Chapter Two: Heating Up
Mia
I was sweating and the sticky heat of Holbeck was making me agitated. I did have water in the car, but it was probably scorching hot by now, and the last thing I wanted to be drinking was hot water.
Mentally, when I first met Numbers, I thought he probably did steal the car. Motorcycle clubs were notorious for their chop shops and drug trafficking; they were into that stuff. The thing is, I didn’t care. I was impartial and there to serve the client. As long as I was getting paid, that was all that mattered. I had enough to deal with in life with my mother. My stomach churned up as my mind floated towards the fact, I would have a huge decision to make soon.
My mother had always been frail. I didn’t know why, but that’s just how it was with her. The rest of our family tree seemed to be fit and healthy. My father passed away five years ago, and it was just me and her now. I rubbed over the knots forming at the base of my neck, trying to knead them out. I felt this incredible weight of having to take care of everything myself.
To make matters worse, she had a stroke two years ago which left her paralyzed from the waist down. I had to hire a nurse to look after her. I had a guilt complex about it because I wanted her to get out into the fresh air and see things, but I didn’t have the time to be there like I wanted. To give her what she needed. I didn’t want to think about it all, so I pushed the negative worrying to the back of my mind.
I was surprised Numbers kept his receipts on hand like that. It was impressive, but I wasn’t going to tell him that. He didn’t exactly fit the biker description. He was more laid-back in a lot of ways. When I thought of an accountant, I pictured a studious, stern, uptight type.
He seemed to be the complete opposite, wearing a big goofy smile for one thing. He had these bright ocean-blue eyes, a lean physique, short dark hair with strands that fell over his face, tanned skin ? courtesy of Mississippi ? and he was wearing a pale gray t-shirt and shorts. He looked like he should be on a California coastline rather than perched in the middle of the Bible Belt. He was a nice height, I thought, about six feet tall. I was 5’7”, and not a short-ass, but I did have to look up at him when I spoke.
“Do you need a ride somewhere?” I asked. He didn’t have his car with him and I was on my way across town, so it made sense to drop him off. “It’s too hot in this heat to be walking anywhere,” I reasoned. It was as if the sun gods heard me, because a trickle of sweat dripped down between my breasts. I wanted to wipe it out, but I couldn’t. If Numbers saw me doing that he’d have a field day. I fidgeted a little, the heat making me uncomfortable as I waited for Numbers’ answer.
“That would be great. I’d get you to drop me off, if you can.” His ocean blue eyes were assessing me.
I ignored the penetrating heat from his blue gaze on me. “Okay, come on, let’s go. This heat is lethal and I want to get to the air conditioning,” I complained.
“No problem. Can I get you a drink before we get moving? There’s a cafe right over there,” Numbers asked politely.
My eyes narrowed at him as I adjusted my purse threatening to slip off my shoulder. My mouth was dry, and I was feeling parched. I needed a drink. I should also stop being so stubborn about things ? one of my finer traits. I softened as I watched a bead of sweat drop down the side of his face. He looked like a hot, thirsty mess like me. A good-looking one, but still a hot, thirsty mess.
Jesus, Mia. Just let him get the water.
“Sure. A water would be great,” I caved in.
He grinned, flashing his full set of near-perfect teeth at me. “Okay. I will be back soon, pretty lady.” He winked and took off.
I watched his tight butt walk over to the cafe. I raised my eyebrows at the sight; he was in good shape, and I didn’t mind watching him walk away.
He’s your client. Don’t even think about it, Mia. He’s off limits to you. Besides, you don’t do criminal bikers.
It didn’t take him but a minute to come back with two drinks.
I was grateful and I closed my eyes as he handed the cool drink to me. I placed it on my temple to soothe the heatwave hitting us.
“It’s like that here. Holbeck, muggy and suffocating. Welcome to Mississippi, everybody.” He gestured with one hand.
I smiled. He had this infectious quality to him. “Damn straight,” I agreed as I opened my drink and let the cool liquid slide down my throat. My senses started coming back to me, and the light-headedness subsided. I felt slightly more refreshed as I walked to my car. As we slid into my vehicle I became more aware than ever of Numbers’ presence, his musky cologne reaching my nose and making me secretly inhale. I moistened my lips as I cranked the car and backed out of the parking lot. “So where am I headed?”
“It’s not far from here, actually. About three streets over, at the end of this street, turn left, then hook a right. I’ll direct you from there,” he confirmed.
I gave him a quick once-over as I drove. I was not 100% convinced that he didn’t have anything to do with the robbery of the vehicle, but given all the evidence he provided to me, he seemed legit. He’d tried to steal vehicles previously, according to the records I reviewed, which is probably why the detective had no qualms in bringing him into the station for questioning. All of the charges seemed to stem from his youth, and there were no more charges after he hit 20.
My mouth turned up into a wry smile. I had my share of bad boy experiences, so how could I judge? I made my way down the main town center of Holbeck as the air conditioner kicked in, cooling off my hot skin. “Are you going to your parents’ place?” I asked innocently.
“No, I’m headed to my friend Smoke’s house,” he answered simply as he looked out the window.
“Smoke, who is that?”
“He’s a patch at the Saints, and a good friend. His real name is Jay. He’s good people,” he confirmed cheerfully with an easy smile. He was very relaxed for a man who was just accused of stealing a vehicle.
I furrowed my brow in confusion at his destination. “You don’t want to see your family after all that?”
He pointed to the left to indicate turning into the street. “No, Smoke is my family and so are the guys. I might have been in trouble a lot when I was younger, but I’m not now. I’m on the straight and narrow path. They’ve had my back from day one,” he explained. “That’s something that’s really important to me. I have to be able to rely on you.”