Ride Dirty (9 page)

Chapter 31

Sam

I sat down on the squeaky, uncomfortable chair in the tiny break room and let my heavy head fall into my hands. Just seeing Cory had broken my heart even more. I’d had a restless night of sleep after yesterday’s ordeal and today I was exhausted as a result. Exhaustion and heartbreak were always a bad combination, and the two things tended to feed off one another. I focused on inhaling deeply and then exhaling slowly to calm my frazzled nerves. That asshole had really had the nerve to just waltz in here with a coffee like nothing had happened. Unbelievable. Un-freakin-believable.

Shelly burst into the back room and looked down at me with concern. “Sam, are you okay?”

I forced myself to straighten up. I wasn’t going to let that guy rule my emotions. “Yeah I’ll be fine. Thanks, Shel.” I gave her a weak smile.

“What happened this weekend, Sam? On Friday you left here and it looked like you were sitting on top of the world. This morning you came in looking like you’d been rolled over by that same world.”

“It’s nothing, really. I’m fine, just a little tired is all.” Shelly knew me very well, and I knew there was no way of convincing her that was true.

“Uh huh.” She looked at me questioningly. “So I suppose that ugly little exchange out there with Mr. Hunk was all because you’re
tired
?”

“I really don’t want to talk about it right now. Okay?” I stood up. “Let’s just get back to work.” Shelly nodded in agreement and walked out to the front. I followed close behind.

It was a quiet morning in the store, thank God. We’d only had a few customers, and the down time allowed my head some much needed time to think. I kept thinking back on how wonderful the weekend with Cory had been, how everything had been picture perfect until, well, the actual picture.  Maybe he was telling the truth. Maybe he hadn’t had anything to do with Megan’s naked pic.
No, no Sam. You can’t give in that easily.
It was impossible that he had any explanation good enough to erase what I’d seen. It was my fault, I’d let myself fall for him too quickly. I’d allowed my body and my heart to succumb to his charms too easily.  It was like he’d put me under some kind of spell.

As I worked, I kept catching the coffee and pastry bag out of the corner of my eye. They were still sitting on the front counter right where Cory had left them. It was a sweet gesture. He was obviously trying to make up for the mess. But was he really telling the truth or just trying to play me?

Chapter 32

Cory

It was late afternoon and the sun was just starting to fade as I pulled up to Josh’s place. I backed my truck into the Commander’s driveway and threw it in park. My morning with Sam had not gone as I’d hoped. She hadn’t even given me a chance to explain, which really pissed me off. I understood she was hurt. But I wasn’t exactly feeling great either.  I was ready to get away for a few days. Josh was filming for the Fearless video as well so we were carpooling out to Vegas.

In my rearview mirror, I spotted Josh coming down the drive. I opened my door and hopped down.

He swung his giant gear bag over the side of the bed. “Sup, Steele.” We bumped fists.

“Ready to get the fuck outta town for a few days,” I replied.

He nodded in agreement. “Me too. I’m stoked they called you to come out. It should be sick.” Josh had been sponsored by Fearless for a few years, and he had done a lot of promos with the company. I’d been catching flow and some small paychecks from them, but I’d never been in one of their videos before.

***

It was well after midnight when we drove into town. But for the city that never sleeps it was like pulling up at the bustling start of the day. The streets were packed with people, and traffic was totally jammed. We were filming somewhere in the desert just outside Las Vegas, but they had put us up in a hotel at the edge of the strip for the week.

“Want to grab a beer?” the Commander asked as we reached our neighboring rooms.

“Nah, I think I’m just going to chill and try to get some sleep,” I said. After the long weekend, sleepless night and disappointing morning I was exhausted.

“C’mon man, it’s fucking Vegas. Let’s hit the bar downstairs. We’ve got to be up early so we’ll just grab a beer or two.”

I thought about it, and maybe a beer would help me finally relax and get some rest. “Yeah, all right,” I agreed.

Chapter 33

Sam

The work week felt like it was going in slow motion. I hadn’t heard any more from Cory, which I was both happy and, at the same time, disappointed about. It seemed I’d gotten through to him when I ran him off the second time. Deep down I’d really hoped that he’d fight harder to get me back. Perhaps I should have given him a fair chance to explain himself.

I plucked my running shoes from the closet and sat at the edge of my bed to pull them on. It was Thursday afternoon and I was glad that I only had one more day of work before the weekend. Although, without work I worried I may have an even harder time keeping my mind off Cory. Who was I kidding, even with work I was struggling to think of anything else.

The air outside was cool and it helped to refresh my mind and soul as I started jogging down the street. With each step my feet took, I felt the stress of the week melting away. By the time I rounded the final corner before my neighborhood, I was feeling renewed. I’d known all along that a run would help my mood, but I’d been feeling too tired and low to drag my butt out to do it. Now I regretted having waited so long.

The sun was just starting to set as I ascended the short flight of steps that led to my building. A beautiful orange-pinkish hue filled the sky and I stood outside a moment to admire the colorful horizon. During my jog I’d decided that I might have overreacted about the whole situation. I planned on texting Cory to meet up and talk, give him a fair chance to save his reputation in my eyes before completely kicking him to the curb for good. I texted him after I got back inside.

I set my phone down and went to shower and get cleaned up. If he did want to meet tonight, I had to be sure I was looking my best. After spending some extra time in the shower to deep condition my hair and exfoliate, I stepped out expecting to have a new message. Nothing.

I blow dried my hair and got dressed. When I checked my phone again there was still no response.
Maybe it was too late and I’d already scared him off,
I thought to myself. My mood darkened at that thought and I went and grabbed a bag of popcorn to pop in the microwave while I found a movie to watch on Netflix.

Halfway through
Breakfast at Tiffany’s
, my second film of the night, I heard my cell beep. It was getting late and there was no way I’d be seeing Cory tonight, if that was even what he wanted. I slid my finger across the screen and unlocked it.

< Hi Sam, I’d love to see you tonight but I can’t. I’m in Vegas. >

Vegas? Really?
I thought to myself. What a great place for him to go hang out with more naked girls.

< Oh okay. >

< Josh and I are out here filming for a new moto video. We’ll be back in town this weekend. >

He was there for work. Relief flooded my body.
What the hell was wrong with me?
I was turning into some sort of needy ninny of a girlfriend, and I wasn’t even his girlfriend! I definitely needed to tone the bitch back a notch or two. At least until I found out the truth about the picture.

< Oh cool. Text me when you’re back. Stay safe. >

Not sure why I’d felt the need to add that last part but after seeing that accident in the desert I was worried about the danger of Cory’s job. I clicked the television off and decided to try and catch some extra sleep.

Chapter 34

Sam

“You are going to love this one,” I told a woman who was purchasing a hardcover copy of The Hour I First Believed. “It’s one of my all-time favorites. Lamb’s writing style is so powerful.”

She smiled. “My best friend kept recommending I pick up his work, so I finally decided to go for it.”

“Your friend has good taste,” I replied. I rang her up and stuck the large book in a plastic bag before handing it over the countertop. “Happy reading,” I said.

“Thank you.” She picked up her purchase and left.

It was just about time for my lunch break and I called over to Shelly who was doing inventory in the far corner. “Hey, Shelly, I’m going to go grab a sandwich. Want me to bring you one back?”

She glanced up from her work. “No, thanks, I brought lunch from home today. You go ahead.”

I retrieved my purse from the employee area and left for the sandwich shop down the street. The line was stretched out the door when I arrived. I took my place in the queue and prepared myself for a long wait. My cell phone buzzed in my purse, and Jessie’s notorious Spice Girls ringtone began playing through the speaker. The guy standing ahead of me turned and gave a short laugh when he heard it.

“Hey, Jess, what’s—”

“Sam! Something happened. Josh is hurt and nobody will tell me how bad it is and I have to go out there,” she frantically started speaking without even taking a breath.

“Slow down, Jess, what happened?” I asked.

“I’m not sure. But one of the other girls was out at the Fearless shoot and she said Josh crashed and that they rushed him to the hospital. She said he was unconscious when they took him.” She let out a loud sob. “I just know it’s bad. I just have this feeling, and I need to be there. I need to be with him.” I’d never heard my best friend so upset before.

“Calm down, it’s okay. It will be okay. Let me see if Shelly can cover for me this afternoon and I’ll come pick you up.”

I could hear Jessie sniffling. “Thank you, Sam. Can you call Cory and see if he knows anything more?”

I hesitated. I hadn’t told Jessie about our fight, we’d both been busy with work all week and I hadn’t spoken to her since Glamis, and now was definitely not the time to bring it up. “Yeah, of course. I’ll call you back in a few minutes, okay? Just relax, I’m sure everything is fine.”

I walked briskly back toward Beely’s. Just as I was about to hit call on Cory’s number I lost my nerve and opened a new text instead.

< I heard Josh got hurt. Is he okay? Jessie is really worried. >

I yanked open the front door of the shop and hurried inside. “Hey, Shel, can you cover for me this afternoon?” I asked.

“Sure, no problem,” she replied. Shelly noticed my expression. “Is everything all right?”

I took a deep breath. “Yeah I think so. I need to go pick up Jessie. We’re going to Vegas.”

She looked at me with raised eyebrows. “What?”

“Yeah. The guy Jessie is dating is out there for work with Cory, and he got hurt. He’s in the hospital and Jess is frantic because she can’t get any details about his condition.”

“Oh gosh! Well, yes of course I’ll take care of the store. You get outta here,” she directed.

“Thanks, I owe you!”

Chapter 35

Cory

I read Sam’s text. I was just as worried as Jessie. I had been sitting in the hospital waiting room with a couple of the other guys for a few hours and we still hadn’t heard anything. The fall the Commander had taken was gnarly. He’d under rotated a flip and as his front tire clipped the landing he was sent flying head first into the hard packed dirt. I’d seen some bad headers in my day, but none that severe.

The paramedics had rushed him to the nearest trauma center, and that was the last we knew. He’d been unconscious at the time, and I hoped to fucking god that lack of consciousness was just his body’s defense mechanism kicking in. Josh was the toughest dude I knew, he had to be okay.

I tapped a response to Sam on my screen.

< He crashed pretty hard. The doctors haven’t told us anything yet. Not sure what’s going on. >

Finally, about thirty-five minutes later, a doctor in blue surgical scrubs approached us. I still had my moto gear on and so did the guy next to me so we were pretty easy to spot. “You are here with Mr. Lawrence, correct?”

I nodded my head and stood. “Yes. What’s going on?”

“I’m Dr. Langston.” He reached out and shook my hand. “Your friend suffered a pretty severe head injury, and there was significant swelling in his brain. We took him into the OR immediately to try and relieve some of the pressure. The surgery went well and we were able to eliminate some of the pressure, but we won’t know the extent of the damage for a while still. He may suffer some serious loss of brain function. It’s too early to tell yet.”

Fuck, that sounded bad. Really bad. I scrubbed my hands over my face. “Where is he now?”

“He’s in a recovery room in the ICU. He can’t have any visitors yet, but someone will come get you when it’s okay to come back.”

“Thank you,” I said. He nodded and walked back through the locked double doors and down the hallway.

Chapter 36

Sam

The monotonously long drive to Las Vegas seemed to stretch on even longer with the silence in our car. Jessie had remained quiet during the whole trip, which was extremely unusual for my usually chatty best friend. Her pale complexion had never brightened, and her body was tense with fear. Last I’d talked to Cory, he hadn’t known much about the details of Josh’s injuries, but it didn’t sound good. It seemed he and the other guys were as much in the dark about their Commander’s condition as we were.

The night sky had completely overtaken the evening by the time the off-ramp rolled into view. I flicked on my turn signal and reached my hand over to Jessie’s. I gave her hand a comforting squeeze. “We’re almost there, Jess. I’m sure that everything is going to be fine. Knowing how those guys are, Josh is probably getting ready to bust out of his hospital bed at this very moment.”

Jessie returned the slight pressure on my hand and glanced over at me. “I really hope you’re right.”

My car pulled into the visitor’s lot at the Las Vegas Community Hospital. I immediately spotted Cory’s massive truck on the far side, and I parked across from it. I wasn’t sure how this whole thing would play out. After all, I was supposed to be done with Cory, because he had done some shady shit. But the dire situation that had brought Jess and I on this unplanned road trip had given me a lot to think about. I really hoped that Josh was okay, but, selfishly, on the entire drive I’d been thinking about how grateful I was that Cory was all right.

I stepped out of the car and walked around to Jessie. She was sitting, unmoving in the passenger seat and I saw her hands trembling in her lap. I grasped the door handle and swung her door open. I reached in and offered her my hand. “Come on, Jess. I’m sure your hunky moto man is just waiting for you to make him feel all better.” She inhaled deeply and released the long breath slowly and with measured control. Her small, shaky hand met mine and I helped her out. We walked hand in hand toward the sliding front entrance doors.

“We’re here to see Josh Lawrence,” I told the woman at the reception window.

The friendly looking, slightly dowdy woman looked up with a smile. “Are you family?”

I began to reply, “Uh . . . no we’re—”

“Sam.” a deep, recognizable voice that I would know anywhere said from behind us. The receptionist looked at me, waiting for me to finish my answer. I ignored her and spun around to face Cory, the man who  I’d desperately missed over the past few days. Now it was my turn to take a deep, calming breath.

“They’re with me,” Cory said over my shoulder to the receptionist. The woman seemed content with that answer and returned to shuffling through paperwork on her desk.

Jessie gripped my arm tighter and looked to him. “Cory, is he all right?” she asked, her voice shaky with concern.

Cory nodded. “Don’t worry, Jess. Josh is going to be okay, and he’ll be happy that you’re here.” Jessie’s grasp loosened slightly and I felt her body relax some.

“Can I go see him?” she asked.

“He’s recovering in ICU right now, and the staff is being really picky about who is allowed to see him.” I could feel her disappointment, and the worry from earlier had returned.

“He’s in ICU?”

“They had to do emergency surgery when he arrived. The doctor has assured us that it went well, and we should be able to go see him soon.”

She gasped. “Emergency surgery?” The question came out on barely a whisper. Cory came closer and pulled Jessie in for a reassuring hug. My heart just about melted at the sight.

“It’s going to be all right. He’s going to be okay. I promise,” he told her comfortingly. Cory glanced over at me and I gave him a soft smile and slight nod. He and I needed to talk, but that was not the priority now. We needed to take care of Jess, and we needed to make sure Josh was truly okay.

The three of us sat in the uncomfortable waiting room for about another hour before a doctor emerged from the double doors. The man with the white lab coat approached us and Cory stood to meet him.

“Mr. Steele,” he said. He acknowledged our presence with a subtle chin lift. “Your friend, Mr. Lawrence, is stable and resting. He’s not awake but you can go see him now if you’d like.” He glanced back at us. “No more than two people at a time though. And you’ll have to make your visit brief. He really needs his rest.”

Jessie, who had been silent and subdued during our wait, suddenly stood and placed her hand on Cory’s shoulder. “I need to see him, Cory.”

“I know, and he needs you,” Cory replied. He thanked the doctor and looked back at me.

“Go ahead,” I motioned toward the hall with my hand. “I’ll be waiting for you two right here.”

The doctor spun around and headed back through the swinging double doors with Cory and Jessie in tow. As they disappeared down the hallway all I could think about was how glad I was to see that strong, tattooed, insanely sexy man. I realized how ridiculous I’d been in getting so pissed at him, and I needed to give him a fair shot at explaining himself. He was such a good friend to Josh, and he’d been in the hospital all day awaiting news of his friend’s condition. Cory had told us that Mike, their manager, and a few other guys from the shoot had been with him earlier in the day, but they’d all left by the time we’d arrived. The only time Cory had left was to go outside to his truck and change into regular clothes. The way he’d comforted Jess had just made me like him even more. There was no way I could leave Vegas without that man. That man I was crazy about.