Page 62 of Fighting a Riot

No. His throat had felt scratchy since Sunday night. If there was even a remote possibility he was getting sick, he had to stay away from Nora.

Hell. He had to stay away from her regardless. Leave the way clear for her to find a decent man who would give her the life she wanted.

An hour later, he heard Trixie’s car engine growl down the driveway. After another hour, he sent Trixie a text.

You take Nora to chemo today?

The little dots rolled in a wave pattern and stopped.

Then his phone rang, Trixie’s name on the display.

“Dammit. Why did I bother?” he asked himself. He took the call. “Hey, Trixie.”

“Hey, your damn self. Why do you want to know if I took Nora to chemo? You’ve ghosted her since that run-in with the Devil Lancers. What the hell, Yak? If you’re worried about her, drag your ass outside, and go knock on her door.”

“My throat’s been killin’ me for two days now. I’m not making her sick… or sicker.”

He heard the faint sound of a notification and realized it had been Trixie’s phone.

She chuckled. “Well, get over yourself Yak.”

“Excuse you?”

“Nora just texted me. She ordered some stuff from Amazon. They said they delivered it. She’s guessing it’s at your front door. Put on a mask or wrap a bandana around your nose and mouth and take her that box. It’s got her favorite soup mix in it. It’s the least you can do.”

He trudged to his front door and saw a small box on his welcome mat. “Fine.”

“It’s one round, Yak. You’re not going to contaminate her.”

He raised his shoulder up to his ear to hold onto the phone while he picked up the box. “Trix, they’re killing the cells in her body. Including her immune cells. Her defenses are going to be down and I’m not gonna harm her.”

“You’re doing that any way, did that occur to you?”

He shifted so he had the box in one hand and the phone to his ear in the other. “No, it didn’t. Leading her on is more harmful –especially since that asshole dumped her. She doesn’t need a man like me.”

“I should pretend I didn’t hear that, but I’ve never kept my thoughts to myself.”

“Now is a great time to start,” he muttered.

She laughed. “Not happening. A man like you is exactly what Nora needs. Someone who cares enough that he doesn’t want to make her throat scratchy. A man who argued with his MC president because he didn’t want a bunch of other bikers to get a look at his gorgeous neighbor. A man who—”

“Stop, Trixie. Thanks for the confidence boost, but I’m not gonna give her a house with a picket fence and—”

“No, cause Roll and I did that for both of you.”

He sighed. “You know what I mean, woman. She’s looking for the regular world. I don’t live in that world.”

“That’s bullshit, but get that soup to Nora. She needs to eat something tonight.”

Trixie hung up, he tucked his cell in his back pocket, and took the package to Nora.

With a smile, she opened the door before he could knock. “Trixie texted that you were on your way. Thanks. I’d have gone to get it off your stoop, but I made the mistake of texting Trixie before it hit me that they probably left it at your front door. It’s not like this is registered as a separate address.”

“It’s not a problem, Nora,” he said, holding the box out to her.

Rather than take the package, she opened the door wider. “You can come in.”

He shook his head. “I shouldn’t. Got a sore throat.”

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