Chapter One
Knock Him to His Knees
Tiny
Twisted Talons, the bar owned by the Riot MC, ranked as one of Tiny’s favorite places in Biloxi. It bordered on being a dive, which kept out most of the hipsters – there were always a few who came in just to say they were edgy. The biker bar was dim enough people had to give their eyes time to adjust when they came in. Even though he still gave Cynic grief about it, the neon purple back lighting was a great touch and unexpected in a bar owned by bikers.
In that moment, he despised that purple light casting a glow on everyone in the room. It only served to make everyone look better, and it was the last thing he needed. One of the most beautiful women he’d ever laid eyes on sat at the bar. Her big brown eyes were intent on Trinity, Roman’s old lady, but she had a man’s arms around her waist. Olivia and Detective Dennizen were as serious as two people could be about each other.
Out of nowhere, a small hand grabbed his forearm. “Yo, Baron of Bacon! My girl here needs your help.”
He turned to see Heidi standing next to a petite, dark-haired woman who appeared to be in her thirties. The dim lighting made it difficult to tell. Easy to tell was that she was stunning. Against his will, he started to smile, but he held it to just a twitch of his lips.
His mouth opened to speak, but a deep voice shouted from behind him. “Sierra, I told you not to hang with this bitch.”
Tiny saw the man reaching for Sierra, and he quickly maneuvered so she was behind him. Not many people could reach over Tiny’s six-foot-three frame.
Block moved in behind the asshole. “Who the fuck are you calling a bitch?”
Next thing Tiny knew, Block threw a punch at the asshole’s jaw and they were on the verge of starting a bar brawl.
“God damn it, Block,” Tiny yelled.
Block aimed angry eyes at Tiny, then nodded at Sierra. “Take her and get out of here, man.”
“What? I don’t even know this woman!” he yelled.
Heidi waved between them. “Sierra, this is Tiny. Tiny, this is my friend Sierra. She needs your help with this asshat ex-boyfriend.”
The asshat shook his head while he held his jaw. “She’s comin’ with me.”
“No, I’m not. We’re done, Eric,” Sierra said.
Eric glared at Sierra. “We’re done when I say we’re done.”
That set Tiny’s teeth on edge, and he came between them, getting in Eric’s face. “The fuck you are. She says she’s done, that’s it. Now back the fuck off.”
Cynic, Finn, and a prospect had sidled up to Eric. At first glance, Tiny thought he’d go quietly, but he should have known better. The dumbass put up a fight.
Instinct kicked in and Tiny whirled, grabbed Sierra’s hand and led her out a side exit.
Even over the din of the bar, he heard Heidi asking where he was going to take this woman.
He wished he knew the answer.
Out in the alley, he led Sierra to his bike. In the streetlights, it was worse. No, it was better, but worse for him. Sierra’s beauty had the power to knock him to his knees.
He shook his head. “You drive here or what?”
“Yeah,” Sierra said, nodding.
“And that asshole knows your car?”
“Yeah,” she drawled, nodding much slower.
He handed her his helmet. “Pray you’ve been on a bike before. Get on behind me, woman.”
She looked down at the helmet and her mouth fell open.
He sat forward on his bike. “Lady, we don’t have a lot of time. Put on the helmet, then get on.”
Stiltedly, she put the helmet over her head and clasped the strap. What she didn’t do was move to get on his bike. Her brown eyes – eyes even more beautiful than Olivia’s – sought his. “He can’t get my son.”
Fuck.
“Is he your son’s father?”
She sneered at him. “Not just no, but fuck, no.”
He dipped his chin. “Then you got nothin’ to worry about. Get on the bike, Sierra.”
“How do you know that?”
With a deep inhale, he fought for patience. “I know that because my brothers would never let that asshole hurt a child. But… my brothers can’t restrain that asshole much longer. So, Sierra, please… get the fuck on my bike.”
After what felt like half a year, she clambered on behind him. The relief he felt was overwhelming, but he didn’t let himself examine it too closely. He cranked the engine and got them out of the parking lot.
While they coasted down Beach Boulevard, it hit him. The clubhouse was a no-go. Seeing as that was the most obvious place to go, it would make them sitting ducks.
That wasn't the only reason he couldn't take her there. The night before, they'd brought in a man who'd threatened Block, and as far as Tiny knew, they were still holding that man. The club didn't need extra attention, from the police or Eric.
Fuck.
Shit.
Dammit.
He never took women to his apartment.
Not ever.
Somehow, he didn’t think Eric was going to slink away quietly. In fact, some strange instinct made him suspect Eric had tricks up his sleeve.
The idea of taking Sierra to a hotel room appealed since he could drop her off and let her sleep in peace. His gut said that was a bad idea.
He shifted his bike into a higher gear. They roared through town and just before the bridge into Oceanway, he hung a left. Sierra clung to him and he found he liked that far more than he should have.
Casinos in Biloxi were much like the performers they often hosted, constantly re-inventing themselves for the crowds. Tiny guided his Harley into the parking lot of a property that was closed for remodeling.
He put down his kickstand and patted Sierra’s thigh – willing himself to ignore how nice it felt to have a woman on his bike.
She dismounted and he powered down the engine and followed suit.
Her fingers went to the chinstrap of the helmet, and he stilled her hand. “Sorry about this, but we don’t have many options here. I’m not taking you to wherever your son is. Your crazy ex is probably headed that way himself.”
“He doesn’t know where my mom lives,” she argued.
He pressed his lips together. Dropping her at her mom’s could work, but he didn’t like it. “Were you planning to pick up your son tonight?”
She paused for a long beat. “I… left it open-ended with Mom.”
Tiny nodded. “Then let’s stick with that. We need to put as much space and distance between you and this asshole as possible. I’d put you in a hotel right now, but a crazy part of me thinks he’s got a way of keeping tabs on you.”
She looked to the side and he didn’t miss the shame filling her expression. “Crazy as it sounds, I think you’re right.”
He crossed his arms on his chest, garnering her attention. “He already knows I’m a biker and I ran off with you, so we can’t hit the clubhouse.”
Her eyes widened. “Really?”
“Yeah. Leaves us with one option. My place.”
“Okay,” she said with a short headshake.
He breathed out a chuckle. “It’s really not okay, but you’ll find that out for yourself soon enough.”
Sierra leveled a dry look at him. “You’re a single man, right?”
“Yeah,” he said.
“It can’t be that bad,” she said, grinning.
That grin, those eyes, and he was going to hell for noticing her voluptuous curves, but he found himself attracted to Sierra. An attraction stronger than any he’d felt in over a year.
Fuck.
Never before had he wished he had a housekeeper, but suddenly he’d give his left arm to make that happen.
He smiled at her. “Hate to say it, but you’re gonna eat those words, darlin’. Now, let’s ride.”
***
Sierra
I followed Tiny’s hulking frame inside the apartment. It took a moment for my eyes to adjust and then I realized why he thought bringing me here would be bad. His apartment was a studio.
He only had one bed.
Whatever, I could sleep on the floor. No big deal. I’d been camping with J.J. Sleeping on the ground made a carpeted floor seem like a cot.
The last ninety minutes caught up with me and my anxiety mounted. “What am I gonna do?” I breathed.
He turned to me and opened his arms. Instinctively, I flinched.
His eyes blazed and his hands came up in front of his chest in a surrender-type motion.
After a moment he dropped his hands and bit out, “I’m sorry.”
My eyes locked on his fists, which were clenching and unclenching.
I shook my head. “No, no. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make you mad.”
“Sierra, you didn’t make me mad at all.”
“You seem mad. Making fists and stuff.”
His lips pressed into a firm line – so much so, I didn’t see his lush lips for a good two seconds. “I’m fuckin’ pissed at my damn self.”
“What? You did nothing wrong!”
“I made you flinch.”
“It wasn’t your fault—”
His beard shifted as his lips twisted with skepticism. “Yeah. It wasn’t me directly, but my dumbass didn’t know your story. I’m a big man and I know it. So when I open my arms, it shouldn’t make you flinch, but it did. That’s on your man — hopefully, now ex-man — but it’s also on me for not finding out your sitch.”
“It’s far from your fault.”
“We’ll agree to disagree. Just know, standing offer, you want or need a hug, I’m here and give great hugs.”
Merriam-Webster needed to change their website right now, to list my picture under the definition of the word ‘conflicted’. I wanted a hug from a big burly man so bad it wasn’t funny, but I hadn’t been touched in a loving way by any man since my father passed away eighteen months ago. Eric didn’t even let my younger brother hug me.
The idea of hugging Tiny was a scary prospect to me too… what if I liked it? Something told me I wouldn’t like it, I would love it.
Nope. No. Couldn’t do it. That was playing with fire, and God knew I was playing with enough fire at the moment. No need to add napalm to the mix.
Then again, who was I kidding? I loved playing with fire like my son loved Doritos. Fully and recklessly.
In a small voice I didn’t recognize as my own, I asked, “Can a woman get more than one?”
His neck craned and he lowered his chin. “I’m sorry, what was that?”
I bit my lower lip and mustered my courage. “The hugs. Is more than one on offer?”
He straightened and I fully took in his eyes. They weren’t entirely blue, more of a gray-blue, like the Gulf of Mexico on a cloudy day; a color I hadn’t seen anywhere else.
He cleared his throat. “Yeah. I’m like a buffet, all you care to eat… or in this case, hug.”
I nodded and decided to put it all out there. “Well… Tiny, it’s been a long time since a man gave me a hug that didn’t end with violence, so, I’d like to take you up on your offer. If you’re willing.”
His face turned and I noticed he had a nice nose. It wasn’t something I normally paid attention to, but with his face in profile, I couldn’t help myself. Angular without any hooks or bumps, a plastic surgeon might even think it was picture-perfect.
“You want a hug, from me? You’re sure?”
My eyebrows quirked with my grin. “Never surer.”
His arms moved in slow motion.
The scent of leather from his vest hit me while I stepped forward. I wrapped my arms around his torso and his arms encircled my shoulders.
With a deep breath, I reveled in his warmth, his scent, and the solid strength of his body.
I was right.
I loved getting hugs from this lumberjack of a biker.
With a contented sigh, I shifted to look up at him.
Our eyes met for the briefest moment before he pulled his body away from me.
Talk about a let-down.
“Thanks,” I whispered.
“You’re welcome,” he said, and his voice sounded rougher.
I shifted around him and realized how compact his space really was. With just three steps, I found myself standing at the foot of his bed.
This night couldn’t get any stranger. I turned to face him. “I don’t think I mentioned this, but I really appreciate you getting me away from Eric.”
“Not a problem, Sierra.”
I nodded once. “Right, well, you got me away from him. No way he’ll find this place, so I should just get a cab or order an Uber and I’ll stay with Mom tonight.”
His eyes closed and he rubbed his hand over one side of his face. He opened his eyes and I saw his patience was slipping. “You could do that, but then what? You and your boy go back home and that asshole’s there, what are you gonna do?”
I pressed my lips together and thought about it. “Eric has to work, you know. He’s not going to be lying in wait for me. That’s crazy.”
My cell dinged with a notification. Then another.
Tiny’s eyes went to my purse. “You gonna check that? Make sure it isn’t your son?”
The way he said the word ‘son’ I wondered if it bothered him that I was a mother. Then I wondered why I cared. This wasn’t a date, and if I could get rid of Eric I was swearing off dating for the next four years.
My goals had just rearranged themselves. Get J.J. out of high school and into college, find a nice cat, help Mom downsize her house, and then win the lottery. Finding another Mr. Right was officially off the table.
I pulled my phone out of my purse – and stopped breathing.
I’m in your driveway. That biker has to bring you home sometime.
Get your ass back here. Or I’ll introduce myself to J.J. and your mom.
In my peripheral vision, I noticed Tiny’s boots were a foot away from me.
He made a humming sound. “Sounds like he knows where your Mom lives, after all. Can they stay with a neighbor?”
I looked up. “What? Why wouldn’t I just call the cops? What’s the non-emergency line?”
He folded his arms across his chest, a hint of a tattoo peeking out of his t-shirt sleeve. “Don’t know it, but consider this. It’ll take a good half hour for a cruiser to show up at your house. By then he might still be there, or he might be on the way to your Mom’s. He hasn’t threatened your son outright.”
My head tilted. “He just needs to leave us alone.”
“Had you said that before?”
“I told him things were over two weeks ago.”
He gave a short nod and I admired his beard. “Seems that didn’t go so well.”
I shook my head. “I need to confront this.”
His head tilted in a conciliatory way. “Which you can do in the morning, after a good night’s sleep.”
My eyes darted to his bed. “I don’t want to impose.”
“Impose?”
My eyes widened. “Well, you only have one bed. I mean, I can sleep on the floor, but that won’t be a ‘good night’s sleep,’ and I’m not going to kick you out of your bed.”
“Neither one of us is sleeping on the floor.” His eyes moved along my body, but it didn’t feel sexual. “You’re a real looker, Sierra, but you’re out of my league and I don’t know you. I’m not gonna do anything to you, and we can share the bed.”
I did not think I was out of his league. My eyes strayed toward the bed and I fought stating the obvious.
After a moment of silence, he asked, “What’s the problem?”
“As big and tall as you are, that bed seems small. How come you don’t sleep in a king bed?”
A glimmer of heat hit his eyes. It came and went so fast, I thought I imagined it. “King bed would barely fit in here and wouldn’t leave much room to get to the john, woman. Besides, I’m the only person who sleeps here.” His eyes went to the side and back. “Until tonight.”
My brows furrowed, but I kept my question about other women to myself. Tiny’s expression shifted before he shook his head.
“Sorry, it’s not my business.”
He shrugged. “No, but don’t worry. I mentioned the clubhouse earlier. King bed fits perfect in my room there.”
I lifted my chin. “Right. I didn’t mean to be nosy. My facial expressions always get me into trouble.”
He crossed the room to a small closet. “I got a t-shirt you can sleep in tonight.” He tossed it onto the bed and closed the closet door. “I’ll hit the bathroom so you can change. See if I got a spare toothbrush.”
If someone had told me that I’d be sleeping in a stranger’s bed tonight, I’d have laughed in their face. The moment the bathroom door closed, I quickly took off my blouse, sighed with relief at losing my bra, and slipped into his shirt. I sat on the bed, unzipped my knee-high boots, and set them to the side. With care, I hid my bra inside one of my boots. It wasn’t that I was embarrassed by my bra, but at the same time I didn’t want to flaunt that I was braless.
The bathroom door opened, and Tiny wandered to the kitchenette. “Left a toothbrush out for you. I’m ready to hit the sack. I gotta be at work at seven-twenty, so it’d be good if we got some shut-eye.”
“Got it. I’ll be fast. Just need to call my Mom and wash up.”
To my surprise, the bathroom had more room than I expected. I settled myself on the closed toilet lid, and dialed my Mom.
“Tell me you’ve met someone,” she answered.
I huffed out a laugh. “Not really. Eric made a scene at the bar we went to and—”
“‘He got arrested’ is the only right way to end that sentence, dear.”
I shook my head. “From the text message he sent me, he’s sitting in my driveway and he’s threatening to introduce himself to you and J.J. even though I didn’t think he knew where you lived.”
Mom didn’t miss a beat. “Good thing I got Colt here.”
“Who’s Colt?”
“My gun, silly.”
My eyes widened. I’d forgotten about her firearm. “Do not let J.J.—”
“That boy is so glued to his cell phone, he has no idea I have Colt on standby.”
Her gun was a much larger caliber than she needed. We’d argued about it after she bought it, but since I didn’t live with her, she won.
“Now, what are you gonna do, sweetie? You can’t go to your place with him in your drive.”
“That’s just it. J.J.’s basketball coach was at the bar and one of her friends got me out of there. I’m at his place.”
“He wouldn’t be one of the other basketball coaches would he? I think Eric could take a—”
“He’s a biker, and he’s big, Mom. You might even say he’s thick.”
“Really?” She sounded far too intrigued.
“Let it go, Mom. It’s nothing like that. He did me a favor, that’s it. I hate to ask, but do you mind getting J.J. to school?”
“Fine, but I’m more than willing to spend time with my grandson if it means you find someone who will actually take care of you both.”
“Duly noted, Mom. I’ll text J.J. goodnight.”
Mom scoffed. “Texting goodnight. What has this world come to?”
I chuckled. “I don’t want to let on that something is wrong. J.J. can read me, even over the phone.”
“Now that I can understand. Take care of yourself, Sierra.”
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