stop at a gas station to use the restroom, clean up a bit, and grab a drink. Striker grabs a water and goes around the building to make a call, and I lean out front with the bikes, waiting for Dani to come out of the bathroom. An SUV full of assholes pulls up a short time later and they head inside for some snacks. I watch the clean-cut bunch, clearly a group of friends driving through on a vacation to be douchebags somewhere else, with little interest. Finishing my drink, I go toss it out, then head back to our bikes.
On the way, I spot the guys inside. One of them is talking to Dani. He leans over her, an arm pressed against the glass of the refrigerator cases, and grins down at her. His gaze isn’t looking at her face though. No, it’s looking at her nearly see-through tube top and those jeans that leave nothing to imagination. My teeth grit together, and I wait for her to send him on his way.
But she doesn’t. Instead, she laughs.
I don’t know what I’m doing when I head for the door to the gas station, but I toss it open and head toward her and the asshole.
“You ever ridden a jet ski?” he asks, grinning from ear-to-ear. “I swear there’s nothing like it in the world.”
“I don’t doubt that,” she says, smiling back at him.
“Actually, I think my bike is a hell of a lot better than any jet ski.”
They both spin around, and the guy’s eyes widen as they run over me. I keep my face a mask of stone. Hell, I know I’m scary, even when I smile, but with no expression at all…it’s usually enough to make people take a couple steps back . The problem is, this guy has clearly had a few drinks, which means he isn’t running from me the way he should be.
“Come on, sweet butt,” I say. “Let’s get back on my bike.”
To my surprise, Dani crosses her arms in front of her chest and glares at me. “Don’t call me sweet butt. That’s not what I am. And I’m perfectly fine where I am.”
I smirk and look toward the cashier. The fella is smarter than this guy. He looks nervous as hell, and when our eyes meet, he says, “I don’t want any trouble.”
Yeah, everyone in this town and all the towns around us know not to mess with the Immortal Hunters. This guy might just need a lesson.
“She and I are just having some fun,” the guy says, and he slurs his words a little.
“Well, the fun’s over.”
“Is there a problem?” one of his buddies says.
My gaze skirts to him and the other three. They have arms loaded with snacks and drinks, and even though I’m pretty sure they’ve been enjoying some liquor or some drugs, they look a hell of a lot more nervous than their drunk-ass friend.
“No,” I say. “My old lady and I are just heading out.”
I grab Dani’s arm. Fuck. Why did I call her my old lady? She isn’t that, but she isn’t a sweet butt either. She is better than one of those. In fact, she’s more like one of us.
She jerks out of my grip and takes a step back. “Actually, these guys are heading for a lake trip, and they invited me along.”
“Fuck that.” If they thought she was going anywhere with them, they’re about to be in for a lesson. “Come on. We both know you’re just trying to get under my skin.”
She reaches out a hand and puts it on the pretty boy’s arm. “I don’t have a bathing suit.”
I swear he looks like he’s going to come in his goddamn pants. “Not a problem. Not at all.”
Grabbing him by the throat, I slam him back into the glass. Not hard enough to break it, just hard enough to scare him. “Time for you to go, pretty boy, unless you want me to break that face of yours.”
Dani yanks on my arm. “Stop it right now! You don’t own me! You don’t get to tell me what to do.”
I look back at her. “That’s where you’re wrong.”
“The lady wants to spend her weekend fucking me,” the idiot says.
Usually I’m more in control, but I don’t even know what I’m doing when I punch him in the face. His head snaps back, and then I let go of him. He slides to the floor, and I turn around. Dani’s mouth is