The excitement and elation on her face did not help to convince him that this wasn’t a dream. Sandy had convinced him to get some sleep last night before rushing back to Scottsboro. While he had needed the rest, and she hadn’t argued with the pillow wall he’d built between them, Ghost hadn’t planned on sleeping that long. His internal clock should have woken him up at five in the morning, and for all the days for it to not? When he’d opened his eyes to see it was nearly seven, he’d grabbed his boots, keys, and wallet and run from the room without even telling Sandy ‘goodbye’ or ‘thank you’.
He had several missed calls from Keys, and if he didn’t know how exhausted he’d already been when he laid down last night, he’d question how he could have slept through all those too. But Keys had insisted the club could handle things on their own without Ghost, and Ghost had other priorities. Like evading speed traps and making a two hour and forty minute trip in only two hours. A record which he did not end up making because mother nature forced him to stop and he had to do stupid human things like eat and brush his teeth or risk not surviving the trip back to her.
So there certainly was an argument to be made that he was still dreaming, he hadn’t overslept, and he was about to be woken up by his internal clock just before Becks leapt into his arms. But that fucking cape? Yeah, no fucking way he dreamed up that shit. He was definitely, definitely awake.
Ghost put a hand out to stop her. He’d seen enough of the club’s ol’ ladies do the running leap into their man’s arms to know it had been coming. Becks barely skidded to a halt in time to avoid colliding into him. Not that it would have mattered, he would have caught her regardless.
“What the fuck are you wearing?”
Becks blinked, her happiness draining slightly. “What?” She looked down at her chest. “Oh, it’s this stupid fucking capeRitchie insisted I wear in front of his bosses. They’re really uptight about women being too ‘promiscuous’,” she added with air quotes. “It unbuttons in the back. I can—” Becks’ eyes widened at the snap of his blade.
Ghost ran his knife from the high collar to the flare that went to her mid-abdomen. “Fucking crime to cover up your tits, Rebel.”
Becks watched, speechless, as the silky off-white garment fell off her shoulders and down to the floor by her fancy skirts.
Ghost flipped his knife closed and pocketed it. “Much better. By any chance, are you endeavoring to become a runway bride?”
She smiled up at him. “Actually, I’ve been left at the altar.”
A flash of rage hit Ghost like a sledgehammer to the chest. “The fuck?!” he shouted, not caring whose attention he drew. “I’ll kill him! No one disrespects you like that!”
Surprisingly, though, Becks laughed. She reached for his hands, which were balled into tight fists. “Ghost, it’s fine! Look at me,” she pressed, urging him to meet her entrancing eyes. “It’sfine.”
Ghost twisted his wrists to lace her fingers between his. His rage tamped down to anger at her touch, not her words. “What do you mean ‘it’s fine’, Becks? He left you at the altar!” Ghost wasn’t angry at the situation, but on her behalf. His wants and desires aside, he wouldn’t stand foranyone, including himself, to ever hurt this woman.
She stepped closer, letting go of his left hand to cup the side of his face. “I’ve been feeling off all morning… Actually, no,” she corrected herself. “I’ve been feeling off since you drove away yesterday. I was wrong to tell you to go, Ghost. I do love Ritchie, but I don’t want to marry him. And what I feel for you… It’s so different and so strong. It scared me, Ghost, and I panicked.”
His free hand went to her waist, dragging her even closer to him. “You’re fucking this up for me, you know.”
Becks blinked rapidly. “Excuse me? I’m trying to tell you I have feelings for you, and you tell me that I’m fucking this upfor you?”
He cracked a smile, loving her outburst. It was fucking adorable. “I was coming to stop your wedding, Becks. To tell you that you shouldn’t be marrying him.” He didn’t know if it was where they were or her dress or the look in her eyes, but he knew his next words feltright, even if they were spontaneous. “I came to tell you that you should be marryingme.”
The shock on her face caused her cheeks to flush beautifully. “Are you serious?”
“I’ve never been more serious,” Ghost told her honestly. “Marry me, Rebecca I-Don’t-Know-Your-Middle-Name Fremont. I started falling for you after aday. Can you imagine how in love with you I’ll be a year from now?”
“The fuck?”came from down the hallway before Becks could reply. Looking over her shoulder, she saw her brother storming towards them. She’d completely forgotten about their audience. Thankfully, they were nowhere near the sanctuary where all the guests, including friends and family, were gathered to see her get married today.
Well, with Ghost’s proposal, they might still get to see that.Marriage? She barely knew Ghost. She’d been dating Ritchie for seven months before he proposed, and even that had felt like a fast-paced, whiplash romance. In comparison, she’d been going at a snail’s pace.
But there was no comparison. Not really. Her relationship with Ritchie had felteasy, like she’d been settling. This morning aside, she would have called him dependable, predictable, andeven boring at times. And she’d needed that. It was agoodrelationship, and yeah, he could be a bit of an ass at times, but everyone had their bad days.
With Ghost, though, Becks feltseen. They weren’t even dating, and he’d shown her just a glimpse of how he would cherish her. Bossy, absolutely, but she had just enough of a brat in her to enjoy teasing that side of him. The way he made her body sing without ever having kissed her… Becks didn’t want boring. She didn’t want to settle. She wanted fun and excitement and to know that her man would tear down the world for her.
“Stay out of this, Ranger. This is between me and your sister.” The authority in Ghost’s voice soaked her panties. Jesus Christ, what would it be like if he turned that voiceon her?
“Oh yeah?” her brother threw back at him. He wasn’t even attempting to keep his voice down. “How about the prostitute you paid a thousand dollars to last night? Were you planning on bringing her into this too?”
Becks’ heart sank.What?He’d left last night, and what? Made a detour at some truck stop to sleep with a lot lizard? She wasn’t so sheltered that she didn’t know such things existed, but it still grossed her out. Had he at least used protection?
Ghost’s hold on her tightened. She hadn’t even realized she’d started to pull away from him until she felt his resistance. “Fucking Keys,” Ghost snapped. “Is that what all those calls overnight were about?”
“He was fucking worried about you!” Liam shot back at him. “And he called me this morning to know if I knew where you were and what you were doing—or should I saywhoyou were doing—or if it was a fraud charge.”
“Fuck.” Ghost lifted his hand from Becks’ waist to rub the back of his neck, but when he spoke, he looked at her rather than her brother. “Trust me, it’s not what it looks like.”
Becks wasn’t sure what else it could be, but she also was logical enough to realize that she was standing in a church where she’d intended to marry another man. Did she really have a leg to stand on? It wasn’t like they were committed to each other or made any promises. She’d sent him away. But damn, it hurt knowing he’d been with another woman last night.
