“Why me?”
I meet her gaze. “Because I see the fight in you. Same fight I’ve been dragging around for years. And it calls to mine.”
The silence now is different. Softer. Like we’ve both stopped running, just for a minute.
She swallows. Then the words come out in a rush, like they’ve been trapped in her chest too long.
“He texted me two days ago,” she says. “Said he found where I am. Said if I don’t go back, he’ll hurt my sister. Nadia.” Her voice trembles, but she keeps going. “He never touched her. Just me.She doesn’t even know. She’ll be back from college soon, and I can’t let him get near her.”
Something cold and lethal settles in my gut.
I draw her closer, forehead resting against hers. “You’re not alone anymore, Ava,” I murmur. “Not now. Not ever. I’ll protect you. And your sister too.”
She exhales, slow and shaky, fingers drifting up to trace the scar on my shoulder like she’s grounding herself in the feel of me.
“And you’re mine now,” I add quietly, the words steady and sure. “Every piece. Every scar. Every heartbeat you give, I’ll guard.”
She doesn’t answer.
She just kisses me like she believes it.
And I know she does.
Chapter 7
Ava
Themorninglightspillsthrough the cabin windows, soft and golden, like it knows what we did last night.
I wake up sore in the best way. Muscles aching, body humming. His arm is draped over my waist, heavy and warm, his chest rising and falling against my back. For a minute, I just lie there, soaking it in. This feeling. This man. Everything that happened.
Then I shift under the covers, turning slowly until I can face him.
He’s still asleep. Peaceful, in a way that seems rare for him. One arm curled under his head, the other still wrapped around me like he never let go. His lashes are too long for someone so dangerous.
I reach down under the blanket and find his cock already half-hard.
My fingers wrap around him gently, stroking slow.
He groans, low in his throat. His eyes crack open, and for a second, there’s nothing but heat.
“Good morning,” I whisper.
He doesn’t answer.
He just flips me onto my back and kisses me like he owns my breath. I open for him, my hands sliding up his broad back, nails digging into the muscles that flex beneath my touch.
He’s heavy on top of me, his rugged body pinning mine to the mattress. Solid and relentless, all that biker strength making my heart race.
He breaks the kiss just long enough to trail his lips down my neck, sucking hard enough to leave marks. I arch up, my hips grinding against his thigh, already wet and aching for him.
His hand cups my breast, thumb rolling over my nipple until it hardens into a tight peak. He pinches it, and I gasp, the sting shooting straight to my core.
“Ava,” he growls against my skin, voice rough as gravel.
That’s all he says before his mouth latches onto my nipple, sucking hard, teeth grazing just enough to make me moan.
His other hand slides down my side, gripping my thigh and pulling it higher around his waist. I feel his cock, fully hard now, sliding through my folds as he rocks his hips.
