^^ Smiler ^^

I'd been staying at the clubhouse for almost a week and I was starting to go stir crazy. The only time I'd left had been to go to work. I finally had my car back so I woke up that morning with the plan to take Sammy out and explore for the day. I was standing by the coffee machine waiting for it to finish and looking out the window when I saw movement outside. I thought it was one of the guys at first but as I saw him duck down a second too late, I knew it wasn't. And in that second I also knew he was creeping around my bike.

I grab my knife which Skids had stashed under the bar and head back to my room. Skids had been right about why they called me Viper. I could be a sneaky bitch when I needed to be. I tell Sammy to stay and shuffle my way out of my window, sneaking around the building to come up behind the creeper. I hold the knife at my side and sneak up behind him. He's crouched by my back tire fiddling with something. I get closer and put the knife against his throat.

"Get up," I whisper.

The guy stands with a jolt and I wish I was wearing heels. He is a hell of a lot taller than my five foot five. He throws an elbow back as he stands and catches me right in the cheek bone. I swear as my vision blurs and I taste blood in my mouth. I think I bit my cheek when he hit me. He realises his mistake though as the blade digs into the skin of his throat, and he stills instantly.

I put my fist against his spine and push, holding the knife in place. I have to stand on tiptoes and stretch to reach him and I find myself praying he came alone. I walk him to the door and tell him to open it, before pushing him through and kicking the door shut behind me.

Still holding my position, I shout. "SKIDS!" I hear him running towards the bar and breathe a sigh of relief. He takes in the sight before him and shouts for the others. They're behind him within seconds. "I found him pissing about with my bike."

Jay walks around the bar and takes the knife from me as the others join us. "You alright?" He asks me.

I nod and regret it instantly as my head pounds. The bastard had caught me a good one and the pain is only just registering. I feel a hand grab my arm as I stumble. I try to shrug it off but they won't let go. "I'm fine," I say, but I allow them to lead me to a table and sit heavily in a chair. I look up and see Smiler and Skids looking down at me. I wave them off. "I've had worse," I tell them, realising an instant too late that it was probably the wrong thing to say.

"Clean her up," Skids says, before leaving to join the others.

Smiler crouches down in front of me, taking my chin in his hand and turning my face. He wipes the corner of my mouth with his thumb and I see the blood on it as he pulls it away. He steps away and I put my elbow on the table, resting my head in my palm. He crouches down again and takes hold of my chin. I feel him wipe my cheek with a cold damp cloth and wince when he brushes the bruise.

"Want to tell me why you were taking a guy on in only a t-shirt?" He asks, and I can hear the amusement in his voice.

I look down at myself and groan. I'd forgotten that I was still in my night clothes. I feel his warm hand on my bare thigh as he balances himself and I suck in a breath. I look up from my legs and into his eyes. He has an expression that I can't place, but it's probably similar to the look on my face too. His fingers tense against my skin and he swallows before removing it slowly.

I take the cloth from his hands and stand slowly. "I should go get dressed," I say quietly, trying to keep my voice steady. I look down at him and almost moan. He's still crouched and our position leaves his head level with my lower stomach. I go to step back but his hand stops me, grabbing the back of my thigh to hold me in place. I take a moment to absorb how big his hand looks, wrapped around my leg, and draw in a shaky breath. He stands slowly, his hand moving up my thigh as he does. Oh, this guy is killing me. If he doesn't move away in the next five seconds, I'm convinced I'll be a puddle on the floor.

He removes his hand from my leg and brushes the backs of his fingers down my cheek. My eyes flutter shut as he speaks. "You're gonna have a black eye for a while." His voice is deep and husky, and I feel my knees shake.

I snap my eyes open and clear my throat. "It's not the first time," I say, with a grin that probably looks as forced as it feels. I take that moment to move away and hurry behind the bar to the safety of my room. I get dressed quickly in a loose tank top and trackies. I lay on my bed and try not to think about what just happened. Sammy jumps on the bed and lies down with his head on my stomach. I ruffle my fingers through the fur on his neck and look at him. "What am I gonna do boy?" I ask him. I can't have the complications that come with men right now. I can't have any more ties if I need to leave. Leaving Skids will be hard enough as it is. Before Sammy can answer - and I'm convinced he would - we're interrupted by a knock on my door. It opens and Skids sticks his head in.

"Sheriff wants a word," he says, and I'm off the bed in a second.

"You called the fucking sheriff?!" I hiss.

He looks taken aback. "What did you expect?"

"Um, sort it yourselves!" I snap.

He looks at me, confused. "Just tell them what happened. It'll be fine."

Yeah, as long as they don't put on any record that they've spoken to me, or where I am. My landlord hadn't bothered with proper paperwork, as long as the rent was paid, and work is off the books. The last thing I need is a paper trail. But of course, I can't tell Skids that so I just sigh and nod.

The sheriff is in his forties or fifties and looks downright bored with his job. He looks up when he hears me coming and his eyes flick to my chest for an instant before meeting mine. Okay, I can work with this.

"Sheriff," I greet with a smile, holding my hand out.

He takes it and holds it for a second too long, confirming that I'd read him right. "You would be Lenni?" He asks. I nod, squeezing his hand slightly before pulling mine back and leaning on the bar opposite him. "What's that short for?" He asks.

"Selena," I say.

"Selena what?"

I clear my throat and resist looking at Skids. "Hart."

He writes in his pad and I flinch. This is what I didn't want. "How long have you been in the country?"

"About eight months," I say, tilting my head as if I'm trying to remember.

"Business or pleasure?"

I grin. "Pleasure of course," I say with a wink. He flushes and I internally cheer.

"Do you have any convictions, Miss Hart?"

I tense. "I don't see how that's relevant,"

He smiles and looks at my chest again. "Just trying to get a background." I have a horrible feeling that he's looking for a reason to take me in and begin to regret my flirting.

"Not in this country," I tell him. I can tell from his sigh that he isn't going to let it go. "I was convicted of assault when I was sixteen and given a suspended sentence. I've stayed out of trouble since then." Well, I haven't been caught since then. I ignore the curious looks from the men down the bar and try to work out how I'd wiggle out of an explanation later. The sheriff seems satisfied and takes my statement about the incident this morning. I'd started to relax until he asks his final question.

"Do you know of any reason why someone would target you?"

I can feel Smiler's gaze burning into the side of my skull, but I smile at the sheriff again. "Not at all. It was probably an opportunistic thing," I shrug.

He nods and moves off to talk to the others again. I let out a breath and make my way back to my room, planning to hide until the sheriff was long gone. I'd always had a problem with authority but this was bigger than that. He'd make a record of this and that only meant one thing. My time here was almost up.

I re-emerge in the bar a couple of hours later. My head is throbbing and I need painkillers and coffee. As soon as I enter, Skids calls me over. They're gathered at the other end of the bar and I move down to join them once I've poured my coffee.

"What was that about?"

I try to play innocent. "What?" I ask.

"Hart?"

Oh. "I started using Mum's maiden name a while ago. Just fancied a change," I shrug. Smiler frowns and I know he won't give this up.

"And the record?" Jay asks with a grin. I try to shake my head, hinting at him to drop it, but the idiot is oblivious. He just stares at me waiting for an answer.

I clear my throat and turn to walk away. "It was just a scrap." I feel a tug on the back of my shirt and am pulled backwards. Skids wraps an arm around my shoulders, pinning me against his side.

"A scrap doesn't end up with a sentence like that. You'd get a warning at most,"

I cringe because he's right. "She may have spent a few days in the hospital. It was nothing major, she blagged it to be worse than it was." I try to move away but he holds me tighter.

"Who?" He asks. I mumble under my breath but it isn't good enough. "Who?" He asks again.

I sigh and look at the ground. I hadn't noticed how small my feet look next to his big biker boots. I tilt my head to look at them until I feel his hand slap the back of my head. "Ow! Head injury!" I complain, pointing to the purple bruise on my cheek. He just raises an eyebrow at me. I can sense the others all staring and can see Jay's shit-eating grin, obviously revelling in my discomfort. I look back at the ground. "Sandra."

Skids tenses. "My ex-wife Sandra?"

I clear my throat and nod. "Yep, that's the one."

Everything is quiet for a second until Skids' loud laughter breaks it. I look at him confused. I am actually worried about his mental health. I'd expected a lecture, maybe even an argument, not laughter. He looks like he's about to piss himself. I look at the others but they all look as confused as I felt. He stops laughing and looks at me. "This I've got to hear." He looks proud. What the hell is wrong with the man? That's not normal, right? The others all look just as eager to hear the story.

"I saw her in the pub with the dickhead," I see Skids roll his eyes, but he doesn't look pissed off. I take that as a good thing. The dickhead was the guy he'd found her with in his bed. "I'd had a few to drink. So I dragged her out of the pub by her lame extensions and knocked her around a bit."

"A bit?" Skids asks. This is the problem with someone knowing you too well. He knew my temper, especially when I'd had a drink and it involved someone I loved. It wasn't something I was proud of, and I'd calmed down a lot since then, but he knew what I was like.

I sigh, knowing he can find out elsewhere anyway with a few phone calls. "Broken nose, concussion, a couple of cracked ribs and lots of bruising. It wasn't as bad as she made it out to be, which is why I got off light and had the sentence suspended. Now can I please have some painkillers?" I beg. Today has sucked and I'm going to have to call in sick to work. No way am I dancing with this ugly bruise all over my face.

***

I'd spent the rest of the day lying on my bed. My head still hurt and I was trying to avoid Smiler. I knew it wouldn't last long though, and I was proven right when he walked into my room without knocking. I don't even bother sitting up, I just pull the covers up over my head and turn away from him.

"Do you mind? I could've been naked," I complain.

I hear him freeze mid-step before he sits on the bed next to me and pulls the cover off my head. I look up and see a grin on his face.

"I wouldn't have minded," he says.

I roll my eyes and turn over so I could face him. "What do you want?"

"For you to tell him,"

"Nope," I say, getting out of bed and walking towards my door. He slams a hand on it before I've even opened it an inch. I turn to face him. "What is it with you and doors?!" I say, realising that this is the second time he's stopped me escaping.

"What is it with you and running?" He asks. Touché, arsehole. He bends his knees slightly and dips his head to look into my eyes. "You said you'd tell him when he needs to know. He needs to know now,"

"He doesn't! So some idiot tried to steal my bike. That doesn't mean anything!" I'm trying my hardest to ignore how close he is to me, but I can see the muscles in his arms tense as they cage me in against the door.

"He wasn't trying to steal your bike, Lenni. He cut your back brakes,"

My head snaps up. "What?" This can't be a coincidence. First, the brake fluid in my car drains too quickly, now someone cuts the back brake on my bike. Fuck. I need to leave, like now. I stop my internal ranting when a finger tilts my chin up. I realise how close he is to me when I feel his breath on my lips.

He opens his mouth to say something, but then he stops and his gaze drops to my lips. My tongue darts out to wet them and he groans. "Fuck." Then his lips are on mine.

He's gentle at first, moving his lips slowly against mine, but when my hands move up to grip his neck, he presses me against the door. His tongue brushes against my bottom lip and I open my mouth for him. His arm wraps around me to lift me up and my legs wrap around his waist. He's got me pinned against the door, his entire body pressed against mine.

By the time I register that we're moving, my back hits the bed and he's hovering over me. The only time he breaks the kiss is to remove clothing. If I'm honest, I've fantasised about this since I got on his bike that night, but my fantasies were nowhere close to the real thing. I'm pretty sure I died. This is heaven, right?

He pauses with his hand on my underwear. "Tell him."

I know he won't give me what I want until I agree, and in this moment I'll agree to anything he asks. I nod and breathe out an 'okay', and - thank every heavenly being - he continues.