phone call, but in a small way, he'd been talking about him with someone else and that felt rather disloyal at the moment. He could feel the heat color his cheeks as he stood to face Dog.
"Yeah, I think things are on schedule. The only fly in the ointment is that the exhaust system still hasn't been delivered, but I'll give them a call right now and see if it's coming soon or if we have to go a different route."
Dog nodded. "If you can't get anywhere with them, JT can call them, too, he's built a great relationship with Chip over there."
Dog turned and left and that disloyal feeling in his stomach turned into acid. He'd also built a nice relationship with Chip at Samson's Exhaust and damn it he didn't need JT undermining him.
Sitting back down at the desk he shook the mouse on the computer to wake it up, then typed in Samson's Exhaust and found his order and the phone number.
Dialing the number, he tamped down the bitterness that had settled in his stomach and told himself he was just being oversensitive. He'd call LuAnn tonight and spend some time with her that would soothe him. He wanted to touch her and be with her. Now that he'd had a taste of her again, he wanted more and more.
Finishing up his call and happy that things were still on track, Chase walked to his workstation where Gunnar and Ryder were waiting for him. That same guilt settled in his stomach as he approached the brothers, but he reminded himself that he didn't call Gil. It was the other way around and had nothing to do with him being disloyal. But it sure felt like it.
Gunnar turned and smiled. "So, Veteran's Ride is next weekend and our bachelor party the following weekend. Are you ready for all of the fun?"
"I'm as ready as I can be. Just tell me where to be for the bachelor party and I'm there."
They laughed and he could tell they wanted to say more, and he had a suspicion he knew what that was, or more accurately, who it was about, but he didn't give them the time to say anything and piss him off. Instead, he said, "I can't believe two hot women like Molly and Emma even want you sad sacks."
Gunnar laughed. "That's the mother of my son you're talking about, asshole."
Chase laughed, picked up his wrench and began working on the bike for the Garretts while Ryder and Gunnar walked away talking about some wedding bullshit the girls had them doing. He knew he'd have to attend the double wedding, but he felt awful about not being able to bring LuAnn. She'd likely feel pretty shitty about it, too.
19
Turning the metal bucket, to and fro, LuAnn added a few touches of purple Ophelia and Lavender to the purple and white roses she'd already inserted into the bucket. Finishing the unique arrangement with a sweet purple bow, she smiled and admired her masterpiece before she pulled her phone from her back pocket and snapped a picture of it. This was certainly one for her photo album.
Tucking her phone back into her pocket, she picked up the tin bucket and walked to the counter where her customer stood waiting for it.
"Oh my." The sweet gray-haired woman exclaimed. "That is simply perfection."
She could feel her cheeks turn warm from the praise. "Thank you."
The customer turned the bucket back and forth looking at all sides. "This is the prettiest centerpiece I've ever seen."
LuAnn simply smiled. Would she ever get enough of the praise she received for her floral arrangements? It was a bonus that she loved working with the colorful, fragrant flowers. It was an even bigger bonus that she'd learned to grow them. From this point forward, no matter where she ended up in life, she had this and always would.
"LuAnn." She turned at the sound of her name. A familiar looking woman in her mid-forties approached. Her dark hair was streaked with gray which glinted in the sunlight. She wore jeans and a white t-shirt, which was smudged with dirt and grime that came from working in the soil and with plants.
"Yes," She answered.
"Hi, LuAnn. I wanted to introduce myself. I'm Lily, Jan is my mom and Luke is my stepfather. I've been away attending to a family issue on my husband's side, but I'm back now and wanted to meet you. I've been hearing all good things about you."
"It's nice