed on behind Pax and nodded at AJ. “Yeah, I sold it a while back.” There was no need to explain further.

Teresa leaned against Pax as they took off, inhaling the scent of his leather vest. The night was hot. He certainly didn’t need to wear anything but his T-shirt, but as she pressed closer, she felt the telltale bulge of his gun and realized the leather hid the weapon he carried. Since AJ also wore a vest, he must be armed, too, which both comforted and worried her.

The Fists weren’t a huge gang, but their numbers weren’t small, either. And heading into their territory wasn’t just a simple drive-by. Bikers riding into the northern territory who weren’t part of the gang were going to be noticed and watched to see if they were out for a joyride, or something else.

It took only about a half hour to reach the northern part of the city where the Fists territory began. Teresa directed Pax to the gang’s local hangouts, since she’d often listened in when Joey and the guys talked about riding around in the Fists’ area. He’d tried to maintain peace between the gangs, but had finally given up when it became clear that Larks had delusions of becoming huge in the area and he wanted to take over the southern territory. Joey had told Larks to stay the hell out or suffer the consequences.