April wrapped her arms around Reno’s neck and locked lips with him.
Stunned, Reno had little choice but to kiss her back. When his fingers clawed at her sweats, and I saw his tongue moving in, it was clear the stranger in the tan coat was long forgotten.
“Where’s Reno?” Austin asked when I got in the car with our bags.
“He’s having sex with April on the counter. Look what I got you!”
I handed him the hot sausage biscuit, and he immediately opened it and took a bite, steam rising from the meat.
“Reno’s guy should be here any minute,” he said around a mouthful of biscuit. “What the hell is all that?” He nodded at my bag.
“Summer sausage.”
He picked it up and read the label. “Are you sure a pound is enough?”
I snatched it back and placed the sack on the floor, opening the second sausage biscuit. “Did Ivy make it back? She checked out before we did.”
Austin wadded up the empty wrapper. “Church wanted an ice scraper for his side windows.”
“Huh. All that money, and he doesn’t come prepared.”
I suddenly coughed when a piece of biscuit tiptoed to the back of my throat before I was ready to swallow. Austin patted my back and quickly handed me his bottle of water.
“You okay?”
I chugged it down and coughed a little more.
Austin rubbed my back, his hand moving in a circle. “You’re supposed to eat it, Ladybug, not inhale it.”
We both simultaneously looked up when a thunderous noise filled the parking lot. A small group of eight motorcycles circled the lot, driving past Reno and April, who were walking at a brisk pace toward the trucks.
Reno knocked twice on Austin’s window and jerked his thumb at the bikers.
“What is it?” I asked, pivoting in my seat and looking through the back windshield. “Hey, that’s Axel.”
I recognized him by his impressive bike with a unique style. Axel was wearing leather from head to toe. His helmet wasn’t black but a burnt-orange color that matched his gas tank. The rest of his bike was all black—not a single speck of silver chrome on it.
“Can you even drive a bike in this weather?” I mused.
What kind of crazy person wants to ride around, exposing themselves to freezing temperatures?
Austin rolled down the window when Axel approached.
“I had a feeling it was you with the Texas plates.”
“We’re taking care of that,” Austin replied.
Axel blew out a breath of frosty air. “Good thinking. I just heard through the grapevine that Texas is on the hit list. Some of my men spotted you ten miles back, and since I was in the area, I thought I’d swing by and give you fair warning. I don’t know any more than that. One of the rogues we captured has been very cooperative. He doesn’t have any idea what’s going on, only what the original plan was. Stay alert, and good luck to you.”
“Thanks. We appreciate your hospitality, and…”
“And?” Axel leaned on the car with his left arm, stroking his goatee with his right hand.
“If we ever need to seek shelter here, would that be all right?”
Axel’s eyes swung over to the food on my lap. “You’ve been square with us. Just keep your original plates on the vehicles; that’s what we have on record. But if you want my advice, stand your ground. If they think you’re going to back down and run, they won’t stop. Sometimes it doesn’t have anything to do with numbers but who has the most love for that land.” He tapped on the hood. “Godspeed, Cole.”
***
I’d always enjoyed long car trips, but usually that feeling evaporated by the time Austin became possessed by Frank Sinatra. He had a smoky timbre to his voice that was sexy as hell, but ten hours into a drive, he would turn into the obnoxious big brother, singing commercial jingles just to get a rise out of me. Our trips inevitably became a contest to see who could annoy the other person the most.
I won by wearing my bra on the outside of my shirt and waving at passing truckers. Austin pulled the truck over, and after a scuffle with him trying to remove the bra, we ended up having a quickie. Lorenzo and Reno had pulled over in the distance ahead, undoubtedly wondering what the trouble was, but they’d never been on a road trip with the Austin and Lexi duo.
We skipped lunch to make up time and snacked on the gas station goodies. Hours later, trail mix could no longer satisfy my appetite. Just after dark, we pulled up to a Taco Cabana to chow down on tacos and guacamole. Austin was uneasy about dining inside the restaurant since two alphas might attract attention if there were any rogues on the premises. So instead, we made a quick run to the restroom and then ate in our trucks.
Shortly after we merged onto the highway, I fell asleep to the hum of the tires, snuggled beneath a lap blanket.
“Lexi, wake up. We’re here.”
“Where?” I murmured, awakened by car doors slamming.
“Home.”
I blinked and sat up, moving my pillow out of the way. “Huh? How long have I been asleep?”
“It’s midnight.”