A man.
It’s a reflex—now a natural reaction and I start to panic. From my chest tightening to the unsettling sourness in the pit of my stomach.
Though, I’m not the only one to grow stiff as a board because I feel the way his muscles tighten under my touch as he keeps his arms tightly at his sides.
I dart my head up to get a good look at him and when my stare meets his, a recognition slams into me. His piercing dark gaze is trapping mine. But I know those eyes. That blank yet forceful stare.
It’s the man who got me out.
FIVE
Three months ago
Danika
The wound was still raw where he’d burned me. And the initial etched into my skin brought upon both mental and physical pain. I needed the physical aspect of it though because the feeling helped distract me from the emotional one.
The man who rescued me from the car that would’ve taken me to a place I’d suffer daily in, sat next to me. His scent filled the back seat. It was an interesting aroma. Tobacco mixed with pine I supposed.
Up front sat a man from the other MC who aided in the rescue. He was driving us to their private doctor, and he hadn’t glanced back once. I knew because I obsessively watched him.
I compulsively picked at the dried blood on my leg and then stole a glance at the man next to me. He had his hand under his leather cut—which was the only thing he wore considering I was still wearing his shirt, and his other hand rested calmly on his thigh.
His midnight hair was buzzed on the sides and thick on top. He also had high cheek bones and full lips. His nose was straight which fit his face perfectly.
With a slight turn of his head, he paid me a glance in return, and I snapped my head away to look out the window. I wasn’t sure if it was because he had rescued me, or if my intuition told me he wouldn’t hurt me, but I wasn’t afraid of him. I was afraid of the driver, but not him.
When the car stopped, I tensed. Every muscle in my body stiffened as the driver got out to make his way over to my doorfirst. I backed myself away and scurried until I hit the hard body next to me.
I didn’t know his name. They said it. Tequila told me. But I couldn’t remember. My mind was a pool of bad thoughts.
The whisper of his breath traced along my ear. “It’s all right.” His voice was soft and light yet, there was a fierceness hidden within.
When the driver opened my door, a fearful whimper escaped from me.
“Shut it now,” the man’s voice behind me vibrated as he called out the order with such lethalness.
The driver’s eyes widened and hurried to obey the command.
I let out a long-jagged breath. “Thank you,” I managed to say, but I wasn’t sure if I said it aloud or if I thanked him in my head.
We sat for a few minutes in silence until I felt his warmth dissipate.
His door opened, and I peered up at him as he stood blocking the outside world with his body and patiently waiting until I was ready.
I timidly slid out of the backseat and into the world, but the man kept his large frame in between me and the other guy. I was thankful for that.
A woman with short dark hair and a polite smile met us outside wearing a white coat and a stethoscope around her neck. The building itself looked well-kept and honestly it looked like any ordinary doctor's office.
She greeted us, welcoming me inside. “There’s a small waiting area inside for you,” she said to my protector. Honestly, I didn’t know what else to consider him. I assumed that’s why he was here.
I didn’t spare him a glance. The embarrassment was too much to bear. He knew why I was here, which was shameful enough.
She guided me inside an examination room leaving me to change into a thin paper gown. When she came back, I was uncomfortable, and she could tell but she was kind. Gentle. Talked me through everything she was going to do before she did it. Some parts were distressing, but not nearly as bad as what that monster did to me.
She drew my blood along with collecting a urine sample which came back negative for pregnancy, but positive for infection. She ordered a test through bloodwork to be sure. The thought raced inside my head. I couldn’t take on a child. Not like this.
“Okay. I’ll send these off to my lab. We’ll run every possible test there is. And I’ll call you personally with your results.”
