Out of the Ashes (Sons of Templar MC 3)

“Dollybird, he doesn’t want soda. Let him be,” I told her, scared the soda pressure might make him explode right here at the snack stand.

She shrugged. “Okay, just get him a bottle of water,” she ordered. I gave her a look. “What? He’ll get thirsty from the popcorn,” she reasoned.

The kid plonked our feast down in front us. I turned back to him. “One more request and I promise, you’ll never have to see us again.” I thought on that. “So you’ll probably be seeing us next week, considering the new Bond movie comes out then.” I paused and thought again. “Actually, we’re pretty regular moviegoers, so you will actually see us again. Probably quite regularly. Just not for a week, at least.” I smiled at him apologetically as he went to get the water.

“And we’ll have the snack situation down pat after a couple of visits,” Lexie added brightly when he returned.

My smile was shocked right off me to see Zane had stepped up, like right in my space. His amused mouth twitch was gone but the furious glare had yet to reappear. He was staring at me with a hard jaw and blank expression. Apart from his eyes; they were blazing, but with what I couldn’t place. And unfortunately, I didn’t have to stare into them for a moment longer, thanks to my new friend the movie theater snack guy.

“That’ll be thirty-eight fifty,” he declared in a bored sounding tone. His eyes didn’t seem so bored as they took in Lexie leaning against the counter, gathering a popcorn and packets of candy bars in her hands.

Her hair was piled atop her head and she was clad in her usual boho chic. She was wearing a chunky sweater that dropped off one shoulder and was cropped. It met with a chiffon floral skirt, which had delicate floral designs and flowed down to her ankles. Slouchy, heeled, tan ankle boots completed the look. She wasn’t your traditional teenage “hot girl,” which was why I had enjoyed the fact that teenage boys were idiots and chased after her scantily clad counterparts. But as she was growing older and blossoming into an impossibly beautiful young woman, I had caught the looks she got. Not just from teenage boys either. Every time a man or boy cast their eyes over her, I wanted to shout at them she’s just a baby, and then I got the strong urge to learn how to shoot a gun.

I jumped slightly, as did Lexie when Zane banged cash down on the counter with a force that made me surprised it didn’t crack. I even peeked to make sure. Once I was satisfied he didn’t damage the fixture, I glanced back up at him.

“Zane, this was our treat, as a thank you. You can’t pay. It makes the ‘thank you’ gesture obsolete,” I informed him quietly.

“I’m payin,’” he grunted, not looking at me. His glare was back. And I wasn’t on the receiving end. Praise the Lord. The very scared looking snack food attendant was on the receiving end. His eyes were no longer roving my daughter. They were now widely regarding the scary biker in front of him. One who I was loath to argue with.

“Okey dokie,” I chimed nervously.

He didn’t look at me. “You and Lex grab us some seats. I’ll get this shit,” he declared, nodding down at the considerable array of things Lexie hadn’t grabbed.

“We can help,” I told him.

He turned his head to me and his gaze set me on fire. “Go and get us some seats, babe,” he ordered.

I swallowed, finding it hard to ignore the womb flutter I got from him calling me “babe” for the second time.

I pointed with my thumbs. “I’ll just go and get us some seats.” I snatched the tickets and grabbed Lexie’s hand. “Come on, Lexie.”

As I was dragging Lexie away, we both looked over our shoulders to see Zane having a very intense looking conversation with the snack kid, one who looked like he was about to pee his pants and was nodding furiously.

“What do you think that’s about?” Lexie asked curiously.

I smiled lightly, and was happy in that moment about the little glimmer of naïveté Lexie had left. “Probably just telling him off for not putting enough butter on the popcorn,” I lied. A warm glow settled in my stomach. I knew exactly what he was doing. Protecting my girl’s honor.

I didn’t know how Zane was going to find us in the dark theater and carry an amount of snacks that could have fed a basketball team, but I needn’t have worried. Apparently, biker bad asses could defy the laws of snack carrying and see in the dark, as he approached the aisle we were sitting in with no apparent trouble. After a huge argument between me and my lovely spawn, Lexie had won and deduced Zane would be sitting in the middle because he had all the snacks, and “it only made sense.” She couldn’t seem to understand why I was making such a big deal out of it. I couldn’t exactly tell her the big rough biker hated me for some unknown reason, while he turned me on beyond any point of coherent thought. So I lost the argument.

“We’ve decided you’re in the middle since you’ve got the snacks and this makes the best logistical sense,” she informed Zane on his arrival, standing.

Zane didn’t say a word, and since it was dark I couldn’t see his face clearly. I could however, feel the heat of his stare.

He passed me my drink as he sat down. I restrained a gasp when my fingers brushed his and I felt a jolt at our connection. It felt like a mild electric shock went straight to my downstairs. I didn’t even know that happened in real life. I could see Zane’s entire form stiffen at the contact, so maybe he felt it too. Or maybe he was just repulsed by my touch. Which, by considering how much he seemed to despise me, wasn’t a stretch.