Page 8 of Haven

The Primal Predators were prominent in Crestview with Luke Callahan leading them. He was a prick, and if Rory got taken by them, Cinder would draw blood and go on a fucking warpath, which would cause even more problems. Why would Rory go into enemy territory to get laid? She knew how Cinder felt about Axel.

Cinder was going to kill me, but I’d go rescue my mariposa first.

I found Rory and her hot pink bike at a truck stop a mile away from Devil's territory. When she saw me, her back straightened. “Hey, good lookin’. Care to help a damsel in distress?” Rory asked slyly. Despite myself, I chuckled; she has never been a damsel.

“You’re lucky I didn’t tell Cinder. What the fuck were you thinking?”

She huffed. “I was thinking I wanted some adventure before I gnawed my arms off from boredom.” She sighed, resting her head against me, revealing the love bites and hickeys.

“Who did that?” My fingers brushed against her skin where a trail of four hickeys rested on her collarbone. “And when was the last time you slept?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know?” she teased. “I had sex. I slept yesterday, so I’m fine. I’m in a good headspace, V. I wanted to do something, and I got lucky.”

Rory had a knack for doing impulsive things when she was sleep-deprived, so I wondered if she’d made a mistake with whoever she hooked up with tonight. “Was the woman you hooked up with single? Maybe an angry partner decided to hit you with their car for fucking their girl.”

Rory stepped back, her blue eyes squinting at me. “You know, the jealousy would be hot if you’d make a move, V. She hit on me first, then took me home and fucked me into oblivion. So no, it wasn’t a partner who tried to hit me.”

I popped my trunk and pushed her down as I inspected the road rash on her shoulder and back. Her leather jacket was shredded, which would raise suspicion later. I decided I’d buy her a new one. There were some things I knew for first aid, but I wasn’t a doctor. My knowledge was in chemistry, forensics, and some basic medical knowledge. I put myself through EMT school when I was seventeen. I hated working on a rig, but I did it part-time when I was in college getting my bachelor’s in forensics.

The tension was thick, but I pushed it aside. I needed to make sure she was okay. “You’ll have to wear sleeves unless you want to explain to the Vipers what happened and tell Cinder what you were doing.”

Rory ran her fingers through her pink hair, sighing. “She wants to protect her. I’m not Aurora anymore, and that’s all she sees. If I try talking to her, she gets upset. I don’t enjoy arguing with her because she doesn’t deserve the brunt of my irritation for just being my sister. I’m not made of glass, and I can protect myself.”

“Babe, you’re always in danger in this life. She loves you; she just wants to make sure you’re safe. We all do.”

“I’m the sister of Ella ‘Cinder’ Bourgeois. I’m not in danger.” She scoffed. “I can’t have sex with the wrong person because she won’t let anyone touch me. God forbid I fall in love with any of her friends.”

I smiled, remembering when I met Rory. I was twenty-three and just initiated as a Viper after leaving my ex and burying my best friend. Rory was eighteen and two months post-suicide attempt. She was in a bad headspace, but there were plenty of people in the clubhouse who helped her heal. Rory talked little in the beginning, so I did, too. I had the personality of something between a middle-aged man who told corny dad jokes and a depressed tween who made dark jokes about her own trauma, but it made Rory smile.

“Just stop going to enemy territory. Now, am I taking you home or is your bike good?”

She jumped from my Escalade and walked to her bike, squatting down and making sure I got a full view of her ass. “I’ll have to fix the chrome and maybe do a few mechanical things when I wake up, but she should be fine.”

“Good. Then get your ass home, mariposa.”

Rory grabbed the edge of my trunk door, her body close to mine as a smile crept onto her face. “You've got something on your face,” she whispered. I arched my brow, wiping my cheeks. “Nope, it’s right here.”

“Rory.”

“Please?” she asked, stopping as her lips hovered over mine. She was asking my permission, and I should tell her no. We were already pushing the boundaries of what was allowed.

“Quickly.”

She smirked, pressing her lips to mine. The kiss was chaste, and not nearly enough. “I was just thanking my knight in leather with a kiss. Don’t tell Cinder.”

“Get back to the clubhouse, mariposa.”

Rory was going to get me into trouble.

And if I wasn’t careful, I was going to let her.

Eight

Unknown

Iwrapped the rope around my fist, feeling the sting of pain as the surrounding skin turned red and raw. This was my chance. She was away from her sister for hours with that other woman. I could have taken her, but I was entranced. There was nothing little about her anymore. She had luscious legs, and huggable curves, and a body that was waiting and begging just for me. Her lips were plump and full, ready to scream my name, not that whore’s. I should kill the whore first, but I needed her to make my plans work.

I thought back to my obsession. I would have her soon, but not yet. She would be mine.