Kaylie knew something was up. Devlin had shown up tonight as if nothing had happened between them. He seemed tense, and offered no explanation for staying away the night before.
She decided not to ask. She told herself that he was here now. It was most likely that whatever was bothering him had nothing to do with her, or he'd resolved it on his own.
Kaylie felt silly for having cried herself to sleep the night before. It wasn’t like they were married and he hadn’t come home. They’d barely started dating, though he had told her he considered her his ‘old lady.’
From what she understood, that was more than going steady. It was more like being married, not just to him either.
It was almost like being married to the club. To the lifestyle. It meant she was one of them.
It might have only been a week that they'd spent together, but Kaylie had been observing Devlin covertly for the past few years. At least when he came into the diner anyway. So she knew when he was preoccupied, or relaxed.
For the most part, Devlin was always pretty relaxed.
Apparently, he'd been observing her too. Everywhere she went. He knew things about her that surprised her, like who her friends were and what her favorite subject was at school. He had eyes everywhere and he’d been using them to watch her.
Well, she thought it was only fair she got to know him too.
She knew he was fiercely independent and tended to do things on his own, though always with the club at his back. She was already attuned to his mood shifts.
He wasn't a talker and he wasn’t quick to laugh. That didn’t mean he was morose, even after what had happened to his family. His emotions ran deep, particularly where his brother and family were concerned.
They ran deep when it came to her too. This wasn’t a game to him. Kaylie realized that he wouldn’t let her go easily, even if she’d wanted him to.
Thankfully, that was the last thing she wanted. She wanted to get closer. As quickly as possible. And with as little clothing as possible too.
He was definitely still worried about something, she could tell. It was obvious from the moment he arrived to pick her up. She had hurried out to the bike and slid her arms around his neck. He smiled and kissed her before pulling her onto the bike. He was in a hurry to leave.
They were off and running the moment she had her arms around his waist. As usual he didn't tell her where they were going. And as usual, she didn't mind.
Judging from this week, she'd been taken to scenic spots and a few bar-b-q's, even one home cooked meal at his Aunt Edna's house. His folks were gone so she knew it was the equivalent of meeting the parents.
Edna and the club were the only family he had. Jack and Donnie were like brothers to him. She squeezed him a little tighter.
Now, he had her too.
Things were moving fast. Really fast. Kaylie was surprised that she didn't mind. In fact, she wanted to go faster.
Dating a biker was bringing out all sorts of surprising personality traits in her.
No, that wasn’t right. They weren't dating. It was more than that. They'd skipped all the courtship, although she supposed he'd been courting in his own way by looking out for her and coming into Mae's.
They weren't dating. They were together.
The thought sent a warm feeling shooting through her insides. She knew she was in danger of falling in love, for real. It was scary.
It wasn't that she didn't trust him. She did, she trusted him implicitly in fact. But it was too soon. She was afraid that she'd make a fool of herself or say something she couldn't take back. He stole all thought from her when he was touching her. And he'd been touching her a lot more lately…
She sighed and looked out at the woods as they raced past. They'd never gone this way before. He was taking the road toward Heller Mountain. She snuggled into his back and promised herself to keep her mouth shut, no matter how dizzy his kisses made her.
At all costs, she had to keep from saying something stupid. Like the ‘l’ word. She knew it was right there, right on the tip of her tongue.
She just couldn’t say it.
Bikers didn't care about love anyway. He might want her close at hand but she couldn't imagine him professing his love for her. That could ruin everything.
Neither one of them were much for words. It was one of the reasons they were so well suited. Telling him that she loved him would only change things, and that was the last thing she wanted.
As of right now, everything was perfect. Maybe he'd tell her what was bothering him tonight. But if he didn't, she wouldn't ask. She couldn't risk it.
She was just going to go along, and see where the night took her.
Chapter 20
Devlin
Devlin pulled up the cabin after a leisurely 45 minute drive. It gave him time to steady his nerves, even if it did take twice as long as usual to get out there.
Tonight was special.
Tonight he had precious cargo on board.
He always went about 20 MPH slower when Kaylie was on the back of his bike. Normally it didn’t bother him but tonight he’d had to keep himself in check. He wanted to get there, yesterday.
No, not yesterday. Not even a week. He’d been waiting for years.
He wanted to get Kaylie alone since the moment he saw her.
So yeah, he had a lead foot tonight, and he’d had to resist it every single second of the trip out here.
Things had changed in more ways than one.
Even when she wasn't on his ride, he found himself being a bit more careful on the road. He had someone now. His devil may care attitude was shifting.
He frowned to himself, not sure he liked the change.
Devils weren't supposed to be cautious.
He shook off the feeling of foreboding that was coming over him. Tonight he would finally get what he wanted. He'd never waited for anything this long before in his life. He knew the wait would be worth it, and then some.
His fingers itched to touch her skin as he parked and dismounted. Now that the time was at hand he was serious and deep in thought. Kaylie must have sensed his mood because she was quiet as he pulled off her helmet and led her to the front porch.
He fished around for the hidden key under the window sill and unlocked the door. He flipped on a light and guided Kaylie inside. He watched her face as she looked around uncertainly.
He hadn’t told her she was spending the night with him yet.
He hoped to hell she liked it here, because this place meant a lot to him. He had a lot of good memories here.
And he couldn’t wait to make more.
The cabin was rustic but clean. A frequent hide out for anyone in the SOS who needed to lie low, it had been in Dev's family since the 1950's. Other than that, his folks had brought him out here for vacations when he was kid.
Now it was mostly unused.
Kaylie turned in a circle, taking it in.
"What is this place?"
“It’s mine. My Grandfather built it.”
He looked at her, his eyes burning a hole through her clothes. He barely recognized the raw sound of his voice.
“Do you like it?"