Page 2 of Ride or Dies

All of this flashed through my mind in seconds, and then Mason was bounding down the steps to where I was still standing.

“Well, well, well, if it isn’t little Evelyn Hayes, all grown up.” He grinned as he circled me. When he let out a low whistle, my cheeks flamed. “You sure do fill out that dress way better than you did as a kid.”

“Hey, Mason.” I was shocked to hear my voice sounded normal.

“I see how it is,” Tucker said as he strolled down to where Mason and I stood. “Just standing around, letting the three of us take out the trash.”

“You seemed like you could handle it.”

Mason smirked at me. “Oh, Miss Hayes, you have no idea what we can handle.”

“I’ve heard you handle yourself more than anyone else,” Tucker said.

Mason flipped his brother off without taking his eyes off me. “At least I have something worth handling, little brother.”

Tucker’s ears turned red, and I felt a surge of affection at how someone who was definitely all man now still had a bit of the teenager I’d known.

“That’s not what your girlfriend said last night,” Tucker shot back.

My eyebrows shot up. “Mason, you have a girlfriend? Don’t tell me you’ve traded in your manwhore ways.”

He put his hand on his chest. “You wound me, Evie. Really. Wound me.”

I was surprised at how easy it was to fall back into the way I’d bantered with the guys when we were younger.

Well, most of them.

“I’m impressed.” Levi finally spoke, and I gathered my courage to look up at him. His expression was unreadable. “I really didn’t expect the Queen of Country to take time out of her precious schedule to come back here.”

I ground my teeth together, hating that physical jolt of desire that hit when I looked at him, no matter how pissed his comment made me. And the worst part was, this wasn’t anything new. Mason and Tucker had been assholes to me at times when we were growing up, but it wasn’t all the time. Levi, however, never cracked a smile when I was around. Unless he was making fun of me, of course.

And that had still never stopped my treacherous heart from wanting to leap out of my chest whenever he looked my way. Based on how it was pounding against my rib cage, it seemed like that hadn’t changed. All of the Bradshaw brothers were hot, but there was something about the edge Levi carried with him that kept drawing me to him, even when he said shit like that to me.

Something else that hadn’t changed was the way that, the moment Levi spoke, Mason and Tucker took a step back, their playful teasing replaced by something sharper. Something their brother would be more likely to approve of.

While my brain attempted to come up with a witty response, I tried to pretend that hearing Mason and Tucker laugh at Levi’s comment didn’t sting.

“Levi Bradshaw!”

The voice came from behind him, but it didn’t stay there. A second later, a tall, slender figure moved around him, those light blue eyes, so much like his, snapping with irritation. Completely ignoring the fact that he could probably snap her in half if he wanted to, she poked him in the chest.

“Behave yourself.” She spoke to this massive biker the way only his baby sister could, and it was something I’d always loved about her.

Then she turned to me and beamed. Squealing with excitement, she ran my way, arms wide. “You’re here! I’m so happy you’re here!”

The instant her arms closed around me, all of the stress and anxiety I’d been feeling faded into the background. I closed my eyes and hugged her back, the scent of her coconut body lotion taking me right back through the years. She hadn’t changed much physically, with her strawberry blonde hair and perfect skin, but it was good to know that the years hadn’t changed who she was either.

I’d come home for a few reasons, but this right here was the main one. Jenna had been my ride or die since we were twelve, and I needed that solid foundation right now.

Chapter Two

Tucker

Iwondered if not being in our cuts made my brothers feel as naked as I did right now. We didn’t wear them all the time, of course, but with Levi being our president and Mason being the MC’s head enforcer, we did wear them more than most. But this was a party for Jenna’s fiancée, and what the little sister wanted, the little sister got. So all three of us were in nice jeans and t-shirts. Given Levi’s many tattoos, and Bedford being such a small town, everyone knew we were Thunder Riders, but we still wanted to look decent for Jenna and Isabel.

Our determination to make today a good one for the girls meant that as soon as some half-drunk asshole started going on about how women like that were such a waste, my brothers and I didn’t even hesitate to act. That motherfucking prick managed to get out another comment with a few choice slurs before Levi grabbed the back of the guy’s collar and gave him a little shove toward the door.

Then the moron tried to fight back.

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