Everything.He needed to know everything she would to tell him.The question was how to make her feel safe enough to share?How could he show her the Angels were not the same class of men as the Crows.Hawkeye had to wonder why the Crows hadn’t treated her like the rest of the women, but he didn’t know if he would ever get a satisfactory answer.He wondered why the other woman had been so hostile to her.Because the Crows had treated her differently?He couldn’t wrap his head around either dilemma, other than knowing that both groups had to be eliminated, for different but not dissimilar reasons.
First, they had to get everyone to the safe house, and out of Eagle’s Rest safely, then figure out exactly what they’d walked into.Hawkeye’s fingers itched to get to a computer where he hoped to work a little magic.Short of that, he’d enlist Pike to help, and if he had to, he’d reach out to a couple of men he could trust for more help.The more hands and eyes doing the looking, the faster they could find what they needed.Plus, each man had a specialty, something they were better at cracking than the others.Hawkeye had learned that dividing up tasks along the lines of who was best at what didn’t just increase the group’s capabilities but multiplied them.
Before he could do that, he had to get them to West Yellowstone.Once they were there, he could reach out to his contacts and at least get them started.Then he would sit down with Delilah and get every detail.He suspected the woman at his back, the one who started every ride clinging to him like a koala, then slowly relaxing the longer they rode, was far stronger than he was.But then, wasn’t that true about most women?
Chapter Twelve
Delilah didn’t knowhow long they’d been on the motorcycle when it slowed for what felt like the hundredth time, but she’d long since given up that they would be pulling off any time soon.She took a deep breath and leaned a little closer to Hawkeye, enjoying the warmth that emanated from him, keeping the cold wind from freezing her into a block of solid ice.Resigned to more hours on the back of the motorcycle, she didn’t even lift her head from where it rested against his upper back when they stopped.It was just another stop light.It wasn’t until he killed the engine and the vibrating beneath her numb butt stopped that she opened her eyes and looked around.
This wasn’t a stop light.They weren’t anywhere she recognized.They were inside somewhere—he’d driven his motorcycle inside, as had several others.As she looked around, she thought there weren’t as many motorcycles in the room as had been on the road with them.
“We’re here, you can hop off now,” Hawkeye patted her thigh.
Delilah tried to push herself up and swing her leg over the back like she’d done to get on, but her legs wouldn’t cooperate.Finally, she collapsed back onto the seat.
“I don’t think I can.My legs don’t want to work.”
She heard a low chuckle and if it wasn’t for the way his back vibrated against her, she might not have known it was Hawkeye.
“That’s okay, not surprising.Give me a second and I’ll help you.”He dismounted, and she could tell he was being careful not to kick her as he lifted his leg over the seat, then turned to face her.“Tilt up.”He tapped the side of the helmet she wore with one finger.She held still as he removed the helmet.Once it was off, she couldn’t resist the need to shake her head and roll her neck without the extra weight.
“All right.You ready for this?It won’t be pleasant.I’ll need to hold on to you pretty tight, because I think your legs might not hold you for a couple of minutes.”He kept his eyes on her face, and she got the feeling he was watching for her to balk.
Delilah wasn’t sure why, but something about the big man made her feel safe.She hadn’t felt safe in years.Not since she was a kid.She met his gaze and fought the voice in her head that yelled not to.She needed to know her place.She had no business looking him in the face like an equal.
For the first time, she realized the voice wasn’t hers.Sometimes it was her father’s, sometimes it was Warren’s ...never her own.Why?She didn’t know but she was ready to be done with them, in her head as well as in person.
“I’m ready,” she said, doing her best to sound confident and self-assured, even if she didn’t feel it.She could only hope that in time, she’d start feeling the way she tried to appear.
He watched her for a second more, then leaned close and hooked an arm around her waist and plucked her off the bike as if she weighed no more than a feather.Delilah knew better than that, but she didn’t say anything, instead she bit the inside of her lip to keep from letting out a squeak of surprise as he lifted her free of the bike, then lowered her until her feet touched the ground.
She tried to put her feet down and stand, and she managed it for a split second before her knees gave and she started to fall.Out of instinct, she closed her eyes.Falling on what had looked like bare cement was going to hurt and she didn’t want to see it coming.But it never came.The arm around her middle tightened again, catching her.
“See?”
She opened her eyes to find him looking down at her, an amused glint lighting his eyes.She didn’t know if she should be grateful he’d caught her or angry he was laughing at her.“Give it a minute or two for the circulation to return, then you’ll be fine.If you spend more time on the bike, you’ll get used to it and this won’t happen so much.Not that I mind helping when you need it.”
