Page 54 of His Road Dog

Chapter 21

Nicole

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THE GAS GAUGE HIT THEhalfway line. Nicole looked in the rearview mirror. Priest, plus six Tarkio members, followed her.

In five minutes, she'd pull off the highway and need to tell Priest she couldn't allow him to keep watching over her. She'd need to tell him goodbye.

Outsiders weren't allowed at the commune without prior approval, and everything had happened so fast, she hadn't had time to warn her parents she was coming home.

As it was, they wouldn't even know it was her arriving. She drove a small Honda that belonged to a Tarkio member named Slick, who she hadn't even met. It was a loaner car that had no end date. Priest had told her not to worry about returning the car. If it were needed, he or another member would come and pick it up. And she knew that wouldn't happen.

The whole deal left her sad. It was too final for her.

She'd wanted Priest to promise to see her again. While it was her idea to come home, it seemed far away from Missoula. They were two worlds apart, and once she was back at the commune, the chance of them seeing each other again was slim to none.

Last night at the motel room in Oregon where they'd spent the night, Priest hadn't even stayed with her. Instead, he chose to stay outside on the streets, scoping out the area, and making sure she was safe before they made the rest of the long trip.

The independence she'd clung to on her own was all falling away. Yesterday, she'd called Kristi and told her she was quitting, leaving her to contact her clients. The way she'd gone about leaving upset her stomach. She'd become friends with Kristi and Jason.

She respected Kristi as a friend and a boss. The way she left was unfair to everyone.

She looked behind her again, then put on her blinker. The time had come, and she had no idea if Priest would accept her reasons for going on the rest of the way by herself or not. He knew how she lived, but there was more to her family and her life on the commune.

Exiting the highway, she looked for the 'Park & Ride' lot that'd been there when she'd left home when she was eighteen years old. Grateful the area had remained unchanged; she pulled off into the gravel patch, came to a stop, and shut off the engine. Taking a deep breath, she got out of the car.

Priest led the others toward her. She soaked in the sight of him, riding his Harley. To everyone, he was formidable. To her, he was deep, passionate, and the picture of a leader. He wouldn't be president of a motorcycle club if he were anything less.

His gaze stayed on her, concerned, and questioning. Her eyes burned with unshed tears and lack of sleep, knowing she was going to disappoint him. He could even believe she was undermining his position by leaving because he'd sworn to protect her.

For someone who had no reason to help her, he'd played his hand. Their relationship hadn't gone past sleeping together, yet she sensed him needing her. He gave off an aura when they were alone. One that matched her own.

They'd met out of the blue, and he'd been just as surprised as her at the connection they'd made. His feelings ran deep.

He could deny it, but she'd seen it. She'd felt it. She'd wanted it.

Priest got off his motorcycle. "What's wrong?"

She approached him, looking at the others observing her. "Can you walk with me?"

He stepped away. She slipped her hand into his, wishing that things could be different and scared to death that the seriousness of the situation was exactly like Priest had told her. She'd heard of women getting stolen and put into sex rings. The females were never heard from again, and their families mourned. Though she'd never seen that herself, she believed Priest when he told her.

When she'd set out to discover life on her own, she certainly never expected to encounter someone who would endanger her life. She'd always trusted her intuitions about others. Roy had seemed trustworthy and kind. She'd enjoyed her time with him—mainly because he paid her attention and catered to all her whimsical ideas to go out dancing and have fun.

Turned out, she was terribly wrong about him.

She wanted nothing to do with the kind of life Roy had lived, and while she hated to let Priest go, she also had a strong yearning to run back home and let her parents and the community she was raised in shelter her.

Stopping, she turned and brought Priest's hand up to her chest, holding him close. "I need to go the rest of the way home alone."

His eyes narrowed. She couldn't look at the flash of hurt and hugged him. "Thank you for everything you've done."

"Nicole." He cupped her face and pulled her head off his chest. "I'm not going to let you go alone unless I know you're going to be safe, and you'll reach your parents."

"It'll only take me twenty minutes of driving by myself to reach them from here." She looked to the left. "They don't want outsiders snooping around the commune, and they don't know you. I had no way to prepare them for me returning."

"Babe."

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