In Bed With The Outlaw Read Online Free Page B

punch. It happened so quickly that the others didn’t know how to respond or else they were fine with them settling their differences with a brawl. I wasn’t sure.
    “She’s not your old lady, Red. What’s your fucking problem, man?”
    “You stay away from her. You don’t own her.”
    Did no one care what I thought?
    I wanted to pipe in and tell them that no one owned me. I was my own woman. Once, my asshole husband claimed to own me. That didn’t end well. After fighting for my freedom, it wouldn’t be taken from me so easily again.
    Another body entered the fray: King, shoving his way between. Angry Santa put his gorilla palms up to stop them dead. Lee’s arms dropped. Red’s fists unclenched.
    “You fucking idiots. We don’t do this here. Stop with this bullshit, especially before I get my coffee in the morning. Both of you sit down and shut up.” His finger wagged in anger and then pointed to the booths.
    Giving them his back, King dropped back down. He clasped his massive palms together and smiled up at me. “Go on, get the coffee,” he whispered.
    He turned to his compatriots. “And if someone makes my coffee late again, I’ll have their fucking head.”
    Looking around the diner, I noticed everyone stopped eating, staring at the bikers like deer in headlights. I took a step back to distance myself from all of the drama. When King glanced their way, they all resumed eating, doing a poor job at faking interest.
    Lee muttered and cursed under his breath. Red stared straight ahead with a thousand-yard stare. He looked like he was about to snap at any moment. At least his face started to return back to the usual shade.
    “I’ll get your coffee,” I said, and scurried off, trying to escape. I didn’t want to add any fuel to the fire.
    As I grabbed the pot, Kim slipped beside me. “What was that all about?”
    I shrugged again.
    “That one looked like he was ready to fight for you. You guys seeing each other?”
    Jeez, what a busybody. No, we weren’t seeing each other. Before this happened, I was sure I turned him off for good. It seemed like he wasn’t happy how the ride went the day before, but still, he continued to protect me.
    “No, he just helped me when my car broke down. That’s all.”
    “He’s good-looking,” she said, leaning against the counter while checking him out. I wanted to grab her shoulder, tear her back, and growl in her ear “He’s mine. Off limits.” My reaction was telling. Perhaps I was playing the part too well, letting it seep into my actual life.
    “He’s not bad, but he’s part of The Bastards.”
    “Yeah, there’s that,” she said with a sigh. “Need help filling their mugs?”
    “I really could. Get some of the heat off me. Thanks, Kim.”
    “No problem. I hope they don’t shoo me away again.”
    Red and Lee played nice. Once one said something, it would be all-out war. Mutually assured destruction. If they disobeyed King’s orders, they would both be screwed.
    I dropped off the receipt at their table, then picked up some dirty plates, hoping no one would notice me. Red’s heady stare was focused on the cusp of my cleavage, the corner of his smile rising. I could’ve kicked him in the shins, but decided not to.
    As I was about to leave, King rustled into his jacket.
    He held out a wad of cash. He didn’t even bother to slip it to me secretly.
    “Take it. We’re sorry to trouble you. Use it to get away from that asshole that messed with your pretty face.”
    Red regarded me again, his eyes tracing from my legs to the curve of my breasts, then up to my anxious eyes. “Can’t break a face that beautiful.”
    Lee snorted behind him. Red elbowed the back of the seat. I decided to take the money, just because I didn’t want to stick around and push my luck, but I regretted it. This was blood money. What kind of illegal things went on for this cash to wind up in King’s hands and now mine?
    I hurried away to the waitressing station while stashing