Total pages in book: 135
Estimated words: 124451 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 622(@200wpm)___ 498(@250wpm)___ 415(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 124451 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 622(@200wpm)___ 498(@250wpm)___ 415(@300wpm)
“I ummm … holy fuck, Killer,” I mutter, closing the door behind me and flipping on the lights. “I swear, I fucking love you, but if you don’t take that thing off, you’re gonna see a grown man cry and I really don’t want that to happen. This visual is already scarred in my mind.”
Bri laughs as she loosens the buckle for the harness, letting the whole contraption slip down her thighs, the dildo hitting the ground with a heavy thump. “Relax,” she tells me, stepping out of the harness, her heels gently clicking against the tiles as she makes her way over to me. Her hand presses against my chest as she reaches up to brush a kiss over my lips. “I’m just fucking with you.”
I let out a heavy breath and take her waist, pulling her in hard against me. “I hope that doesn’t mean you’re not down to fuck because you look like a goddamn meal in this,” I say, my hands roaming over her body and grabbing a perfect handful of ass.
“You’re damn right, I am,” she says just as a message pops up on my phone.
I ignore it, determined to get my fill of Bri, but a second message comes in followed by a third. “Fuck, sorry, babe,” I say, slipping my hand into my pocket and pulling out my phone once again. I find three texts from Mom and my brows furrow before a slight panic sears through my chest.
I spoke to her just before Jax demanded to throw a party tonight, and when I did, she mentioned something about wanting to chat with our lawyer about pushing through the custody arrangement. She feels we’ve already missed enough time with our newest addition.
Quickly checking her messages, I open them up only to be blindsided by the photographs of me inside that Hope Falls house, staring at a boy’s lifeless body as one of the Hardin brothers lays on top of the little boy’s mother, forcing her legs apart.
Bile rises in my throat but I force myself to read the accompanying messages.
Mom - Get your ass home.
Mom - NOW.
Chapter 29
TANNER
My palms sweat as I pull my bike into the driveway with Bri plastered against my back. My head hasn’t stopped spinning since the second Mom’s texts came through, and I’m not so proud to admit I was forced to run to the bathroom and throw up everything in my stomach.
I’ve been dreading this moment since I was fourteen, and I’ve avoided it like the fucking plague. But here it is, right on my fucking doorstep, staring me in the face. There’s no going back now. I promised Bri I would come clean, that I’d finally talk to Mom about this and learn how to move past it, but the very thought of it has crippled me to the point of physical pain.
It killed me letting her know I was the father of Rachael’s child. I’ve never wanted to disappoint her, and while she took it in stride and held her head high, I knew a part of her was breaking. She’s always feared I would fuck up and lose myself in the process, but now that she’s seen how bad my mistakes are, nothing will ever be the same between us.
Knowing I can’t sit out here all night, I take a shaky breath and cut the engine. Bri releases her hold around my waist and climbs off my bike, hovering close as I do the same. “You’re going to be okay,” she murmurs, taking her helmet off and hanging it over the handlebar with mine. “She’s going to be broken, but just know that it can’t get worse than this. Once the words come out and she has time to process, it will get easier.”
I look up, meeting her stare. “You sure about that?”
Bri presses her lips into a tight line. “No,” she admits. “But I wasn’t about to tell you that you’re about to break your mother’s heart and that she’ll never forgive you. Positive thinking, Tanner.”
“Right,” I mutter, hitting the remote for the automatic garage door. It slowly begins to roll up and I start pushing my bike inside. Half of me wants to get this over and done with while the other part of me desperately wishes to get back on this bike and never come back. Though, I’d have to take Bri with me because there’s no way in hell I’d leave her behind. Hell, I might even send Addie the occasional postcard. Maybe a text if I’m feeling generous.
“Come on,” Bri says, seeing the hesitation in my eyes. “Like a Band-Aid.”
I nod. “I’ve always hated that metaphor.”
“Well, tough shit,” she says. “Get a move on. Your Mom probably heard your bike from a mile away, and now she’s sitting in there wondering why you’re being such a bitch and not walking through her door.”