Page 4 of Until Joy

“Next week?” I choked.

Little Grandma tapped the book. “You wanted to transform your life in less than a month, well girlie, here’s your chance.”

Oh God, she was right.

She was always right.

Little Grandma winked. “You know I’m right.”

Terror and excitement twisted in my stomach, both fighting for supremacy, then something else emerged, something I’d almost forgotten… hope. “Yes, ma’am. I do.” My voice was steady, even though my hands trembled. “I’m scared, but you’re right.”

“Ahhh, sugar. Courage isn’t the absence of fear, it’s feeling the fear and choosing to live anyway. You’ve been surviving… hiding. Now it’s time to spread your wings and live.”

She winked at me again, and I couldn’t help but grin. I knew I was in for a wild ride.

Chapter 1

I pulled into Miss Laverne’s driveway. The rumble of my Harley settled into a purr before I killed the engine. I was going to have to bribe some of my Broken Eagle brothers with plenty of pizzas and beer pretty soon, to help me paint her house. But other than needing a fresh coat of paint, Miss Laverne kept it nice and tidy. The wide front porch stretched across the front, and the hanging ferns looked awfully nice. She had a good eye. I wasn’t sure when she had me hang them, but she’d been right.

I really enjoyed the days I came and visited Miss Laverne. She soothed me, made me concentrate on the here and now. She made me feel like a better man than I knew I was.

Stepping off my bike, I grabbed a bag of groceries from one of my saddlebags. She was gonna be pissed that I had bought them. But, because she hadn’t written out a list, that meant she couldn’t pay me for them, so it was a win. A bigger win was the fact that I picked up some red licorice, her favorite.

I walked up the steps and knocked on the storm door. “Miss Laverne?” I called out. When she didn’t answer or come out front, I tried the door. Dammit, it was open. I hated the way everybody in this town thought it was okay to just leave their doors unlocked. I stepped inside. Before I had a chance to work up a good mad, a delectable smell hit me.

She was cooking something wonderful. I couldn’t make it out. I knew all of her different cookie flavors, but this was different. I wandered farther into her parlor.

“Miss Laverne?”

My stomach growled. I wanted a taste of whatever she was baking.

“I’m in the kitchen, sweetie.” I shook my head at the word sweetie. It had taken me by surprise the first time she’d used it. I was six foot four, with a beard, tattoos, t-shirt, and club cut. Not exactly a man you would call ‘sweetie’.

Then again, who would have thought I would feel comfortable around all these cat figurines and doilies?

I wandered down the hall to the kitchen and stopped short. I was confronted with a spectacular heart-shaped ass that was leaning over the oven. It wiggled backward as a sweet Southern voice called out, “Yay, it came out just like I’d hoped.”

I was standing there, transfixed, as the beautiful blonde stood up with a wide grin, shut the oven door with a twitch of her hip, and put a pan on the stove.

“Look at that beauty,” Miss Laverne said.

“I am,” I muttered, stunned.

“What?” Miss Laverne said, glancing over at me. She looked me over, then grinned. It was a knowing grin. Miss Laverne was one sharp lady.

“Joy, I think Graham is impressed by your pineapple upside down cake.”

I sure as hell was impressed by something.

Joy turned around to look at me, then stood still, her smile freezing, her big, blue eyes going wide as she blushed. Was she having the same reaction as me?

Fuck, I hoped so.

Then she smiled. It was a shy smile, but it blew apart every one of my circuits.

My world tilted. Actually, fucking tilted. What the hell? My heart started pounding against my chest like it was some kind of wild beast trying to break free. I forgot how to breathe. All I could think was “mine, mine, mine.”

Who in the hell was she?