Page 11 of Zeke

“Yeah,” I say. “I wish I could.” I look around at the otherwise empty bakery, knowing that I wouldn’t be missed, but that I can’t leave Dad on his own, and our other assistant isn’t here today.

“Kira,” Dad says again, coming out from the kitchen again, this time walking all the way up to the counter. “Just go with the man. Call it a delivery run.”

“Dad?” I ask. I’ve delivered to the farmhouse before, but not usually at his direct request. I know how he feels about bikers, and especially how he feels about me hanging around them.

“Zeke,” he says, looking past me. “You don’t mind, do you? She can go with you since your box probably won’t fare well on the back of your bike, and she can meet this dog while she’s there.”

“I think that’s a really reasonable way of looking at it, sir.” He’s laying it on thick, but it seems to work because Dad breaks into a smile and reaches across the counter to shake Zeke’s hand.

“Good to see you,” Dad says before heading back toward the kitchen. “I’ll see you when you’re done. Take your time, okay?”

I’m a bit confused by the sudden turn in his attitude toward the Kings, but I’m not going to argue if he’s going to let me get out of here for a little while.

“Okay,” I say to Zeke, wiping flour off my hands onto my apron and taking it off. “I’ll follow you in the car.”

“Sounds good,” he says, then holds the door open for me and follows me out.

I climb into my car as he jumps onto his bike, and even though I’ve been to the farmhouse before, he stays close so I can follow him. I’m glad he does, because then I get to watch him ride.

I’d never admit it to my dad, but the idea of being on the back of one of those bikes is exciting to me. Every time Zeke and Eli come into the bakery, I picture myself leaving with one of them, enjoying the wind in my hair as they drive faster and faster, the rumbling bike between my legs.

Of course, there are other things I picture between my legs when it comes to those two, and usually those things are attached to them.

It’s only a ten-minute drive to the farmhouse, and when we get there, Zeke is off his bike in a heartbeat, opening the car door and offering me a hand.

I laugh and say, “I can get out on my own, you know.” But I take his hand anyway, and he helps me out.

I take one step, then stumble on a loose stone in the driveway, but Zeke catches me. I grab onto him to steady myself, and get a handful of his strong, muscular arms.

“You okay?” he asks with a bit of a grin, though there’s some concern there, too.

“Yeah,” I say, standing up, but not quite letting go of him yet. Once I realize that I’ve been holding onto him for too long for it to be normal, I let go and give a nervous giggle. “Uh… let me grab those muffins.”

“Allow me,” Zeke says, opening the passenger door and taking out the large box of muffins. He holds it up like it’s a tray of champagne at a party and gives a goofy smile. “Right this way.”

We walk up to the house, side by side, and I keep catching him glancing over at me. I can feel my cheeks heating up as I blush, but I can’t stop it, and I know he sees it because his grin is getting wider.

We climb the porch steps and Zeke opens the door, letting me go in first. When I first walk I see a living room and game room, a huge space with couches, TVs, and card and pool tables. There are a few members of the club in here, and they look up as we walk in. They offer friendly waves, and I wave back. I’ve only met most of them once, the day Eden and Savage got married. I wasn’t expecting to be there for a wedding, but it had happened all the same.

A large opening leads into a dining room and kitchen area that is open and bright, and in the corner of the kitchen, sitting next to a breakfast nook table, is Eli and an adorable black dog with a white stripe from his chin down his belly.

“Kira, hey,” Eli says, putting his hand on the dog. “Good to see you.” He smiles and nods at the dog. “This is Bastard. Bastard, Kira.”Chapter Six

ZEKE

When Eden showed up after storming off with a mangy-ass dog, I was more than surprised, and I was definitely amused. Eden is tough as nails and will take someone down without a second thought if the situation calls for it. She is the Ruthless Queen, through and through, which is why I follow her blindly.

Well, most of the time. She is still my sister. Despite the fact she could take both me and Eli on in a fight without breaking a sweat, I can’t help but be protective of her. When she was breaking down and decided to go for a solo ride, when we had enemies running rampant around the whole country gunning for her specifically, I was intensely worried. Arguing with her was probably the least effective way of handling it, but I had to. Her anxiety came off her in waves and affected me so strongly I was on the verge of losing my shit.

After she left, I went to my room and tried to focus on anything else, but my mind wouldn’t focus on anything besides Eden or Kira. I debated manually relieving my stress again but ultimately didn’t. Especially once I saw Justice tearing ass out of the driveway in his truck.

I watched him go, my heart pounding with concern for my sister. I didn’t know if he was going after her, but it was the most logical assumption if he was taking the truck. It meant she couldn’t use her bike, and I was worried she might be hurt. But surely Justice would have said something if that was the case, right?

Another twenty minutes later, I heard the familiar rumbling of Eden’s engine pulling into the driveway. I looked outside and saw Justice following behind her. As I rushed outside, Eli came out another door, Rebel just behind us. Then I watched as Eden walked around to the back cab door and opened it to reveal the saddest-looking dog I’d ever seen.

That’s how I ended up standing outside alone with Eli and this poor thing. I’m not surprised Eden would pick up a stray, but I didn’t know what we were supposed to do with it.

Eli pays attention to the dog while I stand there, my mind filled with thoughts and emotions I unwillingly gathered from other people. It was a lovely little gift of mine to be able to feel what others were feeling—sometimes. Right now, everyone is so tense for so many different reasons that I can barely form a cohesive thought of my own.

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