Maybe my first instinct about him playing a part while I’m here was right on target.
I am so fucking confused right now.
He accelerates, taking off back toward the clubhouse, just as the coyotes appear behind us and start running after his bike, nipping at the rear tire. Peering over my shoulder, I breathe heavily, watching the rabid animals try to keep up, but eventually they stop the chase, wandering back off into the desert. Letting out a relieved breath as we ride through the Vegas streets, the city lights growing closer with each mile, that’s when I realize I’m in deeper than I thought.
This isn’t simply a story anymore.
It’spersonal.
And I have just let it become even morepersonal.
I let lust overtake me, and I forgot what I’m doing here.
WhoI am doing this for.
If Sin is capable of flipping on a dime, then I have no reason to doubt something sinister happened to my brother, and that’s why any real answers about him are impossible to find.
Sin is hiding something—I just know it.
And I’m going to be the one to bring my brother justice.
You think you can play games, Sin?
Well, you’re just a pawn in my chessboard of control.
But I am declaring…check and mate!
Chapter Seven
ELIZABETH
The Next Day
The clubhouse feels different this morning. Maybe it’s the way the sunlight filters through the windows, softer somehow, or maybe it’s the lingering confusion from last night in the desert that has me seeing everything through a different lens. Sin was nowhere to be found when I arrived, which is probably for the best.
I’m still processing what happened.
How can he kiss me like the world is ending and then pull away like I’m radioactive?
Push and pull.
Hot and cold.
I’m getting whiplash from this man.
I’m nursing my second cup of coffee when Nitro approaches, his usual stoic expression replaced with something lighter. “You busy today, Elizabeth?”
I glance up from my notebook, where I’ve been pretending to write observations while actually replaying every second of Sin’s hands on me. “Depends. What did you have in mind?”
“Monthly field trip. You want to see how we operate? Well, this is part of it.” He jerks his head toward the exit. “Come on. Time to see how bikersreallylike to party.”
Intrigued and a little anxious, I gather my things and follow him outside, where several of the brothers are already mounting their bikes. Ghost, Deek, Bear, Mace, Koa, even Ro in her car—almost the whole crew, minus Sin. I try not to feel disappointed by his absence.
“Whereexactlyare we going?” I ask as Nitro helps me onto the back of his bike.
“You’ll see,” he replies, and there’s something almost tender in his voice that I haven’t heard before.
The ride takes us through a quieter part of Vegas, away from the neon and chaos of The Strip. We pull up to a modest building with a sign that reads “Sunset Manor Senior Living Community.” I blink in confusion as the brothers park their bikes and start pulling various items from their saddlebags.
