Page 84 of The MC's Surprise
“Don’t worry, I asked permission. It’s Skylar’s helmet. She drove in with the kids, so she won’t be riding back with him. She said it was fine for you to borrow it.”
“Okay, good. Because I don't want to be involved in any prank that includs Butch. He’ll hurt you and I don’t want to watch that.”
I in no way worried about him hurting me, Butch wasn’t that kind of guy, but I’d heard the stories of how he handled clubpranks in the past. I didn’t want any part of that. And if he knew what was good for him, Justin wouldn’t cause any trouble either.
After putting on our helmets, Justin shrugged out of his leather jacket, putting it on me instead. He grinned when he stepped back to admire the results.
“Damn. I like you in my colors, gorgeous. I might make you put that on for me later.”
It thrilled me down to my toes that he still found me attractive after having Melanie. I had a lot of insecurities about it, especially after listening to Charlotte’s vitorile the day prior. But Justin wasn’t shy about giving me compliments and letting me know what he thought about me. I winked at him, doing a little shimmy as I moved closer to his bike.
“I won’t say no to that.”
He groaned, wrapping his arms around me and kissing my neck. “I almost want to ditch this date idea and bring you back home so I can have my wicked way with you.”
“Date?”
I thought it was just a drive. I didn’t realize it was a date.
He hummed, releasing me so he could climb onto his bike. “Yep. I’ve got something special planned. Now hop on, beautiful. We’ve got places to be and a daughter to get back to when we’re done.”
Laughing, I climbed onto the back of his bike, hugging his middle tightly when he started the engine. Whatever he had planned, I was okay with.
He was careful as he edged his way out of the rally. It was even more crowded today than it was the day before, which made me so unbelievably happy, but also made it a little harder to get somewhere safe enough to not risk hitting someone. Once we were free of the crowds, he revved the engine, shooting me a grin over his shoulder before driving away. He toed the edge of going over the speed limit, and I knew Prez would complain if hefound out, but I couldn’t make myself discourage him. It was too much fun.
I was having so much fun, I didn’t recognize where we were headed until we pulled into the parking lot. I blinked in surprise, looking up at the brand new sign above the animal shelter. I frowned.
“You’re not surprising me with a pet, are you? Because we just had a baby and I don’t think I can handle both right now.”
He chuckled, helping me off the back of his bike before following me. We tucked the helmets under our arms and he took my hand, leading me inside. “Nope. But there’s someone here who wants to talk to you.”
Confused, I followed him inside and over to the reception desk. I didn’t recognize the person sitting behind it, but they seemed to know us because they lit up with a smile.
“You’re here right on time. I’ll let Jacob know you’ve arrived.”
I cocked my head at Justin, but he just smiled at me as he led me over to a row of chairs where we could sit. I didn’t even have time to ask before Jacob came hurrying out of his office, a bright smile on his face. When I’d first met him, he looked a little haggard, with big dark circles under his eyes. He’d obviously gotten some much needed sleep since then, because he looked more put together now.
“Thank you for coming. I was hoping to talk with you again soon.”
Confused, I looked at Justin, but Jacob was looking at me. I pointed to myself. “Me?”
He nodded rapidly. “Absolutely. I know you did that adoption event to help your crew, but you did amazing things for the shelter as well. I was hoping to ask if you’d be willing to assist again. Maybe a few times a year? Some of our longest residentsat the shelter got adopted last time thanks to your event. It did so much good. I don’t want it to be a one time thing.”
My mind swung back to Rooster and the dog he’d snuck into the clubhouse. Rooster mentioned the poor thing was going to be put down. Was it really my event that saved him?
“I know the crew would be happy to work with you again, but I’m willing to bet Sierra can come up with more ideas to help you out,” Justin said with a smile.
I froze, gaping at him. I wanted to say I didn’t have time for that, I had a new baby and I would eventually be going back to work at the casino, plus I still had a lot of plans for restoring the crew’s reputation. Adding the shelter onto that list was a little daunting. But when I looked at Jacob, who looked so hopeful and nervous, I couldn’t make myself turn him down. I wanted to help him. And I could handle a couple times of year.
“Sure. I can do that. I’m still on maternity leave, but I’ll use some of that time to work out some ideas and run them by you later. Does that sound alright?”
He beamed so brightly, it was almost blinding. “That sounds amazing. Here, I’ll give you my email. I’m looking forward to working with you. And seriously, thank you so much for what you’ve done already. You’ve made a huge difference here.”
I was still reeling when we headed back outside. I couldn’t remember the last time someone was so happy to work with me. Well before I came back home, that was for sure. Once that asshole accountant got his claws into my business, people were too wary to work with me. Even when I offered to do the jobs for free. It’d been a really long time since someone asked for my help without me coming to them.
“Come on, sweetheart. Two more stops,” Justin murmured, helping me with the helmet because I was too shell shocked to do it myself. When I blinked up at him, he smiled softly. “I alwaysfound going for a ride really helpful when I was overwhelmed. Take your time. I’ll get us to where we need to go.”
Grateful that he understood how I was feeling, I took his advice, using the drive to wrap my head around what had just happened. When we pulled up alongside the park, I got off the bike automatically, assuming we were going to have another picnic or maybe just enjoy the quiet sunshine for a little while. Instead, we were joined by two people who I’d spoken with over the phone but never met in person.
