Page 78 of Dozer

She bristled, her hands trembled, and her eyes watered.

“Why not just leave him?”

She stilled. “Dozer, why do you think I would stay?”

“Don’t tell me you love him.” Not when she was playing musical men in her bed.

She sat on the edge of the couch. “When he’s here, I do.”

I shook my head. Love wasn’t turned on and off like a fucking power switch. The memory of Pippa’s touch was enough to feel her surging through me, a blistering need to be with her. Physical distance had nothing to do with it. Love wasn’t about getting my dick wet.

“You need to go.”

“How long will you be gone?”

“Until Friday. Get your shit out this week. You can’t live here any longer. You barely sleep here anyway. I have no idea how long Tank is going to be locked up, and you and I are toxic together. Every time I see you, we fight.”

Because every time I came home, she was entertaining another random.

“I’ll be out before you get back.” I slammed out the door, climbed onto my bike, and prayed to God I wasn’t like my dad. I sure as fuck recognized Pip was nothing like my mother.

***

I hated the smell of the county jail. It was the furthest thing from a country club. Sweat, urine, and the chemical scent of cleaning supplies fermented into a nauseating odor I couldn’t get out of my nostrils.

After passing through metal detectors and a pat down, my ID was checked, and I filed into a long hallway with other visitors. Two guards stood at thedoor as we were corralled into a room that reminded me of the cafeteria of my elementary school. Long, white, picnic-style tables stretched the room.

Once we were all inside the room, inmates wearing drab yellow jumpsuits with numbers and DOC on the back began to filter in. I watched the door, waiting for the familiar mug of my old man.

Finally, he entered, his gaze skimming the visitors until he found me. The smile splitting his face made his crow’s feet claw at the corners of his sparking eyes. He crossed the room with purpose until he embraced me, slapping a fist to my back.

“Dad.” I choked on a gulp of air. Fuck, but I missed him. He sat on one side of the table, and I sat across from him. We had an hour, and the clock was ticking.

“I’m glad you could make it,” he said. “Tell me what’s going on with you.”

I clasped my hands on top of the table. “Same shit most days. Working in the shop. We’ve been doing rebuilds on some classic Japanese bikes.”

He groaned and rolled his eyes.

“Don’t laugh. Parts are easy to find, and they’re easy to sell.” I grew quiet “The club is better with Razor gone. We got beef with the Crawlers, but girls like Kiss aren’t OD’ing in the bathroom.”

“Good.”

I had fucking butterflies in my stomach. What the fuck was wrong with me? Pippa. Bits of her magical happy fairy dust had gotten into me. “I have a girlfriend.”

He leaned back and stroked his beard, tugging a bit on the chin hairs. “Nice. Did you finally make themove on that sweet girl? I always thought you two were perfect for each other.”

“Who?”

“Levi.”

“Nah, Dad, not Levi.” A blush crept up my neck. “That would be like taking my sister to bed.”

He leaned back and crossed his legs under the table. A rush of familiarity warmed my gut. I crossed my legs at the ankle the same way.

“Tell me about the girl.”

“Dad, she’s beautiful. Long, dark hair, sort of wavy curls. She’s so smart. She goes to Eminence U. She speaks Italian.” Especially when she came, but he didn’t need all the details.

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