So far, no one had acted like that to Ozzy, that she’d noticed. Even last night with him claiming the pool table at the bar, the men seemed to respect him more than fear him. Unless they crossed him.
“It still would be nice to know what happened to him.” To get an answer to that decades-long question.
“Might be better not to know.”
“Why would you say that?”
“A man usually don’t just up and disappear like that. Not one that loves his family.”
He definitely loved his family. “So, you think it was foul play?”
“You don’t?”
“I don’t know. Whatever happened to him, I only hope he didn’t suffer.”
She always wondered if he’d been mistaken for someone else because she couldn’t imagine her father had enemies. Unlike Shay, her father was very outgoing. But it could’ve been that he wrecked his bike down a ravine or over a cliff in some remote area—since there were plenty of those in upstate Pennsylvania—and no one ever found him or his Harley. Over the years, she always expected a phone call from her mother telling her his body and his bike was finally found by a hiker or… someone. Anyone. People explored remote areas all the time. And then there were helicopters and small planes and…
So, how does a man simply disappear without a trace? Her parents weren’t having marriage or financial problems, he seemed happy and satisfied with his life and his job…
None of it made sense.
And she needed to make sense of it all. She always had, always would. She had even called Manning Grove PD after her mother died to give them her contact information in case they ever got any leads or answers.
They said they would update her if anything came up, but she never got a single call. Maybe she should’ve mentioned that to Adam Bryson.
Or maybe she’d stop down at the PD before she headed home to Boston. If only to remind them to never close his case until they had answers. Until she had answers.
The case might have gone cold to them, but it would never be cold to her.
But tonight wasn’t about her father, it was about Ozzy. He was alive and well and looking deliciously alpha-male sitting across from her.
He’d probably been reading every expression on her face while she had gotten lost in her thoughts.
She needed to come back to the present. To be present for him.
Anything else would be rude.
“Sorry, I know I keep asking about my father, but what about your family? Are they local?”
He hesitated, sucked his teeth and finally said flatly, “They’re dead.”
“I’m sorry.”
“No reason for you to be sorry. Pop died in prison. My mother just…”
“Just?” she prodded.
“Died.”
She reached out and grabbed the hand he had resting on the table. She gave it a squeeze. “Oh, I’m sorry. I know how hard it is to lose both parents. Both recently?”
He stared at her hand over his with his expression closed. “No. Long time ago. When I was a kid.”
“Oh no! Did family take you in?”
He lifted his gray eyes to hers. “A family took me in for a little while.”
Him saying “a family” instead of saying his grandparents or godparents or being more specific made her think he didn’t want to talk about it.
But he added, “’Til I was old enough to be on my own.”
“Well, it’s good that you didn’t land in the foster care system—”
His hand tensed under hers and he cut her off with, “Yeah, anyway, club’s the closest thing I got to family now.”
They were interrupted when Gidget brought out their hamburgers and loaded fries.
Her eyes went wide at the portions and Ozzy barked out a laugh at her expression, lightening the mood.
His laugh drew a smile from her. “After today’s hike, and with the soothing vibrations of your bike and a full belly, I might need to be strapped to you so I don’t fall off when I’m lulled to sleep.”
“Promise, you ain’t gonna fall asleep and ain’t gonna fall off. Gonna make sure of it.”
While his words sounded promising, it was the heated look in his eyes that made her believe him.
And she looked forward to discovering his method.
Chapter Ten
Besides last night’s ride to Crazy Pete’s, he hadn’t had a woman on the back of his sled since Liz. One reason why he invited the former sweet butt along on most of his solo runs was to make sure he just wouldn’t drop a gear and disappear, never returning to Manning Grove, to the motel and to all the responsibilities he was now saddled with. Having her on a ride always forced him to return to what he now considered “home.”
Sometimes having things that tied him down, tied him in one location, didn’t bother him. Other times, it felt like a burden weighing heavily on his shoulders.