“I was so scared.”
“Shock wasn’t going to let her go. The threat has been taken care of,” he says against my neck as I feel him moving.
He sits on the sofa and holds me to his body as I sob.
“I was so scared you wouldn’t come back.” The words slip out, and his arms flex slightly before he lifts my chin and kisses me deeply.
“It would take an act of God for me not to come back to you.” His voice cracks.
I lean in to initiate the kiss this time.
A throat clears, and we come apart. Miner is standing there.
“I was going to leave you both to it, but the timer is going off on the stove, and I don’t know anything about what you’re cooking. Plus, it smells too good for me to leave.” He chuckles deep.
I try to squirm from Ry’s lap, but he doesn’t want to let me go. He finally does, and I get up.
“Heard it was close. The gang showed up. The doc is on his way to Shock’s to check what they gave her,” Miner says, and I can’t help but eavesdrop on the conversation.
“We got away, and we probably neutralized some of them too. But to be betrayed like that is the worst. Goat was an original founding member.”
I hear the hurt and pain in Rylan’s voice.
“Gunny had a friend of his check over Fezzik. He’s good.”
“Gunny still with the girl?” Rylan asks Miner.
“Yep, won’t leave her side. She should be discharged in the next week.”
“I want guards on her for him.”
“He’s already asked.”
“Good.”
I can feel Ry’s eyes on me, and I turn to see him watching me as I finish off dinner.
The thought of being betrayed by someone he trusts hurts him so much. It makes me think of the secrets I still haven’t told him. He might know I have a shitty past and that I’m on the run, but he has no idea what Silas is capable of. He doesn’t know thatmy father is among some of the most powerful and influential men. He has no clue about the worst of it. I’m keeping those secrets, and I worry about what he’ll do when he finds out. Will my betrayal be worse than Goat’s? My heart clenches the way it always does when I think of Rylan and our future.
My watch pings, and I look down at the message. It’s from a burner phone. I know who it is instantly.
Unknown Number
Someone is pinging your new name. I blocked them, but be careful.
It’s proof that I need to step back before he falls for me.
Kodiak
She’s pulling away, and I don’t know why. I want her to stay the night, but she tells me she has work to do. I give her the space because my adrenaline is so high right now, I might do something stupid, like kidnap her and fly her out to a remote cabin so I can make her mine completely.
My heart and body ache as I watch Miner drive her home. I couldn’t do it because Vortex has some information for me. I’m heading to the clubhouse to meet with him.
As soon as I walk into the club, a couple of bear baits look me up and down. I ignore them and head through the back to my office and the club’s private areas. Vortex is waiting outside my office door.
“Someone is looking into your girl. I tried to stop it, but it was blocked by someone else,” Vortex says by way of greeting.
“Fuck. Do we think it’s the father or his guard?”
