Page 70 of Broken Skulls

Dirk stops me. “Shut up. You need clothes. This club takes care of its own.”

I open my mouth again to argue that I’m not part of their club, but he reaches over the table and, with a finger under my chin, gently closes it. “Go.” He nods toward his wife.

Jacob pulls me to my feet and hugs me. “Have fun and remember to be yourself.” He shakes me in his arms slightly, then he bends down and kisses me on the head.

The minute we’re in Jesse’s rod, she spins out of the parking lot. “I burnt that fucker to a crisp last night. Wasn’t sure what you wanted done with what was left of him. But I crushed him up and dumped him in a porta potty. Fitting, don’t you think?”

It makes me giggle. She’s tough, and I like that. Jesse is who I wanted to be so badly, but I just couldn’t pull it off. Instead, I looked like an enabling bitch.

“I think that’s perfect,” I tell her.

“Good. Now, we forget about that asshole and move forward, yeah?”

“Yeah,” I sigh in agreement. Jacob hasn’t pushed me to talk too much, and I love that. I’m ready to move forward. I know things will come to the surface, but I’ll deal with it as it happens.

“Your friend Danielle showed up late last night. Her and Anthony are staying at the warehouse.”

My stomach falls. “Oh, yeah. I forgot Anthony mentioned she was on her way.”

“You don’t sound very happy about it.”

The trees rush by the window. “It’s beautiful here,” I tell her, ignoring her statement.

“She wants to make sure you’re okay,” she says, lighting up a cigarette.

I rub my hands over my jeans. “You can tell her I’m fine. They should get back to their kids.”

She’s quiet for a long time. “Are you mad at her?”

“No.”

“Do you think she’s mad at you?”

“She was.”

Jesse cracks her window. “Well, I don’t think she is anymore. Do you want a friendship with her?”

“I don’t know.”

She pulls into a Harley dealership. “I’ll tell them to head back home. That you need more time.”

Jacob and his friends are different. They seem to appreciate my honesty, even if it’s not what would be considered a favorable response. “You would do that for me? You don’t even know me. Why?”

She shuts the engine off and takes a long drag off her cigarette. “There’s something about you …” Her gaze rakes over me. “I see myself in you. I’ve had to become something that I wasn’t to survive. I think you did the same.”

When I don’t say anything, she runs her tattooed hand over the side of my face, pushing my hair back. “You need time to remember who you are. You don’t have to feel bad about that. I’m sure Danielle is a good person, and maybe there was no way for her to see what was really going on with you. I can see she’s hurting over what happened, but that doesn’t mean you have to be there to ease her wounded heart. You need to heal your own first.”

“I don’t know what to say but thank you. For everything.”

She waves her hand dismissing me.

“No. I mean it. You were in my corner before you even met me.”

Jessie opens her door, encouraging me to do the same. “Well, you’re welcome, but you don’t need to thank me.”

As soon as we step into the shop, a man fixes his gaze on us.

“Jesse, Jesse, Jesse.” He chuckles and then makes his way toward us.

---