Page 39 of Truck Stop Titan

I had nothing to offer but a, “Fuck off,” while I slapped his hand away.

I was sick of people telling me what I needed to do. Like I didn’t feel the weight every time Mim looked me in the eye, or wrapped her little fingers around my hand, or those tiny arms around my neck. My bones cracked under the pressure.

And Mim wasn’t the only one weighing heavy. Moriah. Fuck. That woman had me twisted.

Tito slapped me on the back. “Same time tomorrow?”

“Yeah,” was all I could manage.

He laughed. “Ever want a real challenge…” He pointed over his shoulder to the curvy, raven-haired goddess standing in the doorway, balancing a baby on her hip. “Give that feisty shit a go. She’ll exorcise your demons and serve you your own balls on a silver platter.”

He jogged away, snatched the baby out of the woman’s arms, and disappeared.

The woman, however, tilted her head, pinning me with a stare that left no room for challenge. “You good? Do we need to call Lettie?”

I raised a swollen hand. “All good.”

“Really?” She cocked her hip, touched a finger to her cheek. “Got a little something there.”

I ran the back of my arm over my sore cheek, and yes, there was blood. Already, my vision was blurry, my eye swelling, certain to get worse if I didn’t ice it soon.

“You must be Aida.”

The woman nodded, coming closer. “You’re Dane.” She offered a hand, which I didn’t refuse. She also didn’t comment when I took too long to find my balance.

When I rose to full height, the top of her head barely came to my chest, but somehow her presence filled the room like she was the God damn queen of everything, and I fought the urge to bow in respect.

Arms crossed, she gave me a once-over. “Hear you’ve been helping James around the grounds.”

“Yeah.”

“Want a job?”

Aida was Tucker’s woman. She knew goodgoddamnwell I was, or had been, a Slayer. Meaning, I worked, or had, only for the club. “Don’t need a job.”

“Fine,” she snapped, unconvinced, then turned around and sauntered to the door. “But if you change your mind, James could use a permanent groundskeeper.” She gripped the doorframe and looked over her shoulder. “The guy’s a fucking workhorse, but this place is bigger than we’d anticipated, and with summer looming, there’s no way he’ll be able to keep up with the entire property. We could hire someone from the outside, but that’s just more people in our business, and the less people in our business, the better. I’m sure you know what I mean.”

“Sure.”

“You don’t say much, do you?”

“Only when necessary.”

“Okay then. If you change your mind, I’ll be around.”

“I won’t.”

“Fine.”

“Fine.”

She raised a hand in the air and flipped me the bird over her shoulder. “Nice to meet you, Dane.”

Damn. I liked that woman. “Pleasure. Aida.”

# # #

“Dane! Grandpa!” Rocky barreled our way, Mim in tow.

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