Page 101 of Wanted
Metaphorically, of course. Liv always played fair. When it came to cars at least.
His new enemy number one—scratcher of Knox—spread his arms, eager to boast. “Normally I’d say something between ten and twenty grand, but there’s this guy coming here from Nevada, and he’s a bit of a star. You probably never heard of him, goes by Blizzard, and he’s a bit of a legend. Heard some of his high-flying friends are coming to slum it here with us regular folk. So who knows? Sky’s the limit, really.”
Liv’s brain ached, as if someone had squeezed it. Ten or twenty wouldn’t cover the entire surgery, but it would have been a goodlump sum to start with. With the potential for more? He’d bend over backwards to make that race, even if the Nevada racer’s name brought a shiver to his back. He’d seen Blizzard in action. The guy didn’t just have an expensive, well-tuned car. He was a raging maniac who feared loss of publicity way more than he feared death.
But this wasn’t the moment to let fear set in. He smiled and offered the other guy his hand, because there was only so long he could think of him as ‘that bastard’. “River.”
“Bill. So save up some cash, River, ‘cause it’s gonna be a big one, I can feel it. And the club holds the bets, so it’s all secure and shit.”
Bill was really selling it, but Liv had all the information he needed.
“Oh, I won’t be betting. I’ll be taking that cash home,” he said, with a growing smile. “But good luck to your brother,” he added and turned around with a spring to his step.
The muffled curse reaching his ears made him smile, but he wasn’t here to bask in this fucker’s failure to smell danger when it snuck up on him. He came here for a job.
“Evening,” he said, stepping past the open gate of the garage. Despite it being Friday, several men were still at work, by the looks of it doing chopper maintenance. He’d never been a motorcycle man, but he could smell burnt motor oil from afar. Still, pointing that out from the get go might not be the best recipe for friendly banter.
Four heads turned his way, and one of the guys, stick-thin, with a rather large, protruding nose wiped his hands on his dirty jeans, measuring Liv with his gaze. “And who are you?”
Best way to deal with unfriendly people? Keep being friendly.
Liv shrugged, ignoring the impolite tone. “River. I’m looking for Lion. He about?”
Another guy, this one bearded and showing off a hairy chest despite the cold, cocked his head, assessing Liv’s confidence. “He’ll be back in about an hour, but feel free to wait. You a friend of his?”
But before Liv could answer, a young blonde in hot pants and fishnet tights stepped in with a big smile and a whole steaming platter of what had to be burritos. Wrapped in foil, they looked chunky, and smelled delicious. While Knox had stepped up his game in feeding them both by either making attempts to cook or extracting food out of Ezra, Liv’s mouth still watered at the size of those things and he followed the platter with his gaze.
“Who’s up for burritos?” the girl asked, striding in. “Savannah made them.”
The guys all rose, wiping their hands and no doubt already salivating. Whoever Savannah was, she was known for her food, and now that Liv had smelled it, he wanted some too, especially if he could get one to take back home for Knox. After all, in their situation every saved dollar counted. He was about to ask if there were any to spare when the lanky guy from earlier snapped his fingers at him.
“Will you stop staring at my sister like a lecher, or should we talk outside?”
That was… unnecessary. But before Liv could have quipped something back, heavy footsteps sent a shudder down his spine. “Simmer down. This one likes dick.”
Cyborg.
FuckingCyborg.
Chapter 33
Liv
Anger turned Liv’s chestinto a furnace sending heat into his fists, legs, but most of all—his head, which felt like it was about to burst. Several pairs of eyes settled on him, but despite knowing he had to keep his body language in check, he didn’t have the courage to meet any of the gazes. It was as if confidence had drained from his body, and while Cy’s statement was not an accusation, it sure as hell felt like one. Not just because it was untrue, since he’d probably gotten more tail than anyone else present, but because it was meant to humble him.
Cyborg out of all people should know how the simple statement he made could affect Liv’s standing in a place steaming with a particular kind of masculinity.
But he took a deep breath and glanced over the shoulder, because trying to fight for his truth would have made him appear even weaker. What was he gonna do? Raise his finger and correct Cy, that he was bisexual? In the eyes of these guys,it wouldn’t have changed anything and only made him seem defensive.
In the end, it was the blonde girl who broke the silence, handing him a burrito. “My aunt is gay,” she offered as if that was supposed to solve anything.
Cyborg smirked and took one as well. Just looking at him made Liv’s forgotten anger rise again. The dude had beenthisclose to snatching Knox from him, and he hadn’t been with him through thick and thin, like Liv had. He’d have had fun the same way Liv often had with girls, and then stepped away once things started getting complicated.
He didn’t deserve to be in Knox’s presence, much less touch him.
Then again, he had been there to administer first aid when Liv had panicked and offered them access to a discreet surgeon, so he wasn’t all bad.
Plus, as a member of the MC, maybe he could offer yet more help.IfLiv managed to fix the bad impression he’d clearly left. He hated needing something from Cyborg, but life had often offered Liv lemons, and he had to roll with it.
