Ride With Me (Paige and Jace) novel Chapter 6

I stared at Jace for a few seconds, convinced I’d heard him wrong.

“Every motorcycle?” I asked.

“The whole club,” he said, giving me a small nod.

I glanced past him toward the row of motorcycles lined up outside the workshop. There were six parked in the yard today, but I knew that wasn’t the full number.

“How many bikes are we talking about?” I asked.

“Twenty-three at the moment,” he said.

“Twenty-three?” I asked, and Hunter grinned.

“Some of us collect them,” Hunter said.

“I’m beginning to think some of you have a problem,” I said, and Derek folded his arms.

“We prefer the word hobby,” Derek said.

“I prefer the word expensive,” I said, and Hunter laughed.

“You’ll fit in around here just fine,” Hunter said.

I rested both hands on the workbench while my brain tried to process what Jace had just offered.

Twenty-three motorcycles. Regular servicing, repairs, tyres, brake work and engine rebuilds.

Instead of wondering whether customers would come through the roller door each week, I’d actually know work was waiting for me.

It almost sounded too good to be true.

“How would this work?” I finally asked, and Jace stepped closer and laid a folder on the counter.

“We’d like a monthly maintenance contract,” he said, and I opened the folder.

Everything had already been typed up. Routine services, emergency repairs, priority callouts and replacement parts billed separately.

I slowly turned each page while trying not to let my excitement show.

The figures printed at the bottom almost made me read them twice. That amount would comfortably cover the mortgage.

It would pay the electricity and keep food in the cupboards.

For the first time since Uncle Will died, Lawson Customs wouldn’t simply survive. It could actually grow, and I looked up at Jace.

“You’ve already had this drawn up,” I said.

“We wanted to make sure you were interested first,” he said, and Hunter scratched the back of his neck.

“We’ve spent more money fixing the same bikes twice than we’d like to admit,” Hunter said, and Derek nodded.

“You’re the first mechanic who’s actually fixed the problems instead of hiding them,” Derek said, and I closed the folder.

“I told you that I hated clubs,” I said, and Hunter laughed.

“Yeah. But we’ve grown on you,” Hunter said.

“When do you want me to start?” I asked, and a small smile appeared on Jace’s face.

“Monday,” he said.

“I’ll need a service schedule,” I said.

“We’ll bring every bike through over the month,” he said.

“I’ll also need complete maintenance records,” I said, and Hunter winced.

“Those might be… incomplete,” Hunter said, and I sighed dramatically.

“Fantastic,” I said.

“We’re getting organized,” he said.

“You own twenty-three motorcycles and none of you thought paperwork might be useful?” I asked, and Hunter looked genuinely thoughtful.

“When you put it like that…” Hunter said, and I pointed toward the office.

“You’re all hopeless,” I said, and Derek laughed.

“You still taking the job?” Derek asked.

“I like impossible projects,” I said.

“Good,” he said.

“I never said you lot weren’t going to drive me insane,” I said.

The club chuckled while Jace reached across the counter and we shook hands.

The agreement felt surprisingly simple. No lawyers and no hidden conditions. Just two people agreeing to do business.

After the Iron Vipers rode away, I carried the folder into the office and sat behind Uncle Will’s old desk.

I looked at the monthly payment again, and then I looked at the mortgage statement pinned to the noticeboard, and a smile slowly spread across my face.

“You’d be laughing right now,” I whispered.

I could almost picture Uncle Will leaning against the office doorway with grease on his hands and that familiar grin on his face.

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