Chapter One
Reva
“Barbara! Pssst! Get over here.”
Barbara raised her head to look at me but didn’t budge.
“Get over here right now,” I demanded. My tone was firm, and I meant business.
Barbara tipped her head to the side.
“Get your ass over here, Barbara. I am not playing with you anymore.” I didn't know what the hell had compelled her to go traipsing over there, but she needed to get her ass back over to me.
She stared at me for a second longer and then turned away.
“Hey!”
Oh, shit. I hung my head. This is what I was trying to avoid. Slinking around the backyard of the local motorcycle club was something I normally didn’t do. “This is all your fault, Barbara,” I grumbled.
“Who the hell are you talking to?”
I glanced over my shoulder. The low, intoxicating voice was attached to a tall, tattooed man with a black leather vest over a white t-shirt. His long legs were encased in a pair of light denim jeans with a hole in the right knee. Dark sunglasses covered his eyes, and his lips were turned down in a scowl. He was handsome. Too handsome.
“Uh, Barbara?” Apparently, I wasn’t too sure of my answer. Maybe because this wasn't how I pictured my day playing out.
I didn’t think it was possible, but he scowled even more. “There’s two of you back here?”
I peeked back over my shoulder at Barbara, who had moved further into the backyard. “Well, yeah.”
“You know this is private property, right?” He dropped his arms to his sides and moved toward me.
“Yeah.” I had figured that out when I pushed open the gate that had a large yellow sign with black block letters that boasted NO TRESPASSING.
“So you wanna tell me why you’re back here?” he grunted.
I hitched my thumb over my shoulder. “Barbara.”
“Is she drunk or something? Can’t read?” The guy stalked toward me.
I shrugged. “Uh, or something?” I turned back to Barbara and moved further into the backyard.
“That’s a dog.”
I glanced back at a tall, dark, and tattooed man. “Astute observation.”
Barbara lifted her head at the guy’s voice. She panted heavily and bound across the yard toward me. Finally.
She leapt into the air and landed squarely in the guy’s arms. “Oof,” he grunted. “What the hell?”
Maybe he wasn’t a dog person, but Barbara didn’t seem to care about that. “She likes you,” I said simply.
She licked his face wildly and panted.
“She thinks she’s a lap dog or something,” he grumbled.
That was the damn truth. Barbara was a standard size poodle who was spoiled rotten, and I swore she thought she was human. “I’ll take her. I was in the middle of dealing with Hopper when she ran out.”
This guy obviously hadn’t been too happy to find me in his backyard, so it was probably for the best to grab Barbara and run.
“You really named her Barbara?” he asked. He rubbed her head and actually gave her a half smile. Her tongue lolled off to the side, and she rested her head on his shoulder.
I scoffed and shook my head. “No.”
He quirked his eyebrow.
I sighed. “I own the groomers across the street. She’s supposed to be getting a cut and shampoo today.” I reached out and petted her head. “She obviously had other plans when she got dropped off.”