Lucky's Choice
Page 79
“Willa, stop.” Lucky buried his face in her hair. “Quit telling me you’re all right. I know it hurts like hell. I dislocated mine when I played high school football.”
“Oh.” Willa buried her face in his T-shirt. “Will you make sure Sissy’s okay?”
“I’ll take care of her,” Lucky promised.
Willa didn’t like the tone in his voice, but she was in too much pain to argue.
Knox and another ambulance arrived, quickly loading her onto the stretcher. Lucky held her hand as the stretcher rolled her toward the ambulance. As she passed Shade, she looked up at him.
“Don’t you dare thank him. He has a big enough head, anyway.”
Willa managed to laugh at her husband’s wry comment.
“You going to write me in your will?” Shade joked.
Willa stared up at him. “I already have. Didn’t Lucky tell you?”
Shade gave Lucky a mocking smile. “No, he must have forgotten.”
“I think I’ve finally figured you out,” Willa told him softly.
His smile disappeared, and an inscrutable look crossed his features.
“You told me each of The Last Riders has a code. Lucky’s is honor.” A lone tear slipped from the corner of her eye. “Yours is loyalty.”
Shade reached out a gentle hand, wiping her tear away. “Go get your arm taken care of. I’ll keep an eye on Lucky for you.”
“I know you will,” Willa softly replied. “I know you all will.”
Chapter 34
“Sit down and I’ll get you some juice to take your medication with before we go downstairs.”
Willa sat down at the kitchen table, feeling self-conscious with the other members standing around.
Lily and Beth both sat down at the table on opposite sides of her.
“Are you in any pain?” Lily asked with concern in her violet eyes.
“Surprisingly, no. They put me to sleep to put my shoulder back in socket and repair the torn ligaments. I’ll be good as new in about eight weeks.” Willa took the juice from her husband and the pain pill he held out.
“She has to have physical therapy. I’ve already called Donna.”
“The Last Riders keep her in business,” Beth joked.
“I have to admit, I did like Conner.” Winter sat down at the end of the table with a fond smile of remembrance.
“He’s not an option,” Lucky said.
“Why? Maybe I should meet him.”
“No, he had to leave town.” Lucky glared at Winter.
“I don’t know, Lucky. There were a lot of benefits to having him around,” Shade commented, taking a seat next to his wife and placing his arm over her shoulders.
“Don’t you all have somewhere else to be, like taking care of your kids?” Lucky asked grumpily.
Beth laughed. “Evie and King have them for the day.”
Willa stood up, going into the fridge to refill her glass. When she came back to the table, Lucky had taken her chair, and the rest of the table was full. Lucky’s arm went around her waist, tugging her down onto his lap, his hand resting casually on her denim-covered thigh. Lucky grinned unrepentantly at her faint flush.
“Is this the same table and chairs?” Willa asked, studying the table.
“Yes,” Lucky answered, rubbing her thigh.
She could have sworn the table had been a darker shade of oak.
“Did Sissy get on the plane?” Winter asked as she stood up to let Viper sit down and then sat down on his lap, wrapping her arm around his shoulder.
“Yes, Knox drove her to Lexington. She didn’t argue, from what Knox said. She was ready to go live with her family,” Lucky said. “She finally realized being young doesn’t make you invincible.”
“She almost got herself and Willa killed. She’s fortunate her ass isn’t sitting in a jail cell. I bet she wouldn’t be throwing around how she’s fucking eighteen if she was in front of a judge.”
Willa sent Shade a reproachful look.
“She came by the hospital after I came out of surgery, and we had a long talk while Lucky was there with Knox. She finally believes I wasn’t having an affair with Lewis. I still can’t believe it was Brooke. She didn’t seem like the type.”
“Sluts never do.”
Shade jerked his leg back, giving Lucky a glare.
“Did you just kick Shade under the table?” Willa frowned at her husband.
“No.”
Rider came through the kitchen door. “Alec’s here to see you, Willa.”
Douglas came in the door, wearing an expensive suit. Willa still couldn’t grasp the fact that Angus’s handyman was a bodyguard, no matter how much Lucky had explained it to her. Apparently, Alec was usually on the road with Mouth2Mouth. He had rented out Evie’s house because he’d thought it would be a quiet place to relax. With Angus living next door, he would help him out occasionally, and Willa had simply assumed he was Angus’s handyman, which had provided Alec with the perfect cover.
“Hello, Doug—Alec.”
“Hi, Willa. I stopped by the hospital to see you, and they said you had been released early.”
“She wanted out before she was charged for another day,” Lucky griped. “If you had picked a better insurance policy, you wouldn’t have had to worry.”
“I’m young and healthy. I’ll buy a better plan when we’re ready to start a family.” Willa started to get up. “Let me get—”
“No!” Alec cleared his throat then lowered his voice. “I have something to confess now that I’m not working for Lucky. I hate coffee, and I don’t eat sweets. I’m kind of a health nut.”
Willa’s face dropped. “You should have told me. I could have made you some tea.”
“I didn’t want to hurt your feelings,” he said gently. “With Bridge in jail, I can lose the six pounds I’ve put on. My men will miss all the freebies, though.”
“I still think you should have told me you hired a bodyguard,” Willa chastised her husband.
“I should have,” Lucky agreed. “But like I told you, Alec only stays in Treepoint when he’s not on a security job. Besides, it worked. If Alec hadn’t followed you that day…” Lucky pulled her closer to him.
“It shouldn’t have gone down the way it did. I was watching for Bridge to take her, not for Willa to go to him. When I followed her, I thought at first she was rushing to make a delivery, but then she turned off at the lookout, and I knew something was wrong. Then she stopped at the side of the road, and I thought she was turning around, so I backed up to give her room, but when she didn’t come back down, I knew I had screwed up. Thank fuck I called you and my men when she made the turn.”
“At least we won’t have to worry about Bridge anymore,” Willa said, rubbing Lucky’s tense shoulders.
“Oh.” Willa buried her face in his T-shirt. “Will you make sure Sissy’s okay?”
“I’ll take care of her,” Lucky promised.
Willa didn’t like the tone in his voice, but she was in too much pain to argue.
Knox and another ambulance arrived, quickly loading her onto the stretcher. Lucky held her hand as the stretcher rolled her toward the ambulance. As she passed Shade, she looked up at him.
“Don’t you dare thank him. He has a big enough head, anyway.”
Willa managed to laugh at her husband’s wry comment.
“You going to write me in your will?” Shade joked.
Willa stared up at him. “I already have. Didn’t Lucky tell you?”
Shade gave Lucky a mocking smile. “No, he must have forgotten.”
“I think I’ve finally figured you out,” Willa told him softly.
His smile disappeared, and an inscrutable look crossed his features.
“You told me each of The Last Riders has a code. Lucky’s is honor.” A lone tear slipped from the corner of her eye. “Yours is loyalty.”
Shade reached out a gentle hand, wiping her tear away. “Go get your arm taken care of. I’ll keep an eye on Lucky for you.”
“I know you will,” Willa softly replied. “I know you all will.”
Chapter 34
“Sit down and I’ll get you some juice to take your medication with before we go downstairs.”
Willa sat down at the kitchen table, feeling self-conscious with the other members standing around.
Lily and Beth both sat down at the table on opposite sides of her.
“Are you in any pain?” Lily asked with concern in her violet eyes.
“Surprisingly, no. They put me to sleep to put my shoulder back in socket and repair the torn ligaments. I’ll be good as new in about eight weeks.” Willa took the juice from her husband and the pain pill he held out.
“She has to have physical therapy. I’ve already called Donna.”
“The Last Riders keep her in business,” Beth joked.
“I have to admit, I did like Conner.” Winter sat down at the end of the table with a fond smile of remembrance.
“He’s not an option,” Lucky said.
“Why? Maybe I should meet him.”
“No, he had to leave town.” Lucky glared at Winter.
“I don’t know, Lucky. There were a lot of benefits to having him around,” Shade commented, taking a seat next to his wife and placing his arm over her shoulders.
“Don’t you all have somewhere else to be, like taking care of your kids?” Lucky asked grumpily.
Beth laughed. “Evie and King have them for the day.”
Willa stood up, going into the fridge to refill her glass. When she came back to the table, Lucky had taken her chair, and the rest of the table was full. Lucky’s arm went around her waist, tugging her down onto his lap, his hand resting casually on her denim-covered thigh. Lucky grinned unrepentantly at her faint flush.
“Is this the same table and chairs?” Willa asked, studying the table.
“Yes,” Lucky answered, rubbing her thigh.
She could have sworn the table had been a darker shade of oak.
“Did Sissy get on the plane?” Winter asked as she stood up to let Viper sit down and then sat down on his lap, wrapping her arm around his shoulder.
“Yes, Knox drove her to Lexington. She didn’t argue, from what Knox said. She was ready to go live with her family,” Lucky said. “She finally realized being young doesn’t make you invincible.”
“She almost got herself and Willa killed. She’s fortunate her ass isn’t sitting in a jail cell. I bet she wouldn’t be throwing around how she’s fucking eighteen if she was in front of a judge.”
Willa sent Shade a reproachful look.
“She came by the hospital after I came out of surgery, and we had a long talk while Lucky was there with Knox. She finally believes I wasn’t having an affair with Lewis. I still can’t believe it was Brooke. She didn’t seem like the type.”
“Sluts never do.”
Shade jerked his leg back, giving Lucky a glare.
“Did you just kick Shade under the table?” Willa frowned at her husband.
“No.”
Rider came through the kitchen door. “Alec’s here to see you, Willa.”
Douglas came in the door, wearing an expensive suit. Willa still couldn’t grasp the fact that Angus’s handyman was a bodyguard, no matter how much Lucky had explained it to her. Apparently, Alec was usually on the road with Mouth2Mouth. He had rented out Evie’s house because he’d thought it would be a quiet place to relax. With Angus living next door, he would help him out occasionally, and Willa had simply assumed he was Angus’s handyman, which had provided Alec with the perfect cover.
“Hello, Doug—Alec.”
“Hi, Willa. I stopped by the hospital to see you, and they said you had been released early.”
“She wanted out before she was charged for another day,” Lucky griped. “If you had picked a better insurance policy, you wouldn’t have had to worry.”
“I’m young and healthy. I’ll buy a better plan when we’re ready to start a family.” Willa started to get up. “Let me get—”
“No!” Alec cleared his throat then lowered his voice. “I have something to confess now that I’m not working for Lucky. I hate coffee, and I don’t eat sweets. I’m kind of a health nut.”
Willa’s face dropped. “You should have told me. I could have made you some tea.”
“I didn’t want to hurt your feelings,” he said gently. “With Bridge in jail, I can lose the six pounds I’ve put on. My men will miss all the freebies, though.”
“I still think you should have told me you hired a bodyguard,” Willa chastised her husband.
“I should have,” Lucky agreed. “But like I told you, Alec only stays in Treepoint when he’s not on a security job. Besides, it worked. If Alec hadn’t followed you that day…” Lucky pulled her closer to him.
“It shouldn’t have gone down the way it did. I was watching for Bridge to take her, not for Willa to go to him. When I followed her, I thought at first she was rushing to make a delivery, but then she turned off at the lookout, and I knew something was wrong. Then she stopped at the side of the road, and I thought she was turning around, so I backed up to give her room, but when she didn’t come back down, I knew I had screwed up. Thank fuck I called you and my men when she made the turn.”
“At least we won’t have to worry about Bridge anymore,” Willa said, rubbing Lucky’s tense shoulders.
