Page 1 of The Biker’s Guilty Pleasur

Chapter One

Grace had an early shift at the bubble tea store, but she wanted to volunteer at least an hour before work. Spending time at the women’s shelter and giving back was important to her. Essential. After losing her older sister years ago, she’d been on a mission to help other young women avoid the same fate.

She was washing her hands in the small powder room by the back entry door, when she heard crying. Grace quickly dried her hands and rushed to the front of the shelter. She stopped dead in her tracks.

There was a woman on her knees in the front hallway, holding a young girl around seven years old around the waist. A huge tattooed man stood over them. She knew right away he was a biker by the leather cut. Those animals were easy to spot regardless, especially for her. Her heart began to race as she scanned the area for staff members. She was no match for a man his size, but she’d put herself between him and the woman and child if she had to.

She saw Gena coming up the hall but she was much farther away than her, so she moved in close.

“Hey! Get away from her.”

The biker cocked an eyebrow but didn’t move.

“Step back. You realize I have a panic button. If I push it, the cops will be here in two minutes.”

“I just brought them in,” he said.

Yeah, of course he did. Beat up your girlfriend and kid, then dump them at a shelter? Real manly of him. Or maybe they’d escaped him and he followed them here trying to force them back. She’d seen it too many times to count. Why else would she be scared and crying?

She hated men. And bikers were the worst.

“You’re not welcome here,” she said.

As Gena neared them, her nerves eased slightly because the shelter manager would know how to deal with this.

“Oh, Reaper, thank you so much for dropping them off for me,” Gina said.

Grace was stunned, frozen in place as she attempted to process the scene. What the heck was happening?

“No problem,” he said, in that same too-deep voice. “I’ll be by tonight to check out the alarm system.”

“You’re a godsend.”

When she looked at the woman still sobbing into her hands, she noticed the little girl was tugging on the biker’s black jeans. It made her heart rate pick up. She didn’t trust bikers and never would. He looked down at her and smiled. It actually looked warm and sincere, which wasn’t possible.

“I have some stuffies in my saddlebag out front,” he told the girl. Then he turned to Gena. “Is it okay if she comes out to pick one?”

“Of course, I’ll start registering her mom, then Grace can finish the intake.”

“What?” Grace blurted out. “You’re letting her go outside alone with him?” She bit her tongue immediately after when they turned and stared at her like she’d just grown a second head. How could she be the only one who saw a major red flag here? Many red flags.

“It’s okay, Grace,” said Gena. “This is practically Reaper’s second home. He does a lot for us. You don’t have to worry about him.” Then she walked away with the mother to the office.

The mother was still hysterical, repeatedly muttering, “He’ll find me.”

Her heart went out to the woman. That’s why it was so important to keep the shelter a safe place, a refuge. When she turned back around, he was there.

Reaper had a sly smile on his face. “You shouldn’t judge a book by its cover.”

The heat of humiliation raced up her collar and she knew her face must be beet-red. “I’m sorry. I was just looking out for them.”

“It was cute.”

Her mouth fell agape. He may not be the enemy this moment, but she still refused to trust a biker. They were criminals and murderers. If it weren’t for bikers, she’d still have her sister. And her parents’ marriage wouldn’t have fallen apart. And they’d still be alive. She learned how grief could kill a person.

The little girl reached for his hand and he actually took it as they walked up the hall together. She was made of questions. How had she never met him if Gena seemed so familiar with him? Grace usually volunteered three days a week at the shelter.

She decided she’d made herself look enough of a fool today, so she got to work. There were several boxes of donated food in the hallway, so she started loading them into the pantry, one can at a time. She took her time, frequently glancing at the front entryway to see if the little girl made it back in safely.