“My what?” Ariel said, wrinkling her nose.
“Hawk.”
“Oh no no, he and I aren’t…a thing.”
“Really?” Karla’s eyebrows rose. “’Cause I swore there was some major heat coming off you two.”
“Well, we have chemistry, but it’s nothing serious. He’s protecting me the same way the others are looking after you and the girls.”
“Huh. You sure about that?” Karla said wiggling her eyebrows.
“Trust me. Hawk’s not the settle-down type. I think I’m the only woman who’s been in his house this long.”
“Maybe so.”
Ariel let the disbelief audible in Karla’s response slide by. She knew where she stood with Hawk. Letting herself believe anything else would only lead to heartache.
“How’s the whole undercover role going?” Karla said.
“Not bad most days, but there are times when I’d give my left arm to be able to speak freely.” Ariel sighed.
“Why? What do they have you doing?” Karla’s brow furrowed.
“Nothing, as a house mouse, I’m supposed to be more of the seen and not heard type. The hierarchy inside the club is very precise. It has to be to keep drama and bullshit down. United, they can take on anything; divided, they’d be overrun. I get it, but I don’t like living it. At least not as a house mouse. Being an old lady is the way to go.”
“Old lady?” Karla said.
Ariel laughed. “It’s like a wife. She gets the utmost respect from every single member.”
“Aaah, okay I’m getting you. What else?”
Ariel spent the rest of the afternoon bringing Karla up to date as they polished off the dessert and tried not to think about the battle they’d just taken on.
* * * * *
Hawk walked inside his house and nodded at Tex. “Anything happen today I should know about?”
“Not really. Smooth brought her friend, Karla, over to visit. That’s about all I have,” Tex said. His Southern twang never failed to amuse Hawk. You didn’t hear much of that out west.
“You’re relieved, prospect. Go have some fun.”
Tex nodded and rose, scurrying off. Hawk laughed. Being cooped up here must suck. Imagine how Ariel must feel. He felt a pang of sympathy. Nothing worse than being caged. He’d built his entire life around that philosophy. After locking the door behind Tex he moved farther into the house. When he found the kitchen empty he moved into the hall and knocked on her door.
“I’m fine, Tex. The same as I was thirty minutes ago.”
“It ain’t Tex. Get dressed; we’re going for a ride.”
“Okay.”
Her easy agreement earned a smirk. She must be feeling the cabin fever. While she presented herself as the perfect little house mouse in public, behind closed doors it was another story. She gave him hell and if he was honest, he loved it. People didn’t give him shit much. The vibe between them had gone from combative to playful. The little minx kept things from getting boring.
She walked toward him in a pair of skin-tight black jeans and an old band shirt that hung off her shoulders. Hawk licked his lips and gave her a slow once-over.
“You’re fucking sexy, you know that?”
Ariel tilted her head to the side and smiled. “The new packaging gets your blood flowing, doesn’t it?”
“You did that before the makeover,” Hawk said. Her eyes widened, and he laughed. “Always think you know everything, don’t you?”