Total pages in book: 29
Estimated words: 26853 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 134(@200wpm)___ 107(@250wpm)___ 90(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 26853 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 134(@200wpm)___ 107(@250wpm)___ 90(@300wpm)
“Nine long fucking years.” I cocked my head to the side the slightest bit. “Is that a deal breaker for you?”
Blakely snorted. “Prison? God, no. If I were a normal woman, it probably would be, but I’m not normal.” My lips quirked with a smile. I swore she was the only woman capable of making me smile this easily. Hell, to be real, she was the only person. “If you don’t mind me asking, what’d you go in for?”
I cut into my steak. “Grand theft and arson. Stole a car and got caught burning down a house.” I shrugged one shoulder. “I was doing what I could to try to support my brothers.”
Surprise lit up her eyes. “You have brothers?”
I nodded. “Five of them, though we’re not blood-related. We were in the system together. Met through the group home we all got tossed into.”
Her eyes softened. “You had it rough.” When I nodded, she reached across the table and gently clasped her fingers around my wrist. “We all have our demons, Jax. I have mine, too.”
“What happened to you?” I bluntly asked her. I wasn’t the best at conversation, but somehow, I knew she wouldn’t take offense to that. Fuck, she hadn’t taken offense to anything I’d ever done or said to her. Blakely was…it was like she was made for me.
She released my wrist and picked up her fork again. “I did time in juvie when I was sixteen. My mom’s boyfriend got handsy with me when my mom was too drunk to cooperate with him, and I beat the fuck out of him with a baseball bat.”
I grinned at her, pride swelling in my chest. “Good for you for taking care of yourself.”
She smiled. “I grew up in a shitty home. Learning to defend myself was necessary for survival. And honestly, that time I spent in juvie was the best few months of my childhood.”
I grabbed her hand in mine. “The next time a man tries to touch you, you let me know. I’ll finish him for you.”
Her eyes went all hazy. “Yeah?” she rasped. My cock hardened behind my zipper.
“Yeah, sweet girl,” I growled. I stroked my thumb along the inside of her wrist, her pulse fluttering rapidly right beneath the skin. I couldn’t get enough of how much I affected her. It was damn near addicting. “I’ll always protect you.”
Blakely’s arms loosened around my waist as I slowed down to pull into the gas station, parking behind an old, beat-up, maroon car at the pumps. Blakely slid off and removed her helmet, handing it to me. “I need to use the restroom. Do you want me to pay while I’m inside?”
I shook my head as I swung my leg over the bike, setting our helmets on the seat afterward. “Nah, sweet girl. Go on and do what you need.”
She walked past the maroon car, glancing inside of it, but then her steps faltered, her eyes widening in horror. Immediately, I was on the move. “Blakely—”
She swung horror-filled eyes to mine, her face pale. “Jax…”
I grasped her wrist, tugging her behind me as I glanced into the car.
“Oh, fuck,” I muttered. I would know that face anywhere.
Amaliya Balakin—the daughter of the Bratva Pakhan.
Amaliya was bound, her arms behind her back, and her ankles pulled behind her to be bound with her wrists, making it harder for her to escape or do anything to her captor. She was awake, but the vacant stare in her eyes was a clear sign that she was drugged. I wasn’t even sure if she was aware she had an audience of two staring at her.
I turned to Blakely, my mind already scrambling to form a plan. I couldn’t leave Amaliya here. “Can you drive a motorcycle?” I asked Blakely.
She shook her head. I cursed and pinched the bridge of my nose, trying to think of a plan. I had to get that girl out of the backseat and get her to safety. I had no doubt she was the reason the Bratva were in town, disrupting our peace.
She’d been fucking kidnapped. And the Pakhan was no doubt on the hunt for her.
“How good are your defense skills?” I asked as I looked toward the store. We had a tiny window of time to get this girl out of here, and I was going to have to steal the damn car to do it.
Fuck my life.
“On point,” Blakely assured me. “What do you need me to do?”
“Provide a distraction,” I told her. “I’m going to push the bike into the woods over there.” I nodded my head in the direction of the woods beside the store. “Then, I’m going to steal the car.” I handed her my phone. “Give me yours.” She frowned but handed me her device. “My passcode is three-nine-seven-four. When I get the hell out of here, get somewhere safe and call Arlo. He’ll come get you and bring you to the clubhouse.”