“Oh, shit,” AJ whispered, his voice hoarse.

Pax just grinned and enjoyed the show. Where the blonde used her sexuality as a lure, Teresa was more natural when she moved, like she felt the music inside her. She didn’t play to the crowd, but kept her focus straight ahead as she swept her h*ps from side to side, knocked her boots hard on the bar, and stormed her way toward Pax and AJ.

It was only when she got to them that she tilted her chin and looked down, a wicked smile on her face. Pax looked up and grinned at her, letting her know that he liked the show just fine. He’d like to feel her moving against him like that, wanted to feel her h*ps sway from side to side while he held her against his throbbing cock.

AJ tilted his head back and stared, his expression unreadable.

Teresa cocked a brow, kicked up her heels and shimmied down the bar, lifting her arms over her head and turning her back on the crowd, sliding her ass down to meet the heels of her boots, then jumping off the bar to let the brunette take over and finish the song.

“Damn” was all AJ said as he kept his gaze glued on Teresa. “Never seen her do anything like that before.”

“She was a kid when you left here before. She isn’t now. Lots of things change when you’re gone for ten years.”

THREE

ALL AJ WANTED TO DO WAS FIND OUT EVERYTHING TERESA HAD been doing in the ten years he’d been gone. Everything about her was different, from the way she looked to the way she talked to the way she danced to her expressions and demeanor.

Did he seem that different to her? He wanted to ask her. But what did it matter? He and Pax weren’t staying. He wasn’t taking up with her again, couldn’t. He and Pax had places to go after their vacation was over, and that didn’t include coming back home and settling in with Teresa, who hadn’t made any moves in his direction anyway. She’d been friendly, but wary, just like she would be with any customer.

And what had he expected—for her to scream and cry with joy because he’d finally returned, then throw herself in his arms and declare her undying love?

Yeah, right. Nice fantasy, but what he wanted and what he was going to get were two different things.

Story of his life.

He and Pax finally shoved away from the bar and played pool with Joey and Russ, Joey’s good friend and the second in command of the Thorns. AJ had known Russ when they were younger, too. Good to see he’d stood by Joey all these years. Russ hadn’t changed much since high school, either, though he was the polar opposite of Joey. Where Joey was short and round, Russ was tall and rail thin, with freckles on his face and his hair a mixture of strawberry blond and brown. Russ still looked like a kid even though he was pushing thirty.

Pax sank the last ball, and AJ grinned at Joey. “You still suck at pool.”

Russ snickered and patted AJ on the back. “Some things never change, do they, AJ?”

Joey glared. “I don’t suck at pool. Obviously you and your friend have careers as hustlers. And since you and Pax won all our money, you can buy the next round of beers.”

AJ laughed and bought beer. Having a pool table at Wild R iders headquarters meant they got a lot of practice. And AJ was pretty sure Pax had hustled pool when he was younger, though Pax denied it. Probably so he could win every time they played.

“Is that how you guys earn a living, sharking us poor unfortunates?” Joey asked as they sat at one of the tables eating pretzels and drinking beer.

Pax raised his brows and, with a smile, tipped the bottle of beer to his lips.

“I thought so.”

“And how about you, Joey?” AJ asked. “What are you doing these days?”

“I own that garage down on the corner of Munich and Davis. Russ and a few of the other guys who ride with us work there, too.”

“I can’t believe you’re still at Smitty’s Garage. That was the first place you hired on when you were a punk.”

“Yeah, and now I own it. So who’s the punk?” Joey laughed.

“Did you change the name to Oliveri’s?”

“Nah. Everyone around knew it as Smitty’s, so I figured I’d leave it. Good for the old-timers who might not take to something different.”

“See, and I always thought you were dumb,” AJ teased.

“Har har.” But Joey laughed and downed the rest of his beer, frowning as he laid it on the table. Russ stood and moved to Joey’s side.

AJ turned in the direction of Joey’s frown. The door to the bar had opened and a horde of bikers spilled in, all decked out in leathers, the backs of their jackets bearing a fist crushing a bleeding heart.

“Fists, I presume?” Pax asked.

“Yeah. And they don’t belong here.” Joey kicked back his chair and stood. Russ followed, and they were flanked immediately by two beefy members of their gang. The rest of the Thorns moved with them toward the front of the bar.

The tension in the entire place thickened so deep you had to wade through it. It emanated off everyone wearing leather. You could see it on all their faces, bikers gearing up for battle. AJ looked to Pax, who nodded. They stood and moved behind the crowd of bikers. AJ slid his hand up under his jacket, reached into the back waistband of his jeans, and released the safety on his pistol, saw Pax do the same. They might be on vacation and always undercover, but they were still federal agents. If shit was going to go down, they had to put a stop to it. Or at least put a well-timed call in to the local police. He hoped this would be nothing more than a standoff and that it would just blow over. Or maybe just hand-to-hand combat, not knives and guns.

Teresa didn’t need a brawl in her bar. AJ took a sidelong glance at her. She and the other bartenders stayed behind the bar, but Teresa had placed both hands, palms down and fingers wide, on the bar, her jaw set firmly. AJ made a move back with his head, and Pax took a look at Teresa, then back at him.

She looked mad as hell. The one thing they’d learned working cases for the Wild Riders was to watch out for someone with a hair-trigger temper, and the tension in Teresa’s locked arms and the tight set to her jaw gave AJ the impression she might climb right over the top of that bar and go after those guys.

“That’s not good,” Pax whispered.

“No, it’s not.” AJ skirted in front of Teresa, and Pax followed, making sure the both of them covered the women behind the bar.

He half turned to Teresa. “Relax. It’s going to be all right.”

Teresa’s focus stayed on the action at the front of the bar, but she gave him a curt nod, effectively dismissing him.

“Get out, Larks, and take your Fists with you,” was all Joey said to the guy standing at the front of the Fists.

Larks must be the leader of their gang, AJ presumed. He was broad, not as tall as the two guys flanking him, but he looked like one mean son of a bitch. He sported a long, white scar up the side of his left cheek, and except for a few strands of dark, stringy hair, his head was covered by an all black do-rag. His leather jacket was thick and only added to the guy’s imposing look. The guy had thighs like tree trunks and big beefy hands. All in all, he looked like a whole lot of trouble.

“Now, Joey,” Larks said, smiling. “As far as I know this is a public bar. You can’t keep us out of here. We’re taking a little road trip this weekend and just stopped in for a quick drink.”

“We don’t want you in here. I don’t want you in here mixing it up with my guys.”

“You lookin’ for a fight?”

“No.”

“Neither are we. Just came in for a beer, then we’re on our way.”

“There are a lot of other places you can get your beer. Take a hike.”

Larks took a step forward. So did Joey.

“Just let it go, Joey,” Teresa said from behind the bar. “We’ll give them their drinks and they can leave.”

AJ turned to Teresa and could feel the anger vibrating off of her, could see it in the upward tilt of her chin, the way she never once took her eyes off Larks or his men. The last thing he wanted was for her to end up in the middle of a gang brawl.

“I don’t think so,” Joey said.

“Leave it alone, Joey. I mean it. Let’s just get this over with.”

“Now see? That’s what I’m talkin’ about. This lady knows how to be hospitable. Besides, we’re paying customers and she knows it.”

Larks took a step forward. Joey didn’t budge. AJ tensed, waiting for it, ready for whatever happened next.

But then Joey stepped aside, and so did his men, opening a path for Larks and his gang to walk through toward the bar. AJ was disinclined to get the hell out of his way. He and Pax stayed rooted to their bar stools, nursing their beers. Larks looked them up and down.

“Who are you?” he asked.

“Who are you?” Pax shot back, offering up a lazy glance to Larks.

“You aren’t part of the Thorns.”

“No, we aren’t,” AJ said.

“Then get the f**k out of my way.”

AJ gave him a lopsided grin. “I don’t think so, man. Get your own f**king bar stool.” AJ motioned down the row of empty stools to his right. “These are taken.”

“You lookin’ for a fight?”

“No. I’m lookin’ to sit my ass right where it is and drink my beer. So stay the hell out of my space.”

He stared Larks in the eye, making sure the guy understood that AJ and Pax didn’t want any trouble, but if Larks intended to serve it up, they’d be more than happy to oblige.

Larks shrugged. “Shoot me a cold one, sweet tits,” he said to Teresa as he moved a couple feet down the bar and slid onto the stool.

AJ sucked in a deep breath at the insult to Teresa, who started popping the tops off bottles of beer and sliding them onto the bar. She didn’t even flinch making eye contact with Larks and his men who sidled up to the bar to grab the bottles. Larks threw money in front of her. “Keep the change, honey.”

“Thanks.” She moved to the cash register and put the money in, then turned back to face the bikers.

She was pleasant enough, but she was mad as hell.

Did she have some kind of relationship with Larks?

“What’s got her so riled up?” Pax asked, clearly noticing it, too.

“I have no idea.” He held up his fingers, and Teresa brought them a couple more beers. When he held out the money and she went to take it, AJ slid his hand over hers.

“Are you all right?”

“I’m fine.”

Yeah right. She’d barely got the words out through gritted teeth.

“Let’s go outside and talk.”

Her eyes widened. “Are you insane? Not with them here. I can’t leave my girls alone.”

He nodded. “Okay. Later then.”

“Fine.”

She jerked her hand from his and walked away, her gaze never leaving the Fists.

Yeah, something bothered her. Something bothered her in a big way.

AJ wanted to know what it was.

ANGER CLUTCHED TERESA BY THE THROAT, THREATENING TO CUT off her air supply. Sweat poured between her br**sts and down her back. She leaned against the front of the bar where she kept the ice, hoping the frigid rising air would cool her off and help calm the adrenaline-fueled urge to take a baseball bat to the bastards who dared threaten her brother as well as her livelihood.

Those scum-sucking sons of bitches knew better than to stroll into her bar. Everything about them threatened her, her girls and what she did for a living. And if that wasn’t bad enough, she’d never gotten over the thought that any them could be the ones. She had no proof, they’d never been found, but still, something in her gut said it was the Fists. And she refused to cower in front of them, stared them all down as if daring one of them to say something, to just look at her the wrong way, just once.

She gripped the edge of the bar and waited, sensing impending disaster, refusing to ever again feel powerless. She had the gun tucked away where only she could find it. And she’d damn well use it if she had to.

“Teresa. You okay?”

Her gaze shot to Heather, one of her bartenders. She forced her shoulders to drop and sucked in a breath, then let it out. “I’m fine, Heather. Thanks.” She plastered on a smile and patted Heather on the shoulder.

“These guys give me the creeps,” Heather said, her back turned to the Fists crowding the bar.

“I know, honey. They’ll be gone soon.”

“I’m not getting up on the bar and dancing.”

“No worries. You don’t have to. And neither does Shelley. We’ll serve them beer and that’s it. Hopefully they’ll make their point and leave soon.”

“Hey, sweet tits, how about another?”

Larks waved his empty beer bottle in the air.

Teresa wanted to take that bottle and shove it up his ass, but she grabbed a beer and slid it across the bar to him, took his empty and his money and stared him down, daring him to start something.

“You’re not very friendly for a bartender. You got something against the Fists?”

As if he didn’t know exactly what she had against his gang. Guys like him and his gang who thought they could do anything, that they were above the law. Just like the ones who . . .

“Is there something else you need?” she asked.

“Well, now that you mention it...”

“Back off, Larks. You came here for beer, fine. Leave my sister alone.”

Please, Joey. Don’t start anything. Let them drink and get out of here.

“I think your sister is plenty old enough to take care of herself, aren’t you, sweet tits?”

He was baiting her with his insults and she knew it, refused to answer him.