Page 31 of His Road Dog

She lifted her chin and raised her brows. "Not interested."

He hooked her neck, bringing her to his side. "You're interested, but that isn't why I want you to go inside with me."

She went into the clubhouse. The others in the room, the music, the musky scent, distracted her from Priest's dominating attitude. The people within Tarkio reminded her of home. Their free spirits were only hardened by the lifestyle they led.

She stubbed her toe, realizing that she hadn't lumped Priest into the group. To her, he was unique, unlike the others. More serious, more independent, more of a leader—which he was, of course.

"Okay?" His gaze intensified, studying her.

She nodded and continued walking with him. Had she been too hard on him by leaving the other night?

Had his past made him a jerk toward women? Toward her?

Maybe he had a good reason for insulting her. Not that she deserved him threatening to get another woman to please him—that was rude, but maybe something in his past made him act that way.

She stepped into a bedroom and looked at him for the reason why he'd brought her back here.

"Sit." He moved toward the door. "I'll be back in a second."

She looked around the room. A double bed took up most of the small area. An upright, wooden dresser sat against the opposite wall. There were two men's shirts hung up in the closet. Not wanting to snoop, she assumed there were also clothes in the dresser drawers. One of the Tarkio members must stay there.

It seemed like she assumed a lot when she was around Priest and the clubhouse. That wasn't how she was raised or how she wanted to be with other people. She'd had to deal with the locals believing all hippies were freeloaders, drug addicts, and everyone ran around having sex at each other's houses, outdoors in view of the others, and were waiting for a chance to steal their teenagers.

Their ideas about living in a commune were blown out of proportion. Truths were stretched for their entertainment or their agenda against hippies.

She sighed. She'd been unfair to not look past the way Priest acted toward her the last time they were together.

Gathering her hair over her shoulder, she walked to the window and peered outside. She'd lived too long in normal society. Their reluctance to open up to others and having a suspecting attitude was starting to rub off on her. She should take a trip home and stay with her parents for a couple of weeks. Maybe then, she'd find the root of her problems.

Boots thunked on the floor behind her. She turned, relieved it was Priest returning to her. At least he hadn't locked her in the room. That was an improvement.

"I want you to take a look at these two pictures." He handed her two papers, not photos.

She looked down and glanced back at him. "Are these mugshots?"

"Yeah."

Both men had dark hair, or maybe that was because the pictures were black and white. One was heavy-set with a heavy brow. The other one had earrings and a crewcut. Neither one of them looked familiar to her. All the people who walked through the door of Sally's Style Barn were female.

"Who are they?" She held the papers out to him.

"Keep them in our purse. Look at them a few more times tonight. Maybe you'll remember where you've seen them."

"I don't understand." She folded the papers and slipped them into her purse. "Who are they?"

"Some bad guys." He lifted the curls falling on her cheek and put the strands behind her shoulder. "If you see them, stay away from them. Go somewhere else."

With everything that had happened lately and Roy's murder heavy on her heart, her chest tightened. She studied Priest. His lips remained hard. He wasn't fooling around.

"Why do you think I'd run into or be around these men?" she asked.

"Because they're in Missoula." His gaze narrowed. "They are hooked up in the casino."

She inhaled swiftly and looked away. Roy always took her to Blackfoot Casino Resort, claiming she was his good luck charm. When he won, she benefitted. Roy would pay for her motel room, splurge and take her out on the town—usually a show at the casino.

But the men were unfamiliar to her. If they were there at the same time she'd been at Roy's side, she hadn't noticed.

She looked at Priest. "Did these men kill Roy?"

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