The Curse Of Spring (Book Two of The Seasons Trilogy)

Chapter 7

Harley

Jay, Cole and I worked in silence in the garage on our separate projects, Dolly Parton's greatest hits playing on the old stereo in the background. My mind still found itself wondering why Cole had a picture of me from my younger years. It was disconcerting and part of me was glad that he hadn't recognized me.

Jay had explained to me a few times that I'd been shot when he'd found me. He had heard gunshots moments before and put two and two together, drawing the conclusion that dangerous people - probably a gang - were after me. It's why he never took me to the hospital for treatment, and why he never reported finding me to the police. He wanted to keep me safe.

So either Cole was telling the truth and we had been friends back then, or he was a part of the group who wanted me dead. Either way, I wasn't ready to confront whatever lay in my past.

The roaring of bikes in the driveway drew my attention as three bikes pulled up, their riders familiar. Jay put aside his tools with a smile on his face as he approached the three older men, all dressed rather scruffy.

"You're early," Jay greeted them as they hopped off their bikes and embraced, smacking each other on their backs in greeting.

"We thought we'd spend some time with our old friend before the rally," the oldest of the three exclaimed, his eyes looking over Jay's shoulder toward the garage. "Where's Harley?"

I set down my tools and went to greet Jay's oldest friends. They had all been in rival biker gangs but had formed relationships through a prison reform program and now we're best friends.

"Uncle Hank! Uncle Garth! Uncle Paul! Lovely to see you all," I greeted each with a kiss on the cheek.

"Ah, squirt. You've got too pretty for your own good," Hank joked, giving me a bear hug.

He looked over my shoulder and spotted Cole, his back straightening immediately. "And who is this? Not a boyfriend already, squirt. You know you're only allowed to date when you're thirty."

I laughed and shook my head at his teasing.

"Leave the child alone, Hank," Jay retorted, motioning for Cole to join us. "This is Cole, he's helping us out for a week while we wait for the parts needed to fix his Suzuki."

Cole shook the older men's hands and greeted them politely before he excused himself and went back to work.

"I'm glad you're here, I've got something I need to discuss with you," Jay turned serious. "It's about Jason."

Paul obviously picked up the edge to Jay's voice and motioned toward the house. "Let's go talk inside. I'm hankering for a cold beer anyway."

The four men left Cole and I to our work, making it clear that this was a conversation that I was to be sheltered from once again. It was rather tiring being treated like a kid the whole time, even though I sort of understood.

I could see that Cole wasn't himself though, he kept dropping tools and the soft swearing coming from his side of the garage reached my ears on more than one occasion.

"Everything alright?" I asked, wiping my hands off on the rag I held before I pushed a stray hair off from my forehead.

"Yeah, it's just bloody hot and I can't think straight," he grumbled.

It was hot. I felt streams of sweat trickle down my back and even the fan in the garage didn't seem to be making much of a difference.

"Want to take lunch and go for a swim? There's a really cool lake not far from here," I said before I could catch myself, I was still apprehensive because of that photo after all.

But his agreement came so fast and his face was so desperate that I couldn't not drag him out to the lake. I dodged a quick look at the cottage and saw the serious faces of Jay and his friends through the kitchen window, and immediately decided not to interrupt them. Cole would just have to deal with me swimming in my sports bra and shorts.

We hiked through the trees which backed onto the property, climbing over rocks and fallen logs when we came across them. A mere fifteen minutes later, the lake's crystal clear water came into view.

"Wow, it's stunning!" Cole said, looking around in awe. "I should have brought my camera for a few shots."

He was right, the view was stunning. I guess I'd become so used to it that I barely noticed the way the trees surrounding the lake reflected off the water, or how blue the sky looked. It was actually breathtaking.

"I guess you'll have to come back and take a few shots," I replied, pulling out my hair out of its hair-tie and stripping off my shirt and shoes before I waded into the water.

Cole made a frame out of his thumbs and forefingers, as if he was planning his shot… with me in it. "Yeah, definitely going to have to take a photo of this."

I felt myself blush so I turned my back on him, only to be rewarded by the wave of water that crashed into me as he ran and jumped into the water.

"Hey!" I shouted, splashing water his way.

He laughed and ran his hand across the top of the water, creating a tidal wave. I screamed and tried to dodge it, only to trip and slip under the water for a moment. When I came up again, Cole was laughing like a lunatic, not an ounce of concern for me.

"I could have drowned!" I raged, launching myself at him.

"You wouldn't have," he replied, catching me and wrapping his arms around my waist. "I would have saved you."

His skin was cool against mine, my bare stomach pressed against his hard abs. I stared into his ice blue eyes and watched the laughter slowly fade from them, something else entirely replacing it.

And then his head lowered, his lips claiming mine in a searing kiss.