Page 6 of Junkyard Dog

This whole thing is ridiculous. I understand celebrity crushes. But ILuvThisGuy69 is literally obsessed with my model. I contacted my cover artist and the photographer who listed the photos for sale to warn them. It turns out the model is from New Zealand, so he should be fine. I’m the only one suffering right now.

“This bitch is unhinged,” Picnic says.

They look at me. “I’m not arguing. I know she needs to be dealt with. I just want to know how she found me in Lonesome. I would have noticed if I was followed halfway across the country. I hope,” I add.

“I doubt you ignored a kidnapper van for two thousand miles,” Picnic says.

“A kidnapper van?” Oh my God!

“Shut up, Picnic. He means a white van with no windows.” JD puts his arm around my shoulders. Again, he misses the looks between them. “Did you tell anyone that you were coming here?”

“No. I posted that I was deep in my writing cave working on a new book. Nobody except the girls at the book club knew I was coming, and Romy asked them to keep it off social media until after the fact. ILuvThisGuy69 showed up here last night.”

Duck looks at Picnic. “Something on her car?”

“Maybe. Give me your keys,” Picnic says to me.

“Why?”

“We’ll check your car for a tracker. She might have slipped one under your bumper. We’ll go over it and if we find something, we’ll have a reason to talk to her.”

“Get Moritz on it,” JD adds.

“Who’s Moritz?”

“A friend with the state police.”

“Now we’re getting the police involved? Guys, just let me get home and I’ll take all this trouble off your hands.”

“I told you, Rhiannon. We’re going to take care of you.”

JD’s voice is so sincere and so comforting. His hand brushes my cheek and comes away wet. I didn’t even know I was crying. I guess that the constant looming shadow of my super-stalker has been heavier than I realized.

I fish my keys out of my purse and give them to JD. He and Picnic head outside to coordinate, leaving me with Duck. The biker with the “President” patch on his leather vest leans forward. “JD will take good care of you. But our boy has had a tough go of it. I think you already know that.”

I nod. “Violet gave me the broad strokes.”

“I don’t think you’re the type to take advantage. But if you are?—”

“I’m not,” I interrupt. “I like JD. I didn’t ask him to get involved.”

“It’s good that he is. For both of you. If you have any problems, let us know. Me. Picnic. Tolk. What’s your phone number?” I recite it. I immediately get a text, adding me to a group chat about an upcoming birthday barbecue for someone named Mason. “Put your number in here, and the guys will give you their contact information.”

I hesitate, but not for long because I don’t think I have much time. “From everything Violet and Romy have said, JD is the strong, silent, loner type. Last night, Romy said he was different with me. Is he?”

“Oh, yeah.”

“Is that good?” I ask quietly.

“I think it’s the best thing that could happen to either of you,” Duck says.

Chapter Six

Picnic will drive Rhiannon’s car to the Lonesome Garage. He and Bishop are going to give it a once over to look for a tracker. If they don’t find one on the first pass, they’re going to tear Rhi’s Charger apart. The guys are also going to ask Moritz to speak to Superfan to inform her that she isn’t welcome on club property, which includes the Lonesome Bar and Grill’s parking lot. Sometimes it’s good to be the gorilla on the block, and in Lonesome, the Lost Souls are King Kong these days.

Romy is packing Rhiannon’s suitcase. Bishop will take it to the garage to hand off to one of the guys, and they’ll bring it to me. I haven’t told Rhi that she’s moving in yet. My place is the safest location in town. Nobody can see it from the highway. Plus, I can lock the gates to the salvage yard. It’s not out of character for me to close up shop for a couple days.

I don’t think Rhiannon will run. She’s hiding it, but she’s scared. The problem is going to be me keeping my hands off her while she’s here. I have never had this kind of attraction to a woman before. And I know I shouldn’t. She can hide here, but I’m not sure I can protect her. That’s why I called in the boys as back-up. I know they can do what I can’t.

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