Page 57 of June 7

Chapter Twenty One

Daisy tapped her fingers against the counter of Havlin Motorcycle Parts Shop while manning the phone. The pool was closed today for maintenance. Bane wouldn't allow her to stay at home alone, considering the crimes that'd been committed at the duplex lately, and he had a club meeting to attend.

Not wanting to feel like a burden, she'd asked him to put her to work. Since she had zero knowledge of motorcycle parts or how to use Havlin's computer system, she was told to answer the phone and take a message until someone else could call the customer back.

So far, she'd taken four messages.

The calls weren't enough to distract her from wondering what the meeting behind the shop was about.

Bane never mentioned what his club stood for, rode for, or lived for. All she knew was that they ran a successful parts shop and were hired out for security by local businesses. He'd mentioned Jagger gave him time off from the security work to make sure she was kept safe.

She'd offered to pay for his time, considering he was losing out on some of the work required by the club. Time was money. He only answered by looking at her and saying babe. She had to believe he made more money than she'd assumed because he had no worries about missing out on work while with her.

It still failed to lessen the guilt she felt.

Dio walked through the front door, holding an article of clothing to his neck. She raised her hand to wave hello when she noticed blood running down his arm. Jumping off the stool, she rounded the counter.

"What can I do?" She put her arms out in case he keeled over. "What do you need?"

"No worries, sweetheart." Dio attempted a smile. "Just need to get cleaned up."

She stayed with him as he walked between the shelving units to the back door. There was a lot of blood. If it was coming from his neck, he could've cut an artery. He could die.

The door was locked. She groaned. Bane had told her to knock three times if she needed him.

Before she could raise her hand, Dio knocked. Three times.

The door swooped open, and Bane's gaze went right to her, head to toe and back up again. "Are you okay?"

While she appreciated his attentiveness toward her, Dio stood beside her in danger of losing all his blood.

"He's hurt." She put her hand on Dio's back.

Bane's gaze swung to his MC brother, and yelled, "We need Cord."

Hearing the urgency in Bane's voice, she held her place at the door as he took Dio deeper into the room. She pressed her hand to her neck in worry. That was too much blood.

From the back of the room, men shoved away from the table, sending chairs toppling. Her heart raced as the bikers cleared the surface, and Cord lowered himself.

Then, the men circled the table, cutting off her view. She wanted to move forward and see what was happening and if Dio would be okay, but it wasn't her place.

The air had shifted.

The men came together like a well-oiled machine, as if they'd taken care of each other many times before.

She was the outsider. It was best if she stayed out of their way.

Knowing she agreed to answer the phones for the shop during their meeting, she quietly closed the door and returned to the stool behind the counter. Shook from the emergency, she inhaled harshly through her tight chest. She hoped Dio would be okay.

Over the last few weeks, she'd gotten to know him better. Dio always treated her nicely. He often was the biker who parked near the duplex—

She gasped. Dio was parked at the end of the road that morning when she and Bane left the Duplex. He'd been guarding her place. And now he was hurt.

Closing her eyes, she willed him to be okay. If he were hurt while doing his job of watching out for her and the property and something happened to him, she'd never forgive herself. The bikers would never forgive her.

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