Page 9 of Grizzly's Pride
After the traumatic events of that day, relief filled Piper when sleep took her. She didn’t dream that night, and that felt like a blessing in disguise.
Chapter Five
The smell of frying eggs and greasy bacon made Piper’s stomach rumble. She slowly sat up in bed, rubbing her eyes. Piper touched the thick and silky comforter, puzzled. This didn’t look like the thin and moldy comforter at the motel Mervin and she were currently staying in.
Mervin’s dead.Her father was no longer around to torment or berate her. Piper had no family left. The truth sank in the pit of her belly like a stone. Yesterday’s terrible events came crashing down on her. She’d spent the night in Grizzly’s apartment, in his bed. Heck, she’d done more than sleep the night before.
Her cheeks flamed, and she momentarily put her grief on the back burner. While Mervin never won any father-of-the-year awards, he was all she had. Now wasn’t the time to fall apart. Piper needed to get her act together, to get out of here as soon as possible.
As she hastily made the bed, she thought about what she’d do once Grizzly let her go. Start somewhere fresh maybe? Meet a nice man, maybe marry him and have kids with him? Why did she keep picturing Grizzly standing right to her?
Piper finally unlocked the door. Grizzly must’ve heard her approaching because he looked over his broad shoulder and greeted her.
“Morning. You managed to sleep well, sweetheart?” he asked.
“Don’t call me that,” she automatically said. She pulled out one seat from the counter and sat. “Is there any coffee?”
“Someone woke up grumpy,” he remarked. “And yep, I brewed a pot. It’s over to your left. Why don’t you grab me a cup as well? Cups are in the cabinet above the coffee machine.”
“Sure,” she mumbled. Piper’s brain didn’t feel fully awake. It took her a good minute to figure out where the mugs were. By the time she poured them both coffee, Grizzly had set two steaming plates of eggs, bacon, and toast on the counter.
“Smells good. It’s hard to find a man who’s able to cook these days,” Piper said. She didn’t know where that remark came from.
“The men you dated in the past don’t know their way around a kitchen?”
“Nope,” she answered, not willing to provide more. Not like she dated plenty of guys in the past. Piper finally asked the question she had been dreading. “What’s the plan for today? More questions?”
“Yeah, although I don’t think you have much to say. Am I right?” Grizzly asked. “You really have no idea what your old man was up to.”
His piercing blue eyes looked right at her, and she felt a little exposed. Piper focused on her breakfast. It tasted as good as it smelled.
“If you know that, then don’t you think it’s time to set me free?” Piper had the guts to ask.
“There are two problems with that,” Grizzly said. He held out two fingers, as if she was a child. Piper didn’t like that one bit. “Firstly, I need to prove to my MC Prez you won’t be a threat to our group.”
Okay, fair enough. Her father’s dealings had gotten two of Grizzly’s MC men killed. The thought turned her stomach. Piper believed Grizzly because this wasn’t the first time her father screwed someone over or had gotten someone killed thanks to his actions.
Heck, Mervin liked bragging about his exploits when he was drunk. Her father never let slip anything informative during those times, but he’d preen and praise himself for a job well done.
“What’s the second reason?” she finally asked him.
“Mervin made plenty of enemies along the way. Some of them might target you.” He looked so serious and concerned that Piper was certain he wasn’t lying.
“Why? I’m no one important, and it’s not like my father spilled his guts to me. To him, I’m just the girl who paid the bills and who occasionally gave him allowance or got him out of jail,” she said.
“Take the Black Dogs MC, the group your father sold our information to? They’re the foulest creatures on this earth, Piper. If your old men ended up playing them too, they won’t react well. They’ve killed innocents before without hesitation, went for the friends and families of the people who betrayed them.”
A chill went down her spine at those words. Piper fell silent, unsure of what to say or think. She tried wracking her brain of her last few days with Mervin. He’d been damn proud of himself at first.
Mervin bragged about striking gold, then he got very afraid. Was her dad terrified of retribution from Grizzly’s MC, or had he also pissed off a second MC?
“Hey, don’t you worry, Piper. Stick with me and I’ll keep you safe,” Grizzly said, sounding uncommonly tender.
Would she be a fool to trust him? Piper didn’t know anything about Grizzly. Well, she knew snatches of his past, but that was it. Mervin distrusted everyone around him, but she was the exact opposite. Piper trusted too easily.
“So my best option is to remain as your guest?” Piper asked.
“I’ve been in this line of work for a long time. I know what I’m talking about,” he told her. “The best course of action is to wait for the heat to die down.”
