“You okay?”she asked.
He turned, caging her in without touching.Water ran between them, heat rising fast.
“You keep doing that,” he said.“Asking like I’m the fragile one.”
The question was valid, though.He’d only known her for a few days and he was already hooked on her.
She lifted her chin.“Maybe you are,” she teased.
Something like a laugh escaped him before he kissed her again.He took his time, enjoying the familiar taste of her.He used his hands to explore the gorgeous curves of her body, loving every inch of it.Reaper had to force himself to stop.
He pulled away, not missing the disappointment on her face.If they continued, he was probably going to keep her in his room all day long.Maybe later, Reaper decided, after they’d both had breakfast.
After showering and getting dressed, Reaper offered to treat her to breakfast.He took her to a small place off the highway.A diner that had greasy booths and chipped mugs, the kind of place that didn’t ask questions.She slid into the seat across from him, hair still damp, bright eyes that made his pulse thud.
They ate in silence at first.
Then she said, “You knew that guy at the hospital.”
He didn’t pretend not to understand.He leaned back, exhaled slowly.“Yeah.”
She hesitated, then finally asked, “Are you ...ex-cartel?”
“Yeah,” he said simply.
The word should have ended the conversation, but it didn’t.Instead, Reaper surprised them both by continuing.He told her more than he’d ever told anyone before.About being recruited young, before he’d really understood what he was agreeing to.
He told her about the violence, the loyalty demanded at gunpoint, and the things he’d done just to survive another day.Reaper didn’t soften it or excuse it.Then he told her about Tiffany and how she’d betrayed him.He just told the truth.
Reaper had never been much of a talker.He’d always preferred to keep the past where it belonged, locked in a dark room in his mind, sealed tight and never opened.However, with Elena the words came easier than they should have.He found himself wanting her to understand him, wanting to know her just as deeply in return.
So she told him about her own past.About being shuffled from one foster home to another, never staying long enough to feel safe.She had learned early not to rely on anyone, and through it all, she’d held onto one steady dream—becoming a nurse.
“You sure are something, Elena,” he murmured.
She flushed and shook her head slightly.“You don’t need to say it like that.My story’s not uncommon,” she said quickly.
“Yeah,” he said quietly, reaching for her hand.“But most kids raised in the foster system don’t always make it out.You did.You clawed your way out.”
He lifted her hand and pressed a slow, deliberate kiss to her knuckles.
****
Elena loved early morningswith Reaper.The low rumble of the bike beneath her as he drove her to the hospital.
Yesterday had changed something between them.She felt it in the way his touch lingered at her waist when she climbed on his Harley, in the way he kissed her so passionately as if he didn’t want to let her go.
She never would have imagined herself falling fast and hard for a biker.Especially not one with blood in his past and danger stitched into every line of his life.And yet, here she was.
She leaned into him as the bike cut through morning traffic, helmet pressed lightly against his back.Part of her knew she should be nervous, should still be looking over her shoulder.However, it seemed the cartel had gone quiet.
Days had passed with familiar monotony.It felt like the storm had finally moved on.Some of her coworkers had noticed Reaper.A few nurses had warned her in hushed voices to be careful, to not get too close to an MC man.Elena had listened politely, then ignored every word.
None of them knew him.They didn’t know the man who watched her like a hawk.Or the way he’d spoken about his past, stripped of bravado, honest and raw.They didn’t know how carefully he touched her, like he was afraid of breaking something precious.
Deep down, she knew Reaper was a good man.A dangerous one, sure, but he was good where it counted.She was even beginning to imagine a future with him.Especially now that the cartel had finally lost interest in her.
Reaper slowed the bike as Mercy General came into view.He pulled into his usual spot and cut the engine.The sudden silence rang loud in her ears.
