Ride Me Into Ruin: Iron Reapers MC

Quiet Evenings

LEXIE

The days started to feel almost normal. Every morning I woke up early, took a quick bath, put on my simple clothes, and walked downstairs. Chaos would usually be at the bar with his coffee. He always gave me a small nod and a quiet “Morning.”

He drove me to the drug store most mornings. The ride was usually quiet, but comfortable. I would stare out the window at the small town waking up and try not to think too much.

Mr. Harlan was the same every day, grumpy but fair. “You’re on time again,” he would grunt when I walked in. “Good because shelves won’t stock themselves.”

“Yes, sir,” I would reply with a smile. “I’m here to serve the great cough syrup empire.”

He would shake his head, but I caught him smiling once or twice when he thought I wasn’t looking.

The mornings passed in a steady rhythm. I helped customers find medicine, rang up purchases, and answered questions. An older woman named Mrs. Ellis came in almost every day. She always had something nice to say.

“You’ve got spirit, girl. Don’t lose it.”

By the time my shift ended, I felt tired but useful. Chaos would pick me up, and we would drive back to the bar in comfortable silence.

Afternoons were quieter. I started helping around the bar and storage room to keep busy. One afternoon Mia found me organizing boxes again and shook her head with a laugh.

“You really don’t know how to sit still, do you?” she asked, leaning against the doorframe with her arms crossed.

I wiped dust from my hands and gave her a dramatic sigh. “Sitting still makes me think. Thinking makes me remember things I’d rather forget. So here I am, organizing Chaos’s kingdom of random bike parts.”

Mia laughed. “You’re something else, Sara. Come on, take a break. I made fresh coffee.”

We sat at the bar together during a slow hour. Mia poured two cups and slid one to me. “So,” she said, raising an eyebrow, “how are you really doing? You’ve been here almost a week now.”

I took a sip and shrugged. “I’m… okay. Better than I was a week ago. This place is surprisingly not terrible.”

“Not terrible?” Mia teased. “High praise. What brought you to our little corner of nowhere anyway?”

I stared into my coffee for a moment. “Just needed to get away from some bad choices, bad people. The usual story, nothing special.”

Mia nodded slowly, her expression soft. “We’ve all got stories like that. You don’t have to tell me yours until you’re ready.”

I gave her a small, grateful smile. “Thanks. I appreciate that.”

Later that evening, after the bar closed, Mia and I sat outside on the back steps. The night air was cool and quiet. Stars filled the sky above us.

“You know,” Mia said, leaning back on her hands, “when I first came here, I thought I’d only stay a month. Been here four years now.”

I pulled my knees up to my chest. “What made you stay?”

She shrugged. “Felt safe. The guys can be rough around the edges, but they look out for their own, and Chaos… he’s a good man. Hard, but fair.”

I looked down at my hands. “He seems… different from what I expected.”

Mia smiled. “He is. He carries a lot on his shoulders, but he never lets it show.”

We sat in comfortable silence for a while. I felt myself relaxing, just a little. “I had someone once,” I said quietly. “Someone I thought was good. Turned out he wasn’t. I stayed too long trying to fix something that couldn’t be fixed.”

Mia reached over and gently squeezed my shoulder. “I’m sorry, honey. That’s a hard lesson to learn.”

Before I could say more, heavy footsteps approached. Chaos walked by carrying a box toward the storage room. He glanced over at us, gave a small nod, and kept walking without stopping.

Mia watched him go. “He’s been quieter than usual lately.”

I didn’t reply. I just watched his broad back disappear around the corner.

Later that night, after everyone had gone to bed, I lay in my room staring at the ceiling. Sleep came slowly, and when it did, bad dreams were waiting.

In the dream, Drake was smiling at me. His hand reached out, grabbing my wrist tight. “You’re mine, Lexie. You’ll always be mine.”

I woke up gasping, heart pounding hard in my chest. Sweat covered my skin. I sat up quickly and pressed my back against the headboard, breathing fast and shallow.

*It’s not real. He’s not here. You’re safe.*

I closed my eyes and focused on breathing slowly, in for four counts, out for six. My hands shook, but I kept breathing until the tight feeling in my chest eased.

I calmed myself down alone, like I had done so many times before. When my breathing finally returned to normal, I got out of bed and walked to the window. I pulled the curtain aside and looked out at the quiet town. Streetlights cast a soft yellow glow on empty sidewalks.

I stood there for a long time, arms wrapped around myself, this place felt safe. Even Chaos, with his quiet strength and steady presence, felt safe, and that scared me more than anything.

Because wanting to stay, really stay, was dangerous. I rested my forehead against the cool glass and whispered to the dark town outside, “How long can I keep pretending I don’t want to stay here?”

The night gave no answer, but deep down, I already knew the truth. I was starting to want to stay, and that feeling was getting harder to ignore every single day.