Jinx, p.6
Jinx, page 6
I rolled my eyes and pointed to the door. “Well, that’s good because I make no guarantees of when she will be back.”
“Got your keys?”
Nodding, I pulled them out of my pocket. “You’re driving again.”
I tossed the keys in his direction, and he snatched them out of the air.
“Are we getting burgers after?”
I raised my eyebrows. “Are you going to admit that I was right last time when I suggested it?”
“Hey,” Jinx laughed. “I told you then that it was a good idea.”
I rolled my eyes and stopped in front of the door. “Am I going to trip some sensor if I open this door?” I glanced at Jinx over my shoulder.
“Yeah, but it’s fine.” He grabbed his phone and shoved it into his back pocket.
We walked to the elevator, and my eyes traveled along the metal doors and the walls by them.
“What are you doing?” Jinx laughed.
“Just trying to figure out where these alarms and sensors are,” I muttered.
The elevator doors opened, and Jinx motioned for me to go in. “You just walked past it.”
I stopped in the doors and scanned the area. “Where is it?”
He put his hand on the small of my back and pushed me into the elevator. “Don’t worry about it, sweetheart. They are there to keep you safe, not have you searching for them all the time.”
The doors slid shut, and Jinx kept his hand on my back.
We walked out to my car where we left it over a week ago, and Jinx made the drive to the grocery store on the edge of the city.
“This one okay?” he asked as we pulled into a parking spot.
“It’ll do.” I smiled wide and opened my door.
Jinx hopped out and managed to get to my side before I could shut my door. “You’re quicker than last time.”
He looped my arm through his, and I couldn’t stop my heart from jumping from him being so close.
“No shenanigans this time?”
I held up my hand and put the other one to my chest. “Scout’s honor.”
“Something tells me you were never a girl scout,” he muttered.
I bumped my hip into him and winked. “I’ll have you know I looked cute in my little uniform and sash.”
“That is a picture I would pay to see,” he chuckled.
We walked into the store, and Jinx grabbed a cart.
“Maybe someday.”
I was in the middle of grabbing a bunch of bananas when Jinx’s phone rang.
“I gotta get this, sweetheart, it’s Barracuda.” He put his phone to his ear and stepped back a bit.
It seemed like Jinx hadn’t talked to anyone from the club since the Jemma debacle. The debacle that was all my fault, but I still hadn’t been able to work up the nerve to call and apologize.
Jinx spent most of his day alone next door, so I guess I didn’t really know if he was talking to Jet or the club. He wasn’t during dinner or while we watched movies, so he had to be talking to them when I wasn’t around.
“Yeah, yeah,” I heard Jinx say.
I took a step back and acted like I was looking at a display of mayo, but I was trying to hear what Jinx was saying.
“Tonight works for me,” he said.
He ended the call, and I frantically grabbed a jar of mayo and dropped it in the cart.
Jinx moved to the cart and grabbed the mayo. “You eat this much mayo?” he laughed.
I shrugged. “I mean, you can use it in so many things.”
“Like?” he asked.
“Uh, well, a sandwich, egg salad, chicken salad, ham salad,” I droned.
“Sweetheart,” he chuckled.
So, it was a pretty big container of mayo, and it would take me a year to eat it all, but I wasn’t going to let him know I had been eavesdropping. “Don’t give me guff about it, or I won’t share my chicken, egg, or ham salad with you.”
“What about tuna salad?” he asked.
I pointed my finger at him and smiled. “See, there is another thing I can make with it. Maybe I should get two.”
Jinx shook his head and dropped the mayo into the car. “Let’s just stick with one right now.”
“Uh, everything okay with your phone call?” I asked.
Jinx shrugged. “Yeah. Barracuda was just letting me know what is happening with the club.”
“Do you talk to them often?”
We moved into the meat department, and I scanned the bunkers of meat for a good deal.
“Every day, I check in with them.”
“Anything happening?” I questioned.
Jinx chuckled. “Things are always happening with the club, sweetheart.”
“Any of those things you want to tell me about?”
Jinx grabbed a pack of pork chops and dropped them in the cart. “No.”
“Sure?”
He shook his head. “No, not really, sweetheart. Just club stuff.”
I wrinkled my nose. “Did you just ‘club business’ me?”
Jinx shrugged. “I tried not to, but you just keep asking.”
I threw up my hands in the air. “Forget I asked. You’d tell me if it was something I should know, right?”
“Totally, Maggie.”
I was going to have to accept that. It wasn’t even like I was an ol’ lady like Jemma and the other girls. Of course, I wouldn’t be privy to what the club was up to.
We made it out of the store in under an hour.
“What did you want to get for dinner?” Jinx asked.
I buckled my seat belt and smiled. “How about chicken from Duff’s?”
“You know about Duff’s?” Jinx asked. “That’s a biker bar over on Clermont, sweetheart.”
“I know where it is, Jinx.” I folded my arms over my chest. “You know you don’t have to be a biker to go in there, right?”
“Yeah,” Jinx laughed, “but for some reason, I just can’t see you bopping in there to get some fried chicken.”
“And beer,” I clarified. “I get the fried chicken and two beers.”
“We got a trunk full of groceries, sweetheart.”
I shrugged. “So, we take the groceries home, then get chicken.”
“You’re serious?” Jinx laughed.
“As a nun in church.” I was ready to get out more. I had spent two weeks caged up with my pain in my apartment, and I was ready to get back into the real world. At least, for some fried chicken and a beer.
“You good with taking the bike?”
I glanced at him and saw a smile playing on his lips. “Would that make you happy?” I asked.
“I always opt for the bike when I can, sweetheart.”
“I suppose that is who you are, huh?” I leaned my head back and sighed. “I suppose we can take your bike.”
Outside, I was indifferent about taking his bike, but inside, I was screaming like a ten-year-old who was about to meet their favorite boy band.
My arms and body wrapped around Jinx for a good twenty minutes on the way to Duff’s.
Hell yes.
*
Chapter Fourteen
Jinx
Maggie licked her fingertips and slouched in her chair. “I don’t know what they do to this chicken, but it is so freaking good.”
I took a sip of my beer and scanned the space. It was still early in the evening, and there weren’t too many people bellied up to the bar.
When Maggie had suggested Duff’s, she had about knocked me over. They did have amazing chicken, but it wasn’t an ordinary place most people would go.
They were known for their chicken but also had at least a few fights every night.
“Probably the vat of grease they deep fry it in, sweetheart. Hasn’t been changed in ten years.”
“Hmm,” she hummed. “It’s like heirloom grease. Do you think if I brought in a bucket, they would fill it with the grease for me?”
I chuckled and shook my head. “I don’t know, sweetheart, but I don’t think we should ask.”
Maggie huffed and reached for her beer. “I’ll ask our waitress when she comes back over.”
Maggie was on her second beer, and I could tell she was feeling good.
“Do you think I should call Jemma?”
“Right now?” I laughed.
Maggie shook her head. “No, I just mean in general.” She waved her hand around. “I was a bitch to her, and it’s been days since I’ve talked to her. I should at least tell her I’m sorry.”
“Are you?”
She quirked her lips. “I mean, I’m sorry for the way I talked to her, but she did upset me by telling Jet what I was doing. And she was really in my face about, well, everything.”
“That’s because she cares for you, Maggie.”
“So, since she cares for me, that means she can do whatever she wants?”
I shook my head. “No, but I think the fact she was so in your face and told Jet what you were up to was driven by the fact she cares. Not because she was trying to hurt you.”
Maggie sighed heavily. “You’re right. And I should have remembered that when I was being a bitch, but....”
“But what?” I asked.
“But nothing. Never mind.” She waved her hand at me and looked around the bar. “Where is our waitress? I want to ask if I can get a bucket of grease.”
“Maggie.”
Shook her head and pushed her hair back from her face. “No, bodyguard.”
“We’re back to bodyguard?” I chuckled. “I thought we had moved past that.”
Maggie raised her hand and signaled to the waitress.
“We’re gonna talk more, Maggie.”
She pouted out her lips. “You never make me talk if I don’t want to.”
“You want to but can’t figure out what you want to say.”
She shrugged and pasted a smile on her face as the waitress stepped up to the table.
“Everything good?” she asked.
Maggie nodded her head enthusiastically. “Seriously, the best chicken in California.” Maggie leaned into her. “Do you think I could get some of that heirloom grease?”
I closed my eyes and shook my head.
“Heirloom grease?” the waitress echoed.
“Yeah. If you have like an old ice cream bucket or something back there, you could just scoop me some grease out and then I can try to make some chicken at home,” Maggie explained.
I needed to remember that one beer was enough for Maggie. Two beers were a little more than she needed.
I opened my eyes and turned to the waitress. “We’ll just take the check.”
The waitress nodded and smiled softly at Maggie. She hurried away from the table, and Maggie watched her longingly.
“She thinks I’m crazy,” she whispered.
Oh, Lord. I wasn’t sure what was happening, but I was worried Maggie was on the brink of tears. “Sweetheart.” I reached out my hand and placed it on top of hers. “She just didn’t kno—”
Maggie busted out laughing and slapped her hand on the table. “Oh, my God, Jinx. She’s probably back in the kitchen telling the cook that some crazy woman wants the grease from the fryer.”
Her body shook with laughter, and the biggest smile overtook her face. Her blue eyes lit with joy, and I didn’t think I had ever seen someone more beautiful.
She shakily pointed her finger at me. “And you thought I was just as crazy. Heirloom grease,” she wheezed.
I sat back and sipped my beer while Maggie laughed her ass off.
The waitress brought the check while Maggie was trying to control herself and also set a Styrofoam cup with a lid in front of her.
Maggie wiped a tear from her cheek and smiled. “Is this a roadie?”
“Sweetheart,” I chuckled.
“Isn’t that what they are called? A drink for the road?” Maggie reached for the cup. “I probably shouldn’t drink when I’m on the back of the bike, though.”
“No,” the waitress gasped. “Don’t drink it. It’s the grease you asked for.”
“Shut up,” Maggie gasped.
“Oh, God,” I groaned.
Maggie peeled the lid back and peeked inside. “It smells like chicken,” she whispered. She looked up at me and grinned. “Liquid fried chicken.”
“Don’t drink it,” the waitress and I replied in unison.
Maggie rolled her eyes and snapped the lid back on. “You guys have zero faith in me.”
I placed a couple of twenties on the check and held my hand out to Maggie. “Let’s get home, sweetheart.”
She grabbed the cup of grease and clutched it to her chest. “Avoid all bumps and potholes, okay?” She put her hand in mine, and I pulled her through the bar.
“Easy with the merchandise,” she called when a guy stumbled off his chair and into me.
“Zip it, sugar tits,” he growled at Maggie.
For fuck’s sake.
Maggie stepped toward the guy, and I put my body between them. “Who the hell do you think you are talking to?”
The guy was a good two inches shorter than me but about fifty pounds heavier than me. “That bimbo you’ve got on your arm,” he spat.
And this was the reason why I didn’t want to come to Duff’s. Great chicken, but the crowd was tough.
“Did you just call me a bimbo?” Maggie hissed. She tried to paw her way around me, but I held her to my back.
“Apologize.”
“Fuck you,” the guy spat. “I was fucking walking, and you ran into me.”
“Chewy,” the bartender called. “Shut your mouth and apologize.” The woman stood behind the bar with her hands on her hips and a scowl on her lips. “It’s too fucking early for you to start fights. Besides, you might want to open your fucking eyes and look at the patch on his chest.”
Chewy stepped back and scanned my cut.
His demeanor changed instantly. “Shit, I wasn’t watching where I was going, man. I guess I need to get my head out of my ass.”
Maggie stood on her tiptoes and peered over my shoulder. “I didn’t hear a sorry in there for me. You almost made me spill my heirloom grease.”
I did not need Maggie to get in the middle of this again. Sure, the guy realized he was messing with a Royal Bastard, but I doubt he would take Maggie talking back to him much.
I reached behind me and grabbed her arm.
The guy held up his hands and stepped back again. “Sorry, lady. I hope your, uh, grease is okay.” He side-eyed Maggie and moved back to his stool.
He likely didn’t try to mess with Maggie because I was right here but also because she sounded crazy about spilling her heirloom grease.
“Thank you, pretty bartender,” Maggie called.
The bartender raised her hand and nodded. “It’s Rue, honey, and you’re welcome.”
I pulled Maggie out of the bar and thankfully didn’t have any other people try to start fights with us.
“Did that guy leave us alone because you’re part of a motorcycle club?” Maggie still had her cup clutched to her chest. Her hair blew in the breeze, and she tipped her head back to look at me, with a massive smile on her lips.
“Probably, sweetheart.”
“Does that happen?”
I shrugged and grabbed her helmet. “I don’t pay much attention to it if it does. Most people do give us a wide berth.”
“Then why aren’t the Triple Zeros?”
I shrugged and set the helmet on her head. “Because they’re stupid and want the power we have.”
“So, they think they are going to take it? Haven’t you guys been around for a long time?”
“Yeah, sweetheart, and there are multiple chapters around the world. If they manage to get the one-in-a-million chance and kill us all, they’ll have to deal with all the other chapters.”
“So, why don’t you guys ask them for help?” she asked.
“Because we can handle them.” I reached up and buckled the strap under her chin.
“You know I can do that, right?” she giggled.
“Not when you’re clutching that heirloom grease to your chest, sweetheart.”
She looked down at the cup and laughed. “How crazy did I look asking for this?”
I shrugged. “You were having fun.”
“That doesn’t answer my question,” she countered.
“You looked slightly crazy. A sort of fun crazy.” I threw my leg over my bike and motioned for Maggie to get on.
“How did you just call me crazy? I am somehow not offended.”
I shrugged and started up the bike. “It’s a gift,” I called.
She climbed on the bike behind me and looped one arm around my waist. “This thing needs cupholders.”
I shook my head and roared out of the parking lot. I had planned to take the long way back to Maggie’s apartment to have more time with her pressed against my back, but not when she was holding on with one arm because the other arm was clutching a cup of grease.
I could say this; when Maggie was around, things were always interesting.
*
Chapter Fifteen
Maggie
“It should be okay in the fridge, right?”
“Woman,” Jinx drawled. “Put it in the fridge and get your ass over here.”
“Rude,” I mumbled. I set the cup of grease on the top shelf and to the back and shut the door. “Just for that, I’m not getting you a beer.”
“I’m good.”
I flipped off the kitchen lights and flopped on the couch next to Jinx. “Did you pick out a movie?”
He shook his head and handed me the remote. “Nothing good. You pick something you want to watch,” he suggested.
I pointed the remote at the TV and flipped through all the movies. “Let’s just watch The Fast and the Furious.”
He kicked up his feet on the coffee table, and I settled in next to him.
“You need your blanket?” he asked.
I did, but I didn’t feel like getting up. “I’ll live without it.”
Jinx shook his head and stood. He grabbed the blanket off the back of the recliner and draped it over me. “Better?”
It would be better if he was under the blanket with me, but I wasn’t quite bold enough to ask for that. “Cozy.”
