Page 24 of Savage Spades

“In here,” he shouted.

Megan rounded the corner with a massive smile on her face, but it slipped as she caught sight of him.

“Oh my god, what happened?” she asked, coming around the desk to get a closer look at his face. He’d won the first fight, but he hadn’t been as lucky with the second one. He should have let his body recover more before agreeing to two fights in one night. By the second fight, his muscles were exhausted, and he hadn’t moved fast enough to dodge the guy’s fists.

“I’m fine.”

“Fine?” She put her hands on her hips. “Who the fuck did you get in a fight with?”

He didn’t answer. Understanding dawned on her.

“Are you fighting still?” she whispered.

“Just when I need some extra money,” he said, not feeling like getting into it with her.

“And what the hell do you need extra money for? You don’t even stay at the apartment you rent.”

“That seems to be working out in your favor now,” he said.

Her face twisted with hurt.

“Megan, that’s not what--"

“You know what? You won’t have to worry about me for long. I got a job today. So have fun getting a concussion. God forbid someone tries to care about you.”

She walked away, and he rubbed a hand over his face. He’d apologize when she calmed down. The last thing he wanted was for her to feel like she was an inconvenience. She came back to Goldbeach for a support system, and he needed to be that for her. That might be harder than he thought.

The phone on the desk rang. “Kit,” he answered.

“Hey, are you on your way?” Zeke asked.

He raked his brain, trying to figure out what he was talking about.

“To Cam’s bar. I have to go to Iris’ dance recital, remember?” Zeke said.

“Oh shit, I completely forgot. I’m on my way.” He hung up and grabbed the keys to his motorcycle. As he drove down the dirt road, he realized he needed to get his head straight. Maybe he had been hit too hard last night if he forgot that he had to be at Cam’s. This babysitting thing was a pain in the ass. He needed to be at the shop, working on some of the cars. Between Megan, his fights, and Cam, he was falling behind. Customers were starting to notice.

He parked his bike out front and walked into the empty bar. The same two people as always sat in the stools. Zeke was at a table in the middle of the room. Kit slapped hands with him.

“My bad, brother, I completely forgot.”

Zeke waved him off. “It’s cool. The recital hasn’t started yet, but I wanted to get there early. She was nervous about it yesterday.”

“Anyone else going?” Kit asked.

“Gunner and Lily.”

Kit nodded and watched as Zeke left. When he turned around, he was disappointed to see Jen behind the bar instead of Cam. Cam, at least, made this babysitting thing a little bit enjoyable. When he wasn’t talking to her, he could at least stare at her ass. He had to admit it had been a long time since he was so fascinated with one girl. He hadn’t even slept with anyone else since meeting Cam. Usually, no one was able to hold his attention, but he found himself wanting to talk to her. She was the opposite of all the girls who hung around the clubhouse. She wanted nothing to do with the Savage Spades. It was refreshing. He walked to the bar and took a seat on the stool.

“Oh, hey, Kit,” Jen greeted. She was definitely more friendly than Cam.

“Hey, where’s the boss lady?” he asked.

“She’s at home working on some homework. I think she’ll be in later.”

“She’s in school?” he asked. It seemed like she lived at the bar; it was crazy to think she was taking classes too.

“Yeah, she goes part-time up at the college. You want something to drink? Maybe help with all that bruising on your face?”

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