November’s Ride with Viper (Mustang Mountain Riders #11)

4. Marlowe

CHAPTER 4

MARLOWE

I watched Lily roll out the next pie crust, in awe of her natural ability. “You make it look so easy,” I said.

“It is easy when you’ve made as many pies as I have.” She nodded at the apple pie filling I’d been mixing. “Is that almost ready?”

“Yep.” I stepped back to give her room to scoop the filling into the prepared crusts. When Ruby asked if I had time to help with the Friendsgiving desserts, I’d been happy to volunteer. But once I saw Lily in action, I wondered if she really needed an extra set of hands, or if Ruby was just determined to help me resettle in town and make friends.

“Now we just need to do the top.” Finished with the filling, Lily motioned for me to move closer.

I watched how she laid strips of dough over the top of each pie to make it look like lattice and did my best to copy.

“If you decide you need a part-time job, just say the word. You’re really good at this,” she said.

“I think I’ve got enough going on without committing to another job.” Between unpacking, updating my grandma’s cabin, and keeping up with work, I was busy enough. Plus, the only reason I hadn’t burned something yet was because she was keeping a close eye on me. I had a history of not being very competent in the kitchen. No telling what had gotten into me when I’d invited Viper over for a whole meal.

“Ruby says you have a birthday coming up. Are you doing anything special to celebrate?” Lily glanced over with a twinkle of mischief in her eyes.

“It’s actually today,” I admitted.

“Happy Birthday! I wish I’d known. I would have made you a cake to celebrate. Do you have big plans?”

“I’ve got plans, but I wouldn’t call them big.” I wasn’t willing to share anything more.

“They don’t happen to involve a certain biker, do they?” Lily shot me a knowing grin.

My eyebrows lifted. “Really? How do you know about that?”

“You’ve lived in the city for too long. Have you forgotten what it’s like living in a small town?” Lily giggled as she rolled out more dough. “Especially one where Ruby Nelson takes it upon herself to make sure every eligible bachelor in town finds love?”

“Is that how you and Mack ended up together?” I asked.

Lily nodded. “Ruby definitely had something to do with it. Just be glad she’s not posting her mountain man of the month on the tourism website any more.”

“No way. She did that?” I hadn’t paid too much attention to Ruby’s antics when I’d lived in Mustang Mountain. Granted, I’d only been eighteen when I moved away, and keeping tabs on the mayor’s wife hadn’t been a priority.

“She’s got good intentions.” Lily helped me put the last two strips of dough in place on the final pie. “If it weren’t for Ruby, I’d probably still be single and living in Bozeman.”

Lily and I had only spent a couple of hours together, so I wasn’t sure if I should ask her about what had been on my mind. Deciding it couldn’t hurt, I forged ahead. “Can I ask you something?”

“Sure.” She opened the oven door and traded out the finished pies for the ones we’d just prepared.

“What’s it like being with someone in the Mustang Mountain Riders?” There. I’d asked the question I’d been wondering about. It wasn’t like I expected Viper to remember the pact we’d made. Even if he did, neither one of us was under any obligation to honor it. But still, I was curious what it was like to be with someone in the club. They seemed like such a close-knit group.

Lily started to move all the dishes we’d used into the huge stainless steel sink. “It’s like having a big extended family. The guys are like brothers. They’re all willing to help each other out, no questions asked. And the women are like sisters or maybe more like cousins. I’m closer to some of them than others, but we all get along for the most part. I don’t know Viper all that well, but are the two of you seeing each other?”

Her question caught me by surprise. “Oh, um, no. I mean, we used to be best friends in high school, but then I left for college and he stayed here.”

“But now you’re back.” Lily smiled and shrugged her shoulders. “And maybe you’ll be spending your birthday together, right?”

“Right.” My cheeks tingled at the reminder. I shouldn’t be nervous. Viper and I had spent too many hours together to count when we were younger. Neither one of us had changed that much over the years… at least on the inside. He’d definitely changed on the outside. Thinking about how he filled out his jeans had me fanning my face.

“Here,”—Lily passed me one of the pie boxes she hadn’t put together yet to use as a fan—“I always get hot when I open up the oven.”

“Thanks.” I waved the box back and forth, unwilling to tell her the flush on my cheeks had nothing to do with the oven and everything to do with a certain hard-bodied biker. “What do we need to do next?”

A few hours later, I said goodbye to Lily, loaded the last of the pies into my trunk, and made the short drive over to the Community Center. With the Friendsgiving celebration taking place the next day, it would be easier to deliver the pies this afternoon than add that to the growing list of things to do tomorrow.

“Happy Birthday. Need some help?” Viper asked as soon as I got out of the car.

“Are you stalking me?” I teased.

“Would you be mad if I said I was?”

That smile… I couldn’t understand how one grin from my high school best friend could knock me so off center. Ignoring the slow burn that smile sent unfurling through my limbs, I walked around to the trunk.

“Want to help me carry in some pies?”

His brow creased in concern. “I thought Lily was baking all the pies for tomorrow.”

“She did. I just spent the whole morning helping.” Proud of what we’d accomplished, I opened the trunk. The scent of cinnamon, apples, and pumpkin floated out. All the pies sat in the big boxes Lily provided.

“Oh, good.” Viper grabbed one of the big boxes and hefted it into his arms.

“Wait a sec. Were you worried that I’d made the pies myself and that they wouldn’t be any good?” It took me a minute to put two and two together, but I was onto him now.

That smile returned. “Hey, I was in your group when we had to make a huckleberry pie in our FACS class. I’m pretty sure they still haven’t got all the black stuff off the bottom of that pan you burned up.”

Oh no he didn’t. I reached for the box. “Give me those pies. There’ll be no pie for you tomorrow.”

Even with his arms full, he managed to outrun me. By the time he set the box down in the kitchen, I was out of breath.

“You’ve got to admit, your crust turned to ash when you tried to serve it.” He leaned against the counter and crossed his arms over his broad chest.

“That’s only because you distracted me while I was supposed to be keeping an eye on it.” I playfully swatted at his shoulder. “I’ve changed since then. Maybe you need to just forget about the past.”

He reached out and easily caught my hands in both of his. The smile faded and his eyes narrowed slightly, making him look a whole lot more serious. “There’s a lot about the past I don’t want to forget, Lo Lo.”

I couldn’t swallow. Couldn’t breathe. Couldn’t look away. My heart jumped erratically, like it had suddenly decided to play hopscotch all over my ribcage.

Viper pulled me closer and slid his hand up my arm to cup the back of my neck. His lips parted as he leaned down. Our gazes locked. Then his eyelids fluttered closed as his lips barely brushed against mine.

“Yo, Viper!” someone yelled.

My eyelids flew open, and I jerked backward just as a huge mass of man poked his upper body through the doorway.

“Am I interrupting something here?” The man grinned, then nodded his head toward the hall. “We need you out front, brother.”

Viper ran his thumb over my bottom lip, apparently not in a huge hurry. “Marlowe, this big lug is Atlas. He’s the president of the club.”

“Nice to meet you.” My voice sounded like someone else’s—too high and way too high-strung to be mine.

Atlas nodded. “Nice to meet you too. I just need to borrow your man for a few minutes. You can come too, if you want.”

My man. Oh my. I wasn’t sure how to respond to that.

Viper twined our fingers together and tugged me out to the main room, where several guys in black leather jackets sat around one of the tables we’d already set up and decorated for the next day.

“Guys, this is Marlowe.” Viper didn’t let go of my hand as the men nodded or offered a smile.

“Tell him what you told me,” Atlas said to one of the men sitting at the head of the table.

“Hey, I’m Thunder.” He nodded toward me, then continued. “We had a report that someone saw a few guys hanging around the Community Center early this morning. Viper, you’ve been on watch during the day over here. Have you seen anything out of the ordinary?”

“No. Can you confirm they were members of Savage Bones?” Viper’s grip on my hand tightened a bit. I’d heard people talk about another club that had been active in the area, but I thought they’d all been driven away.

“They didn’t get a good enough look, but we all need to be on high alert. Scar and I can pull an overnight here. The rest of you, enjoy your evening and we’ll see everyone tomorrow.” Thunder got up and everyone followed.

I turned to Viper. “Should we be worried?”

“The only thing you need to be worried about is having a good time on your birthday.” He tugged me toward the door. “Let’s get out of here.”