Page 77 of Cruel Savior

Not just someone. JD.

“What the hell?” I said, clutching my chest. “You scared the hell out of me.”

“You should take your friend up on her invitation.”

I scrunched my face up at him in confusion until I realized what he meant. “You think I should go to Bubba’s? Why?”

“Why not?” he asked, taking a step in my direction. I took a step back. I hadn't seen the MC president since the night everything went to hell. I had no idea what he would say to me, but I was pretty sure it wouldn't be nice.

"I should stay clear of the bikers that hang out there, don't you think?"

He laughed. "If you really intended to keep away you would have left town."

Shit. "Is that what this is about? You've come to warn me that I need to leave town?" Figures, as soon as I get a little settled, another man in my life wanted to cause trouble for me. Although was I really settled? Having a job and a roof over my head didn't really mean much. Not yet.

"You make a lot of shit assumptions for a smart woman." He took a few steps closer and this time I stood my ground. It was bad enough that Brianna was probably going to hear every word of this conversation, I didn't need to make it easy. "I came to see if you were ready to get your head out of your ass. Well, that ain't the only reason I came here." He lifted a big wrench into view from where he'd been holding it behind his back. "Apparently, there's a water pipe issue out here."

I looked left and then right, trying to make sense of what he said. "Since when does the MC take care of plumbing?"

"Since we bought a shit ton of these mountain cabins to use as vacation rentals. Haven't you heard that real estate is one of the best investments you can make for your future?"

My mouth dropped open as I stood staring at the OG badass biker, who I knew for a fact spent more time hunting down killers and kidnap victims than he did turning a wrench to fix some plumbing.

"Aren’t fixing things what the prospects are for?"

He lifted his shoulder. "Yep. I could give a shit about this kind of work. But I happened to notice something very interesting on our video camera out here this morning and decided to check it out for myself and kill two birds with one stone."

I rolled my eyes. "I'm beginning to think there isn't much of anything that happens out here that you don't know about. You've certainly got your fingers in all the pies."

He smirked, a devilish look that I imagined had women around the state dropping their panties when he deigned to use it. The fact he was probably pushing fifty did nothing to detract from that. Other than a little gray hair at his temples and scattered through his full beard, he looked much younger. It was only the look in his eyes that might scare women away. He'd lived hard, and as President of the MC he took the full brunt of what came their way.

"I like pies," he said simply. "I also like women who don't bust my balls when I show up unannounced. Especially ones who are hoping for good reviews on their services." I was too shocked for words until he winked, letting me off the hook. "Relax, I didn't come here to critique your questionable cleaning skills."

"Thanks," I frowned. "I think."

"In most cases it's good to be wary. Especially since I came here to set you straight."

"Well, at least the awkward small talk is finally over." I bit my lips to hide my smile. I don't know what it was about him, but I liked James Dean Monroe. Even if he did have a mother who'd named him unkindly. Despite that, and his reputation as a real hard ass, I got a sense of fairness about him that seemed incongruent with his badass biker image.

"You going to stop sassing me long enough for me to say what I came here to say? There really is a water leak I need to contend with." He shook the wrench to emphasize his point.

"Okaaay." I crossed my arms over my chest and braced myself for the worst.

"Jesus. I'm not going to hit you. Don't be so paranoid."

I blinked up at him, a smart retort hovering on my tongue. But his expression had turned equal parts badass and teddy bear, and it was just the right combination to soften me. I dropped my arms and rolled my shoulders. “Just say it, then."

"You should have told him the truth when I sent him to you. He needed to hear it then, and he needs to hear it now."

I scoffed. "I doubt that. He hates me."

"If you believe that, then you're not as smart as I thought you were."

"What exactly is it that you think I should tell him? He already knows the truth about our baby." Well, that was technically true if we were talking about the past. Of course, that had nothing to do with the point I was trying to make. "You all know that I only did what I did with Frank to save my sister. Should I have handled that differently? Maybe. Would I do it differently if it happened again? Probably not. And that's just something I have to live with. It's who I am."

His lips twitched, and for half a second, I thought he was going to smile. He didn't.

"Yes, it's clear you're not a team player. At least not yet. And you're as stubborn as he is. He knows deep down that what the government did to you wasn't called for. But he isn't trusting his gut because he doesn't know why. Put a little faith in him and tell him the truth about Frank. It's all he needs. It's allyouneed."

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