“Tate’s going to be fine. It’s a long road ahead, but we can talk about that later. Right now…” I paused, pushing out another breath. “Right now, I’d like to take you somewhere. There’s someone I need you to meet.”
“Who?”
“You’ll see.”
“On one condition.”
“That figures,” I whispered back, trying not to smirk.
“Well, you can’t really drive like that, but I know you’re gonna try. So I’m taking the option away.”
“Always so bossy,” I said through a smile. “Sweetheart, I know I can be an idiot, but just trust me sometimes, okay?”
I pulled my hand out of my pocket and wrapped it around hers, making sure the fingers of her good hand were intertwined with mine. Keeping her close to me as I took thelead, I didn't acknowledge her mutterings behind my back, but I could imagine her frown as I struggled to keep my pace faster than was probably sensible of me.
When we walked back into the bar, I headed for the door where Harry was standing with the keys to the van swinging around his finger.
Ayda came to a stop beside me, and I cast a sideways glance her way, raising a brow.
“Our carriage awaits, milady.”
“You’re such a gentleman.” She laughed with a small curtsey. “Whisk me away, Prince Charming.”
“I might struggle with the whisking, but I’m sure Harry will be happy to carry you down the steps if you need it.” I held up my hand for her to take, acting like the big bad biker prince she expected me to be as I grinned and waited. “No questions until we get there, okay?”
“I promise.”
As soon as she reached out and accepted my hold, I walked her out into the daylight and soaked up the clean air. It felt like a lifetime since I’d been out there, breathing in the world around me rather than the smell of medicines, whiskey, cigarette smoke and leather. I was already feeling cleansed with every breath I inhaled.
Ayda stayed true to her word the whole journey, never asking a question, even though she made no attempt to hide the fact that she wanted to. Her constant fidgeting, chewing of nails and jigging of her legs gave her away, but every time I looked her way and smiled, she straightened up and smiled right back. We were both nervous about what we were about to do—her because she didn’t know what that was, and me because I knew exactly where we were heading.
This was something that had the ability to make me sweat without having to lift a single muscle in my body.
The closer we got to our destination, the more I found myself sucking in breaths and blowing them out a little too loudly. I kept glancing from left to right, inspecting the town around us as we drove down street after street after street. Harry didn’t say much, either. He was fucking good like that. He knew when to talk and he knew when to stay silent. He also knew just how big this was for me, and I was convinced he was expecting me to yell for him to stop and turn around at any moment.
But that wasn’t going to happen. Even though I was nervous, I was ready. I was more ready than I’d ever been.
When the van eventually slowed and reached its destination, my heart dropped into the very depths of my stomach. I leaned forward in the front of the van, rubbing my palms over the tops of my thighs, making an ‘O’ shape with my mouth as I tried to find a steady rhythm to my breathing.
“We’re here,” I whispered, slowly turning to see her face. Ayda’s eyes glanced all around us as she took it all in. There was nothing for miles around, just empty fields with a few trees scattered here and there. Her eyes were wide as she tried to work out what was going on, until she turned to face me and stared deep into mine again. “We’re here,” I repeated quietly.
“Where’s here?” she asked almost shyly as she reached out for me.
I glanced at Harry over her shoulder, but he was facing forward, his eyes closed as he took in this moment for what it was. I had no doubt he was praying.
Looking back at Ayda again, I took her hand and held it gently. “Here is where Pete is.”
“But—” Her eyes flickered to the window and back before dropping to her lap. “I thought he was in the cemetery, where my parents are.”
“That’s where his body is.” I looked back out at the overgrown land that meant more to me than I’d ever admitted out loud before. The feelings of longing and loss hit me at just the merest glimpse of it, and I began to wonder if I could do this, until I spotted the place I wanted to take her, and all the determination I felt earlier came flooding back. “But this is where my brother Pete is. This is where he rests.”
I found the door handle and pulled it back before I began to push the thing open. The smell of my childhood wrapped itself around me and I took a second to do what Harry was doing before I turned back to Ayda and looked up at her through cautious eyes.
“Will you come with me? I’ll explain everything out there.”
She didn’t hesitate. Her nod was immediate as her body carried her forward. “There’s nowhere I’d rather be than with you.”
When we were both standing on solid ground, I pulled her closer and pressed my lips to her forehead. It was purely selfish. It was all for me. I needed to find some strength to go through with it, and I found it the second my lips touched her skin.
