Total pages in book: 58
Estimated words: 71015 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 355(@200wpm)___ 284(@250wpm)___ 237(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 71015 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 355(@200wpm)___ 284(@250wpm)___ 237(@300wpm)
Tru
I felt different.
Like I’d become an adult.
Yes, I’d been an adult for going on seven years now, but now I felt official. Like losing that little piece of skin made me something more.
“Are you sure you don’t mind?” Grayson asked for the fifth time.
I sighed, patting his thigh.
We were on his motorcycle riding to his shop.
He bought the building on the outskirts of Benton a little over a year ago, he’d said, and that’s where he worked on his cars. And other’s cars.
“Grayson,” I yelled over the idling motor. “I told you it was all right two turns ago.”
“Are you ever going to call me Torren?” He asked with a look over his shoulder.
Taking in my shaking head, he turned around and continued through traffic.
Once we were stopped again, he responded to my statement. “Most girls wouldn’t want to go to a shop where there’s grease and dirt all over the place.”
I snorted. “You do know that you have yourself a tom girl…right?”
“What’s a tom girl?” He asked cheekily.
“One that doesn’t wear heels, and has no problem getting dirty,” I retorted.
With that he gave my leg a squeeze, and turned twice more before pulling in front of a building set fairly far off the road.
There wasn’t a sign. There wasn’t anything identifying at all.
Just a moderate sized white building made out of tin, with a big black door large enough for a vehicle to fit through.
He pulled the bike around back and shut off the vibrating machine.
The silence was nearly deafening as I started to remove my helmet and look around.
The back was much the same as the front except for a few pieces of furniture here and there.
A large metal barrel was set out a little further with large pieces of wood hanging out the top.
“Having a bonfire soon?” I asked as I saw the large pile of wood on the ground next to the pile.
“Not really, no. I just have some trash I need to burn, but when I’m here I don’t have time to keep an eye on it like I should.”
“How long will we be here?” I asked, thinking that that a fire would be nice right about now.
I was freezing, even while wearing my jeans, one of my own sweatshirts, and one of Grayson’s.
He shrugged. “Couple hours, if you don’t mind. I just have a transmission I need to break down and get into the steamer. Once that’s done, I’ll wash up and get out of here. Then we can go to the party. Sound good?”
Grayson had asked me if I would be willing to go to a party with the club later in the day, and I’d agreed. Incredibly curious to find out more about The Dixie Wardens. They’d been in our town for a few years now.
In fact, they’d come in at a pivotal time in my life.
I remember the first time I’d crossed paths with one of The Dixie Wardens.
When I was nineteen, I’d been walking down Main Street to Utterly Delicious, the local ice cream joint, when I saw an older man.
He’d had a really long white beard with long white hair covering his head; he’d reminded me of Santa Claus, as did his ginormous belly.
But that was where the similarities to Santa ended.
He’d been wearing black jeans with a chain, black boots, a black shirt, and a leather vest with ‘Dixie Wardens’ and ‘Benton Chapter’ on the back. There was a woman on the back that resembled a creepy skeleton wraith, and I’d been enamored ever since.
There’d been numerous times that I’d seen the same man after that, and even more when I’d seen others in the club.
What I hadn’t seen was Grayson.
Which was probably a good thing, because I could see him leading me down the path of destruction with him.
He’d told me all about his youth. How bad he was. How he had a chip on his shoulder the size of Kentucky.
And I would’ve gone down with him, because if he was anything like he was now, I’d have been sunk.
This morning had been pivotal for me. I didn’t know how he felt, but I was totally and completely his. And likely, I always would be.
I nodded. “If you want to get this started for me, I’ll keep an eye on it. Make sure it doesn’t get out of control.”
***
Torren
I washed my hands in the vat of Solvent, scraping the grime of the last two hours off my hands as I watched Tru pick up the last piece of wood and throw it into the barrel.
Sparks flew causing her to squeal and jump back in surprise.
Of course, she’d known it would do it. She’d done it five times now. And each time it was funnier than the last.
She was wearing a pair of faded jeans that had a hole above her right ass cheek, and it was driving me wild. I could see skin peeping through the hole, which meant she was either wearing a thong or, even worse, nothing.
Her boots were slip-ons with hot pink tops that you couldn’t see unless she took a large step that brought the hem of her pants up slightly.
Her hair, which had been flowing free before, was now in a rubber band that I’d provided her.
Although she’d fought me on it, I hadn’t caved. Mostly because I didn’t think she’d look good with charred hair.
She’d relented, but hadn’t stopped letting me know that she resented me for it.
Something about meeting people today and wanting to look good…or some shit.
Whatever her reasoning, I didn’t want her to get hurt, and free flowing hair when you were burning was a no-no.
I’d just picked up a red rag and started wiping down my tools when a dark figure rounded the side of the building.
I dropped the tools in my hand back to the dirty table and made my way outside just as Colby approached Tru from behind.
“Can I help you?” I asked sharply, startling both Tru and Colby.
Colby whirled, as did Tru.
Colby was pissed, where Tru was scared.