ROMANCE: SPORTS ROMANCE: Tight End (Bad Boy Football Romance) (New Adult Alpha Male Sports Romance) (42 page)

A Motorcycle Club Romance

By: Tia Parker

Addicted

Chapter 1

“How are you doing Gran?”

Mara looked down at the old woman sitting down on the edge of the bed. She had just gotten in and pulled back the shades on the windows, letting the light shine in.

“I’m feeling alright. What time is it?”

“Almost noon Gran. Have you been staying up watching your soaps again?”

She shrugged and started to move the blankets back. Mara helped her some before she got up and went to the tray with her untouched breakfast. “I can’t help it. They have a channel that runs them all day. Did you know about that?”

Mara smiled and shook her head. “No, but you have to get some sleep. The director called me again. He is concerned about you.”

With a wave of her hand, the old woman got up and started towards the bathroom. “I don’t have time for all their activities. I would much rather play cards with Edith.”

Mara didn’t know what to think of her Gran. She was having one of her good days and since coming to Shady Pines, she was having more of them. Mara had wanted to keep her at home, but her grandmother had been so lonely since her husband died and at Shady Pines, there were lots of people her age for her to converse with. She was happier there and though Mara missed her terribly, she knew it was for the best.

The only problem was that Gran didn’t like to follow the rules. She was the rebel in the family and to have her only son so clean, it made for interesting upraising. Gran drove the directors that ran the nursing home off the wall with her rebel ways, but Mara had always admired that about her. She did whatever she wanted, no matter what people might think about that. Mara was always too worried about what people would think to ever really put herself out there.

She waited for her Gran to come back out of the bathroom, moving the uneaten food to the garbage and taking the tray to set up for lunch. They had lunch together every Wednesday and that day Mara had brought some soup. It was getting cold outside and it was Gran’s own recipe that she liked to make when the weather changed.

“It smells good Mara. Did you put the cinnamon and cayenne flakes in?”

Mara nodded. “Of course. No need to change perfection, right?”

The old woman had gotten dressed and she combed her hair back as she looked at her granddaughter in the mirror. It could have almost been her own reflection forty years before. The resemblance was uncanny and Gran liked that a part of her that looked so much like her, was going to carry on long after she was gone. She hoped that Mara too would have a daughter.

Mara had the same pale blonde hair and light blue eyes. It made her stand out and even as Gran’s depths started to fade, she loved to see herself reborn in Mara. She had always wanted a daughter, but only had one son, Mara’s father Alex. Mara was the closest that she was ever going to get and it was enough.

“I wouldn’t say it was perfect, but I hadn’t changed a thing since my mother made it. I am so glad you took to cooking. I tried at one time to get Alex involved in the kitchen, but he couldn’t be bothered. You know how he is, always looking to save the world. Dumplings were never high on his list.” pushing you to go into law as well. I am glad you didn’t”

Mara smiled and sat down with her, serving her some soup in a deep bowl. “I am a lot like him as well. I still can’t go over to Europe or travel like I want to. I just don’t have the guts for it like you did Gran.”

“You will one day. Once you stop worrying about what everyone else thinks. You have to worry less about other people and more about what makes you happy. You can’t tell me that going into social work is really what you want to do.”

Mara bristled. “It will help people Gran.”

“Yes and that is all well and good, but it isn’t what makes you happy.”

“There are lots of things that make me happy. Like not getting a call every couple of days from Mr. Bishop about your wily ways. I thought you liked it here?”

“I do. He is just fussing. As long as that check keeps going to be him every month, it is all talk. He is not going to do anything. I would suggest just not answering. But good job changing the subject. I will let it go.”

Mara had thought about it, but every time she saw that number, she was always so sure that something had happened to her Gran and she couldn’t help but not make sure she was okay. “I will keep that in mind, but I worry about you when I see that number. I wish sometimes you were back home, even though I know that you like it here.”

“Don’t worry about me Mara. I can run circles around the guys around here. I worry about you in this tiny town. Nothing is going to happen here and you are never going to get a career writing here. You need to move to a big city, travel some.”

Mara agreed, but it was actually doing it that scared her. She was not as bold as she wished she was. Nothing was ever going to happen to her in Hartford. On the outskirts of Indianapolis, Mara thought sometimes of going to the city and getting on with a magazine or newspaper. But it was all just fantasies and she never followed through. She was two years out of high school and instead of going to college, she was still working at the same job since she was a Junior. While she kicked around the idea of schooling for public work, Gran was right to say that it just wasn’t in her heart to do.

“It’s not so bad here and I will travel, someday. Besides, I don’t know what dad would do without me. You know he works too much.”

Gran shook her head and looked down for a minute. Mara could tell she was upset and not saying anything was the only way to get through the silence in the room.

“Sorry. I wish there was more I could do. Alex has just shut down. After your mom left, I don’t know what happened to him. But it was always the job first. He never was very emotional. Do you see her at all?”

Mara knew that she was talking about her mom. She hadn’t seen her in months. The woman was having a midlife crisis and had run off with one of the young men in her office. Her father had been devastated, but true to his nature, instead of being upset, he had taken on more work to bury his problems. This left Mara to stay put. When she had thought to go off to college, her mom beat her to the jump and Mara felt like she had to stay.

“I haven’t seen her since she took off with Dante. You know how she was. She was flaky when she was here, so not much has changed. I keep hoping that dad will find a girlfriend, but he has some big case he has been working on. The trial is supposed to start next week, so hopefully it will be over soon and he will have a little breathing room before his next case he will obsess about.”

“Do you know what it is about?”

Mara shrugged and started to pick up from the dinner. “I’m not sure what it’s about, something about a motorcycle gang from Indianapolis killed a guy out here and they got one of them standing trial over it here in Putnam county. Dad thinks it will make him a star. You know how he gets in front of a camera.”

“I saw him on the news, but by the time I found the remote to turn the sound on, it was going off.”

“Yeah, it’s because of this case. I will be happy when it is over. It has been a media frenzy and I don’t like it when he is dealing with those kinds of guys. We don’t have that kind of thing here in Hartford and when we do, it is always a big-city outside raising a ruckus.”

They both went silent for a time. Mara cleaned up the small apartment and did a few small things that Gran wanted done. She spent the rest of the evening painting the mural that Gran wanted. It was a beach picture. The only thing she had asked for was a sunny sky and sand to look at. Gran knew her traveling days were over and the painting was a way to escape for just a moment.

“This is what you should be doing Mara.”

“I do paint Gran. All the time.”

“You know what I mean.”

“I do, but it doesn’t pay to paint or write around here.”

“Money doesn’t matter in the end Mara.”

“It does when bills come up, besides I will get time to be as creative as I want one day. I’ve been thinking about moving to Indianapolis, but with the big case going on, I will wait to let dad know. He thinks the city is too dangerous and wants me to stay in Hartford forever.”

“I would like that as well, but you have to go on and make your way now. Nothing is ever going to happen here.”

“Maybe you’re right. I have been thinking about it more. You know he is not going to be happy about it.”

“You let me worry about Alex. I want you to promise me that you will at least take a day trip down there before next week. Just get a feel for the place. It’s been so long since we went. Put in a couple of resumes and just see what happens. I have a good feeling about it.”

Mara promised that she would. Looking up at the clock, it was almost time for her to go and she wished she had more time. But she had a shift at the bookstore to get to. It wasn’t her dream job, but it was enough for the moment. Soon, she kept promising herself. Something was going to happen.

Chapter 2

Mara sat with Gran for a bit longer, but finally had to leave for work. She wasn’t paying attention when she got out to the back where her car was parked. Mara was looking down into her large bag, trying to find the keys she had tossed in there when she had first arrived. A lot had been pulled out and then stuffed back in between times and now Mara was having a hard time finding what she was looking for. She was cursing herself for such a big bag before she saw a shadow fall over her.

Looking up, Mara’s eyes got big. There was two men standing behind her and when they said her name, all she could do was nod. Satisfied that they had who they were looking for, Kyle put his hand over her mouth and started to pull her to a waiting car. Mara tried to scream but was silenced by the thick hand over her mouth. Tried to fight back, but the steely hands were not giving an inch.

She was pushed in the back of the dark tinted black car and she heard the tires squealing as they peeled out and took off down the boulevard. Mara was finally able to speak, but she was frozen in fear, afraid to say anything at all. Finally, she looked over at the man sitting next to her.

“You must have the wrong person.”

It was all she could think of. Mara remembered him saying her name, but nothing ever happened to her. Good or bad and she knew that there had to be some mistake.

“Mara Goodwin. We got the right girl. Your daddy is going to be pretty upset when he finds out who has his little girl.”

She groaned inwardly. Of course it would be because of her father. All she could think about was the big case that her dad was prosecuting and when she really looked at the man next to her, she figured it was because of that. The man was wearing a black leather jacket and she didn’t have to see the back to know that it would have a Death Angel insignia on it.

“Ah, I see that you know now that you are exactly where you are supposed to be. Grant is going to love this.”

“Who is Grant?”

“The man you are going to get out of jail.”

“My dad will not give into threats.”

“He will if he wants you to live.”

Mara winced at the breath in her face and the anger in his eyes. She was nothing to him but a means to an end and Mara had no doubt of what he said. The problem was that she didn’t doubt what she said either. Her father was a hard liner and Mara didn’t think it was going to end well.

“He doesn’t care that much about me. I wish I could help you.”

He handed her a phone that was ringing and she took it. When her father answered, she closed her eyes to block out the two men watching her. “Daddy?”

Mara didn’t say that very often and it put Alex on guard. “Mara, what’s wrong?”

“There are some men here that have taken me.”

The phone was snatched out of her hands. She wasn’t as hysterical sounding as she felt, but she didn’t want to say something to upset them. There was no weapon in sight, but with men like that, violence was pretty much a given.

“Alex, we have your daughter and you have my boss. So why don’t we get that bail set before trial.”

Mara didn’t know what was being said on the other side of the phone, but she knew that her fate rested in her father’s hands. The man on the phone gave her a look that made her stomach flop in fear. It was not going as he had planned it seemed.

Hanging up, he shoved the phone back in his pocket. She waited for him to say something else, but he left her guessing what was going to happen next. “I am sure this can be worked out. We have money.”

The man chuckled like any of it was funny and Mara was getting more upset. She felt helpless. Nothing she said or did seem to matter to him. “Can you at least tell me what is going on?”

“Grant is going to have bail set this afternoon or we will send Alex a finger this evening.”

Mara gulped and tried not to start crying right there. She had always been a calm person, but it was hard to be calm when everything was going on. All she had to do was make it for a bit longer, she kept telling herself.

***

“Collins. You made bail.”

Grant smiled to himself, getting up from the bench bed in his cell. He had been there for well over a month and bail had not even been set before. Something must have happened and he knew that Lance had done what he was supposed to do. He hadn’t been able to make a call in weeks. The prosecutor had been adamant that he was trying to make hits on the phone calls, so Grant had no idea what was going on. It didn’t matter though. He was getting out.

The sound of the lock opening was one that rivaled the best symphonies. Nothing was better and then the smell of fresh air. The jail smelled, looked and tasted the same, it was all just dank. Processing out had taken almost as long as booking had. There was a consensus that he shouldn’t be leaving among the guards, but it couldn’t be stopped. So all they could do was make each piece of paperwork take a little longer. By the end of it, Grant was losing his cool. He just had to remind himself that he was going to be a free man soon enough.

“We will be seeing you in here real soon Collins. You will be convicted.”

Grant just smiled in response. There was no sense in arguing with them. He would not ever step foot in a jail again, already thinking about a nice sunny location that didn’t extradite for a tidy sum. Grant had all of his ducks in a row. He had just had to be set free to get to them.

He spotted Lance standing outside of his car and Grant had to stop himself from hugging the man like a long lost friend. “You did it!”

“We had to go through a few ideas before we got something that worked. I am just glad to see you. I don’t know what happened at the party.”

Grant patted his shoulder instead. “It is all okay. I need a real shower and some clean clothes, then we can talk about how this all came to be and I am here now.”

Lance nodded and got in, waiting for Grant to get in the passenger side. Grant never drove much and he was just happy to sit back in the plush seats and close his eyes. It had been too long sleeping on a concrete slab and sharing such small quarters with three other men.

“We do have to talk about a few things.”

“Can’t they wait?”

“Most of it can, but you are going to want to know when we get there.”

“What’s going on?” Grant looked over, wondering what was so important that it couldn’t just wait till he was home for an hour or so. Just a shower was all he was asking for. He had been gone so long, it didn’t seem like anything could go on mattering.

“Well there is kind of someone staying at the condo.”

“Oh?” Now Lance had his attention. ”Who?”

“The way we got you out of there.”

Grant didn’t like where it was going. “Who?”

“Mara Goodwin.”

“As in, Alex Goodwin’s daughter?”

Lance nodded, not sure how Grant was taking it. His eyes were unblinking and his face revealed nothing. “Well I didn’t see that coming.”