Sinclair

Chapter Eighteen: Ruby Tuesday

THE SKY WAS STILL grey that next afternoon as I drove into the town next to Willow's Creek. The sky reminded me too much of Sinclair's eyes and honestly, it was the last thing I needed right now. My mother had heard of the rumors that had begun to follow me after my visit to Wallflower Diner and, as soon as I had stepped through the door and into my house, my cell phone had rung. On the other end had been my very livid mother who had demanded I meet her tomorrow. She had even called in to her work to take the day off. I knew she had heard the name that was going around town. The name that, as I had stopped by the gas station to fill up for the hour-long drive, I had overheard people whisper as they looked at me wide-eyed.

The Iron Queen.

It sounded like the name of some YA novel but, no. This was no novel that people were referring to. It was me. Even though Sinclair and I weren't even together, everyone in this town seemed to take the word of those Iron Order groupies, the fact that I was being watched by Iron Order members—whose motorcycles thundered behind me even now—and decide that I must be Sinnerman's queen. The queen of The Iron Order.

The Iron Queen.

And like all rumors in this Godforsaken town, it didn't seem to take very long at all before they got back to my mother. She had heard it all: Sinclair and I at the Carn-Evil, his motorcycle parked at my house numerous times, us kissing in the parking lot at Carla's and most recently with the Iron Order seemingly protecting me like I was some precious gem that required four armed guards to protect it.

I sighed heavily, my eyes moving to my review mirror. This time, there were seven of them instead of four. Apparently one of the guys had reported what had happened yesterday to Sinclair. He had called me, right as I was on the phone being scolded by my mother, to alert me that he would be upping my "security detail" and that he would see me after he had cleaned up the mess made by The Grave Rebels. Although the idea of seeing him again did, unwittingly, send a flurry of anticipated shivers down my spine, I hadn't expected for him to add three more men to follow me. They were conspicuous enough when there were only four of them.

As I finally drove past the sign that alerted me I was officially no longer in Willow's Creek, I found myself growing more and more nervous. I was completely unsure what I was supposed to say to my mother. The last time I had spoken to her, I had promised her that I had no ties to The Iron Order and especially no ties to their leader. After hearing the way she had sounded over the phone, she clearly knew that wasn't the truth and she was planning on giving me a very stern talking to.

Even though I'm an adult now, I still feel a lot like a five-year-old girl who has done something that she knows she's about to get into big trouble over.

I pull into a Ruby Tuesday parking lot just as light drops of rain begin to splatter on my windshield. My mother always used Ruby Tuesday to talk to us when either me or my brother were in major trouble. She always said it was so she could remember to keep her voice down and because it wouldn't be appropriate to reach over and kick our asses in public.

My heart dropped down to my shoes as I spotted her familiar silver car in the parking lot. I could see her inside of it, looking a tad impatient, and I took a major deep breath before I exited my own car.

It was cold. Far colder than it had been earlier in the day when the sun was still out. The drizzle—soft and extremely cold—landed on my face when I looked up at the sky and, again, thought of Sinclair and the way the sky matched his stupidly amazing eyes. As I walked toward my mother's car, she apparently took notice of me and opened her door, stepping out to meet me.

She stood with her hands on her hips as I walked the rest of the way to meet her, tapping her foot impatiently. I wanted to facepalm myself and then kick Sinclair in his stupid attractive face. I was in so much trouble.