49 - The chapter where Rose meets Amber

Christian

It was after six o'clock when we crossed the border between South Dakota and Montana, and almost four hours later, we arrived at the ranch that the motorcycle club had rented for Thanksgiving.

The ranch was in the middle of a valley cut by a river between two mountains in one of Montana's many forests, and although it was dark when we arrived, the entire area of the cabins and the main house was well lit and you could get a good sense of the beauty of the place.

The silence was interrupted by the sound of the Harley's engine as we approached the main house, the absence of other motorcycles showed me that probably no one had arrived yet. But when I finally stopped the motorcycle in front of the house, the door opened and a figure with long black hair and eyes as blue as mine stepped out.

" Finally we're here, I'm dead. Look Davis, I'm really tempted to get a plane ticket for Saturday night, and... Wow, who is she? " Rose interrupted her complaints as she became aware of my sister's presence.

" Amber, she is my older sister. And you're exaggerating, it wasn't that bad.”

" I didn't know you had a sister," she commented.

" Chris, up ahead is the entrance to the garage, you can park the bike there, it's open," my sister shouted at me.

" She's only my father's daughter, she's fifteen years older than me," I explained.

I shook my head in understanding, driving to a shed a little way off, then turning off the bike before taking off my helmet. Rose got off the bike, taking off her helmet and placing it on the rump seat, before bringing both hands to her lower back, stretching back a little.

" You say I'm exaggerating, but I'm dead. I can barely feel my legs, you're going to have to give me a massage, and I mean a massage like Van Derr Waal's, not like your massages," she warned, making me laugh as I got off the bike.

I approached her, crossing my arms as I stared at her.

" And you could have warned me that it would be a bad idea to come in stilettos, couldn't you? " she returned with a grump.

" How long are you going to sulk? " I took a deep breath, raising both eyebrows at her.

" Now that we're officially here, you'll have to be a good boyfriend and spoil me to improve my mood," she returned.

" You're a real pain in the ass, you know that? " I stared at her.

" You're going to carry me home, you know that? " she returned in a petulant tone, making me smile.

I turned my back to her, allowing her to climb up, wrapping my neck in a hug as I rested my hands on her thighs and started walking.

" Now that's the way I like it. Good boyfriend," Rose slapped me lightly on the cheek, causing me to take a deep breath.

Yes, last night was great, but I was already regretting having agreed to go along with it.

" I can throw her in the river and pretend it was an accident," I muttered to myself.

Rose thought about answering, but her cell phone started ringing in her pocket, and Rose picked it up with one hand, answering the video call immediately.

" Check it out, little sister. You've already made Davis your donkey," Liam scoffed, appearing on the screen.

" Ahhhh he's my donkey," Rose mocked in response.

" Rose…”

" What? We're already officially a couple, we need a nickname," she explained.

" What do you think of Sweetie pie? " Sky appeared next to Van Derr Waal.

" I bet his motorcycle club mates would think that's the perfect nickname," Rose sneered, and I stopped walking, placing her on the ground by the river just a few meters from the entrance to the house before turning to her.

" Rose, I told you, don't embarrass me!”

" Rose, Sweetie Pie is not a good nickname, to be more embarrassing, you can use something like my little puffy bear" Theo appeared in our field of vision, trying on a sweater just like Sky and Liam's.

" Theo, what are you doing in my parents' house? " Rose frowned.

" Long story short, there was a storm, my flight was canceled, your parents got me one of these," he pointed to his sweater. “You had to see the photographer's face when they said that we were all brothers.”

" Great, you're all together and I'm stuck with this crazy woman," I muttered.

" Don't call me crazy," Rose crossed her arms.

" Wow, we are witnessing the first couple's discussion," Liam chuckled.

I moved closer to her, looking into her eyes before speaking again.

" You're about to meet my sister, if you really want me to act like a nice boyfriend, you'd better stick to what we agreed, or I'll make everyone wonder why a girl as beautiful as you would submit to being with a guy like me," I said slowly, without looking away.

" You wouldn't have the guts," Rose gave a small smile.

My smile widened, and then I turned my back on her, starting to walk alone toward the entrance of the house.

" I guess you'll have to play along with him, Rose," I heard Sky warn.

" Hey, where are you going? We're far away, I told you I can't," she called out, but I ignored her.

I heard her cursing before she ended the call, trying again to get my attention.

" Chris, come back here! Come on, you have no idea how hard it is to walk on grass with a heel like this, especially when it's wet like this.” She called me again  “Please, my legs hurt!”

I continued to ignore her pleas, and when I was halfway there, came the answer I had been waiting for.

" All right, I promise not to get any stupid nicknames, just don't leave me here, if I try to walk I'll fall!”

I turned in her direction, walking back to her in slow steps, further increasing the impatient expression on her face.

" You're not going to make up any embarrassing stories about us dating," I warned.

" Okay, I won't. But take me home, I'm tired," she pouted.

I turned around and it didn't take long for her to come up. Leaning her chin on my shoulder.

" You still owe me that massage," she murmured.

" We can talk about this," I returned, walking back.

As soon as we entered the house, the first image we saw was of Amber sitting on one of the couches with Vihn, her boyfriend, lying on her lap, while she braided a few locks of his hair.

"Hey, I was wondering if you guys got lost” She smiled and her gaze focused on Rose who was still behind my back.

" I had an extra load to carry," I mocked, leading Rose over to the empty couch.

" Hey, you promised you'd be nice to me," she complained.

I turned back around, dropping her onto the couch while Amber and Vihn giggled at our little interaction.

" I'm sorry to inform you, but this is your boyfriend's way of being nice, unless he's a different person in college," Vihn sneered.

" And on top of that he's rude. I am Amber Davis, his sister, and this is Vihn Brandon, my boyfriend." Amber introduced herself, and without bothering to answer, I knelt in front of her, taking the boot off her feet, applying a gentle massage to diminish the pain that those kinds of shoes must cause.

" Rose Miller-Campbell, it's a pleasure to meet you," Rose smiled, "it's a relief to know that he's not just an insufferable jerk to me.”

" I am being nice enough to give your foot a massage, even though you made the stupid decision to choose this boot for a twenty-hour trip," I returned.

" Christian, you shouldn't call her stupid," Amber scolded me.

" I said her decision was stupid, that's different " I let go of the foot I was massaging, starting to work on the other one next.

" That's it, Davis. I will never try to look pretty for you again," Rose returned in a dramatic tone.

" As if you have to put any effort into it," I raised my eyes, seeing a small smile appear on her lips at that statement.

" Your girl looks like she could use a nice long bath to rest from her trip, Davis. Take advantage of the fact that every bathroom in this house has a bathtub," Vihn warned.

" Your mother told you to choose any room here, the cottages will be for the other members," Amber added. “Your parents will probably arrive in the early hours of the morning, the others will arrive for breakfast, so you'd better get some rest while you can. Tomorrow you won't have any peace.”

She was right, this was the first time I had seen everyone since I went to college, and the first time I had introduced a girl. Things would be complicated, at least on the first day.

" Come on up, I'll take you, and then I'll get our stuff from the bike" I turned my back to Rose.

" See you tomorrow, Rose," Amber said goodbye.

My brother-in-law stood up in one sudden movement, then stretched, not bothering to undo the braids my sister had put in his hair.

" I'll get it for you," he warned.

" And I'll make you some sandwiches, you must be hungry," Amber added.

I walked up the stairs with Rose on my back, dropping her off in her room before going downstairs to get our belongings. When I returned to the room, Rose was taking a shower. I left the saddlebags on the bed and went downstairs to get the sandwiches that my sister had told me she would make. I found her in the kitchen putting some cheese and salami sandwiches on a plate.

" Thanks for this, Rose must be starving," I approached.

She gave me an amused look, going to the fridge, grabbing three bottles of beer, handing me two of them before opening the third one on the edge of the sink, taking a long sip.

" So... Rose is an interesting girl," she smiled.

" You have no idea," I couldn't contain a small smile.

" Come on, tell me what you did to end up with a girl like that?  " She stared at me.

" I ask myself that all the time, because when I think about it, to this day I still don't understand how she got into my life.” I returned, leaning against her side.

Amber looked at me out of the corner of her eye before taking another sip of her beer.

" The way you talk and look at her, you seem crazy about that girl. And that must be the case, since you brought her along to introduce her to everyone.”

For a second I thought about that sentence. What way do I look at Rose? Is there something different about the way I look?

" I think I'm crazy about her and I'm crazy with her," I shrugged, "I can't explain it, Rose arouses some controversial feelings in me.”

" What do you mean?”

" Most of the time when she's talking I want to bang my head against the wall and tell her to stop being so annoying, and then when she stops talking, I miss her voice.” I decided to exemplify it that way, but the truth is that it happened with every detail about Rose.

Every detail about her seemed designed to irritate me, but I couldn't imagine not having her near me anymore.

" So she irritates you, but you can't stay away from her? Good luck with that," my sister laughed, leaning away from the sink.

" Thanks for the sandwiches," I took the plate and bottles and went upstairs.

Upon entering the room, I found the Saddlebags on an armchair and Rose asleep on her stomach on the bed wearing only a jersey from an unknown Hockey team. For a second I was in doubt whether to wake her up to eat or not, but seeing the peaceful expression on her face, I decided to let her sleep, abandoning the plate of sandwiches and bottles of beer on the bedside table before grabbing from my bag everything I would need for a shower before following her example.

After showering, brushing my teeth, and putting on a pair of sweatpants, I turned out the lights, leaving a small light fixture at the head of the bed on until I lay down. I watched Rose one more time, she hadn't moved, and that made me wonder how it was possible for a person to sleep so soundly that they don't move a single muscle during the night? This was the fourth time the two of us had slept together and it was always like this. She would wake up in exactly the same position as the night before, and it was a little frightening. Putting the subject aside, I pulled a blanket over us to cover us, making sure Rose was warm enough before I turned out the light and closed my eyes, allowing unconsciousness to wash over me.