About mid-afternoon Cole came back to the room with a leather jacket and helmet.
“Hey, baby,” he said, tossing them down on the bed.
Angel sat cross-legged in the center of the bed flipping through a hotrod magazine she’d found. Her eyes fell on the items. “What’s that?”
“You’re getting your wish.”
She looked up at him quizzically.
“You’re coming with us,” he clarified.
“Us?”
“The club is riding up there.”
“When?” she asked, setting the magazine aside.
“Now. We should have enough daylight to make it up there before dark. The ride won’t be as cold as the other night. You probably won’t need the jacket, but I’d rather you have it, just in case.”
Angel got up off the bed.
Cole’s eyes slid down her body, taking in the fact that she was dressed in different clothing. She had on low-cut, faded jeans and a skimpy top that clung to her curves and showed a couple of inches of her flat stomach. “I see Crystal’s been here.”
She noticed his eyes travel over her and felt self-conscious. Tugging on the hem of the shirt, she admitted, “It’s a little short.”
His eyes skidded past her to the tall glass sitting on the nightstand. It held some kind of red juice, of which only about half an inch remained. He stepped over and picked it up, sniffing the contents.
Angel watched as his eyes lifted to hers. She had long ago consumed the telltale celery stalk, so she wasn’t sure he could tell right off what it was, so she told him. “Bloody Mary.”
“Where’d you get this?”
“I made it.”
“You made it?”
“Well, I taught Crystal how to make them, and—”
“You taught Crystal?”
Angel studied him, wondering if he was pissed. She heard him murmur more to himself, “I should have known better than to hook you and Crystal up.”
He looked from the glass in his hand to her, his eyes studying the flush on her face, a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. “Christ, how many of these have you had?”
“Um. Two,” she admitted, grinning.
“You gonna be able to ride?”
“Yes. I’m fine.”
He set the glass back down and pulled her to him. His mouth came down on hers, his tongue delving inside. After a moment, he raised his head and smiled. “Mmm. Delicious.”
She smiled back.
“My baby likes Bloody Marys, does she?”
She nodded.
Cole grinned and released her. He turned without saying anything and walked into the bathroom. Grabbing a flannel shirt off a hook on the back of the door, he walked back toward her, tossing it at her. “Here. Put this on over that shirt.”
“That bad, huh?”
“No. You look smokin’ hot, babe, but I’d rather not have to fight off the rest of the club.”
She put the shirt on, but left it unbuttoned.
He turned and dug through the top dresser drawer, pulling out a couple of ammo clips.
Angel watched as he pulled his gun from the shoulder holster under his cut and checked the load. The clip slid back into place with a smooth sinister hiss and click.
He shoved the gun back in the holster along with the extra clips and grabbed an extra pair of glasses off the dresser, tossing them to her. “You ready to roll?”
She caught the glasses and shoved them up on her head. “I guess so.”
Cole moved to the door and held it open for her. “Grab your gear.”
Turning, she picked up a lipstick and comb off the bedside table, jamming them into the pockets of the leather jacket and followed him.
As they walked past the bar, Crystal raised her Bloody Mary glass and jiggled it in the air. “Thanks, doll. These are a big hit. The guys love ‘em. I’m starting Bloody Mary Monday.”
Cole looked over at Crystal and shook his head. He grabbed Angel by the hand and tugged her along toward the door, grumbling under his breath, “Christ, now look what you’ve instigated.”
When they walked outside, Angel saw there were about thirty guys, some already on their bikes, some standing around. Most turned to get a look at her as she followed Cole over to his bike. Some, she noticed, were munching on celery stalks, big grins on their faces.
Cole took one look at them and shook his head, trying to keep from laughing. He turned to level her with a look that said he was not pleased with this new development.
She sucked her lips in, trying to hold the grin back.
“You realize you’ve been here less than a day?”
“What did I do?”
Shaking his head, he took her jacket from her and shoved it into one of his saddlebags. He threw his leg over the seat and lifted the bike up off its kickstand. He put his helmet and glasses on.
She did the same and climbed on the back.
He fired it up and looked to his left. A gray haired older man nodded, and they pulled out. All the rest fell in behind them.
It was a beautiful sunny day, and the ride felt great. Angel took her left arm off Cole’s waist and put it on her thigh, turning to look back. There was a line of bikes all the way back as far as she could see. She also noticed she was the only female on this trip.
“You okay?” Cole asked over his shoulder.
“Fine,” she shouted back over the wind.
Cole reached down with his left hand and took her hand off her thigh, putting it back around his stomach. “Hang on,” he ordered as they turned onto the entrance ramp for the interstate heading out of town.
He hit the throttle, and Angel felt the bike surge forward under her. She held on tight as he shifted through the gears. The whole group took off, getting up to about eighty mph. The bikes spread out, leaving more room between them.
They drove for hours, out through the desert and headed into the mountains as the sun set, finally pulling into their destination just as darkness fell. Angel felt the fear crawl up her spine as she saw the place again. Everything came rushing back.
Cole stopped the bike, cut the engine, and told her to get off. Then he backed his bike into a spot along with all the others. Dismounting, he pulled his helmet and glasses off and stored them on the bike.
Angel pulled her helmet off, and Cole took it from her hands and put it with his. She pushed her sunglasses up on her head.
Cole took her hand and pulled her to the side. He looked down into her face. “Look, I need you to let me know when you see this guy. You spot him you don’t say anything. You squeeze my hand. Understand?”
She nodded.
He studied her. “You okay?”
Angel nervously looked around. “It’s just…being back here—”
Cole nodded. “Yeah. Last thing I wanted was to bring you back here, babe. Didn’t see any way around it.”
She looked at him. “I know.”