“So, do you take after your mother or your father?”
“My dad. Definitely my dad.”
I pulled out my phone, and once I’d found a picture of them, I turned the screen towards Kiersten. A smile swept across her face as she said, “Your mother’s beautiful. You favor her, but you and your dad could be brothers.”
“Stacey looks more like my mom.” I swiped the screen and pulled up an image of my sister. “She’s a few years older than me. Lives in Gatlinburg with her husband and three kids. They have a souvenir shop right in the middle of town.”
“That’s awesome. I love Gatlinburg.”
“I’ll have to take you up there sometime for a visit.”
“I would love that.” Her brows furrowed as she turned to me and said, “I just have one more question.”
“Okay, shoot.”
“What’s with the road name ‘Country’?”
“Well, Gran had a lot to do with that. I didn’t know the first thing about baling hay or cleaning out stalls until she and Pops taught me, but even then, I found a way to screw things up. Gran got a real kick out of telling the guys what a fuck-up I was at the farm, and one thing led to another.”
“I doubt you were a fuck-up, Grayson.”
“Nah, I made more than my fair share of mistakes. Even let the hay get wet and almost burned down the fucking barn.”
“Oh, well, maybe you were a little bit of a fuck-up, but at least you got a cool road name out of it.”
“Yeah, there’s always that.” We’d spent the better part of our time together talking about me, so I decided to turn the tables on her and asked, “So, what was it like growing up with a man like Billy?”
“A man like Billy?” She cocked her eyebrow. “You mean the kind of man who makes dead bodies disappear?”
“When you put it like that, it makes me wish I hadn’t asked.”
“No, it’s all good. I’m kind of glad you asked.” She looked out at the water as she continued, “I can only imagine what you must think of him, but he’s a good man. I know that might be hard to believe, especially considering what he does for your club, but he is. He’s always loved me and tried his best to take care of me, even more so after Mom died.”
“Sounds like he’s really tried to be there for you.”
“He has. More than you know.” Her eyes skirted over to me as she explained, “I guess you could say he’s like you and the other Sinners... He’s a good man who just happens to do something bad in order to provide for his family.”
Tears started to fill her eyes, and I was completely thrown. I had no idea what had upset her. “Hey, are you okay?”
“I’ve been mad at him for all these years for hiding that part of his life from me, but I haven’t judged you or your club like I have him.”
“Yeah, but we’ve never pretended to be something we weren’t.”
“No, but I have. I’m no better than he is. In fact, I’m just like him.”
“No, not even close.” I slipped my arm around her waist, and being careful to avoid the steering wheel, I pulled her into my lap. “You’re an amazing woman, and you’re doing incredible things here. Things you should be proud of. Not sure Billy could ever say the same.”
“I just wish I understood. He could’ve done anything. Why did he decide to do something so insane?”
“I can’t answer that one, babe, only Billy can do that. Maybe it’s time you talked to him about—”
“No.” She shook her head. “I’m just not ready.”
“Okay, well, when you are, you just have to be honest with him and demand that he does the same with you.”
“You make it sound so simple.”
“He’s your dad. He would want you to talk to him, even if he isn’t happy about what you have to say.”
“You’re right. I’ll talk to him. I just need some time to work up the courage.”
“Take all the time you need.” I kissed her on the forehead, then said, “We better get back before Braylon sends out a search party.”
“You’re probably right.” She eased out of my lap and over to the passenger seat. I was just about to crank the engine when Kiersten reached over and placed her hand on my arm. “Thank you, Grayson. It means a lot that I can talk to you like this.”
“Means a lot to me, too.”
I gave her a wink and drove us back to the Manor. We both finished our work for the day, then met up at her place where we spent the entire night tangled in each other’s arms—the perfect way to end a long day.
The following few days went by faster than I’d hoped. It seemed like we’d only just gotten there, and it was time to head back to the clubhouse. Since it was our last night, Lynch and I had gathered some wood and made a fire. Kiersten brought us over some drinks, and we sat under the stars talking about this and that. Lynch had been pretty quiet, so I asked him, “How’s it going with Mia?”