Road to Redemption Read online

  He smiled and I forced myself not to let out a sigh. “You and I are gonna get to know each other.”

  “We are?”

  Alex nodded.

  “And if I don’t want to? Then what?”

  He leaned against my car and raised an eyebrow. “You want to.”

  I took a deep breath, stuffing both the feeling of arousal and irritation. “Alex—”

  “I fuckin’ love it when you call me that.”

  “Hawk,” I corrected.

  “Don’t do that, baby.” Alex cupped my cheek. “Although, it’s almost as sexy.”

  I stepped away from his touch. “Where’s Lily?”

  “She’s with my sister.”

  “You have a sister?”

  He nodded. “And a mother.”

  “You’re close?”

  “With my sister, yeah.” He crossed his arms. “She’s stayin’ with me while she sorts shit out with her ex.”

  “Where’s Lily’s mother?”

  Something scary crossed his face. Rage was far too simple to describe his expression.

  “Sorry,” I rushed to say. “It’s none of my business.”

  “It’s part of getting to know me,” he said, although, he sounded irritated. “I don’t know where her mother is. Honestly, I hope she’s dead.”

  “Harsh.”

  “The whore is the biggest bitch on the planet, so, no, babe, it’s not harsh enough.”

  I bit my lip. “Okay, right there is why I’m not sure this is a good idea.”

  Alex ran his thumb across my lip, tugging it from my teeth. “Break it down for me.”

  “You hate the woman who gave birth to your beautiful little girl. You don’t seem interested in giving her the credit of at least gifting you with something incredible. Instead, you wish her dead. This doesn’t bode well for someone like me who couldn’t be less suited for you than any other woman on the planet. If you can’t find even the tiniest bit of compassion for her, what happens to me when I do something you don’t like? Will you wish me dead?”

  “I’m not having this conversation with you in your parents’ driveway.”

  “I don’t think there’s any point in having this conversation, period. I think you and I are ill suited to be anything other than acquaintances, so I wish you well, Alex James, but I think it’s a good idea that we part ways.”

  He frowned. “Fuck, Payton. You’re givin’ up before we’ve even started!”

  “Better now than to end up hurting each other later.”

  “I didn’t peg you for a coward.”

  I knew he said this to goad me, but I wasn’t particularly liking the emotions running through me, so I wasn’t going to bite. I needed to stay strong, not allow the sadness of never seeing him again rule my actions. “Yep, I’m a coward. And if you knew anything about me, you’d pick up on that pretty quickly.”

  “What I’m pickin’ up on, baby, is you’re a shit liar.” He smiled. “So, how about you come with me and we’ll talk some more.”

  I let out an irritated groan. “Have you not heard a word I’ve said?”

  “Have you eaten?”

  “Alex.”

  He pushed away from the car, closing the distance between us. “Babe, have you eaten?”

  My traitorous stomach rumbled. “No. But I’m just a step away from a food source, so I’m all good.”

  “Come eat with me.” Alex took my hand and gave it a squeeze. “We’ll talk.”

  “I don’t do this, Alex.”

  “Pickin’ up on that, Payton.”

  “Why are you pushing?” I demanded, but of course I still stood there holding his hand.

  “Can’t tell you why, babe, just know I have to.”

  I studied him. Wrong choice. He was far too gorgeous for his own good and staring at him just made me want to get naked, so I looked at my feet. But that brought into view his muscular legs and sexy as hell motorcycle boots, so I moved my eyes away, catching a glimpse of our hands entwined, a silver dog skull ring on his finger, and that just about had me kneeling before him. Gah! I was far too easy.

  “Fine. Dinner,” I said, and pulled out my cell phone. I texted my mom to let her know I wouldn’t be home for a few hours, even though my car was in the driveway. My parents were out anyway, so it’s not like they would be peeking out of the front room window to see who I was with, so I didn’t give them any further information.

  After locking up my car, I let Alex lead me to his truck. It wasn’t old, but it was certainly beat up. He held the passenger door open for me and I had to climb into it, it was so high. As he made his way around the front of the truck, I took in the CB radio, grate between the front and back seats, and general disarray of the cab.

  He climbed in beside me and started the engine.

  “What do you do?” I glanced around the cab. “Assuming you do something outside of the club.”

  “Bounty hunter.”

  “Of course you are,” I muttered under my breath.

  Alex laughed. “I get better looking by the second, admit it.”

  “Wow,” I said. “Cocky much?”

  He didn’t answer as he grinned and pulled away from the curb.

  As we drove toward I-5, my phone rang and I pulled it out to find Macey calling. “Hey, Mase.”

  “Hey. Did I leave one of my bags in your trunk?”

  “I have no idea,” I said. “I’m actually not home right now, but I can check when I’m back.”

  “Where are you?”

  “With Alex.”

  “Shut the front door. How did that happen?”

  “No clue. He just showed up at home as I pulled in.”

  “Are you okay with that?” she asked. “’Cause I’ll get Dallas to track you and pick you up if you want.”

  I glanced at Alex who raised an eyebrow at me before focusing back on the road.

  “I’m fine, Mase. But I’ll keep that in mind if he gets out of hand.”

  “I want details.”

  “It’s just dinner.”

  “Still want details when you can talk,” she said.

  “Yeah, yeah.” I smiled. “I’ll call you later.”

  “’Bye,” she said, and hung up.

  I dropped my phone back in my purse and glanced at Alex again. “Why are you called Hawk?”

  “I was a sharp shooter in the marines.”

  “Did you do any tours?”

  “Two. Iraq.”

  “Wow,” I whispered. “Thank you.”

  He took my hand, linking his fingers with mine. “You’re welcome.”

  “Where are we going?”

  “What do you feel like?”

  “Typically on a first date, I’d say somewhere I can get a salad.”

  “But?” he countered.

  “But, that’s because I usually eat beforehand in an effort to keep the fact that I eat like a four-hundred pound man a secret for a while. And since I didn’t do that, I’m in the mood for burgers, fries, and a big ass chocolate shake,” I admitted. “You wanted to get to know me. Welcome to the show.”

  Alex laughed. “Burgerville it is.”

  He drove to the Salmon Creek location and pulled into the drive-thru.

  “We’re not going in?” I asked.

  “Got a better place to eat.”

  “Let me guess. Some hidden and perfect place to hide a body?”

  Alex laughed again. “Or fuck.”

  “Oh my god,” I said, and pulled my hand away. “Don’t be disgusting.”

  “Nothing about that is disgusting, Payton. Trust me. You’re gonna love it.”

  “I’m not having sex with you, Alex,” I snapped. “Did you actually think I would?”

  “Don’t get your panties in a wad, babe. I’m not expecting anything tonight except food and conversation.” He smiled. “Besides, when I get you into bed, it’ll be somewhere warm and very, very private. Somewhere I can take my time.”

  I shivered at the thought, swallowing severa
l times before I found my voice. “You’re not getting me into bed, Alex.”

  “We’ll see.”

  We pulled up and I ordered a Colossal, fries, and Chocolate Monkey. Alex ordered the pepper bacon burger and fries, along with a pop, and then we drove out of the parking lot. Alex headed down I-5 and exited at Jantzen Beach, but headed to the Marina rather than the mall.

  He pulled into the parking lot and turned off the engine. “You got a coat?”

  I shook my head.

  “No problem,” he said, and jumped out of the truck, opening the back door, and grabbing a leather jacket.

  “We’re eating here?”

  “Yeah, babe.”

  I opened my door and gathered up the food, but before I could climb down from the cab, Alex was in front of me, taking my burdens from me and helping me out. He settled a ridiculously large leather jacket over my shoulders and then took my hand and the food and pulled me toward the pier.

  “How do you have access to all of this?” I asked.

  “I own a boat.”

  “You do not.”

  He smiled. “I do.”

  “What’s the name of your boat?”

  “Gravy.”

  I choked as I swallowed a laugh. “It is not.”

  He chuckled. “It is.”

  “That’s probably the best thing I’ve ever heard.”

  Alex grinned again.

  “My dad always says the only thing better than owning a boat is having a friend who owns one,” I said.

  Alex laughed. “There’s a third option.”

  “There is?”

  “Owning a boat and having recruits who have to pay their dues to look after the boat.”

  I giggled. “You’re smarter than you look, Alex James.”

  “Well, thank you, Payton Williams.”

  “Wow,” I whispered as he pulled me to a stop in front of the prettiest (and largest) boat I’d ever seen. Granted, I wasn’t well versed in boats, and had never personally been on one, other than one that pulled me when water skiing, but seriously, this was pretty. “Is this a yacht?”

  “Yeah, babe. Technically it’s a yacht.” He smiled. “But I got it for a dinghy price.”

  “Permission to come aboard?” I retorted, and then blushed. “I heard that you’re supposed to say that somewhere.”

  Alex laughed as he stepped onto the boat and reached his hand out to me. “You are fuckin’ adorable.”

  I took his hand and he pulled me up. I landed against him and he steadied me. Before I could recover, however, he leaned down and kissed me. This kiss was so frickin’ sweet, I had to fight not to give a fangirl sigh. Instead, I fell further against him and deepened the kiss.

  It was Alex who broke the connection and settled his forehead against mine. “Fuckin’ beautiful, Payton.”

  I closed my eyes. “I really need you not to be super nice to me right now, Alex. I’m trying to stick to my guns here and you’re making it really difficult.”

  “I apologize,” he said, but his voice was filled with humor. “Follow me.”

  We walked the perimeter of the boat and onto a deck that took in the lights of the restaurants across the Columbia. “This is beautiful,” I said.

  Alex set the food on a table on the deck. “Thanks. It’s almost done.”

  “What do you mean? What more could you possibly do to it?”

  “Not much,” he admitted. “A few things in one of the cabins.”

  “Well it looks like a very posh yacht, Alex. Not sure what it used to look like, but it’s beautiful.”

  “If you’d seen it when I bought it, you probably would have wondered if it was water worthy. A douchebag who had no respect for anything nearly destroyed this boat. It was a repo and the guy was pissed. I think his weapon of choice was a baseball bat. But I knew she could be fixed.”

  “How do you even go about finding a beat up yacht and get it for a dinghy price?” I asked, and sat at one of the benches against the railing. A small round table was bolted to the floor in front of me and it was where Alex had set the food.

  “A buddy does repos.”

  “Ah.” I unpacked the bags and sipped on my shake as Alex unlocked a door to what I assumed was where the sleeping quarters were, and turned on lights and grabbed blankets.

  “You cold, babe?” he asked.

  I shivered. “A little.”

  He gently wrapped a blanket around me, squeezing the back of my neck sweetly when he was done.

  “Thanks.” I smiled. “I didn’t plan the shake part very well. Although, I don’t regret it, even if the end result is frostbite.”

  Alex laughed and sat next to me. “I know a surefire way to get warm, babe.”

  “I bet you do.”

  He grinned and bit into his burger while I watched the lights shine off the water and picked at my fries.

  “You okay?” he asked.

  “Hmm-mm,” I said, and smiled. “Just taking in the view. It’s gorgeous.”

  “Yeah it is,” he said, staring at me.

  My cheeks heated. “Eat your food and stop being sweet.”

  “Glad you like it,” he said.

  “Technically, this is a warm place where you can take your time,” I pointed out, internally slapping myself for bringing it up.

  “Yeah, it is. I’ll take you out soon, babe and we can stay overnight.”

  “I didn’t say it to get you to take me out, Alex.” I narrowed my eyes, although, there wasn’t any heat behind it. “You’re not getting me into bed, even with the promise of a day out on a gorgeous boat.”

  He laughed. “We’ll see.”

  I pulled the blanket tighter around me. “What makes you so sure of yourself?”

  “Don’t know, babe.” He studied me. “There’s just something about you I can’t shake.”

  I tipped my shake toward him. “Romantic.”

  Alex chuckled. “I’ll work on that.”

  Pulling my legs up to my chest, I wrapped my arms around them, and settled my chin on my knees. “There’s kind of something about you too, Alex.”

  “We’ll get to know each other, yeah? Then go from there.”

  I shrugged. “I guess I don’t have anything else better to do.”

  “Nice,” he said, and sipped his pop. Setting the cup on the table, he reached out his hand. “Give me your phone.”

  “Why?”

  “Want you to have my number in case you need me.”

  “I won’t need you.”

  “Give me your phone, Payton.”

  I sighed and grabbed my purse, rummaging for the phone, and handing it to him. He tapped on the screen and then handed it back to me. I scrolled through and smiled. He’d saved his contact information under ‘SMA.’

  “SMA?”

  He grinned. “Sexiest Man Alive.”

  I shook my head. “You’re hilarious.”

  “True.” He grinned. “And I’m right.”

  “We’ll see.”

  “Yeah. We will.”

  “Where’s Lily’s mom?” I asked.

  He sighed. “I don’t know.”

  “Why did you break up?”

  “We didn’t.”

  I gasped. “You’re still together?”

  Alex let out a snort of derision. “Babe, we had nothin’ to break up.”

  “Look, if you don’t want to tell me, you don’t have to. But we can’t move forward unless I know something about you and your situation. I hate drama, Alex, and the last thing I want is the mess of a baby mama making things impossible.”

  He rubbed his forehead and then nodded. “Jenny was a club whore who I’d fucked a couple times. She wanted to be my old lady, I said no, so she got pregnant.”

  “On purpose?”

  “Yeah. She thought I’d ‘do the right thing,’ but she’s crazy, babe, and I wasn’t interested in the drama either. When Lily was born, I checked paternity and confirmed she was mine. Shocked the hell out of me, ’cause she was sleeping with
two or three other guys at the time.”

  “Wow. So, what did you do?”

  “I got a fuckin’ lawyer. We worked out child support, but when Jenny figured out I wasn’t supporting her and Lily, and I sure as hell wasn’t makin’ her my old lady, she split. Lily was almost nine months old.” He shook his head. “Bitch has been gone four years almost to the day. I don’t know where she is, don’t care. Just hope she’s gone for good. Lily’s better off.”

  “How did you feel about having to take care of Lily?”

  “Babe, she’s a little girl. She’s my little girl. I was happy to take care of her. I just thank fuck she looks like me, not sure how I’d feel if I was lookin’ at her mother every day.”

  I grimaced. “I guess that’s honest.”

  “Life’s too short to lie or candy coat shit. I’ll protect my own. Whatever it takes, but I’ll be honest doin’ it.”

  “So what do we do about me? In regards to Lily.”

  He shifted in his seat. “We get to know each other. If this is goin’ somewhere, we’ll all spend time together. Before that, you and I’ll be alone or we’ll be low-key at the club if she’s there.”

  “You’ve thought about this.”

  Alex chuckled. “Yeah, babe. I have.”

  “Do you know who I am? Who my brother is?”

  “Yeah, Payton, I know. I did a full background check on you, so I know you more than you probably want me to.”

  I shrugged. “I don’t have anything to hide, Alex. I’ll probably do the same thing.”

  “Have at it, baby.”

  “So you know who my brother is and that doesn’t concern you?”

  “Club’s clean, Payton. As am I… well, sort of. No felonies. Can’t do my job without bending the law on occasion. Your brother stays out of my business, I’ll stay out of his.”

  I rolled my eyes. “Brock doesn’t typically get into anyone’s business; well, outside of his job of course, unless he’s also protecting one of his own. Then all bets are off.”

  “Noted.” He cocked his head. “You really gonna make me wait?”

  I choked on the shake I’d just sucked into my mouth. I slapped my chest and took a few deep breaths to calm the coughing. “You did not just ask me that.”