Ride with the Wind [The Ghost Riders 1] (2 page)

He dropped the towel then sat on the bed and wished he hadn’t stopped smoking. He could use one. Instead, he climbed under the sheet and crossed his arms behind his head. It was going to be a long day tomorrow. He needed to get what sleep he could. With a sigh, he turned over and closed his eyes.

* * * *

“I’m sorry, Raven. You know how Monica can be.” Chaz shrugged and waited while she strapped on her backpack, having already stowed the rest of her clothes in one of the saddlebags.

“I don’t get it. I don’t hang around you. Where does she get the idea I’m fucking you? Hell, when would we even have the chance, considering she’s all over you all the time?”

“Someone’s planting thoughts in her head. I’m going to find out who it is and put an end to it. Then you can come back. It shouldn’t be more than a month or two.”

Raven fastened her helmet and climbed on the back of Chaz’s bike. She looked around at what had been home for the last three years and sighed. She had a feeling she’d never see it again. How she and Monica could have gone from best friends to enemies still confused her. She was going to miss Oklahoma. She was already missing Monica.

Up until recently, she and Monica had been best friends. They’d shared everything, outside of Chaz, Monica’s husband. She hadn’t thought anything could separate them. Raven had believed that she would probably spend the rest of her life living with or close to her. Instead, Monica thought she was poaching in her territory with her husband.

Needless to say, it hurt that Monica didn’t trust her anymore. Once again her world was being turned upside down. First finding out about her fiancé’s sickening preferences and now losing her best friend and home.

They pulled out of the compound with three of the others behind them. Monica was out of town and had given Chaz the ultimatum that either Raven was gone when she got back or she was leaving. She was the president’s wife and old lady. Chaz loved her and would do whatever it took to keep her happy. That meant Raven had to leave.

She sighed. Her ass was going to be sore after this trip. They would be on the road for seven hours. Knowing Chaz, there wouldn’t be many rest stops on the way either. He was a diehard-in-the-saddle type of biker.

They did make a stop a little over three hours into the trip for lunch. Raven took her hamburger outside and ate standing up next to a truck stop, watching the big rigs drive by. She remembered a night nearly four years earlier when she’d caught a ride on one of those big rigs and nearly got killed. The driver had been dosing on speed to stay awake and ran off the road outside of Stillwater, Oklahoma. She’d slipped out of the wreck after making sure he was alive and hiked back to the town. She could still remember the guy’s name, Jimmy Hudson. After getting a job in a diner there in Stillwater, she eventually hooked up with Chaz’s gang when Monica had taken a liking to her after she saved her husband’s life. Now that was all gone.

“You ready to roll?” Chaz walked out of the building, pulling on his gloves.

“Better let me hit the bathroom first. I’ll be right back.” She crumbled up her wrapper and tossed it in the garbage as she walked inside.

After washing her hands, she hurried back outside to join the others. She didn’t think Chaz would leave her behind, but she didn’t want to take the chance by wasting time looking around either.

They climbed on once again and pulled back out on the interstate to four more hours of monotony. She settled back into her mind and thought about the book she was working on. Raven wrote erotic romance on the side. She was pretty successful, too. It filled a need inside of her and helped the gang with finances. She wondered what The Ghost Riders’ leader would think about that. If it meant money, he’d be all over it, she was sure.

Would it keep her from having to start over in the bottom of the barrel, back to doing all the scrubbing and washing for the gang? Not that she was lazy or anything, but doing all the grunt work took away from her writing time, and that was where the money was. She would have to see if his old lady would understand. She was who she would have to deal with.

“Looks like rain up ahead. We’re going to pull over and wrap up.”

“Hell, I hate rain gear.”

“Better than riding in wet leathers.” Chaz chuckled over the mic.

They pulled off under a bridge and pulled out the rain gear. Raven wouldn’t have bothered, but she didn’t want her computer to get wet. She pulled on the poncho and got one of the other guys to wrap it around the backpack for her. Then she waited while Chaz got settled before climbing back on.

“How are you doing?”

“Fine. My ass is going to be toast by the time we get there, though.”

Chaz laughed. “Not much longer now. Dominic is expecting us.”

“So he knows about me?”

“Um, well, not exactly. I just told him I was coming with a favor to ask.”

“And I’m the favor.” She closed her eyes and prayed she wasn’t walking into another problem.

“He’s a good guy, Raven. He’ll do you right.”

“What about his old lady? Is she going to see me as a problem?”

“Unless he’s hooked up in the last six months, he’s a free rider.”

She wasn’t sure if that was good news or bad news. It would mean that whoever was top of the pecking order might see her as an adversary. Things could get worse.

“Chaz, maybe I should just find a place and settle down.”

“We’ve talked about this. You like the lifestyle, and there’s still that asshole looking for you. You’re safer with the gang. Now you’ll be in the middle of the nest. You can’t get any safer than that.”

Raven prayed he was right. Moving around was cool as far as that little business went, but she still thought she might be able to find a little town somewhere to settle down in and stay under the radar. If things didn’t work out with Dominic’s group, she would do that. She had enough money to set up housekeeping somewhere if she were careful. She could do it.

“Not much longer. Looks like the rain is letting up, too.”

“Hell of a way to make a first impression, Chaz. I’ll look like a wet cat.”

He chuckled over the mic and revved the motor before shooting ahead of the others. He was obviously anxious to get there. No doubt he wanted to get back home and make up with Monica. She couldn’t help but wonder who she’d have to “make up” with tonight.

Dominic walked out of the garage office at six thirty at the sound of bikes pulling into the lot. Reece walked up next to him from one of the bays where he’d been working.

“Isn’t that Chaz? What’s he doing here?”

“Called yesterday and asked if he could come talk about a favor he needed.”

“Didn’t think to tell me about it?”

“Figured it wasn’t anything major and you’d be here when he got here anyway.”

Reece frowned but didn’t say anything.

Chaz and his riders stopped about twenty-five yards out from the building and climbed off their bikes. Someone got off behind Chaz. Dominic figured it was his old lady, Monica. When the helmet came off, he knew better. Monica didn’t have long black hair. What the fuck was going on? Chaz loved his old lady.

“Shit. Something’s wrong. That ain’t Monica.” Reece pulled his hands out of his pockets.

Dominic waited while the group walked up. When they stopped a few feet away, Dominic nodded at him.

“Chaz. How was the ride in?”

“Wet, but uneventful.”

“Come in and dry off. We can talk over a beer.”

Dominic turned and walked toward the building, knowing Reece and the rest of the gang had his back. Not that he didn’t trust Chaz and his guys, but he didn’t know the woman. Somehow he had a feeling this involved her.

They settled around the bar in the den, and Irish handed out cold beer. They talked about business and the general state of the nation for a while before Dominic brought up his reason for the visit.

“What did you want to talk about, Chaz?”

“What I’d like to talk to you about is sensitive in nature.” Chaz looked Dominic straight in the eyes.

Dominic looked over at Reece, who was staring at the female across the room. She still had on her backpack. Her long black hair accented her pale skin and the way she curved in all the right places. He could tell that she had dark eyes, though exactly what color they were was still a mystery. Her generous breasts and rounded ass had his attention as well.

“Reece?”

“Yeah.”

Dominic led the way to their sanctuary, where they did club business. Reece closed and locked the door behind them. Then he sat down on Dominic’s left. Chaz took the chair to the right and slowly sank into it. He looked miserable. Fuck. This couldn’t be good.

“What’s going on, Chaz?”

“This is more personal than anything. That’s why I didn’t want to talk about it out there.”

“Does it involve the woman you had riding in with you?” Reece asked.

“Yeah.”

“Fuck, Chaz. I thought you loved Monica. Is this bitch pregnant?” Reece leaned back in the chair.

“No! It’s nothing like that. Well, something like that. Ah, hell.” Chaz rubbed his hands over his face.

“Back off, Reece. What is it, Chaz?” Dominic crossed his arms on the table.

“Her name is Raven. She needs a temporary home. She was staying with us, but Monica thinks we’re doing the dirty and wants her gone. The thing is, they used to be best friends, and someone is poisoning Monica’s head with shit lately. I’ve got to get to the bottom of it, but I need to know that Raven will be safe.”

“Who is Raven to you?” Dominic asked.

“A friend. She was Monica’s best friend. The thing is, she saved my life about three years ago, and I promised to keep her safe from then on.”

“How did she save your life?” Reece leaned forward now.

“We were at a bar outside of Stillwater after a ride, and things got a little out of hand. Guy came at me from behind with a knife, and she stopped him. He beat the hell out of her before I knew what was going on to stop him. One of my guys saw it all but couldn’t get across the room to stop it.”

“So you promised her what?” Reece asked, cocking his head.

“She’s on the run from an ex that wants her out of the picture, permanently. She cramps his style, and he doesn’t want her to suddenly show up and cause problems.”

“So take care of this ex and she’s free to go wherever.” Reece shrugged.

Dominic figured it must be deeper than just a disgruntled ex. Chaz was good about handling things in his territory.

“It’s not that simple. He’s high profile.” Chaz drew in a deep breath and steepled his fingers on the table. “He’d never think to look for her with a biker gang. She isn’t from the streets. We just keep our ears to the ground, and she stays quiet.”

“So you’re wanting us to take her while you straighten shit out with your old lady.” Dominic looked over at Reece. “What do you think?”

“Who is the ex?”

Chaz winced. “Michael Teller.”

“Family Values Michael Teller?” Reece grinned from ear to ear. “I guess her running with a biker gang would sort of hurt his reputation.”

“What happened to begin with? She was obviously hiding from him before she hooked up with you.” Dominic could tell there was more to the story.

“They were engaged to be married until she found out that he was more interested in young boys than her. Seeing as he’s the head spokesman for Family Values, it wouldn’t look good if that got out. Not to mention that it’s illegal and just plain wrong to mess with kids.”

Reece whistled.

“So he’s hoping to make her go away.” Dominic nodded.

“Yep. She pretty much burned those bridges.”

“Convincing him to leave her be wouldn’t be an option then.” Reece shook his head.

“You said temporary. You’re planning to smooth things out with Monica and take her back?”

“That’s the plan. I made a promise to her, and I mean to keep it. I don’t foist off my promises onto someone else’s shoulders.” Chaz frowned.

Dominic leaned back again and thought about it. She was a beautiful woman from what he could tell. Reece had seemed to be interested in her. He hadn’t really shown much of an interest in anyone in a long time. Maybe it would be a good thing for them. He looked over at Reece. The other man nodded his head.

“Okay, we’ll take her temporarily.”

“She stays until she wants to go back,” Reece interrupted.

Dominic jerked his head toward his second. There was something in the other man’s eyes that made him think before he told him to back off.

“I agree with Reece. You’re uprooting her, and she’s already on the run. If she comes here, she stays until she wants to go.”

“Fuck!”

“Take it or leave it,” Dominic said and watched the emotions play across the other man’s face.

It was obvious that he cared about Raven and wanted the best for her. It was also apparent that he loved his wife. Getting stuck between the two had to be pure hell. This would also be about trust. Did they have Chaz’s trust and loyalty in the gang? He was seven hours away and one of their closest chapters. If they needed them, they were supposed to come.

“There’s one other thing you need to know about her before you accept her then.”

“What is that?” Reece asked.

“She writes books. She uses another name, so no one knows but a few of us in the gang. It brings in some money.”

Dominic nodded, a smile growing on his face. Bingo, that was where most of the emotion came from. She was a source of money for the gang. Losing her temporarily would be tough, but permanently would create an income loss.

“Tell you what. We’ll send you some business now and then to make up for your loss. Offer stands.”

Chaz hesitated but nodded in the end.

“Goes without saying that she’s taken care of.”

“Goes without saying.” Dominic stood up.

Reece followed suit, and then Chaz did. They all shook hands. He looked equal parts relieved and disgusted at the same time. Dominic could guess why. He was getting rid of a multilayer problem on one hand but losing a source of money on the other. Still, despite it all, Chaz honestly seemed to care about her on some level. They needed to be prepared that she might decide to return to Chaz’s once he had everything worked out with his old lady.