Jackal (Heartlands Motorcycle Club #12)- Frankie Love Page 0,12

be surprised if she can keep where she was last night a secret, especially when the party ended up being so damn dangerous. So as far as I can guess, Ranger is already in on the secret and knows that I was the one who drove his sister-in-law home last night.

I need to get some damn courage and have this conversation. I care about Lydia more than she knows and I need to get this right if I want a chance with her — even if I can’t see why she’d want me. Wiping my hands off on a rag, I decide now’s the time. I know Ranger isn't here to talk to Maddox. He's here to talk to me.

"What can I do you for?" I ask Ranger, walking to the front of the shop. He is the manager over at the Ride or Die bar, and we've been friendly in the year I've lived here, but things change when the club’s sweetheart is involved, and everybody adores Lydia. I'm not sure anyone would say the same for me.

"Mind if I have a word with you, son?" he asks.

I set my jaw tight. Son. He's not that much older than me, but I don't hold it against him. Truth is Ranger has made a good life for himself here. He has a good reputation and a beautiful bride and a family to boot. I don't hold any ill will against him. I guess if I'm going to be completely honest about our road captain, I'll say I'm jealous that he has had it so damn easy. Story goes he picked up Ruby on the side of the road and a few weeks later they were married. I'm not sure many people get that sort of happily ever after. My mom sure didn't.

"What do you need?" I ask him. We head outside to the parking lot. It's dusty and dry out here, and the sun is blazing hot.

"You want to go grab a beer?" he asks me. I think about the car still in the shop and I look at my watch. There's an hour before closing time. "I should really get back. I'm trying to fix this carburetor before the end of the working day."

Ranger nods. "You're a good man," he says, "and you have a good work ethic. I appreciate that."

"Thank you, sir."

"You don't need to call me sir."

"I know, but…”

"But you're planning on sleeping with my wife's sister, so you feel like you need to give me more respect than you did yesterday?" he asks, running a hand over his beard.

I push my hands into my pocket. "Look, I'm not trying to argue or fight or stir up anything. I know I'm not the guy for Lydia."

"Is that so?" Ranger asks. "Because I've been talking to my wife today and she seems to think that's not the case. She thinks Lydia has her heart set on you. Is she mistaken?"

I swallow hard. "Look, I'm not going to put words in Lydia's mouth. Yeah, I care about her. I do, but I'm not the kind of guy she needs."

Ranger frowns. "What the fuck’s that supposed to mean?" he asks.

"It means, um. Shit. I don't have much to offer her is all."

"You have a job, don't you?"

"Yeah, but I don't have family."

"You have the Heartlands."

"What are you trying to say?"

"Are you not really committed to us? To the brotherhood?”

"Oh, I'm committed. I just, fuck. I've been through hell, Ranger, and I'm not sure Lydia is really up for that, up for a man like me."

"When you say hell, what do you mean?"

"I did some time,” I tell him.

"So did half the men in this club. What makes you so damn special?"

I don't want to tell Ranger the truth before I have a chance to tell Lydia. If anyone's going to know my whole damn sob story, I want it to be the girl I care about, the girl I love.

"Look, you may have shit you need to overcome, but deal with it. And you need to let Lydia know your intentions because I love that girl and I don’t want to see you break her heart. That’s all I'm going to say."

"I don't intend to."

"Good. Because if I hear otherwise, there'll be trouble."

"Just to be clear," I say, "are you saying I should date her or not? I don't know what you're getting at."

“I’m saying Lydia is innocent. So be gentle with her heart."

"That sounds like some good advice,” I