Page 20 of Maverick

“A bear?” she asked as if she took me literally.

“No. An asshole.” I bent to her ear. “Your mom’s a handful,” I said, wanting to tell her of all the danger. Not just the death threats, but that I was trying to figure out what she knows, but I couldn’t. “She’s been stirring up a hornet’s nest for a while.”

“Why are you with her, then?” she asked, like she gave a damn. Damn, she was disappointed, thinking I was taken. Or maybe just thinking I was with her mother. “She’s… She’s quite a bit older than you.”

I couldn’t give up my cover. “She’s a grown woman. We have…business.”

“Right. Well, do me a favor and don’t hurt her. She’s all I’ve got.”

“I won’t,” I started before her mom was calling us to the dancefloor.

I had to hold the old woman up, but I couldn’t keep my eyes off Lexi as she swayed, dancing alone. I longed to scoop her up in my arms. Soon, Diana was too wasted to walk, so we took her back to her tent.

“Are you staying with her?” Lexi asked me, like she was asking if I was sleeping with her. I had to make a choice.

“She’s hammered. But I got somewhere to be, so I can’t babysit right now. You two should stay with her.” I wanted her to know I wasn’t sleeping with her mom. Plus, I had to do some digging. Diana, her and her friend should be safe from the mob here, surrounded by hundreds of bikers.

“What’s that supposed to mean? You’re with her, right? Or…something?”

“Diana does her own thing. Don’t worry about it.”

“So, you’re just gonna leave her here?”

“She’s got you, doesn’t she? And your friend?”

“Fine. But I prefer an actual bed.”

I had the tent beside Diana. Maybe when I got back, I could ask Lexi to join me in mine. “You might find out you like it out here, princess. A real bed can get overrated.”

“I’m not a princess,” she tried, but damn, she was my princess.

I made the rounds, rubbing elbows and getting the lowdown from any and every biker who ever had dealings with Diana, but came up short. When I got back to my tent, my mind was on Lexi. Pulling back the flaps of Diana’s tent first, I only found the old woman snoozing, her chest rising and falling. Damn.

Needing rest, I went to my tent. Inside, a red headed pixie waited for me. I remembered Hoops and her invitation. The memory of those lithe hips spinning, those neon rings stuck in my mind.

Her eyes lit up. “You came.” She yanked me in by the front of my vest. We wasted no time with small talk. She pressed her lips to my cock, and I let the tension of the day slip away in the heat of that moment. She wasn’t shy, and I sure as hell appreciated it. There was a bottle of tequila, as promised, but we barely touched it. I was too busy burying my frustration and my cock into some easy pussy, while I thought about another. Aboutthat curvy lawyer, princess with glasses and possibly a jungle in her panties.

At some point, we collapsed on her sleeping bag, dozing in the humid night air. And the next morning, sunlight filtered through the tent’s thin fabric, jolting me awake. Hoops stirred, half-naked beside me. I kissed her shoulder, muttering something about needing a drink. She giggled, pulling me back down. I wasn’t a man to refuse.

We were mid-round two when I heard a frantic voice outside. A woman’s voice, angry, shouting. A whoosh of air. Then my name. “Maverick!”

I froze.What the fuck now?I looked over my shoulder. My stomach dropped when I saw Lexi, tears in her red-rimmed eyes, hair disheveled, her glasses askew. “Diana’s dead,” she gasped, choking on the words.

I disentangled from Hoops, yanked on my jeans.

“She’s… in her tent.”

It felt like someone punched me in the chest. Dirty Diana? Dead? My mind spun, half from shock, half from the remnants of last night’s lust-filled haze. “When? How?” I managed, my voice hoarse.

Her face twisted in grief and fury. “I don’t know! I found her this morning. She wasn’t breathing.” Her tone became accusatory. “Where the hell were you? You said you were taking care of her!”

I bit down on my jaw. “I toldyouto watch her, remember?” The words came out sharper than I intended. A flash of guilt cut through me, though.Dammit.

Lexi’s eyes flashed with anger. “So it’s our fault?” She wiped at her cheeks, trembling. “Just… The cops are coming. They’ll want to talk to you.”

Fuck. My ex-cop senses lit up like a siren. If the cops poked around too much, they’d find all kinds of skeletons, not just with me, but the rally in general. And Kingpin would have my hide for bringing the law down on this place.

Hoops peeked out, eyebrows lifting at the drama as she sounded like a siren herself. I ignored her as I zipped up my jeans fully and shoved my arms through my cut. “All right, calm down,” I told Lexi, though I knew calm was the last thing she’d feel.

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