“Night, baby,” I heard him call. He knew I was running away from him. He’d allow me this for the time being, but I knew it wouldn’t last forever.
When my phone rang with a call from Jill an hour later, I smiled, excited to catch up with her. I’d been reading in bed after having a hard time falling asleep.
“Hi, there,” I greeted warmly.
Her reply was full of concern. “Hi, Soph.”
I sat up straighter in bed at hearing her worried tone, knowing immediately that something was wrong. “What happened?”
“Some men were here looking for you,” she told me.
“What?” I demanded.
“They looked sort of like your friends…” She trailed off. “So at first I thought it was okay.”
“What do you mean they looked like my friends?” I asked, confused.
“They looked like bikers. At first I thought maybe they were the same guys who were here last week.”
My blood chilled as I tried to understand what the hell was going on.
“They didn’t bother you?” I asked, immediately concerned for her safety.
“No – they went straight for your door. Do you know who they were?”
“No idea. Did you see any names on any of them?”
“The Black something or other? At least I think that’s what their jackets said.”
I knew of the Black Riders through the Knights, but I didn’t have any idea why the hell they’d be looking for me.
“Did they take anything?” I asked, my teeth biting at my lip nervously.
“No, they were in and out really fast. I heard one guy say , ’she isn’t here’.”
“Shit,” I whispered.
“Are you safe?” she asked worriedly.
“Clearly safer than if I had stayed,” I sighed. “I’m okay, Jill. Axel’s taking good care of us.”
“I’m glad. You deserve it,” she replied quietly. “Keep me in the loop of what you find out and kiss that baby for me.”
“Thanks, I will.” I hung up, trying to calm my raging nerves.
I was suddenly frantic to check on Maddox. Though rationally, I knew he was sleeping soundly in his crib, I had to lay eyes on him.
I stood over his crib for an indeterminable amount of time just watching his little chest rise and fall. My mind was racing thinking that we could have still been there and what that could have meant.
When Axel’s warm hands gently gripped my upper arms from behind, I jumped about a mile in the air, letting out a squeak of alarm. I turned to him, my eyes wide, hand over my heart. “I didn’t hear you,” I whispered.
“What are you doing in here? Is he okay?” he asked, his eyes shooting beyond me to the crib.
“He’s fine,” I whispered, my voice hoarse and before I even thought about it, I was throwing my arms around him, burying my face in his neck. My body shook with emotion as I clung to him.
He scooped me up without another word and carried me into his room, depositing me on the bed and crawling up over me, effectively caging me in. Instead of the posture scaring me, his weight and closeness soothed my raging nerves.
“What is it?” His expression was tight as he peered down into my face.
