Page 18 of All Our Ghosts

I instinctively take another step backward. “I–I know,” I say, and the words don’t even sound convincing to myself as I say them. “I know,” I repeat, forcing the confidence past the lump growing in my throat. “I don’t want to be a wedge, Cole, and last night…”

“Last night.” He stops me. “Holden was drunk off his ass and being an even bigger one. That’s not anything you should be apologizing for.” Another fatherly sigh leaves his lips and his hands find that dip in his waist again. “I’m not excusing what he did. I’ll talk to him.”

“Cole, you don’t—”

“Kadence, if you apologize for his behavior, I’ll fire you.” He threatens, his eyes softening with a hint of playfulness and it makes me laugh gently to hide the nervousness.

“Okay.”

A door down the hallway swings open, making both Cole and me glance toward the noise. We watch as Holden stumbles his way out of the room, backwards, missing the shirt he was wearing last night and a smug grin plastered on his sleep-swollen face. His jeans hang low on his hips, giving view to the sharp V of his waist. I swallow again, and my eyes flicker up to his face. The stubble has grown a little thicker overnight, casting a shadow over the edges of his jawline, and even though he looks exhausted, I can still see how blue his eyes are from this distance.

Holden laughs, mumbling something as a short blonde leans against the doorway and I have to fight the urge to roll my eyes. It’s not the same woman from last night, and even though I shouldn’t be, a small thought passes my mind of what his adonis would feel like under the weight of my touch.

Cole clears his throat, standing next to me. “Holden.” Dark brows furrow as bright eyes glance down the hallway. Theybriefly connect with mine and I hate that I can feel the heat creep up the back of my neck under the penance of his glare.

I watch as a flicker of darkness casts over his eyes before he smugly leans against the wall of the hallway. “Cole, you’ve met Jane?” The gravel of his voice carries down the hallway, hitting me like a sack of bricks.

Jane waves at the two of them with a soft morning smile. Annoyance begins to flood my chest, watching Holden smirk. He hasn’t stopped staring at me, and even as Cole sighs, his eyes don’t leave mine.

“Yeah, we’ve met. Hello, Jane.”

“Hi, Cole,” she mutters before disappearing back into the room.

Holden makes it a point to watch her walk back into the room, tilting his head to admire whatever body part his mind was objectifying. Before I can even stop myself, a small scoff leaves my lips, and I roll my eyes. Holden grins, his head tilting towards me.

“Mornin’, Princess,” he says, sarcasm dripping from the haunting pet name as he saunters towards me and Cole. “Sleep well?” He asks, leaning forward with narrowed eyes and a look that makes the hand at my side ball into a fist and white knuckle the mug in my hand.

I turn to Cole. “I’m gonna head out to the office,” I say as he nods, eyeing the stupid grin on Holden’s face.

“Yeah, alright. Let me know if you need anything.”

“Will do,” I say, glancing back at Holden once more before heading out of the clubhouse. It takes everything in me not to throw the mug against the ground as I let the wooden door slam behind me. Who the hell does he think he is and why does he go from looking like a sad lost puppy to the biggest ass I’ve met?

The rumble of a motorcycle sounds behind me as I head across the parking lot to the shop. I spin, seeing an older manwith chin-length dark graying hair that looks like it hadn’t been washed in a couple of days pull in next to the other bikes. I watch as he climbs off, peeling the dark black sunglasses from his face. He’s got a few scars on his cheeks that I notice and try not to stare at. His cut is worn and looks like he’s had it for years; the leather is dull and the Hell Hounds MC patches are faded.

“And who might you be darlin’?” He asks, the Scottish accent thick like he has a mouthful of molasses. The man struts toward me and I realize he’s wearing an O’Neil’s Towing and Garage shirt under his cut.

“I’m Kadence.”

“Kadence…” My name rolls off his tongue and it makes me smile. “I’ve never seen you here before, love. You gettin’ your car fixed?”

“Sorta, you could say that.” I laugh. “My car broke down. Cole’s helping me get it fixed and in return, I’m helping him out in the shop.”

He nods, glancing back to the clubhouse before landing back on me. “Sounds like something that O’Neil would do.” He grins. “I’m Scottie.”

“Nice to meet you, Scottie. It looks like we’re gonna be workin’ together?” I ask, tilting my cup towards his shirt.

Scottie smiles again, the scars on his cheeks moving perfectly with the curvature of his mouth. “Looks like it, lass. If you need anything, just holler for me.”

We both begin to walk towards the shop, he gives me an encouraging nod towards the office as he goes to open the bay doors.

“Thanks,” I say, heading inside.

I glance around at the office again. The stacks of paper are all strewn about still, haphazardly, and as if they just get scattered or migrate about the room instead of actually filed. Something tells me that Cole’s office management skills aren’t his strongsuit. I take a sip of my coffee before sitting down at the desk, finding a small empty spot to place my mug before starting to rifle through the paperwork. Separating bills and organizing old work orders.

The shop starts bustling, and I can hear music begin to play at one point. Men yelling and laughing from behind the closed shop door. I remember Cole dropping in to refill my coffee cup at one point, but my hyperfocus kicks in and I don’t realize that two hours have passed until the sound of heavy boots hit the floor in front of me.

I glance up, seeing a more awake Holden and like a nervous tick, I feel the annoyance creeping back in. “Can I help you?” I bite through a forced smile.

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