“Are those stuffed animals?”

Cross was asking me. I had no clue. I shrugged, and as if we had rehearsed our move, we both reached for our door handle at the same time. We got out on opposite sides of my Jeep just as she walked past. Seeing us, Taz jumped and shrieked, and half of the tote’s contents fell to the ground.

“AGH!” She glared at us for a heartbeat before bending down to scoop up the things. “What are you doing here?! I almost had a heart attack. Announce yourself. Let me know when you’re in…” Her hand thrust out, but then she looked, and her voice faded. “When you’re in your Jeep.”

A paper rolled past Cross, and he stepped on it to stop it. Before he grabbed it, he glared back at his sister. “Unlike you, we have reason to be here. What are you doing?”

She sent us a scathing look before she finished grabbing the rest of her stuff. There were books, two stuffed animals, lots of papers. I saw a yearbook and a pom-pom. She grabbed a fistful of the papers and gestured to Tuesday Tits’ back door.

“I was going in there to get a sponsor—one that’s never been gotten before.”

Cross glowered, thrusting one of his hands toward the sign on the door. Tuesday Tits’ Back Entrance. A black hole had been scribbled underneath, with arrows scratched in the wood, pointing to it.

“The name alone should tell you you’re not allowed here!” He was half-shouting.

“This is for the thing you asked me to help with? That charity thing? Did Jordan not take Race Ryerson over to you? He should’ve given you enough money. That’s what he said.”

She paused. Her mouth fell open, then snapped shut. She raised a hand, smoothing down some of her hair. “Yes. I mean, yes he did, and that’s more than enough money. Yeah.” She left the tote on the ground and stood upright again, smoothing out her clothes. “Have you—I mean, I might’ve thought maybe I could get more, you know?”

I could only lift my eyebrows at that.

She was here, at my brother’s bar—his very rough and very dangerous bar—to get more.

Cross groaned, his head falling back, and I could see him rolling his eyes. “Are you fucking kidding me?” He grasped his hair, holding on a second. “Oh my God, Taz. This is so fucking dangerous for you to come here—”

“And alone,” I added.

His voice raised. “And alone! You CAME ALONE!”

I gestured to the back door. “Look, whatever you’re doing, it’ll have to be handled later. You can’t go in there.”

“What?” Her mouth fell open. “Why not?”

Because it was dangerous, like Cross had just yelled at her, but at the moment it really was. Channing would be yelling at me the same way if he came out and saw we were still here.

“We have to go, Taz. I mean it.”

“But.” She looked at all her stuff, at the animals (why the hell she had animals was beyond me), the yearbooks, and groaned. “I had a plan. It was a whole big thing. There was a presentation. I had props. I was going to play a song on the radio. I had it all worked out.”

She sniffled, still gazing at her stuff.

Ah. Shiiit.

Cross and I looked at each other.

This wasn’t really about getting a donation. I mean, it was, but there was more going on here. More with her, more with—I was guessing—Sunday Barnes and all the girls Taz was trying to impress. And if I dared wonder, maybe some of it was about us too.

I was going to regret this. I knew that, but I still heard myself saying, “Look, if you still need a donation from Tuesday Tits, I’ll get it for you.”

She looked up, her eyes wide and hopeful.

“But not now.” I held my hand up. “And no one, I mean no one, can know I got it for you.”

Cross glanced sideways at me.

I caught the small grin. He was wondering how their donation would even be approved. Those sponsored ads have huge posters printed out. Tuesday Tits? Not really a brand an educational place would embrace.

But that was a different problem for another day.

She looked ready to argue, so I added, “A rough crowd hangs out here.”

“But… Okay. Fine.” She bent back down to get everything scooped up and stood up with the tote in her arms. “I still would like help with sponsors. Race’s dad is a big sponsor, but he admitted at the end that we might not be able to count on him.”

What a shocker.

All this talk of sponsors and what that led to, for an event, with ads—it wasn’t what I was used to.

She was talking like one of those girls, like a Sunday or a Monica, or… I had to admit, like a Taz. Because she was one of them, whether she was trying to forge her own path or not. She was normal. I was the outsider to that kind of life.

Jordan’s truck roared up behind us, and Taz groaned. “Are you serious? Do they have to be here for this?”

I didn’t trust Taz.

Even if I got her to leave now, if I didn’t come through with the donation, I had a feeling she would come on her own—and that might be worse than things were in there now.

“Hold on.” I pulled out my phone and leaned back in my seat, dialing the bar.

A moment later I heard, “Tuesday Tits! Tonight is $2 Friday Night Titquila Shots.”

It was Moose this time. “Moose.”

“Bren? You still here?” He didn’t let me answer. “You want your big bro again?”

“No. Uh, can I talk to Scratch instead?”

“Hold on.”

The line was quiet, then I heard a beep and my cousin’s voice came over. “You forget something?”

“Hey.” Taz was watching me intently, so I turned around. “Cross’ sister showed up. She’s asking for donations—”

“Sponsors,” Taz corrected.

“Sponsors for some charity thing. I don’t trust her to let me ask Channing later. I think she’ll try again on her own.”

“Hey!”

I ignored her. “I was wondering if you guys wanted to give some money, and if you do, can you come outside right now so we can get this done?”

“Oh.” He paused a beat. “You know, we’ve never done that, except for a bike rally or something. Yeah, I’d be interested in that. It’s for charity?”

“It’s for charity, right?” I asked Taz.

She nodded. “The children’s hospital.”

Cross started laughing.

I frowned. “We have a children’s hospital?” The hospital we did have was crap. Most didn’t even consider Roussou to have a hospital. Sane people went to the one in Fallen Crest.

She hit her brother on the shoulder. “Yes. Well, it’s two hours away and in a different town, but yes.”

I spoke into the phone. “The children’s hospital that’s a couple hours away.”

“Yeah, I heard you. I’m heading out right now.” I heard a thud, then the line went flat.

“He’s coming out.”

Taz’s eyes widened, and the excitement was building. She rolled back and forth on her heels.

It wasn’t long until my cousin appeared. He’d been wearing a muscle shirt going in, but he’d put on a short-sleeved Tuesday Tits T-shirt. Both Channing and Scratch wore whatever they wanted to work. Sometimes they looked professional. Other times they looked like regular customers, and sometimes they looked like the type of customers who never went home. He’d combed his hair back too, but his eyes were twinkling at us, and I knew some of this was for Taz’s benefit.

She was gawking, checking out Scratch’s tattoos. He and my brother were both covered in them.

“Long time no see!” Scratch winked at me. He leaned in and whispered, “There’s shit going down inside. You need to get out of here five minutes ago.”

I nodded, murmuring back, “We will.”

He looked at me for another moment, making sure I knew he was serious, then turned. He had Taz eating out of his hand within seconds. She was almost giggling and blushing. Cross looked ready to lose his lunch a couple times, and so did Jordan, who’d gotten out of his truck and come to stand next to me. His arms were folded over his chest, and they stayed like that until Scratch pulled out his checkbook.

Jordan grunted, touching my shoulder lightly. “We saw some different bikers headed here when we came back.” And as if on command, a couple bikes roared past the alley, followed by a couple more. Then three more.